For Optimal Viewing, Please Maximize your Window.
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(^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^) /\ | | __________ \/
( ) / \| | / ________| __ _ __ __ ____
^^^^^^^| |^^^^^^^ / | | / | | | |/ | \ / ___|
| | __ /__ ___|____ | | | | | | | | \___ \
| | | | | || ______| \ \________ |__| |___|__|_| |____/
| | | |__| || |____ \_______ \
| | | __ || ____| \ \
| | | | | || |______ | | Designed By Maxis
| | |__| |__||________| _______/ / Published by EA
(Electronic Arts, Inc.)
--------|__|-------------------------|_________/-----FAQ by MaxisMaster (Joe
Kaiser)-----------
By Joe Kaiser
The Sims FAQ
Everything you'll need to know
______________________________________________________________________________
________________
-If you have anything to add, email me at [email protected] with "The Sims
FAQ" as the subject
-Everything I know about The Sims will be in this guide, and I will update as
needed.
-The most recent version of this FAQ can be found at http://www.gamefaqs.com
-If you wish to put this FAQ on your webpage, email me at [email protected]
with "The Sims FAQ" as the subject
-Please refer to the Coming Soon section - I need suggestions!
-A list of all the downloads:
______________________________________________________________________________
_______________
|Item |
Other Comments|
|_____________________________|_______________________________________________
________________|
|Cuckoo Clock | Cuckoos every six hours - 6AM 12AM 6PM 12PM
|
|Moose Head | Antlers are an indicator of family happiness -
the higher the |
| | antlers, the happier the family.
|
|Weird Skins | Includes Warriors, a Detective, and Wizards
|
|5 New Houses | A good variety
|
|Wall Lights | Very Useful
|
|Slot Machine | Use it when you are depressed to get better
odds. |
|Guinea Pig | It may make you sick - make sure you clean it
often. |
|Plants | Some Miscellaneous Plants
|
|"Physical" Skins | Very interesting.
|
|MTV Skins | Skins from MTV ads.
|
|Topiaries | Hedge Llama, Dolphin, Skyscraper, etc.
|
|Coped Flowers | Flowers inside a concrete border
|
|Party Balloons | Attracts people to your house
|
|The White House | A Sim Model of the white house (but no toilet)
|
|New Trashcans | Elephant's foot and Sleek Black
|
|Flamingo Neon Bar Sign | Really nice for the real man's den
|
|Game Upgrade | Fixes lots of bugs
|
|Jukebox | Not actually for the game - desktop item. Get
it at: |
| | www.rankit.com/sims/simsoffer2.html
|
|_____________________________|_______________________________________________
________________|
Updates
Version 2.5 | 7-09-00 | Added Handy Dandy Download Chart Above, Added Chapter
7 Ideas for New Objects and Concepts
Version 2.4 | 7-05-00 | I'm baaaaack! Changed FAQ Layout, updated the
Review/Overview, added 5.52 Dealing with Death, added 5.32 Money Theory, added
5.33 Everyone's Favorite Strategy, Added "Joe's Comment" to the Complex
Furniture Description Chapter, and added 5.6 Livin La Vida Loca in The Sims
Version 2.3 | 6-13-00 | Boy, it's been a loooong time. Added Horoscope FAQ in
4.5, Updated Job rankings, Finished on the furniture, changed ii. NOTES! to
ii. NOTES AND NEWS!, added MUCHO FUN STUFF to it, added a new link (I highly
suggest you visit it), added iii. Official Maxis Chat with Will Wright and iv.
Chat with "The Sims: Livin' Large" Developers
Version 2.2 | 4-26-00 | Added 4.51 More on Marriage, added a new bug, added to
4.5, added more to 3.8, started statistic deficiency on 4.35 (will change
ratings soon), added to known bugs.
Version 2.1 | 4-12-00 | Miss me? Started Chapter 3.8 The Complex Furniture
Description Chapter, Updated Codes
Version 2.0 | 3-29-00 | Updated Known Bugs
Version 1.9 | 3-25-00 | Updated codes, added 2.8 Cool Ideas, Updated FAQ
Version 1.8 | 3-12-00 | Did a much needed spelling/grammar check, started FAQ,
added new code.
Version 1.7 | 3-09-00 | Added 1.1 The Neighbors, Added i. Review / Overview,
(Please look at coming soon! I need your help!) Added 9. Last Time I Played...
Version 1.6 | 3-06-00 | Worked all week on this. Added 2.65 A Place For The
Kids, Added to Table of Contents and Updated section i (You GOTTA See This.),
Added 4.25 Sim Health, added 7 Known Bugs, and - it took a lot of time - ADDED
4.35 THE JOBS
Version 1.5 | 2-29-00 | Big Update! Fixed minor errors, Added more in Section
1, Added 4.4 School, 2.25 A Very Nice Touch and 2.6 The Great Outdoors, Added
7 Coming Soon, Changed ASCII art slightly
Version 1.4 | 2-28-00 | Added 3.7, changed minor errors, added 4.3, changed
old 4.3 to 4.4
Version 1.3 | 2-21-00 | Changed minor errors, added 4.3, added Cheats and
other stuff
Version 1.2 | 2-20-00 | Added ASCII art, changed minor errors, added 3.6,
started section 4!
Version 1.1 | 2-20-00 | Fixed Table of Contents, added 2.6, Wrote Section 3!
Version 1.0 | 2-20-00 | Everything's New!
Table of Contents
1. General Game Stuff
1.1 Review / Overview
1.2 NOTES & NEWS!
1.3 Official Maxis Chat with Will Wright
1.4 Chat with "The Sims: Livin' Large" Developers
2. Building A Family
2.1 The Neighbors
3. Building A Home
3.1 Walls
3.2 Doors
3.25 A Very Nice Touch
3.3 Windows
3.4 Wallpaper and Flooring
3.5 Bragging Rights
3.6 The Great Outdoors
3.65 A Place for the Kids
3.7 Suggested Homes
3.8 Cool Ideas
3.81 The Apartment
3.82 Casino
3.83 Restaurant
3.84 Bar
3.85 Really Good Idea
3.9 Final Words On Building
4. Furnishing your home
4.1 Four Basics
4.2 Living Room
4.3 Kitchen
4.4 Bedroom
4.5 Bathroom
4.6 Security
4.7 Lighting and Decorations
4.8 The Complex Furniture Description Chapter
5. Living the Sim Life
5.1 The Basics
5.2 The Eight Needs
5.25 Sim Health
5.3 Money and Jobs
5.31 The Jobs
5.32 Money Theory
5.33 Everyone's Favorite Strategy
5.4 School
5.5 Love, Life, and Death
5.51 More on Marriage
5.52 Dealing with Death
5.6 Livin La Vida Loca in The Sims
6. Cheats and other stuff
7. Ideas for New Objects and Concepts
8. Links
9. Known Bugs
10. Coming Soon
11. Last Time I Played...
--------------------------
INTRODUCTION
--------------------------
The Sims is a Maxis game somewhere between SimCity and SimAnt. In my opinion,
it is the best yet. It is a realistic simulation of family life, containing
all the twists and turns you could ever hope to see. It covers everything from
making lunch to making friends to making babies to making money. Yep, it's all
about making. Your Sims (simulated people) can live in a shack or a mansion.
They can have a pool or a pool table. And if you have the money, both!
--------------------------
1.1 Review / Overview
--------------------------
I officially was hooked in September 1998.
Maxis games grabbed me and wouldn't let go. I slowly became addicted to Maxis,
after grabbing a copy of SimTower from Maxis's website and having a copy of
SimTown lying around. But I was itching for more. I wanted SimCity 2000 like
it was the apocalypse. But I had no cash at the time. So I waited until
Christmas until a relative was thoughtful enough to give me SimIsle plus "The
Ultimate Collection" - SimCity 2000, SimCopter and Streets of SimCity.
Then I was really hooked.
As I stumbled through the boxes, I saw an offer for $20 off SimCity 3000. I'd
been watching the website for months, waiting for a release date. The sheet
said Fall 1998, but that had come and gone. So I waited the month until late
January, when I discovered... could it be... YES! SC3K (Maxis Junkie Slang for
SimCity 3000) would be out on February 2nd! I grabbed every cent I could find
and ordered it from Maxis. I would go to Best Buy every day and look over the
box until it came.
Then I was incredibly hooked.
I played for months, until mid June when my city building fantasies slowed. I
got 4 months out of it, and a recent trip to the museum hooked me on
RollerCoaster Tycoon. So I bought that and played it until it's expansion
pack, which I bought and played some more. But in September, I vaguely
remembered a video clip on the SC3K disk. The Sims, was it? Hmm. I grabbed the
disc from the rack and watched the clip. Wow! I went to SimCity.com and found
The Sims had a website. In almost a deja vu of last year, I checked the site
every day. And soon I found that The Sims would be released exactly one year
and two days after SC3K.
I was so hooked that I couldn't get out.
So on the first day it was out I hastily called Best Buy and checked if they
had it in stock. No. Dang! The next day I checked Babbages. They had it, and
for $40 too! It was an average price, but I went and checked Best Buy
regardless. They had it for $50, but I wanted to use a gift card and got them
to lower their price. I bought it and played immediately.
I am hopelessly hooked.
For the past month I've been making families, from the family of a
successful doctor to the family with two black brothers living together to a
bachelor who ended up moving out to a family based on the three most known
people at Maxis (Will Wright, Luc Barthelet, Lucy Bradshaw - maybe later I'll
add Ocean Quigley as a neighbor.) It's an incredibly original idea, as it
isn't like the millions of Doom clones out there. It keeps you hooked because
you haven't done it before. You are the dictator. Hey, want to put a shower
right by the pool, like at gymnasiuns? Whatever! I've explored so many of the
possibilities in this game, and I'm hoping Mr. Wright has more in store for
us. Or else I'll kill the Sim I made of him! Bwhahahahaha! But I still can't
stop playing the game, regardless. There's always more motivation for me, like
if I want to get a pool table, a big screen TV and a computerized toilet.
I'm going to be hooked for a long time.
Graphics: 9/10
Wow! This is something that I thought Maxis wouldn't ever do. The characters
are 3-D, and look pretty good none the less. The furniture and architecture
were obviously cared for greatly, as seen by the detail put into it. The
people just look plain great, and their wardrobes are simply smashing (How
would you like a blonde with a tube top and leather jacket on over it? Huh?).
They even get you with lighting, as lights in one place will show up there
more than further away.
Gameplay: 10/10
First of all, it just doesn't get old. I could have 8 families running and
want more. The interface is simple, as you can select a character and click on
the object you want to use. One thing I would've liked is a "house map" for
easy navigation.
Sound: 10/10
Geez! These Maxis fellows were so articulate with the sound that my family
thinks the doorbell rang when it's only the SimDoorbell. You can hear them
"ouch"ing when they cut themselves, or the shower running in the bathroom.
Best of all, it fades out as the view gets further away, like in real life.
You don't hear a shower throughout the house, but it isn't silent either.
Wow Factor: 10/10
I play this the first time and say, "Oh. My. God." This game is like none
other, and even a junkie like me who knew what to expect was shocked.
Overall Rating (Not an average): 98%. This game is the best I've ever played
and I must recommend you GO OUT AND BUY IT RIGHT NOW (unless you already have
it).
UPDATE!!!
In April or May, my interest in Maxis slowed. Then, I bought SimCity 3000:
Unlimited. I played for a few days and I realized that I was slowly re-
addicted to Maxis. Now I've started yet another family.
--------------------------
1.2 NOTES & NEWS!!!
--------------------------
You can give your Sims free will or not using the options menu, but free will
will let them do things themselves. No free will lets you be the absolute
ruler of them.
STRAIGHT FROM MAXIS!
YOU CAN GET MORE THAN ONE NEIGHBORHOOD!!!
How can I save more than one game?
The Sims design is to play one neighborhood at a time.
If you want to save several different neighborhoods, you can copy the
\\UserData folder located within \\The Sims folder on your hard drive. Copy
this folder into a different location and that neighborhood will be preserved.
When you want to play those houses, remove the current \\UserData folder and
place the backed up folder into \\The Sims folder.
You heard it here.
NEWS!!!
Guess what?
A Sims Expansion Pack is on the way!!!
That's right. Named "The Sims: Livin' Large", it will include:
New Careers: Musician, Slacker, Paranormal
New Decoration Styles: Castle, Retro, Vegas
New Objects: Genie in a bottle, Crystal Ball, Exploding Lawn Gnome, Vending
Machines, Telescope, Personality-Altering Chemistry Set
New Disasters: Alien Abduction
I can't wait until September - It'll cost 29.99
SimMultiplayer?
Will Wright recently discussed "The Sims" Multiplayer Prospects with Computer
Gaming World. More to come...
-----------------------------------------
1.3 Official Maxis Chat with Will Wright
-----------------------------------------
Q: I'm 10 years old and I LOVE YOUR game!!! Thank you for making it, and I
want to ask: How long did it take you to do this?
Will Wright: Games take a long time to make. My first game took...about a
year; the Sims took about 4.5 years.
Q: When we Sim players are playing your game The Sims, what thought would you
like us to keep in the back of our mind? Such as something important that you
want to share to add our appreciation for your creation!
Will Wright: I think the most important lesson to be learned for me was..and
how we choose to spend it..has a big impact on our happiness.
Q: Have you worked on all "Sim" games made by Maxis?
Will Wright: No, probably less than half, the ones I worked on...are SimCity
Classic, SimEarth, SimAnt...SimCity 2000, SimCopter and The Sims.
Q: How long did it take you and your crew to create the Sims?
Will Wright: I first started on the Sims about 7 years ago. I worked on it on
and off...for a few years and then non-stop for the last 3 years or so...I
probably spent 4.5 years total on it.
Q: What will we expect in Simsville?
Will Wright: I'm not really working on that project, however...it will sort of
be between SimCity and The Sims.
Q: What bands (of music) do you like?
Will Wright: Enigma, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Pink Floyd, and many more. Vince
Guarldi also.
Q: When will the Sims expansion pack be out?
Will Wright: The expansion pack should be out around the beginning of
September.
Q: Are you working on making it possible to put windows, doors, so forth on
wall that cut diagonally across a square?
Will Wright: Not in the expansion pack, I really want that also though...so
I'll be trying to find a way to get it in some future patch.
Q: It seems the direction of the Sims is headed to the more kitchy/bizarre
side of things in the expansion pack, etc., what will be done to make it more
of a realistic imitation of life in the expansion pack and beyond?
Will Wright: Well that has a lot to do with how you play...there will also be
many new decorative style in the expansion pack...which should allow you to
more closely model your own house, etc.
Q: When are we going to get another download?
Will Wright: I'm not sure, I haven't been keeping up with the downloads at
all...sorry I don't know more.
Q: Can there be wether in the expansion pack?
Will Wright: I assume you mean weather. Not really but we're looking
into...the possibility in a future object though. Maybe a weather controller.
Q: How old are you?
Will Wright: I'm 40. I don't feel 40 though (more like 34).
Q: Mr. Wright, I think that The Sims represents not just a major stepping
stone in artificial intelligence, but also as a demonstration that computer
games CAN be commercial successes. Do you feel that with the recent
introduction of "high-end" consoles (like the PS2), the PC will no longer be
the leading platform for more "experimental" games?
