The Sims 2 is a strategic life simulation game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling PC game in history, The Sims. [1]
The game was released on September 17 2004 in both CD-ROM and DVD-ROM formats. The DVD-ROM version, called The Sims 2 Special DVD Edition, contains a "Bonus Disc" with broad information on the Sims 2, interviews with the game developers, and commercials of past Sim products.
A port to Mac OS X was performed by Aspyr and was released on June 12 2005. The Sims 2: Holiday Edition, a re-release with holiday-related content, was released on November 17 2005.
Description
Sims age through six unique stages: baby, toddler, child, teen, adult and elder (another stage, "young adult", was added with the University expansion pack). Unlike the previous game, when children stayed children and there was little game progress, the stages of life encourage players to move the game along and create relationships between Sims. Family relationships are much more integral to this version of The Sims than the previous version. As Sims age, get married and have children, these relationships are recorded in an extensive family tree.
In this installment of the series, Sims can have more realistic marriages with engagements and parties. Sims are pregnant before having children (unlike in the previous version, where children just appeared). Other unique events such as deaths, birthdays and first kisses also take place in Sims' lifetimes. Good and bad experiences are kept as memories and can affect a Sim's behaviour.
The graphics and house design engines have improved with more choices for houses, neighborhood design, food and clothes. The Sims 2 Body Shop, a tool which allows a user to design a Sim's body, clothing, genetic features, etc., was available well before the game's release. Mark Mothersbaugh was the lead music composer.
The Sims 2 introduces a new aspect into the game: Aspiration. Aspiration manifests itself in two ways: a Sim's specific aspiration and a Sim's aspiration level, represented by the Aspiration Meter.
All Sims have an aspiration, set either when they are created by the player, generated by the game (if the Sim is an NPC), chosen by the player when the Sim becomes a teenager, or by assigning a Sim to use the ReNuYuSenso Orb aspiration reward from the Nightlife expansion pack. The five aspirations are: Romance, Family, Knowledge, Popularity and Fortune. The Pleasure and Grilled Cheese aspirations were added with the Nightlife expansion pack, the latter being the result of a failed usage of the ReNuYuSenso Orb. All toddler and child Sims have the aspiration to Grow Up.
There are six levels to the Aspiration Meter: The highest is platinum, with gold, two levels of green and two of red (red being negative aspiration and therefore an undesirable state) following in descending order. The Aspiration Meter is a graphical representation of a Sim's aspiration level, and represents a Sim's quality of life. The aspiration level is raised when a Sim fulfills a "Want" and is lowered when a "Fear" is realized. Wants and Fears are different for each Sim depending on several factors including aspiration, aspiration level, stage of life and present circumstances (such as needing a skill point in order to get a promotion or having just reached a milestone event). They generally change when a Sim wakes up from sleeping, comes home from work or school, or fulfills another Want or Fear. Wants and Fears are displayed graphically in slot-machine fashion on the toolbar. The aspiration level at age transitions plays a role in determining the length of a Sim's life once the elder stage is reached. When the aspiration level is high, aspiration rewards may be used with the lowest risk. For example, the Elixir of Life aspiration reward allows a Sim to live longer, giving the Sim three additional days in the current life stage. If this aspiration reward is used with the Aspiration Meter below the gold level, however, there is a chance that the reward will backfire and the Sim will lose three days, possibly triggering an age transition (if the teen or adult is close enough to their transition point) or death (if the Sim is an elder).
The University expansion introduced the Lifetime Want, randomly assigned whenever a Sim's aspiration changes or when the Sim fulfills a previous Lifetime Want. The possible Lifetime Wants for a Sim depend on the Sim's aspiration. Lifetime wants include (but are not limited to) reaching the top of Sim careers, earning 100,000 simoleons (the currency of Sims, only available to Fortune Sims), having 20 simultaneous lovers (Romance Sims), or maxing all skills (Knowledge Sims). Fulfilling a Lifetime Want results in that Sim having a platinum aspiration level for the remainder of the Sim's life (known as Permanent Platinum or Permaplat).
