The-Sims-3
Latest
Sims 3 adding pets this fall; standalone game for consoles and 3DS
With The Sims 3's latest expansion, Generations, launching this week, it's time for EA to announce the next installment: Pets. The title will be an "entirely new standalone game" on Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo 3DS. It'll be a standard expansion on PC and Mac. The Sims 3: Pets will give players direct control over the creatures and even allow breeding and sharing. The Xbox 360 version will have Kinect capabilities, allowing players to control "their pets and Sims" using voice commands. Like, and this is in the press release: "telling their Sim to be romantic." Take a moment to think it through. ... Awkward, right? For the Nintendo 3DS, Pets will use the built-in pedometer to add more "Karma Points" the more the player walks. The points can be used on in-game items. Using the 3DS's StreetPass players can gift pets to other Pets owners. Oh, also, if you don't make at least one crazy lady with hundreds of cats in the neighborhood, you're playing The Sims wrong.%Gallery-125274%
Sims 3: Generations trailer introduces the world's worst teenagers
If hooking up in the hot tub isn't your ultimate end-game in The Sims 3, then you might want to check out Generations, the latest expansion. Now it's your mid-life crisis instead of just another Tuesday! It's all about experiencing life's major moments, like raising lawn-hating teenagers.
The Sims 3: Generations expansion pack sprouts in spring
The Sims are getting ready for some cross-generational play this spring. Wow, that opening line could be totally misinterpreted. Anyway, the latest expansion pack, Generations, adds items like bunk beds, the ability to have lavish weddings and a solid "midlife crisis" -- which we're guessing means secretaries, overcompensatory sports cars and the ability for children to cry, "Why doesn't daddy love us anymore?" in Simlish. The focus of the expansion pack is to elaborate on the different stages of life, across childhood, teen and adult years. No word yet if the "bachelor parties" available in the game will allow for burying the "entertainment" in the desert when things go wrong. What? Everyone experiences that at least once in real life.
3DS launch games: The best of the rest
With limited time, 3DS systems and eyes capable of processing 3D, we couldn't deliver full reviews for the full 3DS launch lineup. However, we've got the next best thing, a ton of impressions on some of our favorite releases we couldn't get enough quality time with for a full critique. Between the cheat sheet after the break and our bevy of full reviews, you should have all that you need to be a 3DSpecialist at your local electronics retailer. Happy hunting! ... And, umm, sorry about saying "3DSpecialist." It was a long weekend.
MadCatz making Sims-branded peripherals
Just in time to capitalize on the Sims fever that's sweeping the nation, MadCatz has announced it will produce a line of accessories based on the life simulation series for pretty much every platform on the market (including 3DS). There are no images or further details on the "wide range" of peripherals, but we'd really appreciate a time-saving controller equipped with a "have sex with all present" button and another macro-button for "lock character in room with no doors or windows until they defecate themselves to death, their last vision the stink lines emanating from their pre-corpse."
Gaikai is live with streaming demos of Mass Effect 2, Dead Space 2 and more
Following more than a year of media demos and beta testing, cloud gaming startup Gaikai is letting the public try out the fruits of its efforts: Demos of Mass Effect 2, Dead Space 2, Spore and The Sims 3 are all playable from within your web browser. That is, if you have the bandwidth -- we don't, apparently. (Granted, we're on gratis Wi-Fi here at GDC.) You might have better luck at home: You can visit Gaikai's site where you'll be prompted to launch Mass Effect 2. "Just wait and if your connection quality to our Server is fast enough," instructs CEO David Perry, "one of several pop-up designs will appear." Additionally, taking a survey about the service will grant you access to the Dead Space 2 demo. Spore and The Sims 3 trials can be found here and here, respectively.
