Videogames: The Sims FreePlay part 1 - Language and Audience

Language / Gameplay analysis

Watch The Sims: FreePlay trailer and answer the following questions:



1) What elements of gameplay are shown?

• Third person gameplay

• Control over avatar

• Avatar creation

• Designing creation

• Animals

• Love

• Exploration of areas

2) What audience is the trailer targeting?
The trailer is targeting Aspirers. Audiences who are 12+.

3) What audience pleasures are suggested by the trailer?

• Diversion

• Personal identity

• Personal relationship

Now watch this walk-through of the beginning of The Sims FreePlay and answer the following questions:

1) How is the game constructed?

• Third person gameplay

• Control over avatar

• Avatar creation

• Designing creation

• Animals

• Love

• Exploration of areas

2) What audience is this game targeting?
The trailer is targeting Aspirers. Audiences who are 12+.

3) What audience pleasures does the game provide?

• Diversion

• Personal identity

• Personal relationship

4) How does the game encourage in-app purchases?
People get addicted to the game and seeing these extension packs that the game offers make them want to buy it to exceed the game at a much quicker pace.


AudienceRead this App Store description and the customer reviews for The Sims FreePlay and answer the following questions:  1) What critics reviews are included in the game information section?

• An overall rating of 4.5

• They said that it was a 'good game, but some really annoying/unfair aspects'

2) What do the reviews suggest regarding the audience pleasures of The Sims FreePlay?

• Decision making/ control

• Realism/ reflects real life

3) How do the reviews reflect the strong element of participatory culture in The Sims?Gamers/ audiences of the game give feedback and suggest new ideas for the Sims where developers would take these reviews and incorporate it into the new game.

Participatory cultureRead this academic journal article - The Sims: A Participatory Culture 14 Years On. Answer the following questions:

1) What did The Sims designer Will Wright describe the game as?Will Wright called the game a doll house.

2) Why was development company Maxis initially not interested in The Sims?Tee board of directors thought doll houses were for girls only and were not keen on the idea of selling a game out that was linked to targeting female gamers.

3) What is ‘modding’?modifying the game to unlock new things, speed up things etc. Anything that is used to make a change to the original game play.

4) How does ‘modding’ link to Henry Jenkins’ idea of ‘textual poaching’?With fans using the orignal content of the text to them move on to create there on products/ content of the game will lead to the idea of textual poaching and how products can be based on the original from fans.

5) Look specifically at p136. Note down key quotes from Jenkins, Pearce and Wright on this page.Jenkins - ‘there were already more than fifty fan Web sites dedicated to The Sims. Today, there are thousands’. - shows how popular the game is
Pearce - ‘The original Sims series has the most vibrant emergent fan culture of a single-player game in history’. - how strong the community for the game is and how many people like the game.Wright - ‘We were probably responsible for the first million or so units sold but it was the community which really brought it to the next level’ - The community of the game was the people who truly brought the game to where it is today.

6) What examples of intertextuality are discussed in relation to The Sims? (Look for “replicating works from popular culture”)

• Anime

• Star Wars

• Star Trek

7) What is ‘transmedia storytelling’ and how does The Sims allow players to create it?
Transmedia storytelling is the technique of telling a single story or story experience across multiple platforms and formats using current digital technologies. They allow the player to make their own decisions throughout the the game play.

8) How have Sims online communities developed over the last 20 years?In the last 20 years, developers have been looking more and more at feedback from online communities.

9) Why have conflicts sometimes developed within The Sims online communities?sometimes what players want aren't what developers want. Due to this, it may cause several issues between the online communities and developers.

10) What does the writer suggest The Sims will be remembered for?'The cult following that it engendered well beyond the lifespan of a popular computer game'


Read this Henry Jenkins interview with James Paul Gee, writer of Woman as Gamers: The Sims and 21st Century Learning (2010).

1) How is ‘modding’ used in The Sims?

Creating a  world where it becomes of blend of real life and game life. These are changes put to use where it alters certain aspects of the game play to make it more realistic or reflecting it on real life issues etc.

2) Why does James Paul Gee see The Sims as an important game?

The Sims is supposed to be take the players beyond the game, creating a realistic mini world where players can indulge themselves into.

3) What does the designer of The Sims, Will Wright, want players to do with the game?

He wants it to empower the players where they are in complete control of everything around them. This power is seen as a self empowering tool to help users.

4) Do you agree with the view that The Sims is not a game – but something else entirely?

I believe that The Sims is still a game after all where people will interact and the player will enjoy playing the game. Perhaps it may act as diversion for the player but in the end, it will still be a game to them.

5) How do you see the future of gaming? Do you agree with James Paul Gee that all games in the future will have the flexibility and interactivity of The Sims?
I believe that gaming has much more room for improvement. This is because of how fast gaming has already grown over the years. Gaming went from a 2d box set console to now a 3d vr set allowing users to live in a completely separate life. Gaming will only evolve quicker from now on. I believe that gaming will go even beyond The Sims where it is practically incorporated into our daily lives.