The Sims 2

"Slighty new, but empty"

The Sims 2 is a better, and more vivid and deep version of the original The Sims. And with it came the consel versions. The Sims and The Sims Bustin' Out were both very good, but after that, The Sims feelings we're starting to fade away. Traditions lost, changed, or new additions that don't make sense have been added, and all of those cons are put in The Sims 2 for GameCube, Xbox, and PS2.

I'll start off with the gameplay. There is a new feature that allows you to directly control your sims. This feature is alright, and it gives it the feel like you're playing a 3rd-person action game, just without the action. It also allows your sim to run faster. However, this does have a downside. As you progress through the game, you are required to satisfy the needs of several Sims at once. When playing in direct-control mode, in order to get your Sim to do something, you must walk to the object, and choose the interaction, which means you can't give your sim more then one order at once, or give other sims in the household different activitys planned out. This usually results in three sims heading for the fridge or the bathroom or even the same bed at the same time, and thats when the frustation starts, and you have to switch Sims to move them all out of eachother's way, then get them all doing something so they won't be getting in the way for about 3 minutes. This new control mode is ok if you are just control one sim or maybe two, but any more, and you will be forced to use the classic-control.

The Sims 2 was supposed to be a Next-Generation game, in which your sims have genetics and pass the on from generation to generation. Oh, but what's this? You can't have kids in the consel version. Not even in freeplay mode. Not only that, but once again, your sims are immortal (except against fires, but that's really the only way they can die. That and starvation). This makes the consel version VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY (ect.) different from that of the PC/MAC version, and doesn't really deserve the title of The Sims 2.

Now, on to the freeplay. In the first consel game, the freeplay allowed you to have 8 familys. While that might not seem like alot, it's actually pretty nice, and you can still have a good amount of family friends, neighborhood ties, and relationships. But when Bustin' Out came, freeplay was someone you ignored, and in The Sims 2, there's no exception. There is no neighborhood anymore. Instead, you see a plain, simple list that says "House 1, House 2, House 3". Yep, there's your freeplay mode. 3 houses. Each house is also in an entirely different enviroment, which just looks weird. Also, good luck with a career in a freeplay house; there are still friend requirements, and even some require you to have 10 friends. But how? There's only 3 houses, and the sims from the "story" mode, don't drop by often, if that. Freeplay mode just plain sucks. End of story.

Speaking of story, there is a "Story" mode. Yes, I quoted it again. This is because, there is no story. You make a sim and go from house to house. Each time you go to a new house, you need to take care of more and more sims and soon you will be pulling your hair out. Does your sim have goals? Not really. Does your sim have any backstory what-so-ever? Nope. Is he or she trying to get something out of life? Nu-uh. This is all just for unlocking things. When you unlock things, it's usually something not worthwhile anyways. But what do you unlock them for? You're unlocking them to make freeplay more exciting, but I think we've already established that freeplay sucks, and should be avoided at all costs. So what's the point of "Story" mode? Um........................................................................... I dunno.

The graphics look alright, but when you're close up, it gets laggy, blurry, and grainy and the objects looks REALLY pixilized. The camera looks better when zoomed out, and for some reason, your sims run slower then you're zoomed in because (insert stupid reason here). Keep the camera zoomed out, and you should be at least somewhat happy.

Sound and music.... Almost non-existant. Even if the volume is up, the music is so quiet, you can't hear it at all. Instead, you get really loud sim voices, and since you will be spending most of your time in double-speed, they will sound really sqeaky and cartoony. Between the non-existant music and the worst sim-voices in history, the volume is going to be something you want either off (to stop the horrible voices), or really loud (to hear the music). If it's in the middle, to high, or too low, you will be driven insane either way.

Replay value.... Well, I suppose it might be nice to play through the game with an entirely different looking character, but, well, it's nothing new. You're just going to do the same frusturating and repetitive thing over again, and I doubt you would be up for something like that.

If you're curious, then rent it. But to buy it, you must be really really really bored, or just too generous with your money. My opinion, just stay away from this game. It's not worth it.

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 07/02/07