The Sims FreePlay CSP - Audience and Industries blog tasks
Audience:
1) What game information is provided on this page? Pick out three elements you think are important in terms of making the game appeal to an audience.
- Pictures and videos of the actual game play.
- An introduction to what the game is about.
- Reviews from the game play.
2) How does the game information on this page reflect the strong element of participatory culture in The Sims?
There are events occurring in the game, indicating that many players will take part in these activities. In addition, fans can visit and make friends with one another as neighbours.
3) Read a few of the user reviews. What do they suggest about the audience pleasures of the game?
The majority of the reviews for the game are favourable and praise its quality as an escape. They do, however, acknowledge a few problems with the game, such as bugs, protracted quests, and an excessive number of advertisements that appear when completing various objectives.
Participatory culture:
1) What did The Sims designer Will Wright describe the game as?
"A train set or a doll's house where each person has their own interest and picks their own goals," is how Will Wright characterises the game.
2) Why was development company Maxis initially not interested in The Sims?
Since Will Wright had suggested that the game be viewed as a "doll's house" since dolls are associated with girls, while boys make up the majority of the video game business, they weren't initially interested.
3) What is ‘modding’?
where players can alter game elements by tinkering with the game code, and where they can subsequently post these changes online for other players to see.
4) How does ‘modding’ link to Henry Jenkins’ idea of ‘textual poaching’?
Fans are contributing to the product in the same way that they are altering the game.
5) Look specifically at p136. Note down key quotes from Jenkins, Pearce and Wright on this page.
"Reciprocal knowledge production and exchange holds digital communities together." - Jenkins.
"The original Sims series has the most vibrant emergent fan culture of a single-player game in history." - Pearce "There were already over fifty The Sims-related fan websites. There are thousands now." - Jenkins. "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" - Wright is quoted by Jenkins.
6) What examples of intertextuality are discussed in relation to The Sims? (Look for “replicating works from popular culture”)
The same fans who have been performing their fandom by reusing texts and photos have been using The Sims to imitate and modify scenarios and characters from many popular cultures. You may get skins that feature various characters from Japanese anime, Star Wars, The X-Files, and Star Trek.
7) What is ‘transmedia storytelling’ and how does The Sims allow players to create it?
a procedure that would allow the main content contained in a legitimate commercial product to be distributed across several digital and analogue media (Jenkins 2007)
8) How have Sims online communities developed over the last 20 years?
The game's narrative were created by enthusiasts, who also began to produce gamics, or comics, and various mods that other players could utilise. Over time, this reinforced the fan communities. Even though the game is out of date now, some players still play it, and modification websites are still around but are now thought of as places to keep the game alive. It's a spot where gamers can hang out with one another.
9) Why have conflicts sometimes developed within The Sims online communities?
The community has been split into groups: non-makers and creators. While some modders want to charge for their creations, others want to give them away for free to other gamers and the actual game developers. According to other fans, there is a hierarchy being created because some fans are receiving more attention than others.
10) What does the writer suggest The Sims will be remembered for?
It helped to pioneer one of the largest fan and modding communities for digital production, and the cult following it "engendered" lasted much beyond the typical lifespan of well-known computer games.
1) How is ‘modding’ used in The Sims?
Emotional intelligence and social relationships are enhanced by modding. It enhances one's technical, social, emotional, and artistic abilities.
2) Why does James Paul Gee see The Sims as an important game?
Since The Sims is designed to be more than just a game, it aims to transcend beyond gaming. Furthermore, the play and design of women are on the cutting edge of the future rather than the mainstream.
3) What does the designer of The Sims, Will Wright, want players to do with the game?
Wright desired for his players to create a community and produce original material centred around his games.
4) Do you agree with the view that The Sims is not a game – but something else entirely?
I disagree with this perspective and the idea that it qualifies as a game since it gives players and viewers the freedom to do anything they want and provides them with escape—exactly what other games provide.
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?
There will, in my opinion, be a lot more games like The Sims that offer audiences a comparable level of enjoyment, but they won't be well-liked by the mainstream media since players appreciate games with missions or an ultimate goal, like Grand Theft Auto.
Industries:
Regulation – PEGI:
1) How does the VSC and PEGI ratings system work and how does it link to UK law?
The game is rated by VSC and PEGI, which means that the age restriction is legally binding and that no one under that age should be allowed to purchase that particular game.
