"It's my House Party and I'll cry if I want to"

Maxis, the company responsible for the smash hits The Sims and The Sims: Livin' Large, has put out a new expansion pack to augment the ever-growing popularity of their franchise. This new expansion focuses on the social aspect of life. Everyone knows that working is basically a necessity, but it's widely accepted that partying is both more fun and more important than a job! The Sims: House Party enables players to throw a raging party at their sims place with only a single phone call.

Of course, in order to throw a good party, you have to have all the right equipment. Fortunately, the creators have provided all the trimmings to make your party a success. In the way of food, we have the always popular fruit punch bowl, an enormous cake, and a large buffet table. Each of these will begin to run out food as more sims take from them, so you will have to constantly refill them. But for your convenience, you can hire a caterer who will take care of that for you.

In addition to the food, your sim can purchase a trunk complete with an assortment of different costumes. If your sim chooses to have a costume party, all he has to do is dress himself, and the other guests will follow suit. Choices range from Hawaiian to Roman to pirate costumes. There are several types of each costume, so not everyone will have to dress alike.

The expansion pack has introduced a couple of new radio stations, so put them to good use at your party. There is an enormous DJ booth available for purchase. Any sim can play on this, but they will not change the station without your command. To supplement the new sound system, you can set up speakers throughout the house so you can hear the music no matter where you are. Just remember that if you put them in a bedroom, no one will get any sleep. Now the sims who know how to have a good time will want a place where they can dance up a storm. In the electronics section of the Buy mode is a special dance floor, as well as dance cages. Place these near the DJ booth and watch as the sims show you how you're supposed to dance.

The new music in House Party is an improvement over that of the original. All of the sims' music is incredible, but the stuff that came out of this expansion is really something special. There are a several new stations and after this expansion, I've never listened to anything that came with the original game.

Gameplay and interface are basically the same. There are no new social interactions, aside from the party option. If you have Livin' Large, then you currently have five different neighborhoods. House Party expands that to give you an additional three. There are a handful of new NPCs, including a special celebrity that may appear if your party is of the highest quality.

The Sims: House Party has its fun moments, but I feel that it is lacking in the quantity department. In comparison to the other expansion packs that Maxis releases after House Party, this particular one is relatively small. It doesn't have a tremendous amount of new features and, if taken alone, doesn't provide all that much replay value. While I'm glad I have this expansion, it is probably my least favorite. I wouldn't recommend House Party to anyone but the most devoted Sims fans.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/29/06