Microsoft Flight Simulator X Deluxe DVD

Flight Simulator X will awe flight simulator fans and real pilots alike. All-new eye-popping graphics, actual missions to accomplish and a wider range of airports to visit recreate the experience of being a pilot, right down to the smallest detail. Complete point-to-point objectives and skill-based tests, or just fly around the world if you’d prefer that to ferrying passengers or cargo. Whatever you choose to do as a pilot, it’s available here in Flight Simulator X Deluxe.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Excellent Game of Flight Enthuiasts
I’ve been a fan since FS 98 and the game just keeps getting better and better. No disappointments in this one.

1 Star stay with xplane if you have it dont waist your money you would have to spend more
to experienced pilots who want to upgrade to a new flight simulator. Dont use this. There is not much planes unlike other fs games i have used. To people who have xplane stick with it. And also This game requires lots of upgrading to your pc. I have a custom so im fine. But stick with xplane.

5 Stars MS Flight Simulator X Deluxe DVD
Great service; super product. I wish I had a more detailed handbook which would help me with “slips” etc..

2 Stars extremerecluse
I have not purchased this game yet. I want to know if it will work on my system. I have a dual core, quad 6.6 processor, 4GB RAM, and a 8800 GT video card. I will not make the purchase until somebody can tell me if this machine I built will allow it to run without hickups.

5 Stars Superb graphics!!
My system: It ain’t the latest-greatest “Duo” or “Quad” super fast hell on wheels box. In fact it’s a Dell Optiplex GX270, 3.0Ghz Hyperthreaded P4. RAM is 2GB, video is ATI Radeon 9550 (Dual capable) w 256Mb DDR. Sound is Creative Audigy4, MS Sidewinder Precision Pro flight stick (USB driven)

I just received my copy of FSX-Deluxe + Accelerator Pack. They installed flawlessly in under 30 minutes, total. Just got through “test flying” it. Stunning! I just selected “free flight”, Cessna 172, and I selected my local small air field, which should be located just to the east of Nashville, TN. Cornelia Fort air park. Got flying, quickly located Berry International just where it should be. Went looking for Nashville’s skyline - hmmm, kind of generic looking. Oh well. I’m not picky about that type of detail anyway. That said, the graphics and dynamic graphic details were none the less stunning. Everything from the city traffic to other aircraft in flight was displayed quite well. I encountered no reduction in frame rates nor did I encounter any “stuttering” of the display. All played smoothly. I checked the simulator settings and they are all at 3/4 full. I intend on playing with those settings to see what my box can do. I haven’t “played” FS since FS98. I have CFS3 which plays well on my system except when there is a lot of other things going on, then it may stumble a bit, but not enough to make it unplayable. It doesn’t have near the graphic detail of FSX, and yet FSX beats it hands down in function. I am impressed. I definitely recommend FSX. Just be sure to either download the Service Pack when you’ve completed the install OR get the Acceleration Pack. You do not need to download the service pack if you have the Acceleration Pack. Activation went without a hitch - no problem at all!

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Logitech G11 Gaming Keyboard Black Silver

The Logitech G11 gaming keyboard features blue-backlit characters, 18 programmable G keys, and convenient media control buttons so you can play all night long. Create custom macros for your games and access them with a single keystroke. Reduce clutter by routing cables through the convenient under-keyboard channels. Swap gaming controls easily by plugging into the two full-speed USB ports. And never worry about getting dropped out of the action if you press the Windows key; the built-in Gaming Mode switch disables it with one touch.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Best in class
I bought this keyboard as a gift for my son, who is a gamer, and extremely picky about his keyboard and mouse. He had already purchased a different lighted keyboard, but decided he preferred this one (by far) after using one at a friend’s house. His favorite feature was the additional keys for macros and his only complaint was the lack of color options for the backlight.

5 Stars Great keyboard
altough wide, my keyboard drawer has enough room on it + for my mouse pad too. my only gripe is that it doesnt have email/document/SLEEP buttons. eh, ol well. love the way the keys feel when typing too.

5 Stars It’s all about the “G” keys.
I play a lot of Warcraft and got tired of some of the repetitive key/button sequences. Like mounting and unmounting. Sure, I could attach a macro to a numeric key, but there’s only one row of them and all six sets of bindings are used. Now I have more. More is better.

