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The Sims 4: Wildlife Park
Maxwell_Collins
Posts: 143 Member
Now, I did promise in my DragonSim thread that I would talk about the Mermaid, however, I decided to put that off for a bit to expand on another concept going through my head: Wildlife Park!
I actually had to revisit the subject weeks after I crafted it, after the first time felt a bit bland. Let's see if I can turn this around! Also, I'm considering rewriting my DragonSim thread, to clear up the clutter and make a much more original concept. Plus, make it vastly more interesting! If you have some interesting feedback as to how to improve the concept, drop by and give your feedback. I've already left the link, if you're interested.
The original idea spawned from my experience with Zoo Tycoon 2 and Park Management Games in general. However, more recent interest sparked from my Marine Biology class last semester. Oh, the cuteness returns... I better not get ahead of myself.
Alright, let's start with the second biggest feature with this expansion. I'm calling these lots Massive, a statement that is very fitting with the scale of the park. This plot is about 520 x 520 in scale, relatively. The total size will depend on how much space you want to spend for. Considering that the current plot scale right now is 64 x 64 (which, from my experience with the Sims 3, is insane as it is), this is one big plot! Of course, if you build the park next to a bay-like area (surprisingly, in a similar fashion to SeaWorld San Diego...), the park can be expanded into the bay, while creating a sort of barrier that animals cannot pass. I'll get to this portion later.
Now, for the reason I made this EP idea: the animals! However, I'm going to throw a curve-ball: each animal can a) Be adopted from other Zoos, b) Found in the wild, or c) Created in CAS with a customized origin story. This means that the supply for a particular animal is limited, just like in the real world, and certain animals take time to arrive in your park, just like in the real world. Origin stories could apply to any animal, whether adopted, found, or created, and define the goals of either the creature or the organization from which the animal was adopted from. Such stories could be as follows:
The second part of the animals part is, well, what to put in. To start, based on the previous points, there is probably a mix of land and water animals. I have a little "wanted animals" list. MINI-LIST TIME!!
Land Animals: Wolves, Lions, Elephants, Tigers, Leopards, Giraffes, Birds of Prey (like the Peregrine Falcon), plus a ton more!
Sea Animals: Orca, Dolphin, Sea Lion, Seal (obvious), Sea Otter (adorable), and maybe a Lemon Shark and a Leopard Shark (I've seen some on a trip to Catalina Island in my Senior Year of High School!).
Although you should definitely keep the classics in, be sure to add some variety to the mix. Heck, throw in some free DLC at certain times adding even more animals. That'll keep this expansion fresh in the long run!
Careers. Yeah, that's up next. And yes, they are park related. The first is a typical TS4 job, called the Zoo Keeper, which, simply put, is an average job with average pay. However, separate of that career is the uniquely molded Park Manager Career. I shouldn't even call this a career. So... let's call it a profession, that can be stacked with other professions, and pays weekly!
What does the park manager do? Simply put, it's the title your Sim receives upon purchasing land for a Wildlife Park. Essentially, the Park Manager owns the park, rather than working at the park like the Zoo Keeper. Of course, there is the possibility of making your home there (or somewhere nearby) if you like. When I said that the Park Manager profession can be stacked with other professions, I mean that you can be Park Manager and an (YouTube) Artist at the same time (hint, hint). However, due to the duties of the Park Manager, you won't be able to take a full on career.
The Park Manager also has a few extra sets of interactions, socials, and abilities that are unique to the Manager. For example, the Park Manager can call up friends for positions at the park, or he could talk about his favorite animals in his park to some random dude at the pub. He also has the ability to hire from applicants (randomized or created in CAS), set up advertising campaigns, and adding special events, such as Birthday Parties or an after-dark event cycle. He may even be able to hire Celebrities to advertise the parks or do a special event with his/her fans. If he's lucky, he can even choose to bond with a particular animal, if he so chooses. Then it gets real.
Now, let's talk hobbies. I mentioned in my 8 Expansions I would Like to See in the Sims 4 list that Diving would be included in the mix. I honestly think it would be better suited for an Sea-based expansion, if one were to show up. However, I'll still talk about it here, because you may never know. Diving will work just as it did in Island Paradise, except that it's in a non-open-world environment. Be creative, but I'll return to this later. What I want to talk about here is Animal Training. When I mentioned Show business in the Origin Story section, this is where it spawns from. I would imagine that the training would improve as your Sim gets better. Also, the animal would also get a variation of this skill, showing what he/she may already know. I'm sure Maxis will get the picture.
