Customer Reviews

The Sims: House Party Expansion Pack

5 star:		(115)
4 star:		(43)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I've had this game for less than 24 hours so I'll give you the skinny on what I know so far:

To me, the best part is watching them dance in the Dance Cages. The way they dance and the noises they make are absolutely hilarious. They literally shake their booty!

Then there's the Mechanical Bull. You can have your Sim choose whether he or she wants to ride Easy, Medium or Difficult. So far my Sims have been knocked on their tail and one even landed on her head when she was thrown from the bull! Plus, the bull makes noises and it's just like being at a rodeo.

There's a bubble blower. New counters. New bookcases. New bars. New windows. New doors. New wallpapers. Lots of new, cool-looking furniture. New sinks. A futuristic-looking shower that has a "10" for hygiene. New stairs. Lots of fences.

Even a queue line so your Sims will be orderly in the bathroom line without walking in on each other. Oh, and there's a male and female door so your Sims will know which bathroom to go in! A "special" punch that makes the Sims do weird things (my Sims keep drinking and drinking the punch but nothing strange has happened yet). A male or female dancer will pop out of a cake (very funny).

Your Sims (up to 8 of them) can sit around a campfire. There, they can roast marshmallows, sing (you'll recognize some of the songs in that special Sim language) and they can tell stories. One of my Sims was telling a ghost story (you could tell by his actions) - Well, a ghost rose up from the middle of the fire! Everyone ran and one guy actually had a little bladder problem when he saw the ghost.

Now onto the dance floor. When your Sims dance on the special dance floor tiles, the floor changes color. They even dance differently to each music style. For example, they boogie when you play Disco, look like they're square dancing when you play Country and raise their hands in the air when you play Rap.

You've probably heard about the costume trunk. All you have to do is direct one Sim to change and they all automatically change. The different clothes styles are formalwear, beach, club, togas, western, costumes, disco and swimwear. The swimwear one isn't just their normal bathing suit either. It's all sorts of swimwear.

Instead of clicking on the neighbor's name and inviting everyone individually, there's now a "Throw Party" option on the telephone.

There are also non-player characters that show up to your party. I had some techno-looking girl show up. If you have a great party then a celebrity might show up. No word on who that celebrity is. And when your party is a bust, a mime shows up! Let's just say my first party was a bust!!

You can also hire a caterer to keep the plates filled. When the Sims walk up to the buffet table, they may grab a plate of cake or a plate of regular food. It's fun just to see what they're going to eat!

The caterer cleans up everything, talks, dances and even starts messing around with the costume trunk. He'll take clothes out and see how they'd look on him.

The Sims also play charades. Look for the "Parlor Game." From what I've seen an unlimited amount of Sims can play charades. When they get it right you hear a ding.

The reviews I read said there was going to be an oxygen bar for energy so the Sims would stay longer. I've looked and looked and don't see one. So yes, the Sims usually leave around 1 a.m. The police still show up too.

I have run into certain technical glitches. I have a brand new computer and Livin' Large ran just great on it. No problems. Not slow at all.

House Party does run a little slower and it's extremely slow when I have a whole bunch of people over. My Sims don't shake hands anymore either. Now they actually shake hands with the air. I'm not sure what that's all about. And I'll also be in one part of my Sims house and - all of a sudden - the game will kick me into a completely different part of the house. It's not enough to make me regret buying House Party, though.

I hope this review helps. I was skeptical about buying this game because I really wasn't sure if it was going to live up to its hype. I definitely think Maxis has struck gold again!

The Sims is an amazing game but after buying the and using the objects over and over you crave something more. That's what these expansions are for!!! They 'expand' you game (hence the name) by providing tons more wallpaper, skins, floors, building options, and objects. Also introduced are new game concepts:

-New NPC's: The Caterer, The Exotic Dance ;), the Tragic Mime, The Campfire Ghost, Party Crashers, and more

-Objects such as the dance floor, DJ booth, punch bowl (with side effects), costume trunk, mechanical bull, etc. radically can make or break a party.

- 3 new themes, rave, hula, and country, come with objects, decorations, and skins costume built

Check this game out! It'll give you tons more fun with The Sims!

