Had you guys seen this video before and I’m the only one who missed it?!

I was looking around YouTube last night and found this IGN video review of Sims 3 and decided to share it with you guys. Though nothing ground breaking or profound is said, it’s nice to hear another person talk so nicely about a game that has wormed its way into my cold, cold heart.

Good review that looks at all parts of the game including the online features.

The contestants have been chosen and like I said just a few minutes ago, now’s the time to vote for your favorite. If you don’t want to have to go to The Sims YouTube page to watch them, then you can watch them here. But, make sure that once you have your choice in mind that you vote on the YouTube page since your vote won’t officially count if you just leave a comment here.

Contestant #1

Contestant #2

Contestant #3

Contestant #4

[#4 is my favorite]

If you submitted a video to EA’s Live the Dream contest or if you have heard about then you should know that NOW is the time to be voting for your favorite entrant.

Go to The Sims YouTube page, watch the videos and cast your vote. There’s some really great stuff there that I know you’ll enjoy.

Image via screen grab

Now there are some of you who take your Sims just a bit too seriously and you’re not going to find the humor in this video and that’s OK. But, this is funny and it’s cute and I mean, seriously? It has mice. It has to be cute.

The MySims publicity people are working overtime to bring cool/funny video content to drive interest to their games and I hope they don’t stop. I have a feeling that this will be the first in a series of MiceSims videos.

Sims 3, Sims 3, Sims 3.

Don’t we have anything else to talk about?

I have a nice video for you from the producer of MySims Racing-Troy San Jose. Tons of features and customization are shown and there is a lot of gameplay.

While I’m not normally a fan of racing games, MySims Racing is just freakin’ cute.

Give the video a look and let me know what you think.

According to CNet, The Sims 3 sold 1.4 million units following the June 2nd release. That makes The Sims 3 the most impressive launch of a PC game in EA’s history.

We all knew that The Sims 3 was going to rock and I’m sure that EA was just a bit concerned by the news of torrents being available prior to the game’s launch and what effect that might have on sales. But, all that doesn’t seem to have affected the sales one little bit.

If The Sims 3 sold this many games in one week, imagine just how many units will be sold during the remainder of the year. Heck, Christmas isn’t even here yet and you and I both know that there are a lot of Simmers out there who have The Sims 3 on their list for Santa.

Big things [and sales] are coming for EA with this most recent addition to the Sims stable. And from what I’ve seen thus far [I haven't gotten much farther than the Create-a-Sim screen] all of the hype and big sales numbers are totally justified.

If you haven’t gotten your copy of The Sims 3 just yet, you might want to get on that. You don’t know what you’re missing.

Image|EA

Just read that title over and over again. It’s fun. I’ll wait.

TOMORROW, folks. Tomorrow! [I appologize to the Brits. It's not my fault that I'm in the US and get Sims 3 "early".] Is anyone else on this side of the pond as excited as me? Yeah. I thought so.

Like a good blogger, I found you some more screenshots. And by “more” I mean a TON. Some are from the PC/Mac version and some are from the iPhone/iPod Touch version. I doubt you’ll care. You’ll be drooling too much.

Enjoy!

Images|EA

I like pretty pictures. You like pretty pictures. We all like pretty pictures.

And, with Sims 3 just days away, I see no reason why I shouldn’t share every single pretty picture that I can find. That way you can stare at your computer screen and slowly wipe away the drool that’s running down your chin as you take in the freakin’ awesomeness that is Sims 3.

Pay special attention to how well everything “fits”. I’m sure these were taken on a computer with more processing power than all of my computers put together but check out the great appliances and the lighting. I basically want you to bask in the glory of Sims 3 and sit on your hands until the game comes out.

Pretty, pretty picture time.

Images|EA

Oh nos!

Sims 3 is out, y’all. It’s out on the interweb and I bet a lot of you didn’t even know it. Granted, it’s totally illegal and you should feel 100% bad and dirty if you download it but it is out there.

Now, I’m not going to link to the torrents [meaning illegal ass stuff] because that stuff is bad, and wrong and I don’t need the heat but it is out there and I’m sure that EA is just a tiny bit pissed by this development. They delayed the release of a MUCH awaited game and have spent tons of money only to have it leaked two weeks before launch.

I can’t help but wonder where the torrent originated.

Did a reviewer leak the game? Did a disgruntled employee leak it?

In the end, I suppose it doesn’t matter to anyone other than EA where the torrent came from. Now, EA has to do damage control and hope that the leaked version isn’t a buggy version that will discredit all of their hard work.

Image|EA

EA released a press release yesterday that details the cool stuff that’s coming up as far as online content is concerned.

From the release:

• The Sims 3 Store: Included with purchase of the game is $10 worth of SimPoints, which players receive when they first register their game online at TheSims3.com. They can use their SimPoints towards downloading exclusive in-game items from The Sims 3 Store to customize their game. For additional items, players can purchase bundles of 500, 1000 and 2000 SimPoints in $USD, EUR, GBP and other major international currencies using a variety of payment methods including international and national credit cards, PayPal, and EA cash cards (in North America only). Whether it’s the must-have new outfit or the latest style of plaid furniture, players have the opportunity to further customize and populate their Sims world with additional items.
• Game Launcher: The Game Launcher is the key entry point for players into TheSims3.com community. This hub page connects players to both the Store and the Exchange, and provides them with news and information about game updates. Players can keep track of their downloads, uploads, installs, game updates and their media portfolio that includes the videos and photos they can capture while playing the game. The Game Launcher also alerts players to new content in the store, localized game and store promotions along with relevant updates to the Store and cool new content from the community.
• TheSims3.com Site: With the launch of the game on June 2, the marketing website at TheSims3.com will be replaced with the full community and product site for the game. The site will not only connect players, encourage new ways to be creative in the game, and offer personally relevant information for each user, it also will serve as the hub site where players can share their content with other members, and embed them on social networking sites and blogs.
• Key Site Features:
  • The Exchange: Building off of The Sims 2 Exchange’s success of more than 100M downloads, The Sims 3 Exchange highlights featured items, most popular downloads, powerful search and browse capabilities, along with giving players the ability to see what other players are recommending.
  • Create a Movie and Create a Story: New easily accessible tools inspire creativity and allow players to create movies and stories and then show them off or share them with friends. Players can show off their Movies with the Create a Movie Tool by embedding them on external sites or with an email link back to their Movie on TheSims3.com.
  • My Page and My Studio: The Sims 3 product site will allow players to maintain their profile pages on their My Page section as well as offering them the new My Studio section to manage all their creations - Movies, Stories, Exchange objects. My Page is also a blog space where players can post news, customize it with a personal avatar, track favorites and more. Users can make friends with other The Sims 3 players and share their content across a number of social network sites.

Image| EA