Questions. Your answers will help me decide.

Susim62

I've been back and forth about whether to get this game.
I'd really like to know a couple of things first to help me decide.

1. Regarding goals - do you feel they interfere at all with the way you want to play? Does this still feel like sandbox play?

2. Traits. I think they should influence how your sim acts, reacts and interacts. For instance, in TS3 a daredevil sim did not act or react any differently to any other sim and had only one interaction related to the trait ( eat glass ). Do the traits in ts4 have a real impact on your sim?

3. Townies. We were told we could make our own...is this true? Could I have a whole town full of sims that I've chosen to be in the game?

4. Now that painting and writing are actual careers can your sim still paint or write at home and make money from selling their work? Also the woodworking and cupcake making...could your sim make a living from these? ( because some of the careers are a bit 'out there' for a regular Joe, I'm looking at ways sims could support themselves by working from home).

And finally, I've seen a few here saying the game reminds them of Ts2. Why is that? Is it just the load screens, lack of SP? Any TS2 players (like me) see the resemblance?

daltondoug

1- Goals are not deterministic. They are there and that's that. The only interference may be when it comes to buying age potions, in order to make your sim young again. If that sounds bad for you, just turn aging off.
2-Traits are a lot like they were back in sims 3. Don't expect anything so new from them. Emotions, on the other hand, turn sins into much more vivid creatures. It's nothing phenomenal, but the improvement is real and it's there. Many people were bashing this feature, and I have to agree - it's a shy step. But it's a step.
3-Yes, that is true. You can make a town full of your sims.
4- Painting and writing can be done in both ways separately, or at the same time, at your preference. I've started gaming with a painter and a writer. And they can work autonomously at home or go to their respective jobs. It's your call.

All in all, I think the game is a huge improvement. There are a lot of people bashing it, but their arguments center around the idea that sims 4 should be an expansion of sims 3, of sorts. It is a particular game - and it is good. I'll give that it could be better, but at the state it's now, the rating the thing deserves is 8, for the more optmistic, and 7 for the bitter ends.

Btw, my first post.

Snosrap522

I think they say It resembles 2 because the sims seem so much more alive than the sims 3 . Sims 3 just ended up as a designing game for some as the sims seemed not to have the character of sims 2
This is just my impression I love 2 and 3 but neither are perfect. And the base games were basic.

Susim62

I'm ok with goals as long as I can still play my way and am not forced into specific actions.
In TS2 my sim may need to gain an athletic skill to advance in his career. Fair enough, I choose how he gains that skill. I don't want the game to tell me my sim needs to do 10 push-ups and spend 5 hours working out at the gym.

daltondoug

It's very user friendly, and the game doesn't forces you to do anything. It presents options.

UtaDagda

I think TS4 is a game you have to get your hands in to to really judge. Watching game play is nothing like playing it thats for sure. ((I love the game. Best Sims base game and I never ever thought a base game would replace my beloved TS2 but this one did!))

Susim62

@daltondoug that sounds good, like hopefully it will suit my style of playing.

Susim62

Snosrap522 wrote: »

I think they say It resembles 2 because the sims seem so much more alive than the sims 3 . Sims 3 just ended up as a designing game for some as the sims seemed not to have the character of sims 2
This is just my impression I love 2 and 3 but neither are perfect. And the base games were basic.

I don't mind at all if the game is basic to start with. TS2 and TS3 both felt bare at first. The difference though, was TS2 made me want more, I bought all it's EP's. With TS3 I stopped at Late Night (when all the bugs set in).

Freygea

I do agree that it is a game you have to try yourself. I love the game and really was not impressed with the live feeds at all. I thought I would have been bored but to my surprise the game is really fun.

1) The goals do not interfere with my playing. I can ignore them when I wish to.

2) I just noted the extra info when I hover over my traits and do note I can solves things in different ways by what traits I have. This does make each sim seem pretty unique so far. I do not do the same things assembly line style with my sims like I did on occasion in Sims 3.

3) You can evict the townies and move all your sims into the world.

4) I just go around to obtaining careers so I cannot answer this one. (LOL>.after 6 hours of p;lay I am just getting around to work.)

Susim62

About the townies...when I say townies I mean npc's. If I evicted EA's premades they would become townies wouldn't they? What I want to do is make sims and assign them townies.These would be sims I don't play with but will be around the town for my playable sims to interact with.

sholtx

Sorry to be blunt but buying a game won't ruin your life. I mean, it's just a game.

Freygea

Susim62 wrote: »

About the townies...when I say townies I mean npc's. If I evicted EA's premades they would become townies wouldn't they? What I want to do is make sims and assign them townies.These would be sims I don't play with but will be around the town for my playable sims to interact with.

I have not evicted yet but somewhere there was a post where people said they had did just that. You end up with another catagory I think in your gallery. If evicted sims do become townies, than yes you could add your sims to houses and then evict them.

I just added a bunch of sims to other houses and so far, are not playing them, but my active sims run into them all the time. They have made friends with many of them.

I am happy with this method so far. I plan on testing out a world where I only have sims I create as townies once I take a break from playing my current save.

ladybreid

sholtx wrote: »

Sorry to be blunt but buying a game won't ruin your life. I mean, it's just a game.

