The Sims FreePlay - Representation blog tasks

 The Sims FreePlay - Representation blog tasks

Create a new blogpost called 'The Sims FreePlay case study part 3 - Representations' and complete the following tasks.

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?

The DLC trailers reinforce dominant capitalist ideologies because it shows that EA lean towards monetary incentives for The Sims. However a challenge to this would be that players are allowed to create the reality they want in The Sims. 

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

The stereotypes I have identified in the The Sims Freeplay would be that they don;t offer a arneg of clothing options for men, the lack of homosexuality representation as well as non-gender conforming features when they ask "what is your avatar's gender", gender stereotypes of women/girls, race stereotypes too. 

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

The media theories that can be applied to The Sims would be;

- Judith Butler = "gender as social construct"

- Levi-strauss = "representation and ideology"

- Stuart Hall = Reception theory

-  Medhurst =  "stereotyping for identification".

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 intend on being very realistic, this is because they want to recreate a progressive euphemism about work, family and love. "In The Sims world even being sad is a source of happiness."  

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

The sims have tried to create more realistic representation of ethnicity through adding more features that would represent different ethnicities. 

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

The sims have responded to racism and sexism in society by stating that "Our Sims will not discriminate based on gender preference whatsoever."

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

The sims have this clear gap when it comes to gender fluidity in the game, players and their avatars can only pick out from the gender choice of male and female. 

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

The sims reinforce the dominant capitalist ideologies of American culture through the game as it is very "goal-oriented, currency-driven quest toward fullfilling the handful of personality traits one’s given from birth." This means that it reinforces that work equals success as well as money brings happiness. 

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 same-sex relationship helped The sims grow in success because LGBTQ+ characters were not represented in video games, doing this was met with positive ratings. 

2) How is sexuality now represented in The Sims?

Sexuality now in The Sims is very open and allies with LGBTQ+ representation as players can now choose who they are romantically involved. 

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 allows all players to choose their reality in The Sims as well as giving LGBTQ+ identifying individuals a safe space.  

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

The sims has ran into difficulties with ESRB because same-sex relationships were not known in the video-games so they regulating it was difficult at first. 

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

Sexuality in wider videogames industry is still very behind with very limited LGBTQ+ characters even with main protagonists too. 

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?

This article suggests that representation of real life in The Sims 4 is that it basically a fancy version of real-life through "accessorizing a comfortable veneer of suburbia."

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

The audience pleasures for The Sims would be escapism and another would be personal identity through creating yourself in this reality. 

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

This is because the writer is trying to show the escapism as an audience pleasure playing The Sims however the washer and dryer feature shows the realistic element of The Sims. 

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

Personally, I would say I disagree with the statement that The Sims have made an error with trying to make the game too realistic because the game creates diversion. This means that players create the reality they want so that would different to their actual life. 

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

This relates to The Sims because they provide a game which imitates real life. 


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?

They have a social media platform to promote the game and interact with fans as well as take any criticism or changes players feel they should include. 

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.

From Twitter; 

- "Can you remember your earliest sims memory?"

- ReTweeting a sims character about an android glitch they're fixing.

- Valentine's day special with the fans. 

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?

There are many requests for new content i.e features and packs etc, from fans, this means that The Sims regularly take on-board their fans criticism and shows that there is a clear communication line between developers and consumers of the game. 

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

There are ads on their Twitter page as well as communication and interactions with competitors and players. 

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

The sims media presence relates to hyper-reality as the game is a stimulation of real-life whilst having a real-life online presence with Sims characters like "@SimsGuruAlana", it would also link to simulacra.