The Sims 2: Open for Business Expansion Pack | 
| From: Electronic Arts
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $14.49
You Save: $5.50 (28%)
New (28) Used (22) from $12.98
Rating:  78 reviews
Sales Rank: 586
Format: Cd-rom
Platform: Windows Xp
Genre: strategy_games;action_games
ESRB: Teen
Media: CD-ROM
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 12 - 20 years
Operating System: Windows XP
Shipping Weight (lbs): 999
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 1.2
MPN: 302
Model: 15157
UPC: 014633151572
EAN: 0014633151572
ASIN: B000CR27OS
Release Date: February 28, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: Jewel case or software is still shrink wrapped.
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| Features:
| • | The third expansion pack for The Sims 2 | | • | Turn your Sims' skills and hobbies into careers - even children can run a business! | | • | Cultivate an audience for your wares, from window shoppers to niche markets | | • | 125 new items to decorate your Sim's house or business | | • | A new radio station featuring famous bands singing in "Simlish" |
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Product Description
In Sims 2: Open For Business you'll get to design your own clothing boutique, beauty salon, florist, high-end electronics shop, bustling restaurant chain, or virtually any other type of business. Hire your staff as the business grows and put talented Sims to work making toys, running the register, crafting floral bouquets, giving sales pitches, or manufacturing robots. But watch out for slacker employees and be prepared to fire them on the spot. Will you build a thriving business empire or become an eccentric entrepreneur designing the next big thing? Over 125 new items for your Sims' business - Everything from display cases and beauty salon chair, to workbenches and cash registers
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| Customer Reviews: Read 73 more reviews...
 Great fun except for some major bugs March 5, 2006
K. D. Wells (Northern CA)
256 out of 271 found this review helpful
There are some things I just love about this new expansion pack. It's great to be able to easily choose the formal wear when our sims get married, I was getting really bored with that default wedding dress. As a result I've downloaded many beautiful wedding dresses from the fansites. And finally we're able to change appearance for the toddlers without needing a hacked mirror. Yay! Thanks Maxis. Also with this expansion we now get a twins cheat AND a food to increase the chance of twins. Maybe now there will be a slow down to the influx of all the twins threads on the BBS. Maybe not, but a girl can hope can't she?
The businesses are really neat in some ways but I'm not so much into the tycoon thing. It's very challenging and sometimes it seems frustrating to let your sim have a social life outside of their business. It is fun though.
It's a shame about the bugs emerging. They're so bad that they could potentially toast neighborhoods that gamers have worked so hard on. Here's just a few I've seen around-
-Sims getting "stuck" while at their community business. When the taxi arrives to take the sim home the sim won't get in the taxi. Instead the sim waves his or her arms in the air and yells like there's a problem. You have to wait for the first taxi to leave, then call for a taxi to take the sim to another community lot and then home. Supposedly this happens when you save on the business lot. I didn't save, just did some remodeling of the lot and this happened anyway. Thankfully I had not taken the sim to the business in his car, otherwise he could have been lost in some sort of limbo until we get a patch.
-Bakeries are really messed up. Dessert items disappear from the owner's inventory, making it difficult to restock. You can only make desserts during certain hours. In real life bakers start before sunrise so sim bakers should be able to also. And like the other review mentioned the sims who buy the desserts cannot eat them. What's the point of a bakery then?
-The new Mission furniture is beautiful but seems to have some problems. The loveseat shows as black and doesn't have any of the color or wood options like it's supposed to.
-Some business lots completely disappear like they never existed. Gone, poof. I'm not sure what's doing it but it could be related to problems with assigning uniforms. It hasn't happened to me yet (knock on wood) but I'm definitely not assigning any uniforms until more information's out. Hopefully this will be addressed in the future patch too.
I know there's a couple other bugs I'm forgetting at the moment. At least it appears that Maxis is right on top of this and will hopefully have a patch in just a short amount of time. I'd recommend if you love the sims like me go ahead and buy the game but watch out for the problems. Read the BBS over on the official site to stay updated on the bugs and the workarounds. Others may want to wait (hopefully just a week or two) until the patch comes out.