Do I need to even talk about traits? Considering that the Sims 4 only allows for three traits per Sim, this seems like an empty promise. However, in case the trait limit is somehow increased officially (not by a mod), I guess I'll list a few possibilities. Natural Keeper is one possible trait, providing a bonus to animal-based skills. Animal Lover come directly from the Sims 3: Pets, so the idea should be pretty simple, and may not even appear in this expansion if pets comes out before this. Animalistic is a trait that is a version of Insanity, except that it's with animals. Perhaps the Sim could literately communicate to animals, maybe even inheriting certain animal traits. Who knows.
Shoreside was a neighborhood idea that takes advantage of the bay-area expansion for the park. The town would be modeled after a typical sea-side town, nothing too fancy. Maybe a secret or two...
Now, time to talk technical. Because of the size of the park lot, there needs to be some sort of easy way to layout the park quickly. To begin, this expansion will suck if there are no Terrain Editing tools in the base game. As such, that should be patched in before any sort of expansion is released. It would also allow for unique park layouts, such as building a park around a hill or a crater.
Second, pathing. The park is massive, so the Sims need some sort of way to know where to go. Simple floors simply won't cut it, so what about actual, drawn paths, like what is seen in every park currently in-game? The pathing AI can make it so Sims prioritize paths over the usual pathing currently in-game, which is, simply put, shortest path possible. That can fix any sort of serious pathing issues due to the shear size of the lot.
Third, buildings. Honestly, each building should be custom made. You think about it, this makes sense from a park designer's perspective. Each building in a real park differs from the last, and no single building has the exact same layout, elevation, or size from park to park. Maxis builders could create individual, pre-made builds for the lazy people out there, similar to the current Room Save on the gallery. Also, each building has a function, which can be defined via signs and/or registers with a function, or something else entirely. For example, if you make a Food Court inside a park, you could use a selection tool to select the area of the planned Food Court, and designate it as such. This could clear up any overloading in the destination pathing currently in-game, so that Sims simply move to the designated area instead of to a single spot at the get-go, also, it would make building the Food Court much easier, now that you have an area in which you could build. If it is possible, if the eventual park is absolutely massive (like in ten time bigger than I had in mind), then you could select that area and prevent edits outside the region, making building the area much easier. Plus, it would work much like a typical lot!
Fourth, the Enclosures. Again, you should be able to customize every aspect of the enclosures, including location and scale. The fences should be separate from current fences in-game, much larger, thicker, and stronger than currently. Perhaps viewing platforms can be erected on the fences, just like on walls and with buildings. And, what about Tanks for Marine Animals? Well, isn't it obvious how that might work? Tanks can be below ground, above ground, or somewhere in-between. However, unlike pools, their depth can be adjusted to depths beyond the current 4-story buildings you could create, except it only applies to below ground. Also, tunnels and interaction platforms are a must!
Finally, park expansion. Eventually, you'll run out of room to build your park in the current limits. You can buy more land, of course, for the current park. However, if the park is built in Shoreside (or any massive plot next to a bay in future expansions), you can barricade the bay with enclosing nets (as seen in certain parks right at the shoreline) and create a massive, self sustained marine ecosystem you can place your favorite Orcas or Dolphins in. My visit to SeaWorld San Diego awhile back showed me that there was a huge bay area right next to SeaWorld that, surprisingly, the park hasn't even touched. That area can be easily used as a self-sustained and semi-natural ecosystem if it were fenced off by a thick and sturdy cable net, held in place by stone/steel pillars, and where the Orcas will have enough room to live somewhat freely, considering that the current tanks are tiny for such large animals. And... oh, was that too much? Sorry, got too elaborate, I guess...
Before I rant about the size of Orca tanks... again, let's... um... let's talk about something else: Life States. Honestly, choosing a good life state to add to this expansion was... somewhat difficult. However, after writing a project for Marine Biology discussing the Myths of the Sea, and my experience with the DeviantArt community, I think I have a good idea as to what can be added. However, no promises.
