After the success of both The Sims 1 and The Sims 2, I think it’s fair to say that The Sims 3 can sometimes be considered the odd one out. Not quite as long-lasting as The Sims 4 nor as seismic a leap as The Sims 2. However, it remained a critical and commercial success fondly remembered by many players, which makes it a perfect choice for this entry in A Short History of Sims Collabs covering The Sims 3 (2009)!
I say the odd one out especially because The Sims 3 stands in a very strange position compared to the rest of the series when it comes to collabs and crossovers. Which is to say that there are some big collabs, but centered around on major player…
The Katy Perry Effect
Back before she was the somewhat-constant staple of pop that she is now, Katy Perry had just undergone a fresh new reinvention with her bubble-gum flavoured new look and music style. Indeed, it’s hard to state how much of a pop sensation she was, even while hitting the niche of being Lady Gaga Lite.
But we’re not here to lambast or lionise, we’re setting the scene for why she was such a huge star at the time. And a quirky one at that, with no end of crazy stunts, costumes and general behaviour. Naturally, that made her perfect for two of the major expansions in The Sims 3, the first of which being the Showtime pack.
It’s showtime
As you might expect, the Sims 3: Showtime expansion is all about music and performance, letting your Sim start up their own band and go from small-time gigs to rocking out on major stages. It’s a great expansion on its own, as I think the idea of starting a band is a better way to keep all your Sims together rather than focusing on making your favourite a movie star or celebrity, especially since it introduced social multiplayer elements!
So with that in mind the inclusion of Perry makes a lot of sense, and fans could snap up a collector’s edition of the Showtime expansion with exclusive cosmetics, hairstyles and other goodies (including a poster) as part of the release. While Perry wasn’t the focus here, the message was clear that she was ‘the’ tie-in pop star for The Sims.
Sweet as can be
My comparison of Katy Perry to gum earlier wasn’t just flower language, as anyone of the millennials reading this can likely remember the over candy theming in virtually everything she did. So it makes sense that she would headline the next collab content with the Stuff Pack, Sims 3: Katy Perry’s Sweet Treats.
This expansion is a lot more explicitly tied into Katy Perry’s brand and features with a whole host of confectionary-themed furniture and cosmetics. Not only that but a Simlish version of ‘Last Friday Night’ and in-game performances were also included.
One of the more interesting things about this expansion was its short shelf-life and somewhat sour pricing. The pack was announced and released in 2012 before being yanked from storefronts in 2013 the following year. Add onto that a $30 price tag, eye-watering even by today’s standards (for reference, the last expansion Business & Hobbies was only a dollar over it in today’s money) and you can see why this Stuff Pack is not all that fondly remembered.
Vroom vroom
There was a whole lot of buzz marketing-wise ahead of The Sims 3 release. Be that EA and Maxis tying it into the-then upcoming 2008 election or Target offering a promotional disc (no gameplay included, just a demo) packaged with a poster for noughties sensation Ladytron in 2009.
But perhaps most intriguing was Ford’s tie-in, with the car manufacturer offering exclusive promotional downloads of their-then current top-of-the-line cars with the Ford Fiesta and Ford Focus (including snazzy t-shirts!).
It’s rather interesting looking back on reporting from the time that touted this as such a bold new thing, whereas nowadays we’re very much used to famous cars showing up in-game all the time. Although, perhaps not as often with The Sims admittedly.
Gimme Diesel
Speaking of cars, what do they run on? Diesel (sometimes). And with that masterful segue we get to our last major collab when clothing brand Diesel brought many of their apparel at the time into Sim’s wardrobes. And it’s still on sale! Key word here being ‘sale’ as this wasn’t a free tie-in but a paid pack (much like the Ikea pack before it).
Which itself is a snapshot of how gaming was considered marketing-wise as nowadays this would definitely have been a free collab event. I mean criminy, are there really that many hardcore Diesel fans out there that they’d shell out near $24 (as it goes on the official EA site for right now) for some blue jeans?!
Musical talents
Last, but certainly not least we need to wrap up with an honorable mention for Simlish version of songs. I neglected to mention that The Sims 2 included more than just tie-in music videos of hit pop songs in Simlish, and The Sims 3 is no different. The soundtrack also features contributions from artists such as The Flaming Lips, Flo Rida and Lady Antebellum.
I feel this is worth noting because as far back as The Urbz it seems musicians were the ones with their finger on the pulse when it came to the potential for The Sims to help promote their music. Worth thinking about? Most definitely, so be sure to check in soon for the next edition of this ongoing series where we finally tackle The Sims 4 itself!
And if you’re looking to up your Sim’s musical street cred why not check out The Sims Resource and their Punk Rebels Collection for some stunning alt and grungy looks?