 Fun new addition to the growing Sims 2 library April 26, 2006
Adam Sugarman (Miami Beach, FL)
173 out of 173 found this review helpful
Before the Sims 2: Open for Business, Sims owners could be in control of every aspect of their sim's life, save for one: work. They would make relationships, gain skill points, go to college, even become vampires, but for a few hours every day they would dissappear from view, leaving a hole in the day for the game's players. Well, that's not the case anymore. With Open for Business, you can now govern their economic ambitions, too. What it becomes is a fun, if more challening than expected, mini-game that tests the micromanagement skills of Sims players.
You can open up any number of business types: from bakeries to furniture stores to salons. You can even charge sims to just come over and hang out at your place if you want to. The flexibility is there for you to sell almost anything (because that's essentially what it all comes down to); I personally found it easiest and most profitable to sell televisions and artwork (somtimes in the same store), but you can do whatever you want. You can hire managers to do the work for you, you can buy real estate and sell it, you can sell cars; there truly is a lot to do in the game.
Now there are some game imbalances to take notice of. First of all, you need a truckload of cash to start a business. Without cheating it's usually quite difficult to pull the money together to start even the most basic of businesses. It would have been nice to have some sort of investing process, where you could invite others as investors or even stock owners, but as is, it's a pretty basic business simulation. The second imbalance comes when you do eventually create a successful business: it's so successful that you have more money than you know what to do with. Granted this isn't really a gripe, but it's certainly in stark contrast to the beginnings of your business.
The actual running of the business can be one of two things to different players: a fun, challenging break from normal sims gameplay or a boring, tedious excercise in micromanagement. I personally felt the former, but I could see why it could be tedious. Not only do you have to worry about your own needs, you need to worry about giving your employees breaks, and making sure your customers are happy. Also, they are in constant need of reminders why they are in the store in the first place; the sheer number of times I used the "sell" command on various customers is staggering. However, this is all exectued quite well, and it is really rewarding to see repeat customers coming in everyday to buy your cakes and pastries (although it gets a little suspect when they buy a new television every day). I enjoy the challenge and feel that most people will. It's a departure from the guarranteed-to-win dating mini-game from Nightlife, also.
I also have to mention the awesome robots that have been re-introduced to the series. You get to build your own robots from the ground up, from cleaning robots to fully functional Servos that work as people without needs (with the exception of the occasional recharging).
Other people are having trouble with bugs in their games, but I have yet to run into any (other than standard Sims 2 bugs). I did find it particularly difficult to run some businesses, though - i never could get that trendy new nightclub/salon off the ground. Oh well.
Pros:
Great new mini-game for Sim owners
Adds a lot of new content and options
Fun
Rewarding businesses
Robots!
Cons:
Lots of micro-management
Some might find the challenge a turn-off
Buggy for some people
Slight game imbalances
More Fun and Variety with some more Frustration. May 8, 2006
James Chapman (Everett, WA USA)
54 out of 60 found this review helpful
I'm still not tired of playing Sims 2 and it's in large part due to the immense replayability that the original game had plus the additions of these expansion packs. Open for Business adds a number of new things to a game that already has loads of replayability and variety.
Pros:
-New Items
-Ability to run a home business (despite the negatives below, I do have to give the sims team kudos for adding this ability).
-Ability to buy real estate and own community businesses.
-Ability to hire townies
-robots
Cons:
-Bugs! What does it take to get some clean, well tested software these days?!
-Running a Sims business is quite challenging. I play pc games as a way of resting and relaxing from a hard day's work. Running a sim business in Sims 2 at times feels more like work than play especially once the business starts having loads of customers coming in.
-The number of townies available to hire doesn't keep up with the business' needs.
-As with the other expansion packs, I felt the price was a bit high for what was added.
-The "own 5 successful businesses" lifetime aspiration. Running one is such more work than play, but 5? Any Sim of mine that comes up with that aspiration, gets their head stuck in the ReNu gadget for the purpose of getting a new one.
-As pointed out by others, sending someone to work a full day at a community business and then having them come home at the same time that they left is kind of wierd (of course we already had that with the original game and Nightlife with Sims going to community lots. University at least kept the Semester clock running).
