Ophelia Nigmos - Week 1 & Freshman Year

Next on the alphabetical list is the Nigmos-Specter household in Strangetown.

For Olive Specter, Maxis have prepared a background story. Based on their pictures and on Olive's memories, we can assume that Olive (pictured here as a young bride, crying because she has just been left at the altar) was married several times, but none of her husbands lived very long. 

This one might one of her husbands from when she was younger. The hula girls obviously mean that he died VERY soon after planting that passionate kiss on Olive. 

This one may be her last husband, and the only one shown in her family tree: Ichabod Specter. Olive's maiden name is Muenda. She has a son (who, legend has it, was fathered by the Grim Reaper himself - but the family tree does not show this). Anyway, we know her son: Nervous Subject, who went to live with Circe and Loki Beaker for reasons not fully explained.

Olive had a sister, Willow. She died, and Willow's daughter Ophelia Nigmos came to live with her aunt. 

Ophelia is pictured here in what we are probably to understand as a school hallway, where she meets Johnny Smith, the only green-skinned boy in school and, like herself, something of the odd one out. In Ophelia's relationship panel, Johnny is shown as her boyfriend. This is the last of the Maxis-made pictures.

Here is the house where Olive and her niece live. The Maxis-written household bio reads: "Olive will stop at nothing to get what she wants. She spends her time collecting mushrooms, sharpening sticks, and excavating her yard."

There is a graveyard in the otherwise rather barren garden, holding the tombstones of Olive's late husbands. On top of the large plot of land and the well furnished house, there are over 41,000 Simoleons in cash.

Here is Ophelia Nigmos as we find her on this Tuesday, when the game starts at this household. She is only two days away from adulthood. For a Family Sim, she has the rather unusual wish to become Professional Party Guest. Maybe she wants to follow in her aunt Olive's footsteps. 

Anyway, according to Maxis, her "hobbies include hypochondria and monitoring the air quality. She worries about the future... and the past... and the present.". 

Her aunt Olive is 63 years old and does indeed work as a Professional Party Guest. As soon as I enter the lot, a message informs me that she wishes to retire - maybe making way for her niece. She is a Knowledge Sim and dreams of maxing out all her skills. She'll get a fair chance, but I doubt that she will live long enough, even if she spends all her time skilling.

The house has a dark, moody atmosphere. From the bottom left corner, we find a single bedroom (Ophelia's) with an en-suite bathroom, opening into a living room. From there, one reaches the large dining room with the adjacent kitchen. A small ante-room leads to Olive's bedroom, also with an en-suite, and a small, empty room in the top right corner.

The graveyard is interesting: Not only are Ophelia's parents buried here alongside Olive's parents, as you would expect. Lyla Grunt, General Buzz Grunt's late wife, can also be found here, as can a Luc Smith (related to the Smith family?) and several other townies. And of course, the names of Olive's husbands are all word plays, some funnier than others. I guess Hugh Thanasia is my favourite, but Rigger Mortis and of course Earl E. Demise and Tim Lee Demise are good, too.

As per Maxis' instruction, I have Olive phone work and retire from her job. Since it is already evening when the game starts, that first day at the Specter-Nigmos-household is very short. 

Aunt and niece aren't friends yet, but I want them to be - after all, Olive is all the family Ophelia has left since her parents died. Therefore, they start Wednesday morning with a good game of kicky bag until the school bus arrives. 

On her own, Olive studies cooking and fulfills some of her skilling wishes.

At 1:00 pm, Ophelia comes running in with an A+ report, happily showing it to her aunt. 

The two ladies have grilled cheese; tomorrow, she promises, there will be fried eggs, sunny side up. 

That night, Lyla Grunt's ghost haunts the place. She only enters the house briefly and doesn't wake anyone, in spite of making the toddler xylophone tinkle when she floats through Ophelia's room.

Then something really strange happens: She curls up on the paved court between the house and the graveyard. Have you ever seen a ghost do this? This strange behaviour is repeated several times for the next few hours.

It is already Thursday morning when Willow Nigmos' ghost appears. She was Olive's sister and Ophelia's mother, and because she had died by drowning, her ghost is pale blue and very hard to see. She doesn't bother anyone, just makes her rounds, leaving puddles everywhere.

