The Sims FreePlay CSP - Language & Representations blog tasks

 

Language / Gameplay analysis

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

1) What elements of gameplay are shown?

 

One element is the ability to form friendships and relationships, another element is that you can create and build your own town/houses. This links to the idea of a sandbox game.

2) What audience is the trailer targeting?

 

The trailer is aimed at young people due to all the colours and elements being bright and vivid. Aspirers and explorers also.

3) What audience pleasures are suggested by the trailer?

 

Personal identity, Personal relationship, Divergence.

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

1) How is the game constructed?

 

The game is constructed via the users requests as the user can interact and create scenarios, events, objects, people ect.

2) What audience is this game targeting?

 

The audience is aimed at those who seek escape from the real world, hyperreality comes into effect because unlike the real world the sims game has no issues or crime or any bad aspects to it. It would also be targetted towards young people as they have creative freedom.

3) What audience pleasures does the game provide?

 

Personal indentity, personal relationships, surveillance, divergence.

4) How does the game encourage in-app purchases?

 

Instead of waiting hours for houses or workplaces to be built a user can speed up the time with a sims crystal.

Representations

Re-watch some of the expansion pack trailers and answer the following questions:

1) How do the expansion pack (DLC) trailers reinforce or challenge dominant ideologies?3

The teen update reinforces dominant ideologies such that girls do girls activties such as ballet and dancing whereas the boys go skating and do martial arts which is very gender divided.

2) What stereotypes have you identified in The Sims FreePlay?

Women dress in a certain way and like to go out to the mall.

3) What media theories can you apply to representations in The Sims FreePlay?

Henry Jenkins fandom theory, Blumer and Katz, Van zoonen.

Representation reading

Read this Forbes article on gender and racism in The Sims franchise and answer the following questions:

1) How realistic does The Sims intend to be?

The game is not looking to be realistic but rather be believable.

2) How has The Sims tried to create more realistic representations of ethnicity?

They have added more customizable details in less stereotypical ways to represent races and cultures.

3) How has The Sims responded to racism and sexism in society?

The sims replied by saying that the game is a caricature of life and that they dont have a message to racism and sexism.

4) What is The Sims perspective on gender fluidity and identity?

They replied by saying it was an interesting point but that they have not had enough time to process and create gender fluidity.

5) How does The Sims reinforce the dominant capitalist ideologies of American culture?

The game gives one the creative freedom to pursue any career such as being a best selling author or to socialise with others or to take care of hygiene etc.

Read this New Normative feature on LGBTQ representation in The Sims franchise (the website link no longer works but that will take you to the text of the article - you'll need your Greenford Google login to access). Answer the following questions:

1) How did same-sex relationships unexpectedly help the original Sims game to be a success?

The game played a scene where a same sex couple kissed eachother and this brought a large lgtbq audience to the game.

2) How is sexuality now represented in The Sims?

If a sim engages with a same sex marriage then it becomes normalised.

3) Why have fans praised the inclusion of LGBTQ relationships in The Sims franchise?

It helped fans to learn about the different gender identities and relationships which exist.

4) Why did the Sims run into regulatory difficulties with American regulator the ESRB? How did EA respond?

The game was given an M-rating due to the sexualised content however it was previously given a T rating because fans said that they loved the update and feared it would be removed.

5) How is sexuality represented in the wider videogames industry today?

The gaming industry now is much more accepting of LGBTQ relationships and identities which overall has allowed for a wider audience to be brought into the gaming industry.

Reality, postmodernism and The Sims

Read this Paste Magazine feature on reality and The Sims franchise. Answer the following questions:

1) What does the article suggest about the representation of real life in The Sims 4?

The article suggests that the game takes on a blurry and convoluted role. It focuses on the idea of escapism which is a more imaginative version of the real life. Sims 4 is not as fun as sims 3 was due to the difference in its perception of life.

2) What audience pleasures did the writer previously find in The Sims franchise?

The writer enjoyed being able to do whatever they wanted without having to worry about "eating salads so their characters but would not get big".

3) Why the does the writer mention an example of a washer and dryer as additional DLC?

The writer mentions it due to the fact that in real life they have no desire to do laundry and they question why they would want to do it in the game when they are already trying to escape.

4) In your opinion, has The Sims made an error in trying to make the franchise too realistic?

I believe it has made an error which has caused it too lose a wide base of audience and also it now receives more hate than it ever did. The game should focus on a hyperreality where the audience can escape rather than performing chores like the writer said.

5) How does this representation of reality link to Baudrillard’s theory of hyperreality - the increasingly blurred line between real and constructed?

This representation of reality links very close to the real life as the writer said as their children were nearly taken away by child services which was not a feature in older games.

The Sims FreePlay social media analysis

Analyse The Sims FreePlay Facebook page and Twitter feed and answer the following questions:

1) What is the purpose of The Sims FreePlay social media channels?

To promote DLCs and trailers for upcoming versions of the game.

2) Choose three posts (from either Twitter or Facebook) and make a note of what they are and how they encourage audience interaction or response.

Twitter, The sims freeplay thanksgiving quest: This directly engages with the audience members who celebrate the thanksgiving holiday.

Twitter, New pastel skateboards and animations: This directly engages with the tweenagers who want to seek fun and escapism.

Twitter, Paternity/pregnancy update: This directly engages with females who want to see how having a baby is like.

3) Scroll down the Facebook feed briefly. How many requests for new content can you find from players? Why is this such as an important part of the appeal for The Sims FreePlay?

This is an important aspect because it means that the game listens to the audience and the audience feels as if their views are being appreciated and heard.

4) What tweets can you find in the Twitter feed that refer to additional content or other revenue streams for EA?

Not many as due to the games success the sims only needs to talk about itself.