Inspired by roBucky's Alice & Kev TS3 experiment I decided to conduct my own homeless/poverty experiment.
Keeping Up With the Joneses
For those who might not know, "keeping up with the Joneses" is an old phrase that usually means keeping up with someone who is rich. So I decided to make fun of that phrase by naming my family the Jones
I started by creating an abandoned building. Tons of room but very few amenities. All that was left in the building at the time they moved in was a couple of decrepit desks, a couple of beat up chairs, a long forgotten sofa and a couple of rotting love seats. Also the previous owners didn't rip out the plumbing so the old office bathrooms were still there and an old employee kitchen sans any appliances. The only lights in the place are in the bathrooms and kitchen.
I moved in the Joneses:
Meet
Tansy a YA with the following Traits: Over Emotional, Artistic, Friendly, Flirty, Excitable
Her brother
Joey with the following Traits: Flirty, Daredevil, Commitment Issues, Athletic
and last but not least....
their baby sister
April (now a Teen) with the following Traits: Loner, Good, Light Sleeper and added when she aged to a teen, Friendly.
Their story:
Tansy, Joey and Alice’s parents were killed in a tragic house fire. The kids were away from home when it happened thus their lives were spared. Tansy, rather than see the family split up, and now having no home, moved them into an old abandoned office building in the center of town. Amazingly enough no one has noticed that the building is now occupied. The townspeople have attributed any lights and noises to ghosts and just continue to petition the slow moving town council to remove the eye sore.
Having no living relatives and having lost everything to the fire they cling to each other as they strive to rebuild their lives.
I gave myself the following “rules”
1. They were only allowed one outfit apiece for each category of clothing until such a time as their earnings reflect the ability to afford more clothing. None of the clothing was allowed to be to “rich” looking. Must look like something they’d pick up at a thrift store or rummaging through garbage.
2. The only money they could have is what they earn through jobs, opportunities, finds or selling off items in the abandoned building.
3. They have to “Work Hard” as much as I can make them within the constraints of their moods/needs.
4. I have High Free-Will turned “ON”, LONG Life Span and Story Progression is turned “ON”
5. ABSOLUTELY NO CHEATS ALLOWED. With one exception; to give them enough money to purchase the building and then to take the money away.
I have to tell you it’s been a real challenge for me to not play with cheats as that is my normal mode of play.
