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DISCUSS. (http://thesims2.ea.com/about/sp8_index.php)

I honestly think I'm missing something big here. Is there a whole demographic of players which has remained invisible to the masses, but which makes a product like that feasible? How does it even work? Do we have a legion of housewives (and househusbands, lest I be accused of le sexism) who, not content with the real thing, feel the need to kit out their dream home with a MÄLM bedside table or some shit. I just don't get it.

I had a friend who played gran turismo, and who managed to recreate his own car in the game. Others who would put themselves as star hockey players in ea's nhl game on snes(even easier to do nowadays). It's a kind of roleplaying I guess. I wonder if you can use the expansion pack to merge different furnitures to create hybrids (like these folks do http://www.inhabitat.com/2006/06/26/hijacking-ikea/ (http://www.inhabitat.com/2006/06/26/hijacking-ikea/)).
 Then there might be potential to experiment a bit without ruining yourself.

Even if no one buys it, they'd have gotten a shitload of money from ikea?

I think many players will buy it because it brings The Sims closer to the real world. It's like in-game advertising: I like it, because it brings the game closer to the real world.

Makes sense, and as far as licensed games go, you really can't screw this one up. That is, unless the chairs spontaneously combust or something.

FPS games have fake guns modeled after real guns.

Dollhouse games now have fake furniture modeled after real furniture.

The only difference is that EA hasn't yet figured out how to get Kalashnikov  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Kalashnikov)to pay them every time they include an AK-47 in a Medal of Honor sequel.

you can buy miniature replicas of designer furniture in vinyl toys stores nowadays.
lots of classic chairs.

also, the replica ikea stuff, if done well, will probably look better than the original in game stuff. ikea's design is pretty good.
about half the pieces of furniture in my room are ikea.

Product placement; nothing new, I guess. The only difference is that they've taken all that licensed stuff and put it into a nice do-not-buy expansion. Good idea.

In terms of unabashed product placement in video games, I think the bar was already about as low as it can go:

(http://img386.imageshack.us/img386/5200/pepsiman3sl.jpg)

Except... Pepsiman is actually pretty awesome (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN5ZuE7SZdU). :'(

he was in fughting vipers, too!

No, I think that the The Sims™ 2 H&M™ Fashion Pack was a slightly lower low.
http://thesims2.ea.com/about/sp5_index.php (http://thesims2.ea.com/about/sp5_index.php)

If this was really about getting designer items into your game (which I have nothing against in itself) they could at least go a little upmarket.

Now if that isn't some amazing escapism...

I want a Sims 2: Console Wars edition.

Watch your kid yelling at people over Xbox Live, while Dad plays on his SNES and the cat accidentally pulls the power plug out. Includes blowing into cartridges to make them work.

Another addon would introduce modchips and piracy.