The first on my original list was the Merfolk. YES!! I can finally talk about this Life State! *ahem* Actually, I'll leave the details for my next thread. I don't want to ruin the image here. However, I will tell you that the Merfolk is an improved form of the Mermaids from Island Paradise, which, in my opinion, had too much missed potential (like nearly every other life state in the series thus far). Enough said for now. I'll edit this section when the real thread comes out.
The second Life State I brainstormed actually favors the Furry Fans out there. In my original list, I listed this life state as Shapeshifter, however, I feel that Were-beast is a bit more appropriate. Now this might sound like a Werewolf rip-off, but hear me out. This isn't just the Werewolf I'm talking about, I mean the others. Examples? Were-Cats, Were-hyenas, Were-Dolphins (truly exotic, I know), and the lot. Honestly, a Shapeshifter can be so many things, heck, they may not even be one thing! You decide as to what the Shapeshifter would be, because I have no clue! However, unlike the Werewolf, I'm not expecting Anthros, but full on animal forms. Who knows, maybe there will be a Furry Life State in the near future (hint, hint... again).
Based on my notes from previously, I believe I'm done. FINALLY! However, I would like to ask: Do you have what it takes to 1-Up me? If you have an even crazier version of this expansion, feel free to give your suggestions below. Or, is there a bit too much info here, and something needs to be cut. Feel free to let me know here, as well. Anyways, with this off my back, I can finally get to the Merfolk thread! Cheers, and Happy Simmin'!
I actually had to revisit the subject weeks after I crafted it, after the first time felt a bit bland. Let's see if I can turn this around! Also, I'm considering rewriting my DragonSim thread, to clear up the clutter and make a much more original concept. Plus, make it vastly more interesting! If you have some interesting feedback as to how to improve the concept, drop by and give your feedback. I've already left the link, if you're interested.
The original idea spawned from my experience with Zoo Tycoon 2 and Park Management Games in general. However, more recent interest sparked from my Marine Biology class last semester. Oh, the cuteness returns... I better not get ahead of myself.
Alright, let's start with the second biggest feature with this expansion. I'm calling these lots Massive, a statement that is very fitting with the scale of the park. This plot is about 520 x 520 in scale, relatively. The total size will depend on how much space you want to spend for. Considering that the current plot scale right now is 64 x 64 (which, from my experience with the Sims 3, is insane as it is), this is one big plot! Of course, if you build the park next to a bay-like area (surprisingly, in a similar fashion to SeaWorld San Diego...), the park can be expanded into the bay, while creating a sort of barrier that animals cannot pass. I'll get to this portion later.
Now, for the reason I made this EP idea: the animals! However, I'm going to throw a curve-ball: each animal can a) Be adopted from other Zoos, b) Found in the wild, or c) Created in CAS with a customized origin story. This means that the supply for a particular animal is limited, just like in the real world, and certain animals take time to arrive in your park, just like in the real world. Origin stories could apply to any animal, whether adopted, found, or created, and define the goals of either the creature or the organization from which the animal was adopted from. Such stories could be as follows:
- Captive Breeding Program: The animal is part of a captive breeding program, in order to improve the population of the animal in preparation to release the animals to the wild.
- Show Animal: This animal is meant for show business, and seemingly nothing more. Whether the creature has any formal training from his previous owners or not is varied.
- Abused: This animal had abusive owners in the past. It's a miracle he/she is still alive after the previous encounter. Now that the animal is removed from the previous owner's custody, can you make amends to the animal for what the man did before? Or, will the cycle continue?
- Wildlife Rescue: The animal was (found on the road/abandoned on a trail/separated from its mother/caught in a forest fire/wandering the harbor/washed ashore), (battered/traumatized/singed/malnourished/abused by [place text here]/injured by [place text here]) and unable to survive where it was found. Now that the creature is in your care, will you nurse the creature back to health, then release it back into the wild, or will you form an unbreakable bond, and your Sim is unable to part with his new friend. Or, is the creature in such a battered state that hecan never return to the wild. The choice is yours!
The second part of the animals part is, well, what to put in. To start, based on the previous points, there is probably a mix of land and water animals. I have a little "wanted animals" list. MINI-LIST TIME!!
