Smarter Sims, Have You Ever Seen One?

Haven't played TS/TS2 in a very long time so don't really remember. TS3 I play frequently enough to have observed just how complex and realistic the Sim A.I. is to imitating human behavior.

Playing TS3 is like swimming. Some only swim on the surface never truly exploring and seeing all there is to see, while some delves deep to really see this game for what it really is. There's a reason why TS3 A.I. is praised by many including me. For those who know how to read people that skill also transfers to Sims as well. As long as you know your Sims lives and what happens to them and understanding human emotion and the psychology behind why humans do what they do, then you have the key to unlocking the deeper and mature gameplay.

This is why I describe The Sims 3 like an interactive soap opera. The Sims tell their own stories, live their own lives and personally my role as director is to guide them through life as best as I can. Through good times, heartbreaks and hardships, all of it.

Anyway, here's an example of what I observe in my game. By the way, I play with high free-will, no story progression and do not micromanage, thus, allowing me to truly see what the A.I. is capable of without my constant intervention. This way, my Sims reveal so much about themselves too. There's so much unscripted stuff the A.I. does if you pay attention.

https://forums.thesims.com/en_us/discussion/comment/17298219#Comment_17298219

There are so many things in this game that are hidden, as in, not mentioned as a feature or does not appear a part of the U.I. Or sometimes things that got buried in the early interviews of TS3 like Sims being able to take notice of other Sims when they wear something revealing or liking their body because they actually have awareness of other Sims and their environment. I have this one Sim who loved kept looking at his friend's behind, lol. And no there wasn't anything or a pet on the floor that he could have been looking at because I checked. And some Sims like breast.



It's good to know the relationship dynamics between Sims as well because that's very revealing too. Though that can be tough to get the whole picture of a household if you rotate with a lot of families but rotating is great because you fill in more pieces of the puzzle through the perspective of other Sims and how their stories intertwine.

Unscripted facial expressions, body language, actions and reactions, etc are also dead giveaways to how Sims are feeling or trying to communicate with the player. Yes, I notice the Sims A.I. can communicate and also have an opinion on how I am guiding them through life. Which is why sometimes they refuse to listen to me when I insist on telling them to do something they do not want. And sometimes will even give me an annoyed facial expression after they keep intentionally dropping whatever it is from their queue and do whatever they want. But that happens every once and a while as I try to direct them according to their personality, what they want and not necessarily what I envision.



The great thing about TS3 A.I. and A.I. driven stories is that I never get bored. It's a dynamic game and never static. There's always something new I'm learning, even after 11+ years. Personally one of my favorite games. :p