Olive isn't afraid of ghosts in general, and even less so of her sister's. She just spends good part of the night mopping up puddles and pulling up weeds that grow because of those puddles. 

After school that day, Ophelia is happy to find her acceptance letter for college in the mail box.

She and her aunt kiss and embrace one last time, then she's off. 

The taxi has just dropped her off at La Fiesta Tech. I would have liked for her to join the dorm where all the other playable students from Strangetown live, such as the Grunt boys, but that one is full to bursting, and nobody is going to leave anytime soon.

Instead, Ophelia gets a room at Oasis Dormitory, where I have placed some former NPC teens from Strangetown because of their "playable" surnames.

She is made welcome right away with a dance session in the hall - Freshmen only :-) 

Over Mac & Cheese at the small cafeteria, Ophelia is introduced to her dorm mates properly. Sitting with her is River Smith. 

At the other table are Christopher Hart and Shenene Kim. It is nice that they all show wishes about being friends with the others. River Smith's biggest wish is to get engaged with DJ Verse! 

To my pleasure, Ophelia's fun level is high enough after some more dancing and a session at the easel for her to complete her very first Term Paper on her very first evening at the dorm. 

The next morning, the campus coach arrives, apparently deep in thought about whom he should pester into working out today. 

He turns out to be a nice man, though, even cracking a joke when he and Ophelia get talking (he really did!). His name? Curtis Love - that makes him a potential future resident of Strangetown!

The next morning, I find Ophelia and Christopher dancing away to the music from the radio that was already in her room when she moved in. As usual, students have no problem with others seeing them in just their undies, or their PJs.

River has now rolled the wish to have his first kiss, and since DJ Verse is the one he is in love with, he invites the entire sorority over. Their first kiss brings him into Platinum for the rest of the day, while the other girls chat away, dance with the students living at this dorm, watch TV or play at the computer. 

The day of the end of term exam has arrived, and Ophelia helps herself to a pile of sugary pancakes in the canteen for a boost of energy. 

It helped - she, like the other three playable students here, passes her exam with an A+ and a spot on the Dean's List. The students now have a little over 9,000 Simoleons; maybe one or two improvements can be made to the dorm. 

With the second half of her Freshman Year only just begun, Ophelia is once again quick to finish her Term Paper. (The computer is the one she brought along, the gift from Mr. Humble that was delivered when she was still at her Aunt's).

A letter from Auntie Olive! Ophelia is always glad to hear from back home, the only home she's known for most of her life. But she also really likes life at college in general, and at the small dorm in particular. 

One of the benefits of living at the dorm is that there is always someone around if she feels like having company - and someone of her own age at that. In fact, she feels herself drawn to seeking out Christopher Hart more often than the others... 

...and then autonomously decides to caress him. They now have a crush on each other, but Christopher definitely wants more: One of his bigger wants is to fall in love with Ophelia. Strangely enough, he has only one chemistry bolt for her, and she has a crossed-out bolt for him! Maybe that's why the NPC student looks so skeptical at the romantic scene. 

With everyone having completed their Term Papers, I send the four students to the LFT Student Union for a change of scene and the chance to meet more of their fellow students. 

Ophelia meets Francis J. Worthington... 

...and River finds out that the cook has a "playable" surname; he instantly goes to talk to Zaitrarrio Lee. Other playable students come to the Student Union as well, such as Jessie Pilferson. The small group from Ophelia's dorm all have something to eat and go about various activities until they get so tired they call it a day and head back to the dorm. 

New and much better beds are purchased with part of their combined grants, and River is the first to test his. Autonomously, he has a good daydreaming session, and I expect him to think of DJ Verse, but all sorts of other Sims appear in the thought bubbles above his head - from Professors to townies to fellow students, just not DJ.

Ophelia!! Is that your way of showing your crush what you really think of him?! (Christopher wasn't bothered at all when she farted across the table right over his food and in his face!) 

A few hours later, along with the other three playable students here, Ophelia passes her final exam - their Freshman Year is over. We'll be back here when it's River Smith's turn, unless a playable teenager from Strangetown moves to this dorm before that.

