We need a life simulation game that can compete with The Sims without being nickel and dimed by the publisher. EA has monopolized this particular type of life simulation genre for far too long. And to add insult to injury, it has bastardized the franchise to the point of making it a hollow mockery of its former self.

Discuss.

As I had wrote to your other thread, Original_Sim, I think that the only solution is some of the modders and the creators of the community, to start an indie game. There is sites like Kickstarter, where someone with a good idea, can find support. Of course those people they won’t have the knowledge to create a game complicate like sims. But that’s where we came to help them hire some people to help. We can support financially the game and also the community can participate in the development, with ideas, and also the various creators can participate. Well they are thousands of people who play for years this game. If the presentation is good I am sure will all help.
So what do you think???

Well, I have never really played IMVU, I did it once for 5 minutes and then I got tired of it.

It would be awesome if IMVU could compete against The Sims, being a real opponent that would give EA some hard competition. You are right Original_Sim, this is something I have not thought about. EA has no competition when it comes to The Sims, thats why they can set the standard as low as they would like to.

If there would be some kind The Sims game (similar) that would let you play your job (if you we're a doctor you would help out sick people, if you we're a chef you would work in a restaurant etc) and also let you play online. I know you guys don't like the idea of playing online but that my dear friend is a goldmine. Me and my friends has always been talking about how cool it would be if we could play The Sims online, build a house together, raise kids etc. online multiplayer games (and often simulation/roleplaying) is the ones that makes the most money. I've heard that in IMVU you can even make your own objects and sell them to other players for real money and Habbo Hotel (that I've been playing for a couple of years back in the days) would let you buy furnitures so you could decorate your house and then have a family, a real goldmine.

I wish I had something constructive to add but all I can say is: Amen!

Pleeease any kind of game that could even match sims 2 in passion and concept deserves all my money...i will support it no matter what the cost. There is just so much room for growth here!

Honestly I would love another life simulator, competition stimulates growth and productivity, EA knows they're the only game in town. Still as much they anger me I do wonder if a life simulator is just prohibitvely difficult and that's why no other game maker has jumped in despite the amount of money to be made. There are tons of fighting, racing games, rpg games why is no one else interested in the Sims market?

I'm just waiting for the arrival of a sims-like game that isn't 'The Sims X' tbh.

Unfortunately, any attempt to make a competing life simulation game will be buried in a mountain of EA lawyers.

I get that argument a lot. However, EA doesn't own the life simulation genre.

Tomodachi Life is a life simulator, but it isn't a God game. If it wasn't on the 3DS, I think they could flesh it out even further. They have uneven relationships and everything. Just today, one of my miis told me that he regrets breaking up with his old girlfriend. Meanwhile his old girlfriend moved on with her life. She got married and had a kid. So when he went to ask her for one more chance, she said..."No, sorry!" (You should have thought about that earlier, ya jerk!)

EA obviously does not care enough about the Sims series to waste money on that. If they cared, TS4 would not be a worthless piece of shit because they'd put some resources into developing a game that is not a worthless piece of shit. EA just wants to make a profit with the least possible investment.

I wonder if other game companies just haven't bothered to try. Maybe they think gamers like us are happy with the Sims as it is, or play IMVU or Second Life. I would definitely throw in my support for an Indie game. From what little I've been able to tell, fans of the Roller Coaster Tycoon franchise seem to be doing well with their Theme Park Studios plans. Maybe we need to pool our resources and do the same thing.

Oh man I would back that kickstarter like crazy. To have someone make a Sims-type game, knowing our voices could be heard and reacted to positively could mean an incredible game could be made. Even if it did have a shaky start, even if it wouldn't be as fleshed out as The Sims games itself, I'd still be appreciative of the care and effort which went into it, something I feel is lacking to different extents with TS3 & 4.

That won't stop them from pretending like they do, though.

I don't know who could step up to this task or even want to. Not BioWare or CDProjectRed. Not CA / Sega or UbiSoft. I certainly wouldn't want this to fall into the hands of whever made the Tropico series. If anything, I would want Professor X to convince veteran employees of the TS3 team and current TS4 team to defect and start their own company with the goal of making a Sims game to compete with The Sims.

I doubt a group of modders could make something like the sims, what is needed is someone with a lot of money who loves the game enough to hire people to develop it all over again.

Too bad the Miis creep me out.

I would really like to see some competition in the life sim genre. EA has grown complacent and while I think TS4 will be a huge improvement over TS3, more competition is always better.

I usually don't post in these types of forums (but I've been lurking for years!), but I would definitely get on board with this. What I feel about EA as a company is irrelevant but I do believe competition fosters some kind of growth. If another company suddenly made a full,robust simulation game like the Sims, EA would suddenly have to pay attention to detail and make a game the right way,the first time; otherwise,another company would gets its competition and takes its dollars away. I've seen a lot of really talented modders over the years that I bet that if resources were combined,could make a really good game (this is speculation but Twallan and Pescado and others have altered TS3 in ways that make me believe this is possible).

This is why EA can leave features out and charge extra down the long road or simply not put stuff in at all because they dont feel it ior have the time. You have no recourse. If you want to play a life sim game like this,then the Sims is really all you have (there are other games that are kind of like this but not as robust or are online only).Im not gonna rag on EA because I do believe they make some good games and the Sims franchise itself,is highly addictive and fun (I'm gonna reserve my judgement of Sims 4 right now...),but I do believe it's time for another game to develop,either as a community project,or with another major company.

That my two cents...

Thanks for making the thread I was too scared to make. I've been begging for Sims getting competition for months.

If I had a sudden billion I would develop a game, but it takes more than a group of talented people; it involves lawyers, equipment, paying salaries and everything that goes along with that. People who make large games don't just do it on a Saturday afternoon, it's their job.

but what about a small but fun and well made simulation. Isn't that more or less where maxis started?

A super-team of modders join together to fight evil...

It would be so amazing if we somehow organized the entire sims community and made a game...

Oh yes, this is an opinion I wholeheartedly agree with. It's sad that there are no Sims "clones", it would have given me something to play during the Sims 3 era. Also it would give EA some concurrence, offer the consumer more variety and even offer the possibility of "cross-pollination" as the different companies copy the best parts of their rival's games. Lt alone that it would not put all the developers under the constant strain to please everybody (not that they shouldn't try anyway)
As I wrote in another thread there almost would have been a Sim competitor early in the Sims 2 era, I just can't remember the name of the company: