The Sims Bustin' Out

"SIMply Delicious"

Opening Remarks: Pissed that Nintendo never released a version of Animal Crossing for GBA? You should be. It's one of the most (strangely) fun games in recent times, and seemed perfectly suited for a portable version. (At the time of this review, Animal Crossing is scheduled to be released for Nintendo DS, but that doesn't do us much good right now.) I've never played any version of The Sims on PC, but I can tell by looking at gameplay footage and reading reviews that the GBA version of the game is very different than the PC game it shares its name with. Why, it seems less like The Sims and more like...Animal Crossing?

Gameplay: Like I said, I've never played the PC or console version of this game, but I know it's a point-and-click game like its SimCity predecessors, while the GBA version is more along the lines of an RPG, or at least as much of an RPG as Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing were. Here you have direct control over your Sim, and must go about the town chatting it up with other Sim folk and carrying out missions for them. Starting the game, you go to the Create-a-Sim section, where you're given limited clothing and appearance options, mold your personality, and then you're off.

You start off small, on your uncle's farm, and must work your way up the ladder of life. Parts of the map gradually open up, and you can move from dwelling to dwelling, decorating the rooms as you see fit, inviting other Sims to room with you. You must maintain relationships with other Sims, and every time you talk to one, you're given a list of scripted things to say to them. Some are insults that will lower your friendship rating with them, others are compliments that will do the opposite, and others are things such as asking them if you can do anything for them.

At all times you have meters at the bottom of the screen displaying your needs, such as food, rest, entertainment, bathroom, shower, and so forth, and you always need to keep these up. If your bathroom meter runs low, you need to make it to a toilet. Entertainment running low? Turn on the radio and dance. Shower running low means you stink and need to bathe. When a meter runs out, your Sim lets you know. The meters don't run out too fast, but I wish they would run out slower. Having to maintain these needs is fun - that's what a Sim game is all about - but it can be quite annoying to have your hunger meter run empty and have to drop everything to run home and grab something to eat.

The game does not have a built-in clock; the time system is similar to the more recent Grand Theft Auto games, where one second equals one minute of game time. (Sleeping accelerates time, if you need it to pass faster.) Certain places in town such as bars and stores are naturally only open at certain times of day. There are a bunch of subtle details in the game, such as having to pay one credit of money to use a payphone, but not having to pay to use your phone at home. There are plenty of side-games, such as mowing the lawn, and missions are similar to Animal Crossing. (i.e., Ask a friend if you can do something for them, they tell you to deliver X item to so-and-so friend, who gives you something in return, etc.)

The game is kind of linear, in that you need to complete certain missions and tasks before you're allowed to move on. I was surprised to see the game end; I figured it would go on forever. It's not a big deal though, since in games like SimCity and Animal Crossing, you usually get bored with what you've created after a certain amount of time and end up starting over. Overall, if you want a more complex version of Animal Crossing, this is your game.

Pros: Free, open-ended gameplay, while still having to maintain your Sim and relationships with others.

Cons: Some items (furniture, etc) are too expensive and take too long to save up money for. Also, the limited amount of items you're allowed to carry (eight). You can use the phone to call someone to find out where they are in town, but they're often not where they say they are.

Graphics: Now here's a good example of what can be accomplished visually if you put enough effort into it. All of the character sprites look fantastic, and animate well. The city is a 2D isometric map that looks very sharp. There is no long wait when you move between areas, such as walking into a store, just a quick blackout. Lighting goes from day to night relative to what time it is, and effects like rain look great. All of the text is clear and easy to read. Every so often, a character's animation will appear choppy, and sometimes when running around town, the camera scrolling will struggle to keep up, but these are very minor quirks.

Pros: Polished look of everything, nice animation.

Cons: Minor graphical hiccups.

Sound/Music: I was surprised at the quality of the music. It's nothing I'd want to burn to a CD and listen to in my car, but it sure beats the dated NES-like music most GBA games are still using today. The sound quality is excellent, and never sounds scratchy coming out of the speaker. There's a decent variety of music, and if there's a radio around, such as in the bar or in your house, you can change the station. The sound effects are good, though there's no real speech. The Sims all speak their incomprehensible language, which sounds like a newborn baby mumbling. Overall, an excellent job.

Pros: Everything.

Cons: Nothing.

Play Control/Game Design: You're given direct eight-way control over your Sim and can move about freely. I don't even want to imagine the nightmare this game would have been had they ported the point-and-click interface of the PC games. The user interface is very clear and simple. Whenever you walk next to an object that can be manipulated, a yellow arrow appears over it. Pressing the A buttom will bring up a choice menu. You can choose to put most things in your pocket, and setting them down is easy; it even gives you a cursor to move around to place something exactly where you want it. If it's a bed or sofa, you can choose to sit or sleep. A radio, you can turn on and dance. A phone, make a call. A refrigerator, make a snack. And so forth.

Pros: Simple interface.

Cons: Nothing.

Improve: Make items less expensive. Give your Sim the ability to carry more items. Include a built-in real-time clock.

Recommended if you like: Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon.

Final Words: I loved the GameBoy days of old, when developers would make all-new games exclusive to GameBoy that were based on the PC or console versions of other games. These days, that practice has been almost completely abandoned in favor of simply giving us poorly-made ports of those games. The Sims: Bustin' Out has shown me that there are still developers out there willing to go the extra mile to give GameBoy owners a good, exclusive handheld version of a console or PC game that's tailor-made for the GBA and can stand on its own. This is one addictive game that's very hard to put down.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/17/04