What makes a game replayable?

Triplis · October 2017

To you, what is it about a game that motivates you to keep coming back again and again, no matter how many times you've played it?

Specifically, in relation to the sims series, or you can talk about games in general as well.

I thought of this because I was thinking about replayability the other day, just in general to do with games, and I remember reading this comment from someone about another game. Their comment went roughly like this: "The problem is, after a while this game becomes boring." And I just kind of thought, "Isn't that every game?"

I mean, obviously, how speedily you get bored with a game matters. But I don't know that there's such a thing as a game that can stay interesting forever. I'd venture to say that a big factor in how fast a game gets boring is how many sequential hours you're putting into it. Like someone who leads a very busy life and can only play a few hours a week will probably get bored of a game much more slowly than someone putting in 12 hours a day of gameplay.

But that's just my own musings on it.

I'm curious to know, what it is that motivates you to keep coming back to the same game?

Eduardx123 · October 2017

Achievements, maxing out sims, solving routing issues to max out smooth game running and lastly lot, character and apartment design among others.

Cynna · October 2017

In the case of the Sims series in particular, it would be customization, the ability to change to different worlds, or to have a significant ability to change existing worlds.

On top of that would be the personalities of the Sims. When traits work well, playing the game with one character is like night and day to playing it with another.

JoAnne65 · October 2017

For me: the ability to tell my own stories and make the game and my sims my own. That way the game will never get boring, because it would mean I would get bored with my own imagination and I don't. I can see how other games are less replayable because the game aspect is more important in those (and once you've done that there is no point in doing it again). But when I send sim 1 to university or to Egypt, that is a whole different experience than when I send sim 2 there. And I think that very much comes down to what @Cynna says. I can't imagine it's about achievements or skilling or things like that, because when you've achieved it you're done, just like with the other games. My sim is about to pick up martial arts and I'm really looking forward to teaching her. How can that be, when I've already done that with four other sims before her? It can't be the achievement that tickles me. It must be something else.

Pary · October 2017

I play a lot of ( some older ) RPG's alongside The Sims. Like Neverwinter Nights, Dragon Age Origins, The Mass Effect series ( except Andromeda ). For games to be replayable for me, the story, or the ability to tell my own story is the main thing for me, with customisation coming in close behind. If the story isn't solid, or is boring, then I lose interest very quickly, and rarely pick the game up again. If the story is good, I will replay the games indefinitely, over and over again. It's a bit like reading a really good book that you love. It never gets old, even though you know full well what's going to happen.

Take NWN for example. The graphics are dated now, it was released in 2002. I bought it in 2003. You can barely customise your character, you can't even jump in the game, but the story is engaging and I always found it enthralling. Many people didn't like the OC, but I do. Its expansions were even better. To this day, I still play through the official campaign once or twice a year. It's main strengths also lie in the Aurora toolset. Even now, people still use it to create custom modules, or online worlds; of course it has dropped off a little bit due to age, though it still has its own niche and creators still breathe life into the game by way of art & graphical overhauls, and despite EA simply cutting the game off from the Master Server with no warning leaving people with unplayable DLC that they paid for.

I rarely play games that require me to use a pre-generated character - I want to make my own, with my own history and what I envision for the story.

I'm not into achievements and things like that. I think it really spoils an excellent game putting too much focus onto meaningless ( to me ) things like those. Like DA: Inquisition or ME3 for example. I utterly loathe having to have it tied to that filthy Origin client. I don't want to be notified by music, or other annoyances when I manage to get one of their dumb achievements. I don't care about it. I want to care about the story, and the characters not a numerical report on how many times I've slain a dragon, or how many Vorcha I've shot. Those kinds of things are irrelevant to me.

For Sims, I just love that every time I start a new game, I have a new character, a new story to tell, and other characters to meet. They mostly react differently to different personalities, even though they may be pre-made sims you've seen hundreds of times. I can create different houses, and impact the town in any way I like, be it through my sims lives or building.

estella_dee · October 2017

I played The Sims 2 none stop. I just can't get enough of that game. What I like about TS2 and what I think is the reason why that game to me is re-playable (I suppose this can be said in TS3 as well), is that what you do in the game has purpose. You gain skills because you want to progress in your career or you want to unlock interactions. Moreso you want to advance in your careers because you want to achieve your aspirations, or you want to unlock interactions to give your sims more personality. I honestly, wish I can tell you that this is also true in TS4. Maybe to some extent, but very minute, almost neglect-able. It was also a bit of a challenge in TS2 to get what you want for your sims. It felt like your sims really deserved them. I think because of those two combined (the sense of purpose and the challenge that comes with it), made me want to play the game as much as I can.

