Sims 2 Castaway

Platform: Wii, PS2, DS, PSP
ERSB: E, E 10+, and Teen
Genre: Simulation
Number of Players: 1
Publisher: EA
Release Date: 10-22-2007
Official Website
Writer: Cherith

Rating : 8.0

EA has long been trying to capitalize on the popularity of the Sims franchise with console games spun-off from the same idea. These games are not ports of the PC games, but instead a taste of the simulation without the open-endedness that the PC version brings. I haven’t played all of these console expeditions, but I have given many of them try, like Sims Bustin’ Out for the PS2 and The Sims 2 for the DS. The latest venture in to the land of the console for the Sims franchise is The Sims 2 Castaway.

In Castaway, you create a crew of characters that set off on a journey by ship. Along the way, the ship is overcome by a storm, and the entire crew is shipwrecked on an island. Here begins the real adventure where you have to control your crew members and build a new life on the island, hopefully temporarily. Goals are outlined for you in books that you find on the island as you unlock new places to explore.

Amazon has a great video to see some of the best parts of this game. It’s the producer walkthrough, and it should be listed on the page for each console listing. See it here.

Graphics:
The graphics aren’t outstanding; they are similar to every Sims 2 game so far in the franchise. Your pixelated people are created with extremely limited choices when in comparison to a regular game in The Sims 2 PC line. One of the very interesting things about the look of the characters is the deterioration of their clothing over time as they explore the island. Too much climbing and falling and swimming slowly tears the clothes apart while at the same time your characters hair grows longer and more unruly to show the rough island life they’re living. It’s also worth noting that ultimately, I grabbed this for the Wii, hoping that the graphics would have at least some small improvement over a PS2 version. They don’t.

Controls:
I’ll admit to being very hesitant about picking this up on the Wii because I didn’t want to mess with the Wii-mote controls. However it didn’t take me long to warm up to the Wii-mote and Nunchuk style of control. Your Nunchuk does most of the interaction. It’s actually easier in some places to play with the Wii-mote turned away from the screen. The Wii-mote brings up the needs panel, and when it’s not pointed directly at the screen, that panel fades from view giving you a larger view of the space around your character.

Sounds:
As to be expected in a Sims game, the characters speak in their own Simlish language when interacting with each other, with crewmates, and the island’s local monkey tribe. The background music is upbeat, traditional Sims-like music with an island beat. The radio that you can eventually find on the island will play different music, which is the Sims version of some popular songs.

Flow:
Rewards are unlocked and new goals are listed as you continue to explore the island. There’s no timed feature, so you can unlock items at your leisure, taking plenty of time to explore. The hardest part about getting to the next goal is making sure that you have enough resources on hand. If you’re busy exploring (like me) sometimes you forget to continue to gather wood, or food, or vines from the jungle area around you. This can make reaching some goals more difficult if you have to travel a great distance to get to a certain resource. However, goals can be unlocked in any order, so it’s easy to keep exploring and go back later to build something after you’ve finished gathering resources and exploring to your heart’s content.

Fun Factor:
I love The Sims franchise. I’m not going to lie, so it’s easy for me to say this game is a lot of fun. As a matter of fact, I’d rather be playing right now. But, for the sake of reporting all of the facts, I’ll admit that the gathering factor to this game does make it lag in places. That’s not to say it’s still not fun, but if The Sims have never been up your alley, even with the goals to unlock, this may not be the game for you. If you’ve enjoyed the traditional Sims games on the PC, but get bored more easily because of the lack of direction, you might give this game a try. It’s the same Sims experience (meeting wants and needs) with the bonus of goals to reach to keep you moving ahead. Plus, as you explore the island, you quickly learn that there’s more to the history of this place than meets the eye. What exactly are the llama people, and what did they have to do with the nearby volcano island?

Female Aspect:
Your crew is completely determined by you. You can have a crew of five females or one. You only choose one character at a time to play, but can easily switch back and forth once your crew is reunited.

Replay Value:
What happens at the end is completely dependent on what you want your castaway experience to be like. You can build a new home, a new life on the islands with the intention to never leave, you can work on sending a radio transmission in the hopes of being rescued, or better yet, you can build your own sea worthy boat and get yourself out of there. It’s all up to you, and if you decide to play again, you can see what happens when you have a different outcome in mind.