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News:January 2012

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ANNOUNCEMENT: Changes Coming to the My Page

POSTED ON 20/01/12 22:09

Hi all,

As many of you have heard since our announcement of The Sims 3 Showtime Expansion Pack, we’re integrating amazing, all-new connected features both in-game and through new functions to your My Page on www.TheSims3.com in order to give you new ways to connect with your friends and others within The Sims world like never before!

We’re offering new ways for you to socialize with your friends while you’re playing The Sims 3, including how people share news, chat with their friends and participate in achievements.

The Sims is a franchise that puts you in the driver’s seat and allows you to express your creativity and tell stories. All of the new online, social features being introduced are optional. It’s all up to you and the way you choose to play and share.

Below, please find more specific details on what new improvements are coming soon for you and your friends!

What new features are going to be added to My Page?

There is going to be a new layout to your My Page on www.TheSims3.com. You’ll have the opportunity to share the latest adventures of your Sims, like updates about your game, as well as posts from your friends and the option to update your My Page Player Wall when Memories occur in your game. When you successfully complete achievements, your Player Wall can also be updated, sharing news of your accomplishments with your friends. These additions will debut when The Sims 3 Showtime launches, but you will also be able to use these across expansion packs and in the base game.

With The Sims 3 Showtime’s new feature SimPort, you can send your star Sim off to a fabulous performance in one of your friend’s exclusive venues and then you can receive reviews of your show, updates and memories on your Player Wall letting you know how your tour is going.

Your friends may also choose to take part in these new functions, and through this you will also see what updates they have about their Sims and their stories.

What will the new layout look like?

Click on the image to enlarge.

With this new layout, we want to share some important differences:

Comments:
As described above, the Player Wall will enable a lot of new updates, as well as continued support of the option to comment and exchange messages with your friends. This will be like the existing comments functionality, but will add more types of news posts. When we update the Player Wall to its new layout, the old comments to your Player Wall will not be brought over.

Privacy Settings:
It’s up to you! Make your page accessible to everyone, only to your friends or just keep it private. We know that control of who you choose to interact with is important.

Sharing on Facebook or Twitter:
You will also be able to share your comments with your Facebook or Twitter accounts. Sometimes your Sims may do something that is just so awesome you’ll want to share it with everyone. The new My Page functions allow you to do so.

Wishlist and My Studio:
Your Wishlist and My Studio will be displayed on your My Page, to make them more accessible to those visiting you.

Stickers:
Your stickers are still available to you, but you won’t be able to stick them over your My Page as you can now. We are exploring options for playing with the stickers - and we’ll be looking for your input on what you’d like to see here.

With all these new changes, customizing your My Page, such as choosing your color scheme and a custom background image, is not supported.

We’re confident that you are going to love the new functions on your My Page and hope that you’ll try them out. Please remember that we are always listening to your feedback and it is appreciated, so please let us know what you think and discuss it on the forums!

Katy Perry Joins Creative Forces With EA's The Sims

POSTED ON 17/01/12 15:00

Exclusive Collaboration Kicks Off with Katy Perry-themed Collector’s Edition for
The Sims 3 Showtime Expansion Pack* Available for Pre-order** Today

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., January 17, 2011 – Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) today announced the beginning of an extensive and exclusive creative collaboration between Katy Perry, one of today’s biggest superstars, and The Sims™, one of the most popular gaming series of all-time***. In collaboration with Perry, the world-renowned The Sims Studio plans to develop multiple games within The Sims franchise featuring special Katy Perry themed in-game content and virtual goods. The relationship kicks off with a special Collector’s Edition for The Sims™ 3 Showtime, launching in March 2012. Katy Perry will also be featured in all-new advertising and marketing campaigns for the brand.

“Today marks the start of the most integrated and exciting collaboration with any artist in the history of The Sims,” said Steve Schnur, Worldwide Executive of Music for EA. “Katy Perry has been a fan of The Sims for several years, and her Simlish recording of her hit ‘Hot and Cold’ featured in The Sims™ 2 series quickly became the most popular Simlish music video to date. We couldn’t be more excited to work with Katy and bring her distinctive talents, style and personality to the franchise’s global fan base. No performer could better represent the humor and fun of The Sims brand.”

"I love how you're able to play out different stories through your Sims characters - giving them different careers and watching them succeed,” said Perry. “It’s cool to see the Sims’ stage performances in The Sims 3 Showtime decked out just like my California Dreams Tour – even my cotton candy video screens are in there! I always like to think of myself as a cartoon, and now I’m a Sim!”

Katy Perry became the first artist in history to spend 52 consecutive weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Perry’s Teenage Dream produced five #1 hits, an accomplishment equal only to Michael Jackson’s Bad album and making her the only female artist in history to achieve this feat.

Katy Perry will work closely with The Sims Studio to create accessories, clothing, hairstyles, furniture and props in The Sims games that truly celebrate the imagination that she brings to her performances, music videos and life. Katy Perry will also be featured throughout The Sims television advertising campaigns, online communications and retail marketing around the world.