Thus, while the game still has no set goals, there is a new level of strategy involved in balancing a Sim's life as players now have a limited time in which to fulfill aspirations, meet needs, progress in a career, socialize and possibly have a family.
Social Bunny
The Social Bunny is a NPC in the The Sims 2. Although the player sees the bunny, it's comparable to an imaginary friend to a Sim, which means other Sims will perceive a Sim being visited by a Social Bunny to be "crazy"-- the Bunny only appears on screen when the depressed Sim is selected. The Social Bunny only shows up if a Sim's social level is low for a long period of time. The Social Bunny will help boost up the Sim's Social Level a little bit. Once a Sim's Social need has risen to the halfway point on the social meter, the bunny will disappear.
"More Realistic"
When The Sims 2 was in pre-release stages, game creators stated that they were removing the robots and genies from the original game to make the game "more realistic". However, when the game was released, aliens and the Grim Reaper were already embedded into the game, which most fans did not consider normal. Since aliens the expansion packs have also produced zombies (University), vampires (Nightlife) and robots (Open For Business). Fans have little doubt that something else will appear in a future expansion pack. Werewolves have been speculated due to the theme of the new expansion pack.
Many people have complained about the sudden idea of using supernatural creatures as a background for the game, people have stated that the game is revolved around reality, and that having aliens, zombies and vampires can ruin the game. Maxis has stated that all of these aspects of the game can be entirely avoided at the player's wish [citation needed]; this depends on how much a player's Sims have been involved with certain characters or have used certain objects.
However, some other aspects of the game are more realistic with regards to every day life when compared to the original. For example, The Sims 2 features pregnancies, achieved between mixed sim couples with the Try For Baby interaction; male Sims may become pregnant upon alien abduction. In the first The Sims, however, if two Sims kissed repeatedly, the player would receive a dialog box asking them if they wanted a child. Also, The Sims 2 has life stages, memories, aspirations, fears, and more control over their life.
System requirements
The system requirements for The Sims 2 (from the official The Sims 2 website) are as follows:
Windows
- 800 MHz processor for systems with a T&L-capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM. 2 GHz processor for systems without a T&L-capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM.
- 256 MB RAM (384 MB recommended for Windows Me and XP in the manual)
- Windows® XP, Windows ME, Windows 98 or Windows 2000 Operating System or better
- At least 3.5 GB of hard drive space
Mac
- 1.2 GHz processor
- PowerPC G4/G5 or Intel Core (1.0 D patch required)
- (ATI) Radeon 9000 or better.
- 256 RAM
- Mac OS X 10.3.8 or better
- At least 3 GB of hard drive space
At the time of release, many criticized The Sims 2 for needing extremely high system requirements. In fact, just the required (and not optimum) system specs meant that many PC's purchased as late as 2001 would not even be able to run it at all. A similar complaint was levied against another Maxis game, SimCity 4, released more than a year and a half ago.
Bugs
The Sims 2 contains a number of bugs. Many of the bugs listed below have been corrected in a downloadable patch (Note: The installation of The Sims 2: University or any subsequent expansion packs should correct most of the problems below).
- "Firstborn Clone": All Sims produced in the game are random, but only to a certain point. For instance, the first twelve 'randomly produced' Sims could be recreated if you exited the Sims 2, then re-opened it, started up CAS, then clicked the randomize button. If your Sims create a child without using the randomizing tool in CAS, it will be a certain combination of his or her parents' genes and personality. If you opened the game again a day later, and Sim A, who gave birth to Sim C, gives birth to another Sim, Sim D, it would be an exact copy of Sim C, in personality. However, if before birth of Sim D, E, ect. you exited the house of Sim A, B, C+, opened CAS, then pressed the randomize button an arbitrary number more than twelve, it would restart the game's randomization engines, and subsequent children would have personalities.
- "Liney" Sims: Graphical glitch with ATI Radeon 9000 GPUs. This problem has been fixed in the new version of ATI's drivers.
- "Jump Out" Bug: Time-out/scripting bug, causing characters to abort ( "jump out of" ) certain animations and interactions. Solved by the Maxis patch.
- Memory Leak: Memory leak, sometimes caused by hiring non-player characters, causing abnormal use of system resources.
- Invisible Colleagues: Graphics glitch involving colleagues visiting by helicopter, causing colleagues to be invisible. Solved by the Maxis patch.
- "Vanishing Family Members": Hardly anything is known about this glitch except that it occurs when a family member goes to work or school for the first time, they don't come back and vanish off the portraits of the family members on the left of the screen; there is no memory of the disappearance in any of the other family members.
- Unused objects designated as in use: Engine bug which makes unused objects appear as in-use, like doors that don't close. Caused by proximity to other usable objects.
- Floating Teddy: After a few uses, the object of the bear will float in the air and there will no longer be proper animation of use of the bear. Can be fixed by buying a new teddy bear. Also would float if use was cancelled during the talk-through action. This was fixed by the Maxis patch.
- Carpool bug: All Sims living on a lot refuse to enter cars, taxis, buses, etc, causing them to fail at their job or at school. Can be fixed by moving the family to another lot.
- Build Mode Bug: This was documented as a bug, however, it is known by players that this build mode bug was caused by a cracked application of the game.
- Stove Bug: If a child has a play stove and leaves a muffin in it, the stove can't be deleted until a child takes it out. If the child grows older no one in the household can empty the stove, so you're stuck with it unless you have another child, or if you use a cheat.
Bugs have also surfaced relating to all three expansion packs. These have been tackled with patches that were made available after the release of the game and expansion packs.
Various editions of the game
As of 2005, three different editions of the game have been released by EA:
- The Sims 2: This edition contains the original core game stored on four CDs with no additional content.
- The Sims 2 Special DVD Edition: This edition contains the original core game stored on one DVD with a second DVD containing bonus content that is watchable on DVD players. This edition was released alongside the edition mentioned above.
- The Sims 2 Holiday Edition: This limited edition contains the original core game along with content from the Holiday Party Pack.
Expansion Packs
To date, three expansion packs have been released for The Sims 2. EA has said that it plans to release seven expansion packs. Expansion packs are released at approximately six-month intervals. Each expansion pack introduces a major gameplay element and a new type of expansion neighborhood, connected to the base neighborhood and focusing on the new gameplay element.
The Sims 2: University
The first expansion pack, The Sims 2: University, was released on March 2, 2005 for PC and December 12, 2005 for Mac. In University, players have the option to send their teen Sims to college at the new university expansion neighborhood. There, teens become young adults, a new life stage added with this expansion and exclusive to Sims attending college. Time does not pass the same way it does in the base neighborhood; instead, it is measured in semesters, where 72 game hours make one semester and a Sim attends college until he or she graduates, drops out, or is expelled as the result of unsatisfactory academic performance. Once a Sim leaves college, he or she will return to the base neighborhood as an adult. Sims attending college may major in one of 11 fields, and graduates may get jobs in one of four new careers exclusive to college graduates. These career paths offer higher pay and better hours than the original career paths. Additionally, graduates -- especially those who graduate with honors -- receive a bonus on applying for jobs.
Also introduced in this expansion pack are Lifetime Wants (major wants that give a Sim platinum aspiration for the rest of his or her life if they are fulfilled) and influence (points earned by fulfilling certain wants and having a certain number of friends that allows a Sim to tell another Sim to perform a task). Zombies were added with this expansion pack and are the result of a partially successful resurrection of a deceased sim. Zombies do not age (except for teens attending college, who become young adults at college and the stop aging once they graduate and become adults), are unable to have children (but may adopt), and have generally grouchy personalities. Zombies have a distinctive skin tone and move in a distinctive way.
