One To Watch: The Sims 3: Pets [3DS]

The Sims 3: Pets is about to arrive on 3DS console, so what can fans expect from the second title in The Sims 3 handheld gaming range?

The Sims 3: Pets [3DS] allows players to create some unique pets for your Sims to play with, by customising different breeds of cats and dogs and giving them a choice of three individual personality traits, including: Brave, Skittish, Loyal, Piggy, Independant, Aggressive, Neat, Friendly, and many more besides.

This game also gives players the chance to immediately create two Sim characters for their household as well, so that they can instantly create a family unit (two Sims, one pet). This is an improvement on the original Sims 3 3DS game, in which you were only allowed one Sim to begin with, and it opens up several different possibilities for interactions between the chosen Sims based on their individual character traits.

One thing that Mini Gamers has learned will be missing from The Sims 3: Pets is the ability to map a photograph of oneself onto your chosen human Sim(s).  This is a shame as we thought that this ability was one of the positive aspects of the first Sims 3 game.

However, customisation of your human Sim characters can still be achieved by dragging the stylus on the bottom screen and reshaping parts of the Sim's face, which can in some cases produce a very effective lookalike for those players wishing to put themselves in the game.

Karma Powers are again used in this game. The all-new Karma Powers are as follows:

+ A Little Ray of Sunshine: Gives an immediate boost to Sims/pets with no interruption.

+ Transmography:  Turns a human Sim or their pet counterpart into either a cat, dog or  human Sim, depending on their current species.

-  Solar Flare: unleashes a random and dangerous Solar Flare on your unsespecting Sims.

- Feral Possession (pets only): Forces your normally lovable pets to go absolutely crazy and wild.

- The Sickness: Leaves your Human Sims feeling very ill all of a sudden.

Karma Powers have also now been upgraded so that it is possible to spend more play coins than you actually have available, so that you can use more Karma Powers in your Sims/pets lives. However, players should be aware that there are serious consequences for over-spending your play coins in this game...

The really brilliant thing about The Sims 3: Pets is that the pets in this game are also fully controllable. Ever wondered what it was like to be a dog or a cat? Now is your chance to find out. Have your dog/cat choose who to bite or sniff, when to dig holes or where to go to toilet - its all up to you.

One of our few gripes with this game is that the 3DS circle pad is used to control all the Sim/pet movements and object selections in and around the town. We found this awkward, especially if trying to select an object in another part of the house to where our Sim/pet was currently occupying. As a result, we spent a lot of our time zooming in and out during gameplay, which soon got very frustrating.

The Sims 3: Pets Trailer for 3DS, PS3 and Xbox Kinect

 

Overall, the Sims 3: Pets is not a bad attempt at bringing the PC experience of the game (minus horses) to the 3DS console. Players will find the new Karma powers very entertaining. Overall rating: 8/10.

The Sims 3 On Nintendo DS/DSi - Just Ten Days To Go...

The Sims 3 comes to the Nintendo DS console systems on the 29th of October, but we couldn't wait until then. Mini Gamers takes a look at some of the features that players can expect from the new game.

1) Create-A-Sim Gets A Whole New Look:

The classic 'Create-A-Sim' mode, which has been present since the Sims 2 DS games, has now been given an extra makeover, meaning that more unique Sims can be created than ever before. Earlier Sims DS games had only allowed players to select from a very limited list of faces, hairstyles and clothes, meaning that all the characters were pretty generic.

The Sims 3 (DS) does away with the old character templates. Instead, the stylus is used as a sculpting tool so that each feature of a Sims' face can now be moulded to the players chosen specification. This brings the 'Create-A-Sim' mode more in line with the PC version of The Sims 3, and makes it easier to create realistic characters.

2)  Detailed 'Build Mode' 

 Again, the 'Build Mode' has been re-developed to bring it closer to the PC version of the game. Players can literally paint their own wall designs, floors and furniture. Preset options are also available if you are lacking inspiration though. The stylus can also be used to pick up and place new furniture items.

3) A Truly 'Open' Story:

Unlike the PC version, The Sims 2 console games only ever contained a single narrative. The new game allows players to decide the fate of their chosen Sims through the use of Personality Traits and Karma Powers.

Whilst the Personality Traits are already a strong part of the PC version of The Sims 3, Karma Powers have been specially designed for the console version and the type of Karma Powers you can unlock during the game depends upon what particular console version of the game you have purchased.

For the Nintendo DS/DSi consoles, there are eleven total Karma Powers that can be unlocked. These are: 

+ Winter Wonderland: triggers a permanent winter season in the game.

+ The Muse: helps painting and cooking skills.

+ The Riddler: helps logic and mechanical skills

+ Casanova: other Sims cannot resist you.

+ Bless the Mess: everything broken or messy within your Sim's home is fixed and cleaned for you.

+ Wormhole: makes your Sim travel quickly.

+ Instant Beauty: you can edit your Sim's physical appearance in Create-A-Sim mode.

 + Super satisfy: immediately fulfills needs.

+ Giant Jackpot: you get money.

 - Cosmic Curse: depletes all of the target Sims’ needs.

- Epic fail: makes Sims fight, burp and fart, get demoted or fired, break things, causes fires and more.

Although there are a total of nine positive Karma Powers (+) and only two negative ones (-) , overuse or misuse of these powers can cause bad or unexpected things to happen, which in turn may disrupt your Sims overall lifetime goals. Use those powers carefully!

Overall, The Sims 3 on Nintendo DS/DSi is as close to the PC version as it could possibly be. With so many plot twists and an open storyline, this game is sure to keep Sims fans busy for a very long time to come. There is talk that a version of this game will also be making its debut on the 3DS next year, but until then, this game is a true life-simulation masterpiece. Overall rating: 10/10.