The Sims: Superstar Preview

If you've been playing computer games for any amount of time, you've probably at least heard of The Sims--the remarkable strategy game from Maxis that lets you control a family of computerized people, or "sims," as they go about their daily routines. On the off-chance that you haven't heard of The Sims, the game's premise might seem a bit dull, but thousands of people all around the world have become fascinated with the game and the way in which it lets you control nearly every aspect of your sims' lives. Nearly every aspect. Something The Sims (and its five previous expansion packs) doesn't let you do is accompany your tiny little families as they pack up their briefcases and head off to work. That's going to change in the sixth expansion, The Sims: Superstar, which will not only let you follow your sims to work, but will also let your sims become bona fide celebrities--and you may even run into a few of your favorite real-world superstars along the way.

The most interesting feature in Superstar will be the game's new celebrity career path, which will let you start out your career as a wannabe by picking out an ad in the paper. Your sim will even have a new 10-level attribute (or "motive"), fame, which is represented by five stars that gradually fill up half a star at a time whenever you successfully increase your fame by performing one of several activities. Since the superstar career track can be very demanding, you'll also want to improve your sims' charisma, creativity, and body skills to make sure they can perform well on stage and look good doing it. You can use your phone to get a ride to the studio, but once your sim becomes a celebrity, you'll travel in style in a pink stretch limousine.

The show biz studio area consists of a series of open lots, much like the lots in the Hot Date and Vacation expansions. So, if you prefer to leave your sims at home and do some redecorating, you'll be able to wipe each of the studio lots clean and start from scratch by adding recording studios, music video sets, and sushi bars. Most of the studio objects will belong to one of three major themes: a music theme, an acting theme, and a fashion theme (including an actual runway). But you'll also be able to pick out new spa objects like mud baths and steamers to help relax and clean up your sims after a long day on the set.

If you decide to try your hand at being a musician, you might start out at karaoke night at a club singing a song from one of the five types of music (pop, dance, rock, ballad, and country). Interestingly, Superstar actually has several different recorded versions of each song type to reflect your sims' skill; if they have low creative skill, you can expect to get more than a few catcalls. However, if you've been working on your creativity, your sims will sing better, get some applause, and take home a larger paycheck, and they may increase their fame skills. They'll also be able to arrange for sessions at a recording studio during which they can either put together a jingle for some quick cash or try to cut an album by singing the three parts of the song in one of three different ways. Superstar will feature a new puzzle-game element that will give you a few tries to guess the "right" way to perform a number. In the recording studio, you'll need to try to impress your studio agent by guessing the correct way to sing the intro, middle, and end of your song in one of three ways: over-the-top, normal, or mellow. If you do guess correctly, you'll earn a good chunk of money--upward of $5,000 simoleons--and increase your fame.

The Big Time

But any sim on the path to stardom craves center stage, so The Sims: Superstar will let you put your aspiring rock stars in front of a camera as well. You'll get to put them on a music video set, complete with backup dancers (and gaudy costumes and state-of-the-art special effects). Just like in the recording studio, you'll get only a few tries to put together a music video that your director likes.

Of course, cameras and sets aren't used just for music videos. Your sims can also try to pursue an acting career on TV or in the movies by attending open-mic nights for aspiring comedians or by auditioning for minor roles in soap operas. Comedy acts work much like karaoke nights; if you're a hit with the audience, you'll know it because of all the cheering, and if you're not, you'll know it because of all the booing. TV and movie shoots will work like recording-studio and music-video sessions; they'll consist of three parts that you can act out in one of three different ways, and you'll need to guess the appropriate acting approach to make the director happy. You may start out on the set of a sappy soap opera having a conversation with an immobile patient in a full-body cast, but you'll eventually be able to star in a big-budget movie in which your sims play the role of swashbuckling pirates fighting a duel on camera.

If you prefer, you can also try to make your sims become runway supermodels. At the height of their careers, they'll have to play the same kind of random minigame as TV actors and musicians, except in this case, they'll be choosing their outfits, rather than their delivery. Models can choose from lingerie, formal, or over-the-top couture outfits, and they'll need to choose the outfits that will please their fashion designers for each run down the strip. When they're not working the runways, your glamorous sims can also pose for magazines, either in swimwear, winterwear, or in product ads (in which they pose playfully while holding up specific products--such as the expansion pack The Sims: Vacation).

When they're not performing, your sims will be accosted by various other characters, including established celebrities (who have a floating gold star over their heads), paparazzi, and fans. When conversing with other celebrities, your sims will have an entirely new set of dialogue options that will let you discuss the biz or drop names; you'll actually want to make as many celebrity friends as possible to boost your own fame. If you wish, you can actually pose for reporters and even arrange to set up publicity stunts to bring the paparazzi running, though your sims will need to keep their feet on the ground and stay in regular contact with their fans. Sims that do treat their fans well by talking to them and signing autographs may win the SimChoice award (Superstar will have a total of 11 different awards you can win). Sims that push their fans to the curb may end up with an exceedingly annoying obsessed fan who follows them wherever they go.

At home, your celebrity sims will want to kick back and relax with a number of new amenities. For instance, Superstar will let you hire a pricey (but highly effective) butler to keep your house. The butler works all day and all night and even commissions a maid and a gardener on your behalf to keep your house spotless. In the meantime, your sims will be able to entertain themselves with a set of brand-new, highly expensive, highly indulgent entertainment objects, such as a personal diving tank filled with exotic fish or an air chamber that lets your sims put on jumpsuits and leap into simulated freefall. Simulated freefall is great fun for sims who have spent a lot of time improving their body attribute, but it's been known to be dangerous for out-of-shape sims...but you probably won't need to worry about that.

The Sims: Superstar seems like it should add plenty of new items and activities for fans to play with. The expansion will be available in May.