I don’t really care about the lighted keys, but I absolutely love the 18 G keys. Oh yeah, I had to get a CyberPower High-Speed 7-Port USB Hub to power the thing. My computer sits a fair distance away so the noise doesn’t bother me and the G11 has too short of a USB cord.

5 Stars Logitech’s keyboard a WOW delight
In spite of being geeky enough to covet every piece of electronics known to mankind, I am still simple enough to actually want my installs to be easy. Installing this keyboard was a no-brainer. Its glowy blue keys are beautiful in the dark; which improves my game’s graphics experience. And it has 18 programmable keys on its left side, which can be pre-set up for macros and keystrokes on up to 3 different games. The keys all have a nice “feel” to them. I really LOVE this product.

2 Stars Nice until it broke
The good points of this product have been touched on in other reviews. I will not rehash them here.

I owned this keyboard for approximately 3 months. It operated well, although I did have problems with the amount of desk real estate it required - it is a large keyboard. This is a minor issue, however. The main problem I had is that one day the number keys refused to work. It isn’t a software issue, as I’ve tried it on other computers with no success. I’ve owned other Logitech products and they are nice until they break after a few months. I’ve bought 2 headsets, this keyboard, and a mouse that periodically glitches on me from Logitech. With the shoddy performance I have experienced I can’t recommend their products to anyone.

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World of Warcraft Battlechest

Enter the World’s #1 Online Game with the complete collection of World of Warcraft. This epic value contains the original Game of the Year and its blockbuster first expansion set, The Burning Crusade. Also included are Battle Chest Guides from BradyGames, detailing the tips, tricks, and strategies that will aid your quest to Level 70.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Awesome
Awesome game, have had this for a while…the one I bought here was a gift, and the person plays it, so I guess they like it.

5 Stars Addictive but won’t ruin your life
I’ve always loved massively multiplayer online games (MMOs), but swore off them after a horrible addiction to the first Everquest (EQ). After trying the 10-day free trial, I realized that WoW is no where near as bad as EQ was. The realms are massive, but allow you to travel from one point to another view zepplins, ships, and creatures (provided that you find the flight master in each location).

The rested exprience is what really makes this game amazing for people who don’t have time to play it like the kids who do all the time, or for people (like myself) who enjoy playing, but refuse to dedicate 7 hours a week night to WoW. Essentially, when you log off, you begin to rack up rested experience time. When you log back on, your XP bar will show up blue, and any creature you kill, you get double the experience. This will last until the allotted rested XP time has expired (no real way of telling when that will happen).

Another good note is that when you die, you don’t lose XP and you don’t have a time limit to retrieve your corpse before it decomposes and you lose everyhing on it (like EQ did).

Levelling up much easier with this as well, as there are plenty of quests which give you a lot of XP compared to killing a creature.

This Battlechest is great for someone who enjoyed the 10-day trial, but is still confused about parts of the game. I haven’t dug through the two books very much, but when I have, they’ve really come in handy.

If your significant other has a problem with you playing this “too much,” introduce him/her to SecondLife, which will keep them occupied. Just make sure you have 2 computers; my wife and I keep fighting over who’s turn it is to use the PC. Good thing I’m building a new rig as we speak, specifically for the purpose of resolving the WoW vs. 2ndLife conflict.

1 Star Wish I could finish downloading everything so I could play
This may be a wonderful game. Or it may not be. Sometime next week I may find out. There were problems loading the game from the discs; that took two days to resolve, what with the limited hours the Blizzard tech support desk is available. And now that it’s loaded, it is on its second day of downloading required patches. I have a DSL connection, but due to a number of factors the tech support desk couldn’t help me with (or maybe was giving me the runaround on) it is downloading at dial up speeds. When you have several Gb to download - and the accumulated patches really are that big - this is going to take a while.

As for the package as a whole, the two “bonus” guides are miniature versions of the originals, which means the many graphics and especially the tables and maps are of very inferior quality to the original. I had to resort to a magnifying glass to read some of the text.