Will Wright: It will always be easier to experiment on a PC than a game
console for many reasons...The polish of the programming and art tools being
just one example....So no, I think you'll still see most of the unique games
on the PC first, because costs are lower.
Q: Who is your favorite Sim out of the ones that you start the game with? Such
as the Goths and the Newbies. Also, what is your favorite object?
Will Wright: Probably Bella Goth, I made the Goth family myself...and I feel a
certain responsibility for them...my favorite object is a harder call...either
the flamingo, hot tub, pool table, or clown painting.
Q: Will there be a way to change the pictures and sounds on the Sims' TV sets?
Will Wright: Actually I think you can change the sounds now by dropping .wav
files...into the correct directory with the correct filenames...I forget the
filenames off hand though.
Q: What's Simsville?
Will Wright: Simsville is a new "Sim" game we're releasing early next year.
Q: How old were you when you came up with this? Or did I already ask that LOL
Will Wright: I was about 33 when I first though of making a game like The
Sims. That's a rather depressing thought.
Q: Are you married?
Will Wright: Yes, I'm married and have a 13 year-old daughter.
Q: Why don't they have sex in the game?
Will Wright: We would have had to put a M rating on the game, which would have
limited...the sales to about 1/2 of otherwise. And prevented many kids from
playing it...that might really enjoy it.
Q: Are there going to be any more pets/animals in The Sims Living Large?
Will Wright: Good question, I can't remember if the parrot made the list or
not.
Q: How long until we get a coat hanger for our closets? What happened to:
walking in the door, Honey I'm home then hang up coat: This is no way for a
Sim to live.
Will Wright: We though about an object that is like a door but has a
closet...inside (without sticking out the other side of the wall)...I think
this will be part of the expansion pack.
Q: Will this game, with me being 13 years of age, lead to materialism when I'm
older?
Will Wright: No it will cause you to rebel against our capitalistic
society...you will then move to India...and seek out the root cause of all
suffering in life...high on a mountaintop, near the Tibetan plains.
Q: Why is your nick name MaxisTurl?
Will Wright: Turl was the friend and associate of Klapaucius.
Q: Can u include more fat skins with the expansion pack?
Will Wright: If we go too fat the characters start to poke through the
furniture and such...that puts a limit on how big they can be.
Q: When I get a job I want to do what you do...what advice do you have for me?
Will Wright: Read a lot. Start simple, learn to program (maybe in Java)...make
many simple games yourself and you will learn a tremendous amount.
Q: What about Sims getting sick and then calling a doctor eg.. services menu.
Is this possible?
Will Wright: We have a new medicine cabinet in the exp. pack that will cure
sickness.
Q: How did you become who you are?
Will Wright: Well, that's straightforward...I lived my life until I got to
this point.?????
Q: Do you think you are as smart as Bill Gates?
Will Wright: No, I'm just very persistent.
Q: What are your best tips for making the best out of your Sims time?
Will Wright: Try holding the cursor over the selected Sim to make him/her walk
faster...very few people seem to know this one.
Q: Hi! Just curious, but do you play the games you created in your spare time?
Will Wright: I play them a lot when I'm working on them...after I finish them
I usually come up for air and play...the other games I was missing...to get a
sense of what's popular and cool at the time. Popular that is.
Q: I heard that certain architect programs inspired your creation of the Sims,
which ones and are there any you would recommend for the novice "arm chair"
architect?
Will Wright: Actually it was an architecture book...I would highly
recommend...A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander...as far as programs
go...I would say that 3d home architect by Broderbund is the best I've seen.
Q: Will, when did you figure out that you would get to play video games for a
living?
Will Wright: Well, when I was about 22 I decided to try making games for a
living...it took about a year or so for me to make my first game...and sell it
to find out that I actually COULD do it.
Q: What was the first programming language you learned to start out?
Will Wright: I learned FORTRAN in college and found computers boring at that
time...later I learned BASIC and PASCAL on my first computer (Apple2)...then
later taught myself assembly (6502) we I got serious about it.
Q: What is your favorite game of all time?
Will Wright: The board game of "Go".
Q: Did you expect your game to become such a world-wide hit?
Will Wright: Not really. I hoped it would do well...But I really didn't think
it would do THIS well.
Q: How are you tonight, Mr. Wright?
Will Wright: I am just fine. I had a very nice day. Digging through piles of
metal scrap.
Q: Why isn't there a teacher career?
Will Wright: We're adding a few new careers in the exp. pack...The teacher
career was hard to populate with 10 different levels.
Q: How many new disasters will the expansion pack have??
Will Wright: About 6-8 some are surprises. Not as bad as the guinea pig
though.
Q: When the expansion pack is released, will there be any new ways that your
Sim will meet an end?
Will Wright: I believe so. And ways to save a Sim who has meet their end.
Q: Will, this isn't a question, but you are the best in the PC gaming biz.
Will Wright: Thanks that's a nice thing to say, but Shigeru Miyamoto is far
better.
Q: Which game are you most proud of making?
Will Wright: I'd probably say The Sims now, before The Sims I would have said
SimEarth.
Q: Do you personally handle the new stuff that you have at The Sims?
Will Wright: If you mean the downloads no, not really. I'm rather busy on new
projects.
Q: Do you review Sim sites?
Will Wright: I don't review them, but I visit them almost daily...I really
like several of them MOTS, SizOnline, Sims Resource, Project Sims. etc.
Q: Why is Maxis so crazy about llamas?
Will Wright: Llamas are our company mascot.
Q: What are the chances of later allowing SIMS to age?
Will Wright: Maybe in a later version of The Sims. I would be very hard to add
that to the existing...version of the game.
Q: Will there be more cheats in the Sims expansion pack?
Will Wright: There will be cheats of sorts (like if the genie can get his
spells right).
Q: Any more skins being made?
Will Wright: Yes, we seem to always be making more skins (as are the fans).
Q: What will happen to Sims abducted by aliens in Livin' Large?
Will Wright: They will return some time in the future and then be very
different.
Q: Is the guinea pig really the source of a sickness?
Will Wright: Yes, if the pig bites you when his cage is dirty you can get
sick."
Q: What is your favorite color?
Will Wright: Black.
Q: What will the nature of new activities, if any, allowed for children in the
expansion pack?
Will Wright: That's a long answer, pretty much similar to the adult things
(telescope, chemistry set, etc.)
Q: Is it very fun being a programmer?
Will Wright: I don't do that much programming nowadays...I do mostly
design...programming is very fun though if you have the...temperament for it
(patient and meticulous).
Q: Can you make superheroes in your expansion pack?
Will Wright: Well we have new NPC's (genie, grim reaper, tragic clown)...I'm
not sure I'd call any of them heroes though.
Q: What's the longest you've ever played a Sim game in one sitting?
Will Wright: Probably about 6 hours (when I was younger, and before I had a
kid).
Q: what is your professional title?
Will Wright: It changes every month...this month it's Metaphorical
Cartographer.
Q: I have always wondered, what game designers have as personal goals, besides
the material ones, what is a personal goal you have with your visionary games?
Will Wright: To help alter the world in some slight way for the better...I
know that's quite hard to measure...but games are a very Powerful new
media...and it seems like they have the potential to do much good in this
world.
Q: Are you personally obsessed with The Sims like most of the fans?
Will Wright: At this point I'm probably more obsessed with the fans...I spend
a lot of time surfing the fan sites to see the new skins and walls and other
stuff the fans are making for the game...I also spend time checking out the
family albums on our site.
Q: What do you enjoy more: Living, buying or building?
Will Wright: Build. That's always been my favorite part of the game. I can
spend hours ...making new homes.
Q: Were you more hippy or disco?
Will Wright: Much more hippy (in a sort of nerdy way).
Q: is there a way to prevent or treat the guinea pig sickness?
Will Wright: Yes, just get a little more rest than usual and it will go away
over time.
And keep to cage clean to prevent it entirely.
Q: I'd like to know your answer to the "dinner party question"...Which 3
people from history would you most like to have at a dinner party?
Will Wright: Mmmmmmm...let me think....Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and maybe
Galileo…or Ptolomy. No Turing. Definitely Alan Turing.
Q: How well do you think you score as a husband & father? How do you juggle
between work and family?
Will Wright: I guess you'd have to ask my family. We all get along very well
though...even though my daughter is officially a teenager. She still likes to
spend a lot of time with us.
Q: Why can't friends hug (or dance) without loved ones getting jealous?
Will Wright: We were trying to really simulate...a caricature of real
life...so we exaggerated many things like that.
Q: I love The Sims! Can I ask in the Expansion Pack did you make it where the
Sims can get hot or cold or is that yet to come?
Will Wright: Yet to come.
Q: Do you have a favorite user created skin?
Will Wright: I like many of them, I use the Mulder and Sculley skins and some
of the Trek skins quite a bit.
Will Wright: Thanks everyone...for showing up. Sorry that I couldn't...answer
all the questions...but with 2200 submitted questions that's inevitable.
--------------------------------------------------
1.4 Chat with "The Sims: Livin' Large" Developers
--------------------------------------------------
MaxisChris: Chris Baena, Associate Producer
MaxisPatrickB3: Patrick Barrett, Engineer
Maxis_AnimatorX: Eric Hedman, Animator
MAXISean: Sean Baity, Assistant Producer
Is it true that in the expansion pack, Sims will be able to have sex!?
MaxisPatrickB3: In the expansion pack The Sims will be able to play in bed on
the vibrating bed. What play is, is up to you.
What new objects will the expansion have?
MaxisPatrickB3: The expansion pack consists of three distinct themes that can
be mixed and matched with our current objects. Anything from a genie lantern
to a chemistry set. as well as new rugs, couches, counters, etc.
When will the expansion pack be released?
MaxisChris: The Expansion Pack will be released in September.
I realize that the Sims game is not really a home designer, but it is good
none the less. I know that some new stuff is being added to the build mode,
could you please specify what is being added? As well, will the build mode bug
be fixed?
MAXISean: Build mode will have new windows, new doors, new floors and new
walls. We are basically tripling the number of walls and floors and tightening
up their compatibility with each other and the furniture. What bug are you
talking about?
What will the highest career level be for the slacker?
MaxisChris: You will have to wait and see.
Will the expansion pack just be game add-ons, like new furniture, clothes,
etc. or also game enhancements like weekends or other engine
enhancements/changes?
MAXISean: The expansion pack will have very unique new game play additions in
addition to the add-on like features. You will get a vacation for instance.
Tons of new furniture. I want to leave some room for surprises, but at E3 we
showed off an egg shaped chair, the Velvet SofaSaurus Funk sofa, an wood
burning stove, a coat of arms, stainless steel tables etc etc etc
When will the expansion pack be available, and how much will it cost?
MaxisChris: The Expansion Pack will be available in September for $29.95
MaxisPatrickB3: $29.95 USD
What is this genie that we have all been hearing about?
Maxis_AnimatorX: The genie is a unique game play addition. A basic character
addition that can increase your fun, affection...as well as accidentally bring
in some new situations. Not unlike the guinea pig perse.
MaxisPatrickB3: With Will Wright there are also some surprises in the objects.
The Chemistry Set may turn a Sim into a monster for a while for example. There
are a lot of normal objects as well.
Will the genie grant wishes, and if so what kind of wishes?
MaxisPatrickB3: The genie grants wishes but sometimes things don't always go
the way you would expect. There are about 10 different wishes each with a
couple different outcomes.
What is your personal favourite new object?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Vegas Fantasy Motel Love Bed. Gotta love a padded head board
and the magic fingers.
Will there be castle designs?
MAXISean: Yes. If you look on some of the game review pages like gamespot, you
will see we have extensive antique floors, walls, furniture and windows. They
don't have to be called "castle" as they can be used as expensive antiques
too. But now you can make medieval stories easily.
What do u think the coolest thing is in the new pack and when can we get it?
MaxisPatrickB3: The coolest object has got to be the genie lantern. It is very
well done. It is the first time we have mixed an object with a 3D NPC.
What will the highest career level be for paranormal?
MAXISean: Paranormal career.... well we wanted a career that fit in nicely
with the crystal ball, genie, ghosts, etc... so we have the paranormal career.
I won't give it all away, but you start as a palm reader and work your way up
through things like "ghost buster" to well... I won't tell the top level...
.to controversial.
Will the limit to the number of walls and floors be changed?
MaxisPatrickB3: The game is currently very limited with the amount of user
created walls & floors. This will be corrected in the expansion pack to allow
for 256 while still being compatible with the Exchange.
Will there be anymore window designs?
MAXISean: Lots of new windows...we made special efforts to increase the
variety and style of windows. There is a boomerang shaped one, there are
stained glass windows, we sort of got away from the square idea.
Will there be any brand new interactions that will come out of the new
objects?
MaxisPatrickB3: All the new objects contain new interactions, such as clean on
the genie lamp, make potion on the chemistry set, or launch on the toy
rockets.
Will there be implied sex in the game?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Sex and intimacy is implied in the game. I am of the opinion
that as soon as you quit the game all the little sims are running around going
at it anyway. There is a frisky new set of animations for the new bed.
The Sims is currently in development for the Mac, will there be any
developments for "Livin' Large" for the mac?
MaxisChris: We will be looking into the Mac version, but no promises.
Will the release date be the same for Canada?
MaxisChris: The release date for Canada will probably be close to US.
What are the two career tracks that haven't been mentioned yet?
MaxisChris: You'll have to wait and see....
Is it true there is going to be alien abductions and roach infestations? And
if so, what triggers these events?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Fox TV series?
MaxisPatrickB3: The rumours are true, alien abductions are pretty rare, the
Sims will have to watch the skies very carefully. Roaches are just an
expansion of the trash system. They are spawned from leaving dirty objects
around such as trash piles
Are there any plans for future "The Sims" games past the expansion pack?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Are there plans? I hope so.
Could you give us a summary of some of the new furniture included in the
expansion pack?
MAXISean: Furniture, guinea pig painting, Tiki dresser, ceramic elephant end
table, head in a jar on pedestal.
Will it be possible to place doors, windows and artwork on diagonal walls in
the expansion set?
MaxisChris: No.
What are the three themes?
MAXISean: I would not say we had three themes. We made three distinct houses
out of the expansion pack objects we had available at the time. It looked like
three themes as they are so different from each other. Those E3 themes were a
castle with mad scientist, a futuristic house with high-end designer
furniture, and the trashy honeymoon hotel.
Is it going to be an add on or will it contain the full game with it?
MaxisChris: It's an add-on.
There is a rumour that you can "Play With someone of the opposite sex is that
true?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Yes darling. It is indeed true.. Playing in the Giant Hearted
Headboard bed is very good but tiring.
Will there be more surprises like the Guinea Pig (that we'd all like to see
dead!!!)?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Yes...but even better.
MaxisPatrickB3: First of all, the guinea pig only hurts when it is kept
unclean. You have to take care of your pets. If you aren't going to take care
it, don't buy one. ( Man, I sound like my mom! ). There isn't anything hidden
in the expansion pack but it depends on what you consider hidden.
What ever happened to the in-game jukebox?
MaxisChris: The Jukebox is available on the Visa website and will be available
soon on our website to put in the game.
