The Ville
By Erin Bell,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Sim emphasizes positive social interactions and happiness.
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The Ville
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What’s It About?
THE VILLE is a simulation game that emphasizes positive social interactions by having players earn coins and \"happiness.\" Players complete quests that help them grow into well-rounded people, which includes cultivating friendships, finding romance, cooking, tending a garden, working a variety of careers, pursuing hobbies and artistic interests, and decorating an ever-expanding house and lot with furniture and accessories. Neighbors can help each other out by visiting each other's homes and doing chores, or sending gifts to help complete quests.
Is It Any Good?
The Ville borrows so much from EA's The Sims Social, both conceptually and esthetically, that it's hard to tell the two games apart at times. However, one notable difference is that The Ville lacks the moral ambiguity found in The Sims. Characters in The Ville can't become enemies, get into fights, or steal, for example, and there's no option for being nasty, only nice. Players also don't have to maintain their character's hygiene and hunger levels: the only goals are to acquire "happiness" points and coins (to spend on new stuff.) The Ville is a decent social sim, though not as charming, engaging, or intricate as The Sims Social -- the game that it's so obviously trying to copy.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about online privacy and staying safe while online. Why should kids be careful about adding Facebook friends that they don't know in real life?
Families can also talk about how to protect private information, such as photos and Timeline posts, from strangers by enabling Facebook's privacy filters or recruiting neighbors through the game's "Ville Friends" feature instead of friending them through Facebook.
Families can also talk about how neighbors can make a community stronger. What are the advantages of cultivating strong relationships with neighbors and helping each other out?
Game Details
- Platform: Facebook
- Subjects: Hobbies : collecting, fashion
- Skills: Self-Direction : work to achieve goals, Communication : friendship building, Collaboration : teamwork
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Zynga
- Release date: June 26, 2012
- Genre: Simulation
- Topics: Friendship
- ESRB rating: NR
- Last updated: August 26, 2016
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