The jump from the PC to consoles wasn't all that effective, but a few features make it worth a rental.
The intro movie gave me glimpses of what seemed a very cool simming experience, but once entering the game itself, right away, I wasn't very pleased with the way a Sim is created. Basically, you can't customize it to your own image (or whatever other image for that matter) from scratch. Instead, a family tree is randomly generated and gives you a Sim as a final product of generations of gene-crossing between different Sim-families (aliens sometimes included). After you get that final Sim, you can accept it and customize it a little or randomize and try again.
If you have an EyeToy, you can take a picture and import yourself into the game, which is pretty cool.
There are several clothing options available, although many of them have to be unlocked through game progression. Mind you, most of the clothes I wouldn't be caught dead in, but there are some interesting little features like wearing a shirt open or buttoned, picking between long sleeve or short sleeve, and wearing a jacket on top of it all.
The hairstyles were varied, but not all colors were available for every style of hair, which was a bit annoying. I also didn't care much for the makeup styles, so my Sim went without it and actually looked better than if wearing some.
After creating your Sim, you have to pick the aspiration. Knowledge is my personal favorite, and let me recommend not picking romantic aspirations, or you'll end up with a big Sim-slut. We all know how much work it takes to get a Sim to "woo-hoo"...
The Sims 2 on consoles doesn't have a specific goal-oriented gameplay or story mode. In fact, there isn't a real story to it, and you end up having little more than a game of "fulfill this need/want". Aside from tending to the wants of your own Sim, you get to do the same thing with other Sims when you unlock a new lot to visit.
For example, you have to help the Captain and a passenger fall in love by switching to the passenger and fulfilling her wants, or you step into the shoes of the owner of a bed-and-breakfast who wants to learn how to cook and prepare new meals.
Cooking, ingredients and meal recipes are the best things in the game. If you remember The Sims and respective expansions correctly, you will remember planting and harvesting vegetables or fruits. In the console TS2 version, you can have fruit trees, vegetable gardens and aquariums which you have to tend to so you can harvest them. Ingredients are then stored in the fridge for when you want to prepare a meal.
The cool part about cooking is that you can create food that your Sims will either love, hate, or that will make them sick and run for the bathroom. You can make everything from appetizers to main courses, fruit juices or power drinks, providing you have the ingredients and the correct kitchen utensils.
Recipes are also unlocked throughout the game, and a good way to find new recipes is to either experiment with ingredients, read books and the daily newspaper or browse a magazine while sitting on the toilet. That's right, going to the bathroom is no longer boring, you can read or even play a little handheld game while your Sim "goes".
Another thing I was disappointed with was the building and furnishing restrictions. There's a fire code in effect that limits what you can place in your house and around it, which makes for some really skimpy-looking interior decorating. You end up with this huge house, but you can't put anything else in it unless you remove something else. So much for the lush interiors and landscaping!
Socializing seems to take a minor part in the game. You will see that the only times you find yourself socializing is because it's on your "wants" list or your motives require you to, or because you have to in order to unlock something new. You don't talk, hug, argue or play because you feel like it. I also didn't like how the background went all fuzzy every time you initiate a one-on-one chat with another Sim.
The A.I. isn't all that good either. In the PC version, you clearly see how Sims interact with objects or with each other if you leave them be for a while. In this version, your roommates do nothing but leave dirty dishes everywhere, clog the toilets and sleep on that expensive bed you just got. There should be a way to assign rooms to each Sim, so they keep out of other Sim's things.
I think that in the end, console version of The Sims 2 is a game for the collector type of gamer, those who love to unlock and collect every little object and feature in a game.
Just like The Sims, The Sims 2 has also made the jump from the PC to consoles everywhere. The jump wasn't all that effective, but there are a few features that make the game at least worth a rental.
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