Does sims 4 get better with expansions and game packs «12...Next Go

juleseast3003

I want to give sims 4 another shot. I'm still not struck on the idea of no open world as I'm so used to sims 3 and the freedom it gives you. I only have the Base game of sims 4 so looking for advice whether to invest in the expansion packs of sims 4 and the game packs. Just looking for thoughts not turning it to a vs war. I have all the sims 3 exps and stuff packs

knazzer

I found the two expansions pretty lackluster. The game packs and stuff packs add some charm to the game, but wears thin pretty quickly.

musteni

I think with get together clubs yes. I like to play rotationally and it's a great thing to be able to set up groups, decide where they hang out and what they do. I don't know if that's something for you, but the windenburg neighbourhoods are also bigger than in base game. I still get lost easily when I play at the countryside

stilljustme2

In my case, yes, adding content (I include stuff packs as well) does help improve the game. But it all depends how you use the content. Get To Work is pretty limited (the best part for me is the ability to upgrade the rocket to go to Sixam for new collectibles), but Get Together has added a lot of value to my game. I have two couples that are close friends, so I put them in a club (their kids will join the club when they hit young adult) so it makes it easier to do activities together like going out to eat (Dine Out), play games, or watch movies (Movie Hangout). You might want to hold off for a few months because there's a new EP close to completion, and it might add features that you'll find interesting or that will combine well with existing content (for example, new activities that your GT clubs and groups can participate in).

If you want recommendations, I'd go as follows:

1. Spa Day (game pack)
2. Dine Out (game pack)
3. Get Together (expansion)
4. Outdoor Retreat (game pack)
5. Get To Work (expansion)

HowGreatThouArt

Going from a fully expanded Sims 3 to just the Sims 4 base game is a huge leap downward, so to be fair you do need some packs to make it more enjoyable. Go ahead and watch some Let's Plays for the EPs, and check out the past livestreams for Dine Out and the most recent SPs. That will give you a pretty good idea for what's in those packs.

@stilljustme2 's list is good, and I'd recommend the Movie Hangout and Kids Room SPs as well if you're interested in SPs. I personally love the style of Movie Hangout and use the hairstyles, clothing, and movies very often. Kids Room has some really adorable items and clothing if you like to play children.

Lastly I'd recommend buying what you can on sale. That lessens the blow if the pack turns out to be unenjoyable for you. I've bought only 3 DLC for full-price and those were SPs. I bought everything else on sale and I have all the DLC except for 3 of the SPs.

Edit: Actually 4 SPs that I haven't purchased. I can't seem to do strike-through on mobile.

YungGigi

More is always better.

Revery

This is a personal opinion:

I'd recommend you take a close look at the base game to figure out if it has any feautures/problems you have a hard time getting over. Without mods, some of these - like the culling for example - could be game breaking for you depending on how you play. If you come to the conclusion that you'd still like to give it a try:

The game does get better with add ons. Get Together in particular introduces the club feature which I think offers new ways to play the game. Dine Out & Spa Day are also worth getting. Since you already own the base game, you might as well try to make it work for you. I'd recommend to get them while they're on sale if you can; that's what I did and I don't have any regrets.

I used to struggle with the idea of no open world, too. I played the demo when TS4 came out and didn't touch it again until recently after re-watching LGR's reviews (which are very helpful if you're trying to form an opinion) about the ep's and gp's. Ultimately, I don't miss the open world nearly as much as I thought I would. What I think needs to be added are more options to costumize the worlds - you're really kind of stuck with what you're given here.

I should mention something that heavily alters how the game behaves for me in its current state: My game is full of mods and cc. I don't enjoy playing any of the sims games without. After all, no matter how much the open world doesn't bother me, things like culling turn the game into a hostile environment for my play style.

Additionally, I would recommend to wait for an announcement of the upcoming expansion pack. This could help determine the direction the game takes and may be another factor in your decision.

Hope this was helpful!

tonicmole

For me it did, but only for a short amount of time. It's still the same game and I found that I burned through all the content pretty fast. Like the base game it just doesn't have any legs, and none of the new content addresses much of the missing features. So, for the price I cannot recommend any of the additional DLC. You'll spend hundreds of dollars and Sims 4 will still feel empty within a rather short time. I actually have returned to Sims 3. Still fun.

DeKay

Yes, of course.

stilljustme2

HowGreatThouArt wrote: »

Going from a fully expanded Sims 3 to just the Sims 4 base game is a huge leap downward, so to be fair you do need some packs to make it more enjoyable. Go ahead and watch some Let's Plays for the EPs, and check out the past livestreams for Dine Out and the most recent SPs. That will give you a pretty good idea for what's in those packs.

