As soon as the Discover University expansion pack was announced, we knew we needed to have it in our hands. As two university students that love to play with life-simulation games like The Sims, this expansion was all that we wished for and more. Why stress out with your schoolwork when you can stress out your sim with theirs? We talked for weeks on end about the different news and what we expected from the game until we finally got it. So, these two simers gladly sat down to play with it to give you our review!
What is your favorite thing about the pack?
Alana Meléndez: I love the “Create a Sim” (CAS) section of this expansion pack. My favorite thing about TheSims franchise is creating the sim. I could easily spend hours just creating them. So this new batch of features is perfect! The tattoos are to die for, and the clothes aren’t just beautiful, but they also mesh well with the other packs. It’s probably the best CAS out of all the expansions. It’s colorful, fresh, and makes you wish you had all the clothing items in your closet. The gameplay is nothing to frown upon either.
Aimar Galarza: Of all the things that this expansion brought, I would have to say that my new favorite feature is how the grading system TheSims relates so much to real life. So, in other words, I love the gameplay in itself: asking people about their degrees, emailing professors to know about your progress, checking for scholarships, and so much more!
Is it anything like real life?
Just got the university expansion pack for Sims. If I gotta be doing online school she do too
— star syah? (@nasyahluv) March 29, 2020
AM: I always joke with my friends that, while you are studying, your life consists of four tasks: studying, sleep, food, and social life. The trick is that you can only choose three. Discover University only further proved my point right. My sim, Lena Novak, a future journalist, struggled through every semester trying to balance all four. Her social life suffered the most, but sometimes studying took away all the time, and she would pass out. That isn’t too different from real life. Every student juggles their needs around to make do, and sometimes we just don’t have time to eat! So yes, I would say that is pretty accurate for a life simulation.
AG: I laughed so much when I realized how close to reality the Discover University expansion pack really was. My sim, Dawn Pruitt, was studying to be a master chef, so she had to buy textbooks on cooking and focus on doing her homework for her classes. There weren’t any kitchens to practice with on campus, so that was a significant downfall for her studies. However, she always enjoyed and learned by watching the cooking channel.
The reality of almost not having a social life and the pressure to study for upcoming tests and projects is something that you see in this expansion. If she took four classes each term, her grades would fall because it was too much work to take care of, and therefore, her grades went down. Also, living the dorm life was difficult when roommates decided to make parties with loud music while your sim tried to sleep. Yeah, it’s pretty realistic.
How challenging is the gameplay?
AM: It’s not impossible to keep your sim alive and get straight A’s, but it isn’t easy either (tell that Lena, who got two Fs.) It’s all about balancing the college responsibilities with the necessities. Keep an eye out on everything when the time is right, and you’ll achieve it. If not, you can always use cheats (a small perk of not being real life)!
AG: For those of you who want a real challenge with this expansion, don’t use cheats, and you’ll get to see how hard it is for your sim to succeed. It’s not impossible to do well in your sim’s classes, but you’ll have to balance the time to make your sim do homework and not let him or her procrastinate.
What was your sim’s GPA at the end of the game?
AM: B+ in five semesters, with zero cheats, two Fs, five passports, and three bladder accidents in between. In the end, Lena is alive, got her diploma and her dream job as a journalist, so overall, not a bad job!
AG: 4 A+, 1 C, 1 D, 1 B, 2 C-, and 3 B+ with a total of 12 classes. Her GPA ended up being a B, so it all went super well, and she developed a lot of skills on her journey to becoming a graduate chef!
Is the game worth it the money?
Just got the university expansion pack for Sims. If I gotta be doing online school she do too
— star syah? (@nasyahluv) March 29, 2020
AM: A 100% yes! Like I said before, the CAS is fantastic. The gameplay is everything I hoped for and adds a new level of difficulty and realism to the game. The other features, such as school groups, new jobs, robots, and the secret society, are fantastic. I’m not much of a builder, but the items are beautiful and practical, considering they mesh well with the other packs. All in all, I would recommend it to anyone without a doubt!
AG: Yes, yes, and yes! I honestly wasn’t expecting the game to have so many similarities to real life. There was even a moment where my sim ended up not having breakfast to get to class early, which totally related to me in all my college years. There’s so much more to explore in this expansion apart from school grades, such as student societies, activities, juice pong, E-sports, and so much more! My sim didn’t get to go to many activities because of her studies. Still, if you decide to take it easy with very few classes each semester, you’ll have more free time to explore all the other things that Discover University brings. So what are you waiting for? Buy it now!
Wait for the next discount and don’t even doubt in buying the expansion! We promise that you’ll have a blast!