I will agree with you though, I don't think anyone can play a game forever, at some point you get bored with something. I got TS4 at launch, played it for probably 2-3weeks -- maybe a month. Then got bored, I got hooked to this MMO-RPG for the next 2 years, before re-installing this game again, got all the EPs and GPs, and some SPs, and honestly? I'm already half way through getting bored again. And it's only been what 2 months since I reinstalled it? Let's just say it's been more fun browsing online looking at CC and commenting in the forums for me. It was a challenge becoming a member in this forum and there was/is a purpose of me posting stuff here. lol.

The Sims 4 is a nice game. I mean, it looks beautiful (at least). But really the only reason why I am still playing it is because it is a sims game-- or at least it is part of the franchise.

StrawberryYogurt · October 2017

A game's depth and customization. A story that doesnt end and has multiple ways to play. On a lesser note, the style/look to it. I dont find much in ts4 except the cas is fantastic and its a pretty game. But no depth, poor customization. The lack of a story album in game was a huge blow for me. That was majority of my playing in ts2, writing stories.

Rukola_Schaaf · October 2017

i think the main replayability value for me is options to make my own stories in a sims game

i am quite soon bored with every other game because those games are very limited to make them my own
in a sims game i can, or at least i think i should be able to, determine the city structure, the family structure & the personality structure, those structures determine then what happens & how the interactions go
on top of that there have to be gameplay options, like no vampires, no aliens, no culling, no weather, no aging, no story progression ...
there have to be tools & options to tweak the gameplay to what story i want to play atm
the more a gameplay can be tweaked that way the more replayability value it contains for me because no game set up that way is similar to another

& that's also why TS4 doesn't work for me at all
- there is no city structure, lots are fixed, venues are hidden lots in nowhere, backdrops are the last overkill
- there is little to do for sims, lots of the things are just fake without interactions, like no cars, no cinema or things are just deco & FX, so the lives become very similar after the novelty wears off
- the traits are exchangeable & matter little in regard to actions, wishes, interactions, reactions, so after i played one sim the second is already familiar & the third is predictable - result boredom & that means replayability vanishes, been there done that
- lack of tools & options to make my own stories, gameplay, interactive content, objects used & usable in game by sims, because pure deco objects with no interactions is an architecture game & not a sims game
& also forced culling of sims & relationships, timed tasks, prescripted contend of venues, forced aliens & vampires, backdrops, no locomotion whatsoever than walking & running a little are all limitations reducing replayability for me

the main thing that has some replayability in TS4 is the ability to mold the look of sim's face & body better than in TS3, but already clothes are rather limited & the blandness of color, pattern, fabric is pushing the feel of the entire game into one direction & that means it limits my options to tell different stories with it
the other replayability value of TS4 to a lesser degree is the smoother build/buy mode
but in the end, since i have more freedom, more options, less prescriptions in TS3 that's why TS3 is still more attractive than TS4
the look & smothness is just one, rather superficial feature with TS4 & that's not enough in regard to replayability

FKM100 · October 2017

Two things for me - variety and atmosphere.

While variety can come from new content, for a game to sustain my interest in the long term I have to be able to customize it to suit myself, so that it doesn't become repetitive or stagnant. In Sims 4, for example, we can customize our characters and our lots, but we cannot customize our worlds and that is starting to pall on me. Although I love the sims themselves, I am reaching the stage where I am getting very bored with the existing worlds, as well as the limited number of venue types.