This game is an expansion pack for the wildly popular game of the year for 2000, The Sims. Putting it basically, if you liked The Sims, you'll love this! It adds a TON of new objects, some of the best being: Campfire, which your Sims group around and sing songs, roast marshmellows, or tell stores; Mechanical Bull, which your Sims can ride for fun and the hard to get Body skill points; The Cake of Surprises, which will give you an exotice dancer; the Costume Trunk, which puts all of your Sims in the same genre of outfits; the Bubble Blower, a fun object for four Sims; the catering table, which holds many types of foods for your guests to grab whenever they want; the DJ table, with several types and new music; and the dance floor, totally awesome!! In addition to these, it adds plenty of new objects such as chairs, tables, and other common objects that can be used any time. It is now easier then ever to throw a party. Your Sims can go to the phone and select "Throw Party" and every other Sim they've met in the neighborhood will drop by. Then you can get ready for some serious socialzing! The expansion also adds things like floors, fences, and walls, and an awesome elevator! There are many new build mode objects. Then, there are the NPCs. The caterer, who keeps your table filled (for a fee), the Mime, male and female dancers, the Party Crasher, the campfire ghost, Drew Carey, and even more are rumored... If you liked The Sims and Livin' Large, this is a total MUST HAVE!!!

If you are a devoted 'Simmer' this game is something you will want to get.

Of the three games (The Sims and the two add-on's: Livin' Large and House Party) this is my least favorite.

House Party deals with three themes: Western, Rave and Luau.

Some of the objects that have been packaged with this game are very nice. There are some new windows and doors which is a very good thing as there can never be enough of them in my opinion. There is a transporter of sorts in the stairs section along with some new wallpapers and floors to fit the themes.

In the objects section you will find a trunk of clothing containing costumes for a toga party, an Indian costume and other fun things for your Sims to wear while having fun. A campfire around which you can sing songs, a mechanical bull, dancing cage, disco floor, DJ equipment and speakers, buffet tables, punch bowl, western-themed furniture and a trusty pay phone can also be found.

Of all the objects my personal favorite is the cake. For 300 Simoleons you can buy a cake complete with an exotic dancer. You have your choice of a male or female dancer. They are absolutely hilarious to watch and will stick around for a while after their routine. Be careful, however, not to allow the flirting dancer to anger your Sims dearly beloved! If children are present when the cake is activated a dancer in an ape costume will come out.

There are also some new skins to work with. They are tailored to the themes of the game.

As with the previous installments of the game there are some Non-Player Characters to make things a bit more challenging:
If your party isn't great a mime will show up to help you along. For me, he is equally as annoying as the infamous Tragic Clown.
The aforementioned exotic dancer
A caterer
Campfire ghost who will make an appearance as your Sims enjoy themselves around the fire
A "celebrity guest" rumored to be Drew Carey. I can't confirm that as I am yet to see him!

I have had a few problems with House Party. The intro movie will not play and I will occasionally have problems with my game being choppy. However, these problems are not major enough to keep me from liking the game.

It is also possible that you might find some of your favorite House Party objects are the objects loyal Sim fans have Transmogrified.

The game is still very worth buying as it adds a lot of fun to an already fantastic game

This expansion rocks. I've always wanted to see what the flirtatious (to be polite) Bella Goth would be like on the dance floor, and man, I wasn't disapointed.

The Livin' Large expansion was fun, but was essentially just a collection of objects. House Party has new objects, sure--but it also has new ACTIVITIES, and new ways for your Sims to interact. In other words, it expands the gameplay of The Sims. This is a terrific expansion!

SPOILER ALERT!

And the Drew Carey character was hilarious--since it never rains, I've always stuck the pool table outside. It was so funny the first time Drew came over and started shooting pool in my backyard.

My wife and I have been hooked on the Sims so long, we really can't recall what live was like before the Sims (let alone Livin' Large.) A quirky, exciting and addictive game... it just keeps getting more and more quirky and addictive... and everytime the fun starts to wear off, either you can find neat stuff on the website or they come out with exciting expansion packs like this.

In a nut shell, in addition to all the added goodies (100+ new items according to the box, but it'll take time to get to all of them) what this expansion back does that makes it really worth while is takes the social interaction and relationship between your players to a whole new level. - - A particular problem we often have with our games that often our Sims are too busy to have social lives... and before the expansion packs, when they'd come over, all they could do was sit around, eat and watch TV (which is what real life guests do anyway) - - with this game, you can throw parties, and everyone in the neighborhood will drop by. Your Sims will tell stories around the camp fire, wip out a guitar and have group sing alongs while roasting marshmellows(the ones you grew up on, but in Sims jibberish and listen to them harmonize with each other), dance (w/ help from a DJ), even eat turkey and fall asleep left and right. - - The Sims expansion also will not only enhance your players social life (making both their life and your games more exciting) but will also boost fun level, charisma and more.

In summary, the Living Large expansion pack took the Sims to a whole new level of fun and reality... this pack does it again, and I'm sure more surprizes are to yet to come... ! ! ! (By the way, does anybody use the Sims Art Studio... is it just me... I've yet to put up a picture my Sims don't boo at ???)

