Forum Announcement, Click Here to Read More From EA_Cade.
The Sims 4 - First Half thoughts
CoffeeBeanPopcorn
Posts: 1,587 Member
The Sims 4 has reached its 2nd year out of probably the 4 possible years the game it may have. The Sims 4 is infamous for its lack of toddlers, terrain tools, open world and the like. The Sims 4 is also infamous for its shallow expansions and stuff packs that no one needed.
However, not all is bad about the game, to be honest. The game packs are nice ideas, although I wish it would have replaced the stuff packs entirely. I wish that the future Sims games (if there will be) would also have these, heck, even replace the stuff packs. And the other good things I think to be happening are the breaking of gender barriers and... that's it?
Well, to be honest, you know me for being that guy that's always hopeful for the future of the game. But as it seems the game may have lost its affect on me. I still play the game for time to time, but I play TS3 more often now, and that's a bad thing. I thought sequels were made to be better than its predecessor, not the other way around. In a nutshell, the first half of TS4, in terms of content, is terrible. Who needs freaking phone cases?!?
However, I believe that the first half is a wake up call to EA. The Sims is one of the main pillars of EA's gaming franchises, along with FIFA and Battlefield. But if The Sims series will abruptly end, EA will lose a significant amount of people who play their games. My suggestion to EA and The Sims 4 Development team; put more effort into the game. We love the series, and the reason we complain is because we don't want to see our beloved franchise blow into bits. But as it seems you want the series to die. Well, in my opinion, that's a bad thing.
It's not too late to make TS4 the best in the series. The quarterly previews are subpar, but the concept is nice. Previews are ways to see what the consumers like. We won't care if the packs are delayed, as long as the packs are exceptional in quality and execution. So not all is lost.
TL;DR, The Sims 4 is currently lackluster in terms of content, but it's just the first half. Some of the veterans who have bought TS4 have returned playing an earlier version. But, as always, this is a wake up call to EA. If EA wants to bring in the flow, why are they abandoning a great series with a huge fanbase? They should take advantage of the people's wants, and make the game the best in the series.
However, not all is bad about the game, to be honest. The game packs are nice ideas, although I wish it would have replaced the stuff packs entirely. I wish that the future Sims games (if there will be) would also have these, heck, even replace the stuff packs. And the other good things I think to be happening are the breaking of gender barriers and... that's it?
Well, to be honest, you know me for being that guy that's always hopeful for the future of the game. But as it seems the game may have lost its affect on me. I still play the game for time to time, but I play TS3 more often now, and that's a bad thing. I thought sequels were made to be better than its predecessor, not the other way around. In a nutshell, the first half of TS4, in terms of content, is terrible. Who needs freaking phone cases?!?
However, I believe that the first half is a wake up call to EA. The Sims is one of the main pillars of EA's gaming franchises, along with FIFA and Battlefield. But if The Sims series will abruptly end, EA will lose a significant amount of people who play their games. My suggestion to EA and The Sims 4 Development team; put more effort into the game. We love the series, and the reason we complain is because we don't want to see our beloved franchise blow into bits. But as it seems you want the series to die. Well, in my opinion, that's a bad thing.
It's not too late to make TS4 the best in the series. The quarterly previews are subpar, but the concept is nice. Previews are ways to see what the consumers like. We won't care if the packs are delayed, as long as the packs are exceptional in quality and execution. So not all is lost.
TL;DR, The Sims 4 is currently lackluster in terms of content, but it's just the first half. Some of the veterans who have bought TS4 have returned playing an earlier version. But, as always, this is a wake up call to EA. If EA wants to bring in the flow, why are they abandoning a great series with a huge fanbase? They should take advantage of the people's wants, and make the game the best in the series.
I'm back!
9
Comments
I wouldn't say that playing TS3 is a bad thing though
But yes we are now almost halfway between TS4's lifespan and the future does still look a bit bleak.
I think that the next EP will be a make or break for the series. It will either make the series better, or it would just break more features.
I guess that it is a case of 'watch this space' and maybe hope for the best...
1. I see the GPs as replacing half of the EPs. Probably because EA wanted some of the EPs replaced by two GPs such as a GP can be seen as a half EP.
2. I don't see any way of giving TS4 satisfying gameplay. Building relationships isn't any challenge anymore because they are built way too fast and forgotten too easily too. EA won't allow this to be changed in any significant way and the fast changing emotions is also part of TS4's core design. I don't believe in toddlers being released for TS4 either. (They are much more likely to return in TS5.)
