Home Games MySims

MySims

Sim
Released: 09.18.07
Electronic Arts
EA Games
ESRB: Everyone

MySims

Worth 10 happy essences.

by Sarah Schutz

Reviewers worldwide would kill me, but I actually really liked this game, at least for what it is, as opposed to what it is not, because it is definitely not a Sims game. MySims is more like advanced Animal Crossing with gameplay elements like the infamous diamond and indecipherable speech that only barely make it a Sims game. The MySims design is much younger than other Sims games, immediately making it more appealing to a younger crowd. The games’ world is traversed much like in Animal Crossing and the game’s goals are focused on building up your town and your home rather than building your relationships.

After creating your Sim (which you will find are strangely androgynous) you learn from the mayor that your town is in desperate need of some character in order to gain new residents. You quickly learn that your goal is to expand the town by building homes and furniture created with “essences” specific to individuals you meet throughout the adventure. Searching for essences is a lot like digging up stuff in Animal Crossing and takes up a lot of your gameplay time. Essences can be obtained in nearly every way imaginable. An interaction with a friend obtains “happy” (or “sad”), you may dig up an 8-ball or you may pick an apple off a tree. Different residents prefer to be surrounded by different residents in their homes. Essences can take be transferred to paint or objects around the home. Learning to build furniture and homes is fairly intuitive and quite addictive. Discovering the interesting patterns unique to each essence is strangely exciting and seeing your town flourish, entirely satisfying.

While the goals behind the game are fairly simplistic and the gameplay is anything but challenging, MySims has a tangible charm that has quite a draw after a rigorous session with a more challenging game. It is easy for most gamers, casual or otherwise, to pick up and play and can at the very least provide a few hours of amusement. If you enjoy any type of building simulation, I suggest you give this a try for a different take on building a happy community.

Addictive and charming

A tad boring and lacks social element

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