@stilljustme2 's list is good, and I'd recommend the Movie Hangout and Kids Room SPs as well if you're interested in SPs. I personally love the style of Movie Hangout and use the hairstyles, clothing, and movies very often. Kids Room has some really adorable items and clothing if you like to play children.

Lastly I'd recommend buying what you can on sale. That lessens the blow if the pack turns out to be unenjoyable for you. I've bought only 3 DLC for full-price and those were SPs. I bought everything else on sale and I have all the DLC except for 3 of the SPs.

Edit: Actually 4 SPs that I haven't purchased. I can't seem to do strike-through on mobile.

It's a bit too late for me to try and rank SPs (it's after 1am here and I should be in bed), plus the OP was asking about EPs and GPs. I find that both Spa Day and Dine Out work the best with Get Together in terms of adding activities for groups (I send my current family out to breakfast every Sunday because my family used to do that, and I'm considering having my teen Sim start a Wellness Group once she gets a couple of points in the skill) so that's why I rated them a bit ahead of GT, plus I think that Spa Day is the most beautiful pack of the entire Sims series, with both game play and Build mode content.

Arletta

I'd make sure that you can at least enjoy playing TS4 without getting too hung up on whatever you feel the short falls are, before exploring the idea of buying out packs for it. If you can't get past whatever hang up's then you don't want to waste your money. You shouldn't even consider buying packs unless and until you know you can get some enjoyment from the base because I sincerely doubt that the core of the game will change much from how it is now.

mmoblitz

OP. The question you need to ask yourself is, how much am I willing to spend to before I can consider and game enjoyable? For me, if the base game or standard game can't stand on it's own and/or feels like it's missing something then I simply don't buy it and move on. What they add to it later or make available to purchase is irrelevant.

cheifeagleeye

it depends on your game play style going to be

parbopostcards

For me it certainly does, but I always like all the new items, that's why I buy the add-ons. I pretty much don't use CC since it used to mess up my previous games in TS3. Right now I am busy with a super sim challenge (Master all skills and aspirations) and I do have to admit I love all the extra things I have unlocked.

SheriSim57

Yes, I have all the packs, and it makes it more fun to play the more that is added....

dorcsyful

I've always thought, regardless of which version, that the sims is boring without at least one EP. I've been playing TS3 lately though, because I miss EPs like Pets and Seasons (which I'm quite sure will be added). Just the base game is boring, in my opinion, packs give something to it (like travelling in TS3's WA or the new carreers in TS4's GTW)

blugar44

To be honest I think TS4 is a good base game. If I hadn't played fully expanded past iterations and this was my intro to the series I'd be totally content without any packs.

Only problem is I have played past iterations haha. So it feels a little bare at first-- I'm sure at the end of its lifecycle TS4 will be fantastic though, imo I think it's got a lot of potential. If you've played past games then I'd recommend expanding but once you start you can't stop.

So far there isn't really a lot to buy though. The expansion packs are exactly what they claim to be; they'll expand your gameplay haha. So I'd recommend grabbing them and all 3 gamepacks as well if you have the moolah and the need. Once you have them, sure, they eventually feel as if they were part of the base game all along so you don't appreciate them as much, that could be interpreted as 'stale', but just imagine playing without them with the bare base.

Stuff packs this time around are great imo. My faves are Movie Hangout, Kids Room, Backyard Stuff, Romantic Garden.... basically the most recent ones. Quality and detail is ever-increasing. Gameplay objects make all the difference to make these packs worth it + some great themes and atmospheres.

HillyBeth

I like the cas/build/buy content that the two EPs and the one SP I own come with. Of the SPs I only have Luxury Party Stuff.

luthienrising

juleseast3003 wrote: »

I want to give sims 4 another shot. I'm still not struck on the idea of no open world as I'm so used to sims 3 and the freedom it gives you. I only have the Base game of sims 4 so looking for advice whether to invest in the expansion packs of sims 4 and the game packs. Just looking for thoughts not turning it to a vs war. I have all the sims 3 exps and stuff packs

It really depends on your game play. The base game has had a number of updates since launch, so you might want to try it again and see if you can get past the no-open-world part. Try having your Sims spend time in the surrounding neighbourhood areas and head out to parks and other community lots to get a sense of whether the loading screens are too much for you. (I'm fine with them, personally - for some reason watching furniture render in 3 bothered me more - but we're all different that way, and what breaks my immersion won't necessarily be the same thing that breaks yours.)