First off - let me say that many of the features in this expansion pack are available for free and can be downloaded from thesims.com website. That said, the *best* features are only available on this CD.

Why only 4 stars? Primarily because it's rather expensive for only a few themes - country western, hawaiian luau, and underground rave. I've also run into my share of bugs like many of the other reviewers, including a rather annoying bug where flies circle the bathroom incessantly no matter how many times I clean everything.

On the plus side, the music is incredibly well done. In this expansion pack, the choices have been expanded (once you get the right equipment) to include many other genres such as country-dance, beach, rap, techno, and disco. The music gets stuck in your head - it's that good. I think I like the country music on here better than anything I've heard on country stations and I find myself singing the soon-to-be-famous disco tune "Dee Dee Dee Bo Bee - Bee Bo Bee Bo Pee Po" as I'm scrubbing my own (real-life) toilets.

With all this cool music there's got to be some dancing right? Another nice feature is the "Bounce-My-Booty Dance Floor" which has patterns that change as additional floors are added and daisy-chained together. I also hear celebrities show up if your party is cool enough. Hasn't happened to me yet but I'm working on it... maybe once I get that swimming pool to encircle the dance floor...

Anyways, if you're interested in any of these themes you'll have a lot of fun with the expansion pack as there are a lot of new theme-related props and decorations, from DJ systems and go-go cages to mechanical bulls to communal bongs cleverly disguised as bubble blowers. If these themes don't appeal to you, or entertaining the entire neighborhood seems like it would be a chore, then you may be better served by the additional customization available on the Living Large expansion pack or the downloads available on the many sims-related websites.

I've been playing The Sims for awhile now, and Livin' Large was even better. House Party included thigs even crazier than Livin' Large! House Party adds items that are perfect for parties, in three themes! For example, you can buy a DJ station and a blinking color dance floor with stunning prop lights! There's a trunk where you can dress your Sims in many types of clothing. The three themes added in House Party are rave, west, and Hawaiian. Hawaiian includes bamboo trees, Hawaiian shirts, toilets, showers, and many others! The west theme is really incredible, with bars, a sofa called "cow-ch", poker games, and a machanical bull! The rave theme is really cool, with DJ stations, dance floors, and a bunch of futuristic stuff! I'd recommend this game to any Sim game lovers, but get The Sims and Livin' Large first.

When I first bought the Sims last year, it literally changed my life. I've never been SO addicted to a computer game before! I think this expansion pack was much needed, because my sims always use to try to have parties prior to the expansion pack and they always failed.

This adds a lot of fun to throwing a party and takes a lot of the work out of it too! Your sims can now cater their party, hire entertainment, wear costumes, play party games, and much more. Probably the best thing about this expansion pack is that it does make it much easier to make friends and thus advance your sims carrers. Besides all the new party entertainment, you also get lots of new objects and skins too.

So gather up your sims and have them roast marshmellows around the camp fire, blow bubbles from the bubble maker, wear costumes, or dance in a cage. Don't be surprised if a few unexpected events occur though. I won't give them away, but you'll be pleasantly surprised!

I've been playing The Sims for several months and I'm still addicted, so naturally I rushed to get the House Party Expansion Pack, and naturally, I like it and I'm glad I got it. Throwing my first party was a big hoot, as was my second, and my third party... I was so into it, it was as stressful and exciting as it would have been in real life, for heaven's sakes and I really need to get out more and all that. The novelty did wear off, and I haven't had my Sims throw a party in a long time. I like starting new Sims and new households for one thing, and successful parties are expensive. (I want my parties to be successful. Unless there's some way of inflicting a slow, painful, torturous death on that mime who shows up when they're not successful. I really, really hate the mime.) I'm happy with some of the new objects and skins (I wish there were more skins); the tables, counters, wall coverings, the great new music, and so forth. But there's a feeling of lacking something and there's still very little choice in some of the objects. By the time I have my houses set up comfortably and efficiently they tend to all look the same, but perhaps that's my unimaginative style of playing. In any case, having a party really is a lot of fun, with the exotic dancers, the `bubble-blower' (heh), the caterer (who may have a secret or two hidden in his closet), the go-go cages, and the party-crashers (who are far trendier-looking than my Sims). Watch out for the bonfire; I had a Sim catch fire and die, and it was a real downer for the guests when the Angel of Death (from the Livin' Large Expansion Pack) showed up. (Hmm. Maybe there's a way to throw the mime on the fire?)

In short, having a Sim party is like finding a new group of people in real life and enjoying their company, but eventually realizing that they always do the same funny, stupid things and tell the same jokes, over and over again. But, hey, they're your friends and you love them anyway.