To create the content that will populate the Exchange site, EA’s community team apparently handpicked about 30 different Sims fans from across the globe to help create new characters, homes, furniture objects, lots, and custom patterns. The Sims 3’s new custom-pattern tool will let you design your own customized pattern, which you can then apply to pretty much anything in the game (including clothes, furniture, and house wallpaper), and with any kind of color tint you choose. You can then upload them on the Exchange site to share with other players. From what we understand, the game’s diligent community is pretty stringent about policing objectionable player-created content, so any offensive or copyrighted material that tries to sneak through will probably get weeded out quickly.

The Sims 3 preview:  Creating Content for The Sims 3