Since this is an online, pay-to-play game, the registration process required an upfront credit card, PayPal, or game card account. I inquired about this, since the box implies you get 30 days free with the purchase of the game (which, by the way, is slipping away while my computer downloads all the patches) and I received a disingenuously worded reply about avoiding interruption of game play time when the trial period runs out. You pay at the beginning of each subscription period and all the options except the game card renew automatically unless you cancel. Thus Blizzard gets their money even if you don’t want to keep playing, unless you manage to make that unseen deadline to cancel the subscription.

Finally, I must say, that as I have periodically monitored the status of the “realms” (areas where your character is assigned to play)over the last few days, it appears that they are out of service a lot - at least once every three or four days. Sometimes they are out for hours. I rather doubt Blizzard gives you credit for those times, either.

So, think hard about whether you want to spend money on this. The Amazon price is not discounted, so you may be able to find it cheaper at a local retailer. The books included aren’t much of a bargain, given their poor quality, and you can find all the information in them on online forums, so you may get a much better deal buying the basic program and the upgrade separately. Finally, if you do buy it, realize you won’t be able to play it right away. Between installation issues and the required patch download times, it will be days or longer before you can play, and you’ll need to leave your computer tied up downloading the patch files during most of that time.

On the whole: not recommended

5 Stars Game’s great but don’t waste your money on faster shipping
I love the game, there are so many options and quests for this game I imagine I’ll be playing it for years. Don’t waste your money on 3-5 day shipping though because that really only means that they will process your order in 5 days, stick with the free shipping and you won’t be disappointed. The item shipped from Dallas and took almost 2 weeks, so really if it takes 2 weeks to ship it less than 5 hours away imagine how long it will take you to get it.

4 Stars Fun and addicting
I started playing a couple weeks ago on a couple 10-day free trial accounts. Nevermind the details of why two accounts, suffice it to say, I was “recruited” into the game and find it very enjoyable. It is visually stunning.

I agree with the critical review, with the caveat is that if you change the game world, you could break it for other players, so it is best to not change it.

After installing, I still had a couple hours of patching and updating, which was fine as it coincided with their Tuesday realm server maintenance which lasts 8 hours from 3AM - 11AM PST.

I haven’t looked at the books as I simply dove right in on my trial account. The in game help and tutor system was very beneficial. However, you can make bad or good choices in character development and I’ve had a few false starts.

There is the tactical side to it that will require some learning as it’s not entirely intuitive, but there are great resources on the net (WoWWiki and Blizzard’s own WoW guide on their site: [...].

The ingame infrastructure and communication system (auctions, mail transportation, etc) is something to want a guide for and the WoW guide does cover a lot of the key aspects of the game.

[...]

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Empire Total War

Control the sea, command great armies, forge a new nation and conquer the globe. Empire: Total War takes the Total War franchise to the 18th Century and the Age of Imperialisma time of near perpetual war. This latest installation in th

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The Sims 2 Mac

The Sims 2 is an incredible sequel to the best-selling PC game of all-time! You’ll get to direct an entire Sims’ lifetime, and try to get them to reach their goals in life. Will they have a long, successful and happy life - or will they end up poor and heartbroken?

User Ratings and Reviews

2 Stars Simple Sim…
It’s okay… This was my first Sims purchase — I take that back! This was my 2nd Sims purchase; I HAD to buy it because I purchased another Sims product that wouldn’t work without having this one installed first! After installing this one and then installing the 2nd one, I’m unable to use this one… It’s like the 2nd one wrote over the 1st one. I assumed that having both installed, I’d have access to both (?)….

3 Stars Sims 2 for Mac
Well, it still didn’t work well with the mac. I’ve removed it from the computer. It would freeze and some characters, after a while, I’d lose the ability to move them no matter what I’d do.

5 Stars Great Game
Cheaper to buy it here than it is going to be at most places that carry a Mac version of the game even with priority shipping it came out to be less than the retail price of [...]

5 Stars I loved this game
We have both the Mac version and Playstation versions of this game. I love them both. We have gotten hours of entertainment from them. Highly recommended.

5 Stars Sim happy
What a game!

That’s my main point, but I’ll go more in depth for you incredulous SOBs.

If you don’t know the Sims premise, here it is: I’m a deity, lets mess around with people’s lives.