Maxis_AnimatorX: The Jukebox is really cool. Look out for it.
Will we have to load the whole thing up onto our hard drive or can we play off
of the new CD?
MaxisChris: Files will be put on your hard drive but you will need the new CD
to play.
What would you say is the best improvement to the game with the expansion?
Maxis_AnimatorX: The expansion pack makes the game truly variety filled. Just
so much stuff can be matched with so much other stuff. I like being able to
put together a room that looks like a liveable room. With the expansion pack
you can have complete sets of furniture as well as go eclectic and still make
something awesome.
MAXISean: Best improvement? We are trying to add multiple. If we pull that off
it will make a lot of people very happy.
Will there still be "Sim Days" where users can download new objects, etc.
after the Expansion Pack is released?
MaxisChris: Yes, Sim Days will continue after the Expansion Pack.
How many possibilities do you now of with the chemistry set?
MaxisPatrickB3: The chemistry can make about eight different potions ranging
from personality altering, temporary invisibility, to changing into a monster
for a while. Some are good though.
I saw something about a Grim Reaper. Will he show up when you die and take you
away, also how do you barter with him?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Don't fear the reaper.
MAXISean: The current design of the grim reaper is that he shows up
occasionally when people die. If you make the right bargain with him, or win a
little game, you can come back from the dead...but with..uh, some...uh,
drawbacks of course.
Is there a way to change the personalities back once the aliens have gotten to
them?
MaxisPatrickB3: Well they could always try to get abducted again. Other than
that, nothing can be done. See what happens if you get abducted.
Any new electronics in the expansion?
MAXISean: Yes there a couple new electronic devices. One being the handy dandy
Robot. Use him and you will have more free time to amp up your creativity with
our new electric guitar!
What is the age rating recommendation for this new expansion pack?
MaxisChris: The Expansion Pack will also have a T (Teen) Rating.
Is the genie and alien abductions through chance cards?
MaxisPatrickB3: The genie and alien abductions are generated from objects. Not
chance cards.
Will the genie be able to kill you?
Maxis_AnimatorX: I don't think the genie will be able to kill you. Of course
there may be a side effect of asking for something you can't handle based on
your characters personality attributes etc.
MaxisPatrickB3: The genie cannot harm YOU.
Aside from the Vegas hotel, and the castles, what is the last theme?
MAXISean: Well, keep in mind those "themes" were just for E3 really...so the
Vegas stuff, if combines with the right other furniture could look really
classy...some of it will never be classy, like the black velvet painting. But
there are "castle" things, there are "futuristic" things, there are "retro-
glitzy" things.
Since there's a new Musician Career, will there be new objects to go along
with it?
MAXISean: The musician can use the new guitar and new piano.
Maxis_AnimatorX: So far we are designing and building a musical instrument.
It's a beautiful guitar. Any character should be able to pick it up and play
it. The Guitar is gonna be really cool. You will be able to play using
different techniques
How can a sim let the other sim know that they wanna do the nasty?
MaxisPatrickB3: A sim can select the "Vibrate" interaction on the bed. While
lying there, they can click on another Sim and "Play in Bed" will appear.
Is there a new game all together or will we be able to add this on to our
current game?
MaxisChris: You add it to the original Sims.
Maxis_AnimatorX: Add on.
What are the other 2 career tracks?
MAXISean: Careers are paranormal, musician, slacker, hacker and journalist
Are there suits of armour for the Castles?
MAXISean: Suit of armour...plus torture device for the uh, less than non-
sadistic members of the community.
What's the deal with the zombie?
MaxisPatrickB3: The Chemistry Set may create a potion that will turn the Sim
into a monster for time going around and wreaking havoc.
AnimatorX, what do you mean by "...so much stuff can be matched with so much
other stuff."?
Maxis_AnimatorX: The furniture in the original game was cool, but in the
expansion pack, we have designed full sets. Couches and chairs, etc etc
What is the strangest "request" you've had for an add on item from players?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Bondage equip.
MaxisPatrickB3: The oddest I have seen was for knitting. After a number of
requests I finally asked someone in the chat why they would want that, turns
out the chat censorship was replacing what they wanted.
MAXISean: The strangest request? Gosh..let me scratch my head....I didn't get
many strange one's really. People want guns...but that is expected, not
strange. People want the kids to grow up...but so do I...I guess the strangest
request was for a way to turn a sim into a plant.
Will you ever release past Sim Day items on a CD - It's a bummer to re-
download if your HD crashes!
MaxisChris: Yes, the SimDay downloads will be on the Expansion Disk.
MaxisPatrickB3: Gotta get that guinea pig around to those who couldn't
download it.
When the Aliens get you, do you die?
MAXISean: Aliens don't kill....they probe. I think they seeing if the Sims are
ready to "harvest" yet.
MaxisPatrickB3: No aliens do not kill the Sims.
Is the release date purposely timed so that me and other students will have
something to distract us from school just as it starts in the fall?
MaxisChris: Of course!
MaxisPatrickB3: Would you rather we released it just before finals?
What the heck is reticulating splines?
MAXISean: Reticulating splines was a process from Sim city by which points in
space can be randomly generated using a fractal algorithm to generate game
play randomization tables by which we can insert chaos into the game. Our
animation architect ported it to the sims and it is used in randomizing
terrain, personalities, baby occurrence, and a lot of hidden variables. It is
also used to randomize the idles.
What program do you use for animation?
Maxis_AnimatorX: I do all my animation in 3DStudio Max. We use Character
Studio which is an add-on module.
Heard a rumour that the crying clown from the painting will be a NPC. Care to
comment?
MaxisPatrickB3: Yes it is true, the sad depressed clown will be brought to
life as a NPC to try to entertain the Sims. Also do not forget that in the
expansion pack the Guinea Pig gets a painting!
So what does the crystal ball actually do?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Look pretty? Keep your whites their whitest?
MaxisPatrickB3: The crystal ball offers challenges that if completed can help
your personality but beware of disappointing it.
With the new expansion pack coming out, will we be seeing any new simday
downloads anymore due to the fact that all the new stuff is in the expansion
pack?
MAXISean: We are making more simday downloads, and they will also be on the
expansion pack.
Will the previous Simday downloads be included in the expansion pack?
MaxisChris: Yes.
What about ASIA? Will the expansion pack be available for the Asian region,
and if so, when will it be due out?
MaxisChris: Yes, we will try and have it out at the same time like we did for
the original version.
Will we be able to control the monster?
MaxisPatrickB3: The monster cannot be controlled. The Sim will not respond to
commands while in this mad mode. They do come back to normal though.
Hey, any chance on getting some bagpipes for my Sims?
Maxis_AnimatorX: It's possible.
If playing in the Heart Bed makes you tired, does it also raise your Body
levels?
MAXISean: That's FAAAAAABulous Heart Bed. The heart bed will increase some
motives and decrease others.
Maxis_AnimatorX: Body fluid levels? It makes me tired just watching it.
Will you make doors that take up more than one square?
MaxisPatrickB3: The art director and I have been discussing doors that take
more than two tiles for a while now. We are running some experiments to see if
we can. If we can they would be downloads rather than in the expansion pack.
How did you guys get your jobs?
MAXISean: Jobs? I got the newspaper and did "find job" on it. A car arrived in
the morning. I actually did answer an ad in the paper.
Maxis_AnimatorX: I started out testing animation software. I have been working
in videogames for about....holey moley...8 years. I have worked at 4
companies. 5 if you include Maxis. But I came to work here after it was bought
by EA who was my first employer.
Will there be pool toys or outside furniture in the expansion pack?
MAXISean: We may have a new item for the pools. If we make it it will be a
download objects and decorative only.
What do you use to create the objects in the sims?
MaxisPatrickB3: The objects are a complex system. We use a special programming
language called Edith to write the code, the art is made in 3D Studio Max, and
the sound guys use lots of equipment. It takes a team for each object.
How does the guitar work. Like the piano?
Maxis_AnimatorX: It is styled like standard solid body electric with a unique
prong head.
What programming language was used for the sims?
MaxisPatrickB3: The game shell is written in C++, all the objects and the Sims
themselves are written in a special language created for Maxis.
Maxis_AnimatorX: Vizyool Sim++
Will there be new services (ie maid, gardener, etc) available in the expansion
pack ?
MAXISean: New npc's are like the genie, grim reaper, one other surprise
visitor.
How much of the add-ons are already finished-percentage wise?
MaxisChris: About 80%.
Is there any validity to the 'Evil Sim' rumour?
MAXISean: Evil sim? There is a great tutorial at www.evialanvil.com...that is
all I know. Being evil is up to players.
So will the guinea pig painting kill people too, like fall down and bonk a Sim
on the head or something?
MaxisPatrickB3: No that isn't designed. It is a regular painting, though now
that the idea has been planted in my mind, hmmmmm.....
How many new jobs will there be?
MAXISean: 5 new careers.
Is there going to be more social interaction opinions in the sims livin large?
MAXISean: A few social interactions depending on the new objects used.
MaxisPatrickB3: "Play in Bed" sounds a lot like a new social interaction to
me.
When will it be released in the UK?
MaxisChris: It will be launched in the UK at approximately the same time.
Are there going to be any new Body/Mesh shapes in the pack?
Maxis_AnimatorX: NPC's (Non-Character Player), guaranteed.
Will this expansion pack be available for Brazil?
MaxisChris: Yes, it will be available in Brazil.
Are you going to make any locked doors for the game? Float toys for the pool?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Why bother locking doors.
MAXISean: No locked doors, no floaties. But we are making some rather scary
imposing dungeon doors...great for Goths like Alyssa.
Can you have babies from fooling around in the vibrating bed?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Duh.
MaxisPatrickB3: Well, yes.
Will there be more expansion packs?
MAXISean: Hopefully people will be making their own expansion packs by then.
Will there ever be a slide for the pool?
MaxisChris: No slides for the pool.
What Games does maxis plan for the future of the company in the
SimGamingseries?
MaxisChris: We are working on a game called SimsVille.
MAXISean: I proposed the SimMaximumSecurityPenitentiary...but got shot down in
a meeting.
Which one of you decided to put all the cheesy carpets and wallpaper in?
MAXISean: Well I wasn't the one who PUT the cheesy stuff in, but I designed a
lot of it. Cheesy is wrong word...kitchy is better.
What are your 15 favoured social interactions and objects?
MAXISean: 15 favoured interactions? Like I can even remember them all. Hug,
backrub, kiss, slap, insult, joke, join-hot tub. I really like the Train sets
and stereo's.
Hi Eric Hedman what is it like to be the animator?
Maxis_AnimatorX: It's a lot of work, moving the little computer puppets
around, you have to plan out the interactions that are given to you by
production and see if they actually accomplish the goals of the interactions.
The best part is when something like the genie WORKS. Where the animator and
the producer and the programmer all have something new to be proud of.
Especially when someone like Bill Shatner likes it. I don't know if Spielberg
saw it.
MAXISean: Yeah he saw it...Steve's kids really like the game and so does he.
As an expansion, or an add-on, is there any possibility of a single unit
entertainment center, with both music, and tv potential?
MAXISean: I don't think we showed any entertainment centers at E3.
MaxisPatrickB3: No entertainment center. It is too late to add anything to the
expansion pack. One never knows what will be available as a download though.
Can you please give some details on that freaky "head in a Jar?"
MAXISean: I can give you the description of the head in jar from the
catalog...Found in the basement of the Sim City Scientific Society, legend now
surrounds these specimens. While the identities remains a mystery, the heads
appear on the record books as an anonymous donation to the SCSS in 1901. In
1897, the Society was scandalized by a failed exploration to the Peruvian
interior. Searching for the headhunting Jivaro tribe, Professor M.I. Crane and
his party were tragically lost. Or were they?
How much the pack cost, and is it a separate cd?
MaxisChris: The Pack is a separate CD and will cost $29.95.
Will you have to have 'The Sims' to get Livin Large, or will Livin Large have
the rest of the game?
MaxisChris: Livin Large is an Expansion Pack. You will need The Sims.
Why September? That's so far away!
MAXISean: It takes a long time to make, add sound, test and write for all the
objects and new characters...believe me we are full steam ahead.
My Sims feel exposed inside their house with no curtains on the windows...will
any new windows have curtains on them?
Maxis_AnimatorX: No curtains.
MaxisPatrickB3: I am working with our art department on the possibility of
curtains in the future. There will not be any in the expansion pack though.
MAXISean: All the new windows are pretty big.
What are some of the new styles of decorations?
MAXISean: New styles are loosely "future", "antique" and "50's glitzy.
MaxisPatrickB3: The expansion pack contains new windows, doors, walls, floors,
skins, and lots of objects.
Is there is all the team on the expansion pack here?
MaxisChris: Sean and I are producers, Patrick is a programmer, and Irk is the
lead artist.
I have download many of things for my game, is the Expansion will delete them?
MaxisPatrickB3: The expansion pack is fully compatible with the existing
downloads. It will install any downloads that you missed as well.
Will the sims be able to interact with each other in the pool?
MAXISean: No changes to pool.
What does the genie do?
MaxisPatrickB3: The genie tries to grant wishes.
Will there be any new car styles on the expansion pack?
MAXISean: Cars stay the same.
MaxisPatrickB3: No new cars.
Eric what is your favourite item?
Maxis_AnimatorX: Honeymoon bed, genie lantern, I really like the tiki torches
too.
For the hacker career what are some upgrades for the job?
MAXISean: The careers are not finalized yet.
Will there be a karaoke machine in the expansion pack?
MaxisChris: No karaoke machine, but there will be a jukebox.
Are there going to be new plants and trees?
MAXISean: I think we already have enough new plants and trees in the downloads
section.
Are we still going to be limited on the amount of custom wallpapers we can
have?
MaxisPatrickB3: You will still be limited by a number of walls and floors but
the new limit will be much higher, 256 is the new limit.
Will there be any new objects for outside on the patio?
MAXISean: New patio objects? Are there old patio objects? What is a patio
object? There is nothing new for the pool if that is what you mean. And I can
only discuss E3 objects.
Will you ALWAYS get abducted when you use the telescope, and can you ever get
those sims back?
MaxisPatrickB3: The Sims do not always get abducted and they always come back.
Will more cheat codes be added/removed?
MaxisPatrickB3: No cheats will be added or removed by the expansion pack.
Will there be more objects that you can train skills on, or is the chessboard
for example still going to be the only way of earning logic points?
MAXISean: Definitely more skill opportunities with expansion pack.
Where can I send suggestions so that there's a chance they'll be considered
for inclusion in the Expansion Pack?
MaxisChris: Post them on the BBS.
Are there going to be any drinks for the kids to energize off of.. like a 6
pack of pop?
MaxisPatrickB3: The kids can already get soda from the wet bar.
Any new *fun* objects you can reveal? like the pool table, etc...
MaxisChris: There are approximately 125 objects in the Pack.
Is there going to be any stained glass windows?
MAXISean: Yes to stained glass windows.
Will there be holidays and seasons in the new pack? I saw that there wil be
holiday decorations.
MAXISean: Holidays were not part of E3...BUT since I mentioned them at E3...
we might have some holiday objects
Will there be weekends?
