The Sims 2

Mutilating action figures is fun, but once your realize a damaged He-Man fetches far less on eBay, playing Dr. Frankenstein with virtual humans in Sims 2 proves to be loads more gratifying. Start by picking a preset neighborhood or creating your own realm in which to unleash your pixel pets. Then personalize your Sims down to the dramatic flare of their nostrils and the creepy bushiness of their moustaches. Lastly, endow them with phobias and desires that reflect your own uniquely disturbed personality. Satisfying your Sims' ambitions takes precedence over basic care and feeding, and you'll watch them age, breed, succeed (or fail), and, eventually, croak. Along the way, create story lines and capture the lurid action using a moviemaking feature. From the sadist to the social scientist, The Sims 2 gives you an infinite sandbox to play in—minus the lumps of cat poop.