To know everything or almost everything:
This island is a small architectural jewel which, thanks to its numerous buildings and community lots, allows the player to feel totally immersed in a dynamic and modern city.
However, we still can't get used to the lack of inspiration of the designers for the naming of the cities. Indeed, they do not hesitate to borrow names of real cities. After Sunset Valley, which turns out to be a region of Texas, and Riverview, which is actually a city in the state of Alabama, we discover that Bridgeport is a city located a few miles from New York. The most surprising thing is that its name is not the only thing that they borrowed from this city because we can clearly find the main lines that constitute the architecture of the place.
There are about sixty inhabitants in Bridgeport, many of whom are single and few of whom are children. This is probably due to the living conditions of the town, which are, let's be honest, a glimpse of the nightlife, its antics and its vices. In short, a world where single people will be happy to find a pretty brunette at the exit of a bar but where a child under 18 years old has no business setting foot!
The city is divided into two distinct parts: on one side, the island is very urbanized with no less than 5 pavilions, 25 buildings and 40 community places! On the other, there is more greenery and a dozen private villas mainly reserved for celebrities wishing to get away from the "normal" population.
By day, Bridgeport seems to be a town like any other, almost quiet. But when the sun goes down, the inhabitants invade the bars, nightclubs and other places to relax. The problem is that 40 community places for 60 inhabitants, that's an average of 1.5 Sims per lot. Of course, the city hall, the police station and other public schools can't be taken into account, but there is still a rather low quantity of Sims in the places of relaxation, especially if it is not the trendy place of the evening. So make sure you choose the right place for your Sim to go if you don't want him to wander around like a loser.
Community places
Bridgeport nous offre quelques nouveaux bâtiments publics qui marient parfois deux, voir trois types de terrains communautaires. C’est notamment le cas d’”Aux fabuleux ouvrages et massages de Wilki” qui fait le regroupement étonnant d’un Spa urbain et d’une librairie, le tout au coeur d’une tour des plus modernes. Même chose pour ce que l’on considérait auparavant comme l’Hôtel de vile et qui aujourd’hui, bien qu’il conserve son statut de mairie, regroupe la caserne militaire et le commissariat de police.
D’anciens lieux communautaires, que nous avions pour l’habitude d’utiliser dans les villes précédentes à Accès VIP, font leur réapparition dans ce monde mais bénéficient de nouvelles décorations extérieures leurs permettant de s’insérer parfaitement dans ce paysage fortement américanisé.
The following is a list of community venues that can be found in Bridgeport:
- 1 cemetery
- 1 discharge
- 1 school
- 1 cité des sciences
- 1 locates criminals
- 2 small restaurants
- 1 hospital
- 1 small grocery store
- 1 business center
- 8 parks
- 1 sales depot
- 1 beauty salon
- 1 library
- 1 military barracks
- 1 city hall
- 1 police station
- 1 art gallery
- 1 stage
- 1 wellness center
- 1 multiplex
- 1 bookstore
- 1 urban spa
- 3 nightclubs
- 6 bars
Residential areas
Sims can now choose to live in an apartment or a house, or even a luxury villa!
From fancy buildings to those still under construction, there's sure to be an apartment to suit your Sims family's budget and taste. The buildings are presented as follows:
Au rez-de-chaussée, on aperçoit le hall d’entrée. Ce dernier se constitue seulement d’un ascenseur et de quelques objets décoratifs. Les pièces voisines sont plongées dans le noir et non praticables par votre personnage. Une fois arrivé à l’étage, seule la zone habitable est visible (une seule par immeuble). N’espérez donc pas réveiller votre voisin parce que vous n’avez plus de sucre pour le café de votre sim ! Un point négatif par rapport aux Sims 2 où il était possible d’interagir avec l’ensemble des habitants de l’immeuble et qui plongeait le joueur dans une réelle sensation de vie en communauté. Ici, l’immeuble semble être notre bien personnel et la vie en appartement parait alors bien moins réjouissante…
For those Sims who are so rich or famous that they can't live in the middle of the crowd anymore, a few villas are available from the less urbanized side of the island. Most of them are equipped with intercoms to prevent visitors from entering the gates without the residents' permission.
Transportation
Your Sims are used to hailing cabs all day long and sometimes spend hours on the road to get to their destination. From now on, the 8 subway stations will allow them to save precious time in transportation! Two solutions are available to the player: either he chooses the final destination from the world map and his Sim defines by himself whether or not the use of the subway is useful, or the player clicks on a subway station of his choice (choose the one closest to you) and selects the place where he wants to go.
When using a subway station, the Sim disappears in front of the one you are leaving and reappears as if by magic in front of the one you are arriving at. Admit that we would have appreciated to see our Sim glued to the window and waiting nicely for the entrance to the station, but we would probably have lost (again) a lot of game time.
The decorations
The game designers seem to have worked more on the scenery this time. Although it is partly unusable by our Sims, it brings a real touch of realism to Bridgeport.
There is a lot of construction equipment that gives the city a "under construction" look. The square, in the heart of downtown, is occupied by a group of pigeons and even if our Sims can't feed them or chase them, we have an extra touch of life in the neighborhood.