MaxisPatrickB3: Time does not pass in The Sims except for hours in the day,
therefore there are no seasons or weekends. No weeks for that matter.
When the sims talk what new things will they be able to do?
MAXISean: Nothing planned for talk improvement.
What happens when they DO get abducted?
MaxisPatrickB3: The aliens perform some medical experiments on the Sims. The
ones taken so far have not been quite the same when they returned.
Will there be a way added for other families to adopt orphaned sim kids?
MaxisPatrickB3: No, not in the Expansion Pack.
Is it fun to work on this game?
Maxis_AnimatorX: I have fun no matter what I do.
I would like to see more child activities, are there going to be anything like
science sets that if they have a bad grade it explodes in their face?
MaxisPatrickB3: No but the children can interact with many of the new objects.
They can even improve their grades using the telescope.
Will there be curtains or shutters?
MaxisChris: No curtains or shutters.
Sean, are most of your ideas shot down a lot?
MAXISean: Yes, but I have come to enjoy having them shot down...and typically
there is a darn good reason they got shot down...it protects the consumer from
ME.
Can you name some skill building objects?
MaxisPatrickB3: Yes there are new skill building objects in the expansion
pack. The Telescope for example builds logic on adults, and builds study on
the children.
Will there be more services to call for?
MAXISean: Services no...but new characters that will either annoy or help you.
Will there be any behaviour/attitude altering sunstances? The wet bar only
makes my sims go pee.
MAXISean: There will be quite a few opprtunities for altering the personality
for good, or temp. No drugs. No booze. No loose..well.
What kind of holiday decorations will there be and when can you put them up?
MaxisPatrickB3: Yes, there will be holiday decorations.
Any new things for the sims to eat?
MAXISean: No new food but new things to make foods with.
Is there still time to put more things on the pack?
MaxisChris: We pretty much have a complete asset list of what's going to be
contained in the Pack. A lot of it came from our fans!
--------------------------
2. Building a Family
--------------------------
Unless you use the tutorial family or the pre-made one, the Goths, you can't
operate a house without a family inside, even if it's only a bachelor. You can
use the pre-made families, such as Pleasant, Roomies, or Bachelor, but it's so
much more fun to create your own. When you go to the Family building screen
(accessible from the neighborhood screen), click Create New Family and then
add its members, one by one. You can change their name, gender, skin color,
age (Child or Adult), and personality (or choose a pre-made personality by
selecting their astrological sign - geez, everything's pre-made!)
The Personality Points include:
Neat: This determines how likely your Sims are to clean up after themselves.
If you find it a pain telling your Sims to put their dishes in the sink or to
flush the toilet, put this up.
Outgoing: This is how well your Sims will be socially. If your Sims always
decide against what they were going to do, like talking to someone, you might
want to make your next Sims high in this.
Playful: This will determine what a Sim likes to do. This isn't too crucial. A
serious Sim will rather read a book than sit in front of the TV and a playful
Sim the opposite.
Active: This will determine how long it takes for a Sim to wake up, and it
will also affect how a Sim has Fun. A lazy Sim likes lounging on the couch
watching TV more than playing basketball. But an active Sim will be a monster
on the court.
Nice: This will also affect social. If your Sim is a nice Sim, they will have
a higher success rate while talking or interacting with other Sims in general.
My advice is to keep everything leveled out when you have a bachelor. If you
want to focus more in any area, my advice is to take a few points from
Playful. Outgoing would be your next choice to pull from. My shy Sims had
short conversations, and then as they liked each other more, the conversations
lengthened, until the shyness was cancelled out. But in a family of two, you
should have one of them very neat (though the other should be up there) Both
should be very active, or at least the one who stays at home and cooks meals,
etc. be active (can cook breakfast with little delay). Make them nice, too, so
that they can get others to be friends and advance in careers.
So you don't WANT a leveled out person, hmm?
Here's a suggestion: first fill each meter about a third of the way. Then
bring Neat and Active up to about 3/4 of the way up. Finally, add the
remaining points to the other 3 equally. If you find you have an odd point
left out, add it to nice or outgoing.
Another suggestion is to stagger on neat and put everything else up, and hire
a maid.
2.1 The Neighbors
Well, there are two ways to go. First, you can make a feeder family. This is a
family where you don't do things with them. Just make eight people and stick
'em in one family. Make their horoscopes agreeable with your Sims'. Build a
home with a wall and a phone on that wall (or a phone and an end table -
whatever.) Then use them to advance in your career. But if you're like me -
restless - you're going to want to play these families too. A family of two is
good to start out with. Later on they can have kids, get married or you can
get really ambitious and make a family of eight right from the start.
Remember! Once you finish a family, YOU CANNOT GO BACK AND EDIT IT. You may,
however, edit each individual family member during the process of family
building. When you finish, you can select "Move In Family" to put them in a
pre-made house, or try your hand at...
--------------------------
3. Building A Home
--------------------------
3.1 Walls
Walls are extremely important. Without them your Sims would have an extremely
low room rating - more on that later. You could also not place fire alarms,
paintings, the cordless phone, windows, etc. etc. etc. They also make the
house a heck of a lot prettier. You will want several rooms - a bedroom, a
bathroom, a kitchen, and a living room. Walls can be placed by clicking and
dragging, or a complete room by shift-clicking and dragging. Delete walls by
control-clicking. One thing I found which saved me money and made my Sims
happier is to not place a door between the kitchen and living room - to
connect them freely. So if it looks like this:
______________________________________________
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| Kitchen | Living Room |
| | |
| | |
| | |
|_____________________|_______________________|
Consider changing it to this or something similar.
______________________________________________
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| Kitchen | Living Room |
| | |
| | |
| |
|_____________________________________________|
This will save you money on walls, smoke detectors, burglar alarms, and your
Sims will have a higher "Room" rating. Be warned: you have to make this large
room well lit by using windows and lighting frequently. You do, however, want
to put walls / doors in between bedrooms and bathrooms, because if you're
running the stereo and someone's trying to sleep, you could be in trouble. And
Sims don't usually like other Sims barging in on them when they are on the
john.
3.2 Doors
For your first home you will want 3 doors - Bedroom, bathroom, and front. Do
not overdo it with too many doors because you ARE on a budget. After
purchasing that expensive lot and building lots of walls, you need to spend
even more.
3.25 A Very Nice Touch
If you're looking for a very nice touch to make you look rich when you have a
second story and still staying economical, try this
If your front wall looks like this:
________________/______________ / = Door ___ = Wall
Try changing it to look like this
_____/_____
________|C P P C|__________ / = Door ___ = Wall C = Column P = Potted
Plant
You'll be surprised at what a small front porch can do for your house.
3.3 Windows
Windows don't do too much except light the room during the day. The bigger the
room is the more windows you will have to build. Again, you are on a budget so
stay economical and buy the cheapest model.
3.4 Wallpaper and Flooring
Wallpaper is something you can do without, but it also makes your house unique
and nicer looking. You should probably add wallpaper last, as if you run out
of cash you can do it later when your Sim gets a job. Flooring is also
unnecessary, unless you build a second floor - a task I recommend you approach
when you have saved up for it. Then flooring is absolutely necessary, as you
don't want your Sims falling through the floor.
3.5 Bragging rights - A Second Floor and a Pool
When your Sims start rolling in dough, you can build some spiffy add-ons to
their house. First off is a second floor. The first thing you'll want to do is
add a staircase and switch to second floor view. You can then build flooring
around it - in front of and connecting to the stairs. After that, build walls
surrounding the flooring and you'll have your basic second floor. You'll
probably want to have a bathroom on the second floor, and at least one bedroom
(give the kids a view). You'll also want to have some form of entertainment.
But the staircase alone costs a lot, so you may want to wait to buy these.
When you build a pool - rather expensive - you build it square by square - or
in a large rectangle by holding down shift and dragging. You will then want to
add a ladder into the pool, and optionally a diving board. I would recommend
you go for the pool first, because it increases the aesthetic appeal of your
house more, it's fun, it gives you a work out, and only the real rich people
(or people who saved for a long time) have a pool (whereas even _I_ have a
second floor.). And it costs less.
Let's say you have built a one room second floor with an area of a measly 6x5.
We're going to stay cheap as we can here. Which means the wallpaper will be
ugly. You give §900 for the cheapest stairwell. §1540 for the 22 walls needed
to encompass it. §176 for 44 squares of very cheap wallpaper (inside and out).
§150 for thirty squares of cheap flooring. §2776 WITHOUT FURNITURE! But with
that same money, you could buy a 6x5 pool, a diving board and a ladder to get
out with. And it's so much more useful. Adding a bed upstairs? Could be 4 more
squares of pool.
3.6 The Great Outdoors
Your Sims may find that their room rating drops when they go outside. You need
to add things to make the outdoors look nice, like plants, hedges, etc. Being
the fool that I am, I did not build up my yard until more than a month after
my Sims moved in. So they would always walk out and go to work in a bad mood
all because of that one room rating. So, the first thing I did is described in
"A Very Nice Touch" above (section 2.25). This did a little bit. But soon I
added more. Here's a diagram of my patio.
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPH
HP PH
HPPPPPPP PPPPPPPPH P = Plant
HFFFFFFF FFFFFFFFH H = Hedge
HF GGFH F = Fence
HF C C FH G = Grill
HF TTTT FH T = Table
HF TTTT FH C = Chair
HF/_L__C__C__L__FH / = Door
L = Wall Light (Downloadable from thesims.com)
It's very very very pricey - One hedge alone costs §150 - §180. You can ignore
the hedges if your cash is limited, but it is a nice touch.
Another lawn idea is the "Infinite Luxuries" Idea, inspired by a picture in
PCGamer.
3.65 A Place for the Kids
Well, kids may find it's fun to go outside. Why not make things more
accessible to them? You might want to try building them a playhouse or even
put their room outside. Heck, you could have an entire little house for the
kids to do everything in.
First Floor
__
|
|
| ____________
H | |B CCC | \ = Door PC = Computer
o | | | B = Burglar Alarm TV = TV
u | \ S| S = Stereo SWSW = Stairway
s | |C | C = Chair JJ = Jungle Gym (Outside)
e | |PC___TVSWSW_| CCC = Couch JJ
| JJ
__| JJ
Second Floor
__
|
|
| ____________
H | | CCC BS| \ = Door P = Phone
o |______| | BS = Bookshelf
u \______\ BBB |SWSW = Stairway
s | | P| CCC = Couch
e | |_BBB___SWSW_| BBB = Bed
|
__|
Note that I added a passageway from the kids' house to the main house. This is
for midnight bathroom breaks and passageway to breakfast when it's night and
the room rating will fall if they walk outside. Plus, add a few big windows
and you have a mock highway overpass.
3.7 Suggested Homes
Note: The intention of this is to give you an idea of how to build a house.
You can work off these and change them or whatever.
KEY:
x = Window
\ = Door
_ or | = wall
= = sidewalk
On A Budget
_______x__________x______x_____x____
| | |
| | | |
| | \ Bed x
| | | |
x Kitchen |Living Room |_______|
| | | |
| | \ Bath x
|______x______|__x___\__x__|___x___|
======================================
Rich
_______x________x_________x___________x____
| | | |
| | | |
| | | |
x Kitchen | Den | Bath x
| | | |
| | \ |
| ______________\_______________|____\_____|
| | |
| | |
| | |
x Living Room \ Bed x
| | |
| | |
|____x_________x____\_|_____x________x_____|
============================================
Good to start with
__x___ __x___
| | | |
x Bed x x Bath x
|__\___|______|___\__|
| |
| |
| |
x Kitchen Living x
| Room |
|____x____\____x_____|
=====================
3.8 Cool Ideas
3.81 The Apartment
Well, one thing which is hard to control and requires cheating is an apartment
complex! That's right. My favorite idea: On the first floor, make a large room
for the landlord - very lavish. Make a smaller room next to it - the "front
desk" area, including a desk, a couch, an office chair, a computer, and some
kind of decoration. Then add two or three rooms next to it. You can opt for
their main doors to lead into a hallway, or outside. You'll want to furnish
all these rooms with a bed, a chair, a TV, a phone, and a bathroom (shower,
sink, toilet). You'll want to put in a dining room and an expensive kitchen.
The key in furnishing these rooms: When the rooms are public, like a game
room, a dining room, a front desk or a kitchen, make them costly. Private
rooms should be cheap and only the bare essentials. The second floor should
have a couple private rooms too. I also added a game room. When you make more
money, you can call this a hotel by adding a pool, a casino, a restaurant, and
a bar. I'll cover those later. But you might want to turn on Free Will for a
while. It's hard to control 8 people.
3.82 Casino
You could try playing with the apartment - instead of putting a front desk and
private rooms downstairs, put the front desk in this room and put the
apartments upstairs. Make the downstairs a casino. Download the slot machine
off thesims.com and make rows of slot machines in the room. Then call a party
and have everyone go gambling. You could probably ever add the touch of public
restrooms.
3.83 Restaurant
Well, if you want to get adventurous, make the first level a restaurant. Place
a grid of tables and then put down a row of counters to separate the dining
from the cooking. Then create state of the art cooking facilities. Serve
dinner and invite everyone over. So everyone takes a plate and sits and eats.
3.84 Bar
Put in a row of counters and put seats in front of it. Then put seats in front
of it. Make a drink bar behind this row of counters and you have a bar. You
could even put a TV nearby like all bars do.
3.85 Really Good Idea
Combine all 3 of these into one room! Put a casino-restaurant with a bar and
watch how sweet it'll get. Then add a wood floor and a stereo and you have a
stage. Have people dance to the music and you have entertainers.
3.9 Final Notes on Building
To delete a wall control-click when the tool is a wall, To delete wallpaper do
the same with the wallpaper tool, etc. Shift-click using the wall tool and
drag to create a rectangle, as well as with fences, pools, etc. Shift-click
with wallpaper, flooring, etc. to cover a whole room. And don't overdo it! You
have to buy furniture, pay bills, and eat, among other things.
--------------------------
4. Furnishing your home
--------------------------
4.1 Four Basics
There are four basic things to remember when furnishing a house. Eat, Sleep,
Poop and Polish. You must have a refrigerator (or a phone to order pizza), a
bed, a toilet, and a shower (or a bath - you get my drift). By the way, After
I list something here, I won't list it elsewhere.
Starting Out - one person:
Llamark Refrigerator (Eat) §600 plus food costs (§20 for Serve Meal, §10 for
Meal/Quick Meal, §5 for Snack)
Spartan Special (Sleep) §300
Hygeia-O-Matic Toilet (Poop) §300
SpaceMiser Shower (Polish) §650
Total: §1850
Recommended - one person:
Porcina Refrigerator Model P1g-S (Eat) §1200 plus food costs
Spartan Special (Sleep) §300
Flush Force 5 XLT (Poop) §1200
Sani-Queen Bathtub (Polish) §1500
Total: §4200
4.2 Entertainment and Accessories
For Entertainment, you should have a stereo, a TV, a computer, or something
else like that. Start off with only one of them; then you can go back later
and get more if you have enough money. You should also have a chair, or if you
have more than one person in the family, a couch or two. Be aware there may be
hidden costs, such as a couch for the TV or a desk and chair for the computer.