Being the evil, domineering, and downright cruel person that I am, the Sims is my greatest fantasy. You don’t have to share my personality to have this game cater to your desires; if you like RPGs, simulations, life and style games, career games, or all of the above, the Sims is what you want, nay, what you NEED.

For anyone who has ever played the original Sims and thought: “Man, I wish there was…” or “Wouldn’t it be cool if…” say no more, Sims 2 has got your back.

Game-Play is wonderful: the Sims are very customizable, their lives are manageable, the game is lovable, nuf said. Asypr did let some glitches slide though, there are a few problems with changing households, but they don’t subtract too-much from the game.

I have a decent fast computer, a 13 inch 2.4 Ghz MacBook with 2 GB RAM, and Sims 2 runs like a dream. I only wish I had a better graphics card to improve the frame rate on the 1200×800 screen setting; whatever.

Finally, the service was great. I got my package in 2 days with expedited shipping. If you can’t stand waiting 5 or 6 days, cough up the extra 3 bones: its worth it.

If you haven’t guessed by my review, I rated the whole thing 5 stars. If this game interests you even a little, buy it.

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World of Goo

The millions of Goo Balls that live in the beautiful World of Goo are curious to explore — but they don’t know that they are in a game, or that they are extremely delicious. Drag and drop living, squirming, talking, globs of goo to build structures, bridges, cannonballs, zeppelins, and giant tongues so that you can direct the Goo Balls to their goal on the other end of the stage.

Massive Online Competition - Human players around the world compete in a living leaderboard to build the tallest towers of goo in World of Goo Corporation’s mysterious sandbox

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Fun Puzzle Game
Very cool puzzle game!

I bought this game for my wife for Christmas I ended up playing it just as much as her. You basically need to build these structures that the little oil blobs crawl across. Your structure needs to deliver the little blobs to a final destination. Sounds simple right? Well, as the game progresses they start releasing different kind of blobs that react differently based on the obstacles, etc. It ends up getting pretty challenging.

It reminds me of the old lemmings game which was also tons of fun.

The graphics are pretty good, and the game has a unique look to it.

Music isn’t bad or annoying either.

Nice change of pace from the standard shoot em’ up game. I would recommend this for any gamer.

5 Stars Great Game… worth the money…
The game is worth the money. Fun, and works on a MAC or PC. Great way to pass the time on a plane ride…

5 Stars An underlooked gem of a game!
I got this game from Amazon for 9.99 through a lightning deal. My wife loves puzzle games and I thought it would be a great early Valentine’s Day gift.

The game has more than 40 levels and is very easy to learn how to play. There is a good amount of creativity in solving the different levels. The levels are a combination of construction and physics, but in a fun way. The soundtrack is also nice, and the graphics are colorful and fit the mood of the game nicely.

This is also available on the Nintendo Wii, but I have not played that version.

P.S. My wife loves it!

2 Stars Great if you never downloaded the free Adobe Flash Player
Here’s a bit of a dissenting opinion on World of Goo. While the game certainly has some pretty visuals and music, the actual gameplay feels like I headed over to Kongregate and played one of the many physics-based Flash games there. You build constructs like bridges and towers in varying angles and degrees, get from point A to point B, then do it again.

Certainly the counter argument to this is that the level design transcends that simple play, but when the levels are put under the ruthless microscope of this weathered gamer and judged for their mechanics, I just didn’t see that materialize. The game quickly wore out its welcome just about halfway in (two hours or so worth of play), there’s just no meat to the core mechanics, and the game seemingly wants to coast you through by relying on it’s aesthetics and wannabe art house subversiveness.

Note that this game is a five-star game for a lot of gamers who will be drawn to the game due to the art direction and off-mainstream quirky swagger of the title. I personally just found it to be a boring, fairly banal puzzler that is more flash ( pun intended ) than actual gaming substance.

5 Stars SMART & FUN
Before you know it, you’ll be hooked on this game! It’s very well-done, smart, fun & non-violent!

The only reason I gave it a 4 stars instead of 5 is because you could only create 3 player’s profile at a time which kinda sucks if you are more than 3 in the family.

