(www.thesims.com/the-sims-3-pets) Rated Everyone 10+ by ESRB. The Sims has invaded our world once again. And this time they brought their pets. The Sim world has evolved and expanded much since their humble beginnings over 20 years ago with SimCity. We’ve gone beyond controlling the entire city to controlling its citizens’ very lives. If you were thinking that there was nowhere else for them to go, you were wrong. Players now can choose to give their Sims an animal companion. Whether you want to have a man’s best friend or a skittish cat (or even a horse in the console versions), your Sims can finally experience the joy of having animals.

Presentation:
Technically the Sims 3: Pets is an expansion to the ridiculously popular Sims 3. If you’ve played the third Sims game, you’ve already got the idea of what the Pets expansion is like. Unlike other games, The Sims doesn’t really have a plot, or really an ending to the game. But each character you have has a life goal they want to accomplish. The experience you have will largely depend on how you decide to interact with the world. Just like all previous Sims games, the world is populated by various quirky individuals that you can meet, play, and make friends with.

Graphics:
The Sims 3 is a visually impressive game on PC or console, but handheld consoles are notorious for shoddy graphics. Gladly, the 3ds version broke this stereotype. While it surely doesn’t have the same level of graphics as the other versions, it looks great for a mobile platform. The 3DS does a great job. The 3D effects aren’t necessary for gameplay, but they do actually improve the experience because it makes your house and its inhabitants pop to life. And the illusion that you’re holding a whole world in your hands is just a little more intense.

Sounds:
The Sims aren’t exactly the biggest talkers, they prefer to chatter in their strange Simspeak that makes absolutely no sense. And while the sound effects aren’t bad, they just don’t make much of an impression. So music will be your audio companion for the majority of gameplay. For the most part, the Sims musical score sounds a bit like elevator music. It’s not exactly an action packed adventure filled with guns and explosions. So instead of a theatrical score you’re given a light medley of wind instruments and piano that accompany the easy gaming very nicely.

Gameplay:
If you’ve played any of the other Sims games that have come out recently, you have a decent idea of how The Sims 3: Pets plays. You create your own Sim and then control their actions around the world while trying to keep them alive and happy. Your Sim has six different bars that need to be kept as full as possible to prevent unhappiness (as well as the occasional bedwetting). You’ll need to keep your hunger bar up by eating, your energy bar is maintained by resting and sleeping, go to the bathroom occasionally and your bladder bar will stay up. You’ll also have to keep an eye on your Hygiene, Social, and Fun bars as well.

All of this is to try and achieve your Sim’s ultimate lifetime goal, which you decide during the character creation process. Human Sims may want to be the ultimate socialite, or rise to business success; while animal Sims may want to be really good at competition or just make friends with everyone they meet. The character creation process is quite robust and there are plenty of features to mess with to make each Sim completely unique.

If your Sim earns enough money, he or she can decide to buy more things for the house or their friends. There is almost no limit to the experiences you can have. Create your dream house for you and your animals to live in, or just goof around and force your Sim to wet himself; it’s do whatever, whenever in the Sims universe.

Longevity:
Because the Sims is a life simulator, there really isn’t a limit to the amount of gameplay you can put into this game. Every Sim’s life ends up different, so you could keep playing for hundreds of hours without running out of content. Each Sim has a set of characteristics that benefit and detriment in unique ways, creating a seemingly infinite set of unique personalities. Don’t be surprised if you’re playing this game until the next Sims comes out.

Conclusion:
The Sims Pets is a great direction for the Sims franchise. I highly recommend the mobile version for 3DS to anybody who has the time to create and run a second life. The Sims is the king of simulation games and the perfect gift for any gamer with just a bit too much time on their hands.