Review: The Sims Medieval

After releasing the third game in The Sims franchise back in 2009, and its subsequent expansion Late Night a year later, Electronic Arts and Sims Studio have diverted from the traditional sims formula with their latest release.

While easily mistakable for "sims at the Renaissance festival" at a glance, Sims Medieval is far deeper and quest-oriented than any game in the series. Similar to Sims 3, you start out by either making a custom sim or choosing from a list of presets. Unlike Sims 3, however, you don't have a choice of career aspirations; you are the monarch of your own little kingdom. You choose two of several traits for your sim like "fun-loving," or the ever-wonderful "whale ate my parents." Then you select a mandatory fatal flaw (every king has to have a dark side, right?) like leaning too heavily on the bottle, or just being a plain ol' bastard.

Once you've got your ruler, the next step is to pick a quest. Quests are the biggest difference in terms of gameplay from the previous Sims titles. They add a constant feel of progression to Medieval and, while you always have a quest of some variety (and they are varied), you can stop at any point and do whatever you want without fear of failing that quest.

Some quests offer multiple ways to complete them.

In addition to quests, The Sims Medieval uses a resource system which allows the player to add buildings to their kingdom. Go off into the woods to chop down trees for wood, or into the local cave to mine for metal. When you've accumulated enough resources, visit your trusty builder and he'll put your hard work to use. You can erect common buildings such as a tavern or a barracks (among other structures), or save up your resources for a wizard's tower or marketplace. While building construction adds a personal touch to each kingdom, the layout of the land can't be changed, meaning if you wanted to build a tavern, the only place it could be built is in its predesignated spot on the map.

The Sims Medieval may use The Sims 3's engine, but they look and play nothing alike. Sure they both have a point-and-click system, but Medieval's interface has been streamlined so well that the experience is like comparing apples and oranges. Medieval does away with most of the sims upkeep like bathing and happiness, and in its place is a system that revolves around your monarch's ability to rule up to snuff. Do the villagers hate you for being too oppressive? Did you meet the deadline for that new peace treaty with the neighboring kingdom? Medieval's new system is all about you ruling a kingdom, not micro-managing your sims's moodlets.

Overall, The Sims Medieval provides an enjoyable experience. The quests keep the game fresh and the redesigned system which emphasizes being a ruler over mood management makes for a more fluid game. Far from a ho-hum expansion, Medieval provides an experience that is a genuine departure from previous iterations, and is sure to please series veterans as well as those who were turned off by the series' traditional suburban style or micro-management.