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531. Sims 2 University: Screenshot, Sneak Peek

Written on Friday 26 November 2004 at 18:57 by ChEeTaH - 2 comments.

After the first interview, games network GameSpy has something else new about the Sims 2 University, the Sims 2's first expansion pack. In a sneak peek they reveal details of a few features of the pack. For instance, to make the dorms area seem more crowded, Sims are only shown when they're not in their private dorms. You don't see what's going on behind doors of Sims you don't control. What's also new is that the band objects (see also Tim's mail) will work together - at least if the skills of the Sims playing the instruments is good enough. There isn't much else in it, though of course you can always check out the full sneak peek for some more precise details.

Furthermore, LosSims.com posted a screenshot, after which SimsExpress posted a larger version of the shot. Click the thumbnail below to see it.

532. S2U: E-mail from Maxis

Written on Friday 26 November 2004 at 18:32 by ChEeTaH - 6 comments.

Like with the Sims 2, Maxis is now sending the community e-mails about the first expansion pack. Tim LeTourneau gives has sent out the first "Welcome to the Sims 2 University" e-mail. He tells a bit about the patch (more about that later today), and that we must be patient for it - after all the Sims 2 is released worldwide in 19 languages and the patch must work with every version of the game. About the new expansion itself, he tells it's stuffed with new objects, including band objects. Using those, you're able to make your own music videos which Tim is looking forward to. There isn't much else in this first newsletter, except five sketches of band objects. You can see them in their full size by clicking the thumbnails below. Read inside for the entire e-mail. Read More!

533. More University Interviews and Shots

Written on Tuesday 23 November 2004 at 01:00 by ChEeTaH - 9 comments.

Two more interviews and a few more screenshots: that's what's been posted since the earlier update about the first expansion pack for the Sims 2. Games site GameSpot interviewed Kevin Hogan, and IGN. Some new details are revealed in them: just like currently done in the Sims 2, when your teen becomes a young adult by moving to the university terrain, time will progress only for the sim you're playing and not their family. The life stage will be roughly twice as long as the teen stage, which would mean approximately 30 days, but in the end it depends on how well the Sim does and how fast they get their degree. There's a lot more info, including some screens... Read More!

534. First University Screenshots & Interview

Written on Monday 22 November 2004 at 11:33 by ChEeTaH - 3 comments.

The first screenshots for the first expansion of the Sims 2, announced yesterday, have already appeared. You can see the shots from WorthPlaying and GameSpy below. But there's not only that: there's also an interview posted by GameSpy about the expansion pack. Producer Kevin Hogan was asked some questions. The interview reveals a few more details, for instance that teens have to go to college to become young adults, the new life stage. Once they finish college, they will become adults. If you don't let your teens go there, then they won't go through the new life stage. By choosing a major, you also affect which skills the sim develops, and which of the new careers they'll roll into. As with the Sims 1, the university campus will get its own neighborhood map, though it's connected with the actual neighborhood. The maps will of course be customisable. Read the interview for the exact details.

535. SimDay

Written on Friday 19 November 2004 at 00:41 by ChEeTaH - 1 comment.

The official site has been updated again this simday, for example with a new intro promoting the exchange and the Sims 2 instead of the Urbz. Real news however, is an interview with the guys behind the Strangerhood, Rooster Teeth Productions. GameSpy follows the colleagues of IGN who had an interview with Matt Hullum from Rooster Teeth a month ago. GameSpy talked to him, as well as Gustavo Sorola and Geoff Fink for this interview. It's 6 pages long and full of interesting (and less interesting) information:

"I refuse to recognize the difficulty to pronounce the word "machinima." I say let's work together and re-brand this type of movie making "rendervision." See? Doesn't that sound much better? Plus you don't have to constantly ask people if you're saying it properly. Rendervision... it just rolls off the tongue."

Read the entire interview if you need to know more. Furthermore, The Sims 2 got nominated for two video game awards at SpikeTV's Video Game Awards. The game has been nominated in the Best PC Game and Most Addictive Game categories. The awards will be hosted at 19 December by Snoop Dogg. You can see all the nominations and vote for your favourites at the VGA 2004 site.

