[Review] The Sims 3: World Adventures and Ambitions

As always, Xmas yields a bevy of new games: Darkspore, as well as The Sims 3: World Adventures and Ambitions. The two expansion packs also coincided with me finally getting the right updates/patches, so who even knows what was included in the games and what was included in the patches. @_@

The breast/muscle definition slider was interesting for the various feminist reasons always given for why breasts/muscles aren't a direct correlation to one another in terms of attractiveness. This was definitely part of the patch/update, as it was released with Late Night. The feminist argument why this isn't a direct correlation is that muscles are indicative of strength; big boobs are indicative of nothing and are cosmetic. However, I approve of the ability to have different body shapes. The fact remains that some people have larger breasts than others, which is why this argument can be discounted, in this particular case. Where game covers have scantily clad, big-breasted women-- that is objectification. Where a game includes the ability to make different body shapes, that's a different case entirely.

The patch also added in the scrapbook function, meaning essentially, memories are back. The notifications for it must be turned off immediately, as the constant popups interfere with gameplay. They still have yet to bring back the ability to write a story with screenshots and captions, which completely obliterates my enjoyment of The Sims 3 vs The Sims 2. *sigh*

World Adventures

World Adventures allows a Sim to go to another country, perform adventures (quests) and gain points on their visa. It quickly becomes tiresome. Sims occasionally have adventure-related wants (especially if they have the Adventurous trait), but the idea of filling a Lifetime Want that's adventure-related is boring and would entail little more than grinding. However, the new items and clothing released with this was nice, as well as the 1000 Sim Points that come with the expansion. The eyeliner that is available is also very nice, but there's a bug-- which no one has yet fixed-- where the eyeliner disappears for no reason, as if it doesn't exist. Thus, although I saw it once, now, no longer. Problem! It shares similarities with The Sims Medieval and The Sims: Vacation/The Sims 2: Bon Voyage expansion packs. It managed to make the vacations somewhat more interesting-- they were always some of the most boring expansion packs-- but vacations aren't interesting enough for Sims to have Lifetime Wants for them. Used as what it is-- a vacation-- having the adventures blended with the vacation is interesting. It's also nice how going to different countries is integrated with career opportunities.

Overall Rating: 2.5/5. It's an okay addition, but nothing special.

Ambitions

Ambitions is quite a bit nicer, with new buildings, laundry, and lots of functionality. I especially wanted this for the Professions-- different than careers-- where you can be a ghost hunter, private investigator, stylist, etc. That you can be self-employed now is very nice. Tattoos were released with this expansion pack, but I'm fairly certain that patches gave them to me beforehand. Either way, there are tattoo stations now and lots of downloads available for nicer body art than the game provides. The new hairstyles are very nice.

Overall Rating: 4/5. This expansion pack enriches roleplay experience in many ways.