Game camera
- For the object in The Sims 3 World Adventures, see Camera.
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In The Sims series, the Game camera is the feature which shows the simulated world on the player's screen. The camera can be controlled in many ways. In addition to using the buttons in the user interface, it can be rotated by using the , and . keys, and zoomed in and out by using the + and - keys. It can also be controlled with the middle mouse button, Ctrl + Right mouse button[TS2][TSS][TS3][TSM], Shift + WASD keys[TSS] or Ctrl + WASD or Arrow Keys[TS3][TSM] (Windows and Mac OS X); The right analog/C-Stick (All consoles except the Wii); C + Control Stick[TS2 PC](Wii). Starting with The Sims 2 and The Urbz: Sims in the City, the camera control can be reverted to The Sims 1 style.
The Sims era
In the original PC version of The Sims, the camera was somewhat limited. There were four viewing angles, each of which was 90 degrees apart; and three zoom levels.
In addition to the controls in the Control Panel, the , and . keys would rotate the view -- , went right and . went left. Zoom could be controlled with the + and - keys.
In the console versions of The Sims, The Sims Bustin' Out and The Urbz: Sims in the City, the camera is in 3D format and the control is similar to the one used in The Sims 2 and The Sims Stories. The player can control the camera using the Right Analog Stick or C-Stick. In The Urbz: Sims in the City, the camera control can be inverted, similar to the Sims 1 Style in The Sims 2 and The Sims Stories. Also in The Urbz: Sims in the City, the camera can be brought to ground level as in The Sims 2 and The Sims Stories.
The Sims 2 and The Sims Stories
The camera is now in 3D, which allows the view to be rotated 360 degrees and tilted up and down. The Sims 1 style of camera rotation can be selected in Game options. The UI controls, , and . keys, and + and - keys work as in The Sims, although the 3D environment allows for smooth zooming instead of being limited to preset zoom levels. If the mouse has a scroll wheel, it can be used to zoom in and out. The camera can also be controlled by using the middle mouse button (if present), or by holding down the Ctrl button and the right mouse button. As in The Urbz: Sims in the City, the camera can be brought to ground level.
The Sims 2 Console games
The camera works as in The Urbz: Sims in the City, except that the camera controls can be set to either Direct or Classic Control (The Sims 2 and The Sims 2 Pets).
The Sims 3 and The Sims Medieval
Camera controls in The Sims 3 and The Sims Medieval are the same as The Sims 2 and The Sims Stories. However, the CTRL + WASD/Arrow Keys can now be used. Prior to version 1.3 of The Sims Medieval, lots did not have 3D view, and only a Stage view was allowed. The Sims 3 and The Sims Medieval can still be set to use the "Sims 1 Style" of camera control, but this now allows the vertical camera control to be used.