Atmosphere comes from the immersive experience. I play Sims because I like to lose myself (vicariously) in other worlds -- places I will never get to live in or visit in RL. So the way in which those worlds are rendered and portrayed is hugely important to me. They could be sweet and nostalgic, or creepy, or gritty, or whatever; as long as I can feel that I am actually there. Ideally, I like to see my avi's interact with the world they are in - swim in the sea, notice the flowers in the countryside, get wet from the rain, be blown around by the wind. Sims 4 hasn't got to that stage yet.

simgirl1010 · October 2017

For me it all comes down to skills, achievements, careers, collecting. I am a goal based player. I play one main sim. Have played this way for 17 years now. That one sim, and her partner/spouse never age although other family members do. That one sim completes all the goals in the game. As soon as she completes a career she gets a new job and works toward unlocking the career rewards. As soon as she completes one aspiration she starts on a new one in order to get all the bonus traits. I have never played the same career with a different player because although they may have different traits and personalities the way to the top is still the same group of tasks. However, I don't work on reaching goals to the detriment of other game playing aspects. My sims have fun, go out for dinner, go on vacation, go to the spa, visit festivals, socialize, enjoy family time, etc. They experience everything the game has to offer but my main goal, always running in the background, is to complete it all. And this is one of the reasons I still play Sims 2 and 3 because there is so much left undone in both of those games. So as long as there are goals to be mastered, I'll keep playing. And I've still got a long way to go.

Odonata68 · October 2017

I like games that give me a sense of freedom with a touch of adventure. I like having a choice whether to follow the story line or not. I also like games that allow me to be creative and I love the whole "design" aspect when building in the Sims.

Cinebar · October 2017

If 'The Sims' had been about collecting, achieving goals, keeping score, reaching life time achievements, leveling up, keeping totals of how many times my Sims cooked or got angry, and or winning badges for myself, or keeping up with my total time spent in game playing and all that, I would have quit sixteen years ago.

Open-ended. It has no starting point and it has no end. You open the game and go do whatever you can imagine. (Earlier versions).

Do I want to play a story from real life with many twists and turns and many different outcomes than the one I played the other day. No worries, with a few clicks I'm there. (Not so much in TS4).

Do I want to build a dungeon, with a mote around a castle, and a mountain jutted into the side of the building where someone didn't grade the land flat and decided to build their home/castle into the side of the mountain (Vlad Tepes would be proud of some of mine) no worries, imagine it and build it. (Not so much in TS4).

Do I want to play cookie cutter Sims..go for it, it's totally possible.

Do I want to play a crazy story where everyone who ever lived in the game are turned into chicken creatures, and aliens have kidnapped Flash Gordon and Darth Vader is my baby's daddy? Why not...It's The Sims.

Do I want to create Mr. Green, (in Clue) oh, darn I don't have a greenish, greener, greenest suit ever for him. Darn...wait open TS2 bodyshop and just open GIMP and viola..done I have a Mr. Green green suit. Or open CASt in TS3 and pick a suit, a pattern and a color and done/while still in the game, don't even have to close the game to open a third party graphics' editor.

Do I want everyone to be rich and famous, fabulously wealthy, snobs, mean to the other Sims on the wrong side of the tracks? I can play that too, it's The Sims.

Do I want to play a world where no people are allowed? It's the kingdom of the llamas, they don't like 'people' no worries, just do it, it's The Sims.

Are my Sims feelings going to be hurt because people aren't allowed in The Kingdom of The Llamas..no....it's The Sims.

I used to have a siggy that read 'The Sims 2, Where Your Imagination Never Ends' and after thirteen years it's still going strong. TS4 and TS3 have many great, great qualities, but the things I mention can hardly be done in TS4. When a game starts to tell me what kind of game I can play it's time to leave. (Read my signature).

simgirl1010 · October 2017

Cinebar wrote: »

If 'The Sims' had been about collecting, achieving goals, keeping score, reaching life time achievements, leveling up, keeping totals of how many times my Sims cooked or got angry, and or winning badges for myself, or keeping up with my total time spent in game playing and all that, I would have quit sixteen years ago.

And that's the beauty of The Sims. Its about whatever you want it to be. It caters to different play styles. Something for everyone and something that keeps us all coming back. Whether we're playing 1, 2, 3, or 4.

SilentKitty · October 2017

The games I play for a extended period of time are those in which I can change focus and theme.

MMO:
Exploration
Story
Collecting
Raids/groups

Sims:
Story
Building lots or worlds
Collecting

If I need a break from one theme I will start a new one.