The Sims 2: Nightlife
The second expansion pack, The Sims 2: Nightlife, was released on September 13 2005. Based loosely on The Sims: Hot Date, an expansion of The Sims, Nightlife features a new attraction-based relationship system, where Sims who are more attracted to each other (based on certain factors, including turn-ons and turn-offs, aspiration, and personality) have an easier time forging relationships, especially romantic ones. Added to the game is a dating system, where Sims may go on dates, either at a Sim's house or on a community lot. The success of these dates can depend greatly on this attraction level, expressed on a scale of three lightning bolts. The new expansion neighborhood type, the nightlife destination, is for all intents and purposes a regular neighborhood. The pre-packaged nightlife destination, Downtown, features nightclubs, restaurants and recreation facilities, many of which are ideal locations for dates, as they accomodate many of the wants that occur during a date.
Players can now see and visit other lots in the neighborhood while playing a lot, instead of having return to the neighborhood view. In addition, Sims can now own cars instead of taking the carpool. Vampires, added with Nightlife, do not experience normal need decay during nighttime hours (they experience the need decay from activities such as working out), but experience accelerated need decay while the sun is out -- greatly so if they are exposed directly to the sun. Like zombies from University, vampires do not age.
Nightlife adds two new aspirations, Pleasure and Grilled Cheese. Pleasure Sims have a desire to engage in fun and enjoyable activities, which depend on the personality of the Sim in question. One constant among Pleasure Sims is that they like to go on dates. A Sim gains the Grilled Cheese aspiration as the result of a failed attempt to use the ReNuYuSenso Orb aspiration reward object. Immediately upon changing to the Grilled Cheese aspiration, a Sim will proceed to cook a grilled cheese sandwich, and a Grilled Cheese Sim's wants and fears will revolve around Grilled Cheese. If the University or Open for Business expansion packs are installed, a Grilled Cheese Sim will have the lifetime want to eat 200 grilled cheese sandwiches.
A special car download (the HotRod Hauler Chop Socky Special) was available to those who preordered the game.
The Sims 2: Open for Business
The Sims 2: Open for Business, the third expansion pack for The Sims 2, was released on March 1, 2006, and allows your Sims to operate their own businesses. They are able to hire and manage employees and develop business-related talents in the form of seven Talent Badges. Sims may earn 25 business perks as they take their businesses from Level 0 to Level 10.
This expansion pack brings back the Servo robot from The Sims: Livin' Large in the form of a robot which can be activated as a playable Sim. Servos function as regular Sims, except that they have a modified set of needs, do not age, and are unable to give birth. In addition to Servos, various other robots may be to perform tasks such as watering plants, cleaning, security, and bringing food. Robots break and must be repaired in order to function properly. Elevators were also added to the game, providing an alternative to stairs.
A special Mascot download (a chicken suit) was available to those who preordered the game.
The Sims 2: Pets
On May 10, 2006, a video shown by EA at E³ provides a glimpse at a possible new installment of The Sims 2. The video may be viewed here. Until an official announcement is made regarding the name of the next expansion pack, it is being referred to as The Sims 2: Pets.
Stuff Packs
The Sims 2 Stuff Packs are add-ons that offer approximately sixty new objects, NPCs and textures, but contain no new gameplay elements that are not already featured in previous expansion packs. Two stuff packs and one expansion pack are planned for release in every six month cycle.
The Sims 2: Holiday Party Pack
The Sims 2: Holiday Party Pack (The Sims 2: Christmas Party Pack in Europe) is available only through the EA Online Store, select Costco stores, and other video game retailers. Holiday Party Pack adds over forty new holiday-themed objects to the game, most of which revolve around celebrating Christmas. Holiday Party Pack was combined with the core game to become the limited-edition The Sims 2: Holiday Edition, similar to the way that The Sims Deluxe Edition included both The Sims and The Sims: Livin' Large in a single package. The party pack is also available through European retailers as a CD-ROM. Although not officially announced as such, this pack can be considered as the first stuff pack since it contains new objects but no new gameplay elements.
