As part of the
Day Zero Project, one of the things on my list is to play through a family on Sims 3 ... but through 20 generations. Most of my progress with the DZP will be tracked through my other blog,
The Desultory Housewife, but as this was a goal concerning games I felt it was more fitting to post about it here.
But back to the goal. 20 generations. That is a lot of game time in the Sims 3. My record is only eight generations, and even that was trying my patience. For the record, I am keeping their lifespans set to normal, with only slight extensions on the sliders for adulthood. I am not a point keeper for legacy challenges, and I am not using any cheats. The family I've chosen for the challenge, so far, hasn't reached that boring point, but that's probably only because everyone is diverse enough that I'm able to keep my interest up and not get bored.
The founder, Duncan Polk, started with a big empty lot, no money, a nothing but a dream. His temporary wife (who broke his heart and left him with two small children) almost broke that dream, but he pulled through, becoming a great scientist and thinker, and has now passed the torch on to his son and heir so that he can rest peacefully in that great neighborhood in the sky.
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| Meebo, gen2 |
His son Meebo is a fantastic gardener, and most of the family's income is derived from the sale of his produce. I realized while playing this sim that the gardener career becomes exponentially more and more difficult to level, because each level requires you to pretty much reach what you've made cumulatively in sales already. 50k worth of vegetables is a lot of times spent in the dirt.
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| Lana, gen2 |
Here is Meebo's sister, Lana. She's a writer and a painter, and I'm debating moving her out of the house as it's getting a bit full. Turns out royalties from books are a great way to make money, so between the seven or so books she's written and the occasional painting, she proves to be a good asset to the family's bank account, which in a house as large as theirs, is a very very good thing. There's always something broken or something that needs remodeling. Yes, I said it. NEEDS remodeling. Because, you know, that wall just has to go.
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| Kesha, gen2; and Pascal, gen3 |
Next are Meebo's wife and son-in-law, Kesha and Pascal. Kesha was Meebo's highschool sweetheart, and I was thrilled when I was able to get them to agree to marriage. Pascal came over from France, and while he's in the military now, his dream is to one day have a thriving nectary. They both enjoy pursuits of the mind, so they often play chess together on fine summer days (which, coincidentally enough, it is always a fine summer day in Appaloosa).
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| Mio, gen3 |
Meebo has two daughters. The eldest, Mio, is married to Pascal, and is a great equestrian. Her two horses, Cameo, and Cascade's First Cameo, are both prize winners, and she spends every day training them to be better racers and jumpers. Here we see her with Cascade's First when she was just a little filly. It's actually kind of a good thing that the house is full right now and Mio can't have any children with Pascal, because the horses are a handful! One of the interesting things I noticed with Mio is that genetic traits in the Sims 3 can skip a generation. I gave Duncan yellow eyes as a genetic marker, just to see how it was passed down, and while it skipped Meebo, Mio has them. It looks like my Sims are doomed to be blondes though, as Meebo got his mother's blonde hair, and Kesha is blonde, and Mio and Satele are both blonde as well. Pascal is a brunette, so maybe there is hope yet for some darker hair, but I'm pretty sure Duncan's spitfire red hair, which only Lana seems to have inherited, will be lost forever. Mio will be the next heir, and the family name also changed to Morel with her marriage to Pascal. No more Polk :(
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| Satele, gen3 |
Meebo's younger daughter is Satele. She's only in grade school right now, but one day she hopes to be a great martial artist and athlete. Here we see her doing her homework under the watchful gaze of her grandfather's portrait. She is a dedicated student, and if I'm able to keep her in the house and not move her out to make room for heirs I'll probably send her on adventures overseas to participate in martial arts tournaments and collect rare treasures. Maybe. Don't know. She's kind of whiny right now, so she's getting on my nerves.
They also have a dog and a cat, Tiffany the beagle and Gilbert the cat. Gilbert is getting pretty up there in age, and I think he might go to be with Duncan soon. Tiffany is a proud hunter, and brings home jewels and bones and rare stones every day.
I will probably post an update once I get to generation 6 or something like that. Hopefully my save won't corrupt or anything.
