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1172. EA and SEE break up
Written on Monday 17 January 2005 at 23:32 by
ChEeTaH -
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SEE, the advertising company which has created TV commercials for many EA games including
the Sims 2, will no longer make any more ads for EA after March 31. Electronic Arts has
announced they will not be renewing the contract after it expires. EA and SEE have worked together for over 10 years, and the advertising company has helped a lot in "
growing EA's brands and businesses into what they are today," says Carolyn Feinstein, Vice President of Marketing Communications at Electronic Arts. EA will announce a new agency they will cooperate with in a few weeks.
1173. EA wants to be biggest in Entertainment
Written on Monday 17 January 2005 at 23:16 by
ChEeTaH -
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Electronic Arts, publisher of the Sims series, wants to become the biggest company in the entertainment industry. It wants to compete with companies like Disney. To achieve that goal, the company wants to create more games which target a mass audience. The next generation consoles might help that, as they will be superior when it comes to graphics. According to EA, the games industry is already bigger than the music industry now. The
Sims TV-show is also briefly mentioned, and it's said this show will let video games play a more central role in popular culture. Besides that, EA is planning an internation awards show "
similar to the Oscars and the Grammys" which would combine video games, music and movies. Game companies will also have to work more closely with celebrities, so players can play with their heroes. See
this article at
BBC News for more information.
1174. "Urbz" to Mobiles
Written on Monday 17 January 2005 at 22:53 by
ChEeTaH -
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A game that will be similar to the Urbz, will be released on mobile phones.
Gameloft has announced the game "
New York Nights: Success in the City" for mobile phones in December. Website
Midlet Review gives some
more information about the game. Your task is to get a dream job, make lots of friends and fall in love, all in 40 days or less. There are several screenshots available as well as an artwork, all of which you can see below in their full size. It's doesn't seem EA is involved in this project, because there's no "
Sims" or "
Urbz" in the name, and previous handheld Sims games were previously developed by Griptonite. The game is set to be released this spring in the US, a European release date has not yet been confirmed.
1175. Possibly Sims TV Show
Written on Saturday 15 January 2005 at 16:50 by
ChEeTaH -
1 comment.
Electronic Arts (Europe) has contacted several TV show production companies to create an interactive show based on the Sims. The idea is that people worldwide can watch and control the show. It might involve viewers voting on the actions the Sims should take. It's still in early planning stages, and not definite yet. Jan Bolz, vide president of EA Europe has given these few details, but not much more than this. It's unsure if and when the show will air. For more information, check out the
Reuters article. Thanks to
Hikikomori for the link.
1176. University Article
Written on Saturday 15 January 2005 at 13:18 by
ChEeTaH -
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GamesRadar has posted a new article about the Sims 2 University. It's more or less an overview of the features that have been mentioned before. Nothing new is mentioned, nevertheless you might want to
check it out.
The Sims 2 University, and its Prima Official Strategy Guide (which used to be called "
The Sims 2: Episode 2") can now also be bought
from our shop.
1177. University Screenshots
Written on Saturday 15 January 2005 at 13:03 by
ChEeTaH -
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Sims Express comes with some screenshots from the official
Spanish site. There are three shots and an artwork all in the University theme, but not really from any new scenes. The fourth screenshot (fifth picture) is one I missed from the
official site, last Simday. Other information Sims Express tells is that the expansion will be packed on a single CD-Rom. Click the thumbnails below for the large versions of the graphics.
1178. German University Special
Written on Saturday 15 January 2005 at 12:52 by
ChEeTaH -
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Besides
Amsterdam, Tim LeTourneau also paid a visit to Frankfurt, Germany last week to tell about the Sims 2 University. The
German official site has posted a special about the event containing an article with impressions and an interview with Tim. Both bring a bit of new information...
Read More!
1179. New Poll
Written on Friday 14 January 2005 at 00:51 by
ChEeTaH -
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Due to the catch up we had to do, the weekly poll was delayed by a day. Nevertheless we've posted a new one now, all about the new patch that came out earlier this week. Let us know what you think of it, and vote on the right or on the
latest poll page. Last week we asked you what 2005 will bring your Sims. 42% said they'd give them a university degree, followed by lots of fun at 21%. Fire, death and destruction got 19% of the votes and "
a new home" 14%. The plain answer "
nothing" got 4% of the 225 votes. See the
poll archive for the exact results, and the results of all previous polls.
1180. SimDay: Object and Release Date [Update 2]
Written on Thursday 13 January 2005 at 22:15 by
ChEeTaH -
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This week's SimDay comes with just an object so far. There's also a reminder of the
new beginnings contest that ends in two weeks. Besides that, there's also a new object called the "
Divide and Conquer Room Divider." This screen allows your Sims to redoracte and divide their office space up a bit. To download it, check out
the exchange.
[Update: 23:50] The site has had a slight new update, with a confirmed shipping date of 1 March, and release date of 3 March for University. That means that as of 3 March 2005 you'll be able to find the expansion in the stores. The trailer and screenshots from the designer diary we mentioned here earlier have also been posted on the official site now.
[Update 14 January, 23:10] What I forgot to mention is that there's also a new University video available. This trailer (7 Mb in High quality, 1.8 in Low) sums up the most important features of the expansion, and it also shows a few new objects in action. You can find it on the
videos page.
1181. TS2U Designer Diary 2
Written on Thursday 13 January 2005 at 22:08 by
ChEeTaH -
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The second part of the Designer Diary of the Sims 2 University has been posted at
GameSpot. This time college jobs are described. Jamming with a band, being a personal trainer at the gym, or being a tutor in the library can help your students earn a little extra cash. It's also said this money can be spent again at the pool table, by placing a bet. Some other jobs include serving at a bar or at the espresso shop. New decoration styles are also present in the expansion, one of which being the frat style. That features "
torn leather couches, ratty chairs, beat-up fridges, and dingy linoleum to really give you a chance to re-create the authentic frat basement, complete with Greek letters." The groovy collection takes your Sims back to the '60s and '70s. Included are a few new screenshots, which you can see below. Read the
designer diary for more precise information about the jobs and earning money.