It's no secret that The Sims is one of  Electronic Arts' hottest selling game franchises. But in case you're wondering just how big the game is, EA's Steve Seabolt over at the GDC's Serious Games Summit hints that they'll be hitting the 100 million mark for The Sims sales by next month. More details on what Seabolt said on this matter are in the full article.

To quote a friend of mine when asked why she loved playing The Sims: "It's not a game, it's a lifestyle." This line couldn't be more true now that Electronic Arts has unveiled, alongside the UK release of the MySims (Nintendo Wii and DS) game for the Nintendo Wii and DS, the My Sims Capsule Collection.

This limited edition of customized MySims accessories was made by four of UK's hottest fashion designers and based on the four core attributes of the game - Self Expression, Customization, Creativity and Collectibility. Asides from looking like your favorite Sims character, you can bring the experience of MySims to life with these nifty accessories, ranging from Wiimote carry cases to vinyl and foil artwork you can decorate your stuff with.

Here's the list of designers and their respective accessories, along with their estimated prices in the UK:

• Giles Deacon – Eek Wii-mote/Bag talisman – based on Giles’ signature avatar Eek will come with special MySims elements designed to stimulate the mind or just act as good luck. RRP £35
• Cassette Playa – Stuck on My Sims – Cassette Playa puts a unique twist on the MySims world with a series of vinyl and foil artworks rooted in customisation – give your DS that MySims make-over or simply customise your phone, laptop, nails or notebook. RRP £15
• House of Holland – My Sims Pouch Tee – designed for DS on the go, with a seamed in DS pouch/pocket – this limited edition tee bears the cult signature of Henry Holland’s irreverent take on life – with the slogan ‘Life Begins With MySims’. RRP £40
• Tatty Divine – My Sims Sushi Bag – designed to perfectly carry your Wii mote on the go, Tatty Divine’s exclusive bag takes design inspiration from MySims' sushi chef, and features hundreds of glittering Swarovski crystals. RRP £150

Electronic Arts has released a brand new advertisement for their upcoming game MySims (Wii, DS). Needless to say, it's EXTREMELY cute, so hardcore gamers with a soft heart may want to keep away, if only so they don't start saying, "Aww..." in front of their computer screens.

The new video has a small neighborhood being transformed into a MySims neighborhood, complete with tricked out houses, mailbox transformations into jukeboxes, and the mysterious appearance of an Italian chef carrying a pizza in the background.

Whether you want to look like a punkish fellow with a goatee or a hip-hop styled party girl, MySims certainly has something for everyone. For now though, enjoy the video.

This week on shelves, we've got another plentiful supply of nice releases that we can sink our teeth on. The PC and the Nintendo DS are getting the bulk of fresh launches, but the Microsoft Xbox 360 and the Sony PlayStation 3 titles are making up with quality games such as Eternal Sonata and Stranglehold respectively.

The Nintendo Wii also has a new fill of quirky but fun titles that the young and the young at heart will be happy to tinker with. Overall, it's another good week for the industry so get ready to bust out that wallet and empty to on the cashiers.

Coded Arms Contagion. Konami's explosive sequel to Coded Arms is here and it's set in a VR world of a military training program. Randomly generated levels and square rooms are gone to give way to a heavier emphasis on story over action.

• Sony PSP - September 18, 2007
• US$ 29.99
• ESRB T (Teen)
• Konami

Eternal Sonata. Looking for that big RPG on the Xbox 360? Wait no more because Eternal Sonata is dropping in on the 17th of September. Destiny, deception and courage all come to play in this highly-anticipated tale of good versus evil.

• Xbox 360 - September 17, 2007
• US$ 59.99
• ESRB T (Teen)
• Namco Bandai
  

Stranglehold. Both the Sony PlayStation 3 and PC platforms are finally getting its taste of John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat's bullet-riddled blast Stranglehold. Based on the movie Hardboiled, you'll walk the tough streets of Hong Kong and Chicago to rough up the bad guys with some well-deserved police brutality.

• PlayStation 3, PC- September 18, 2007
• US$ 59.99 (PS3), US$ 49.99 (PC)
  
• ESRB M (Mature)
• Midway Games

The rest of this week's line-up comes after the jump!

Buy: [Coded Arms: Contagion]
Buy: [Eternal Sonata]
Buy: [Stranglehold]

Electronic Arts has cobbled together a new trailer for MySims, an upcoming title for the Nintendo Wii and DS video game platforms based on Maxis' The Sims series.

The trailer essentially gives players a quick preview of how the gameplay goes in both the Wii and DS version of MySims. Everything from building a house to designing your character in the Wii version is included in the trailer. The DS preview isn't as in-depth, though.