I miss my pretty inventory from World of Warcraft. I miss having inventory-pride. I miss feeling like I have achieved something when my character makes a meal
Something I really miss from playing WoW was having a nice bank-character that had all the collectibles in a vault. I would log on and just look at my mountains of treasures. The pictures of the flowers were so pretty. Is was so much more fun to have piles of pretty flower pictures, gems, gear than having the dreary sterile white background pic with the small small flower that my sims have in their inventory.

I also miss cooking from WoW, I had much more fun with it there. Gathering the ingredients, the pretty pic of the food you had in your inventory and the nice text. My sims just making food even if I don't have the ingredients takes much of the fun out of it for me. I haven't achieved anything and I just feel uninvolved, I am not needed for my sims to make food. I can just leave the game running. The pictures of the food were fun and looked so good in WoW. In the sims it just feels so sterile by comparison. I used to just open my bag and look at the goodies, feeling really good about my characters future meal or drink. The drinks and food look right in gameplay for Sims 4 but it is such a boring-looking-inventory.

Food and gardening feels like they have gotten quite a bit of time and effort in the game but I still feel that in some key areas I wish that I could just import stuff from WoW again. Just make a little gnome and run around to collect things again.

I never got used to building rooms for my collections, maybe because it wasn't an option in my MMO:s earlier. I always had inventory-pride and I don't feel that in the Sims 4. Cooking makes me feel like it is the sim having their thing and I make no difference.

aricarai · October 2017

Replayability, for me, is about open-ended freedom and customisation. I want to play Sims that act differently based on the personality that I give them and I want to build and decorate houses with different colors and patterns. Replayability is also about options also and I want to be able to create a world and play the Sims in it just how I want to not the way the game tells me to or limits me to.

SimsLovinLycan · October 2017

Well, for the Sims games in general, the replay value comes from trying out new scenarios and creating new characters and worlds. For a fighting game or platformer, it's all about fun gameplay mechanics. For an RPG, it's a good story, good characters, and a well-constructed combat system (it doesn't have to be innovative or in real time, just well-constructed). For creature rearing sims like the Monster Rancher and Pokemon games, it's my critters and how darned attached I get to them (on my Monster Rancher 3 game, I've saved the data of just about every monster I've ever raised, even though I'm not into the PvP tournament scene, just because I loved them so much...DON'T JUDGE ME!!).

Things that kill replay value for me include forced mini-games that aren't even fun to play (such as the gummy ship sections in the first Kingdom Hearts game), loot that's no fun to loot (looking at you, over-abundant gummy ship parts in Kingdom Hearts...), shamelessly padding out gameplay hours with sidequests that are not only tedious but don't even give you any good rewards, poor mechanics/combat system (like when they try to get too innovative with an RPG combat system and they end up making a clunky hot mess that's darn-near unplayable...or worse, only allows the player to command a single party member and the others are AI controlled, with dirt-dumb AI), MMOBA's...I don't like the whole "die and respawn at the start to die again over and over" mechanic (no offense to those who love the genre, but it just wasn't my cup of tea), an online game with a sluggish or over-inflated in-game economy, the "Endgame is the Real Game" mentality that keeps some MMORPG's from having a truly fun pre-max level experience, and those "pay-and-wait" training systems that some virtual pet sites have (An hour and a half and 2k gold/a super-rare game reward item for one additional point on one stat? Nope. Just...nope).

My requirements for a game that is infinitely replayable are few. My list of replay value killers is many...#PickyGamer

fullspiral · October 2017

Í haven't played a whole lot of different genres of games in my time. There's only a handful that really and truly appeal to me. Back in the day ( before sims) it was Toonstruck that captivated me the most. I like the click and move style of game. And choices.

Original sims came out when I was already in my 40's. It was THE perfect game for me. When sims 2 came out I was over the moon. It's a little world that I not only create, but build on in terms of the neighbourhoods and sims themselves. It was like loading a little world that I controlled, but it had elements of surprise and luck that threw a wrench in to things every now and then. A sim who wanted to get ahead and had a materialist bent got visits from a psychologist when they went on a downward spiral and didn't get what they wanted. THAT was both fun, and funny!

