Finally, a good version of The Sims on consoles.
GAMEPLAY - Most should know what the gameplay entails, so I'll talk about the new features and what I'd like to see changed. New to this game are dreams and karma. Dreams are similar to the goals your Sims wanted in the second game, but are much more varied. Some will be short-term while others can last a lifetime to achieve. Karma powers can be beneficial or disastrous depending on how you use them, and you use them based on how much karma you have stored up. Karma comes from completing dreams and by receiving a random amount every night at midnight. There are also goals that are similar to achievements that can be completed to unlock karma powers, items, and more. Overall this game takes a lot of commitment, but you are rewarded constantly along the way. Your Sims can also be given a lot more customization with their personality. Horoscopes are gone, but you can now give them 5 traits that define your Sim, along with favorite color, favorite food, and favorite kind of music. The only big downside to this game is that you can only have one custom family in a single neighborhood. While you can reproduce and grow the family as you see fit, it's a shame that you can't have your custom sims interact. Also, the house-building aspect is much more restricted. As far as I know, you have to move to a house you can afford, demolish the house, and build another based on your sim's funds. That's the only way I've been able to do it so far. Granted it's just as easy as it was before, but it's still kind of disappointing that you can't construct your dream mansion. Another thing I'm disappointed with is how slow the fast-forward option is. There are more minor complaints, but it would take awhile to go into them all. Unlike Mr. VanOrd, who did the review for this game right here on Gamespot, I didn't think the loading screens were a big deal. In fact, when I played The Sims 2 on my laptop (which was brand new shortly after The Sims 2 was released), it took almost 5 minutes to get in-game from the main screen, so this is nowhere near as bad. On the whole, I prefer the second game to this one, but this one still has the addictive gameplay that we all know and love. - 8.5/10
STORY - N/A
GRAPHICS - The graphics haven't improved much since the second game, but they're more than adequate. Definitely not something to gripe about in the overall scheme of things. One thing that is nice, however, is that you can now colorize your sims' clothes. It's not a huge step up, but it keeps things more interesting. - 8.5/10
SOUND - The sounds and voices are what you'd expect; pleasant music accompanied by the weird sim language. Again, this doesn't measure-up to the second game as well as I would have liked. I can't really put my finger on why, but the best way I can convey it is that they didn't put forth as much effort here. - 8/10
LENGTH/REPLAY VALUE - For me, this is a game that I can always come back to. No matter how many families I start, no matter how far along I take them, this game definitely demands to keep being played. This is a great game for anyone because you can play for as long or as short as you want. Also, if you're like me and prefer the second Sims, I recommend making the Sim lifespan option in the options menu set to "long." Epic is pretty ridiculous, but much more realistic. - 9.5/10
BOTTOM LINE - I compare this game a lot to The Sims 2, but frankly this is a step-down from that masterpiece of a title. Not that that's all bad, because this is not only a worthy version on consoles, but doesn't sacrifice a lot to exist as such. I still have The Sims 2, and yes I prefer it to this one, but my laptop is ancient now. For anyone who loves The Sims or has never played before, run out and get this game. It's great for new and old fans alike, and I would say that, all things considered, it is the most realistic game in the series. While there are some disappointments...the main one being that you can't interact your custom families...overall this gives you an amazing experience of growing and raising the families of your choice. - 9/10