Issue 90	Wednesday 31st August 2011

Welcome to my News Email, bringing you all the latest news, website updates and poll results from Danny's The Sims Website

Latest Updates

Two new preview links and a video added to “The Sims 3 / Expansion Packs / The Sims 3 Pets” page

Latest News

Town Life Stuff and Hidden Springs are reviewed, EA go in the wrong a different direction with their parodies, plus a Pets preview and an interview

El33tonline Reviews Town Life Stuff

If you’re still on the fence about whether to get The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff, maybe El33tonline can help with their review:

As with all Sims expansions from now on, it will be very hard to actually tell what items are new and which ones were missed from the previous pack. If you have the luxury of having all these packs available you will realize just how much value they add up to. The game is now almost completely different from the game that was released a few years ago. Thankfully this is a good thing: these packs keep things fresh in between full expansions, but their actual value will always come under fire since they are priced pretty much the same as the full expansions and even the game.

> The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff review at El33tonline

The One Way Is The Sims

If you like The Only Way Is Essex (a UK reality show), you may enjoy this trailer — I just found it cringeworthy:

Gaming Blend Reviews Hidden Springs

Gaming Blend has posted a review of Hidden Springs:

What do you get for $22.50?
I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that Hidden Springs is the most scenic and beautifully laid out world in the game. What’s more, there are plenty of lots on it, so those of you who like having the opportunity to populate your neighborhood, build houses and community lots, Hidden Springs gives you plenty of room to spread out.

> “The Sims 3 Hidden Springs World Review: A World With A View” at Gaming Blend

Pets: Graham Nardone Interviewed At Gamescom

Heather Evens, one of EA UK’s community reporters at Gamescom, got an interview with The Sims 3 Pets producer Graham Nardone:

H: Other than the cats and the dogs and the horses, what other kinds of smaller pets are there?

G: Those are the big three that you can control, but there are other types of pets in the game. Turtles, snakes, lizards, birds, rodents, there’s a lot of different ones out there that can live in your home. They aren’t fully controllable, but there are places to keep them in your household and have fun interactions with them.

> “The Sims 3 Pets PC – gamescom 2011 Behind Closed Doors Interview (@Blackgarden)” at The Sims 3 (UK) on Facebook

Hidden Springs Released, Costs 2450 SimPoints

Hidden Springs has now been released at a standard price of 2450 SimPoints — it is in a sale at the moment though, so the price currently stands at 2250 SimPoints. The sale ends on 24th September.
> “Explore an All-New World – Discover Hidden Springs Today!” at TheSims3.com

Pets Live Broadcast Available On-Demand

If you missed the The Sims 3 Pets Live Broadcast (like me — I was on holiday), it’s now available to watch on-demand. If you have the time, and are interested in Pets, it’s worth watching. If you’re not interested in the console versions though, the bit about the PC/Mac expansion pack begins at about 18:50:

IGN Previews Pets At Gamescom

IGN has posted a new preview of The Sims 3 Pets, in which the PC/Mac expansion pack is compared to the console versions. It’s still worth a read if you’re only interested in the former:

The new city to explore has a mid-western theme. Herds of wild horses roam around and you can take a shot at taming them. There are also gnomes you can place in your yard that encourage strays & wild animals (like raccoons and deer) or prevent them from crossing your property line.

> “Gamescom: The Sims 3 Pets – PC vs. Console” at IGN

Discuss this news on the website!

There are still not enough votes to display results for the current poll (The next non-free town (Hidden Springs) has been announced for The Sims 3 Store, but did you buy the last one (Barnacle Bay)?) -- not voted yet? Do so now!

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