Sims 3, and now 4, have taken that all away. With their silly whims and motives. Those have RUINED the game. I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same? There's no weirdly, wildly, wonderful things that happen when you don't fulfill their wishes/whims. It's boring. No replayability. It's boring just creating "new"sims ( same as the old ones) and getting up cooking levels etc.

I can make them LOOK different. But I can't make them ACT different because of the game. So no. No replayability in 3 or 4.

Shadowmarked · October 2017

The goals help if they are in a large quantity (achievements/skills/jobs accomplishment stuff) on top of that though I think there needs to be diversity, difficulty, and some options that you just can not finish with one sim. For example I should have to actively work my Sims very hard to reach level ten in multiple skills or any LTW (forget two or three ltw) A good example we could look at is ts3 journaling activities related to skills which were harder achievements and doing all of them took work and gave pay offs like the jogging one for fitness extending sim lives or the mentoring one in logic that let a sim pass on the skills they knew.

Which leads to, what I do with my character should matter. For example, traits, each should try to allow something truly special that cannot be achieved by another sim with out said trait. LTW should be more varied, and honestly I think Sims should only be able to change them through very specific situations or the completion of the previous one. I think by making it difficult for one character to achieve everything, and see every game mechanic at some point, makes the replay value go up, because you can't burn through all your new content in one generation of play, or if you do, you really had to work for it. If you don't burn content quickly then by the time you finish everything you can probably go back and redo something you did before. With the Sims you can probably also do it in a unique way from before as well.

Finally options I think are the most important. Customization when ever possible means players can do a similar task in a way that seems completely new, ie I have a goal to max my logic and athletic skill to make an undercover agent character vs I am going to max those same skills with a vampire to have him be one of the wisest and strongest master vampires out there. Those are basically the same goals but the stories help make them feel new. It's the same thing with traits, having a gloomy, perfectionist, neat freak should play differently than a gloomy, perfectionist with a short temper. Or when it comes to building again I'd the only tools you had to build would allow for a very modern style it would soon get dull, instead we want tools for Victorian, Dutch colonial, futuristic, log cabin etc.
With customization the game can change to be something completely new with a different sim since that sim will have it's own unique world/flaw/trait etc

TL;DR: making it so every sim you play has to be different, and can't achieve the same goals with the same ease is what I think lends to replay value in a game.

simgirl1010 · October 2017

fullspiral wrote: »

I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same?

I can so identity with this and it's one of the reasons why I play the way I do. I can't even imagine having to advance another sim in the gardening skill. I have all perfect plants so I never need to do that again. Except for the stuff on Sixam. That's still on my to do list.

fullspiral · October 2017

simgirl1010 wrote: »

fullspiral wrote: »

I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same?

I can so identity with this and it's one of the reasons why I play the way I do. I can't even imagine having to advance another sim in the gardening skill. I have all perfect plants so I never need to do that again. Except for the stuff on Sixam. That's still on my to do list.

I've got the plants from Sixam on my perfect garden lot. I've "achieved" it. I've no reason to play another time through it. My sims learn dancing and singing on their own. And now, with CL, they earn guitar and violin. I go back to a rotational sim and find they've mastered a skilll because another one of my sims has seen them playing at a festival, or out on he "commons".

The game is playing my sims world for me......

Hermitgirl · October 2017

I like to tell myself stories the most so the Sims keeps me coming back to make different characters either my own or other ones inspired by books, movies or television shows. I like to make save games and build a cast of characters also. I also am somewhat goal and task oriented depending on my mood so if I'm not really feeling up to spinning a story I can just play like that at times.. or advance my sims skills, achievements ect..

I've also found the way they release packs keeps my interest up. I'm very slow at adding new game play to my game unless it fits in my current sims lives. So although I might use the new clothes and some of the new objects I might not play all that much of what comes out in a newer pack until the right time comes along... and then when I do have time to work new content in I might fall in love with it for awhile.. like it took at least a year for me to try out the science career .. because frankly I didn't want anything to do with the aliens. When I did though I loved it and was engaged with that for quite awhile. I have a lot of content that I still haven't really played yet. If I got all of it in one lump I think I'd be less likely to explore it all and would probably grow bored sooner. As it is now waiting on the Pets pack I have a family I haven't played yet because one of my characters has dogs... That will be my first move. Then I want to remake Ginia Kat and her crew of cats in another sim save. I doubt I'll get around to playing the vet for some time.. but I'm looking forward to that.