We note the presence of several areas of lawn to bring a touch of oxygen to this place probably over-polluted.
Personal favorite for "L'esplanade papillon" which, beyond the globe visible from the roofs of buildings, is actually a beautiful park where lovers will enjoy meeting.
Bridgeport by night
Maintenant que vous avez choisi votre nouvelle tenue et aménagé votre nid douillet, il ne vous reste plus qu’à découvrir ce que vous réserve la ville une fois le soleil couché. Accès VIP, c’est l’ouverture aux folies nocturnes, à la gloire, à la célébrité et à la débauche.
Exit locations
The nightclubs
They are open from 5pm to 4am, which is usually where I end my nights. There are all the essentials of nightclubs: dim lights, loud music and shady people. See very shady. There are 3 of them: the Aquarius which is probably the most select, the Nightmore which is rather chic and the Grinder which, as its name indicates it, is rather underground. We go there mainly to dance, drink cocktails and meet people.
The bars
The classic bars are open very early in the day. They start at 11 am and close at 3 am. They are ideal places to have a bite to eat before starting the evening. They have different styles, Chez Eugi, for example, reminds me a bit of an Irish pub. There is a lot of entertainment, darts, pallets and a stage for musicians. Personally, I rarely go there but from time to time, it's not unpleasant. It allows me to mingle with "normal" people, sign a few autographs and have my picture taken (yes, a reputation is forged). Bars have what is called "happy hours": an hour during which there are more people and drinks are half price. These bars can also be the ideal place to practice a musical instrument.
Cocktail bars
Cocktail bars are probably more select. They are open a little earlier in the day than the nightclubs, from 2pm to 2am. The atmosphere is quite psychedelic, with flashy colors or a more classy environment like at Prosper. It is often there that we meet the best mixologists. The one at Plasma501 for example is sexy as hell!
Holidays
Next to the bars, there are regular parties organized by the locals. It is often not great. And when you are not invited, you can crash it. You just have to contact the organizer by the intercom of the building.
With a little bit of equipment, you can also throw your own parties. At my house, I have a bar, a hot tub and everything you need to have a good time. All you need is some music and someone to run the bar and you're set!
The celebrity
Now that I've done the pub crawl with Cassidy (a totally wild girl and never tired on top of that), it's time to question the notion of celebrity. In these different places, I could see a series of famous people (their name is surrounded by a golden frame with stars). Most celebrities are to be taken with a grain of salt and it can be difficult to strike up a conversation.
You should know that fame is measured in "stars" (from 1 to 5) and that the fame log is available from the "simology" tab. Your level of fame will depend on a whole series of things such as being able to enter certain bars and being recognized in public places.
There are many ways to become famous. The best is to combine them all to get to the doors of fame quickly.
- Befriend celebrities
- Increase your skills in a field
- Accept certain opportunities that appear regularly
- Also note that certain skills and careers can enhance your fame. For example, actors, good musicians who play in public or excellent mixologists become famous quickly.
You can hire a servant. It's always a good idea, and it's handy for cleaning and cooking. Be aware that the servant will be living in your house and it is better to have a good relationship with him/her. You must have a bed available and assign it to him/her by clicking on it. This is not cheap either: 1200$ per week. If the servant is not treated well or not paid on time, he/she will quit.
Making friends with a celebrity is not necessarily easy. Most celebrities refuse to communicate with "normal" people, so you have to be patient. When approaching a celebrity, start by saying hello or asking for their autograph. Then you can start a conversation. Some people will accept, others will be more reluctant and will ask you to impress them. There are several possibilities: tell them about your money, your contacts with the stars, your skills or your job.
After you earn a few stars, you'll notice that people will act quite differently. People will come and take pictures of you without you having asked for anything, and sometimes you will have to chase the paparazzi.
Of course, there are advantages to being famous. No need to grease the palms of bouncers. Half-price drinks, free stuff that appears in your inventory.
But there are also disadvantages: you can't do anything without being spied on all the time, and if you take the slightest wrong step, you end up "discredited in public". You take a serious blow to your mood and on top of that, it lasts three days! The easiest way to deal with discrediting is to click on City Hall and "sue for libel". With a little luck, this will silence the rumor and you will receive compensation. You will still have to pay the legal fees.
Assessment, sleepless night and hangover
Overall, there are some good things in this addon but also some "details" that we could have done without.
The advantages
- The exit locations are a fantastic addition and bring a lot to the game
- The bars, although moderately well designed, are full of fun new activities (games, new interactions, scene) and nice scenery
- Professional bars, drinks, mixology, mood bonuses/maluses attributed to cocktails
- Being able to travel in a group
The -
- The slowdowns and the Sims that stay stuck without doing anything: even without any custom content and having a real war machine for the PC. It freezes, it lags, it freezes, it does everything you want but it doesn't move forward. And of course, time keeps running: it often takes several hours (in game) to get out and go to another one. If you try it in the second half of the evening, you'll end up at closing time. It's even more difficult when you have to enter or leave a building with an elevator!
- Deserted or crowded bars. There you have it all or nothing: either there is no cat and you end up chatting to the mixologist, or it's completely overcrowded and you die of starvation before you can order anything