The Sims

Released for Windows in 2000, *The Sims* was developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Will Wright, who had created *SimCity*, led its design. Instead of managing a city, players manage households: they choose where Sims live, furnish their homes, direct their daily activities, and watch what happens when their plans collide with work schedules, household budgets, and the Sims’ own needs. The original game has no campaign to finish or final victory screen. A player can pursue promotions, build an expensive house, keep a family comfortable, or simply observe the consequences of leaving Sims to make some decisions themselves.

Money is measured in Simoleons. In Build mode, players can place walls, doors, windows, and other structural features; Buy mode supplies objects ranging from beds and refrigerators to televisions and toilets. Those purchases affect more than appearance. Sims have eight needs: Hunger, Comfort, Hygiene, Bladder, Energy, Fun, Social, and Room. A household with a luxurious sofa but no working bathroom will still have problems. Cooking can cause a fire, and a burglar can enter a home at night. Smoke and burglar alarms provide ways to summon help.

The game’s neighborhood includes households with distinct names and relationships. Bob and Betty Newbie introduce basic play through a tutorial, while the Goth household contains Mortimer, Bella, and their daughter Cassandra. Players can also create Sims and move them into available houses or empty lots. Adults can take jobs in career tracks such as Business, Medicine, and Law Enforcement. Promotions require improvements in particular skills and, often, a specified number of family friends. Children attend school rather than taking adult jobs. Unlike Sims in later entries, children in the original game do not grow into adults through ordinary aging.

Seven expansion packs substantially extended the original release. *Livin’ Large* added objects and new possibilities for households, while *House Party* focused on social gatherings. *Hot Date* introduced Downtown, allowing Sims to leave their residential neighborhood for dates and outings. *Vacation* offered trips away from home; *Unleashed* added pets and expanded the neighborhood with Old Town. *Superstar* introduced Studio Town and a fame career, and *Makin’ Magic* added spellcasting and Magic Town. Together, the expansions show how far the game moved beyond its initial focus on the home without replacing its central routine: balancing a Sim’s time, money, relationships, and needs. That routine helped distinguish *The Sims* from *SimCity*: its smallest decisions, including when to eat, sleep, or answer the door, could determine how an entire household’s day unfolded.