Better Baby Stuff Pack «12...Next Go

83bienchen

The devs and gurus have as good as said that they will not free babies from their crib, but as they are now, babys are a mess to look at and play with.

So how about this:

- add a multi-part baby object

Just like the multi part barista object for cafés that came with Get Together.
size: 6 x 6
required objects: crib, changing table, armchair, baby blanket
Each of these objects could have its predefined space within the object (technically doable via slots) and would only work if placed within. So babys would not have to be technically freed from their crib.

INTERACTIONS:

crib:
the ones we already have
put to sleep (the adult will cover the baby with a blanket an d the baby will fall asleep and put the blanket aside as soon as it wakes - blanket could just disappear then)
give pacifier would be nice, too (the baby would spit it out after a while and it disappears)

changing table:
change diaper
change appearance (hairdo & outfit - pie menue similar to the one for the vanity table (Vintage Stuff Pack), even better: mini CAS)
bathe baby
put back in crib

Sims will remain standing in front of the table until they are told to put the baby back in its crib. They will also put the baby back in its crib if one of the changing table interactions is cancelled.

armchair:
feed (breast and bottle)
sing lullaby
play with small toy (disappears afterwards)
(maybe some of the standing animations could be slightly changed to be usable in a sitting position)
put back in crib

Sims will remain sitting with the baby until they are told to put the baby back in its crib.They will also put the baby back in its crib if one of the armchair interactions is cancelled.

baby blanket (like the ones for TS2):

play with
tease (kids, teens and mean Sims only)
put back in crib

The baby will play on their own if they are left on the blanket and will cry once their energy gets low, before it eventually falls asleep.


It would be awesome to have some of these interactions available for children as well (like bottlefeed baby and the play interactions)!


NEW OBJECTS:

crib (with slot for small deco object like doll, teddy, pacifier)
changing table
baby blanket
in different styles/colours
a few deco objects (for the slots and maybe some more)

NEW "CAS" CONTENT:

some outfits and hairdos for babys

I believe the above should be doable as a STUFF PACK. That way, EA could also test whether there are enough family players around to justify toddlers in TS4.

PATCHED IN FOR FREE:

- appearance overhaul for baby mesh (they are just ugly right now, not cute like they should be)
- babys inherit one of their parents eye color and hair color (eyebrows if the baby is bald!)


Please tell me what you think! Do you support this idea?

Bluebeard45

Sad to say but I think the family play in S4 is almost dead.Honestly I have no idea why they removed the family from this version it has always been a Sim staple.

bekkasan

I think your ideas are awesome and do wish it would happen. I cannot see it though as it does not support 'their' vision of the current version of the series.

It would be too hard, too expensive, not on the list of to do's. It would still require more animations then the budget allows etc.

I'm done wearing my rose colored glasses and am not hoping for anything except a team for Sims5 that has actually listened to those of us who want bug/glitch free games with awesome game play and the ability to create and have options in our game so that we can play our game our way and not be told how to play their game.

Simsophonique

Why not also add an option with the mobile crib that will be powered by parents for their babies to sleep as in real life
You will hear some music or a special sound and you can even change the colour of the lights.
I used to play sims 3 and 2 and not ts4 yet to have this kind of objects but it is decorative.

Also add a nurse as carreer or as NPC to look after the babies when parents are out to work or out to do freetime activities, teenagers can also look after them if they got freetime.

And why not also stroll them in "landau" and add have baby seats for cars , if cars is developped soon .

83bienchen

bekkasan wrote: »

I cannot see it though as it does not support 'their' vision of the current version of the series.

You´re right, @bekkasan. That´s why I tried so hard to come up with something that might work as a stuff pack and still enhance the game. I´m still playing the game and still with a clear focus on families but there is so much missing so I would love if we would get something more family oriented soon. And SPs is what we get the most, so I thougt a family based SP would be better than nothing.

@Simsophonique: I like your ideas (EA already patched in a nanny a while ago, though). EA could easily fill a GP or EP with family related stuff, that´s for sure. I´m just afraid they might not want to, especially now that it seems they have made really got profit out of City Life.

JessicaSimston

I'd like for an option for the bassinet to be dragged around, almost like how you can drag plates etc around. I haven't worded it very well but I think you'll get what I mean. It's annoying having the babies isolated in the bedroom all the time, so I always go into buy mode and move the baby into the living room so they fit into the family dynamic more. It'd be nice just to be able to drag the bassinet to where you want it.

Maybe there could also be an option to take the baby out of the lot, but on public lots the bassinet turns into a stroller (with all of the same interactions, just a different appearance) so it looks more in place?

sparkfairy1

As much as I've lost hope in TS4 ever offering a decent experience for those of us who enjoy the early years stages of sims lives I hope they listen to you @83bienchen because I hope for those of you who can still enjoy the game they'll make some effort.

Well done for all your ideas, I appreciate how hard you have tried

83bienchen

@JessicaSimston: I like your ideas. Especially the first one shouldn´t be to hard to realise, maybe even someting a modder could achieve.

Thank you, @sparkfairy1, for your kind words. I wish something would happen to make EA see that they can make decent profit if they cease to ignore family players.

sparkfairy1

Me too @83bienchen I just don't have faith any more that they are listening. I think it's easier to dismiss us

Simsophonique

@83bienchen wrote:

@Simsophonique: I like your ideas (EA already patched in a nanny a while ago, though). EA could easily fill a GP or EP with family related stuff, that´s for sure. I´m just afraid they might not want to, especially now that it seems they have made really got profit out of City Life.

