Sims FP

• Stuart Hall in sims FP:

  • Reception theory- producers use various signs to encode a text’s meaning which is decoded by consumers who interpret the message.
  • Sims steers away from encoding and decoding meanings, players are able to create their own meaning through their own abundance of freedom.
• Stuart Hall in sims FP:

  • Reflection of theory through encoding the message of liberty/freedom through letting players create their sims.
  • Reflects negotiated reading, players can construct their own stories whilst staying within the limitations of the game.
• Gauntlett in sims:

  • Whilst everyone is an individual, people tend to exist within larger groups, media doesn’t create identities but reflects them.
  • People can get parts of their identity from the media products they consume.
  • Users can be inclined to create sims that are more like themselves due to having control over their own life, usually an idealized version of their life.
• Blumer and Katz

  • Sims FP is used through escapism, using it as a way to create perfect versions of themselves or become someone else.
• Gilroy in sims:

  • Gilroy- Movement of people across the ocean has created a dynamic intercultural identity beyond the scope of national borders and ethnic classifications.
  • Post colonialism and ethnicity- we can still see the effects of domestic concepts such as racism in media products, ethnic minorities are often shown as powerless/dehumanized whilst white western people are shown as more powerful.
• Van zoonen's Feminist theory

  • Recognition of racial diversity in sims FP, allows all accessories for any gender (only two genders, however, can be linked to Zoonen’s theory of gender beliefs changing on historical context- such as other gender identities not necessarily known as a thing when sims was published)
  • Certain amount of voyeurism in the sims FP..
• Jenkin's fandom theory

  • fans enjoy a media text so much they create content based upon it, forming a producer and audience relationship.
  • 5 levels of fan activity: A particular mode of reception, interpretive practices, a base for consumer activism, cultural production and practises, alternative social communities
  • Fandom offers an alternative reality for audiences to be a part of.
• Jenkin's and convergence:

  • Convergence theory- media convergence goes beyond a mere technological shift, insisting that it also represents a shift in industrial, cultural, and social paradigms.
  • Convergence types include: technological, economic, global, cultural.
  • Audiences may create sims based on themselves/others giving opportunity to escape this reality.
  • Convergence theory allows players to play sims and access various social medias for the fandom content/sims content.
• Baudrillard in Sims FP:

  • Hyperreality and simulacra in sims
  • Sims FP is a fake world where players control their own towns and sims (PM)
  • Sims FP social media is a simulacrum, channels are set in the real world to engage with actual users.
  • Gameplay includes everyday activities mimicking reality, becoming hyperreality.
  • Simulation of reality due to false ideas being demonstrated (each teens owning a house)
• Bandura in Sims FP:

  • Social learning theory- attention, retention, motor reproduction, motivation
  • Sims can be viewed as a child-friendly game, encouraging them to learn how to socialise and live in the real world.
  •   However, characters do not receive repercussions for actions which may be repeated and believed for actions in the real world. (e.g. being pregnant at a young age)
  • Sims directed to young feminine casual gamers 18-40
• Bandura in sims fp:

  •   Range of diverse characters genders, sexualities and ethnicity, representations are endless and inclusive of the audience, can represent themselves.
  • Symbol of death through Grim Reaper, can influence players view on death and slightly traumatise them/affect mental health.
  •   Sims is an idealistic, simplified gameplay on life, may sugar coat beliefs/hardships in real life.
• how do some DLCs reflect ideas of stereotypical gender

  The wedding bundle- reinforces stereotypical gender identities and heterosexual relationships

  Linkage to Judith Butler

  Marketing shows common gender stereotypes for this
• Media Language and Representation

  Conventions dictate character creation first, then house

  ​Representations anchored by 'innocent' non diegetic music​

  Non threatening pastel colour palette (like Candy Crush now, colour is important in terms of brand identity)​

  Most character options conform to mainstream stereotypes as a hegemonic construct although the act of 'creating a SIM' has connotations of diversity​

  Sexuality and ethnicity addressed in the game by the creation of characters - game player empowerment up to a point​
• Media Language and Representation 2

  Consumerist ideology continually referenced - defined by the products and services you buy into​

  Aerial shots often show house under construction

  ​Wide shots show individual rooms

  ​Mise-en-scene includes objects and props that define domestic interiors and even status e.g. hot tubs, soft furnishings ​

  But, achievement and status is dependent on skill - levels​
• Strategic Life Simulation Genre Conventions

  Sub genre of Simulation

  ​Representation of the real world commonly includes domestic environments - build homes, get married, get a job, have children

  ​Activities in real life are copied by the game player​

  Normally no long term goals, only short term - open ended narratives that resist closure

  ​Character based - normally you are one character but you can create others ​
• Whats good about the Sims FP customization?

  Unlike other media products, video games (particularly sims) allow audiences to shape the representations themselves instead of giving fixed representations to digest. They offer a range of ethnicities and possibilities for sexual identity unlike the stereotypical white male hero character.
• What is bad about the Sims FP customization?

  Players are able to manipulate the game options to create intolerant worlds (not a promotion of racism but players are free to perform this)
• Stereotypical gender representation in Sims FP

  Women are shown taking on domestic roles of childcare in the adverts

  Men are shown playing sports and working

  Reinforces typical gender roles in the family and life