The Sims livin' it up is the first of several expansion packs released for the Sims game. It was released in 2000 and it provides new NPCs (non-playable characters), new items for you to decorate with and also the option to create more than one neighborhood. Although Livin' it up doesn't dramatically change the game play of the original Sims or introduce any big features unlike the later expansions, there is still plenty to make it a worthwhile addition to your Sims collection...

- The new NPCs -
The game adds several new NPCs. When one of your Sims meets an untimely end the Grim Reaper now visits to take him/her off to the afterlife. A loved one of the recently deceased can plead with the Grim Reaper for the return of their dearly beloved, although not always successfully, but hey who doesn't want the odd zombie Sim scattered about their town. The Reaper can also appear if you place more than 4 Jack-o-lanterns outside one of your houses and will ring the doorbell as if he's trick or treating. Another of the new NPCs also has a holidays theme, in livin' large you can now decorate for Christmas with the Christmas tree and plate of cookies. Then if all your Sims are in bed by 10, a certain jolly bearded fellow might come beaming in to munch on the cookies you've left next to the Christmas tree and leave some pressies under the tree.. If your like me and try and live out your Sims lives as realistically as possible then the ability to create Halloween and Christmas is great and definitely a nice little addition to the game. The next NPC is the Genie, who lives in another of the new items, the magic lamp. When rubbed the Genie will float out to grant your Sim a wish, be warned though the Genies magic is pretty temperamental and the consequences are sometimes disastrous. All the NPCs except the Grim Reaper are object linked, non more so that Servo the robot. At great expense your Sims can purchase servo to take care of things about the home, Servo is a maid, gardener and butler all in one. The last NPC is Sunny- the tragic clown, this character irritates me to no end, he spawns from a painting when your Sim's mood dips too low and will interrupt your Sim and wake it up until it's mood has normalized. It's a well made character don't get me wrong, I just find it unbelievably annoying, but then I'm not a huge fan of clowns anyway.

- New items-
As in all expansion packs for the Sims, there are of course several new items in livin' large with which to furnish your Sims houses. The most significant of these being the 'Vibromatic Heart Bed' which gives Sims a chance to get intimate and gives players a more reliable way to try for Sim babies. Other new items include a crystal ball that allows you to change your Sims personality by correctly answering a riddle and the concoction station that allows Sims to build logic skill by making potions, it can sometimes have some unexpected side affects.
I must say, when I purchased this expansion, it did take me a while to find many of the new items in the buy mode catalog and I was a little disappointed as I thought there were so few, but added to the new NPCs and new careers there definitely inst a lack of content, it seems there's just a little of everything rather than a lot of one specific aspect of the game.

- Other new bits and bobs-
Livin' large gives you more Sim skins, lots of new clothing options and several interesting new career choices for your Sims, including the option to become a musician or a journalist. The new careers however add very little to the game as you still can't follow your Sims to work and see what they get up to, but at least you'll have some new funny career descriptions to read!
Another nice little addition to the game is the new build mode objects, not only can you re-design all of your old Sims houses with the brand new wall papers and flooring, you can also now theme your builds with new retro, sci-fi and medieval themed objects for both buy and build mode. Something I really enjoyed, it was really fun to make goth Sims in a medieval style castle or futuristic Sims in a sci-fi house with a robot maid.

- My views overall -
If you like the Sims then this expansion is definitely a good buy. I have loved playing this game and still have it on my external hard-drive so I can play it when I feel in the mood for something a bit more easy going than the Sims 2 or 3.
The game is quite old now so would probably be quite hard to get hold of although it's always possible to source old games online especially through Amazon or E-bay. I have also seen the Sims ultimate collection online for as little as £10 with postage and that contains not only this expansion but all expansions ever released for the Sims.