@83bienchen : Good to know about the Nanny, but it's important to jab about them because in the near future, a dev can decide to delete them in a future sims as they do for instance with the baillifs or the firemen.
Thank you for this thread , if I got some news ideas make sure I'll post them.
I hope they'll add decent family gp.
I don't play the game , I think to get a copy if we got a correct sales on stores (I can't pay online). City Living is one of the ep the most decent they does with get together , dine out and spa day for now. We can keep the hope and cross fingers they can because they really can make a decent family addition.

@JessicaSimston Maybe there could also be an option to take the baby out of the lot, but on public lots the bassinet turns into a stroller (with all of the same interactions, just a different appearance) so it looks more in place?

Your idea joins mine except a bassinet as stoller it canbe possible if the devs can't do anything else. Briging a baby an infant out of house is definitively a great idea and it'll bring a very new gameplay experience. Why not also using a baby carriers as well.

xoxoXD

I think they should make strollers or something for babies.

Louise_G0325

Awesome ideas! Absolutely love them Really hope they listen!
I think that this would be more a part of a GP though, because it is a bit animation-heavy for a SP.
If toddlers are to make their return (mmf.) this pack can combine with toddler stuff to make an early-life GP or something. The toddlers would be patched in with objects and outfits etc, but this pack would add even more outfits, objects, decór etc.

83bienchen

Thanks for sharing your ideas here. I would gladly take several family oriented stuff packs and not just one.

I mean, how many party themed packs did we get so far? Can´t even count these anymore.

There were quite a few new animations that came with the Vintage, Backyard and Kids SP, so I hope that EA might be able to add these ideas with a stuff pack.

It´s not that I wouldn´t prefer a family oriented GP or EP, but I´m afraid as long as we have to wait these days for GPs and especially EPs, it will just take to long. Then, if they mix toddlers, babys and preteens in just one pack, they will not have the ressources to get the most out of these life stages.

Just remember how they ruined the idea of retail shops with Get to Work.

sheepicorn

I totally agree with your ideas. I'm playing with a family in TS4 at the moment and just waiting for the baby to grow up so I can actually play with it is very annoying. I hope they start to recognize family players.

83bienchen

Thanks for your support, @sheepicorn.

They seem to have tweaked the baby interaction with the last patch a bit, though. I noticed that my current Sim baby is crying far more often than my TS4 babies usually do. It might just be a coincidence, though. Anyone else noticed that?

Anyhow, making the baby cry more often is not the kind of new gameplay I´m hoping for.

lisamtown

@83bienchen they should have you working on the team.

emilymsims

@83bienchen my sims twins cried none stop ! Maybe they did do something to the babies. I would be ok- just ok however- not happy- with babies as they are if they added more crib options and decor for the room. But free babies is so ideal

Cabelle1863

I like this idea and totally support it. If I had something like this, I'd play babies instead of immediately aging them up. Other than the ability to breastfeed, TS4 babies have been an utter disappointment.

kwanzaabot

I gotta be honest, I wouldn't pay one cent for a baby pack. Babies are such a mindless, boring grind, and adding more ways to grind doesn't exactly strike me as an enjoyable pack.

Toddler stuff, sure, I'd buy a Toddler Stuff Pack. But babies are not fun. 3 days of crying, pooping and feeding bottles is not fun gameplay, regardless of how much stuff you add to pad it out. It's realistic, but it's also repetitive. At least toddlers have some actual personality, and can act like actual Sims.

ChadSims2

I would instantly buy this stuff pack the second it came out. Would give me a reason to actually use the baby-object and would make it seem more like part of the family I need the blanket play with interaction now.

83bienchen

@lisamtown and @ChadSims2: Thank you. That´s very nice of you to say.

@emilysims: So it seems I didn´t just imagine the difference. Maybe they tweaked the babys because the adjusted them for the vampire stuff pack and something went wrong? I mean, I think that the babys were a bit to silent and easygoing before but now they´ve gone a bit overboard.

@Cabelle1863: I´m afraid you´re right. In combination with the lack of toddlers, this ruined family play for a lot of eager Sims players I believe.

@kwanzabot: I suppose it depends on why you are playing TS4. Crying, pooping and feeding bottles is not fun, but more options would make it more fun and less repetitive.
And I truely believe it would help a lot with bonding if the babys would actually resemble their parents more (eye and hair colour, skin color would be ideal). I think that this played a great part in why the TS2 babies were so cute. They were not just like "oh which of the three available dolls* did I get this time?"

*for each gender

Cabelle1863

I miss the ability to zoom in and see what features the baby got from his/her parents. The TS4 babies don't look realistic at all to me, nothing like the babies from TS2 or TS3. They look like creepy baby dolls, like these ones-

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=85866316&cp=&parentPage=search

I remember the first time I saw a TS4 baby, I drew back in horror and said, "Oh yuck! They look like those freaky Waterbabies! Do not want!"

CharKittyBoo

Aaarrrgg! We need this so badly!! I want this!!!

LatinaBunny

I would LOVE a pack with all of this stuff!!! Great ideas, @83bienchen !

Unfortunately, I don't think EA will do any of this.

It's been two years, and I haven't seen much improvement in this part of the family department (and including toddlers).

I really want a cute, mobile free baby that is FUN to interact with (like most of the past sims games)!

Sims 4 babies are just ugly and so restricting to me.

BlueBlack007

All wonderful Ideas, but I am afraid that they will not add anything like that to the Sims 4, since Family play seems to be just bout non existent in the game, they claim they listen to what the public wants, but I think they lie bout that part.

EllomiSimmer

Ikr, they miss out toddlers and don't even make up for it with the baby?