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The Sims 3: Supernatural: Limited Edition
Score: 97%
Publisher: EA Games
Developer: The Sims Studio
Media: DVD/1
Players: 1
Genre: Simulation

The Dangerous:
There are six new beings that you can create your Sims as: Vampire, Werewolf, Ghost, Fairy, Witch, and Genie. Vampires can go out during the day, but they have negative mood from it. You also can’t cure hunger in a Vampire by eating as with the rest of the Sims. Instead, you have "thirst" which can be quenched by drinking from someone (supernatural, even Werewolves, or human is fine) or by getting plasma from the fridge. Vampires are interesting in that they don’t age like normal, so you can play with them a lot longer. They can also turn other beings into Vampires.

Werewolves have two forms: their normal human selves and their Werewolf form. You can customize their clothing and looks for each form. They get hungry much quicker in Werewolf form, but they get a mood boost from being transformed. I like leaving mine as a Werewolf just because I can. They like to do things like howl at the moon and scratch the furniture up though, so you might have to repair and replace things a lot quicker with a Werewolf around.

I’m sure you’re used to playing as a Ghost in some of the previous games after your Sims died, but this time they’re just a bit different. Basically, the Ghost isn’t any different from the humans except that they can float through objects. They still have to eat and sleep and they can still work like normal humans. I think the Ghost is the least favorite to play with since they really don’t have anything special to them, other than their method of death. You do get to choose how they died when you create one and there are some funny options.

There is a seventh class that you can play as, but not create and that is the Zombie. Zombies can come from any of the other classes. If you want to play as a Zombie, there are a few ways you can do it. A powerful Witch can change you into a Zombie with the "Reanimation Ritual." You can reverse this Zombie state if you want with a cure elixir, though. You can also turn into a Zombie by the bite of another Zombie. I found this isn’t as easy to make happen as you would think! It’s much easier just to drink a zombification elixir. Of course, if you just want to see what a Zombie can do, you can use a Genie to ensorcel one. This will give you control of them for 4 hours. These Zombies aren’t only after brains. You can socialize with them as you can any normal citizen. They can also hold jobs. You’ll find that they are actually copies of the townspeople (and your custom characters) as Zombies. The one real drawback to them that I found is that these Zombies are out to murder your plants! If you have a garden, they will come out in droves to destroy your garden, which can be quite annoying if you have a gardening Sim. If you don’t care about a garden though, the Zombies are amusing. Personally, I just put a fence around the garden. Also, Zombies are only supposed to come out during the full moon. But right now, there is a minor bug in the game, so if you’re like me and saved your game during the full moon, your Zombies aren’t going away. They will continue to spawn. Developers are working on the bug though and expect a patch soon.


The Magical:
Three of these classes I am considering magical. Both Genies and Witches can do magic for sure. Fairies can’t perform magic tricks, but they can fly. Like Werewolves though, they are affected by the full moon. Let’s just start with the Genies. The first thing that you will notice when you go to create a Genie is that they look exactly like something out of Aladdin, with the traditional clothing. Genies even default to blue skin. Of course, just like with all classes now, you can change the skin color to just about anything you can think of. Personally, I really like having purple and green people. They’re just so pretty, especially in the Katy Perry's Sweet Treats clothes. Anyway, back to the Genies. The Genies’ powers are more time-saving magic than anything, like magically cleaning, but they can be very useful for banishing zombies if you have the Plants vs. Zombies pack installed. They can also enslave the zombies (and other beings) for a small time, which can be a lot of fun for playing with other characters without actually creating a whole new Sim. Genies can also be easier to use because they can magically clean themselves to avoid bathing and magically summon food wherever and whenever they are hungry. The Genies are my second favorite of the new classes.

My favorite of the new classes are the Fairies. When you create a Fairy, you will find that there are six different wing types to choose from. I love the Fairy wings! Granted, they’re not extraordinarily manly for male Fairies, but you can give them the little "bumblebee" wings so that they’re not so big and girly. You can also go for a dark red wing. Those look quite cool and masculine! Fairies will fly from place to place and you can choose to make them fly inside as well. They also love to go rest in a Fairy House. If you don’t want to buy one, they can be found around town and are the perfect place for Fairies to take a break and recover their energy. Fairies are affected by the moon. They will get a mood boost when it is out, but they will get the blues when there is no moon, so make sure to keep their moods up during the new moon.

Witches are the most magical of the new classes. They can perform spells, cast charms, conjure objects, and more. I really love that they ride a broom from place to place instead of driving. They can even perform tricks on the brooms. Witches can be male or female, so don’t assume that the name means only women. There is a lot to learn to become a powerful Witch!


The Town:
I really like the setup of Moonlight Falls. The town is a great size that has everything you need at the beginning, including a graveyard, dump, and junkyard. The Sims 3: Supernatural gives three new buildings that you can add to any town you have installed. These are a tavern, a lounge, and an elixir store. There is plenty of empty space in the town where you can add any of your favorite buildings as well, without feeling cluttered. The pre-made families that you have to choose from are quite interesting and have well designed houses. There are easier ones and more difficult scenarios to choose from. The only thing that I did not see was a family with a Genie in the pre-mades, but I could have missed it as I did not try every single family. There are so many families to choose from that you’ll spend a long time if you want to play them all!

You will need to keep in mind that given the town is supernatural; things are quite different after dark. You’re not necessarily safe wandering around after dark, especially on a full moon. If you want to play a human, you’ll find that you’re running into magical and dangerous everywhere you go. Of course, danger can be quite fun!


The Rest:
With all these new classes come new skills. Alchemy is a new skill and Alchemy Artisan is the new lifetime wish to go along with it. There are also more new lifetime wishes. One of them is Zombie Master, which requires you to turn 10 different Sims into Zombies. You can turn them into a Zombie with a ritual or a potion. I have not tested all of the new lifetime wishes yet, but I can’t wait to get to them all. There are also new careers and lifetime rewards. I was shocked at how many new clothes there are, but then it makes sense because they added the "traditional" looks for each supernatural type. They didn’t add them for the kids though, so your children will have to dress in normal clothes until they grow up. There are also plenty of new furniture, appliances, and things to play with. I recommend going into Buy mode and sort by Collection. Then you can just look at all of the new things that The Sims 3: Supernatural has added.

There is so much new stuff that I’d say The Sims 3: Supernatural is the largest expansion yet. The really nice thing is that once you have it installed, you can still create supernatural beings in your other towns as well. I think that in my next game, I will have to have a Werewolf live on the moon in Lunar Lakes. I love being able to mix all of this new stuff with the previous expansions. Of course, with as much as Supernatural has added, if you’re debating on which one to buy I highly recommend getting Supernatural first as I really can’t see that you would need anything else for a long time. If you’ve already been playing The Sims 3, you must go pick up The Sims 3: Supernatural expansion today. You’re really missing something great if you don’t!


-Cyn, GameVortex Communications
AKA Sara Earl
Minimum System Requirements:

XP SP2/Vista SP1/Windows 7, CPU: For XP 2.0 GHx P4 or equivalent/For Vista and 7 2.4 GHz P4 or equivalent, RAM: For XP 1 GB/For Vista and 7 1.5 GB RAM, 2.5 GB with 1 GB additional space for saves, Graphics: 128 MB Video Card with Pixel Shader 2.0 Support
  Test System:

Windows XP Service Pack 3, Processor: 2.4 GHx, Memory: 3 GB, Hard Drive: 15 GB free, Graphics: 128 MB nVIDIA Quadro NVS 140M, Sound: DirectX 9.0c

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