User manual GAMES PC THE LOST VIKINGS

[. . . ] This isn't just a computer game, you know. Most computer games present the player with a fixed point of view: You might be directly battling devils or demons behind the joystick, or you might have a character within the game that acts as your directed emissary. Sometimes you might simply be an observer in an artificial place, space, or time. Yet even simulations hold you within a closed mindset of sorts, however many the alternatives. [. . . ] If the Sim refuses the invitation, they tell you why: "Your place isn't big enough, " or "We don't know each other well enough, " or "I'm in a bad mood today. " So if Swingin' Sammy Sim happens to have a lot of dough and a few kids as well, when he's invited to move into Vivacious Vic Velvetsim's house, all of Sammy's assets and his children come with him. What About the Rest of the Family?As indicated above, the newcomer Sim can have a variety of prior home situations that determines what happens when he or she moves in: Household Simoleon assets are merged, a job (with carpool) is carried over to new home, and school bus pickup is carried over. To clarify other conditions and results: If Sammy was the only adult in his household, any kids in that house come with him. Sammy's money comes with him if he's the only adult in his house. Otherwise, kids and cash stay with the old household, which still has at least one adult to manage them. In those instances of single-adult houses now vacated, the house is emptied and is on the market for you real-estate speculators. 46 47 MARRIAGE Your Sims do have some traditional romantic leanings: They can propose to one another, and if the mood's right, they can get married. In fact, they like it so much, they can get married to more than one Sim!(Remember now, this is the Sims' world, not ours. You might think these multiple marriages are an advantage, but think of all the additional junk-mail credit card offers you'd have to throw away). Only opposite-sex relationships qualify for a proposal of marriage. Marriage is the only means to bring an opposite-sex character into the house to stay (i. e. , male Sims cannot invite female friends to Move In). (Maybe the proposer forgot he or she was already married). And your married Sims you know from certain houses can visit an active house and get married again. You won't see any direct game consequences from these multiple marriages, though it's anybody's guess how individual marriages might work out. Wedding ceremonies are great social gatherings, and pretty much everyone agrees the marriage should take place, even among the already married. Sims do not turn down many party invitations. 48 49 BABIES AND SUCH If you give your sexy Sims' batteries enough charge on the Romance scale (think passionate kisses), a dialog box appears letting you choose for them to have a baby. If you do play the stork, the resulting baby needs to be taken care of for three Sim days in order for it to mature into a child. That means some Sim in the house must put the baby to sleep and feed it in a regular fashion. Remember, choosing not to have the baby does hinder household growth possibilities, and growth is a means of game progression. However, turning down the baby once doesn't mean it won't happen again--your Sims are pillars of fertility, after all. A while after a baby refusal, the baby choice situation can become an active possibility again. If your Sims do get the baby bundle, another small stretch of time must go by before the situation has a chance of coming up again. [. . . ] Alexander (June 1970), Harvard University Press; ISBN: 0674627512 A Pattern Language : Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein (1977), Oxford University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0195019199 Architecture : Form, Space, & Order by Frank D. Ching (February 1996), John Wiley & Sons; ISBN: 0471286168 Housing by Lifestyle : The Component Method of Residential Design by James W. Wentling (November 1994) McGraw-Hill; ISBN: 0070692939 Time for Life : The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time by John P Robinson, Geoffrey . Godbey (Contributor), Robert Putnam (June 1997)Pennsylvania State University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0271016523 Maps of the Mind by C. [. . . ]