I Replayed The Sims And It Kicked My Ass

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Among the first games I deeply cherished were The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Final Fantasy VII; however, The Sims was the one that completely engulfed me. Though the term “no-lifing” wasn’t popular yet at that time, it perfectly encapsulates my experience with the game. Each evening, once I had completed my homework, dinner, and family responsibilities, I would stealthily migrate towards our family computer to create countless virtual lives in The Sims. Weekends often required a stern reprimand from my parents to extract me from the rickety wooden chair that was ubiquitous among families as we transitioned into the new millennium. My fascination with the game was unyielding, almost to an obsessive degree, at just seven years old.

25 years have passed since EA initially released this legendary game, and I was thrilled when they decided to re-release it as part of their anniversary celebration. Just like the first time I played it, I approached this game with the same excitement and anticipation, eager to see if it still held up. It might surprise you, but in many ways, I think it does. While the game has gone through numerous updates over the years, the core gameplay remains remarkably similar: You juggle your career, grapple with work-life balance, save money to buy items that help improve this balance, and then repeat. It may sound tedious, but trust me, it’s a blast.

Back in the day, I was utterly blown away by The Sims – even though it seemed a tad bare-bones compared to its successors. Yet, it was smartly crafted, engaging, and let me tell you, this game gave me one heck of a run for my money!

It turned out that assuming a less complex gameplay would lead to an easier time didn’t hold true for me, as I’ve had enough experience with old-school platformers. However, I entered the game with a blissful innocence that would later prove troublesome. An hour into the game left me questioning if it was always this challenging. Was it really such a struggle to maintain the happiness of these tiny, demanding computer gremlins all along? Could it be that my years filled with actual problems and stressors have degraded my multitasking skills to practically nothing?

Although I found humor in designing my basic characters for the game with an abundance of bob haircuts and an excessive focus on astrology signs as the main source of personality, I initially faced resistance when it came to building my family’s house. You might recall that you can only modify furniture by choosing the hand tool in Build mode? That was a detail I overlooked too! Building diagonal walls, using different carpet or wallpaper types within the same room, and creating a house without a blocky appearance were all equally challenging tasks. However, these difficulties were minor compared to what lay ahead.

After transferring my Sims into their fresh residence, I discovered that The Sims’ Create-A-Sim feature doesn’t facilitate relationship creation. Consequently, the characters I designed as “dad,” “mom,” and “son” showed no affection towards each other. As evening turned to night and their energy meters glowed red, I understood that I couldn’t have the married couple share a bed, since they weren’t even friends. For the initial few nights, one member of this couple had to sleep on the couch because I couldn’t afford a temporary second bed at the time.

After a while, I found that tiny inhabitants of my computer were quite messy. Every time their son took a shower, an overwhelming amount of water spilled out, flooding my small, cozy bathroom. Despite having a sink and trash can within easy reach, they would leave trash and dishes scattered on the floor, creating flies and roaches that I’d need to exterminate. Even old newspapers seemed to attract insects, causing these simulated people to be frequently repulsed by their living conditions.

Here’s a more conversational rephrasing of your text: Let’s discuss newspapers for a moment. You recall they have just one job listing per day, right? The Sims 4 made me accustomed to this convenience. I assumed I could simply take my in-game cellphone, offered for free by Maxis, and pick any career from the game’s limited number of professions.

However, as a struggling character in the game, I couldn’t afford even a basic bed, let alone a computer that only had two functions: “play” and “find job.” Spending money on such an expensive device seemed unnecessary when its main purpose was to search for employment.

Looking back now, perhaps it would have been wiser to buy a computer for them instead of the bookcase, toy chest, and heavy CRTV, since despite my attempts and their purchases, these individuals never seemed to enjoy themselves. Yet, considering the circumstances, it was only fair because they were living in what can best be characterized as a nightmarish capitalist environment.

In The Sims, there isn’t any calendar system, which might not seem significant at first glance. However, this means your characters never get a break from work or school. In subsequent games of The Sims, weekends become crucial for your characters to build relationships, enjoy leisure activities, and manage their homes. On the other hand, in the initial game of The Sims, each day demands that you show up for a job with no vacation days and a hint of punishment if you don’t make an appearance.

In my experience, I always made certain that my sims were consistently at work, but there were a few occasions when an accumulation of commands led them to oversleep and miss the carpool or bus. Unlike in later games where tardiness is tolerated, being late in The Sims means you forfeit the day entirely. Unfortunately, this meant I had to observe my sim son lounging on the couch watching cartoons instead of attending school. Fortunately, his parents hadn’t legally acknowledged him as their child, so he escaped any lectures about his grades dropping from an A to a B.

In contrast, improving my abilities to get promoted wasn’t challenging for me, but figuring out how to make friends was perplexing. My simulated characters seldom had enough time to arrive home, prepare dinner, interact with their virtual family members, and use the bathroom before socializing or forming new friendships, which seemed necessary to avoid career stagnation. Adding to this, my oven often caught fire every third or fourth usage. Therefore, I’ve concluded that the original The Sims creators were somewhat masochistic. No disrespect intended, Mr. Will Wright. After all, great game designers are often known for their twisted minds. Best regards!

Amid juggling the demands of keeping my Sims happy, pushing their careers forward, and dealing with the incessant car horns from drivers eagerly leaving the road but halted by the numerous animals wandering my garden, I was on the verge of tearing out my hair. Recognizing the need for a break, I opted to go on a vacation that conveniently halts “real life,” ensuring my Sims won’t have to use an unavailable day off.

I forked over 500 dollars for the vacation deal, and an additional 120 dollars to stay at a run-down mountain motel of my choice. You’d assume that with these costs, meals would be included. However, you’d be mistaken. As we devoured one meal after another, totaling 25 dollars each, I realized this was not the case.

As a gamer, I can say that my in-game family had an overall great time at Penguin Acres Campground. My sim son was thrilled with the opportunity to hurl snowballs and ride snowboards, while his parents (my sim parents) took advantage of the hot tubs for relaxation. Despite my mom sim playfully swatting my dad sim as he awkwardly tried to steal a kiss, she seemed pleased when she consented to a cozy embrace.

Upon getting back home, I got a call from the workplaces of both my sims. It turned out that the game had indeed marked them as absent from work; I think this happened because they left for vacation just when their carpools arrived. Luckily, neither of them were fired, but their job performance suffered a slight setback.

In the afternoon, with them both being at home, the wife suggested to her husband they venture into town together, maybe as a gesture to mend their disagreement from the campsite. This brought back memories for me about how entertaining it is to explore places in The Sims. I find that outings run more efficiently than they do in The Sims 4. Yet, when her husband proposed they kiss at the restaurant booth (maybe she’s not a fan of public displays of affection?), she turned him down again. However, they did play footsie and indulged in a 300 simoleon meal, which depleted their entire family’s savings.

To put it simply, The original Sims is an absurdly entertaining game with an unexpected level of difficulty that I can’t get enough of. In many aspects, it serves as a delightful relic from the dawn of the new millennium, showcasing not just the aesthetic of video games at that time, but also mirroring the zeitgeist of society, both physically and metaphorically. The quirky, incongruous furniture in the game captured my heart, and I was even more smitten when Bella Goth picked up the phone instead of texting, promising to visit after wrapping up her favorite soap opera.

The fact that sims have intrinsic interests in various topics, from weather and politics to extraterrestrials and the ’60s, and can adapt their conversations to attract others, is still a marvel. It’s effortless to recognize how this game paved the way for life simulators and ignited a legendary series that has flourished for a quarter century. In essence, this re-release is an ideal method to honor The Sims.

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2025-01-31 19:09