For a sense of larger world space, consider Outdoor Retreat (GP) and Get Together (EP). Outdoor Retreat's vacation world includes a National Park that's quite a big neighbourhood. The Windenburg world in GT has large neighbourhoods; the island and the rural area in particular can feel very explorable in the neighbourhood space. If you play rotationally or enjoy setting up your own worlds, the GT club system could be a game changer, as it has been for many of us. (See the EP forum area for lots of topics on how people are using it.)

CK213

The game can't help but be better with additional content.

If you really love TS3 and TS4 isn't doing it for you because it's not like The Sims 3, the extra content might entertain you for a short duration until you get over the newness. Get Together has been the best addition to the game for me, but I'd still rather play TS3 because of the Open World, Create-A-Style, and age stages. I stopped buying additional content, so I don't have Dining Out, Kids Room Stuff or Backyard stuff. I am waiting to see if we get Toddlers and Pre-teens and a Generations EP.

One reason I keep coming back to TS4 is because of my Sims. I really like them and want to play them.
I really need Generations, University, and Seasons to hook me into this game, but it looks like I am in for a long wait. EA's absolute silence on Toddlers and the description of weather in expansion packs from their surveys have me very concerned.

JasonSim16

juleseast3003 wrote: »

I want to give sims 4 another shot. I'm still not struck on the idea of no open world as I'm so used to sims 3 and the freedom it gives you. I only have the Base game of sims 4 so looking for advice whether to invest in the expansion packs of sims 4 and the game packs. Just looking for thoughts not turning it to a vs war. I have all the sims 3 exps and stuff packs

Honestly, I have tried to go back and play The Sims 3 after 4 but I can't get into it and invest as much time as The Sims 4. #TS4 runs smoother and I like the graphics more; however with that being said...there's definitely more to do in The Sims 3. The Sims 4 EPs seem like an overlay of content already in the game; nothing's really drastically different. Outdoor Retreat's pretty neat if you want to make an Outdoor Sim nd constantly explore Granite Falls. Dine Out's pretty neat if you want to own a restaurant. I think Get Together should have been a GP; all you really do is group Sims together which does give you better control of the Sims. Ultimately it would be up to you. I have them all because with this version everything you can possibly get adds to it that much more. : - /

PHOEBESMOM601

I really think that the base game should have had enough content to make it playable for more than a short time. I felt like it needed an EP the day after I installed it. To be completely honest I have found very,very little content with any kind of replay value. If you look around the forums you'll see a lot of people saying things like they played with new content for a few days and then got bored again.

My biggest complaint is that new content isn't fixing the bugs and glitches that make me not want to play.

Aine

Not in any big way, no. All the pack so far has been alot of new set dressing IMO. The Game packs have been the best ones in adding new gameplay, but that's only compared to EP's and SP's. For me, the game hasn't changed that much since release, and I don't hope for it do change in the future either. We'll continue to get new 'stuff' and different set dressings to do the same socials and animations and all sims will appear the same (to me). If you like new 'stuff' then sure, it's better because there's new content, but if you're actually looking for in depth gameplay changes - not so much better, no.

Luke

I did like GT. Clubs are pretty neat. You may not understand them at first, so the best way is to ask people for ideas or watch LP youtube videos to see how clubs work for other people and to get some cool ideas, because they really are a cool thing once you actually use them thoroughly.

GTW is cool for a bit, but the shoddy retail system kind of makes it undesirable.

The GP's are the best, IMO ... I've used them the most. Dining Out is insane, and I really love everything about it. You may not be able to work in the restaurant as a chef, but you can run it and create your own restaurant, which is super amazing and cool. OR is okay ... gets kinda old, but it was a really good first introduction to the GP's. Spa Day is pretty good. That one blew me away with how in depth they went with it. Going to one of the spa's is really fulfilling, because they did a great job with it.

Most of the SP's are decent ... surprisingly, Spooky Stuff is one of my favourites ... I love building with SS, because I love the versatility of being able to create a beautiful lot with a creepy looking hideaway or attic. I like to also create lots that look run down and deserted. Spooky Stuff also has pumpkin carving, which is really cool!

Romantic Garden is nice ... a lot of the items in that pack fit the aesthetic that I like in my game.

Patio Stuff is also a good one. I like the outdoor furniture and the hot tubs.

It's really about what you are interested in. One SP/GP/EP may 'do it' for you, but they could also do nothing for you.

Mizz_Creative48

It didn't get better for me like I thought it would and I have Spa Day, Get Together, Outdoor Retreat and Get to Work. Those packs were just temporary fixes for being bored with the game then the newness wore off and there was no point in playing it. I don't plan on buying anything else

juleseast3003

Well thank you for all your comments I'm having another go. If I can get past the open world bit I'll buy some packs