Land Animals: Wolves, Lions, Elephants, Tigers, Leopards, Giraffes, Birds of Prey (like the Peregrine Falcon), plus a ton more!
Sea Animals: Orca, Dolphin, Sea Lion, Seal (obvious), Sea Otter (adorable), and maybe a Lemon Shark and a Leopard Shark (I've seen some on a trip to Catalina Island in my Senior Year of High School!).
Although you should definitely keep the classics in, be sure to add some variety to the mix. Heck, throw in some free DLC at certain times adding even more animals. That'll keep this expansion fresh in the long run!
Careers. Yeah, that's up next. And yes, they are park related. The first is a typical TS4 job, called the Zoo Keeper, which, simply put, is an average job with average pay. However, separate of that career is the uniquely molded Park Manager Career. I shouldn't even call this a career. So... let's call it a profession, that can be stacked with other professions, and pays weekly!
What does the park manager do? Simply put, it's the title your Sim receives upon purchasing land for a Wildlife Park. Essentially, the Park Manager owns the park, rather than working at the park like the Zoo Keeper. Of course, there is the possibility of making your home there (or somewhere nearby) if you like. When I said that the Park Manager profession can be stacked with other professions, I mean that you can be Park Manager and an (YouTube) Artist at the same time (hint, hint). However, due to the duties of the Park Manager, you won't be able to take a full on career.
The Park Manager also has a few extra sets of interactions, socials, and abilities that are unique to the Manager. For example, the Park Manager can call up friends for positions at the park, or he could talk about his favorite animals in his park to some random dude at the pub. He also has the ability to hire from applicants (randomized or created in CAS), set up advertising campaigns, and adding special events, such as Birthday Parties or an after-dark event cycle. He may even be able to hire Celebrities to advertise the parks or do a special event with his/her fans. If he's lucky, he can even choose to bond with a particular animal, if he so chooses. Then it gets real.
Now, let's talk hobbies. I mentioned in my 8 Expansions I would Like to See in the Sims 4 list that Diving would be included in the mix. I honestly think it would be better suited for an Sea-based expansion, if one were to show up. However, I'll still talk about it here, because you may never know. Diving will work just as it did in Island Paradise, except that it's in a non-open-world environment. Be creative, but I'll return to this later. What I want to talk about here is Animal Training. When I mentioned Show business in the Origin Story section, this is where it spawns from. I would imagine that the training would improve as your Sim gets better. Also, the animal would also get a variation of this skill, showing what he/she may already know. I'm sure Maxis will get the picture.
Do I need to even talk about traits? Considering that the Sims 4 only allows for three traits per Sim, this seems like an empty promise. However, in case the trait limit is somehow increased officially (not by a mod), I guess I'll list a few possibilities. Natural Keeper is one possible trait, providing a bonus to animal-based skills. Animal Lover come directly from the Sims 3: Pets, so the idea should be pretty simple, and may not even appear in this expansion if pets comes out before this. Animalistic is a trait that is a version of Insanity, except that it's with animals. Perhaps the Sim could literately communicate to animals, maybe even inheriting certain animal traits. Who knows.
Shoreside was a neighborhood idea that takes advantage of the bay-area expansion for the park. The town would be modeled after a typical sea-side town, nothing too fancy. Maybe a secret or two...
Now, time to talk technical. Because of the size of the park lot, there needs to be some sort of easy way to layout the park quickly. To begin, this expansion will suck if there are no Terrain Editing tools in the base game. As such, that should be patched in before any sort of expansion is released. It would also allow for unique park layouts, such as building a park around a hill or a crater.
Second, pathing. The park is massive, so the Sims need some sort of way to know where to go. Simple floors simply won't cut it, so what about actual, drawn paths, like what is seen in every park currently in-game? The pathing AI can make it so Sims prioritize paths over the usual pathing currently in-game, which is, simply put, shortest path possible. That can fix any sort of serious pathing issues due to the shear size of the lot.