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Spore

The creators of The Sims present the next big bang - SPORE. Create your unique creature and guide it on an epic journey through a universe of your own creations. Play any way you choose in the five evolutionary phases of Spore: Cell, Creature, Tribe, Civilization, and Space. How you play and what you do with your universe is entirely up to you. Spore gives you a variety of powerful yet easy-to-use creation tools so you can create every aspect of your universe: creatures, vehicles, buildings, and even starships.

PC Minimum - Windows XP/Vista, 6 GB Hard Drive Space, 2.0 GHz P4 processor or equivalent, 768 MB RAM, 128 MB Video Card, with support for Pixel Shader 2.0 Mac Minimum - Mac OS X 10.5.3 Leopard or higher, 4.7GB Hard Drive Space, Intel Core Duo Processor, 1024 MB RAM; ATI X1600 or NVidia 7300 GT with 128 MB of Video RAM, or Intel Integrated GMA X3100

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars A really enjoyable game
This game is really good. I really don’t understand the snobby remarks about not being able to install it on more than 5 computers. If you go through that many computers, then yes that is a problem, but I’m sure the majority of us use one, maybe two.

I really like the game play, and it’s fun to replay the game to see what different creatures you can create and how they progress. I recommend this game.

5 Stars how can you rate this 1 star?
this is the best game ever! i have no idea how you can rate this 1 star. the people that did so probably have realllllly old/bad/crappy computers or something because it runs fine on my PC. READ THE SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS BEFORE YOU BUY SOMETHING! DONT ACT LIKE BECAUSE IT DOESNT WORK OR UR PC, ITS THE GAMES FAULT!

1 Star Awful
Look, even if this game DIDN’T have the securom and install limits which reduce your purchase to a mere rental, the fact is it isn’t FUN. I unknowingly installed this on my laptop on day one, excited about all the promises made to me by EA. I thought this would be on the verge of an MMO, with other people to interact with and the ability to create planets, and customize terrain, plants, animals, and the weather. Boy, was I wrong. You get 5 skimpy minigames that could have been put into separate flash web based games. Instead you rent them for 50 bucks! Absolutely horrible value, and without a doubt the biggest disappointment I have ever had with any purchase, ever. I plan on throwing it out as soon as I’m done grimacing with disgust at the packaging. EA said one thing and delivered another, and I’ll never forget that. I am not buying any EA games ever again until they remove SecuROM and the limited installs.

1 Star All Hype! Don’t listen to game review magazines.
This game got a lot of hype. Game magazines gave it 5 out of 5 stars, but I believe those magazines never played the game.

Spore is like a giant game of “Simon Says”. (You know, the colorful blinking light game with sounds…?) The game is supposed to be open ended, but you’ll be glad the game is over when you reach the space ‘exploration’ stage in less then a day.

This game has a lot of neat technology behind it. Making a creature seems to be the most appealing part of the game. However, people can make their own creatures with the free creature creator; Or go buy a package of play-doe and you’ll have just as much fun.

5 Stars Spore Rocks!
This Spore game is so much fun for my and my brother. We figured out how to have two different accounts on the same game. We enjoy creating some of the weiderst animals and other things. I reccomend this to anyone you likes to create their own little world!

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Typing Instructor Deluxe 17

Typing Instructor Deluxe 17 will motivate you to improve your typing speed and accuracy using amazing graphics with exciting typing challenges. Typing Instructor can suggest the right lessons, tests, strengthening exercises, practice material, and typing games for your skill level. Or, you can build your own custom typing plan to focus on specific areas you’d like to improve. Either way, Typing Instructor covers all the keyboard keys, including the numeric keypad, on both the standard and split keyboards. If you think learning to type has to be all business and no fun, think again!

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars My kiddos are learning to type!!
My ds 12 and 10 and my dd 8 are learning to type without my help and without complaint! In the 6mo since I purchased this software my 12yo’s speed has gone from 15 words/min to 40. I’m very happy with it. There is a nice feature during some of the instruction that shows your hand position right on the computer screen as you do the typing exercise - so that you know which finger to strike the key with, etc. Also, there are several fun arcade style games that the kids really enjoy. Only down note is that one of the arcade games does not work for us. That still leaves us 5 or 6 to choose from. I also like that it tracks each user’s progress.