Starting Out - one person
Monochrome TV - §85
Sioux Wicker Chair - §80
SCTC Cordless Wall Phone - §75
Total: §165
Recommended - one person:
Trottco 27" Color Television - §500
Zimzants Component Hi-fi Stereo - §650
Indoor-Outdoor Loveseat - §160 (For TV)
Moneywell Computer - §999
Posture Plus Office Chair - §100 (For Computer)
London "Cupertino" Collection Desk/Table - §220 (For Computer)
SCTC Cordless Wall Phone - §75
Total: §2704
Suggested Layout:
___________________________
| S P | P = Phone
| | TV = TV
| | PC = Computer on Desk
| | C = Chair
| C T| CO = Couch
| O V| S = Stereo
| |
| |
| C |
|____________PC_____________|
4.3 Kitchen
Sure, You can live with JUST a fridge, but you'll be so much less hungry if
you buy other things. You need to cut the food (you can use the food processor
or just the Sim's hands, a cutting board and a knife) and cook it too (Note: I
never use a stove for risk of fire. A microwave will do you well). Now you sit
at a table and eat (Note: When the food is cooked, it is brought to the
closest possible counter/table space. If you have a serving table, put it
nearer to the microwave/stove/whatever than the table). Then you need to
dispose of any trash and wash the dishes. Ahhhh, a chef's life.
Starting out - one person:
Numica Kitchen Counter (x3) - §450
Brand Name Toaster Oven - §100
Hydronomic Kitchen Sink - §250
Mesquite Desk/Table - §80
Werkbunnst All Purpose Chair - §80
Total:§960
Recommended - one person:
Tiled Counter (x3) - §750
Positive Potential Microwave - §250
XLR8R Food Processor - §220
Epikouros Kitchen Sink - §500
Colonial Legacy Dining Table - §200
Touch of Teak Dinette Chair - §200
Total: §2120
Suggested Layout:
__________
| S F M R| T = Table
| | C = Chair
| TT | S = Sink (on counter)
| TT | F = Food Processor (on counter)
| C | M = Microwave (on counter)
| | R = Refrigerator (on counter)
|__________|
4.4 Bedroom
The Bedroom is easy. All I ever put in there is a bed, although you may opt
for a lamp, a dresser, or an end table
Starting out - one person:
Nothing!
Recommended - one person:
Anywhere End Table - §120
Love 'N' Haight Lava Lamp - §80
Pinegulcher Dresser - §250
Total: § 450
Suggested Layout:
_____________
| | B = Bed
| BBL | L = Lava Lamp (on end table)
| BB D| D = Dresser
| BB D|
| |
|_____________|
4.5 Bathroom
Once again, The bathroom is easy, because there are only 4 items you need.
Starting out - one person
"Andersonville" Pedestal Sink - §400
Total: §400
Recommended - one person
Medicine Cabinet - §125
"Andersonville" Pedestal Sink - §400
Total: §525
Suggested Layout
_______________
| T | B = Bathtub
| BB| T = Toilet
|S BB| S = Sink and Medicine Cabinet
| BB|
|_______________|
4.6 Security
The next two things you'll need is 1 fire alarm (§50) and a burglar alarm
(§100). Place one burglar alarm by each door out of the house and a fire alarm
in every room with a fireplace, barbecue, or stove(if, for example, there is a
half wall between the living room and kitchen, you don't need to put an alarm
in both).
Total: §250
4.7 Lighting and Decorations
Not only do these two increase aesthetic appeal, but also the room rating.
Other furniture such as dressers and pianos increase this, not to mention
windows, but these two categories in general are all about room. Outside you
may choose to use plants, hedges, and trees to increase this (along with the
fountain and some statuary fron the decorations section and some wall lighting
downloadable from thesims.com). Indoors you may want to place decorations in
places where you could not place a window, or even lighting. Have a place in
the middle of the room where your Sims' room rating plummets, it's nowhere
near a wall and you're on a tight budget? Buy yourself some lighting that
doesn't need a wall or a table. And remember: While a fire alarm may cover a
whole room, one light fixture won't. The bigger the room, the more lights (or
windows) you'll need! And spread them out. If you have a large, well-lit room,
the room rating will still be higher nearer those lights. Decorations are a
nice touch, but sometimes get pricey. If you're an art dealer, it could be a
smart move to invest in these, for, as normal items plummet in value after you
use them, these will rise in value and bring you a nice profit after you wait
for their value to rise. Room and cash. A nice deal, if I do say so myself.
Total - One Person - Starting Out: §3625
Total - One Person - Recommended: §10249
4.8 The Complex Furniture Description Chapter
4.81 Seating
4.811 One Person (Chairs)
Name Price Stats Area Joe's Comment
Werkbunnst All Purpose Chair §80 C2 1x1 This looks like it's worth
§2
Sioux Sity Wicker Chair §80 C2 1x1 Ugly!
Posture Plus Office Chair §100 C3 1x1 Nice looking computer
chair
Deck Chair by Survivall §150 C3 1x1 Looks good inside too.
Touch of Teak Dinette Chair §200 C3 1x1 Looks very classy.
Country Class Armchair §250 C4 1x1 Blue and Flowery. Mmmm...
"Back Slack" Recliner §250 C6 2x1 Retro Alert! Retro Alert!
"Citronel" from Chiclettina Inc. §450 C7 1x1 Very... Bright.
"The Saarbach" by Werkbunnst §500 C6 1x1 Sleek.
Empress Dining Room Chair §600 C4 1x1 Expensive. Looks Modern.
R2
"Von Braun" Recliner §850 C9 2x1 Futuristic.
E3
Parisienne Dining Chair §1200 C6 1x1 Ritzy.
R3
4.812 2 Person (Loveseats)
Contempto Loveseat §150 C3 2x1 Ick.
E4
Indoor-Outdoor Loveseat §160 C3 2x1 Very nice looking for the
price.
E4
Parque Fresco Del Aire Bench §250 C2 2x1 A little expensive
considering stats.
Country Class Loveseat §340 C5 2x1 Ooooh... more blue
flowery... {drool}
E4
Pinstripe Loveseat from Zectuime §360 C5 2x1 Stripey.
E4
Luxiare Loveseat §875 C8 2x1 Nice looking.
E4
R2
4.813 3 Person (Sofas)
Recycled Couch §180 C2 3x1 Looks like it's from a
mountain lodge.
E5
Contempto Couch §200 C3 3x1 Ick.
E5
SimSafari Sofa §220 C3 3x1 Bachelor Pad!
E5
Pinstripes Sofa from Zecutime §400 C5 3x1 Stripes!
E5
Country Class Sofa §450 C5 3x1 Oooh! Triple Blue Flowery!
E5
"The Deiter" by Werkbunnst §1100 C8 3x1 I love it.
E5
Dolce Tutti Frutti Sofa §1450 C9 3x1 Bright!
E5
R3
4.814 Single Beds
Spartan Special §300 C6 3x1 Blah.
E7
Tyke Nyte Bed §450 C7 3x1 Kid's room. Definitely.
E7
4.815 Double Beds
Cheap Eazzzzze Double Sleeper §450 C7 3x2 Okay.
E8
Napoleon Sleigh Bed §1000 C8 3x2 I like it!
E9
Modern Mission Bed §3000 C9 3x2 I love it!
E10
R3
4.82 Tables and Counters
4.821 End Tables
Pinegulcher End Table §40 1x1 Ick.
Wicked Breeze End Table §55 1x1 Yecch.
KinderStuff Nightstand §75 1x1 Kid's room, no doubt.
"Anywhere" End Table §120 1x1 I have the same thing.
It's nice.
Imperious Island End Table §135 1x1 Nice as a serving table
Modern Mission End Table §250 R1 1x1 Oooh! For the modern
house.
Sumpto End Table §300 R1 1x1 Pretty nice.
4.822 Tables/Desks
Mesquite Desk/Table §80 2x1 Not half bad.
NuMica Folding Card Table §95 2x2 Eeew.
"Colonial Legacy" Dining Table §200 2x2 Yessir.
Backwoods Table by Survivall §200 3x2 Works inside too.
London "Cupertino" Collection... §220 2x1 Classy.
London "Mesa" Dining Design §450 R2 3x2 Modern.
The "Redmond" Desk/Table §800 R2 2x1 Snazzy.
Parsienne Dining Table §1200 R3 3x2 It's nice.
4.823 Counters
NuMica Kitchen Counter §150 1x1 Goes with the card table -
'nuff said.
Tiled Counter §250 1x1 Works well with the
matching walls/floors.
Count Blanc Bathroom Counter §400 1x1 For the bathroom,
definitely.
"Barcelona" Outcurve Counter §800 R2 1x1 Snazzy!
"Barcelona" Incurve Counter §800 R2 1x1 Works well with it's
cousin.
4.83 Decorative
4.831 Plants
African Violet §30 R1 1x1 Nice
Spider Plant §35 R1 1x1 Okay.
"Roxanna" Geranium §45 R1 1x1 Getting better
Rubber Tree Plant §120 R2 1x1 A tree!
Echinopsis Maximus Cactus §150 R2 1x1 Mmmm... Cactus.
Jade Plant §160 R2 1x1 Nicely planted.
4.832 Paintings and Other Decorative Wall Stuff
"Tragic Clown" Painting §45 R1 1 Yecch!
Watercolor by JME §75 R1 1 Real nice.
Cuckoo Clock §180 R2 1 Classic!
Bi-Polar by Conner IM §240 R2 2 I enjoy it.
"Delusion de Grandeur" §360 R2 2 Nice looking.
Landscape # 2001 by Manny Kopees §750 C9 2 Looks like a city.
Snails with Icicles in Nose §2140 R5 2 Ooooooookay...
Portrait Grid by Payne Pitcher §3200 R8 2 I like this one.
Still Life, Drapery, and Crumbs §7600 R9 2 A masterpiece
4.833 Etc.
Pink Flamingo §12 R2 1x1 Spiffy.
Posiedon's Adventure Aquarium §200 R2 1x1 Fun! Fish!
F1
Fountain of Tranquility §700 R2 1x1 Splashy Splashy!
F1
Bust of Athena by Klassick Repro §875 R3 1x1 Museum Quality.
Scylla and Charybdis §1450 R4 1x1 Sounds greek.
Grandfather Clock §3500 R7 1x1 Excellent.
Blue China Vase §4260 R7 1x1 Nice vase!
Large Black Slab by ChiChi... §12648 R12 1x1 Creative name...
4.84 Electronics
Firebrand Smoke Detector §50 1 Only if you have a
fireplace or stove.
SCTC BR-8 Standard Telephone §50 1x1 Out of the 50s.
SCTC Cordless Wall Phone §75 1 Mount on any wall.
Urchineer Train Set by Rip Co. §80 F2 2x1 For the kids.
Monochrome TV §85 F2 1x1 Yeccch.
Down Wit Dat Boom Box §100 F2 1x1 Nice for the party room.
SimSafety IV Burglar Alarm §250 1 A must have!
Trottco 27" Color Television §500 F4 1x1 Pretty.
Zimzantz Component Hi-Fi Stereo §650 F3 2x1 Retro.
OCD Systems SimRailroad Town §955 F4 3x2 All aboard!
R3
Moneywell Computer §999 F3 1x1 Good first computer.
Microscotch Covetta §1800 F5 1x1 Good second computer
"See Me, Feel Me" Pinball Machine1800 F5 2x1 Party! Everyone! Pinball!
SSRI Virtual Reality Set §2300 F7 1x1 Futuristic.
Strings Theory Stereo §2550 F5 2x1 Streamlined Stereo.
R3
The Brahma 2000 §2800 F7 1x1 Another computer?
Soma Plasma TV §3500 F6 2x1 Mmmmm... Big screen.
R2
Meet Marco §6500 F9 1x1 Expensive, eh?
4.85 Appliances
Mr. Regular-Joe Coffee §85 B-1 1x1 Need an extra jolt?
E1
Brand Name Toaster Oven §100 H1 1x1 Go with the nuker.
XLR8R Food Processor §220 H1 1x1 A good buy.
Positive Potential Microwave §250 H2 1x1 Good value.
Wild Bill THX-451 Barbecue §350 H4 2x2 Need cooking skill.
Junk Genie Trash Compactor §375 2x1 Beats a trash can.
Dialectric Free Standing Range §400 H5 1x1 Not til you can cook,
young man!
Gagmia Simore Espresso Machine §450 B-2 1x1 Mmmm... java.
E2
F1
Dish Duster Deluxe §550 2x1 Oooh! Dishes!
Llamark Refrigerator §600 H6 1x1 Blue?
Fuzzy Logic Dishwasher §950 2x1 Shiny.
The "Pyrotorre" Gas Range §1100 H7 1x1 Again, wait til you can
cook.
Porcina Refrigerator Model P1g-s§1800 H7 1x1 Good buy.
Freeze Secret Refrigerator §2300 H8 1x1 Shiny! I like shiny.
4.86 Plumbing
Hydronomic Kitchen Sink §250 Hy2 1x1 Breaks often.
Hygeia-O-Matic Toilet §300 B8 1x1 Ahhhh...
"Andersonville" Pedestal Sink §400 Hy2 1x1 For the bathroom.
Epikouros Kitchen Sink §500 Hy3 1x1 Two basins!
SpaceMiser Shower §650 Hy6 1x1 Cheap and compact.
Justa Bathtub §800 C3 2x1 A good buy early.
Hy6
Flush Force 5 XLT §1200 C4 1x1 Mmmm... Auto-flush.
B8
Sani-Queen Bathtub §1500 C5 2x1 Maxis likes shiny things.
Hy8
Hydrothera Bathtub §3200 C8 2x2 Like a hot tub, only...
not.
Hy10
WhirlWizard Hot Tub §6500 Hy2 2x2 Don't use it as a bathtub
- just a luxury.
C6
F2
4.86 Lighting
Bottle Lamp §25 1x1 Made at a craft sale.
Halogen Heaven Lamp by Contempto §50 1x1 Good for a ground lamp.
Garden Lamp by Lunatech §50 1x1 Outside.
Love 'n' Haight Lava Lamp §80 R2 1x1 Retro... Groovy...
Ceramiche Table Lamp §85 1x1 Pretty nice.
Lumpen Lumeniat Floor Lamp §100 1x1 Retro again?
Elite Reflections Chrome Lamp §180 1x1 Then again, I like shiny
things too...
SC Electric Co. Antique Lamp §300 R1 1x1 Antique, like the name
says
Torchtosteronne Floor Lamp §350 R1 1x1 Modern.
4.86 Misc.
Trash Can §30 1x1 Get the compactor.
SnoozMore Alarm Clock §30 1x1 I want more shiny!
Magical Mystery Toy Box §50 F2 2x1 For kids.
Narcisco Wall Mirror §100 1 + charisma I see you!
Medicine Cabinet §125 Hy1 1 + charisma Brushin' the
teeth...
Narcisco Floor Mirror §150 1x1 + charisma Retro AND shiny!
fun!
Will Lloyd Wright Doll House §180 F2 1x1 Adults like it too.
"Dimanche" Folding Easel §250 F2 1x1 + creativity Makes money!
Pinegulcher Dresser §250 2x2 Uggggggly!
