Finally, EA has officially announced The Sims 3 for a 2009 release -- nobody is surprised by the fact itself, of course: 98 million sold copies of the Sims series (including add-ons) speak for themselves.

The most important feature in Sims 3: The game will feature an open neighborhood, where Sims can freely walk to whatever place they want, without "jumping to locations" as in Sims 2. Instead, they can leave the boundaries of their premises at any time.

Rod Humble, who heads the Sims Studios, promises a totally new, deeper personality system which will enable more complex interactions between Sims. Also, he mentions new Goals and award systems.

According to EA, players will be able to send their Sims on a shopping tour with friends, have lunch in Downtown oder visit relatives. As in the two predecessors, players can change nearly everything in the game, from flowers to clothing to interior design.

An interesting new feature is the "Build your own Sim" tool. With this, the looks and bodies of your Sims are no longer limited to a preselected variety, but can be modified from thin to fat, small to big and so on. Even the smallest facial feature can be modified, EA says. Also, you can choose 5 out of 80 character traits for your Sim, creating a nosy, bitter grandma or a choleric punk.