The Sims 2: Family Fun Stuff
The second stuff pack, The Sims 2: Family Fun Stuff, was released on April 13, 2006. It includes over sixty all-new items including underwater and fantasy-themed sets composed of castle beds, sun dresses, tropical wall hangings and more. Some European stores offered a special outfit (a green dress) to those who preordered. Target stores also offered this item.
The Sims 2: Glamor Life Stuff
EA has announced that The Sims 2: Glamor Life Stuff, the next stuff pack, will be released in August, 2006.
Humor and inside jokes
Veronaville
The neighborhood Veronaville is supposed to be a spoof of Verona (the Italian city in which William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet takes place). In this neighborhood, there are two families who are supposedly conflicting with each other: the Capp family and the Monty family (obviously reflecting the Capulet and Montague families in the play). Supposedly (according to the story of the neighborhood) the conflict started when the leader of the Capp household broke a promise to the leader of the Monty household. The memories of Consort Capp and Patrizio Monty suggest that the broken promise may have been to help Patrizio out in time of need. They were best friends. Instead, Consort apparently conned Patrizio and the result was that Consort became a CEO and Patrizio got fired. Memories also indicate that Patrizio Monty was once involved with Consort Capp's wife Contessa, before she met Consort. Just like in the play, there are two lovers from each family: Romeo and Juliette. The other teens from either household are named after actual characters in Romeo and Juliet, except for Hermia. Her character (as well as a third family, the Summerdream family) was pulled from A Midsummer Night's Dream, another Shakespearean play. Characters from other Shakespearean plays can be found in the family trees in Veronaville. Although these spoofs are supposed to parallel the plays they parody, the Romeo and Juliet parody is significantly less tragic than the actual play. (E.g., Tybalt cannot kill Mercutio to imitiate the conspiracy and suicide of Shakespeare's play, but can still laugh if he sees Mercutio die from a satellite falling on his head, etc...) Other names based on plays include King Lear, The Tempest, The "Hal plays", Othello, The Merchant of Venice, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Love's Labour's Lost, Measure for Measure, Macbeth, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Taming of the Shrew.
- See also: List of pre-made Sims in Veronaville
Llamas
Llamas appear in The Sims (as in many Maxis titles). Speculation suggests that this is an inside joke due to one of the producer's love of Monty Python movies (specifically, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, where its opening credits credited llamas for the movie's production). An alternative explanation is that this is paying homage to the work of Jeff Minter, a legendary games programmer who began programming games, featuring all sorts of fluffy animals, for the Vic-20 and Commodore 64 for his company Llamasoft.
Michael Bachelor
Should one take a look at the Goth family tree, they can find out more about Bella's branch of the tree. As it turns out, "Michael Bachelor" is her brother (now deceased). The Bachelor family was one of the pre-packaged families that came with the original The Sims. Only one person was in that family...a man named Michael (his urn/tombstone can be found in the Caliente house in Pleasantview). Furthermore, examining the memories in Pleasantview shows that before he died Michael married Dina Caliente - the woman who now wants to marry Bella's husband, Mortimer Goth...
Mary-Sue Pleasant
One of the characters living in Pleasantview is named "Mary-Sue Pleasant". This is a reference to the original The Sims, wherein there was a pre-packaged family named the Pleasants. In fact, Mary-Sue's husband, Daniel Pleasant, was from the original Sims. Daniel is the brother of Jennifer Burb (formerly Jennifer Pleasant), who is the wife of John Burb and mother of Lucy Burb. (The Burb family is available as a package in Pleasantview, and a Burb family is also available in The Sims: Unleashed expansion pack.) John was a child at the time, his mother was Tiffany Burb and his father was Brad Burb.
