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MySims

Score: 90%
ESRB: Everyone
Publisher: EA Games
Developer: The Sims Studio
Media: DVD/1
Players: 1
Genre: Simulation

Graphics & Sound:

MySims first made its debut on the Wii, and I had fun covering it then. I am always amazed how games like this can suck me in and hold my attention for so long. Even though I have played this game for many hours on the Wii, I was quickly on my way to doing the same on the PC version. I was really happy to see that it wasn't just a straight port to the PC. They have used the time to add some new features. Did they make a good game better? I think they did.

It is no secret the Wii is not a graphical powerhouse. So, now that the game has made the jump to PC, it looks even better than it ever did. There is also a noticeable performance pick up, and animations appear to have smoothed out considerably. This is still the highly stylized and kid-friendly look, just cleaner. The new content fits in seamlessly. This new material really does make the difference to how the game looks just because there is much more detail you can add to your creations.

Simlish is still Simlish. The problem is that I am beginning to understand it without reading the captions. I would have to chalk that up to just below being able to speak Klingon. There is still the small chatter, beeps and whistles that are there to guide your every move.


Gameplay:

There is no difference in how you play MySims for the Wii or how you play MySims for the PC. You are charged with bringing a town back from the brink of its own demise. You have the ability to use something called essence. Essence is the purity of objects you interact with. Manipulating essence is how you and you alone can save your town. Using essence can control and affect everything from the building design, to the plants that grow, or the people that move in. You build the buildings and design their layouts.

All of the same character customization exists. But, there is exclusive content with new locations, essences, and characters. You can also box up your objects that you make in-game. You can then email objects and files to one another. A player just needs to drop it into their corresponding game folder and the object appears in their game. Still, do not let the childish facade fool you. There is a lot more to this game. The game is now even more of a sandbox than the others. All of the new features open up an entirely new way to see this game. The main difference is now you can have other players actually join you in your little sandbox. You can have your friends join you in the world you create.

If you have your friend's "code," you can join in on the fun in their custom-made world. You can chat directly and interact with the world you create. Given the experience that EA had with The Sims: Online, I was surprised that they would "go there." It is a kid's game and you can only get codes directly from the friends you know, but someone somewhere will be trying to pervert this. Just guessing, though.


Difficulty:

MySims was a little difficult to control on the Wii for younger players. With the introduction to the keyboard and mouse over the Wii controls, it is just easier to control for younger kids. This is important because it is the only reason my kids quit playing it. Now I have to fight for time on my own PC. The game is on rails if you want to stick to the storyline and progress systematically across your map. Or you can just start shaping the town how you see fit; it really is all up to you. If you want to be a power builder and have all of the towns available to you to build with and pass along to others, then you are going to have to grind through the game just like the rest of us. I really do recommend actually playing the game to get all of the pieces. It is fun to just start with a blank canvas and build. And, now you can share.

Game Mechanics:

There are several things to play with when it comes to mechanics in MySims. The character creation area has a lot of content to be able to create and personalize characters. I am really happy to see this come to the PC. One of my complaints before was that I wasn't going to get to see any new content. I don't have that issue anymore. I expect to see fan sites similar to the ones that already exist for The Sims, but of course only tailoring to the MySims fans. The building system offers enough to enjoy and simple enough to be grasped by young players still. The mouse controls actually make it easier to control than on the Wii.

This is still a good game for kids. This is the kid-friendly version of Sims for the population; I think they did a great job. I am a little worried about the inclusion of a PC community into a kid's game, but I am comfortable with the security levels in place. This is still a good game for kids. Keep an eye on the friends your players make. You have to get the friend code directly from your friend, and then they have to accept the invite. People are not going to just randomly appear in your world. I can understand that the repetitiveness of the game, once you get into it, could actually start to wear on an experienced gamer very quickly, but I think the new content and the ability to trade items from game to game will prevent this from happening.


-WUMPUSJAGGER, GameVortex Communications
AKA Bryon Lloyd

Minimum System Requirements:



1.5 Ghz processor (2.0 for Vista), 512 MB RAM (1GB for Vista), Windows(R) Vista, Windows XP, Windows ME, Windows 98 or Windows 2000 Operating System, 8x or faster CD/DVD drive, At least 1.5 GB of additional hard drive space (5.0 GB total is required if installing both The Sims 2 and The Sims 2 Bon Voyage Expansion Pack at the same time.), a T&L-capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM.
 

Test System:



Dell XPS DXP061, XP Pro, Intel Core Quad, 2GB Ram, Gforce 8800GTX

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Game Vortex :: PSIllustrated