Chear Pine Bookcase §250 F1 1x1 + cooking, mechanical Ick.
Kinderstuff Dresser §300 2x2 For kids only.
Chuck Matewell Chess Set §500 F2 1x1 + logic Get the pun?
Amishim Bookcase §500 F2 1x1 + cooking, mechanical Nicer.
Traditional Oak Armoire §550 R1 2x2 What I call a dresser!
SuperDoop Basketball Hoop §650 F4 3x1 He scores!
"Exerto" Benchpress Exercise... §700 3x1 + body Love it.
Bachman Wood Beverage Bar §800 H1 2x1 Glug glug glug... Aaaah.
Hiccup!
F3
R2
Libri De Regina Bookcase §900 F3 2x1 Ritzy
Antique Armoire §1200 R2 2x2 Nice dresser.
The Funinator Deluxe §1200 F5 3x3 For the kids.
Chimeway & Daughters Piano §3500 F4 2x2 Tickling the ivories.
R3
Aristoscratch Pool Table §4200 F6 3x2 A must have for high
income families.
--------------------------
5. Living the Sim Life
--------------------------
The best part of life is living, and the best part of The Sims is also living.
Although it may be a bit frustrating at times, it's gonna be fun.
5.1 The Basics
The main thing you'll want to keep your eye on is the mood meter. At first, my
Sims were unhappy - i.e. the mood meter was at 0 (5 being highest, -5 being
lowest.) But as I got the hang of the game, their mood soared to 3, and at
times even 4! In The Sims, it's all about the mood. With a good mood, things
move faster, you get promotions at work, and you make more money to buy more
items to increase your mood. And up it goes, until you're so attached that
when your Sim is happy, you are happy, and when he's sad, you feel like
beating the computer. But the one main thing to keep the mood up is to satisfy
all your Sim's needs.
5.2 The Eight Needs
-Hunger
Hunger is satisfied by a meal, whether it is a snack, meat and potatoes, a can
of beans, or pizza. Usually meat and potatoes, whether it be for breakfast,
lunch, or dinner (Beans and pork chops for breakfast. Mmm.) will be the most
satisfying, especially if the person who cooked it has a high Cooking skill.
As their skill gets higher, the meals they prepare will fill them up more and
more until one plate will be enough food for 12 hours. Pizza is for people
who: a) don't have the money for appliances b) will set something on fire if
they cook or c) just think pizza is cool and don't care how it doesn't fill
their Sims up. A snack could be for when the kids are hungry and their parents
are at work, or if they just need a little more on the hunger meter. Word to
the wise: DO NOT LET SIMS COOK DINNER ON THE STOVE IF THEY ARE UNEDUCATED IN
COOKING. I, actually, never use the stove. I use the microwave or a toaster
oven.
-Comfort
I've always noticed that sitting in front of the TV replenishes fun and
comfort, which are often the only two that are low, and sleeping boosts
comfort and energy, which, for me are also very low often. But those are the
best solutions if any of those two are problems. What to do if Comfort is the
only thing low? Study. Go to the bookcase, get a book and study cooking,
mechanical, or, for kids, study for school.
-Hygiene
After a while, The Sims do get dirty. (And if they're real dirty for a long
time, they start sniffing themselves and saying, "eeew") There are sinks and
showers and tubs to solve this. When I wake my Sims up (quite early - SimRob
has a 9 to 5 job and gets up at one to get ready) I send them to the bathroom,
where they use the bathroom and hit the shower. No sink in between. When
everyone gets up, Hunger, Bladder, Hygiene and Fun all are low for everyone,
So I'll have my Sims switch off between the TV, the dining room and the
Bathroom. One by one they come out sparkling fresh. The shower and bath do
seem to leak a lot, so be ready to grab the mop. If you wash your hands
frequently you can spend less time in the shower, though.
-Bladder
When you have to pee, you have to pee. Out of the eight needs this is the
easiest to keep up because a run to the toilet will relieve you in ten seconds
(real time, not Sim time) while it may take five minutes of the TV to boost
the fun rating to the max. Once again, Sims in my house take a shower after
"going". Don't let your Sims have "accidents", or else their Hygiene rating
will fall like a muffin dropped from 30,000 feet. You can have trouble when
Sim after Sim doesn't flush, as I only had one Sim who would ever flush out of
four.
-Energy
This is a tough one. Although it seems like my Sims never have the energy to
have fun after school/work (I guess they shouldn't be waking up at 1!) I can't
change it around. First off, energy can only be replenished by Naps, Sleep,
and about 40 cups of coffee. The coffee is so insignificant that I hardly
bother (unless I want to hear the funny noise they make). Naps often last for
merely an hour, and that isn't nearly enough time to regain energy. And sleep
is only once a day, and if your Sims wake up too early (like mine) they'll
have to go to bed at 3 or 4 (like mine). NOTE: Since the original publication
of this section, my SimKids have learned to get ready quicker (watch that TV
at night!) and have been waking around 4. They now stay up until eight, if I
push it. SimRob the same - He temporarily got a 10 PM - 4 AM Job and took it
easier - when that 9 to 5 job came back, he was waking at 3 and 4
-Fun
There's one way to relieve your bladder - pee. There's one way to relieve
hunger - eat. And there's one way to relieve energy - sleep. Fun is the most
diverse, as there's so many you can do, and so many other needs that can be
relieved while having fun. For example, the Espresso maker has a little bit of
fun and a little energy put together. Sitting down and using the computer,
watching TV, or reading a book boosts comfort too. You can grab a friend and
play basketball and get the social up too. And the most diverse of them all is
sitting on the couch watching TV with a friend while chatting, bringing up the
Fun, Social, and Comfort ratings. It seems that different kinds of Sims will
like different kinds of fun, as the more playful may jump at the dollhouse and
the serious one will like a book. And a serious Sim will enjoy that Romance
show on the tube, as a more playful one may prefer Action or Cartoons.
-Social
The phone can call the cops, the pizza guy, the maid, or the repairman. But
most importantly your friends. (LET ME STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF A PHONE HERE!)
For example, imagine SimJim and SimKim. SimJim calls SimKim one day and asks
her to come over. SimKim is busy so SimJim tries the next day. SimKim seems
excited at the prospect of seeing SimJim and comes over. They talk for a while
until SimJim gets tried and asks SimKim to leave. SimJim and SimKim are now
great friends, but don't talk for a while until SimJim gets lonely and calls
SimKim. SimJim gives SimKim a hug and finds the social rating goes up quicker
than while just talking. Soon they compliment each other daily and start
kissing, and their Social ratings rocket up. SimJim is never lonely with
SimKim.
-Room
Room is something that happens automatically. If you step into a large well
lit room your Room rating skies, if you step into a dark bathroom it falls.
Decorations help, as do windows and lighting. But trash and broken items and
other messes make it lower. Room is basically the Aura of your house - how
good it feels just so sit there. Surprisingly, my Sims do not like being
outside as much as inside. But the better the house is, and the better it is
kept, the higher the Room rating will be.
5.25 Sim Health
Although it was previously thought to be left out from the game, your Sim CAN
get sick. Here are the words directly from Maxis.
My Sims are coughing and sneezing a lot. How can I cure them?
When Sims get sick, they need lots of rest and hot liquids. Keep their energy
bars really high. They'll get better in a few days. You might need to take a
sick day off from work. It's also a good idea to keep sick Sims away from
healthy ones, or they might infect them.
You heard it here.
5.3 Money and Jobs
You need money to pay the bills, eat, and buy new stuff. And the only ways to
get money is selling things, getting an important phone call, or working at
your job. Now, selling things will not get you the money you started with, as
a used coffeemaker isn't worth as much as a new one. Important phone calls are
very random and you can't rely on them (but if you get one, you get lots of
money - often more than a job gets in a day). But a job is the best way to let
those Simoleons roll in.
There are a variety of jobs - Law Enforcement, Medicine, Science, X-Treme,
Athlete, Politics, Military, Business, Entertainment and Life of Crime. Most
of them are the same thing - i.e. you don't get a VCR or something like that
if you enter the Entertainment career track. But things like skill points
needed, uniforms, pay, amount of different jobs in the career track, or job
descriptions change. First you have to get a job - look in the paper or try
the computer (If you have one). You'll get a window that pops up that tells
you the job opening and it asks you if you want to take the job. If you're
searching online, you can look again for a better job. So you take the job.
Always have one person be a stay-at-home mom/dad/husband/wife to make friends,
do chores and get IMPORTANT money making phone calls. You have to be up from
bed in order to catch that carpool. It will be a very very ugly old car. Of
course, the carpool doesn't have to leave until your shift starts - exactly
one hour after it comes. So you have about one extra hour to do your thing.
You can miss the carpool for a day off (no pay, though). Don't miss two days
in a row, though, or else you'll be fired.
If you want a promotion, improve your mood and get the requirements you need.
You can find them in the Job screen. The requirements could be getting more
friends or increasing skills.
THE SKILLS
Mechanical
This comes in handy around the house. It makes it easier to fix that shower
that's been plaguing you or that burnt out bulb that needs replacing. Plus it
saves the cash you spend on the repairman. You read books about mechanical
stuff to increase this. It's often needed in careers like Medicine (Mechanical
work on bodies).
Cooking
The only other one that helps around the house - cooking is crucial to filling
that Hunger meter and preventing fires. Once again - you're reading a book.
One career that likes this is Military (KP duty).
Charisma
It's all in the talk. Don't stutter and others will look at you better.
Practice speech in front of the mirror and it's smooth sailing. Politics seems
to like this, as public speaking is important.
Creativity
New, unique ideas are the key to success in careers like Crime (I guess
there's more than one way to snatch a wallet). Play the piano or Paint to work
on this. Personally, I recommend painting because: a) It's fun - as is the
piano b) it's cheaper c) you can make money by selling those paintings. The
first few are worth 5, 6, and 7 Simoleons, but soon my paintings went for
§40 or more!
Body
Looking good and being strong come in handy when you're an athlete, among
other jobs. You can work out on the exercise machine, or swimming in a pool.
Myself, I like the pool, but you can use the exercise machine if you have a
low budget. In the pool, your Room rating plummets while the Fun rating rises.
Plus, Speedos and Bikinis! The exercise machine keeps your stats the same as
they would be if you stood around doing nothing for a while - most stats
slowly dropping. One quick drawback to the pool - It takes four times as long
to work out there than on the exercise machine.
Logic
Playing chess increases Logic - valued in Science among others. This is
another job where there's only one way to increase it.
When you get a promotion, your carpool gets better, your hours change, and,
most importantly, you make more money.
5.35 The Jobs
How The Jobs Will Be Ranked
I will take into account wage, hours, stats lost (i.e hunger, energy, etc.)
and overall skills/family friends needed. I will determine wage, stats lost,
and hours by how much money you made/how many hours you worked if you made it
all the way up, spending 2 days at each job.
FF - Family Friends
M - Mechanical
Co - Cooking
Ch - Charisma
Cr - Creativity
B - Body
L - Logic
Note: THIS IS HOW MUCH YOU NEED TO IMPROVE, NOT WHAT YOU NEED TOTAL.
