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1001. New "SimUniverse" Details
Written on Friday 15 October 2004 at 02:21 by
ChEeTaH -
1 comment.
At the
Urbz presentation a little bit of news concerning Will Wright's secret project was revealed. It turns out that the game is currently named "
SPORE," but that's still the working title and most likely will change even before the announcement. Will Wright actually calls it
SimEverything now, as he's just playing with technology and trying out different things now. The game will not be released for another 3 years or so, but until then we'll keep you updated.
1002. Urbz Preview
Written on Friday 15 October 2004 at 02:14 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
About a week ago, I visited a presentation about the Urbz by Lead Designer Alex Hutchinson, and got a little bit of hands-on play time as well. Of course I can't keep everything to myself, and I've posted a preview of the upcoming console game with the information I received on 2 pages.
Interested?
Read the preview!
1003. New Poll
Written on Thursday 14 October 2004 at 03:17 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
It's getting repetative: we have a new poll again this week. Last week it was all about sleep: where do your Sims hang out when they take a long nap. The results are pretty obvious: the second storey is by far the most popular, with 46.7% of the Sims sleeping there. Second is the first floor, with 26.7% of the 349 votes. 11.5% said their Sims don't sleep. And the rest? They're all close, between 0.5% (fourth floor) and 4% (third floor). For the exact results, check the
results page.
This week we would like to know if you know how to create basements in the Sims 2. Let us know and tell us on the right, or on the
latest poll page. For more polls and statistics, check the
poll archive.
1004. Tomorrow: Sims 2 Halloween Downloads [Update]
Written on Wednesday 13 October 2004 at 23:25 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
Games site
GameSpy reveals a bit of what SimDay will bring tomorrow already: halloween downloads, sims-style. Expect giant inflatable Halloween garden decorations like a giant pumpkin, a black cat, and a bunch of monsters "
popping out of a cauldron". The objects are animated and will glow in the dark. Pictures are available too, see the
GameSpy news item for those.
[Update 15 October, 1:10am] The downloads are now available through the content browser within The Sims 2. So head there, and you can get the inflatable items in your game quickly by installing them.
1005. Special Version of the Urbz announced
Written on Wednesday 13 October 2004 at 23:21 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
As if the Urbz news doesn't stop, today EA announced that there will be a special version of the Urbz. Besides the game, containing already 9 songs from the Black Eyed Peas, you will be able to get more songs from that band from iTunes. The first 700,000 copies of the game will come with a download card for iTunes with which you can download "
a never-before released English song, an exclusive Simlish track, and two versions of their top hit, "Let's Get it Started" - one in Simlish." It's unsure whether the offer is available outside the US too, but so far it's only been announced there. Although not mentioned, it's likely to be for the Console version of the game only. If you want to read for yourself, then
check the press release.
1006. Urbz Developer Chat
Written on Wednesday 13 October 2004 at 23:20 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
Tomorrow night (14 October) a developer chat will be held about the Urbz. At the usual time of 3pm PST (11pm in Britain and Portugal, midnight in other parts of Europe), Executive Producer Scot Amos (from the blogs), Game Designer Sean Baity, Design Director Mike Perry and Assistant Producer Kam Zambel will all be joining the fans to chat about the game. You can drop your questions in the chatroom, and if you're a little bit lucky they will be answered by one of the mentioned Maxoids. Check the
411 section for more information when the auditorium opens (approximately 10 minutes before the start).
1007. Urbz (DS) Videos & Previews
Written on Wednesday 13 October 2004 at 23:19 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
Besides the Console version, there is also the DS version of the Urbz. EA has once again
announced the game for the DS two days ago (although it was already
announced previously in July). But that's far from all that's new.
IGN DS has posted a
hands-on preview from Nintendo's Gamers Summit in Seattle. The main disappointment: it looks and feels like a port of the GBA version, and not too much more, despite the better technical capabilities of the DS that could make it look more like its brother on the Consoles. A similar hands-on preview, from the same place, is posted at
GameSpot. They are more positive, and say the game on the DS is obviously more than the GBA version.