Angela and Lilith Pleasant
Angela and Lilith are the teenage twin daughters of Daniel and Mary-Sue. Angela, the 'good twin', is named Angela because of its similarity to 'Angel'. Lilith, the 'bad twin', is named Lilith because Lilith was supposedly the first wife of Adam, according to the Jewish Midrash. She was a seductress, and therefore 'bad'. [2]
Bella Goth
Bella Goth, the wife of Mortimer Goth in The Sims, is absent from the family when the Sims 2 begins, as it is revealed she was abducted by aliens. A missing person's photograph of her appears on milk cartons seen while preparing some foods, but she can also be found as a townie in Strangetown without her memory of her old residence and family. Although some say she can be found in the hot air balloon which is a neighborhood decoration, the figures in the hot air balloon are actually taken from screenshots of The Sims Hot Date. Several family photo albums also reveal her past actions prior to her alien abduction.
The Newbies
Looking into the family tree of the Broke family will reveal that Brandi's parents are Bob and Betty Newbie, the tutorial characters of The Sims. The family tree will also reveal Bob's parents and Betty's parents. The characters shown in the family tree strongly resemble their original selves from The Sims.
Don Lothario
Don is new to Pleasantview when you get The Sims 2. In the game he has a thing for Cassandra Goth. In most of the game families that are already in the neighborhood have big things going on. ie: When you play the Goth family for the first time you will probabbly want to choose Cassandra to marry Don or Darren.
Darren Dreamer
In the game Darren Dreamer wants to be a painter. His wife died a while ago and now he's after Cassandra. While he chases after Cassandra, his son, Dirk, wants Lilith Pleasant. Darren and Dirk are new to Pleasantview.
Strangetown
The third neighborhood that comes with the game is Strangetown, a small town in the desert (a desert geographically similar to that of Nevada, where the infamous Area 51 is located). "Missing" characters, like Bella Goth, may be found here. It is also known for its ties to the supernatural: it houses an alien crash-landing site, a voodoo-practicioner, a family made up of two aliens and two humans, and a pair of scientists who test their experiments on humans. Template:Endspoiler
References to popular culture
Television channels and content
Television channels in The Sims 2 mirror those found in real-life television networks:
- SimStation Sports - A reference to sport channels such as ESPN (only avalible on University expansion pack)
- Sim Broadcasting Network (SBN) - A reference to the major broadcasting networks such as NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, BBC and The WB. The channel also features shows similar to ER, The O.C., Survivor and The Oprah Winfrey Show. The station also shows a satirical version of the many half hour local news blocks found on most basic networks.
- SimStation Dance - A reference to the music TV networks such as MTV, VH1, and Fuse TV.
- KidzTube - A reference to Nickelodeon, the Disney Channel and Cartoon Network, though the scenes are similar to the children's live action shows of the 1950s like Howdy Doody, Captain Kangaroo, and Sesame Street in the 1970s.
- The Yummy Channel - A comical parody of a channel like Food Network, with two of its programs ending up with a fire breaking out in the kitchen.
It should also be noted that several city scenes are in-game video clips from SimCity 4, including a KidzTube television program depicting a giant robot (which was based on Servo, a robot introduced in The Sims: Livin' Large) destroying a city, and various news reports taking place outdoors in the Sim Broadcasting Network. On SimStation Sports, there are in-game clips from several EA Sports games, including Madden, FIFA soccer, PGA Tour, and possibly Fight Night.
Furniture and electronics
- Moneywell - A reference to the Honeywell electronics conglomerate
- Soma - A reference to Sony, and also a reference to the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Soma is a drug used to keep people happy, like TV.
- SSX 3 - An actual game that made its appearance in computers and TV sets with the Maxis Game Simulator Console in The Sims 2.
- Myshuno, a game, is also a phrase in Simlish that Sims used in The Sims.