How They're Listed
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Politics
Campaign Worker.........9 AM - 6 PM|§220|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Intern..................9 AM - 3 PM|§300|0|0|0|2|0|0|0
Lobbyist................9 AM - 3 PM|§360|2|0|0|1|0|0|1
Campaign Manager........9 AM - 6 PM|§430|2|0|0|1|0|1|0
City Council Member.....9 AM - 3 PM|§485|2|0|0|1|1|1|0
State Assembly..........9 AM - 4 PM|§540|3|0|0|0|1|1|2
Congressperson..........9 AM - 3 PM|§600|2|0|0|1|1|1|1
Judge...................9 AM - 3 PM|§650|3|0|0|1|1|1|2
Senator.................9 AM - 6 PM|§700|3|0|0|3|1|0|1
Mayor...................9 AM - 3 PM|§750|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 0
Cooking: 0
Charisma: 9
Creativity: 5
Body: 5
Logic: 7
Total Stats: 26
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 140
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days): §10,070
Stats Lost (Worked at each job 2 days): 1946
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Entertainment
Waiter/Waitress.........9 AM - 3 PM|§100|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Extra...................9 AM - 3 PM|§150|0|0|0|2|0|0|0
Bit Player..............9 AM - 3 PM|§200|2|0|0|0|0|2|0
Stunt Double............9 AM - 4 PM|§275|2|0|0|1|1|1|0
B-Movie Star............10 AM- 5 PM|§375|2|1|0|1|1|1|0
Supporting Player.......10 AM- 6 PM|§500|2|0|0|2|1|1|0
TV Star.................10 AM- 6 PM|§650|2|1|0|1|1|1|0
Feature Star............5 PM - 1 AM|§900|2|0|0|1|3|1|0
Broadway Star...........10 AM- 5 PM|1100|2|0|0|2|3|1|0
Superstar...............10 AM- 3 PM|1400|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 2
Cooking: 0
Charisma: 10
Creativity: 10
Body: 8
Logic: 0
Total Stats: 30
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 136
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days): §11,300
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1776
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Law Enforcement
Security Guard..........12 AM- 6 AM|§240|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Cadet...................9 AM - 3 PM|§320|0|0|0|0|0|2|0
Patrol Officer..........5 PM - 1 AM|§380|1|2|0|0|0|0|0
Desk Sergeant...........9 AM - 3 PM|§440|1|1|0|0|0|2|0
Vice Squad..............10 PM- 4 AM|§490|2|0|1|1|0|1|1
Detective...............9 AM - 3 PM|§540|2|0|0|1|0|0|2
Lieutenant..............9 AM - 3 PM|§590|2|1|0|1|0|1|1
SWAT Team Leader........9 AM - 3 PM|§625|2|0|0|1|2|1|1
Police Chief............9 AM - 5 PM|§650|2|0|0|2|2|0|3
Captain Hero............10 AM- 4 PM|§700|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical:4
Cooking:1
Charisma:6
Creativity:5
Body:7
Logic:10
Total Stats: 33
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 128
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §9950
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1954
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Business
Mail Room...............9 AM - 3 PM|§120|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Executive Asst..........9 AM - 4 PM|§180|0|2|0|0|0|0|0
Field Sales Rep.........9 AM - 4 PM|§250|1|0|0|2|0|0|0
Junior Executive........9 AM - 4 PM|§320|2|0|0|0|0|0|2
Executive...............9 AM - 4 PM|§400|3|0|0|1|2|0|1
Senior Manager..........9 AM - 4 PM|§520|2|0|0|1|0|2|1
Vice President..........9 AM - 5 PM|§660|2|0|0|1|1|0|2
President...............9 AM - 5 PM|§800|2|0|0|1|2|0|1
CEO.....................9 AM - 4 PM|§950|2|0|0|2|1|0|2
Business Tycoon.........9 AM - 3 PM|1200|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 2
Cooking: 0
Charisma: 8
Creativity: 6
Body: 2
Logic: 9
Total Stats: 27
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 140
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10,800
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1776
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Life Of Crime
Pickpocket..............9 AM - 3 PM|§140|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Bagman..................11 PM- 7 AM|§200|0|0|0|0|0|2|0
Bookie..................12 PM- 7 PM|§275|2|0|0|1|1|0|0
Con Artist..............9 AM - 3 PM|§350|1|2|0|1|0|0|0
Getaway Driver..........5 PM - 1 AM|§425|1|1|0|1|0|1|1
Bank Robber.............3 PM -11 PM|§530|2|0|1|0|1|1|1
Cat Burglar.............9 PM - 3 AM|§640|2|2|0|0|2|0|1
Counterfeiter...........9 PM - 3 AM|§760|2|0|0|3|1|1|0
Smuggler................9 AM - 3 PM|§900|2|0|1|2|2|0|1
Criminal Mastermind.....6 PM -12 AM|1100|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 5
Cooking: 2
Charisma: 7
Creativity: 8
Body: 6
Logic: 4
Total Stats: 32
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 134
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10640
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1886
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Medicine
Medical Technician...... 9 AM- 3 PM|§200|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Paramedic...............11 PM- 5 AM|§275|0|2|0|0|0|0|0
Nurse................... 9 AM- 3 PM|§340|2|0|0|0|0|2|0
Intern.................. 9 AM- 6 PM|§410|1|1|0|0|0|0|2
Resident................ 9 PM- 4 AM|§480|1|0|0|1|0|1|2
GP......................10 AM- 6 PM|§550|1|1|0|1|1|1|0
Specialist..............9 PM - 3 AM|§640|2|2|0|0|2|0|1
Surgeon.................10 PM- 4 AM|§700|2|1|0|1|1|1|2
Medical Researcher......9 PM - 4 AM|§775|2|1|0|2|1|1|1
Chief of Hospital.......9 PM - 4 AM|§850|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 8
Cooking: 0
Charisma: 5
Creativity: 5
Body: 6
Logic: 8
Total Stats: 32
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 136
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10440
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1846
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Military
Recruit................. 6 AM-12 PM|§200|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Elite Forces............ 7 AM- 1 PM|§325|0|0|0|0|0|2|0
Drill Instructor........ 8 AM- 2 PM|§350|0|1|0|1|0|0|0
Junior Officer.......... 9 AM- 3 PM|§450|0|0|1|0|0|2|0
Counter-Intell.......... 9 AM- 3 PM|§500|1|1|0|2|0|0|1
Flight Officer.......... 9 AM- 3 PM|§550|2|1|0|0|0|1|2
Senior Officer.......... 9 AM- 3 PM|§580|2|3|0|1|0|0|2
Commander............... 9 AM- 3 PM|§600|1|3|0|0|0|3|1
Astronaut............... 9 AM- 3 PM|§625|2|1|0|2|0|2|3
General................. 9 AM- 3 PM|§650|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 12
Cooking: 1
Charisma: 7
Creativity: 0
Body: 10
Logic: 9
Total Stats: 32
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 120
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10440
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 2036
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Athlete
Team Mascot.............12 PM- 6 PM|§110|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Minor-Leaguer........... 9 AM- 3 PM|§170|0|0|0|0|0|2|0
Rookie.................. 9 AM- 3 PM|§230|1|0|0|0|0|3|0
Starter................. 9 AM- 3 PM|§300|2|1|0|1|0|1|0
All Star................ 9 AM- 3 PM|§385|2|1|0|1|0|1|0
MVP..................... 9 AM- 3 PM|§510|2|0|1|1|0|1|0
Superstar............... 9 AM- 4 PM|§680|2|0|1|1|1|1|0
Assistant Coach......... 9 AM- 2 PM|§850|2|0|1|1|1|1|0
Coach................... 9 AM- 3 PM|1000|2|0|1|3|1|0|0
Hall Of Famer........... 9 AM- 3 PM|1300|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 2
Cooking: 4
Charisma: 9
Creativity: 3
Body: 10
Logic: 0
Total Stats: 28
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 120
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §11070
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1854
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Science
Test Subject............ 9 AM- 3 PM|§155|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Lab Assistant...........11 PM- 5 AM|§230|0|0|0|0|0|0|2
Field Researcher........ 9 AM- 3 PM|§320|1|0|1|0|0|0|1
Science Teacher......... 9 AM- 4 PM|§375|2|0|0|1|1|0|1
Project Leader.......... 9 AM- 5 PM|§450|1|2|0|0|2|0|0
Inventor................10 AM- 7 PM|§540|1|2|0|0|1|0|2
Scholar.................10 AM- 3 PM|§640|2|1|2|1|0|0|1
Top Secret Researcher...10 AM- 3 PM|§740|1|1|0|0|3|0|2
Theorist................10 AM- 2 PM|§870|2|1|1|1|3|0|1
Mad Scientist...........10 AM- 2 PM|1000|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 8
Cooking: 2
Charisma: 5
Creativity: 10
Body: 0
Logic: 10
Total Stats: 35
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 128
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10640
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1766
Job.....................HOURS-HOURS|WAGE|FF|M|Co|Ch|Cr|B|L
Xtreme
Daredevil............... 9 AM- 3 PM|§175|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Bungee Jump Instructor.. 9 AM- 3 PM|§250|1|0|0|0|0|2|0
Whitewater Guide........ 9 AM- 3 PM|§325|1|1|0|0|0|2|0
Xtreme Circuit Pro...... 9 AM- 4 PM|§400|1|1|0|0|0|0|1
Bush Pilot.............. 9 AM- 3 PM|§475|1|2|0|0|0|2|0
Mountain Climber........ 9 AM- 3 PM|§550|1|1|0|2|3|0|0
Photo-Journalist........ 9 AM- 3 PM|§650|2|1|0|1|1|1|2
Treasure Hunter.........10 AM- 5 PM|§725|2|0|0|2|3|0|2
Grand Prix Driver.......10 AM- 4 PM|§825|2|0|1|3|2|1|1
International Spy.......11 AM- 5 PM|§925|0|0|0|0|0|0|0
Mechanical: 6
Cooking: 2
Charisma: 8
Creativity: 9
Body: 8
Logic: 9
Total Stats: 32
Total Hours (Worked at each job for two days): 124
Total Pay (Worked at each job for two days) : §10600
Stats Lost(Worked at each job for two days): 1898
Here are the results for the jobs' rankings:
10. Politics - Score.........15.8
9. Law Enforcement - Score..19.4
8. Medicine - Score.........19.5
7. Life of Crime - Score....20.3
6. Business - Score.........25.5
5. Science - Score..........28.1
4. Entertainment - Score....31.5
3. Military - Score.........31.7
2. Xtreme - Score...........32
1. Athlete - Score..........45.6
After the recent addition of stat deficiency, not much changed, but some did!
Xtreme took over the military's #2 spot, Entertainent almost toppled the
military, and law enforcement lost two places, from #7 to #9.
If you want reasoning behind these scores, email me.
5.32 Money Theory
Ever wonder why a meal costs §10? Or why you can bring home §16 an hour as a
waiter? Here's my theory. I figure a simoleon is worth §0.25 American. In this
way, A meal costs 2.50, you make minimum wage as a waiter, and many more
prices make sense.
5.33 Everyone's Favorite Strategy
Well, I talk to some "strategic" Sims players, and they all have a similar
strategy. If you've gotten to the top of a job and have lots of stats, go for
another job. Everyone's favorite is Entertainent, due to short hours and high
pay in the top level.
5.4 School
Just as adults have to work, kids must go to school. Every morning that you
have kids, a school bus will come to pick them up. Now, kids don't get fired
from school after skipping 2 days, but if they slack off and their grade goes
down, it's off to military school. Those kids will be gone. To keep their
grade up, they should study on the computer or in a book and you have to keep
their mood up. So don't be a tyrant and make them spend every moment studying
and doing chores - all work and no play equals no more kids. But don't think
that this isn't like a job - If they do well in schoolwork, grandparents will
be generous in rewards for good grades.
Kids are a tax deduction: For every kid you have, your bills are 10% less.
5.5 Love, Life, and Death
There are three big things that define the life cycle after one is born. One
falls in love, has kids, and dies. Then it starts over again with the kids.
The same thing happens with your Sims. Let's take the story of SimJim and
SimKim above. Now, they fell in love with each other by chatting all the time,
kissing, etc. (Other social actions include Fight, Tease, Brag, Compliment,
Tickle, Give Back Rub, Play, and Tell Joke). If SimJim proposes to SimKim (in
the same way that they would talk to each other previously), and SimKim
accepts, then SimJim and SimKim move in with each other. Now, If SimLynn
becomes very good friends with SimKim, then SimKim can ask her to move in with
her. It's like propose, just with same-gender Sims. But when SimJim moves in
with SimKim, or vice versa, then all their money is pooled together, and, if
either is living alone but with kids, then the kids come too. If there's
another adult, then the kids stay with him.
This From Austin Muldoon:
Zodiac Sign Most Compatible Least Compatible
Aquarius Capricorn Sagittarius Scorpio Virgo
Aries Gemini Taurus Cancer Libra
Cancer Taurus Scorpio Gemini Aries
Capricorn Aquarius Taurus Leo Gemini
Gemini Pisces Virgo Capricorn Aries
Leo Sagittarius Cancer Capricorn Gemini
Libra Virgo Cancer Pisces Scorpio
Pisces Scorpio Gemini Leo Aries
Sagittarius Pisces Capricorn Libra Scorpio
Scorpio Pisces Leo Libra Aquarius
Taurus Aries Libra Virgo Cancer
Virgo Aquarius Sagittarius Leo Taurus
In The Sims there is an incredible amount of jealousy. If SimLynn and SimKim
both love SimJim, then when SimLynn sees SimJim and SimKim kissing, SimLynn
will go up and deliver a great big smack across SimKim's face and they won't
like each other very much. SimLynn's social rating will fall. But if your
couple makes a quick escapade to the bathroom to smooch, the possibilities
could be endless.
Now, SimJim and SimKim are married. They are so happy together that they now
can sleep together. One day you may get a window asking, "Do you want to have
a baby?". A good idea would be to smooch several times. If they just live
together, are two same-gender Sims, or just SimJim living alone the window
will ask, "Do you want to adopt a baby?" Babies are a real pain in the but,
but you can manage them effectively. If you only have one adult (assuming
there are two) tending to the baby at a time, and you let them alternate,
things will work out. While SimJim is tending to the baby, SimKim could be
watching TV, cooking dinner, or taking a bath. And Later, during SimKim's
turn, SimJim could repair that fussy sink, shoot hoops, etc. If it's bedtime,
let SimJim sleep on the couch and keep SimKim in bed by that fussy little
monster. When the baby's crying, everyone (except kids) in the room wakes up
from their naps and complains about him. So let SimJim get a good night's
sleep and SimKim can tend to the baby (But let SimJim watch him tomorrow).
Don't neglect the baby! My first kid cried all night in the living room while
Rob and Jean (my Sims' names) snoozed away upstairs. Pretty soon, El Social
Workero came and busted us and took little baby away. But I learned better and
now it's a family of four, with Joanna (looks like she likes Barbies) and
Allen (Ultra-Nerd. He has a pocket protector and thick glasses!). When tending
to babies, there are 3 options. Feed, Play, and Sing. When the baby wakes up
crying you should probably feed him, play with him and sing him to sleep. If
he's still awake, feed him again and sing to him again. Feed and sing until he
falls asleep. After exactly 72 Sim Hours, your baby will have grown up. He's
now a kid. Kids don't require much looking after by the parents. All you have
to do is let adults cook for them (they can only grab snacks from the fridge)
and they do the rest, sleep themselves, have fun themselves, etc.
Finally, there's death. Death occurs when: A)You starve B) Your oven sets on
fire and kills you C)You get electrocuted from attempting to fix something
D)You drown in a pool. If they die then an urn or a tombstone (depending
whether they die indoors or out) is placed. There is 24 hours of mourning by
the family, and then they're free to do whatever. But they can go back and
mourn if they want. But if there's death, there's a ghost who'll come around
the house randomly and spook whoever comes near...
5.51 More on Marriage
I tried to get married, and it's a hard thing to do. You have to fulfill your
fiancè's every need and you must love each other. But just remember: Marriage
costs money. When Jim Webeley married Bella Goth, it cost §1000.
5.52 Dealing with Death
A death in the family can be horrendous, especially if it's the moneymaker of
the family. What to do? Let's say "Steve", the moneymaker of the family, dies.
"Lynn" a housewife who makes friends and cleans the house all day, is
devastated. She gets a job to support herself. The first thing she buys with
any money left? An espresso machine. She uses lots of energy working and has
little time for romancing a neighbor, so this boost really helps. She invites
another guy over and pretty soon, gets hitched. Then the working structure is
back on its feet.
5.6 Livin' La Vida Loca in The Sims
This is the story of a sim living an excellent, wealthy, life in a
simhouse. Take a hint from Tim. Tim lived in a small house which he designed
himself. He had a Trottco 27" TV for fun, an Amishim Bookshelf to study, a
folding easel for some extra dollars, a microwave, a fridge, and a food
processor for cooking, a dishwasher, a trash compactor, a telephone, a nice
big couch from Werkbunnst, a bed, a Justa Bathtub for hygiene, an ordinary,
everyday toilet to relieve himself, a pedestal sink to wash, and a dining room
table and chairs. He had everything he wanted for a Sim just starting out.
Tim took the first job he could - a career in politics. But he didn't
want bribes and scandals, and knew much better because he read this very FAQ.
So, as soon as he got a promotion, he put that money to work with a Moneywell
Computer. He started looking for a job. He decided on a career in the
military. He would get home early enough to do things and would stay up til 6
or 7 at night - longer with coffee. What did he do with that extra time? He
had fulfilled all his needs in the morning. He had a good mood and almost
every need he had was satisfied. So he took that easel and painted. Soon, his
good mood resulted in promotions. With his bonuses, he bought all he needed to
get new promotions - a weight machine, a mirror, and a chessboard. He got his
skills up, because when he started working, time just flew by... or perhaps
the speed was turned up. Well, in his free time he painted a lot and fixed any
needs that needed fixing. His next big project was a second floor. To be
continued...
--------------------------
6. Cheats and other stuff
--------------------------
From www.gamewinners.com
The Sims Cheat mode: Press [Ctrl] + [Shift] + C during game play to display a
prompt in the upper left corner of the screen. Enter one of the following
codes to activate the corresponding cheat function. Note:, enter [Exclamation
point] at the prompt to repeat the last cheat entered. Enter a [Semi-colon]
between codes to enter multiple codes at the same time.
