They would form memories, and had distinct Wants and Fears, which would feed into an ultimate lifetime goal: Sims could now be family or career-oriented, and long for money or power. Sims had eight basic Needs that required management and they could get jobs, form relationships with others, and even die. In-keeping with the open-ended 'hobby-style' philosophies of Wright's previous games, once the Sims were moved in, players were then free to do as they please with them.

With their starting account balance of 20,000 Simoleons (§), Sims could purchase an empty lot, or a build and decorate their own home. Released in February 2000, The Sims allowed you to create and control a family through their everyday lives. Following EA's acquisition of Maxis, Wright was given the team he needed to put The Sims into full production. He realised that these Sims could be more sophisticated than just house critics, that they could be actual people with their own lives to lead. He began work on a game where players would build virtual house and fill it with items, but realised he needed something, or someone, to 'score' how well the house had been furnished. In particular whether they thought buying things would fulfill their wants and needs enough to make them happy. As they began the process of replacing their belongings, Wright wondered why people bought things. The Wright family lost their home to a fire in the early' 90s. As with any long-running video game series, The Sims has had its ups and downs, as has Will Wright, developer Maxis, and publisher EA, and these highs and lows are also thoroughly covered.įor those that would rather see a video, we have a 30-minute look back at The History of The Sims, which covers the same touch points and delves much deeper into the history. This gallery starts at the very beginning, looking at the game that sparked the idea for The Sims, how creator Will Wright explored his burgeoning ideas further, and-eventually-the creation of The Sims. With the release of The Sims 4 on Xbox One and PS4, as well as the new Pets expansion pack, we thought we'd relive the history of one of the biggest PC franchises of all time.

The Sims filled a niche that no one knew existed, becoming both a video game and cultural phenomenon. Back in 2000, California-based developer Maxis released a game entirely focused on the micromanagement of someone's life, letting players pull their strings to make them do chores, go to work, and make friends.

Play sims 1 online free