1. So, how did you originally get into The Sims franchise!
Chris: Even though I played the original SimCity back in the day, I didn't get into the Sims back then. What happened was I picked up the latest SimCity cheap and started looking for a podcast that was talking about it. I found The Spline, started to get interested in The Sims and finally picked it up around the time Sabrina started asking about anyone interested in guest hosting with her.
Sabrina: SimCity came out when I was in my early teens, and my brother's friend brought it over to play on his Super NES. I saw them playing it and wanted to play too. I played SimCity 2K and SimCity 3K over the years. Then I somehow heard about The Sims. I don't remember where I heard about it, but I thought that since I loved SimCity, that I'd love The Sims too so I picked it up!
2. Your podcast, The Spline has been becoming ever more popular and has seen some great reviews on iTunes, how have you reacted to the amazing reception by the community?
Chris: I do the shows for me, really. I like to talk about stuff I'm interested in and just hope other people might be interested. I'm happy to hear people are enjoying my efforts. If it means that people want to hear more of me and maybe opens up some other opportunities then that would be awesome.
Sabrina: I'm amazed it's not just me talking to myself or now me and Chris talking with no one listening. I think it's awesome that people are liking the show and listening. Every time we get any kind of feedback whether it's a Facebook like, Twitter follow, email, or review, whatever, I get excited.
3. Are you excited for The Sims 4?
Chris: I'm still reserved about it. I've recently sunk over $200 into Sims 3, so I'm hoping Sims 4 isn't just a way of EA making me buy it all again. But if Sims 4 fixes stuff like the UI, game stability, load times, the flow of time in-game and maybe adds some physics or generally feels less childish, I'll probably pick it up, if not at launch then at the first discount. Or EA could send us review copies...
Sabrina: YES!!!! I'm a sucker and I'll buy TS4 no question. If it sucks I may not get into the expansion packs, but I can't wait to see the base game.
4. What new big feature do you want to see in the next base game?
Chris: They have to fix the UI. Content lists have to have options to view in something other than thumbnails and sort in a few sensible methods. I can't find stuff I've just installed.
Multiplayer would be great too. I'd like to run a small business with someone, or even just be able to log on together, freeze or slow the flow of game time and use it as a chat room.
Integration with SimCity 2013 would be awesome too. Was I only supposed to come up with one feature?
Sabrina: I'd like to see time fixed. I've complained on the show about 2 hour pancakes before. I mean really I've gone to a popular breakfast spot on Mother's Day and it doesn't take me two hours to get pancakes there. I'd also like to see some kind of social or multiplayer option without it being The Sims Social where I can't get a job unless I have 47 friends send me 80,000 widgets.
5. If you could make a new expansion to the Sims franchise, what would it be?
Chris: Multiplayer.
Sabrina: Money. Let's get real here folks. You want a real life Sims experience? Put in bank loans, a stock market, student loans, and credit cards. Banker NPCs will be their own life-state and have horns and tails like demons.
6. Do you prefer to tell stories, build or go crazy with life on The Sims?
Chris: I'm mostly getting used to how relationships work, but I've just started getting interested in building spaces that provide some sort of attraction and charge for entry. I've decided I'm okay with just cheating for money to avoid having to worry about wasting part of most days down a job rabbit hole, so building stuff like an arcade or a gym is what I'm looking at next. I hope to learn how to do basic texture replacement on existing models soon so I can build an arcade game museum with machines that look like real ones, and also import some of my real-world photos into the game as wrapped canvases.
Sabrina: I go crazy. But I'm super nice to my Sims. I keep them happy and I never kill them. I tell stories, but in my head. I'm really bad about typing up stories and taking pictures and in general, telling them to other people. I've tried, it never works! LOL And building I'm just super terrible at.
7. Are you looking forward to the Movie Stuff pack and Into The Future?
Chris: The future stuff looks great, I'd love to see what the bots can automate, and if there are any rare parts you can make them with, but the movie stuff doesn't grab me. I'm not a huge fan of the genres they've said are in the pack. Meanwhile, there's heaps of stuff coming out all the time on the on-line store.
Sabrina: I'm looking forward to Into the Future now that we've seen more of it in the LB. Movie Stuff I could take or leave at this point. Maybe that will change when we see more of it.
8. What has been your favourite expansion pack of all time?
Chris: I still think that without Supernatural I wouldn't have bought The Sims. It made my character options interesting to me. The only time I started a game with humans was to turn them in to mermaids.
Sabrina: I really liked Makin' Magic for TS1. Second would be Seasons for TS2 & TS3. I think they added a lot of gameplay to both, especially to TS2.
9. How do you think The Sims 2 compares to The Sims 3?
Chris: I haven't played The Sims 2. I picked up a secondhand copy and got it added to Origin, but it has to wait in my queue of gaming shame before I'll get 'round to it.
Sabrina: I liked both, but I really like the open neighborhood of TS3 and the car driving and just in general the extra features we got. People like to romanticize the past but forget about the DNA problems we had in TS2. I think overall, things have gotten better.
10. Who is your favourite SimGuru?
Chris: SimGuruTofu. That's my Sims/SimCity account on Twitter now!
Sabrina: SimGuruSmitty & SimGuruLauren. Ms. Smitty because she just seems so excited about The Sims and she's very energetic. Ms. Lauren because I love her long hair. Which is not in a crazy stalker way, but because I am also a long haired geek! I identify with her! LOL I would love to hang out with both of them. We could get manis and have lunch at Chili's.
11. Favourite WooHoo spot in any game?
Chris: I haven't done that yet, believe it or not. Can I get a couple of mermaids to do it in an underwater cave? That sounds cool.
Sabrina: The shower. Because you can get your fun up and get clean all at the same time. It's multi-tasking! Plus I'm amazed that Sims can pull it off because IRL it's just not always practical.
11. And to end things off! Where do you see The Spline in five years time?
Chris: Bought by EA, maybe! ;)
Sabrina: Gosh, wow. Hopefully I'll have a house so I can have a studio with better equipment and can figure out how to make cool bumpers and music and all that. We'll be at the top of the iTunes Video Games category. And I'm sure we'll be invited to the onsite Sims Fansite events by then. :)
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