Everything used to be nicer, blah blah, you know how old people whine. But sometimes it’s just true. I like The Sims 2 and The Sims 3 better than The Sims 4. Ever since I was a child playing Harvest Moon I dreamed of a “real” life simulation where you can do whatever you want and not work 90 percent of the time. Funnily enough I feel the same way today IRL! But I digress. In any case, I had a lot of fun with Maxis’ cult games. My idiot family dressed completely in leopard look, the psychopath clan in the glass house, then later the replica editorial team – wonderful memories that sometimes mix.
My paths and those of my Sims have parted, but many have stayed true to their favorite simulation. EA knows there are no right alternatives. Second Life, for example, is ugly and old and perverted, that is, the distant relative who has become a play and who nobody wants to sit next to at family celebrations. What else is there? I haven’t had the feeling that any Sims competitor scratches the exact spot that Sims fans itch.
Nobody? Too special, because you play a fixed character, also probably abandonware. AlterLife? Unknown grower, never ventured outside, looks too good to be true – this is a Tinder hoax until I’m proven wrong.
paralives is developed by one person, and that is admirable. But I can’t imagine that result going into the ring in a weight class with The Sims. I’ll leave out all the furnishing sims and farming sims, that might be good as a substitute drug.
And now Paradox steps into the breach. With a man at the helm who knows what he is developing: Rod Humble. Not only did he direct the work on The Sims 2 and The Sims 3, but he was also the CEO of Linden Labs, the company behind Second Life, the dry-bang sim I mentioned earlier. So maybe Life by You has WooHoo above the bed covers?
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n an interview at GDC 2023, Rod Humble made my mouth water not with that but with other information. Yes, Life by You will fully support mods and players will have a full range of options to customize the game.
If I want my “Sim” to poop in the bushes instead of the toilet, then I can make that happen. Auspicious! Also: no loading times, open world, complexity, if you don’t want to tamper with the game, you can experience it quite normally – just as “normal” as I used to play the Sims.
In the Furry…uh, Werewolf expansion, even the clothes have piercings. Take my money!!!
Source: Electronic Arts
Without ever having purchased an expansion set or whatever pack for The Sims, I know that there are many, many, many of them, and they are quite expensive to buy. It’s not for nothing that a friend keeps asking if we happen to have extensions “lying around” that nobody needs.
Yes, well, The Sims 4 (buy now €41.50 ) also has “mods” but those are houses or crop tops and so on. Life by You should offer a lot more possibilities. I found the information about Life by You enjoyable enough to share in the editor’s chat.
Colleague Matthias immediately pointed out to me that Paradox are not exactly known for their user-friendly DLC policy. And he’s absolutely right about that! I then asked myself the question: What is actually more expensive? Any expansions for Cities Skylines or The Sims 4?