Despite the fact that the Cons got more space than the Pros, above, I think this is, overall, a good addition to the Sims 2 lineup. If you want to fully enjoy the business operation side of this expansion, I would suggest creating a new neighborhood, associate it with custom University, Downtown and Business neighborhoods (that way you don't have to deal with all of those pre-made sims) and then run only one family. Keep the initial family members employed at the standard jobs that came with the original game, getting promotions and rewards and then build up a large income and pool of friends. Once that is accomplished, then you might get a younger member of the family to start a business with a good supply of capital and Townie friends to hire. That takes away the two most challenging/frustrating parts of running a sim business and allows you to concentrate on the fun aspects of the game. That's my two cents anyway. 4 stars for fun (the "work" as opposed to "play" frustration that running a business gives at times in the game led me to take a star away), 3 stars overall (Lost two stars due to bugs and price).
 Adds to the Sims experience while fixing pesky Night Life bugs March 2, 2006
R. Blocker
31 out of 37 found this review helpful
One of my biggest concerns regarding Open for Business was that it would drag down loading times and exacerbate the bugs I've been seeing since Night Life came out--no more work uniforms, Sims arriving home from work (sometimes even getting promoted) and not getting money for it, townies getting stuck on my property and unable to move...
I've had the game one day so far, and I'm happy to say that those particular problems have been done away with. Not only that, but the installation process and loading times are surprisingly quick and painless for such a vast expansion pack.
Game performance on the large business lots, I've found, is a tad bit less jumpy than it is on the large Night Life lots: Fewer hangups when you rotate the camera, fewer split-second paused screens. The smaller business lots run almost like a normal house-lot.
The expansion pack itself is every bit as fun and addictive than the others, if not more so. Your Sims now have the option of buying an already-established business, starting one from home, or purchasing an all-purpose starter lot to make the business of their choice. Running a business itself is challenging enough to be fun, but not so hard that you feel overwhelmed by all the duties you have and 'little things' that you, as manager, have to keep a constant eye on.
The expansion packs keep getting better! February 28, 2006
D. Fox
29 out of 67 found this review helpful
Your Sims Get Down To Business...
Now your Sims can create their own businesses. They can design their own clothing boutique, beauty salon, florist, high-end electronics shop, bustling restaurant chain, or virtually any other type of business. Hire your staff as the business grows and put talented Sims to work making toys, running the register, crafting floral bouquets, giving sales pitches, or manufacturing robots. But watch out for slacker employees and be prepared to fire them on the spot. From clever tinkerer to master craftsman, develop your Sim's talents to best suit your business needs. Will they build a thriving business empire or become eccentric entrepreneurs designing the next big thing?
*Create Thriving Businesses:
Open up shops selling just about anything from clothing, electronics, and toys to flowers, baked goods, robots and more. Customize any business to your choosing by tailoring the store theme, layout and prices. Hire employees with high sales skills and employ independent managers to run things while your Sim is away. Watch as your business grows from a mom and pop shop into a booming empire.
*Be The Boss:
Train employees, promote the best, and fire the rest. Cater to different customers including browsers and loyal shoppers. Dress your Sims in outrageous mascot outfits that resemble Knights, Ninjas, Gorillas, and more. Promote your best employees, but beware of slacker workers and be prepared to lay them off without hesitation!
*Learn The Tricks Of The Trade:
Customer is king. Develop your Sims' sales skills and determine if your employees should use a hard sell or drop the price to close the deal. Win the Best-of-the-Best Award to establish your Sim's business rep. Will your Sim's business make more money selling low quality products at basement rates or luxurious goods at scale-tipping prices?
*Turn Talents Into Cash:
Arrange flowers, make toys, and create robots to catch thieves at home or clean up the shop. Develop master-skilled Sims to make the most prized and expensive goods. Settle for an entry-level crafter and churn out pet bricks or faulty toy robots. Just bring home the bacon any way you can!
*More Than 125 New Items:
Stock up on essentials for your Sims' business, including display cases, a beauty salon chair, a toy workbench, a floral station, cash registers, and more. Complete your shop atmosphere with awnings and elevators for easy store navigation, or matching uniforms for all employees. With all the new items, there will never be another dull day building a business!
Highly recommended to all! Remember, you must have The Sims 2 before getting this expansion pack.
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