The Sims series is one of the biggest names in the simulator genre, but most if its spin-offs seem to have died off. The only surviving franchise in the greater Sims series is the aptly titled The Sims. It has outlived pretty much every other Maxis series including SimCity, Spore, and the MySims series.
The MySims series was a popular spin-off of The Sims made largely for Nintendo consoles that would see six different titles release in the span of three years. However, since the release of MySims SkyHeroes in 2010, it seems like EA has little interest in continuing this series. What was once a Nintendo mainstay seems to have faded into relative obscurity, and the majority of the games have been left to gather dust on their respective consoles.
MySims Once Thrived on Nintendo Platforms
The MySims series kicked off in 2007 with MySims on the Nintendo Wii and DS. This game put players in control of their own custom Mii-like character and tasked them with redeveloping a run down town. They did this by interacting with the various townsfolk, building and customizing their houses, and gathering resources known as essences to further expand their creative potential. It was less about life simulation and more about designing a town for a colorful cast of characters like the Animal Crossing series.
MySims would prove very successful, and would go on to become one of the best-selling games on the Nintendo DS. EA quickly capitalized on this success by releasing numerous sequels that took the concept to brand-new settings. The first of these sequels came in the form of MySims Kingdom in 2008. Kingdom had a similar gameplay loop to the original game, but this time it brought players to multiple islands with different themes, and had them rebuild an entire kingdom. It also put more of an emphasis on a story, and would see the return of many fan favorite characters from the first game.
In 2009, EA released three different MySims games that completely changed the series. MySims Party gave the colorful cast of characters a Mario Party spin. Players still had to rebuild a town, but they did this by playing all sorts of wild minigames. MySims Racing gave the MySims series a Mario Kart makeover, and let players race against characters from previous games. MySims Agents sent players on a secret agent adventure across the MySims world, and was probably the most story-driven game in the series.
Each of the MySims games from 2009 were fun, but none of them seemed to match their predecessors. MySims Racing and MySims Party were nothing compared to Nintendo's franchises, and MySims Agents was nothing like the first two games. Some critics felt like these titles were simply uninspired cash-ins on the IP, and releasing three games in the same year may have been too much MySims.
EA released one more MySims game before the series would be put on hold: MySims Skyheroes. This game put players in the cockpit of a plane, and had them take to the skies in singleplayer or multiplayer. It was the only MySims game to release on the PS3 and Xbox 360 along with the Wii, but it seems like that was not enough to keep the series going.
There has been no MySims game since 2010, and the only game playable on modern hardware is the original. The first two games were fun, but the studio quickly oversaturated the market and strayed from what made the series enjoyable in the first place. This likely caused dwindling sales numbers and worsening critical reviews, and that resulted in the MySims series getting unceremoniously canceled. Maybe it will return one day, but for now it is simply a part of gaming history.