The Sims: Bustin' Out
Pocket-sized Sims score big.
by Libe Goad

PLATFORM: GBA

PUBLISHER: EA

DEVELOPER: Maxis

GENRE: Sim

ESRB: Teen

At long last, you can take your addiction on the road. I’m not talking about crack brownies; I’m talking about The Sims: Bustin’ Out for Game Boy Advance, the first of the wildly popular people simulation games to appear on a handheld console.

Once the initial excitement of the game’s portability wears off, you’re left with a title that takes a fantastically addictive experience and makes it extremely palatable for portable gamers. To accommodate the mini-screen and limited controls, Maxis smartly transferred the game’s focus from elaborate house-building to elaborate skill and relationship building for your mini counterpart.

As in the recent version of The Sims for the PS2, GameCube and Xbox consoles, you start out under the tutelage of a family member-- this time under the guidance of the wise and weathered Uncle Hayseed. If you are new to the Sims world, this family experience will prove more educational than most real-life family reunions. After building skills and putting a few ducats in your pockets via a strange mowing mini-game, you’re set loose in the cold hard world of Simland.

That’s when the Bustin’ Out element truly kicks in. Uncle Hayseed sets you up in your new digs, and suddenly the town is your oyster. That means you’re free to roam parts of town. You will also gain the freedom to roam various other areas at your leisure. Heck, if your home is too far away, you’re free to camp out on a dirty couch at the local biker bar.

In fact, the only thing that ties your Sim to her homestead is a new “home” indicator that can only be replenished by spending a little quality time in your pad or back at Uncle Hayseed’s. When you’re on a specific mission, the go-home indicator can prove as fun as sticking pins in your eyes—but it’s all part of the challenge.

Probably the most appealing aspect of Bustin’ Out is the ability to choose your sim’s future. As in real life, who you know can make all the difference. As the sim days fly by, you are able to choose from several paths for him or her. Based on your happiness level and who you meet, you can try to open a club, go fishing with the gents at the dock or bribe a shady character to give you access to the city’s underbelly -- very handy to quickly moving from one part of town to another.

By keeping the basic premise of The Sims but creating a whole new gameplay style for the GBA, Bustin’ Out manages to be one of the few handheld ports of a popular game that lives up to the hype.