24 hour Day/Night care for toddlers is working - you just don't get paid.

plopppo2

EDIT:

I think people are already aware of this - so this might be nothing new as there are a ton of Daycare lots on the gallery - so I guess people are already running Daycare

I started a new family with 1 toddler in Willow Creek (the cheap area of town). I left the BFF house alone, but had 3 other families living there with a toddler each - each house edited with at least a toddler bed, high chair, toddler block things, potty, toy chest.

On starting the game, I took my family of 3 to visit the next door neighbour - get to know them - then took all of us (including them) to visit the next house, then took all of us (including those 2 families) to meet the final family with a toddler.

So we now have 4 families with toddlers that have all met each other.


When it was time to go home, I noted that I could choose who I went home with - ie, I basically took my two parents and my toddler, plus the 3 other toddlers from the other families.

So, currently, my Sims have got these other toddlers until the game says "Wait a minute! You can't have those toddlers - they should be at home in bed.".


The point being - because my parents know the other toddlers, the other toddlers will appear in Travel options etc - so, you could take them on an outing or something.

EDIT:
You can also select a toddler and choose "Invite to Hangout at Current Lot" - so, technically, you can 'summon' toddlers to Daycare.
EDIT:
This works. I just tested it - toddlers spawn onto the pavement/sidewalk outside your house and make their way in.

So, you can do what you want with this - you could have a single Sim that takes toddlers places and earns money by busking, selling stuff, etc. The game doesn't pay you to be a Daycarer, you have to earn it some how.

EDIT:
The game lets you feed other toddlers as though they are your own - you an also bathe them - potty train them - teach them stuff - it is like they are your toddler

EDIT:
Is is 7pm at night (Sim time) and I still have these 3 other toddlers in the house - the game has yet to send them home. I wonder if they can stay the night? I might need to stick some toddler beds on the decking.

EDIT:
THE GAME APPEARS TO TRY AND RETURN TODDLERS TO THEIR REAL PARENTS AT 10PM - which is fair enough.
EDIT: In fact, this may have been by chance - you seem to get circa 3+ hours with toddlers at a time.

EDIT:
Having said that, I still have one other toddler sleeping in a bed - so, it doesn't force return toddlers to their families - I know that particular toddler was destroying the dolls house - so, possibly, they only get returned if they are idling.

EDIT:
12:20 in the night - the rogue toddler just had a nightmare and ran to my Sim's bedroom - the game still hasn't sent the toddler home to its real family.

EDIT:
01:57 (in the morning) just finished reading the rogue toddler to sleep - The game has still not sent it home.

EDIT:
02:05 A message popped up on screen from the rogue toddler:

I should reallly be going now. Thanks for hanging out with me. See you later.

plopppo2

IN A NUTSHELL, DAYCARE IS WORKING - you just don't get paid for it or get any credit for it.

It's very similar to TS3 Daycare without the challenges and additional features of caring longer for a child because the parents will be running late.

EDIT:
You also have to guess their needs as you cannot see their hunger, bladder levels, etc. This makes it a bit unpredictable - so just leave food lying around and potty train them to get them to auto use the potty.

EDIT:
If your Sim can make the fruitcake stuff then that is a good option as it does not go off - you can leave it out without worrying about it. They will feed themselves; however, fruitcake will give them that sugar rush effect whereby they go cold turkey over it.


EDIT:
The other advantage is you can operate it WHEN IT SUITS YOUR SIM - you just invite the toddlers over when you want.

You can get rid of toddlers by asking them to leave.

Everyone is a winner.

plopppo2

I have just started a 9am Daycare - just too see at what points the game may try to screw-it-up.

I have my toddler plus 3 NPC toddlers.

Toddlers are auto-playing with toys, etc - they are acting like household toddlers - full interactions.


12:30pm a message popped up on screen from one toddler:

I should reallly be going now. Thanks for hanging out with me. See you later.

So one toddler down - but, technically, can probably be re-called to Daycare.

1:30pm a message popped up on screen from one toddler:

I should reallly be going now. Thanks for hanging out with me. See you later.

That toddler was being potty-trained along with the 3rd when the first toddler legged it.

1:35pm a message popped up on screen from the final toddler:

I should reallly be going now. Thanks for hanging out with me. See you later.

That toddler was being potty-trained along with the 2nd when the first toddler legged it.


So, I am not sure why they all legged it after 2 and a half hours of Daycare - I never force-fed any of them, so possibly the game recalled them to feed them. The only way to force feed them is to probably do a 'Call to meal' action.


2pm - recalled toddlers back to Daycare and 'Called to Meal' so that they are all forced to eat on arrival.
I have also cheated relationships (modifyrelationship) with 1 toddler to see if relationship levels affect how long they stay.

EDIT:
5:55pm - the first toddler is leaving - the toddler who I cheated relationship level with; HOWEVER, they have been there almost 4 hours since re-arriving.

EDIT:
The second toddler left shortly after the first one to leave - the final toddler left at 7pm - basically 5 hours after re-arriving.

plopppo2

Rather than re-call the toddlers back to Daycare - considering it is now 7pm - I chose to 'Travel With' - we are now all at the Stargazer's Lounge. We arrived at 7:09pm.

11:14pm - 2 toddlers dissapeared without any messages - quickly followed by the 3rd toddler.


11:30pm - recalled toddlers back to Stargazer Lounge by using 'Invite to Hangout at Current Lot'.
EDIT:
2 arrived - one did not as they are sleeping - it actually tells you that like it does with adult Sims.


12:58am - one of the parents of a toddler I am with in Stargazer Lounge has phone one of my Sims to invite them to a crazy party at the Chalet.
HOWEVER, you cannot take toddlers if you 'Accept and Choose Sims'.

1:06am - I am going to attempt to 'Travel With' to get us all to the crazy party - including the 3rd toddler who is at home trying to sleep.

1:09am - we have arrived - the 3rd toddler still refuses to join in as they are sleeping.
There is no crazy party going on!
Clara Bjergsen is sniffing about and there is also a ghost - but no party.
EDIT:
and a suit of armour is walking around - on its own.

5:15am first toddler of the two has legged it home.
5:38am second toddler has run for the hills.

plopppo2

So, you can run Daycare from home and/or from a purpose-built Daycare lot - ie a separate lot.

You can use the 'Travel With' option (regardless of where a toddler is (unless they are sleeping)) to get everyone to show up at a purpose-built Daycare lot - or simply invite the toddlers to your home for Daycare. Or travel to the Daycare lot and invite them from there.

I guess this will work from a Retail lot - ie you can sell stuff and have Daycare running together. NPC toddlers don't really require any attention - they will leave when they want or when you ask them to, you can bring them back when you want.

You need to add NPC toddlers for this though - you also need to have met them. You can possibly cheat meeting them with 'modifyrelationship'.

EDIT:
The thing I noted - especially when keeping toddlers out at night is that they don't seem to have needs.

I don't think they need to eat, sleep, go potty, etc - I never witnessed any of them begging for food, auto-using a potty, or sleeping. I put them to bed myself. My own toddler was sleeping on nights out ie in the Stargazer Lounge, but the other toddlers seemed to have no fatigue.

It could be that when the game re-calls a toddler, it re-sets their needs; however, I am suspicious that NPC toddlers don't have needs outside of their home lot.

NPC toddlers also auto-communicate with NPC Sims when you take them out to public lots - ie if there is nothing else for them to do - no toys, etc.

plopppo2

Mmm, there are lots of Daycare lots in the Gallery - so maybe people already know all of this?

I must be late to the party.