You are right. But I think it is worth it.
I guess. It slows this Mac down no end though! It’d kill my laptop! 
You are right.
I haven’t played Sims today but hopefully tomorrow.
I’ll go on the Sims once I’ve finished tidying up.
I’d rather be getting good grades than playing The Sims.
I have been a fan of Sims ever since I saw my older cousin playing it many years ago. I was much younger and I remember just being entranced as I watched a robber break into her house. She got trapped between him and the stairs with no way to reach the phone. They played this creepy music and my heart was racing I was so into it. Since then I have collected 7 Sims games for Nintendo DSi, my favourites are probably “Sims 3” and “Sims Castaway”. I find some of them to be really glitchy though.
Anyways, I’m hoping to get Sims 3 for my laptop on my birthday in a week or so. Which I’m glad I found this thread beacause I have some questions since I have never played the computer versions… Will it slow my laptop down too? It is fairly new, and I don’t have a lot of stuff on it but pictures and screenshot downloads. No music or other games though. And I bought a mouse so I can better navigate and I plan on only running the Sims game while I’m playing it, not the Internet or anything else at the same time so will that help? Second of all, how is it? I’ve heard really good things about it and of course the cover of the game says “The best Sims game yet!” but is it actually? And lastly, the expansion packs. They are really expensive (more than the game which I don’t get 
) so should I worry about getting them? Will the game still be entertaining to play without them or should I consider getting any in the future? Will any of my options be limited without them? Any answers would be appreciated! Just quote my questions of you like. 
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Well it depends on the computer you have. Because Sims 3 has super graphics. If it is a really bad computer with low specs it will lag alot. But also if you download heaps of CC it will slow the computer down too.(CC is stuff you download from people that make cloths and stuff)
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I haven’t got Sims 3 so I don’t know.(But I am getting it next year on my birthday) But from the videos that I have been watching like building houses and game plays. It seems amazing. On reviews people say they love it and they think it is a great game.
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I would say it is. But What I said that I don’t have it I still think that it might be.
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I don’t think you should worry about the expansions after about 2 months or even later. Because you need to get used to the game if you played Sims 2. And also everything is new. I would not buy expansions so soon because they are expensive and because I would like to explore things in the game too.
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I think it would but I do think you should get EPs. But I will be definitely getting Pets because it has horses and I love horses. And I think you should get some in the future.
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From my own experience, The Sims 3 actually runs a little better than The Sims 2 does. My old laptop just barely managed to run The Sims 2 but it handled The Sims 3 (with the graphics options set on low, of course) much better. It definitely helps if you’re not running any other programs at the same time, however as long as they aren’t the ‘big power-users’ like internet programs or graphic software, you should be fine running them. It also depends on how good your computer is - for instance on my desktop I can pretty much only run the game, but on my new laptop I can have The Sims 3, The Sims 2 and Adobe Photoshop running at the same time and the game still runs faster than it does on my other computer.
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It really depends on who you ask. Personally, I prefer the way The Sims 2 handled families and the way they grow, but when it comes to interacting with neighbours and exploring the world, nothing will beat The Sims 3.
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Ah, expansion packs. EA’s way of milking the franchise. So far for The Sims 3 there are 6 expansion packs and 5 stuff packs, and each of them add something random to the game. Expansion Packs come with new things for your sims to do, like go on vacations or buy a pet, while Stuff Packs just add new objects to the game without adding any new gameplay. There’s a lot of them so I’ll dump all the info into a spoiler to save some space.
[spoiler]World Adventures Expansion - Adds 3 new ‘holiday’ worlds - Egypt, China and France. You can go there to vacation, learn new skills or go on ‘adventures’. Each world has a butt-load of tombs and caves and all sorts of places to explore, so there’s a lot of stuff you can do in the game.
Ambitions Expansion - Adds some new jobs to the game. They’re different from other jobs because you can actually tell your sim what to do while they’re working - for example if they’re an architect you’ll get sent to different houses and you can design or change them whichever way you want.
Late Night Expansion - Adds apartments, high-rise buildings, celebrities and all sorts of city stuff to the game.
Generations Expansion - Adds new stuff for every age group - it’s kind of like an expansion onto the base game rather than adding something specific like the other expansion packs do.