Result
1000 Simoleons (unpatched game version) - klaupicus
1000 Simoleons (patched game version) - rosebud
Add new family history stat to the current family - hist_add
Appends the route destination list to AllRoutes.txt every time a route is
found - write_destlist
Architecture tools automatically set the level as needed - auto_level
Automatically import and load indicated FAM file - import {FAM file}
Automatically load indicated house, no questions asked - house {house number}
Check and fix required lot objects - prepare_lot
Completely flush app to VM file when running Windows NT - flush
Crash game - crash
Create moat or streams - water_tool
Create shrunk_text_#.bmp files - shrink_text {font_size} {text}
Create-a-character mode - edit_char
Display personality and interests - interests
Draw all animation frames disabled - draw_all_frames off
Draw all animation frames enabled - draw_all_frames on
Draw colored dots at each person's origin - draw_origins
Dump entire memory to core_dump_[date:time].txt - core_dump
Dump selected person's most recent list of scored interactions to a file -
dump_happy
Dump selected person's motive contribution curve to a file - dump_mc
Enable debug flag to show outcome choice dialogs for social interactions -
debug_social
End sim logging - sim_log end
Execute "file.cht" file as a list of cheats - cht {filename}
Floorable grid disabled - draw_floorable off
Floorable grid enabled - draw_floorable on
Force an assert for testing - assert
Log animations in the event log window - log_animations
Map editor disabled - map_edit off
Map editor enabled - map_edit on
Move any object - move_objects
No tutorial object generation when tutorial house is loaded - tutorial off
Prevent web browser crashes - browser_failsafe
Preview animations disabled - preview_anims off
Preview animations enabled - preview_anims on
Programmer stats - tile_info
Quit game - quit
Read in behavior tuning constants from Tuning.txt - #import
Rebuilds entire control panel/UCP from scratch - rebuild_cp
Refresh the BMP_ resources for all people whose IFF files are writable -
refresh_faces
Rematch dependent textures and regenerate bitmaps for all user characters -
refresh_textures
Restore tutorial - restore_tut
Rotate camera - rotation {0-3}
Routing debug balloons disabled - route_balloons off
Routing debug balloons enabled - route_balloons on
Run series of random operations on unhoused families - fam_test {opcount}
Save currently loaded house - save
Save family history file - history
Say "plugh" - plugh
Say "porntipsguzzardo" - porntipsguzzardo
Say "xyzzy" - xyzzy
Selected person's path displayed - draw_routes on
Selected person's path hidden - draw_routes off
Set event logging mask - log_mask
Set free thinking level - autonomy {1-100}
Set game speed - sim_speed {-1000-1000}
Set grass change value - edit_grass {number}:
Set grass growth - grow_grass {0-150}
Set lot size - lot_size {number}
Set maximum milliseconds to allow simulator - sim_limit {milliseconds}
Set sim speed - sim_speed {-1000 - 1000}
Set time of day (unpatched game version) - set_hour {1-24}
Set z offset for thought bubbles - bubble_tweak {z offset value}
Sets the neighborhood directory to the path - {directory path}
Sets up the borders of the lot with non-editable flag. Requires rotation -
lot_border {tl} {tr} {bl} {br}
Sets whether menu items appear for in use objects - allow_inuse
Show memory view window in debug builds of the game - memview
Start sim logging - sim_log begin
Swap the two house files and updates families - swap_houses {house number}
{house number}
Ticks disabled - sweep off
Ticks enabled - sweep on
Tile information displayed - tile_info on
Tile information hidden - tile_info off
Toggle allowing visitors to be controlled using the keyboard - visitor_control
Toggle assets report - report_assets
Toggle automatic object reset feature - auto_reset
Toggle calls to PeekMessage within sim loop - sim_peek
Toggle camera mode - cam_mode
Toggle display of unavailable interactions in person control menus - all_menus
Toggle music - music
Toggle object compression in save file - obj_comp
Toggle quaternion transformations - quats
Toggle sound log window - sound_log
Toggle sounds - sound
Toggle web page creation - html
Total reload of people skeletons, animations, suits and skins - reload_people
Trigger sound event - soundevent
Write out an RTE file every time a route is found - write_routes
Write out behavior tuning constants to Tuning.txt - #export
Information in this section was contributed by Chris Mitchell
{mailto:[email protected]} and Jonny Hansson
{mailto:[email protected]}.
Quick money: Enable cheat mode and enter the klapaucius code. Display the
cheat prompt again and type
!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!;!:!;! (up to sixty
total commands may be entered). Information in this section was contributed by
Jonny Hansson {mailto:[email protected]}.
Easier repeat cheats: To make it easier to repeat a code, such as the money
code, first enter the code, then make a mistake after what you have repeated.
For example enter the money cheat, then enter !;!;!;!;!;!: (note the colon at
the end instead of a semi-colon). The game will respond "Sorry, invalid cheat"
but you will have the amount that you requested. When you click "OK", the
cheat will still be at the prompt. Press [Enter] again and click "OK" for
another repeat of the cheat you entered. Information in this section was
contributed by ZambordaWizard {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Easier relationships: Create a family with a male and female adult that
are of the same category (such as Virgo and Virgo) and move them into a house
(or created house). Immediately after selecting live mode make them kiss
approximately ten times in a row to set their relationship meter to be 100. If
you continue kissing the female should ask to have a baby. Information in
this section was contributed by Bills656 {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Selling the dead: This is a useful trick if you had a Sim die. When Sims
die, they leave an urn or a gravestone behind them which your Sim will mourn
for 24 hours. After this time you can pick it up in furnish mode and sell it.
You only get about 3 to 10 Simoleans for it, but it is better than turning
your garden into a cemetery. Information in this section was contributed by
Howard Blanchard {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Magic garbage bag: The following trick saves the time needed to take the
garbage to the street. Buy the 30 simolian garbage can. Order your Sim to
empty it, then cancel the order just as they remove the bag from the can.
Then, order them to pick up the mess that they just created. Your Sim will
return the full bag to an empty can. Repeat this each time it fills and trash
will never have be brought outside again. Information in this section was
contributed by Jonny Hansson {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Double phone message: Place more than two phones in your house and wait
for the phone to ring. Direct two of your Sims to answer different phones. By
doing this, two messages will appear for each of your Sims. Sometimes the game
will even offer some generous amount of money. Information in this section was
contributed by Razzpberry {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Never take out the garbage: Buy the small blue 30 simolian garbage can.
Whenever it is full, sell it for 30 simolians. Then, just buy a new one, and
you will never have to take out the garbage again. Information in this section
was contributed by Matt Stokes {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Less bills: Keep an unpaid bill until the mailman delivers the next set
of bills. Pay the original bill when your mailbox is filled with the next set
of bills. This should cause the bills inside the mailbox to disappear.
Information in this section was contributed by Jonny Hansson
{mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Less time needed to pay bills: When you get the bills, your Sim will
normally walk inside put it on a table before they can be paid. Cancel the
table action and that person will put it on the ground. Click on the bill and
pay for it immediately. Information in this section was contributed by
ETsnookie4u {mailto:[email protected]}.
Hint: Never pay bills: Enable the "Move any objects" code. Then, pick up the
mailbox and erase it. Bills cannot be delivered if you do not have a mailbox.
Information in this section was contributed by Metallicat1313
{mailto:[email protected]}.
Code
This code from [email protected] (slynx)
I had a bachelor (been playing bachelor from the start.) with 10 in all stats
except creativity. How? move in a house, build, lets say, a workout gym, and
work the day away! when tired and upset, save, go to neighbourhood, evict, re-
move in, work again. repeat as needed. can be done with all activities! ALL!!!
-------------------------------------
7. Ideas for New Objects and Concepts
-------------------------------------
"The Sims will probably come in for more petty criticism... because it
simulates something about which everyone can claim to be an expert... I have a
pretty good feeling that Will Wright... already has much of this stuff laid
out for a sequel or expansion pack..."
-PC Gamer, April 2000
Well, the expansion pack is coming, but this focuses on the wacky sides of our
Sims. One night, I lay in bed awake and thought up all sorts of stuff that
isn't on everybody's wishlist. Sure, you see "seeing what happens at work" and
"more jobs" and "buying a car" on everybody's Sims ideas. But lets take some
other ideas...
A. Disasters
Weird. Everyone wants more disasters in SC3K, but no one thinks of these
ideas. I would like to see floods, Carbon Monoxide, Labor Strikes, and other
disasters.
B. Varying Jobs
This may be a more popular idea, but I have ideas.
Job Upside
Downside
Life of crime Free Stuff! You could get
caught...
Athlete Contract Negotiations can make you more $$$ Can be waived
anytime.
XTreme Many Competitions Injuries
Frequent.
You get my drift.
C. Future Technology
At randomized dates, new furniture can come available to people. Futuristic
stuff. Or even: If 60 days have passed, this is available, etc.
D. Degrading and Upgrades
Tell me, do you ever play the computer and get bored with a game (besides The
Sims)? Do you think watching one video over and over would bore you?
Incorporate this in The Sims. A TV's fun rating slowly goes down. Buy a VCR
and tapes and the rating will be enhanced. A computer gets games, etc.
E. Hang up those paintings!
Take the paintings your sims paint, hang them up, and let them appreciate in
value.
F. Skillz
Charisma helps relationships. Creativity lets you get bonuses at work. Logic
lets sims move about the house quicker. Body makes them faster. Cooking and
Mechanical already do things.
G. Sports!
More than basketball. Tennis. Baseball. Soccer. Let the youngsters join a
weeklong after-school league and tournaments, depending on how much they
practice determines the prize.
H. The Newspaper
Use the paper for more. Have the occasional skill tip, contests, coupons, but
not to mention bad news like tax hikes and droughts.
I. More customizable skins
Be able to choose shirt, pants, hat (if any) and shoes instead of a full body
outfit.
J. Miscellaneous Items
What it is What it does
Ceiling Lights Functions as a normal light
Air Conditioners/Fans/Heaters + Room
Internet Access + Fun, Social
Curtains + Room
Toasters + Hunger, Fun (I love toasters!)
Video Game Systems + Fun
--------------------------
8. Links
--------------------------
The Sims Homepage - www.thesims.com
GameFAQs - www.gamefaqs.com
GameWinners - www.gamewinners.com
The Sims Fan Page (I work there!) - www.geocities.com/the_simms_ca/
--------------------------
9. Known Bugs
--------------------------
All These Bugs can be fixed with patches on thesims.com
Sim Twitches and Melts into Ashes
Sim Walks Around Nude
Sim Permanently Censored
Sim Killed by Guinea Pig
Sim Changes Clothes due to Guinea Pig
Repairman Dies
Neighbor tells Sim to come visit
Can't Delete Desks
Can't Take Night off for jobs without being fired
Staircase Says "In Use" when it isn't
No Comfort from Recliner
Carpool Doesn't Arrive
Can't Clean up snack from floor
These from [email protected] (Aaron Pieper) (No Patch)
Repairmen can't walk up or down hills to repair things, only to repossess
things. So if your
entire house is elevated below or above the sidewalk (I know one lot starts
out like this, lot 2
I believe), and you call a repairman, they will just stand in place for 8
hours, bill you, and
leave.
If a sim "Sam" is watching TV on a couch, and another sim "Stanley " tries to
interact with
them, then Stanley will simply stand in front of Sam waiting for Sam to stop
watching TV.
However, Sam will be blocked from standing up, because Stanley is standing in
front of
them. Even if you cancel Stanley's "interact with Sam" action, Stanley won't
be able to move.
They will be stuck doing nothing for a few hours - possibly missing work, or
urinating on
themselves.
Similarly, if a Sim, "Escher" is painting and another sim "Dopey" is standing
behind them trying
to interact with them, Dopey will block Escher again. However, this time
Escher will be able
to stop painting, and he will occupy the same square as Dopey, so that neither
of them can
move under any condition. The only way to resolve this situation is to evict
everyone in the
home.
Not done yet! If you have guests, and they are swimming in your pool, you
can't ask them to
leave, or even to stop swimming. They will swim and swim and swim, sometimes
until they
just climb out of the pool and collapse in front of the pool ladder. If there
are any sims in the
swimming pool when the pool ladder is blocked, they will all die.
If you have an angled wall on top of a carpet, you can't remove the carpet
without removing
the wall.
Oh! And a HUGE glitch. If you delete any picture in a scrapbook, then the
caption for the
picture is automatically overwritten.
From Joseph Pietler ([email protected])
on the neighborhood option site, when I highlighted one of the family
friends/financial stats, it said I have 13 friends. Yet, when I go into that
family playload, it said I only got 11.
This one is similar to the ones Aaron Pieper described, but not as bad.
Sim"Jim" was working out, while the visit sim "Tim" was walking towards him,
to speak to him. I cancelled Jim workout order, but not before Tim was
standing over him, blocking the workbench exit. You know the character
finishes his workout, his arms drops and he says "WHEW!" Well, Jim was
doing that 5 times before Tim moved away to a distance. He was a visitor,
so I couldn't control him at that time.
One of the floor lamps burned out, so I made my character call the
repairman. He came over, touch the lamp and got electrocuted. Thanks for
the patch, he didn't die (there is a joke in there, somewhere). He finish
it and went on as usual. It was funny seeing him light up like a Christmas
tree, though.
I have 8 sims in a household. One works at night. Four starts work at
8, the last three at 9. When 8 o'clock carpool arrived, the four got to
work with no problems and the work pictures showed up on their face photos.
When the 9 o'clock carpool arrived, the first one went at 9:30, the second
one at 9:45. I had trouble getting the third one out of the swimming pool
(It seems that I had to click on the "get out" order before the "go to work"
order, because she kept swimming and swimming, ignoring the "go to work"
order). By the time she went towards the car, it was 10:10, the car went
off. When that happened, ALL OF THE SIX PEOPLE WHO WENT TO WORK MAGICALLY
APPEARED IN THE READING ROOM OF THE HOUSE WITH THEIR WORK PICTURES GONE.
This is not the first time it happened. It seems that whenever any one sim
misses work, the other sims who work the same or close to it job time, who
is already at work appears back home. This also happens to my other 2 sims
in a different house (in the bathroom, this time), but not as much as the 8.
I got the version 1.1 patch when this happened. The bad news is those 6
sims won't get paid, even though they went to work.
--------------------------
10. FAQ
--------------------------
Q: What is The Sims?
A: A new game from the creator of SimCity simulating life.
Q: How can I find out more?
A: Read my FAQ, or go out and BUY IT! NOW! Support Maxis Games.
Q: Is it worth my $34.99?
A: YES! It's on the top of the charts. It got 96% from PC Gamer. It got an A-
from Game Revolution. A 9.1 from GameSpot. And it got a 98% from me.
Q: Hey! I spent $50.00 on this game! Where did you get it for $34.99?
A: Best Buy. It was on sale the first weekend.
Q: Weird things have been happening in my game...
A: Check Section 7 Known Bugs and check if your problem is up there.
Q: I have a male and a female Sim. How can they have kids?
A: If you continue to have them talk, they will like each other more. When
their rankings with each other are over about 75, they fall in love and you
can get with the real Romantic stuff. The higher they are, the more likely
you'll be to have a baby. It won't happen right away, but with patience, it
will come.
Q: How can my Sims get married?
A: First, get their stats up to 100 with each other. Then get her in a real
good mood, and propose. If it doesn't work the first time, keep trying.
Q: Do kids or adults age?
A: Nope.
Q: Can you take custody of a kid from a neighbor the same way you ask a
neighbor to move in/propose?
A: Nope. But if you ignore their SimParents, you can keep em for days.
Q: Why don't you update the FAQ as much as you used to?
A: I'm running out of new ideas, but I'm doing my best to add new stuff.
--------------------------
11. COMING SOON
--------------------------
As soon as the expansion pack is released, I'll be adding a lot to this FAQ.
--------------------------
12. Last Time I Played...
--------------------------
Another job, another gadget. Say hello to the weight machine.
Copyright 2000 MaxisMaster (Joe Kaiser)
The Spoiler Centre