JoAnne65 · October 2017

fullspiral wrote: »

Í haven't played a whole lot of different genres of games in my time. There's only a handful that really and truly appeal to me. Back in the day ( before sims) it was Toonstruck that captivated me the most. I like the click and move style of game. And choices.

Original sims came out when I was already in my 40's. It was THE perfect game for me. When sims 2 came out I was over the moon. It's a little world that I not only create, but build on in terms of the neighbourhoods and sims themselves. It was like loading a little world that I controlled, but it had elements of surprise and luck that threw a wrench in to things every now and then. A sim who wanted to get ahead and had a materialist bent got visits from a psychologist when they went on a downward spiral and didn't get what they wanted. THAT was both fun, and funny!

Sims 3, and now 4, have taken that all away. With their silly whims and motives. Those have RUINED the game. I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same? There's no weirdly, wildly, wonderful things that happen when you don't fulfill their wishes/whims. It's boring. No replayability. It's boring just creating "new"sims ( same as the old ones) and getting up cooking levels etc.

I can make them LOOK different. But I can't make them ACT different because of the game. So no. No replayability in 3 or 4.

Even though Sims 3 does do it for me, I do get what you’re saying and I think also for me that game could have been better with more real consequences. Sims 3 relies heavily on a storingtelling kind of simmer and if you are one you’re in luck, Sims 4 even more. Where Sims 3 at least has some consequences and a (short) memory system, in Sims 4 that’s completely gone. Where sims in 3 at least have some sort of a personality (I turned a coward into a brave sim yesterday for a few moments because I wanted to achieve something I couldn't with the coward, and the difference was immediate and clear), in Sims 4 they don’t. I think everybody can agree on that at least (whether Sims 4 is your cup of tea or not). We all favour different features and elements, but I think there being real consequences is something that’s essential to every simmer. And different outcomes.

Cinebar · October 2017

simgirl1010 wrote: »

Cinebar wrote: »

If 'The Sims' had been about collecting, achieving goals, keeping score, reaching life time achievements, leveling up, keeping totals of how many times my Sims cooked or got angry, and or winning badges for myself, or keeping up with my total time spent in game playing and all that, I would have quit sixteen years ago.

And that's the beauty of The Sims. Its about whatever you want it to be. It caters to different play styles. Something for everyone and something that keeps us all coming back. Whether we're playing 1, 2, 3, or 4.

It never started out as a keeping score type game, which it seems to lean that way more and more as the series continues. "Other play styles" in my humble opinion, belong in other genres and not in The Sims. The more you change a game to include other genres the more it becomes a different genre losing it's original idea.

samlyt22 · October 2017

Cinebar wrote: »

simgirl1010 wrote: »

Cinebar wrote: »

If 'The Sims' had been about collecting, achieving goals, keeping score, reaching life time achievements, leveling up, keeping totals of how many times my Sims cooked or got angry, and or winning badges for myself, or keeping up with my total time spent in game playing and all that, I would have quit sixteen years ago.

And that's the beauty of The Sims. Its about whatever you want it to be. It caters to different play styles. Something for everyone and something that keeps us all coming back. Whether we're playing 1, 2, 3, or 4.

It never started out as a keeping score type game, which it seems to lean that way more and more as the series continues. "Other play styles" in my humble opinion, belong in other genres and not in The Sims. The more you change a game to include other genres the more it becomes a different genre losing it's original idea.

This is a different game, each iteration of the sims is different as the game changes and evolves. People seem to have this idea of what the sims is supposed to be, yet what exactly that is varies from player to player. There are many different play styles in the sims and I don't think we can really pick and choose which one's should be allowed in the game.

aricarai · October 2017

JoAnne65 wrote: »

fullspiral wrote: »

Í haven't played a whole lot of different genres of games in my time. There's only a handful that really and truly appeal to me. Back in the day ( before sims) it was Toonstruck that captivated me the most. I like the click and move style of game. And choices.

