Videogames: The Sims FreePlay - Language & Representations

Videogames: The Sims FreePlay - Language & Representations

Language / Gameplay analysis

Watch The Sims: FreePlay trailer and answer the following questions:

1) What elements of game play are shown? 

• Ability to form relationships and "find true love", grow a family, and explore the local town that you've constructed.

• Active verbs - give the audience an active involvement in the stories created in the game.

2) What audience is the trailer targeting?

• Personal relationships - becoming invested in the well being of the characters and forming relationships with the characters that you've created.

• Personal identity - the Sims will reflect the lives or the ideals of the gamer, this means that the gamer will see themselves in the characters that they have created.

• Escapism/diversion - moving out of reality and living the life that they desire through a simulated/constructed reality.

• Hyper-reality (Baudrillard) - players may become more invested in the simulated lives that they have created, rather than their real lives. An extreme example of diversion.

3) What audience pleasures are suggested by the trailer?

• Personal relationships - becoming invested in the well being of the characters and forming relationships with the characters that you've created.

• Personal identity - the Sims will reflect the lives or the ideals of the gamer, this means that the gamer will see themselves in the characters that they have created.

Now watch this walk-through of the beginning of The Sims FreePlay and answer the following questions:

1) How is the game constructed? 

It initially allows you create your own simulation, and then it guides you through instructions for the gaming. These tutorials will also appear at random while you're playing the game. 

2) What audience is this game targeting?

 mostly Female audience but can be suitable for male audience too.

3) What audience pleasures does the game provide?

Diversion

4) How does the game encourage in-app purchases?

By enabling gamer to buy gems with real money and by enabling them to watch adverts in order to gain perks.

Representations

Re-watch some of the expansion pack trailers and answer the following questions:

1) How do the expansion pack (DLC) trailers reinforce or challenge dominant ideologies?

• A capitalist society- you have to go to school, get an education, find a job
• People as consumers- lots of examples of Sims spending money and this being desirable 
  

2) What stereotypes have you identified in The Sims FreePlay?

• Being young is desirable (older people excluded from the game)
• The rich people are predominately white

3) What media theories can you apply to representations in The Sims FreePlay?

- Gilroy: Double consciousness

- Butler: Gender as performance 

Representation reading

Read this Forbes article on gender and racism in The Sims franchise and answer the following questions:

1) How realistic does The Sims intend to be?

The Sims aims to be realistic in the sense that players will find it plausible. As a result, it won't contain graphic details like blood or shattered bones, but it will still include love, family, job, and emotions. Charlie Sinhaseni, PR manager for Maxis, says, "We're looking more for believability than we are for realism."

2) How has The Sims tried to create more realistic representations of ethnicity?

Enhancing the Create-A-Sim feature is one of The Sins 4's special focus areas, and they plan to add more details to change a Sim's appearance with less clichéd ways of representing different ethnicities

3) How has The Sims responded to racism and sexism in society?

"Our game is kind of a caricature of life," Sinhaseni remarked. We don't really have a message; there isn't one about racism or tolerance.

4) What is The Sims perspective on gender fluidity and identity?

"In our game, we have same-sex marriages. No discrimination will be made by our Sims on the basis of gender preference. However, there's a point at which it gets too real. The only forms of hatred we find in the game are between incompatible Sims, which are determined by the characteristics of the Sim—for example, a hot-headed sim or a sim who despises kids."

5) How does The Sims reinforce the dominant capitalist ideologies of American culture?

The Sims reinforces the currently dominant capitalist ideals of American society, which hold that people should pursue an education, obtain employment, and earn a living in order to support their families. The Sims Freeplay gives you less control over the game than PC versions, but even so, the player is free to choose not to follow these guidelines if they so choose.

Read this New Normative feature on LGBTQ representation in The Sims franchise (the website link no longer works but that will take you to the text of the article - you'll need your Greenford Google login to access). Answer the following questions:

1) How did same-sex relationships unexpectedly help the original Sims game to be a success?

