Another big step forward is in the creation tools. Creating a Sim is easy, and the amount of customization you can exert makes it a rewarding experience. You really reach a point where you can say: hey, this guy looks EXACTLY how I want him. Sims are more than skin deep, though, and this is where you tweak their personality by choosing the Traits mentioned before. You can even upload your creation to The Sims 3 Official website, and download other people’s creations to populate your town.
The up and download functionality extends to furniture and homes, and the building tools are really great. Make no mistake, they take more getting used to the Create a Sim tools: you will spend a few hours getting the hang of them, but once you do, they are quite well fleshed out. Starting out small and stretching out the living room so that parties wouldn’t be too crowded was a challenge, but getting the kid’s room set up wasn’t to bad, and by the time I had the money to add a second floor, it was an absolute blast.
While the Sims 3 has leapt forward in terms of the vibrant village full of Sims and the behaviour of your own Sims, the graphics aren’t all that great. Of course, they are better than the Sims 2, but not by as much as you would hope for five years of new technology. There is still a lot of clipping: characters with long hair will often have their shoulders and back visible, then a patch of hair on their back (ewwwww). The Sims 2 had better graphics relative to what was available than The Sims 3 relative to what we are used to in today’s universe of HD electronics .
Sound is tolerable, with the music going unnoticed. You'll continue to find Simlish either cute or annoying. Sound in general is appropriate, with car horns to draw your attention of the car pool waiting, or expressions of disgust when a Sim opens a fridge that needs cleaning. The exception is the intro music, which sounds like the intro to an 80’s family oriented show, and will make you want to jam just about anything you can reach into your ears.
The change that I found most valuable was the addition of Lifetime Happiness and Wishes. Essentially, your Sims get xp they can use to buy upgrades. Not a revolutionary concept in gaming, but it takes the game most famous for brining games to non-gamers and broadens its appeal even further to include gamers. People who usually play video games might get into the Sims 3 more than previous installments.
You can earn Lifetime Happiness points in two ways. If you look after your Sims needs meters and they are having a generally good time, this drives up their happiness level. If you get it into the top bubble, the Sim will slowly accumulate points. Your Sim will also have wishes that pop up. You can left click on them to accept them, up to four at a time. They range in complexity and term from things like “Make Waffles” to “Get Married.” The more complex and long term a wish, the more points you get for fulfilling it.
The most dramatic rewards are for Lifetime Wishes. Completing them will take most of a Sim’s life, but offers tens of thousands of points. You use points to buy Lifetime Rewards: upgrades for the Sim like being more attractive, throwing better parties, learning faster, and so on.
Lifetime wishes are based on a Sims’ traits (or chosen for created sims) and Wishes do an excellent job of relating to the Sim’s activities in combination with their traits and skills. A Sim with a job, the Cooking skill, and the Virtuoso trait will be offered Wishes like getting a raise or promotion and befriending co-workers, wanting to make a certain dish or improve their skill, and play the guitar or increase their skill in that area. If she meets someone at the park, she may want to find out more about him (which you do by revealing his traits in conversation). If they start flirting, she may wish to hug him, and so on.