Original sims came out when I was already in my 40's. It was THE perfect game for me. When sims 2 came out I was over the moon. It's a little world that I not only create, but build on in terms of the neighbourhoods and sims themselves. It was like loading a little world that I controlled, but it had elements of surprise and luck that threw a wrench in to things every now and then. A sim who wanted to get ahead and had a materialist bent got visits from a psychologist when they went on a downward spiral and didn't get what they wanted. THAT was both fun, and funny!

Sims 3, and now 4, have taken that all away. With their silly whims and motives. Those have RUINED the game. I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same? There's no weirdly, wildly, wonderful things that happen when you don't fulfill their wishes/whims. It's boring. No replayability. It's boring just creating "new"sims ( same as the old ones) and getting up cooking levels etc.

I can make them LOOK different. But I can't make them ACT different because of the game. So no. No replayability in 3 or 4.

Even though Sims 3 does do it for me, I do get what you’re saying and I think also for me that game could have been better with more real consequences. Sims 3 relies heavily on a storingtelling kind of simmer and if you are one you’re in luck, Sims 4 even more. Where Sims 3 at least has some consequences and a (short) memory system, in Sims 4 that’s completely gone. Where sims in 3 at least have some sort of a personality (I turned a coward into a brave sim yesterday for a few moments because I wanted to achieve something I couldn't with the coward, and the difference was immediate and clear), in Sims 4 they don’t. I think everybody can agree on that at least (whether Sims 4 is your cup of tea or not). We all favour different features and elements, but I think there being real consequences is something that’s essential to every simmer. And different outcomes.

I think Sims 3 relies on more than just story tellers. Builders and decorators are catered to as well!

JoAnne65 · October 2017

aricarai wrote: »

JoAnne65 wrote: »

fullspiral wrote: »

Í haven't played a whole lot of different genres of games in my time. There's only a handful that really and truly appeal to me. Back in the day ( before sims) it was Toonstruck that captivated me the most. I like the click and move style of game. And choices.

Original sims came out when I was already in my 40's. It was THE perfect game for me. When sims 2 came out I was over the moon. It's a little world that I not only create, but build on in terms of the neighbourhoods and sims themselves. It was like loading a little world that I controlled, but it had elements of surprise and luck that threw a wrench in to things every now and then. A sim who wanted to get ahead and had a materialist bent got visits from a psychologist when they went on a downward spiral and didn't get what they wanted. THAT was both fun, and funny!

Sims 3, and now 4, have taken that all away. With their silly whims and motives. Those have RUINED the game. I find there's not a lot of replayability in either S3 or S4 because once you've done something ( achieved level 10 gardening and perfected all the harvestables in game) what's the point in playing another sim to do the same? There's no weirdly, wildly, wonderful things that happen when you don't fulfill their wishes/whims. It's boring. No replayability. It's boring just creating "new"sims ( same as the old ones) and getting up cooking levels etc.

I can make them LOOK different. But I can't make them ACT different because of the game. So no. No replayability in 3 or 4.

Even though Sims 3 does do it for me, I do get what you’re saying and I think also for me that game could have been better with more real consequences. Sims 3 relies heavily on a storingtelling kind of simmer and if you are one you’re in luck, Sims 4 even more. Where Sims 3 at least has some consequences and a (short) memory system, in Sims 4 that’s completely gone. Where sims in 3 at least have some sort of a personality (I turned a coward into a brave sim yesterday for a few moments because I wanted to achieve something I couldn't with the coward, and the difference was immediate and clear), in Sims 4 they don’t. I think everybody can agree on that at least (whether Sims 4 is your cup of tea or not). We all favour different features and elements, but I think there being real consequences is something that’s essential to every simmer. And different outcomes.

I think Sims 3 relies on more than just story tellers. Builders and decorators are catered to as well!

Absolutely and for that alone it has replayability value. But I rather meant when playing the game (in reaction to fullspiral's comment). It made me think of failing students at university for instance. I enjoyed that, but at the same time it takes a lot of imagination. I mean, nothing bad really happens. I'd love it if it would. If a student who's only partying and then cheats at the exams would seriously get kicked out of college for instance. I don't only want to play winners. I'm playing a loser right now (and his father was one as well) and I love that, but the experience would be deeper when everything I come up with for them in their story would actually be in the game. (one flaw being that the unlucky trait does absolutely nothing except saving his life when grim comes to get him)

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