It will be interesting to see whether Ophelia and Christopher take their relationship from crush to love, and if River gets engaged to DJ (his biggest wish at the moment).

The Newsons: Week 1

The Newsons are next on my alphabetical list, and I have placed them in Desiderata Valley, where at No. 196 Main Street they have found a house big enough to hold them all and cheap enough to be affordable. As you all know, the Newsons are a parent-less family, consisting of three boys and three girls. Two of them are teenagers, two are school kids and two are toddlers - three sets of twins. 

Maxis says about them: "After their parents' untimely death, the adopted Newson clan is faced with the reality of separation and a return to foster care or weathering the unknown future together. With no parents to guide or protect them, can the Newson's continue to provide each other the safety and security their adopted parents provided?"

With just a little over 30,000 Simoleons left in the bank after they acquired the house, there is enough money to furnish it, but with no income, the siblings will still have to be careful about spending. 

According to Maxis, "at his age, Gavin never thought he would be adopted. He is grateful for the chance at a real family and has come to fiercely love his brothers and sisters. In fact, Gavin couldn't imagine life without them. He decided long ago that he would do whatever it took to protect and care for them!" A Fortune Sim, he sees his best chance to make money out of crime - he dreams of becoming a Criminal Mastermind, something that doesn't really suit him. But like every Sim in my game, he shall have a fair chance at reaching his lifetime want. Here, he is holding his youngest brother. 

Little Garrett and his twin sister Georgia have the same Maxis-written bio which you will find under the next picture. 

Ginger is a typical Family Sim who dreams to be Captain Hero - maybe to counter-balance her brother's criminal Mastermind. According to Maxis, she "was a troubled child with a troubled past before flowering under the loving kindness of her adopted mother, Gloria. With Gloria gone, Ginger faces the unknown challenges of being an adult and acting as a mother to her siblings." 

Georgia is her little sister and Garrett's twin. She and her brother "were adopted most recently and loved as if they had always been around. They play well with each other and merrily get along with the rest of the family. These two managed to bring more laughter and happiness into the Newson household." 

The middle twins are Gabriella and Gallagher. While Gabriella is "a precocious child, that has been dubbed the princess of the Newson family. This little wonder enjoys the lavish love and attention of her siblings and has a knack for wrapping people around her little finger", her brother seems to have a very different personality: He "is one of a kind. He is a happy child who tends to be shy around strangers. He stays to himself more than any of the other children but he is coming out of his shell day by day. Will his siblings continue to bring out the best in him?" 

All low-budget households in our game are glad about the IKEA stuff pack, I think. The Newsons are no exception, and the ground floor of their house now looks like this, clockwise from the top left corner: A room for Ginger and Gabriella, a bathroom, the toddlers' room, the kitchen with dining table and (for now) five chairs, and the open plan living room which at the moment holds a desk for homework, a cheap settee and a bookcase. (After I took the picture, I added an activity table for the toddlers and school kids.) 

Upstairs, we find a second bathroom and the boys' bedroom with Gavin's bed in the small compartment facing the street and Gallagher's near the desk where he will be doing his homework.

When I played the Newsons before, I made the teenagers go to school on alternate days until the toddlers grew up to children, and I am going to do the same now. On this Monday, Ginger goes to school along with Gabriella and Gallagher, while Gavin stays home to look after the little ones. First things first - "You are one smelly little brother," he smiles at Garrett and then starts the potty training with both toddlers. 

When the Welcome Committee appears in the shape of Luis Aspir, John Mole and Hannah Bell, Gavin is in two minds about opening the door for them - he has plenty to do and knows visitors will occupy the toilet and want to eat, but he also knows that it is important to be on good terms with his neighbours. 

The Newsons can do with adult friends, too. A very busy afternoon follows, during which Ginger is the only one who manages to do her homework. The two younger children are too tired by the time their fun level is up, and go to bed early; the toddlers switch between needing the potty, a bottle, sleep and fun. Gavin is pretty much rushed off his feet, and if it weren't for Ginger (who is able to make Grandma's Comfort Soup), nobody would have had anything to eat. 

