The Sims 2: Open for Business
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| The Sims 2: Open for Business | |
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| Developer(s) | Maxis[1][2] |
| Publisher(s) | EA Games (PC) Aspyr Media (Mac) |
| Designer(s) | Charles London Hunter Howe Amy Kalson Robin Hunicke |
| Series | The Sims |
| Engine | Pixomatic Engine |
| Version | 1.3.0.351 |
| Platform(s) | Mac OS X, |
| Release date | Windows NA March 2, 2006 EU March 3, 2006 Mac OS X September 4, 2006 |
| Genre(s) | Life simulation game God game |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: T OFLC: M PEGI: 12+ |
| Media | CD |
| System requirements | Windows[3]
Mac OS X[4] |
| Input methods | Keyboard Mouse |
The Sims 2: Open for Business is the third expansion pack for The Sims 2, released on March 3, 2006, which allows Sims to run a home or community lot based business. Aspyr released a port of the game for Mac OS X on September 4, 2006.
Contents |
[edit] Description
The Sims 2 Open For Business adds the ability for Sims to own and operate businesses, either on their own home lot or on purchased community lots. Several new gameplay features are added that relate to businesses, including a new "Talent Badge" skill system, the ability to craft new items from specialized workbenches, and a "perk" system for business owners.
Like the previous two expansion packs, Open for Business introduces a new neighborhood: a shopping district, meant to represent the main street of the area. It is known as "Bluewater Village." However, sim-owned businesses are not restricted to the shopping district. They may be opened in the base neighborhood (either in the same residential lot as the business owner's home, or in a purchased community lot) or in the downtown destination expansion neighborhood introduced in The Sims 2: Nightlife. The game manual suggests that shopping district lots are more expensive, but have higher foot traffic, along with new Bluewater Village Sims to meet.
[edit] New additions
[edit] Changes to the main game
The main change to the core game introduced by Open for Business is a new neighborhood type - the Shopping District, the default one being named Blue Water Village (which is also the name of a British shopping center). A number of Sims live here, such as a toymaking family, a woman who owns a home-based flower shop, a family bakery, and a rich tycoon who owns a nightclub and an electronics shop.
Community lots are more flexible now, removing many of the gameplay restrictions that were present on them in the original game. Players can now save the game while their Sims are visiting community lots. Reloading their household automatically takes the player to the community lot where the Sims are located. The downside of this ability is that Sims can now die on community lots, but only the one the player is.
Like the previous expansions, new Wants and Fears and interactions were added, including a new Lifetime Want and several new interactions for children. Some changes to items from the base game are also present. For example, doors are now lockable. They can be set to allow only one Sim, the whole family, or just employees to enter. This is useful for home-based stores, so customers won't enter the family's house.
There are many new objects in this expansion. While furniture styles and the build-mode selection have been expanded, the biggest difference is the addition of business-oriented things like cash-registers, shelves, elevators, and crafting centers that Sims can use to create things to sell.
Several features from Nightlife and University, such as influence levels, turn ons and turn offs, are available to players without those expansion packs.
[edit] Running businesses
The concept of running a businesses is the game's main new feature. This is a new direction for The Sims 2, as it now includes elements of a business simulation game. The game allows the player to control various aspects of running a business including picking which products to sell, hiring and firing employees, crafting goods, and restocking shelves. The game also rewards the player for meeting several predetermined goals; also, a mystery shopper may visit the business and critique it.
[edit] Around the house
Open for Business adds new functionality to a Sims' productivity around the house. Sims are able to craft new items, including toys, flower arrangements and robots. Additional items include those aimed specifically at enhancing the business setting like an old-style Cash Register, Beauty salon chairs, child-oriented toys, and Mission Style furniture. Also is the addition of the Servo, a household robot, which can perform banal tasks and function like a Sim in regards to Social interaction. Some new items, called "Bots" in general, aim to increase productivity on a lower scale than Servo's operation, usually performing one task, such as cleaning the floor or watering plants. Servos also appeared in the original game's expansion pack The Sims: Livin' It Up as it is known in Europe and Austrailia and The Sims: Livin' Large as it's known in North America.
[edit] Architecture
Open For Business adds more functionality to Build Mode. New Elevators both open a new possibility for a public WooHoo and create a risk for fatality by plummeting. Domed, conical and octagonal roofs in different sizes are now available. Players may also build split-level floors and add Awnings. Doors may now also be locked by a home or business owner, to allow either the selected sim, family or employees only.
[edit] Music
A new musical genre titled New Wave is included, along with its own speaker. Major bands from the '80s each contributed one of their major hits re-recorded in Simlish. In particular, the game features:
- Depeche Mode with "Suffer Well"
- Kajagoogoo with "Too Shy"
- Howard Jones with "Things Can Only Get Better"
- Epoxies with "Synthesized"
Also, a new station known as Shopping has been included, which features the "Buy Mode" music from The Sims.
[edit] External links
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[edit] References
- ^ IGN: The Sims 2: Open for Business
- ^ The Sims 2: Open for Business for PC - The Sims 2: Open for Business PC Game - The Sims 2: Open for Business Computer Game
- ^ Windows system requirements. EA Games. Retrieved on August 29, 2006.
- ^ Mac OS X system requirements. Aspyr Media. Retrieved on October 18, 2006.