- Reference to Maxis: Two computer games that may be purchased in game include SimCity 4: Rush Hour and The Sims Bustin' Out, and features video clips of actual game play when Sims play any of the games on the computer. The official Sims 2 website also includes a download of The Urbz: Sims in the City in this format.
- For the PS2, if you look around with the metal detector, you can find and dig up The Urbz: Sims in the City. The Sim throws it on the ground and stomps on it.
- Prisoner of Azkalamp - A reference to the third Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
- Shiny Things Inc. - A possible reference to The Sharper Image. Shiny Things Inc. is also the name of a factory in SimCity 3000.
- The Rave Against The Machine ultra-modern light is most likely in reference to the band Rage Against the Machine.
- Pix-Arm Drafting Lamp - A reference to Pixar Animation Studios and their film Luxo Jr., whose main characters are lamps.
- Soma Audio Geek TK421 Tower System - A reference to the film Star Wars: A New Hope. There is a scene where an Imperial officer states "TK421 why are you not at your post?"
Miscellaneous
- Music featured in The Sims 2 pop music soundtrack resembles the sound of many teen pop artists such as Britney Spears and Hilary Duff and resembles modern electro music. In reality, much of the music for the base game was written and produced by The Humble Brothers.
- The minivan that players may purchase in the Nightlife expansion pack bears resemblance to a vehicle looking like both a Ford Windstar and a Toyota Previa, The headlights resemble those of an early-model Ford Escort, while the taillights resemble a 1990's model Chevrolet Suburban with an orange tip at the bottom. Also, the truck in Nightlife resembles the Chevrolet Silverado of the early 1990s, the luxury sedan resembling a Lexus LS or a Toyota Avalon , and the sports hot rod looking like a Ford GT.
- A type of flowerbed that players can buy is dubbed "Daisies of Our Lives". This is a reference to NBC's soap opera, Days of our Lives.
- The smustle dance in Nightlife mimics some dance moves found in the music video of Michael Jackson's Thriller.
- The New Wave station on radios includes a Simlish version of "Too Shy" by Kajagoogoo
- The New Wave station on radios includes a Simlish version of "Things Can Only Get Better" by Howard Jones
- The Stairway To Eleven staircase is likely a clever double reference to both the song "Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin, and the well-known line from the spoof film This Is Spinal Tap, "These go to eleven."
- The Caliente family has a similar spoof to the ABC/WB/Disney show Sister, Sister.
- The Red vs. Blue Oil Portrait - This painting's name was regarded as pure coincidence, when several noted the similarity in title to Rooster Teeth's Red vs Blue machinima series. In several episodes of The Strangerhood, another Rooster Teeth machinima production, the Red vs. Blue Oil portrait is featured in the background of some shots, possibly on purpose. The portrait of The Sims & The Sims 2 creator Will Wright seen in The Sims 2: University Create A Sim is also a recolor of this painting.
- The rock group Paramore's single "Pressure" was used in the console editions of the game. Other groups, like Kitty Shack were also used.
Console/handheld ports
The Sims 2 was released on the following consoles and handhelds:
| Platform | NA release date | EU release date |
| Nintendo DS | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Game Boy Advance | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| GameCube | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| PlayStation 2 | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Xbox | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Cell phone | December 1, 2005 | availability/release date varies by mobile carrier (see mobile game info for details) |
| PlayStation Portable | December 7, 2005 | January 13, 2006 |
The game made its debut to the console/handheld market during Q4, 2005 (source). GameSpot gave all the console versions a 6.5, and said "The Sims 2 loses something in translation from PC to consoles. Namely, its addictive, entertaining gameplay." On several websites, the Sims 2 for PlayStation2 was considered an outrage and many people wanted their money back; saying that all the qualities from PC mode (getting pregnant, aging, etc.) had been taken away. However, the game received a rating of 4.5 out of 5 by Gamepro Magazine for the port of the game to the Xbox.
