Kevin Beare: Freshman Year

You all know Sim State Uni, and the playable pre-made Students Maxis has put there for our enjoyment when the Campus Life expansion pack came out, right? Our first campus stop this round is here at the Urele-Oresha-Cham Fraternity House, because the Sim with the next surname on my alphabetical list lives here. But let's first look at the house itself. This is the front, inexplicably with a piano out on the front lawn.

At the back is a walled garden with a hot tub, deck chairs and other seating. According to what Maxis says about the fraternity, the Urele-Oresha-Cham House is the oldest Fraternity on campus with a long and prestigious history. Can the brothers keep the historic house united or will their drastically different personalities divide them instead?

Indoors is nowhere near as grand as the outside lets expect: If you enter by the front door, you stand in an empty staircase. To the left is a small bathroom. Straight ahead is the biggest room of the house, with shabby settees, two pinball machines, a dining table and chairs, a TV and stereo as well as a bubble blower and fruit punch machine. A kitchen with another dining table and chairs takes up the rest.

Upstairs are two bathrooms and five bedrooms with a total of eight beds, but only two desks, with one single computer for everyone who lives here. Another two sets of stairs lead to the attic.

Here in the attic are a second TV and stereo as well as two more settees. You can tell from the furniture that everyhing apart from the electronics is on the cheap side, and there is not a single book shelf to be seen - studying does not appear to be very much in focus in this house.

Let's now look at the Sims who live here. This is Kevin Beare, the reason for me playing this household. Kevin is a Freshman and has not yet settled on a Major. He is a Family Sim and dreams of seeing three of his own kids graduate from college one day. His Maxis-written bio reads: "Kevin is the charming nice guy that just can't seem to get the girl. He's often been called the 'Teddy Bear' of his Frat house." 

Here we have Joshua Ruben, whose brother Martin Ruben lives elsewhere on campus. As a Fortune Sim, he wants to have six pets reach the top of their careers eventually - sounds like an easy way to make money (easy for him, of course!). "Joshua doesn't know where he wants to focus his studies. He's too easily distracted by sorority girls and pizza", says Maxis. As for sorority girls, he is indeed the only person here to have a love interest: Tiffany Sampson, whom we shall meet further on.

Ashley Pitts (right) and Castor Nova (left) are the other two residents here, with Ashley being the oldest - he is already in his Sophomore year, while the three others are all Freshmen. His bio says: "Ashley isn't very popular but he's too focused on himself to notice. He spends an awful lot of time staring at himself in the mirror." His aspiration is Romance, and his lifetime want is to become Rock God - he looks an unlikely candidate for that, but you never know! Castor "is the cool man on campus that marches to the beat of his own drum and makes all the girls swoon. He enjoys coffee shops, music and a good conversation", according to Maxis. So far, I can't see any swooning girls near him, though. As a Knowledge Sim, he is more interested in becoming a Media Magnate than anything else.

As before when I was playing Campus households in New Max, I make sure everybody has their necessary skills and writes their term papers; after that, they can pretty much do what they like, apart from forming and maintaining friendships. As you can see, I have moved the piano into the large hall.

Also, I have bought a cheap book case.

Kevin wants to meet someone new, and seeing as he needs to have children for his lifetime want, he can start looking for a prospective mother of those three kids right away. Much to my delight, the second NPC student walking past is a three-bolt match! But will Vamsi Simpson be as keen on finding her better half here at college, too?

Fraternity and sorority members often spontaneously leave the lot and return with pizza, and Ashley is the first to do so today.

Everybody needs logic points, and so I decide to sell everything in the attic room and invest in a chess board, chairs and a wall lamp for the upstairs hallway.

Joshua, who had not yet settled on a Major, shows the wish to declare Biology, and so he does. It might come in useful for his pet-related lifetime want.

Kevin is my reason for playing here, and it is only fitting that he be the first to finish his term paper.

The campus coach appears, and on his command Kevin works out until nearly all his needs are red.

Ashley discovers how nice fruit punch tastes. Funnily, his body temperature drops considerably.

Next, he spends many hours at the bubble blower. Oh dear! Hopefully, this will not have a negative effect on his exam.

All four students have their end-of-term exams at the same time, and nearly all of them attend in a more or less precarious state - of dress and of needs. But they all return home with an A+ and their name on the Dean's List - can't complain, can I!

The start of the second semester sees a cheerleader and a Llama mascot visiting the Greek house. Nobody pays them any attention, though, since everyone is busy skilling or writing term papers.

This time, Castor is first to finish his term paper.

Because they all need skills, I have the boys do the jobs around the house themselves. Kevin gains cleaning skill while raking the leaves... 

 ...and Ashley improves his mechanical skill repairing a broken tap. 

On a fine autumn morning, Jared Starchild, another playable student here at Sim State Uni, walks by, and Joshua runs out to greet him.

The large common room looks quite a mess with paper cups strewn everywhere. What to do? Cleaning those up does not make any difference to the cleaning skill.

Asking people over is always a good idea, and now that everyone has finished their term papers, they deserve something of a party - especially as I have not managed to send them to a community lot this "year". Here are Ty Bubbler, Erik Swain and Jimmy Phoenix, all playable students whose household we shall visit soon.

Jared Starchild is the only one of their group who was already known to guys at the Greek House, and he has brought along his dorm mates, including Sam Thomas. As soon as he steps through the front door, he is asked to pledge, and pledge he does! This means that he can be ordered to do ALL the cleaning, and he sets about his immense task right away.

Meanwhile, the others perch on one of the shabby settees, listening to Erik Swain going on about some more or less interesting subject. Kevin can be seen in the back; apparently he has taken pity of Jared and joins in the efforts to clean and tidy up.

As a reward of sorts, I have him ask his three-bolt-lady over. The welcome kiss was Kevin's idea - not mine! But Vamsy Simpson does not mind at all, and soon we have pink hearts flying.

Late at night, Kevin decides to serve spaghetti. One can't live on pizza all the time, right? 

For the four boys, the year ends on a high - again, they all have made it to the Dean's List and got their A+, as well as their student grants. Next time we'll stop here, Ashley will be a Junior, and the other three Sophomores. 

Of the money they received after the first semster, I bought better beds for everyone. Next I guess they will invest in better showers, and some lamps - there is very little lighting in most rooms. I really enjoyed playing this Greek House and bringing it up to Level 4. There was always someone "visiting campus" and bringing back pizza, and new friends were made. With all that and working on their skills and term papers, there simply was not enough time to visit a community lot. Maybe next time!

And do you remember what Kevin's Maxis-written bio says about him "not getting the girl"? Well - he was the only one this "year" to have any romantic interaction!