5 Stars Better than Mavis Beacon!
I purchased both Typing Instructor Deluxe(Version 17)and Mavis Beacon Deluxe(Version 17)to increase my typing speed.

I just love the Typing Instructor Deluxe! It is easy to navigate, has very pleasant graffics, lots of variety and features, and loaded up perfectly (Windows XP Home).

Each time I use the Mavis Beacon software I have to change the pixel size of my screen to make it small enough to fit, and then it ends up being a little too small. Afterwards, I have to change the pixel size back again. As a result, I don’t bother using the Mavis Beacon much.

I highly recommend the Typing Instuctor Deluxe (Version 17)!!!*****

2 Stars I guess it’s a good product…didn’t help me though
I’m a fairly good typer already, I just have difficulty in a few areas for things like the symbols on top of the numbers. The only ones I ever have to use are ! and $ but I don’t know where the others are. So I bought this product to help me but the software would tell me I was doing great when really I was messing up big time. It allows you to erase your mistakes so it will say I did 100% everytime when in reality I had to backspace almost every letter and retry again. I don’t think I learned anything.

5 Stars A great product
After using Mavis Becon I discovered Typing Instructor deluxe and I just love it! Mavis is fine for kids, but not for a woman trying to get her typing speed up for returning to college. It’s really fun is also for adult typists.

5 Stars No more hunt and peck typing!!!
This version is compatible with Windows Vista!!!!We are so pleased with this product! It has been extremely usefull for the entire family. The little one’s have started playing the learning games and my husband and I have both increased our wpm. I highly reccomend this product!

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The Sims 2 Apartment Life

Your life will never be the same once you move into a new apartment. With The Sims 2 Apartment Life, you will meet new people as you explore your new neighborhood. Adventure, fun, and drama await you. Will you take your kids to the local playground, mingle in coffee shops, or hit the park to learn from the breakdancers? Close quarters mean new opportunities. Move in with compatible roomies for a thriving social life, advance your career with the right social network, or find true love just down the hall. Whether you live in an artsy converted loft, the ultimate studio bachelor pad, or a luxury apartment with your own butler, you will experience all of the excitement of apartment life.

Control multiple households - will you live in happy harmony or comical conflict? Windows Vista / XP Media - DVD

User Ratings and Reviews

1 Star The sims series sucks but…
Sims suck….boaring and pointless. Sims 2 also sucks, however I bought it for my fiance and she installed it. This has been the third computer she has installed it on and it just keeps screwing up her other sims 2 packs aswell as Sims 2 itself. Just a poor buggy addon to a mind numbing, worthless, no fun game. Watching grass grow is more fun that this.

5 Stars Lots of fun
I love the sims and have collected all the packs, so of course, I wanted this one too. New interactions and places to live, and sims to interact with. It’s great.

5 Stars Sims 2 is clever, imaginative and addictive
I was looking for a game that would provide me with some escapism over the holidays and this fit the bill. I had played The Sims before so this was a reintroduction to the game. It is very clever and entertaining. I highly recommend it.

5 Stars Sims 2: Apartment Life
According to my daughters, ” The Sims 2: Apartment Life ” is absolutely fun. It’s easy for them to spend too much time playing. I have bought them most of the Sims 2 PC games. However their computer recently crashed and now I’m shopping for a new hard drive. But they rate ” The Sims 2: Apartment Life ” with all stars. Also, Amazon was very quick and efficient in delivering this product. I had no problems with my order and look forward to purchasing more products directly from Amazon. Thank you.

5 Stars I love playing the Sims 2~~
I recently received the final packs to my Sims 2 game series. I am very impressed with Apartment Life. The aspects having your sims live in such close quarters is fun. I have combined it with my other packs including the new Mansion and Garden stuff which is also a terrific add. I like to build and this gives you a lot of leeway. I have built my own apartments and they are very easy to create and then having the whole roommate aspect. That part is ok, but they are just like pets and you can’t get them eat a mean unless they do it automously. But all in all I love the aspects of these two additons. I recommend these as an enhancement to your Sims 2 gameplay.

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Logitech G9 Laser Mouse

Customize your mouse to meet your performance and comfort needs.

Performance