by Julie A. Wein

Created on: February 23, 2010

The Sims 2 is not just a video game, it's an experience. Leaps and bounds above Sims 1, Sims 2 allows players to guide their Sim from infancy through old age. Watch your Sim go from a crying infant to a proud elder and help them live their dreams all along the way. The Sims 2 offers countless opportunities for your Sim to learn and grow as a person. With the many expansion packs that accompany the game, your Sims can do everything from becoming a superstar to running their own business.

The first step to playing The Sims is to create your own characters. Sims can be personalized with your choice of hairstyle, facial features, skin tone, make-up and clothes. You can also decide what kind of personality your Sim will have, and even pick their zodiac sign. If you'd rather not create your own Sims you have the option of playing with the characters that Maxis includes with the game. Simply choose a family to play and move them into a house.

You have several different neighborhoods to choose from for your gameplay. Each neighborhood comes with a back story and a collection of unique families and individuals. You decide what kind of life they will lead, what they do for a living, and whether or not they find true love.

Once you've moved a Sim and/or their family into a house gameplay begins. At this point you can get a job for your adult Sims by either reading the newspaper or using a computer to search online. Once your new house has the basic furnishings your Sims will need to live, you can start having them learn vauable skills such as how to cook. Learning how to cook is as simple as reading a cookbook or watching a cooking show on TV.

Once you have established a life for your Sims it's time to start having them meet new people. Whenever you move a Sim into a new place the neighbors will automatically drop by and meet them. Building friendships is important to the advancement of your Sims career.  If they choose to start a family they will have the responsibility of caring for the newborn baby, sending the child to school when they're old enough, and raising them to become adult Sims. Teenage Sims have the option of enrolling in private school if their parents can convince the headmaster to let them in. This is accomplished by inviting the headmaster to their house for dinner. If the Sims are entertaining enough and the house is clean and neat and everyone's happy, your Sim child will be off to private school. Once they are in high school you also have the option of getting them a part time after school job. By purchasing Sims 2 University (one of many expansion packs offered for the game) you can send your Sim children to college.

For more information on The Sims 2, check out www.ea.com/thesims2. Happy playing!

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