The OP never said it would.

pinkangelsim

some of the things that remind me of TS2 is the sims have personality. The load screens are back, some of the way sims interact with each other is back. So far I like the game but, because it is a base game it really does feel bare just not in a bad way.
Have a great day!
Pink

keyb0x

1. Regarding goals - do you feel they interfere at all with the way you want to play? Does this still feel like sandbox play?

I've been playing since the Asian release time (16:00 UK time) yesterday, and think I can at least answer some of your questions accurately. No, it doesn't interfere. You don't have to do them, and it's just like fulfilling promises in TS3 but you get satisfaction points instead. You don't even have to pay attention to any of the mini goals, I don't too much and just go about my business how I usually would.

2. Traits. I think they should influence how your sim acts, reacts and interacts. For instance, in TS3 a daredevil sim did not act or react any differently to any other sim and had only one interaction related to the trait ( eat glass ). Do the traits in ts4 have a real impact on your sim?

Some traits are more noticeable than others. My sim has the active trait and needs to work out often in order to be in a good mood. Sometimes she will do actions relating to that trait by herself, like push ups and sit ups, and gets whims related to the active trait. She also has the loves the out doors trait, and has whims for going fishing, as well as a boost to her mood whenever she is outside. The third trait I picked was the cheerful trait, and she is mostly in the happy emotion. Other traits I have seen are true to their word now, like hates children. In TS3 you could still very easily get a hates children sim to try for a baby with another sim. On this game, your sims REALLY hate children. They will get angry from just speaking to them.


3. Townies. We were told we could make our own...is this true? Could I have a whole town full of sims that I've chosen to be in the game?

I moved in a couple I'd made in CAS into my main sims game and they're just like any other sim in the game, so I guess that's a yes.

4. Now that painting and writing are actual careers can your sim still paint or write at home and make money from selling their work? Also the woodworking and cupcake making...could your sim make a living from these? ( because some of the careers are a bit 'out there' for a regular Joe, I'm looking at ways sims could support themselves by working from home).

I've not touched any of these yet so can't give you anything but my own speculation, which is that you should be able to live off of any of those careers. I don't have my sim working at all yet, I've been having her live off of selling the fruit, veg, and flowers she's been growing as well as the collectibles I've been finding.

And finally, I've seen a few here saying the game reminds them of Ts2. Why is that? Is it just the load screens, lack of SP? Any TS2 players (like me) see the resemblance?

It does for me and my sister too. For me, it's because of the art style and the general flow of the game. It's all very easy going and light hearted, not necessarily easy either. The animations remind me a lot of past sims games as well, it had a unique goofiness I think this game manages to touch on every now and then.

I hope I was helpful!

LoreleyLee

Well, I have to tell myself every once in a while, that this is a base game. Stuff, I want is missing, but some of it will for sure be added in one of the EPs, like toddlers, careers, maybe pools and on and on and on.

I guess, it depends on how you play, if the emotional thingy is working out for you. Me feels, that if you don't want dig too deep in, it will be fine. The Sims 3 already had less deepness than the Sims 2, imho. That's why I still play them

I'm still experimenting and that's half the fun, isn't it? ;D

Susim62

@keybOx thanks, I agree with your description of TS2 and that makes me hopeful for TS4.

daltondoug

It's good. Not so awesome or bombastic. I gave it an 8 in a positive review topic I created. The game can be quite fun - I think it's a solid entry for the series

Susim62

LoreleyLee wrote: »

Well, I have to tell myself every once in a while, that this is a base game. Stuff, I want is missing, but some of it will for sure be added in one of the EPs, like toddlers, careers, maybe pools and on and on and on.

I guess, it depends on how you play, if the emotional thingy is working out for you. Me feels, that if you don't want dig too deep in, it will be fine. The Sims 3 already had less deepness than the Sims 2, imho. That's why I still play them

I'm still experimenting and that's half the fun, isn't it? ;D

The sims in TS2 have so much depth and that's part of what makes me feel connected to them. It's more about that for me, rather than content which will come later.

LovenVincent

Also i wish to point out that there is no family tree BUT there is notifications in the panel (many thought there wasnt) it is just like the sims 3 but without the tree. here i will show you what i mean.



it does show family ties in the panel. unlike many who thought that the panel did not even show it,it does. so there is a way to see who is whose kids/wife/family and so on.

Susim62

@LovenVincent do you know if it includes more distant relations? like cousins or step-parents and inlaws.

LovenVincent

Susim62 wrote: »

@LovenVincent do you know if it includes more distant relations? like cousins or step-parents and inlaws.

I havent gotten that far yet. she is now prego with her first kid. but i can watch that for you during generational play i do have a set of sisters on my gallery i can play,let them marry and such then have kids. ill experiment more with this.

Susim62

Thanks and thanks to all who replied. I feel a bit more positive about it now. It's very late here (Australia) so I'm off to bed.

LovenVincent

So i went to try and see how deep the relationships are and here is what i got so far. the only issue that i have found is from CAS. i had a pre-made set of male twins and made them each a kid in CAS then added them. it did not show the correct relationships in the panel. i then added a set of sisters to the game THEN had them adopt,which then showed the correct relationships. CAS may not be any issue as long as you now make them all at once and together. aka taking an already made house and then adding more (from the gallery) then editing relationships- didnt work right. add them to the game THEN make them have kids or make them all at the same time.





It does have cousin,aunt and nephew. ill try for deeper relationships. like ex's and so on.