The Sims: Makin' Magic Release Date: OctoPerhaps cashing in on the Harry Potter craze, this expansion adds the ability for sims to perform magic. The Sims: Superstar Release Date: In a celebrity-dominated society, this expansion let you create sims that looked like notable celebrities, including Elvis and Marilyn Monroe. The Sims: Unleashed Release Date: NovemNo longer content with simulating people, Maxis introduced pets in this expansion, as well as gardening. The Sims: Vacation Release Date: MaVacation let your sims get out of town to hit the beach, the woods, or the mountains. Hot Date added significant features and a downtown area explore, allowing your sims to have a life outside the home. The Sims: Hot Date Release Date: NovemThe first must-have expansion. The Sims: House Party Release Date: ApAgain, mainly a parts pack with plenty of items designed for throwing big parties in the home. You can tell that Maxis was still figuring things out. The Sims: Livin' Large Release Date: AugA parts pack that added more sims, clothes, and items, but not a whole lot in comparison to later expansions. Now, as financial companies like to tell you, past performance is not an indicator of future performance, but we thought we'd chart out the expansions for both games to see if we could notice any trends that could give us clues as to what may be coming up for The Sims 3.
The Sims 2 beat that with eight expansions, again not counting special compilations. After all, The Sims had seven expansions, not counting the special compilations that blended the core game with expansions. With The Sims 3 here and breaking all sorts of EA sales records, it's only natural that we begin to turn our thoughts to the inevitable expansion packs.