a change to pets has it's limits and downsides but this game as all the other sims game is enormously addictive.........
For those unfamiliar with the Sims legacy (have you been living under a rock all this time!), The Sims is a game based on an innovative and interesting concept. It lets you control people. You choose a family, take on their daily lives, right from getting up in the morning, going to work, attending parties till the end of the day. The cycle continues and the game keeps track of your “Sim’s” happiness in several broad categories. The Sims has already had 5 expansion packs, which added new objects, careers, events, faces, families and a new “Downtown” area and a beautiful “Vacation Island” to your existing neighbourhood. Unleashed builds on the tradition and adds an “Old Town” to your neighbourhood, which consists of new houses, families, shopping malls and community centres. Unleashed also gives you the opportunity to adopt a pet. It adds a nice selection of pets including cats, dogs, canaries and more. The old town has a Pet adoption centre which enables you to………………. duh …………… adopt a pet!! These pets have a mind of their own and can’t really be controlled by you, but you can give them orders using your sim. You can teach your pet amazing tricks and take it to the pet show, where it might even land up as the winner! All depends on how well you train it, and there are experts at the adoption centre that will instruct you on this. Taking constant care of your pets, however, is not as easy as it seems. There are times when you get annoyed with your pet for littering up the house, and that doesn’t augur well for you and your pet. Like other family members, pets also need their share of social attention, and that is not easy, I can assure you!
That’s not all in Unleashed. There are also plenty of new objects and new families to interact with. You can invite your friend down to the Old Town in the Town Shuttle Service. There are plenty of areas awaiting exploration, and the game guarantees several fun filled hours with your sim.
If you think this is the perfect game, think again. There are a few niggling problems which have been there since the original. The path finding in this game has never been too great, and it sometimes leaves you absolutely frustrated. There’s no “Active” calendar management system in the game, i.e., there’s no record of the date and day in the game. It’s all about ending of one day and beginning of another. No weekends, no holidays and no novelty. This is one of the reasons why the game tends to become a bit repetitive after some time.
All in all, if you played the original and liked it, well, what are you waiting for? If you don’t have the original but are keen on experimenting, I suggest you first get the Deluxe edition (The Sims + Livin’ Large expansion), and if you like it, go all out for this one. Mind it, though, this game is terribly addictive!