On Tuesday, it is Ginger's turn to stay home and look after the toddlers. Things are made only a little bit easier by the fact that Garrett and Georgia wake and sleep at different times, so that Ginger gets a chance to give one of them a bath and a bottle while the other one is safely tucked up in their crib. She doesn't manage to have a shower herself until much later, when Gavin is home from school and can take over for a while. 

Gabriella and Gallagher got up very early that morning so that they could do yesterday's homework before school - and they had to do it all on their own, since Ginger was busy with the little ones and Gavin needed his sleep so that he'd be able to go to school with them later. 

Wednesday is pretty much a repeat of Tuesday, with Gabriella and Gallagher doing what they can do get their homework done AND their fun level up before school, and little Georgia and Garrett being cared for lovingly (by Gavin this time) but with no chance at being taught their toddler skills apart from potty training.

It was Ginger's turn to go to school today, and while she is glad to be out of the house for a while and really tries hard to concentrate on her lessons, her grades leave a lot to be desired. 

That's hardly surprising, considering how little time (and nearly always when she is very tired, and with one or more of her younger siblings being around) she gets to do her homework. 

Between her and Gavin, there is just always so much to do, and the two teenagers snatch a few hours of sleep whenever possible. 

On Thursday, first Gabriella skips off the school bus, brandishing her first A+ report... 

 ...and then Gallagher. These two have been working just as hard as their older siblings, without any homework help. But there isn't a prouder big brother in all of Desiderata Valley that day than Gavin!

That same evening, Garrett... 

...and Georgia grow up. Phew! They were loved and well cared for throughout their toddler years, but neither of them was taught to walk or talk; it just wasn't possible (good job they are able to walk and talk now nonetheless!).

With the little ones not so little anymore, finally Gavin gets round to helping Gallagher with his homework. Not that he really needs it, now that he's had an A+, but it was a big wish of his. 

In the back, you can see Garrett in his "big bed". The baby cribs, changing table and potty were sold, and the former toddlers' room given to Ginger, while the other two girls now share the room where Ginger slept before and Gabriella still has the same bed. The boys' bedroom upstairs is big enough to hold three beds. 

Friday is a true milestone for the Newsons: For the first time, they ALL sit down for a meal together, and for the first time, they ALL go to school together! 

For Gavin and Ginger, life suddenly seems a lot easier, and they almost feel as if they might have something like a normal life ahead, with all (or at least some) of the things teenagers usually do. 

Saturday means of course no school, and the kids can just be kids. When left to their own decives, they are up to all sorts of stuff, creating their own fun :-) 

The two youngest ones still have to do yesterday's homework, though, but with Gavin's and Ginger's help, they are soon free to enjoy the weekend, too.

On Sunday, the two oldest siblings have a very well deserved lie-in while the younger ones are up early and play together quietly... at least for a while. 

Later, everyone does their share of household duties.

But there is still plenty of time for some less quiet fun! 

A skunk comes visiting, but the boys do not seem to notice, while Georgia watches the animal carefully without approaching it. 

That evening, after everyone else has gone to bed, Gavin writes in his diary, pouring his young heart out over how much he and Ginger have been struggling this week to make their parent-less family work for the kiddies, but also how much he loves his siblings. "I'd love to get us a chess board..." he writes... 

"...or a TV set... but although we have enough money for now, I don't want us to spend any of it as long as there is no real need." 

By the way, when he started to write in his diary, Gabriella was still in the room, and he kept thinking of her, crossed out, and didn't move the pen or flip the pages of the diary - he obviously really wanted to be alone for that. I don't think I have ever noticed this before!

The Newsons are a lovable bunch of kids - sensible yet not averse to fun, and they have all worked hard at school and at home. 

Gavin dreams of college, but he and Ginger are still another week away from adulthood, and of course they can not leave their younger siblings before the middle twins are teenagers. 

Ginger isn't so keen on school and college anyway - she'd rather find herself someone to go steady with. 

While I didn't enjoy the first half of the week with this lively household, once the youngest two were not toddlers anymore, it was really fun to play them. True, it was a pity that Gavin and Ginger never got round to teaching them their toddler skills, but once they were old enough to go to school, the teens helped all of their younger siblings with their homework.