THE SIMS 2: APARTMENT LIFE

tinyurl.com/464dxeGenre: Simulation Classification: M Platform: PC

The Sims 2: Apartment Life is the eighth expansion pack to The Sims 2, the moderately successful virtual reality simulation game. The new expansion pack focuses on the option to rent an apartment, rather than purchasing a brand new house at the beginning of the game.After selecting a nice-looking apartment for my new Sim, I moved him into his new pad and met my landlord. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the apartment was furnished and that the landlord would tidy it up for me on a daily basis! However, this is where the benefits of living in an apartment ended and my interest in the title slowly began to wane. You see, regardless of whether or not I locked the door, a flood of guests would invade my apartment and harangue my Sim. This involved blocking doorways, watching my television and generally causing a ruckus and being a nuisance. Apartments are also small, with far less customisation options than normal houses. Having to remember to pay the bills was a real inconvenience too. Virtual living is hard work! In addition to apartments, this expansion pack introduces magic. As a selling point for the title, you'd think that the developer would have made this feature easily accessible. However, after considerable time spent investigating, I discovered that before I could start acting like Houdini I would have to complete a plethora of mundane tasks. After returning home, having a meal and going to work, magic just didn't seem to fit into the fast-paced, modern life of my Sim.  Frankly, the amount of content included in this expansion pack is minimal, and the quality of that content is hardly impressive. As such, it would be difficult to justify forking out for this mediocre expansion.