Pets Expansion - Adds, well, pets to the game. Horses, cats and dogs can be created and added to families and there are bugs, mice, birds, turtles and all kids of other animals you can catch and own.
Showtime Expansion - This one’s not out yet, but from the looks of it it’s a performance expansion pack - you can put on magic, acrobatic or singing shows for the town. It also adds achievements and lets you send your sims to your friends’ games to perform for their towns.
High-End Loft Stuff - adds expensive, modern objects that you’d find in a downtown loft. Most objects are for bedrooms and studies/offices.
Fast Lane Stuff - adds a heap of new cars, as well as garage objects like tool sets, gas pumps and 50’s retro decor. Most objects are for garages or sheds.
Outdoor Living Stuff - Adds outdoor furniture like metal and glass seating sets, brick barbecues and an enormous outdoor TV. Most objects are for outdoor entertaining areas.
Town Life Stuff - adds new buildings to the game, as well as new objects for parks, libraries, gyms and laundromats. Most objects are for community lots.
Master Suite Stuff - adds ‘romantic’ objects to the game like candles and a canopy bed. Most objects are for bedrooms and bathrooms.[/spoiler]
It really depends on how much you’re planning to play the game. The game is a lot more entertaining with them all installed, but it still has hundreds of hours of things to explore and do with just the base game. Even if you don’t buy the expansion packs, EA are always adding updates to the game so base game players won’t get bored (When World Adventures came out, an update was released that added basements, when Ambitions was released there was an update that added laundry and washing clothes, etc)
It’s probably a good idea to start looking at the expansions that are out so far and deciding which ones interest you, because they really do change the game a lot. On the other hand, if you’re looking to add new objects, and not gameplay, to the game, Stuff Packs are a lot cheaper (around $20 in America) and only add new furniture, clothes and hairstyles to the game.
Oh wow, there’s an essay’s worth of info in this post. If you’ve managed to read through it all, good on you! If not I really don’t blame you, I’ve bolded the important info so you can just sort through all the text to find the basic answers.
Oh yeah Draik just just said about the neighbours. That is so brilliant not like Sims 2.
Thank you so much for your help, both of you! You gave me really detailed and honest information, can’t thank you enough. Judging by your answers, I’m guessing that it should run just fine on my laptop which was my biggest concern. I just got it a few months ago, and so far it has been fast for handling Internet and stuff. Its a Toshiba which I think is a decent brand too, and I don’t think I have those types of downloads you were discussing so I should be good to go in that area. I’m pretty sure I’ll enjoy the game too, I was just wondering if all the buzz is true. Glad to hear it is! And big thanks ont the EP too. I was really unsure about them, in fact I almost told my parents to buy me the EP when I was really looking for the base game. 
But I got that straightened out, and I think I may consider buying one (either the pets one or the one that adds city stuff), IF I play the game quite regularly and get really involved with it and want to explore more options. I have a feeling it will keep me entertained enough for the time that I will be using it though. 
Now I just have to wait for my birthday!
I am happy you found it helpful. I know how it is when you have a specific time when you are getting something that you really want and it takes ages.
Hahaha, yes! And I will be sure to tell you guys what I think and any questions that come up. 
That will be awesome. I am going to play Sims today.
I love the sims castaway! Although i got bored of it, because i ‘completed’ it. I agree about its glitchiness.
Sims 3 is my favourite, especially the Pets expansion. I do like Sims 1’s Making Magic and Sims 2’s University expansions too.
lazerenvy: Yeah, Castaway was really fun until like you said, you complete it. I have 99% of the collection, all I need is one propeller wing to make the windmill. And there is nothing I can do to get it except wait for it to arrive from the airplane box so basically I’m stuck. I made it off the island and everything though. As for glitches, glad I’m not the only one who has them! Castaway was really good but now it freezes sometimes, Sims 3 on DS freezes or has other problems and I have a Sims Pets on DS that the screen goes black. It is so maddening.
I have played Castaway on PSP. I think I am going to play Sims today. Two days ago I deleted all of my CC. And now the game loads super quick. And I am so happy. 
I can’t play without CC! I’m addicted to it!
Although, I do have some bad CC in my game and I need to remove it. Thanks for reminding me
I know, I got sad but I loved some of my CC. I had lots of bad CC. I am going to play today. Might post some pictures.
What does ‘CC’ stand for?
Ooh! You should post some pictures!