Anyway, check out the video below. MySims will be available for both platforms on September 18.

We have no idea how they're planning to do it, but 20th Century Fox looks set on bringing Electronic Arts' popular Sims franchise to the big screen. According to Variety, Fox has acquired the rights to The Sims and will be making a live-action movie based on it.

"The Sims has done an interactive version of an old story, which is what it's like to have infinite power and how do you deal with it," said Sims Studio head Rod Humble. "Given that that's an old story, you can imagine how easily that would translate to traditional story telling."

Humble will be managing the creative property for Electronic Arts while Steve Asbell is overseeing the project for Fox. The script will reportedly be handled by Brian Lynch, who also penned Scary Movie 3 and the upcoming Big Helium Dog. The story is still under wraps and talents have yet to be associated with the project.

IGN's editor-in-chief Matt Casamassina recently had the chance to talk to MySims producer Tim LeTourneau about the upcoming Wii and DS title from Electronic Arts.

Of course, one of the first few things that get asked about next gen videogames revolves around multiplayer capabilities. Casamassina had earlier revealed that while EA wouldn't confirm it right away, the MySims developers are indeed exploring an online component for the video game.

LeTourneau also confirmed this, although he declined to reveal specifics about their online strategy for MySims. Letourneau did say that they recognize Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connection as a "great feature of the Wii" and that they "definitely want to take full advantage of all the capabilities of the system."

Judging from LeTourneau's answers on whether or not the title will be more focused on single-player gameplay, it seems that the online capabilities of MySims is more centered around "sharing". "It's more about sharing what you've done," said LeTourneau. "Showing people. Saying, 'Check out what I've done. Look at this.'"

DS and Wii connectivity also appears to be a no go at this point. According to LeTourneau, the dev team for MySims will be "taking full advantage of the DS platform and how it differs from Wii. We haven't really talked about the connectivity between the DS and Wii at this point in time."

For the full interview, click on the Via link below. You might also want to check out the new screenshots from the game below.

   

More screenshots after the jump!

We've already given you tons of details about the upcoming Wii and DS Sims title, My Sims. It's absolutely cute, and absolutely engaging, knowing as how successful The Sims games already are. But we're still not content about giving you just words and pictures about the game; oh no, we're giving you more, namely, the gameplay videos for designing your characters, creating your building, and decorating your interiors in-game.

My Sims is slated for a Summer 2007 release. This life simulation game is published by Electronic Arts (EA) and is going to be released for the Wii and the DS platforms, although the two versions are slightly different from each other. Either way, My Sims lets the player customize their chibi sims, and control them through a world of other fun chibi objects. Check out the videos already!

Character Customization Gameplay

See more videos after the jump!

Ever since MySims became, well, MySims (it was simply called The Sims for Wii before), people have been asking if the game will have an online component. In the recent days, we've been hearing that the Wii will be invading online territory when the next wave of titles come out, and so the topic about the simulation game came up once more.

IGN Editor-in-Chief Matt Casamassina mentioned that he recently had a discussion with Electronic Arts (EA) about the matter. According to him, EA wouldn't confirm it right away but admitted that game's developers are indeed exploring an online component for the video game.

Quite interestingly, one reader commented that he/she saw a MySims display box up over at EB Games sporting the WiFi network symbol. Casamassina commented that this only strengthens the belief that the video game will have that feature. The editor added that Pokemon Battle Revolution will be kicking off very soon alongside other titles.

On a slightly off-topic note, one reader asked if a WWE game is headed for the Wii. Casamassina unfortunately had no information on this whatsoever but remarked that THQ usually makes wrestling project announcements during WrestleMania.

  

How's the ride been so far, transferring the Sims from the PC to the Wii? Robin Hunckie, Game Designer of Maxis answered that very question at the GDC, and she was nothing short of ecstatic.

"The Wii is so cool... oh my gosh. Almost everyone on my team is a Nintendo fan. Almost all game developers are Nintendo fans... We were really excited to build a Wii game," she gushed. And yeah, from the way she kept at it, we're not having any difficulty at all that they indeed are fans.

Anyway, she also revealed that MySims will be dabbling still in experimentation, and will actually continue giving awards for it. And as for making the game suitable for a Wii, she wanted to remove as much of the micro-management tasks from the game. "At one point, a sort of senior creative in the project came to me and said, 'It's not a Sims game if they don't pee.' ... [But] there's other things in life to do, too."

And of course, as is the now-common dilemma of developers bringing games to the Wii, they had to make sure that the controllers would fit into the experience. According to her, she likes the way Rayman Raving Rabbids and WarioWare integrated their elements into the controller, "but she wants more depth [from it]."

In the meantime, check out these images on the design process of MySims.