Read their preview and compare. There has also been a presentation at the summit, which both sites recorded on video. IGN has posted it in 6 parts, available from the
videos page. GameSpot has one big video on their
media page so you can see the entire presentation in one go.
The Urbz on the DS is to be released 21 November in the US, simultaneously with the new DS platform itself. Europe and Australia will not get the DS until early 2005, so the Urbz will be released there later as well. The GBA version will be released at the same time as the consoles version (9 November in the US, 12 November around the world).
1008. Urbz (Console) Videos & Previews [Update]
Written on Wednesday 13 October 2004 at 23:19 by
ChEeTaH -
3 comments.
Several videos of the Urbz have been posted recently. There have been producer presentations of the game (one of which I attended, expect our own preview soon) in several countries. IGN has recorded theirs on video, and made it available in 7 parts (approximately 5.4 Mb each for the Windows Media versions, 10.6 for low-res QuickTime and 34 for high-res QuickTime videos, Quicktime editions only available to IGN Insiders). Besides that, they've posted "Workin' It" trailers for Central Station and Skyline Beach a while back. You can find all the videos from IGN at their
Urbz Videos Page. Besides that they've posted a
Hands-on preview of the game. It mostly lists what's been told before already though. Thanks to James Magenta for the videos tip.
Some videos I missed out in September, are from GameSpot. 7 short gameplay clips have been posted there. You can go to the
media page to find them (Gameplay movies 2-7). They too posted a
preview at the same time, which hasn't been mentioned here.
The Urbz on the consoles (and GBA) will be released in Europe at 12 November, while the US is expected to get it 9 November.
[Update 15 October, 12:45am] GameSpot has posted 2 new trailers of the game. EA has revealed a new screenshot of the Black Eyed Peas in Cozmo street. You can see the screenshot below, the trailers are available at GameSpot's
media page. Thanks to James Magenta in this post's
comments.
1009. Developers look back on Sims 2
Written on Tuesday 12 October 2004 at 02:15 by
ChEeTaH -
0 comments.
GameSpot has posted a new movie (called "Developer Interview 3") in which the Sims 2 team looks back on the development of the game. Included is a feature which describes the time at the Maxis offices a week before the release. Most developers took some well-earned vacation time back then. The article also mentions the "
Up-Against-the-Wall Wall" which has all notes with red "Done" stamps on it. There's also a bit about the future:
"On one section of wall, there are clippings and articles from much of the mainstream press coverage that The Sims 2 has received. On another, there's a graph of the number of bugs in the project over the course of development. And there are already gaps in the walls--Maxis is preparing to make room for the next big thing. But Bradshaw won't reveal what that next big thing is. With a polite smile, the executive producer says, "There's so much territory that we can explore with The Sims." That's about as much as Bradshaw, or anyone else at Maxis, is willing to divulge at this point, though fans of the series can certainly expect that the sequel leaves room for future expansion."
You can read the 3-page
looking back feature, or just
watch the movie.
1010. Sims 2 Chat Transcript
Written on Saturday 9 October 2004 at 17:05 by
ChEeTaH -
1 comment.
Last thursday a lot of Maxoids joined the moderated chat that was held at the
official site. There's a lot of talk about where Bella has gone, and Maxis promises she'll be easier to find with the patch. A date for that patch is unsure. If you want to see your problems fixed, e.g. a game crash or freeze, corrupt graphics, etc., then you can fill out the
Feedback Submission form. Using the information from there, Maxis will be able to reproduce errors and possibly fix them.
Back to the chat: the first expansion is also mentioned many times. Maxis is working on it, but cannot reveal any details yet. It's been stated before it will be released early 2005. Also, the expansions for the Sims 2 will not be 1:1 recreations of the packs for the Sims 1, although some elements might return. If you want to read more, get the
chat transcript.