536. EA Employees sue Company [Update]

Written on Friday 12 November 2004 at 19:42 by ChEeTaH - 6 comments.

Some employees of Electronic Arts, including members of the Sims 2 team, have filed a lawsuit against the company. The employees have had to work overtime during crunch-times (rushes before the major deadlines), which meant working 12 hours a day 7 days a week, with occasionally the Saturday evening off. The group of employees claims they didn't get paid for the extra hours they worked, nor did they get extra hours off, or extra vacation days in return. EA's attitude towards this is said to be "If they don't like it, they can work someplace else." The details are revealed by the spouse of an EA worker, in a blog post. "This company is not strapped for cash; their labor practices are inexcusable." The spouse claims EA's actions to make employees work too long - almost 90 hours a week - is "unethical" and "illegal." Another part says the turnover rate in engineering at EA is approximately 50%, which means a lot of people leave the company constantly, and new ones join.

GameSpot further investigated this issue, and brought up that Attorney Robert C. Schubert, partner at San Francisco law firm Schubert & Reed LLP, has "initiated legal proceedings to start a class action lawsuit on behalf of a group of EA employees." EA claims the employees fell under the Californian exemption law, Senate Bill 88, which does not apply to the entertainment industry and only to specialty employees earning at least $90,000 annually. The claim "Jamie Kerschenbaum vs. Electronic Arts, Inc." was filed 29 July of this year. Jamie was part of the Sims 2 design team, although his current employment status is unknown. "EA will not retaliate against employees for exercising legal rights, including by participating in the proposed class action." More about this can be read in the GameSpot newspost or the EA Spouse blog.

[Update 22:20] More posts by former EA employees have been published. See the read more area (or read on below) for the details about those. Read More!

537. The Sims 2 - The Sequel Has Landed - A Child's Life

Written on Wednesday 10 November 2004 at 17:35 by Andy - 0 comments.

A Child's Life is the latest section that we are looking at in our detailed review of The Sims 2 We look at the life of children and the changes this new stage of life brings up to and including the point of the most important decision of a sim's life. It's all in here!

538. Urbz Update

Written on Tuesday 9 November 2004 at 22:17 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

The Urbz has hit the shelves in the US - at least several shops have started shipping it, but tomorrow it'll officially be released. Several sites have posted something about the game in the past few days, including a first review. That one comes from GameSpy. It gets a rating of 4 out of 5 stars, and a "don't bother" for the multiplayer aspect of the game. In general the game is pretty good according to GameSpy, if not a little bit easy. On the technical side, their comment is that the graphics are just "average," but the camera is worse, as it can regularly get stuck behind objects. In the end it's a good game for console gamers. Read the review for all the exact comments from GameSpy.

There are also 3 short previews of the game posted in the past few weeks. The longest is from GamerFeed, is generally positive and says it will be "just as addictive as the previous console and PC titles." InsidePulse is less wild about the game, but still positive. Finally, All Game Guide just mentions the main features without much of an opinion. But there's more... Read More!

539. Urbz Workin' It Trailers

Written on Tuesday 2 November 2004 at 19:22 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

Two new trailers of the Urbz have been released by EA. They are follow-ups to the other Workin' It trailers that have previously been released for Cozmo Street, Central Station and Skyline Beach. Now the ones for Kicktail Park and the Foundry have now been added. You can download and stream them from both GameSpot and IGN (and probably some other sites). For IGN's editions, see their media page, or else use the media page of GameSpot. Sizes range from 3.6 Mb (low res IGN) to approximately 20 Mb (High res).

540. The Sims 2 - The Sequel Has Landed - The Final Stages

Written on Saturday 30 October 2004 at 02:55 by Andy - 0 comments.

The Final Stages is the latest section that we are looking at in our detailed review of The Sims 2 Due to unexpected events, we take a jump from the gradual progression look through the ages with some bad news to our family of sims. It's all in here!