Harry Potter and the Sim World
Mood
Frustrated
More Sims fun to write about. While playing after Matt left my computer froze and had to reboot, losing the progress I had made on the game. Windows said it had something to do with my Graphics Driver, so I guess I will have to look into that. Meanwhile its Matt's turn to play again, so here I am blogging again.
So, what did I do with my third Sims family? Used it to combine my new addiction with my old one. That's right I downloaded me a castle, some Harry Potter school robes, read up on some cheats and set about re-creating a mini-Hogwarts.
I created eight sims, two from each of Hogwarts four houses and decided to set them loose in a castle. Though for a place that was supposed to train them to be proper witches and wizards, the opposite ended up happening. They trained me more then I trained them, I think.
These eight annoying, aggravating, stubborn and yet very lovable Sims taught me more about the game in less time then any of my other families had. They were the ones that taught me what a Sim really needs.
Since the castle came completely unfurnished I had to put in everything from bedrooms to bathrooms to how I thought a kitchen should be laid out. Well, I thought wrong, apparently and was quickly taught otherwise.
Throughout the game I was taught the difference between an outgoing and a shy Sim, and why it mattered. I learned that someone could die if I set them to have their portrait painted and I don't watch their needs. Thankfully they didn't. I was taught how to use the camera properly. I was taught how to build up a Sims aspirations and about the glories and pitfalls of having a Sim in Platinum. I was taught along with my Sims about building Skills and when my "Want" and a Sims Want coincided I realized I wasn't entirely sure who was training whom. Most importantly I was taught how to keep the Sims alive, happy, and healthy, the point of the whole game.
Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, Cho Chang and Terry Boot, Hannah Abbot and Ernie Macmillian are eight sims who I originally treated as characters in a book but have begun to treat as individals (A.I. ones to be sure) unto themselves. Here is a pic of them.
To show the difference between the low quality pics that I took before I figured the camera out:
Here is a low-quality pic of Hannah at the beginning of the game. The Sims are set to be randomly placed on the lot when they move in and since this castle was custom built (originally it was Dracula's Castle complete with cemetery and chapel, both of which I decided to keep on the lot, I even toyed with the idea of putting a hot tub in the cemetary, but nixed it) the game kinda... improvised on placement. Poor Hannah Abbot, a Hufflepuff, was placed on a hillside and would have died there had I not implement the move objects hack to put her back onto the landing.
And, here is a high-quality pick of Hannah in her cute color coordinated bathing suit climbing out of the hot tub which ulitmately ended up on the north balcony. All of the Sims were given pajamas, bathing suits, work-out outfits, underwear and formal wear in their house colors so I can tell a Sim's house at a glance. Except somehow I had given Draco Malfoy, a Slytherin, red pajamas, not green. I still don't know how that happened. And, of course Draco is a Fortune Sim, what else would he be?
So, since I was playing a game set around Hogwarts I decided to set my own rules and limitations. First, I walled them in. I let them out to "play" on a community lot during "Hogsmeade weekends" which happen whenever I feel up to giving them. They don't have a TV, but they do have plenty of other things to entertain them all around the castle. Cho Chang, a Raveclaw, loves to play with the pinball machines while all four boys love the Party Machine thing that seems to be part bingo, part lottery, part bop it. Besides the majority of the day is devoted to Skills anyway.
The Sims have become trained to socialize and such after dinner. Because of that most of them don't get to bed until around three am and start the day at around ten, a schedule eerily similar to the one I have in real life. Earning Skills is like earning House Points, the House with the most at the end of the day is rewarded the next day by having several wants fulfilled. Or at least that's how it is now. All of this is just a test run so far.
I would include these pics in-line, but they are too big and would push the layout out of alignment. I might create a Sims 2 blog later and make sure that the layout is large enough to include the pictures in with the text, but until then...
Here is a pic of Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin, painting in Creativity Tower. A green painting, naturally. Here is one of Harry Potter, a Gryffindor, and Hermione Granger, a Gryffindor, becoming best friends. Here is Hannah and Cho Chang, a Ravenclaw, chatting while Ernie Macmillian, a Hufflepuff, looks on. And, finally, here is Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw, who was my little alcoholic until I took the bar away. That was breakfast for him everyday of the week. Sometimes lunch and dinner too. It barely fulfilled his hunger and sometimes he would spend hours drinking and walking around the bar and drinking some more.
Of course that was back when the castle was completely autonomous. Terry was one of the main reasons that idea was dropped so quickly. Between his bad drinking habits, the fact that there were twelve dirty cups on my Body Room floor from the coffee machine down the hall (deleted that damn thing too) and that Ernie nearly starved himself to death because he wouldn't stop playing darts (his Fun wasn't even all that low) I finally came to the conclusion that Sims just aren't that autonomous. Letting them do their own thing 24/7 just wasn't healthy.
I wonder if God has to sit on his hands too while watching us do our own thing. Who knew how frustrating it could be?
Posted by Bitsy at 02:45 PM Comments
harry harry harry harry hey beth you know the house point serimony ive only been in there once slitherin always comes out on top.
Posted by: eric on February 14, 2005 01:57 PM
You know, Eric, you should try playing the challenges a few times before going into the house point ceremony room so that you can insure that gryffindor has more house points then slytherin does. Then you can get more beans for when you want/need to purchase harry a new broom and quidditch armor. ;)
Posted by: Beth on February 17, 2005 08:11 PM
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