The Sims 3 3DS preview: A sim-ple port
It's a good thing people don't play The Sims for the graphics. The Sims 3 is not a looker on 3DS -- no matter how you adjust the three-dimensional slider. In an unfinsihed build of this launch game, the visuals lacked detail (even compared to versions of the game running on mobile phones) and the framerate was inadequate. Perhaps its saving grace, then, is in how The Sims 3 takes advtage of the 3DS's other unique features, making this particular iteration somewhat novel (especially compared to EA's other 3DS port). Using the 3DS camera, players can create Sims based on snapshots of their faces -- or anyone's face nearby. Oddly, the feature will only import a close approximation of the source's facial features, leaving aspects such as skin tone, hair and even gender to be manually selected. Though the process is a bit tedious, on the plus side, I now know what I'd look like if I were a rail-thin blond ... girl. %Gallery-114679%
Nintendo 3DS to launch with 18 games in North America, $40 each for most
The North American launch details for Nintendo 3DS have been finalized. In addition to Face Raiders and AR Games, both pre-installed on the hardware, the system will launch with three first-party games: Pilotwings Resort, Steel Diver, and nintendogs + cats. Each first-party game has a suggested retail price of $39.99. Thirteen third-party games will be available on March 27th, including Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition and Rayman 3D. Nintendo promises that thirty games will be available for the platform by E3 expo. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, Star Fox 64 3D, Kid Icarus: Uprising and a new Mario Kart game will all be available before year's end. You'll find the complete launch lineup listed after the break.
EA 'continuing to look into' Sims 3 console-crashing bug
EA tells Joystiq that it's aware of some players experiencing a bug, which appears to stop any further progress, in The Sims 3 for consoles. A representative for the publisher says EA is "continuing to look into it." InGamingWeTrust has the details on the bug, occurring on both PS3 and Xbox 360, which involves the entire console locking up while attempting to automatically or manually save the game. EA has no details on what currently triggers the bug, or how to prevent it. If you're experiencing the issue with your copy of Sims 3, it seems the only recourse at the moment is to add your voice to the choir. Check out the video after the break to see the crash in action.
Kyocera Echo: a dual-screen Android gaming phone with two launch games
Nintendo may not be making a smartphone, but if it did, it might look a bit like the Kyocera Echo. Coming to Sprint later this year, it's being touted as the world's first "dual-touchscreen smartphone." At a preview event today, we got to see the phone running The Sims 3, optimized to take advantage of both screens. Unsurprisingly, it looked a lot like the DS version, albeit with higher-resolution graphics. The phone is set to launch with one other game, although a Sprint representative wouldn't reveal what it was. Running on a custom Kyocera-skinned version of Android 2.2, the Echo augments the growing "fragmentation" problem that Google's mobile OS faces. Games must use Sprint's SDK to take advantage of both of the screens offered by the Echo. But, how many developers will flock to create games for a single device available on a single carrier? We're going to guess: not many. At least the phone will be able to play other Android games -- maybe even PlayStation Suite games, if the specs are up to snuff.%Gallery-115899%
3DS 'launch window' to include more than 30 games leading up to E3
Did you hear? It's got a built-in pedometer! The 3DS measures your steps as you walk -- right there in your pocket! Even better: You can pull the thing out whenever and snap all kinds of pics -- the thing's got three cameras! And get this: It also pipes out music, browses the internet and even plays games. True, you've already got a pile of old DS games (and now defunct DS devices) that you could be playing on your new pedometer, but more than 30 three-DEE titles are expected to be released during the 3DS "launch window" (which begins March 27 and promptly closes on June 7 with the start of E3). We've listed 24 of the apparent launch-window releases after the break (though Nintendo's being coy about exact dates), including Nintendo's own Nintendogs + cats and Pilotwings Resort, plus a hearty helping of third-party support; with notable newcomers, Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked (previously unannounced outside of Japan) and Crush 3D, a possible port of the 2007 PSP platforming puzzler from Sega. Don't look at the date ambiguity in dismay -- see it as an opportunity! Beginning in late March, you can walk to and from GameStop in anticipation of a new batch of games each Tuesday for ten whole weeks, and the 3DS will count your steps -- each and every one of them! And just imagine how many Street Passes you're going to rack up?
EA gets a board member from Ford, you get a virtual car
EA has picked up Luis Ubiñas to sit on its board of directors. Ubiñas is president of the Ford Foundation, which gives grants and starts projects all over the world. Previously, he worked at a consulting firm called McKinsey & Company, where he specialized in working with media and wireless technology companies. In what is probably a complete coincidence, players of The Sims 3 are all getting Ford Fiestas for free. The virtual kind, that is -- you can head over to the Sims website right now to pick up a downloadable pack which includes a Fiesta hatchback or sedan for your Sims' garage, and a bevy of other brand-related virtual items to use and play with. That news probably has nothing at all to do with Ubiñas' new or old job titles, but we figured we'd let you know anyway.
Will Wright explains what The Sims and an ant colony have in common
Originally titled Home Tactics, Will Wright's hit people simulator The Sims was largely made possible by a bunch of simulated ants. During an interview with Doom creator John Romero at the IGDA Leadership Forum dinner last Friday, Wright revealed that his previous title, Sim Ant, was a key inspiration for -- and the basis for the core emergent gameplay in -- The Sims. "We decided to program Sim Ant as close to how real ants work as we could, which means that they're actually responding to pheromone trails, and the intelligence is distributed environmentally," Wright recalled when asked how The Sims came about. "We were able to get very complex behavior out of the ants just using these pheromone distributions. So I started to wonder how much of human behavior I could simulate the same way." As it turns out, a lot. "The basic engine for The Sims really ends up being one of any pheromones. Every object in the environment is sending out an 'advertisement' of pheromones in a particular flavor. The flavors are the eight basic needs of the Sims. So they can advertise 'food,' 'energy,' 'fun,' 'social,' 'hygiene.' Every object is described in those terms, being the collection of pheromones that it broadcasts," Wright explained. "A Sim is always sitting there, smelling all of the pheromones around it saying, 'oh I need to be clean, or I need to be fed' -- whatever -- so they follow that pheromone trail to the closest object that's producing it. The advantage of that -- the whole point of that -- was that we could add new objects into the game later without the Sims having any foreknowledge of what the objects were, as long as they had these pheromones." Romero began to ask Wright if he thought actual humans might somehow work this way, but stopped himself. He was probably picturing the audience as a group of hideous ant people, or imagining he could see clouds of pheromones wafting about. Even the guy who thought up the Doom demon would be grossed out by that.
Sims 3: Late Night assets get frisky
Remember all those pervy storylines you created for your Sims back in the day? Well, consider that all approved by Electronic Arts Corporate now, as this trailer for Sims 3: Late Night shows the digital dolls' plunge into debauchery.
EA announces Windows Phone 7 launch titles
It looks like Electronic Arts is breaking out its biggest guns for its Windows Phone 7 launch lineup -- well, it's biggest guns that can be adequately turned into smaller guns for use on a mobile platform, anyways. The publisher has named four games that will hit the WP7 storefront soon after the platform goes live on November 8: Need For Speed: Undercover, The Sims 3, Monopoly and some obscure indie puzzle game called ... Tetris? Now sure, all those games are already available on other mobile platforms, but you're forgetting why you're going to feel compelled to purchase them again on the Windows Phone 7: Sweet, sweet 'Cheevos. Hell, Monopoly's like 85 years old. You've probably bought it a dozen times already -- but now you're going to buy it a baker's dozen times, because, admit it, you've got to be boosting that Gamerscore.
Xbox Live for Windows Phone 7: your Xbox isn't in your phone yet, but we're getting there
We just spent some serious, and we mean serious time with Xbox Live for Windows Phone 7. Just like your Xbox, this is sort of an amalgamation of "the place you go to play games" and "the place you go to ping and taunt your friends who also play games." Unfortunately, it seems there's a bit of a disconnect between phone-based scores and records and Xbox achievements -- they all add up to the same gamerscore, but you can't easily there are separate charts to pull up your most recent Halo exploits to show off on your mobile, for instance. Luckily, that still puts Microsoft in a better position than any other mobile games platform (until Apple can get Game Center to stop sucking, at least). Being able to message and challenge friends all from the same "hub" where you keep your games is great, and being able to view your avatar and the avatars of friends (you can even play dress-up with your own) is nice gravy on top. Of course, what really matters is the games, right? Luckily, Microsoft has a pretty strong launch lineup, with some of the regulars like EA's The Sims 3 and Need for Speed, along with some exclusives like Rocket Riot and the hotly anticipated The Harvest. The good news? Games look and play great, just like you might expect from an iPhone or Android level capacitive touchscreen platform, with The Harvest as an obvious and very important standout in complexity and polish. The bad news? Everything takes forever to load (our rough estimate is about three minutes to start playing in The Harvest), and when you don't have any multitasking, that's a really bad thing. Check out some of the Xbox Live hub and capabilities after the break, along with some games, and make up your own mind.
Windows Phone 7 launch day app roundup
With thousands of developers churning out thousands of apps, we've no doubt exploring the Marketplace is going to be a full-time job for at least a day or two after you nab your Windows Phone 7 device this fall -- but with all the hullabaloo today, we thought this would be a good opportunity to highlight a few that Microsoft and its partners have been talking about recently. Dig in!
