The Sims FreePlay (2019-present)

The Sims FreePlay (2019-present)
It may have been a freemium-based game for much of its life, but it has never been THIS bad.
Genre(s): Life simulation Platform(s): iOS Android Release Date: December 15, 2011 Developer(s): EA Mobile Firemonkeys Studios Publisher(s): Electronic Arts Series: The Sims Predecessor: The Sims 3 (by release date and concept)

The Sims FreePlay is a life simulation game based on The Sims 3, released on December 15, 2011, for Android and iOS. It was developed by Maxis (currently Firemonkeys Studios) and published by Electronic Arts.

Why It's Not Free to Play Anymore

1. This game has gone seriously downhill since the late 2010s and has not recovered since.
   • In order to save space, a number of tracks were significantly shortened or cut to save space circa 2016, which disrespects the game's soundtrack.
   • Its SimChase (added in 2019) and Influencer Island events are absolutely atrocious, as they consist of extremely time-consuming actions and boring, repetitive gameplay whose only purposes seem to be to make players grind and waste their time. These events are virtually impossible to complete without cheats, and they continue to add items that most players won't even get to use in the first place.
   • Quantity over quality: The game has constantly added new places that were too expensive and limited-time items that were too difficult or costly to achieve. This can be seen in the "Specials" section in the shop and in the events above.
   • Lately, the game introduced a VIP system that encourages people to spend in order to limit the game's inconveniences, which is infuriating for those who don't spend in the game.
     • One of the perks include ad removal at VIP 3, where otherwise the game would shove 30-45 second video ads at least after three interactions.
2. Elephant out of the room: This game suffers from its unrealistic task timings that range from a few seconds to several days.
   • An example of this is the inconsistently timed "Kids music" action when using a radio, where it would take up to six hours long. Originally, it was a few minutes similar to most other genre actions, but it was extended abruptly at an unknown time and has not been changed since.
   • On top of this, an inexplicable amount of everyday actions take absurd amounts of time, including, but not limited to:
     1. Spending from five seconds to a whole day cooking or planting.
     2. Using a barbecue for eighteen hours.
     3. Spending half a day reading fine literature.
     4. Diving for two hours.
     5. 14.5 hours saying goodbye to a puppy. We are not kidding around.
     6. 18 hours in front of thinking man statue, just to get mad because he says nothing.
     7. Countless other quests that have highly inconsistent and unrealistic task timings of up to seven hours that make no sense in context.
   • To make matters worse, many weeklong quests were designed as if players were to be able to play the game nonstop, which means that if your schedule did not comply with the game's quests, you would be at risk of running out of time with the quests without the use of Lifestyle Points (LP), and as such, you would lose any chance of achieving these rewards.
   • Perhaps the worst thing about this is you must wait for the sim to complete the interaction before doing another one, unlike the original games where you have virtual time and you can speed it up.
   • The game expects you to sacrifice real-life time and sleeping routines and modify them around the game, which is harmful for players if they take this game too seriously. (However, many of these limited-time items may be interesting and good enough to encourage players to do so.
   • Overall, the time management issues make playing this game more of a chore and a hassle to deal with rather than a fun simulation game.
3. As expected for a mobile game with micro-transactions, the game requires copious money to keep pace with limited time events or game progression due to a perceived paywall.
   • Some buildings require millions of Simoleons depending on how much you have already built, and because of how scarce Simoleons are without the use of money, many of these features may not even be accessible by free-to-play players.
   • With how ridiculous some quest timings are, having Lifestyle Points feels almost necessary and they are not easy to access either.
     • However, there is a notable LP "farming" trick that involves using the "Cooking" hobby to generate 5 LP for each completion of the collection.
4. The hobbies feature is very poorly designed:
   • Many hobbies take hours to complete, making it a struggle to complete a collection.
   • You will have a chance of getting items you have already achieved, making the process tedious and RNG-dependent.
   • When a Sim is introduced to a different hobby, they must reset their entire progress on the hobby in order to switch hobbies.
     • It is worth noting, though, that if you had already unlocked a part of the collection, you will still be able to achieve it no matter what level your other Sims are completing it at.
   • The prize for completing the hobbies after its guaranteed prizes are typically 2-3 Lifestyle Points, which is FAR too low considering how long these hobbies take.
   • Worst of all, the game commits a cardinal sin by locking major features behind limited-time hobby prizes, making certain items permanently inaccessible after a week or so has passed. This, along with the hobby's RNG-dependent nature, creates a sense of urgency in players that is completely unnecessary and frustrating.
5. Just as bad of an inconvenience this game has is that the game requires an online connection to play. Without considering the events, this game seems playable without internet, which makes it even more frustrating.
6. Overall, the game is a severe downgrade from its glory days and may never recover.

Redeeming Qualities

1. This game was much better in its earlier years due to its simpler game and less gameplay/content issues.
2. For a mobile game released in 2011, The Sims FreePlay still has great visuals and performance, and it serves as a great introduction for mobile audiences.
3. Great soundtrack, just like The Sims 3.
4. The base game has not changed significantly, despite its newfound dependency on new, limited-time content.

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