3. EA wouldn't make all those SPs if they didn't sell very well. So a lot of people must buy them. Therefore I don't believe that EA sees TS4 as a failure. The game is just much more targeted at casual gamers who play the game much less than the majority in the forum does.
To add: There's nothing wrong with playing TS3 instead. If you don't like the current iteration and your computer can handle TS3 then have at it. Sometimes they change the game with the next iteration and people don't get on with it. Next time (assuming there is one, remembering they said that they'll keep going until it doesn't make sense anymore) the iteration may agree with you. Some people didn't enjoy TS3 but enjoy TS4.
Also a 'failure' as far as you are concerned, doesn't mean a failure to Maxis. If it's selling and they're making money, then it's not a failure, whether you like it or not.
The previews were meant to be a sneak peek, so we're aware of what's coming in that quarter before it comes, not a whole full look, as was requested. Also they can't say 'such and such is coming this quarter...sorry, we were wrong' (which is why I don't think we'll get a 'surprise announcement' of something not already stated to be coming in that quarter, but whole different conversation).
1. There were no family stories and neighborhood stories like there was in TS2. The other families in TS3 were reduced to being NPCs which the game moved around at random or even killed at random.
2. The EPs in TS3 couldn't cooperate. If we wanted to use another EP then we had to start over in a new world.
3. We couldn't add subworlds like we could in TS2. Therefore we couldn't expand very much and we had to start over all the time.
So TS2 was a better game for me than TS3 ever was. But I don't even play TS2 anymore either because I know that game way too well and because I have tried everything. With its low difficulty degree the game therefore isn't worth playing for me anymore.
Didn't mean to repeat you.
After a time, I edited a game world, or a bunch of them to include things from other packs. The constantly having to edit them drove me bananas. One of the reasons I like TS4, no need to edit a bunch of times or have a starting world.
I don't play TS3 very often. I'm kind of 'meh' about it most of the time. I just don't think there's anything wrong with going back and playing an older game if you don't like the current one. They must factor that in when they make the game, that people aren't going to like it and are going to stick with an older version. Certainly I'd be aware of it. Because that's their competition, the older versions.
TS4 can be still enjoyable but it demands different style of game. I understand that not everybody likes it. I think it can be improved with some EPs, SPs and GPs, but it will never be the same game as TS2 and TS3. In good and bad meaning of this words.
Agree.
Recently I've watched some old "First Look" of TS3 Seasons EP on Youtube. This EP was great, but I was shocked how few clothing and hairstyles there was. I must admit that in every TS4 DLC we receive so much more CAS content, and that is important to me, cause I don't use CC.
Adorno Family from Rebuilding Worlds
Yes I believe that you could save a house with its inhabitants in TS3 and then start with that house in a new world which is probably what you mean when you say that you can keep your family when you want to play another EP. But when you do that your sims still lose all their relationships to all other sims who then don't exist anymore.
After that, this has become my playing style. I play my family and when saving starts to take minutes, I simply get them all together and start a new game. Same thing when I'm tired of the world they live in and want to move. I take everyone with me that matters and leave behind who I don't care about. That even feels realistic to me, some people in life you leave behind. And the new world they move to is filled with other, new people to get relationships with.
Family members I put in one household in order to protect their family ties, friends go in seperate households and I restore their relationships (with cheats, easy) once I've placed them into the new world. Believe it or not, it's fun doing that even. And then I can continue where I left off. My current sim grew up in Dragon Valley, I started her generation by taking her on holiday in Monte Vista (where her grandparents and greatgrandparents live), now she's at college and when she'll finish her study she'll move to IP. Where, apart from exploring that huge world, she'll also become an Egypt adventurer. I don't quite see it, Sims 3 tying you to one world. I even believe I'll be able to restore broken family ties, now that I have Mastercontroller, but I haven't gotten into that yet.
But I'd like to believe that this is not true.
My Plum Family Tree
Adorno Family from Rebuilding Worlds
I don't know if TS4 could be made playable for me if I used a ton of mods. But I doubt it and I don't want all that hard work attempting to change the game and then realize that i can't change it enough anyway.
@JoAnne65 TS3 for most players is unplayable without mods, cause it is unstable. And TS4 for most players is unplayable without mods cause it is boring.^^'
Adorno Family from Rebuilding Worlds
Miracles happen xD
Adorno Family from Rebuilding Worlds
(I am very glad with my mods now though, they do make the experience easier)
I guess they do, I still play Sims 3 without mods. And a good PC also helps.
My point is that it should be me who decides when I don't care for my sim's kids anymore. Not the game assuming that they can be killed or moved around at random or given random jobs just because I moved them to a house of their own.