Microsoft announces ten Windows Phone 7 handsets for 30 countries: October 21 in Europe and Asia, 8 November in US (Update: Video!)
It may have "Windows" in the branding, but Windows Phone 7 is not the desktop PC experience shoehorned into a cellphone. Microsoft tried that with Windows Mobile... and we all know how that turned out. Today, eight months after the Windows Phone 7 OS unveiling in Barcelona, we're finally seeing the official launch of the retail hardware: nine new WP7 handsets, some available October 21 in select European and Asian markets and others from early November in the US. The phones will find their way to over 60 cellphone operators in more than 30 countries this year. Microsoft tapped Dell, HTC, LG, and Samsung to deliver the Snapdragon-based handsets with a carrier list that includes AT&T, T-Mobile USA, Vodafone, TELUS, América Móvil, Deutsche Telekom AG, Movistar, O2, Orange, SFR, SingTel, and Telstra. And that's just for the first wave -- Microsoft has even more handsets coming in 2011 including the first for Sprint and Verizon in the US. Here's the lineup of 480 x 800 pixel (WVGA) phones announced today: HTC 7 Surround -- The 3.8-inch T8788 with slideout speaker for AT&T and Telus HTC HD7 -- Schubert comes of age as a 4.3-inch HD2 cousin for T-Mobile and beyond HTC 7 Trophy -- the 3.8-inch Spark headed to international carriers HTC 7 Mozart -- another heavily leaked int'l player with 3.7-inch display Dell Venue Pro -- 4.1-inch portrait QWERTY slider for T-Mobile we broke as Lightning Samsung Focus -- AT&T's 4-inch Super AMOLED slate we broke as Cetus Samsung Omnia 7 -- the i8700 is a 4-inch Super AMOLED jobbie for Europe LG Optimus 7/7Q -- the E900 is the official 3.8-inch global workhorse LG Quantum -- AT&T's 3.5-inch landscape slider first seen as the C900 HTC 7 Pro -- a 3.6-inch QWERTY slider for Sprint (2011) "Glance and Go," is the slogan Microsoft is using to differentiate itself from an already crowded smartphone market. Something we've already seen alluded to in that leaked AT&T ad. As Ballmer notes, "Microsoft and its partners are delivering a different kind of mobile phone and experience - one that makes everyday tasks faster by getting more done in fewer steps and providing timely information in a 'glance and go' format." He's referring to WP7's customizable Live Tiles, of course. Xbox Live integration is another biggie with EA Games just announcing its first Xbox Live-enabled wares coming to Windows Phone 7 in the fall including "Need for Speed Undercover," "Tetris," "Monopoly," and "The Sims 3." The other big differentiators are the slick Metro UI, integrated support for Zune media and Zune Pass subscriptions, Bing search and maps, Windows Live including the free Find My Phone service, and Microsoft Office Mobile. Now quit stalling and jump past the break for the full list of handsets per carrier and country. Update: Added the official WP7 overview videos after the break.
The Sims 3: Barnacle Bay coming this fall
Embark on a quest for booty in the upcoming DLC, "Barnacle Bay," for The Sims 3 -- er, wait, we're mixing up our content here! Rather: You'll get to explore a tropical paradise in the Barnacle Bay, available for download this fall. Whether you decide to be a lowdown, dirty pirate on the hunt for treasure and grog, or a sightseeing tourist looking to soak up virtual sun, is up to you. The Barnacle Bay area will be sold exclusively through The Sims 3 Store. Within, you'll discover new locales such as Founder's Beach, Goldbeard Galleon Gallery and Pirate's Hideaway -- plus several other locations and NPCs that await your inner Magellan. The expansion pack will also include "nearly two dozen" new items. %Gallery-100811%
The Sims 3: Late Night Expansion takes your Sim out on the town this fall
Looking for a virtual metropolis in which your Sim can par-tay down? EA just announced the next expansion for The Sims 3, called the "Late Night Expansion." The add-on will include an "active downtown scene" where players can "become a local celebrity, member of a music band, mixologist, director, and more." You can also apparently become a vampire, but if the announcement trailer past the break is any indication, you'll just loiter around a lot of alleys. We imagine it's kinda like being a teenager ... forever. The Sims 3: Late Night Expansion launches this fall. %Gallery-97857%