Available for pre-order** today, players can make their rise to fame in The Sims™ 3 Showtime Katy Perry Collector’s Edition. This Collector’s Edition includes The Sims 3 Showtime Expansion pack, plus downloadable content including an Ultimate Stage bonus venue, iconic Katy Perry themed items, and an exclusive poster. This iconic content includes fashions, a guitar, a hairstyle and various Katy Perry themed stage props.

In The Sims 3 Showtime, the latest expansion pack to the critically-acclaimed The Sims 3, players can venture into a new world and play out a rags-to-riches story with their Sims as they become superstar singers, acrobats and magicians, or even moonlight as a DJ. Players can watch their Sims rise to fame – or go down in flames – as they perform on stage in front of cheering crowds in all new venues. On the way to the top, players will have more tools to tell their Sims’ stories the way they want to including the ability to customize stages, create Sims with all-new clothing options, traits, skills and lifetime wishes and interact with objects like the new pool table, karaoke machine and mechanical bull. New connected features allow players the opportunity to share their big moments and connect with friends and fans of The Sims like never before. Using the all-new optional SimPort feature, players can send their Sim on tour to perform in their friend’s world. Along the way, players can earn achievements for accomplishing special challenges that will be rewarded with new badges and that can be viewed and shared on the new in-game player profile and wall.

In addition to the Katy Perry themed Collector’s Edition, a Limited Edition version of The Sims 3 Showtime is also available for pre-order** while supplies last. When pre-ordered, these products feature the Ultimate Stage bonus venue. Players can place this fully customizable venue in their world and will be able to use it as an additional stage for their Sims to perform on, complete with in-game props, backgrounds, lights and special effects.

For more information, please visit http://thesims.com/katyperry or http://thesims.com/en_nz/showtime, like the game on Facebook and follow us on Twitter®. For more information on The Sims 3, please visit http://nz.thesims3.com/.

*Requires The Sims 3 for PC/Mac to play.
**While supplies last. Conditions and restrictions apply. See http://store.origin.com/store/ea/en_NZ/pd/productID.241940500?sourceid=ea5068 for details.
***In North America and Europe according to NPD data, Chart-track, Gfk France, Gfk Spain, Gfk-MCC Germany and EA internal estimate.

About The Sims
The Sims™ franchise, the groundbreaking game series that allows players to create and live a virtual, simulated life on a variety of gaming platforms, celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2010 and has sold more than 140 million units since its launch in February 2000. Now translated into 20 different languages and available in 60 different countries, The Sims series has quickly become a universal gaming and cultural phenomenon. Since its June 2009 launch, The Sims 3 has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide across multiple platforms and was the #1 best-selling PC title for 2009 in North America and Europe. Fan intensity is evidenced through more than 300 million downloads of player-created content including: The Sims characters, houses, stories and more. The Sims 3 community site, http://nz.thesims3.com/, welcomes more than five million unique visitors monthly, handles more than 100 content downloads every minute and more than 3.5 million uploads to date. In addition, The Sims 3 has a broad range of community channels reaching millions of fans daily. The Sims 3 YouTube Channel videos have been viewed more than 70 million times and The Sims 3 Facebook and Twitter pages have a combined fan base of more than 10 million. Visit The Sims 3 official website to see what the players are creating at http://nz.thesims3.com/ or the official YouTube Channel for The Sims at http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSims. Join The Sims 3 Facebook and Twitter communities to see what fans have to say about the game at www.facebook.com/thesims3 and www.twitter.com/thesims3. The Sims 3 is available for PC, Mac, iPhone®, iPod touch®, mobile devices, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system, Nintendo DS™, Wii™ and Nintendo 3DS™. In August, 2011, The Sims Social browser-based game launched on Facebook and within one month garnered an impressive 50M monthly active users and secured the #2 position on Appdata’s chart of top Facebook games. To play The Sims Social, visit www.facebook.com/TheSimsSocial.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company’s game franchises are offered as both packaged goods products and online services delivered through Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 100 million registered players and operates in 75 countries.

In fiscal 2011, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.6 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster franchises such as The Sims™, Madden NFL, FIFA Soccer, Need for Speed™, Battlefield, and Mass Effect™. More information about EA is available at http://info.ea.com.

The Sims, The Sims Social and Need for Speed are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. Mass Effect is a trademark of EA International (Studio and Publishing) Ltd. John Madden, NFL and FIFA are the property of their respective owners and used with permission. “PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used under license from Microsoft. Wii, Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS are trademarks of Nintendo. iPhone and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owner.

Get a Kitchen Makeover!

POSTED ON 05/01/12 17:00

Nothing says "New Year" like a clean slate and a clean countertop! Get your home makeover resolutions started right with the New Year, New Kitchen Collection. This classy collection offers Sims two full kitchen sets to spice up even the most boring kitchen chores.

Including the classic refinement of the Edwardian Expression Kitchen and the gilded gumption of the Steampunk Kitchen, the New Year, New Kitchen Collection provides twice the style and double the fun for your year to come.

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