Same-sex relationships were probably the main factor that led to the game's popularity. During a showcase of the game at E3, audiences were shocked and pleased when they were able to form relationships between the same-sex. It was something that had never been done before in the gaming industry and it received massive positivity from gamers and critics.

2) How is sexuality now represented in The Sims?

This is a first for gaming each kind of character you create in the game can have their own sexual preferences. 

3) Why have fans praised the inclusion of LGBTQ relationships in The Sims franchise?

At last, the game had a hook that attracted not only LGBTQ players but also the larger E3 crowd. The phrase "Once people started playing it, it just started spreading by word of mouth" was used by many to praise the game's intricate character and home creation, sophisticated systems, and inclusion of same-sex partnerships. 

4) Why did the Sims run into regulatory difficulties with American regulator the ESRB? How did EA respond?

While the original game received a T-rating, the extension pack Living Large received an M-rating. 

5) How is sexuality represented in the wider videogames industry today?

Some games have also started integrating same-sex relationships into their games. Examples include Fable, a popular RPG series on Xbox and Xbox 360, allowed players to have gay and lesbian relationships, and The Last of Us Part II recently made waves with a lesbian kiss of its own at E3 2018. However, there are still many games that lag behind and the gaming industry still needsa lot of improvement regarding this matter.
Reality, postmodernism and The Sims

Read this Paste Magazine feature on reality and The Sims franchise. Answer the following questions:

1) What does the article suggest about the representation of real life in The Sims 4?
Whether we prefer objective or narrative based games, or gravitate towards sad or violent games over happy or uplifting ones, ultimately the goal is to remove ourselves from the drudgeries of real life.
2) What audience pleasures did the writer previously find in The Sims franchise?

The writer loved the magic and fantasy available in The Sims franchise. In particular, the ability to do things you couldn't do in real life and the inventive and mischievous ways to act out or blow off steam

3) Why the does the writer mention an example of a washer and dryer as additional DLC?
"I recall talking about one of the later additions to The Sims 3, the washer and dryer, which I never ended up using, when I was having a Twitter conversation with some people about the game. At the time, I told my fellow Sims fans that it was almost an act of defiance, even though I had no interest in adding yet another maintenance ritual to my Sim's daily routine. Why would I do laundry in a Sims game after going so long without having to do it in real life? I have no desire to do laundry in real life."
4) In your opinion, has The Sims made an error in trying to make the franchise too realistic?
The game made a mistake in my opinion, in trying to make itself too realistic. Being able to experiment with things that you can't do in real life is one of the delights of The Sims. There won't be much enjoyment in a game if it looks like everyday life.
5) How does this representation of reality link to Baudrillard’s theory of hyperreality - the increasingly blurred line between real and constructed?

The game is a perfect replica of actual life, depicting the conventional beliefs of an average day in the life,  In this instance, the Sims have disregarded the blurry border between the real and the artificial.

The Sims FreePlay social media analysis

Analyse The Sims FreePlay Facebook page and Twitter feed and answer the following questions:

1) What is the purpose of The Sims FreePlay social media channels?

It enables communication and interaction between the fans. The Sims share information about the game and the available themes (Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.) on their Facebook and Twitter pages.
2) Choose three posts (from either Twitter or Facebook) and make a note of what they are and how they encourage audience interaction or response.

   

3) Scroll down the Facebook feed briefly. How many requests for new content can you find from players? Why is this such as an important part of the appeal for The Sims FreePlay?

Numerous requests have been made on the Facebook page, which is crucial for Sims Free Play since it allows users to inform the developers of the upgrades they would want to see.

4) What tweets can you find in the Twitter feed that refer to additional content or other revenue streams for EA?

 I found in the Twitter stream is a collaboration with Covet Fashion. In one of the other player remarks, another player stated that greater fashion should be included in Sims Freeplay.