The Sims Bustin' Out

"The same, but different..."

The Sims games always were an acquired taste. Some people take an obsessive interest in the lives of their little ones, others accuse the interminably long-running series as being little more than a jumped-up dolls' house simulator. Which I suppose it is, in a way, but there is something here to appeal to everyone on a certain level at least. Apart from twitch gamers, who will find little to occupy their attention here.

Skip this bit if you know what The Sims is.
For those of you who don't know, The Sims is, essentially, a strategy game that first emerged on PC in 1999. ''Strategy game'' is probably a misnomer, however - this game contains some of the most detailed AI routines yet seen in a game... and none of them concern how to kill you, the player. No, this game focuses on the mundanities of life such as keeping oneself fed and going to the toilet before puddles mysteriously appear on the carpet. And, of course, meeting people, kissing them and rolling around on bearskin rugs with them.

The PC versions were entirely open-ended, allowing players to pursue their own objectives alongside satsifying their Sims' basic needs (hunger, tiredness, social interactions, ''fun'', comfort, hygiene, degree-of-needing-toilet and how much they like their house) - be they keep their whole families happy, build a sordid little love nest, or even find creative ways to kill off the little lords and ladies of the manor. (You know who you are. And yes, there are a variety of ways to make them cark it.) The previous console incarnation (called, imaginatively, ''The Sims'') added a goal-oriented ''level-based'' game to the mix, giving you a set of objectives to accomplish with a single user-created Sim who would interact with numerous characters and follow a rudimentary storyline, starting in your mother's house and eventually ending up in a big mansion. It had the free-form mode too, of course, and the big bonus of being able to play free-form in two player mode. Alarmingly addictive, if a complete waste of time.

Rejoin us here, people who know what the Sims is all about.
Bustin' Out keeps the game structure of the previous console incarnation but adds some interesting new ideas to the mix, along with lots of new objects from the numerous expansion packs on the PC, new social interactions (some exclusive to the console version... most of them particularly obnoxious/hilarious) and an improved graphics engine (proper 3D, as opposed to the PC version's isometric backdrops and 3D characters)

Essentially, the big new thing is the fact you can take your sim out in his vehicle of choice (start with a little scooter and trade in for better vehicles as your affluence and standing in SimCity increases) and go and visit other places. The PC expansion packs ''Hot Date'', ''Vacation/On Holiday'' and ''Superstar'' allowed Sims to go downtown, on holiday or to an entertainment complex, but never allowed you to visit other families' houses. Now you can, and doing so is an integral part of achieving the goals required of you in each level.

Making friends and falling in love with other Sims is as important as it ever was, and the new social interactions make this even more amusing than ever before. The more friends your main character makes, the more social interactions become available to him/her (essentially, he/she ''learns'' them off the other characters) - from the amusing (''Karate Chop'' - a brief martial-arts battle against another Sim) through the disgusting (''Burp In Face'', complete with cloud of noxious green gas) to the romantic (''French Kiss''). Different Sims like different things, depending on their personalities. It's up to you, the player, to determine what sort of person each Sim is and interact with them in the most appropriate way. This game is also crammed full of pre-created NPC characters for you to meet without having to create your own townful - though partway through the game, you gain the ability to visit the houses you have constructed and populated in free-form mode, thereby allowing you to customise the population of your little settlement to an extent.

So the gameplay is similar to previous instalments, though the new ''visiting'' idea works particularly well... and the strange thing which happened on the PC version where if you went downtown, no time would have passed at home when your Sim returned, no longer happens. Now, time flows continually... so if you're at someone else's house or partying at Club Rubb when your bus to work arrives at home, you're going to have a lot of explaining to do! This calls you as a player to think a lot more laterally and plan your time out realistically. You can miss a couple of days of work without any repercussions, but after that you need to put in the hours before you can pull another sicky.

Graphically, the game is an improvement over the previous console incarnation, which looked a little muddy and lacking in detail compared to the sharpness of the isometric 2D backgrounds of the PC version, though the ability to move the camera in 3D space was nice. This time around, the detail level is much higher, Sims have facial expressions and actually move their lips when they talk, and there are lots of lovely little touches like real-time shadows which move according to the time of day, a full day-night cycle and a consistent framerate which isn't interrupted by the game loading objects, music or characters into memory, unlike the previous version.

Sonically, we finally get some new tunes on the radio stations and they're pretty good. I'm not convinced the change of menu music was a good idea, however - while funky at times, it's a little bland. The cheesy electric guitar re-version of the ''Love Story'' music whenever anyone gets intimate is rather amusing though. There are also lots of new voices (still speaking SimSpeak, of course) and plenty of wacky sound effects to highlight noteworthy events.

Control-wise, the XBox version is straightforward enough. There are very few buttons to remember (A to select, B to cancel will probably do you) and it works well. The analogue sticks could be a little more sensitive, but otherwise I have no complaints.

Sims fans should snap this up. Casual gamers unaware of the fuss surrounding this game should at least give it a go - it's enchanting, alarmingly addictive and ultimately depressing when you realise your characters are living more interesting lives than you!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/24/03