Now that I looked at your pictures Clearic, I think they've actually branched out in some ways. I'm pretty sure they've included modernist and postmodernist architecture alongside the usual suburban styles, plus a little of some others I can't identify.

Pretty much if it looks like a box with windows, or even a "glass cage", then it's from the "Less is more" (Mies Van Der Rohe) modernist/international style that looks the same everywhere. Literally, if you looked at one building you've seen them all.

Postmodernist styles are a bit different. They take a humorous approach and make fun of modernism ("Less is a bore"). It's usually given away that it's post-modern when it has decoration that looks slapped on or strangely out of place. Sometimes there is a "plundering" of cultures for various styles and sticking them all together. ...usually in ways that just don't go together, like a chair with gothic decoration made out of plastic and with pink camo coloring. Hideous, but it was an art statement only, thankfully. It can look a lot like the international style, but those odd decorations ususally help.

I'm preeeetty sure there's some post-modern stuff in some of those buildings pictured. There's definitely some international. I swear some are from the 70s as well, but I can't quite tell. Don't know if any of this stuff is useful though, since it's mostly just me rambling on.

Hey, why are Kaiko Espurr Mikkusu's posts get disagrees? Go check the info provided by this person in your game before hitting that disagree button.
As for the real vs.fictional world thing: the sims world is fictional, but it does resemble real world so much, that it is really easy to say what TS2 or TS 3 locations are based off. Some places are more or less generic (like Pleasantview, Sunset Valley, Riverview, Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills, Barncle Bay (more or less), Belladonna Cove, Bluewater Village, the Downtown from TS2, probably the universities and Three Lakes BV destination from TS2.
However,many locations are obviously based of real-world or fictional places:
- Strangetown (Roswell, USA, with its UFo references)
- Veronaville (Shakespearean-era England and Italy,it's even divided into the English District and the Italian District)
- Twinbrook (Louisiana, USA)
- Bridgeport (not so specific, but sth. like Chicago or new York)
- Appaloosa Plains (westernstates of the USA)
- Lucky Palms (Las Vegas,USA)
- Aurora Skies (Scandinavia, but mostly Iceland)
- Dragon Valley (Ireland)
- Monte Vista (Italy)
- Twikkii Island and (maybe) Sunlit Tides (Hawaii)
- Far East (Japan + China)
- Isla Paradiso (the Caribbean)
- Starlight Shores (Los Angeles)
- Moonlight Falls (not so specific,but since the town's storylin is based on Twilight, it's most likely the American Northwest)
- Oasis Landing (some Star Wars references + Hunger Ganmes- or is it just me who sees such reseblence between OL and Panem?)
- Roaring Heights (Miami)
- Midnight Hollow (Sleepy Hollow from Tim Burton's movie with the same tile, and, in general, with Tim Burton-esque feel to it)

EA have gone too far by referring to WA locations as France, Egypt,and China.Their Simlish names (Champes les Sims, Shang-Simla, and Al-Simhara) are ok, and it would be better to not include the actual landmarks with these locations.
I see nothing wrong with giving some (or a lot) of real-life resemblence to in-game locations and even characters, as long as they're not complete copies of their rel counterparts,and are not named after what/whomthey are made to look like. This is why I also think it was somewhat off to see Avril Lavigne or Merilyn Monroe in TS1 (though many people do have double standards, and say that real celebrities in TS1 were ok, but real locations in TS3 are wrong).

As for the timeline: it is not like all TS3 worlds are ven set in the same timeline: look, the Caliente sisters are young adults in both Pleasantview and Barnacle Bay, while other Pleasantview characters are kids, and Brandi is not even born yet, her parents are kids (well, she may be much younger than Skip, though).
And if you take technologies and fashion into account, the timeline makes no sence at all. TS3 world with its cellphones owned by everyone, plasma TVs, computers and laptops, online dating, selfies, clothes styles is so much 21st century, while TS2 looks like 80s-90s.

Because thread necromancy (and double-posting) are frowned on 'round these parts.

Mammal,

As for thread necromancy: though the thread is very old, the topic isn't. Also, there are interesting posts here to read, except for a few outright whiny ones. Was it better to create a new thread for this and clutter the forum with similar threads?

Sadly, I am not an all-knowing magician, and do not have an answer to the rhetorical question posed in your last post. I did, however, have an answer to your other question, which I provided! People have a negative knee-jerk reaction to perceived necromancy and there is a contingent of forum users will Dislike the post that resurrects a year-old thread, regardless of its content or the context of the resurrection.