2) Click on the PEGI Rating tab in the top menu. What are the age ratings and what content guidance do they include?
PEGI 3, 7, 12, 16, and 18 exist. Easy games would receive a rating of 3/7 because the content indicates that certain games may be appropriate for younger audiences who may not be able to understand the concepts of other games or who may not find them appealing. Games rated 16 and up contain language and violence, and those rated 18 and up feature all of the above, including nudity and sex.
3) What is the PEGI process for rating a game?
- The developer declares in detail what is in the game.
- Evidence is given to PEGI with video footage and a copy of the game.
- The footage is examined.
- The game is tested to see if the declarations were correctly done.
- The examination takes around 4-10 days. The developer is given a formal license, detailing the rating symbols and the content labels displayed.
1) How does the freemium model work?
In order to encourage people to play, the producers offer the core product for free. However, there is a fee for additional packages that could enhance gameplay or improve functionality.
2) Why do some gamers believe freemium is ruining games?
Certain games are pay to win, which irritates players because it limits their ability to advance in the game and causes frustration.
3) What are the positives of the freemium model for gaming?
The option to play a game for free gives players the chance to earn in-game currency through gameplay, which they can use to buy premium model packs. This retains devoted customers.
1) Note the key statistics in the first paragraph.
Freemium apps contribute to 70-80% of the $10 billion or more in IOS revenue each year.
2) Why does the freemium model incentivise game developers to create better and longer games?
It provides the audience with the main product at no cost, with the option to charge them for it at no cost.
3) What does the article suggest regarding the possibilities and risks to the freemium model in future?
- that it would be challenging for the corporation to enhance the gaming experience if it lacked the funds to generate revenue.
- Instead of charging a "flat fee" for single-player games, the traditional console game may divide its offerings into free-to-play multiplayer games and single-player games.
1) Why did Temple Run use the freemium model?
The game's creators decided to make it freemium and post it on a website called Free App A Day when the game's popularity waned. This caused a surge in the number of people who downloaded the game. Over 40 million downloads have been made, and 13 million people use it daily.
2) The bigger gaming studios like Electronic Arts used to avoid the freemium model. Why are they now embracing it?
They witnessed the success that they had gained from The Sims Freeplay.
3) Why does Peter Farago suggest independent game makers benefit more from the freemium model than the major publishers like EA?
Since it is simpler to create and free, it is advantageous economically.
Electronic Arts:
1) How has The Sims FreePlay evolved since launch?
The game has evolved from a tiny one where you could control sixteen Sims, own a dog, and have a career to one where you can now do anything you want, such getting married, starting a family, and owning various pets. And they had no idea that five years later, hundreds of others would still be playing.
2) Why does Amanda Schofield suggest ‘games aren’t products any more’?
Because they are collaborations with players, producers must rely on the audiences because they may make mistakes and allow the audience to provide feedback.
3) What does she say about The Sims gaming community?
When they need anything to aid in the game's development, they always get in touch with the producers to let them know.
4) How has EA kept the game fresh and maintained the active player base?
They strive to expand on a portion after they've discovered a system that engages the gamers. To give the gamers greater freedom, they introduce more tools.
5) How many times has the game been installed and how much game time in years have players spent playing the game? These could be great introductory statistics in an exam essay on this topic.
- 200 million installs on the game.
- 78,000 of amount of game time in years.
It's characterised as an emotional roller coaster where players can explore and find solace in the game Blumler and Katz: Uses and gratifications.
2) What examples of downloadable content are presented?
many expansion packs that include updated houses and wardrobes, new gameplay features, and other furnishing alternatives.
3) How did Electronic Arts enrage The Sims online communities with expansion packs and DLC?
Fans created a petition to have the expansion pack made free for them to use, arguing that the $9.99 should have been donated to an animal shelter instead of being used to create an expansion pack.
4) What innovations have appeared in various versions of The Sims over the years?
- Virtual families
- Multi generational legacies
- You were able to travel between different neighborhoods
5) In your opinion, do expansion packs like these exploit a loyal audience or is it simply EA responding to customer demand?
Making these packs feel "special" and enticing to audiences, I believe they take advantage of fans by giving the game away for free but restricting what they can do. They get dependent on these packs as a result of continuing to pay for them, which enables EA to continue receiving revenue from the fans.
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