A World Without Limits

Create A Sim

Create a Sim returns in The Sims 3, but with a vastly expanded set of options and more possibilities than previous versions.

Thanks to visual enhancements, Sims now look more real than ever, complete with softer curves and more features. You can now choose from more specific body details, like expanded skin tones options and body shapes. You can really zoom in on facial details, too, and change the shape of lips, cheekbones, noses, eyes, and more with a simple set of slider bars that instantly show you the results of your digital cosmetic surgery.

But there’s more to a Sim than looks, of course. The Sims 3 uses a system of personality traits to define the behavior, wants, dislikes, and desires of your individual Sims. There are more than 60 different traits to assign your Sim and the number of possible traits per Sim changes with age—just as you would expect from any developing personality. For example, Child Sims have three traits, while toddlers and babies only have two.

The traits are all based on actual real-life personality tics and tweaks, such as having a good sense of humor, being a vegetarian, or harboring just a touch of evil. When you assign these traits, you see the effect it has on your Sim right away, too. Assigning the Evil trait to a Sim results in a devious smirk and cackle. The Vegetarian trait makes your Sim triumphantly hoist an eggplant into the air as if it were manna from the heavens.

These specific traits not only define personality, but also shape the lifetime goals and wishes of your Sims. A Sim who is a natural cook, for example, will be more apt to want a culinary career and have a better developed Cooking skill. An athletic Sim will be happier pursuing an active lifestyle, such as running or playing sports.

Building Homes and Neighborhoods

Your Sims are not your only way of expressing yourself and creating an exciting story—the place you hang your hat is a huge way to customize your Sims’ lives. As in previous versions of The Sims, you can erect a home from scratch or move into an existing lot. There are hundreds of objects to buy and place inside your house as well as a host of landscaping options that let you truly make your home unique to your Sims.

You must operate within your means, of course, and consider important financial ramifications before making big purchases. However, you need to also consider the needs and wants of your Sims. Specific items bring certain levels of happiness to Sims and help them develop skills.

The Sims 3 is not a static world. Just outside your front door is a town that is alive with activity. There are dozens of Sims in your town, living their own lives, building careers, and running basic errands, such as going to the grocery store. Some Sims are friends you haven’t met yet—others you may never share a laugh with, either. Over time, you will see relationships build and fall apart, families created, and neighbors age.

So don’t just spend entire afternoons with your nose deep in a book. Get outside and mingle. Head to communal spots like the park and chat up the other Sims. Who knows what you’ll find out there? Love has a strange way of coming out of nowhere, after all.

Wishes, Skills and Dreams

Life is a series of opportunities, and you are defined by the ones you pursue.

In The Sims 3, hundreds of different opportunities slip in and out of reach depending on the personalities and goals of your Sims. Rarely will the same opportunity present itself to a similar Sim—or at least it will not happen in the same way or at the same time.

The politically minded Sim may be asked to write his or her memoirs to bolster public opinion, while one with culinary inclinations may be asked to cater a special event at City Hall. Completing these opportunities results in rewards, both financial and social.

Opportunities are often related to the specific skills and careers of your Sims. Career choices are typically determined by the traits you assign your Sims, too. There are a variety of possible careers, such as cooking, writing, politics, and even a life of crime.

You are not required to pursue a full-time career, though; 9-to-5 isn’t for everybody. If you want to tackle other interests, just pick up a part- time job for income and then try out other activities like being an author or musician.

To make the most out of your career or personal pursuits, you must work on your Sims’ skills. Every Sim has specific aptitudes depending on assigned traits, but you can also enhance your Sims’ skills by performing activities such as reading educational books or practicing an instrument. Honing a specific skill is a good option instead of a career to give your Sim’s life some drive and definition.

In addition to opportunities and skills, Sims are further defined by individual wishes. These wishes may be short-term goal or lifelong dreams. Your Sim will constantly come up with a series of wishes that you can choose to pursue or abandon. Simple goals may include getting a date or starting a book. By completing these wishes, you earn Lifetime Happiness points, the ultimate measure of a Sim’s success.

Lifetime Happiness points can be cashed in for special talents and skills. You can buy the ability to completely alter your Sim’s personality, for example. Try to maximize the Lifetime Happiness of all of your Sims so that when they get ready to shuffle off this digital coil, they go to that great beyond fulfilled and satisfied.

Moodlets

One of The Sims 3’s most interesting advancements is the introduction of the “moodlet,” a real-time look at what your Sim is thinking and feeling right now. Moodlets will help you understand the needs and wants of your individual Sims in a variety of ways, such as letting you know when they are tired or need to use the restroom.

Moodlets also serve as useful warnings, such as letting you know a Sim is getting unhappy about a messy house. Unless you clean up a bit, your Sim’s overall mood will suffer. A happy Sim is a more productive and successful Sim, so let these moodlets guide you.

Show The World

The Sims 3 is not meant to be a solitary experience. Every player will have unique Sims with individual narratives, so why not throw open the doors to your neighborhood and show the world what your Sims have been up to. The Sims 3 includes easy tools for taking screenshots and video of your Sims and then uploading them right away to a central area for other Sims fans to see. The filming tools let you direct the story, enabling you to set up scenes as simple or complex as your imagination will allow. You can even add effects in post-production so your movies are as unique as your Sims themselves. You can also share custom content with other players, such as fabric patterns.