Third, buildings. Honestly, each building should be custom made. You think about it, this makes sense from a park designer's perspective. Each building in a real park differs from the last, and no single building has the exact same layout, elevation, or size from park to park. Maxis builders could create individual, pre-made builds for the lazy people out there, similar to the current Room Save on the gallery. Also, each building has a function, which can be defined via signs and/or registers with a function, or something else entirely. For example, if you make a Food Court inside a park, you could use a selection tool to select the area of the planned Food Court, and designate it as such. This could clear up any overloading in the destination pathing currently in-game, so that Sims simply move to the designated area instead of to a single spot at the get-go, also, it would make building the Food Court much easier, now that you have an area in which you could build. If it is possible, if the eventual park is absolutely massive (like in ten time bigger than I had in mind), then you could select that area and prevent edits outside the region, making building the area much easier. Plus, it would work much like a typical lot!
Fourth, the Enclosures. Again, you should be able to customize every aspect of the enclosures, including location and scale. The fences should be separate from current fences in-game, much larger, thicker, and stronger than currently. Perhaps viewing platforms can be erected on the fences, just like on walls and with buildings. And, what about Tanks for Marine Animals? Well, isn't it obvious how that might work? Tanks can be below ground, above ground, or somewhere in-between. However, unlike pools, their depth can be adjusted to depths beyond the current 4-story buildings you could create, except it only applies to below ground. Also, tunnels and interaction platforms are a must!
Finally, park expansion. Eventually, you'll run out of room to build your park in the current limits. You can buy more land, of course, for the current park. However, if the park is built in Shoreside (or any massive plot next to a bay in future expansions), you can barricade the bay with enclosing nets (as seen in certain parks right at the shoreline) and create a massive, self sustained marine ecosystem you can place your favorite Orcas or Dolphins in. My visit to SeaWorld San Diego awhile back showed me that there was a huge bay area right next to SeaWorld that, surprisingly, the park hasn't even touched. That area can be easily used as a self-sustained and semi-natural ecosystem if it were fenced off by a thick and sturdy cable net, held in place by stone/steel pillars, and where the Orcas will have enough room to live somewhat freely, considering that the current tanks are tiny for such large animals. And... oh, was that too much? Sorry, got too elaborate, I guess...
Before I rant about the size of Orca tanks... again, let's... um... let's talk about something else: Life States. Honestly, choosing a good life state to add to this expansion was... somewhat difficult. However, after writing a project for Marine Biology discussing the Myths of the Sea, and my experience with the DeviantArt community, I think I have a good idea as to what can be added. However, no promises.
The first on my original list was the Merfolk. YES!! I can finally talk about this Life State! *ahem* Actually, I'll leave the details for my next thread. I don't want to ruin the image here. However, I will tell you that the Merfolk is an improved form of the Mermaids from Island Paradise, which, in my opinion, had too much missed potential (like nearly every other life state in the series thus far). Enough said for now. I'll edit this section when the real thread comes out.
The second Life State I brainstormed actually favors the Furry Fans out there. In my original list, I listed this life state as Shapeshifter, however, I feel that Were-beast is a bit more appropriate. Now this might sound like a Werewolf rip-off, but hear me out. This isn't just the Werewolf I'm talking about, I mean the others. Examples? Were-Cats, Were-hyenas, Were-Dolphins (truly exotic, I know), and the lot. Honestly, a Shapeshifter can be so many things, heck, they may not even be one thing! You decide as to what the Shapeshifter would be, because I have no clue! However, unlike the Werewolf, I'm not expecting Anthros, but full on animal forms. Who knows, maybe there will be a Furry Life State in the near future (hint, hint... again).
Based on my notes from previously, I believe I'm done. FINALLY! However, I would like to ask: Do you have what it takes to 1-Up me? If you have an even crazier version of this expansion, feel free to give your suggestions below. Or, is there a bit too much info here, and something needs to be cut. Feel free to let me know here, as well. Anyways, with this off my back, I can finally get to the Merfolk thread! Cheers, and Happy Simmin'!
My YouTube Channel
Draconic Gaming
DeviantArt Page
Lunispellweaver (will try to change it)
Some of my Threads:
8 Expansions I Would Like to See in the Sims 4
DragonSim
Draconic Gaming
DeviantArt Page
Lunispellweaver (will try to change it)
Some of my Threads:
8 Expansions I Would Like to See in the Sims 4
DragonSim
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Comments
Draconic Gaming
DeviantArt Page
Lunispellweaver (will try to change it)
Some of my Threads:
8 Expansions I Would Like to See in the Sims 4
DragonSim