Videogames: The Sims FreePlay part 3 - Representation

Textual analysis

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?

• Reinforce dominant ideologies surrounding capitalism - the concept of working to support a high-quality lifestyle.
• Reinforce some gender stereotypes as the activities done by the girls and boys were typical of their respective genders: i.e. boys are in the blue rooms and females are in the pink rooms
• Conventional male and female representations- seen as distinctive genders, no options for androgynous or gender fluid characters.
• Gameplay has been feminised to appeal to the female audience

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

• gender stereotypes - binary and conventional attitudes towards gender
• White upper class - focus on money, financial success and renovating their homes
• Heterosexual relationships rather than homosexual relationships etc.

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

• Van Zoonen - the idea that gender is "constructed through media language"
• Hall - identity is "constructed" rather than given to us
• Gauntlett - masculinity theories 
• Gilroy - double consciousness
• Strinati- Style over substance 
• Baudrillard- Postmodernism

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 Sims attempts to be more "believable" rather than seeking out realism. It's highly realistic in the sense that it attempts to offer every possible euphemism that humans have about different subjects, such as love; relationships; work and family, but lacks realism through the sanitised version of these aspects.

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

Attempting to create characters that are "less cartoonish" and more realistic - bucking the stereotypes that are often found in games. 

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

Sinhaseni states: “Our game is kind of a caricature of life. We don’t really have a message—there’s no racism message, there’s no tolerance message. We have same-sex marriage in our game. Our Sims will not discriminate based on gender preference whatsoever. but it is also not a game that promotes tolerance etc. It is "all under player control" meaning that if someone wants to make their Sim an intolerant character, then they can.

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

The game itself appears "inflexible" on gender identity as the first thing that players are forced to do is choose the distinct gender of their sim. The Maxis PR developer explained that while it is an interesting concept, gender fluidity needs to be thought and planned out before it is executed in the game.

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

Focuses the game around the stereotypical goal-orientated, currency-driven nature of upper-class American attitudes. However, this model is used to enable the gamer to escape from the idea of perfectionism that is present in society - Sims allows the gamer to release the emotions that they cannot release in real life.

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 inclusion of same-sex and LGBTQ+ relationships enabled Sims to gain publicity because it demonstrated the flexibility of the game and the gamer's ability to truly to whatever they wanted to in the game. It came about as an accident as the development teams prepared a demo of the game that gamers could try out; however, the game still faltered despite the custom scripting.

2) How is sexuality now represented in The Sims?

Now, same-sex relationships are a key feature of the game, and gamers can structure the game however they like in terms of sexual preferences etc. There is now a lot more freedom.

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

Fans have praised the inclusion of LGBTQ relationships in The Sims franchise because it didn't make a huge statement about the freedom of same-sex relationships, rather it just offered gamers the options to enter such relationships if they wanted to. It provided a refreshing representation of gay rights and equality as it gave audiences a sense of freedom and a positive perception of LGBTQ+.

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

The rating board stated that when they went to the ESRB on The Sims 1, they didn’t have any guidelines on same sex support because no game had ever done it,” Barrett said. “So we got a T-rating. Well, we didn’t know, but the ESRB corrected that after the game shipped and same sex support was an automatic M.”

The EA responded by saying: “For EA, once a game ships, that’s just how it is,” Barrett said. “If it’s in the first game, it’ll be in every version of the game. That’s just how they are, they never had any problem with it.”

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

More and more games have started including same-sex relationships and LGBTQ+ characters in their narratives; they offer various sexual identities.

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?

It suggests that as Sims mimics real life, it reduces the experience of diversion as the game essentially forces you to lead a domestic life. "The Sims 4 is basically real adult life and I f-ing hate it"

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

• Escapism and fantasy - the various Supernatural and fantasy expansion packs enabled gamers to further this experience of diversion.

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

She mentions the washer and dryer as DLC to emphasise the sense of obligation they felt and how they felt trapped in the cycle of domesticity.

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

I think that this can be answered both ways. The Sims haven't made an error in trying to make the franchise realistic however, they should try to offer a larger scope of escapism and diversion for audience members.

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

This links to Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality as it suggests that like the writer of this article, gamers will too find it harder to identify the boundaries between reality and their virtual lives. The domestic life of the game is so similar to that of their actual lives, that it becomes difficult to distinguish between the two.

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 push the sims content to a wider audience, and to also demonstrate the realism associated with the sims - i.e. their ability to interact with each other.

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 Roaring 20's has come to SimTown! Dance the night away to live jazz performances or have a sip of 'juice' at the bar in the new Belle Hotel live event - starting now!"- gamers from all over the world can come together as they would in a real life party thus rendering them to interact with one another.

Pregnancy Pictures - advertises the different stages of family life available in the game and the fact that you have an opportunity to develop your own relationships based around your preferences.

Black History Month post- promotes activism and a response from the gamers.

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?

• Different body types
• Facial features
• Different buildings

Highlights the fact that audiences constantly desire new more diverse content - important as it signifies the fact that audiences are directly involved in shaping the content of Sims.

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

• Expansion packs - a revenue stream as people download the additional content to improve the game.
• Premium content - "VIP Rooms and Winter Wonderland Quest"

5) Linking to our work on postmodernism, how could The Sims FreePlay social media presence be an example of Baudrillard’s hyperreality and simulacra?

It is an example of simulacra as it is situated in the real world and focuses on real actions, yet is based on fictional content of the sims. It is bringing the media text into and merging it with the real world.