As with the port of the original The Sims to consoles, the game will most likely feature greatly different mechanics and goals as compared to the original computer version. The Nintendo DS version has a few mini games including painting a picture. Also the console games have 2 modes of control, direct control, the default mode which allows you to walk your sim directly, and classic, where you have a light tower starting above your sim, where you can move it to select objects to use; e.g: The PC.
User Modifications ("mods")
The Sims 2 enjoys a large fanbase of users who enjoy modifying both game content and behavior. Such fans are often called modders.
Modders have developed websites to share and distribute modifications to the "base" or unmodified game. Using programs such as SimPE, users are able to examine and edit game objects. Such edits can be as simple as a "recolor" (where a user provides an alternative color or texture to an already-existing game object) to the creation of completely new items,"meshing", for use in the game.
Other modders work to directly modify the game's original code. Such modifications can be as simple as disabling a game interaction (such as removing the sim's ability to play "kicky bag" with one another) to expanding or enlarging a game interaction (such as enabling teen sims to become pregnant). Some mods are even designed to fix bugs in the gameplay, such as the "jump bug". Mods of any kind can significantly change game play techniques and strategies, and can fundamentally change the "flavor" of gameplay.
Modders are not limited to changing game behavior. Tools exist to modify a specific sim's appearance, gender, memories, skills, personality, and relationships. Modders are also able to modify existing careers and add new careers which can add a new exciting aspect to game play.
Accusation of sexual contents
On July 22, 2005, Florida attorney Jack Thompson attacked Electronic Arts and The Sims 2. Thompson claimed The Sims 2 was "worse than Hot Coffee" (a reference to the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' Hot Coffee mod) because, using a mod, players could see nude Sims. Thompson claimed "pubic hair", "labia", and other genital details were visible if the blur was removed.
Electronic Arts issued a statement correcting Thompson, pointing out when the blur was removed from a Sim, the Sim lacks anatomical definition (there are no visible genitalia much like naked dolls).
Several third-party mods, including custom meshes, are required to make nude Sims have the features Thompson accused the game of having. Most makers of such mods have taken some measures to prevent players under the age of 18 from accessing such mods.
Thompson later retracted his misstatements concerning "pubic hair" and other details about which he was misinformed. However, he defended his fundamental position on The Sims 2, and expressed his opinion that EA should "lose their right to defend their copyright" on the The Sims 2 because the company does not prevent the mod community from making adult-oriented changes to the game. However, while one can lose their rights to enforce a trademark by not defending it, this does not extend to copyrights, so his expressed opinion lacks legal grounding.
EA executive Jeff Brown told US website GameSpot:
This is nonsense. We've reviewed 100 percent of the content. There is no content inappropriate for a teen audience. Players never see a nude sim. If someone with an extreme amount of expertise and time were to remove the pixels, they would see that the sims have no genitals. They appear like Ken and Barbie.
One Albert Mackenzie from the website illspirit.com claims that he deliberately baited Thompson into his attacks on The Sims 2 as "the Hot Coffee fiasco began to reach dizzying heights of silliness." He reproduces a purported e-mail exchange with Thompson on his site [3].
Awards
E3 2004 Game Critics Awards: Best Simulation Game
See also
- Simlish
- List of pre-made characters in The Sims 2
- The Strangerhood, a machinima series made using The Sims 2.
- Sociology
- Psychology
- Mod The Sims 2
External links
Official sites
- The official Sims 2 website
- Electronic Arts' The Sims 2 update page; contains the latest Sims 2 patches.
Producer journals
- The Sims 2: Nightlife Producer Journal by Tim LeTourneau
- Update on The Sims 2: Nightlife Producer Journal by Tim LeTourneau
- The Sims 2: Open For Business Producer Journal by Tim LeTourneau
- The Sims 2: Family Fun Stuff Developer Journal by Lyndsay Pearson
Resources
- The Sims 2 at MobyGames
- The Sims 2 website directory at the Open Directory Project
- Sims 2 Bug Tracker