I found TS3 world's too large and too many rabbit holes. I like what they've done in TS4 but the loading screens in the neighbourhood has to go. Admittedly I miss driving from TS3. I have a high end comp and running TS3 was a challenge. I don't want that in TS5
I personally find TS4's loading screens extreme overkill.....like okay it's for helping the lower spec pcs...but even in some of those areas (like the city for example), some simmers still say their lagging. So how is it really helping? I dunno, I just don't fully see the point of "alll" the loading screens.
Personally, I believe the lag in Sims 3 due to the large world is entirely EA's fault for bad coding/design. If I can run a game like Skyrim with minimal loading screens and no lag in the open world, I don't see how the graphics or AI in a Sims game could stress my game.
If EA can't manage a completely open world like Sims 3 without lag, I'd at least like to see what OP mentioned, explorable houses in an open neighborhood. It feels stupid that I can lurk just outside someone's house but can't knock on their door without a loading screen. Tint the windows until we knock on the door or something, you don't have to load everything in the house unless we want it to!
I'd prefer a fully open world because, as someone stated upthread, technology and gaming are always advancing. I think it's a bit of a shame that this game had to backpedal instead.
But I'm definitely open to compromise. Compared to what we currently have, I'd certainly appreciate a semi open world where at least each neighborhood is open. Kind of ridiculous having to hit a loading screen to visit my sims' neighbor's apartment or house.
I'd prefer a fully open world because, as someone stated upthread, technology and gaming are always advancing. I think it's a bit of a shame that this game had to backpedal instead.
But I'm definitely open to compromise. Compared to what we currently have, I'd certainly appreciate a semi open world where at least each neighborhood is open. Kind of ridiculous having to hit a loading screen to visit my sims' neighbor's apartment or house.
I don't have CL. I had no idea there was a loading screen to visit a neighbour in an apartment? Even S2 doesn't have a loading screen to visit neighbours in apartments.
A little OT, but you can even get your neighbours in S2 to babysit if you're good enough friends with them. They do a far better job than the nanny.
Dissatisfied with Sims 4 and hoping for a better Sims 5
I'd prefer a fully open world because, as someone stated upthread, technology and gaming are always advancing. I think it's a bit of a shame that this game had to backpedal instead.
But I'm definitely open to compromise. Compared to what we currently have, I'd certainly appreciate a semi open world where at least each neighborhood is open. Kind of ridiculous having to hit a loading screen to visit my sims' neighbor's apartment or house.
I don't have CL. I had no idea there was a loading screen to visit a neighbour in an apartment? Even S2 doesn't have a loading screen to visit neighbours in apartments.
A little OT, but you can even get your neighbours in S2 to babysit if you're good enough friends with them. They do a far better job than the nanny.
I love that feature!! Sims 2 apartments are a perfect example of a closed world done incredibly well.
I'd prefer a fully open world because, as someone stated upthread, technology and gaming are always advancing. I think it's a bit of a shame that this game had to backpedal instead.
But I'm definitely open to compromise. Compared to what we currently have, I'd certainly appreciate a semi open world where at least each neighborhood is open. Kind of ridiculous having to hit a loading screen to visit my sims' neighbor's apartment or house.
That, and the fact they did very little to take care of proper routing at all. It should have been EA to think of a cleaning system like Overwatch and Errortrap, not a modder. And creating worlds like Al Simhara, Bridgeport and Isla Paradiso is a right-down disgrace where routing is concerned.
When I send my sims to the park in The Sims 4, there are a lots of sims. If I send my sims to the park in The Sims 3, I find about 2-4 sims there.
One thing I also hated about The Sims 3 was that even though the free will was turned on, sims at home were lousy at taking care of themselves. So when I send someone out while a vampire stays home, then at one moment camera goes back home to show that the vampire has died by thirst. It was very hard to play The Sims 3 rotationally and in some cases if I did, The Sims 3 lagged more than The Sims 4, giving my sims the title "The Stone Statue of the Year". What was more annoying was the crying baby and these sims just stand around doing nothing despite of telling them to cook and take care of the baby.
Oh, and the fact that it is a open world didn't mean that I can see what does neighbors do. Even though I built a backyard, I never see them there unless my sim visits them. When my sims visits others, the first thing I see is that they are standing inside near the front door doing nothing. In The Sims 4, I had my sim visit their neighbors, who tried to cook some food but caused some fire. All of them ran outside. If The Sims 4 would have open neighborhood, then I would hear and see the neighbors die. All the time I spent creating them would have gone to waste. Don't think there would be gravestones then...
When I send my sims to the park in The Sims 4, there are a lots of sims. If I send my sims to the park in The Sims 3, I find about 2-4 sims there.
One thing I also hated about The Sims 3 was that even though the free will was turned on, sims at home were lousy at taking care of themselves. So when I send someone out while a vampire stays home, then at one moment camera goes back home to show that the vampire has died by thirst. It was very hard to play The Sims 3 rotationally and in some cases if I did, The Sims 3 lagged more than The Sims 4, giving my sims the title "The Stone Statue of the Year". What was more annoying was the crying baby and these sims just stand around doing nothing despite of telling them to cook and take care of the baby.
Oh, and the fact that it is a open world didn't mean that I can see what does neighbors do. Even though I built a backyard, I never see them there unless my sim visits them. When my sims visits others, the first thing I see is that they are standing inside near the front door doing nothing. In The Sims 4, I had my sim visit their neighbors, who tried to cook some food but caused some fire. All of them ran outside. If The Sims 4 would have open neighborhood, then I would hear and see the neighbors die. All the time I spent creating them would have gone to waste. Don't think there would be gravestones then...
Putting preferences aside, I truely hate it when people spread total rubbish about a game I probably know better than a lot of people here. So here I go again: when you've got free will enabled, nobody at home will die of hunger or thirst. Even when they catch fire they won't necessarily die because the camera will immediately swoosh to the victim (or any fire for that matter), allowing you to do something about it. In fact it's Sims 4's system where sims at home do nothing at all (no homework, no eating, no going to bed, no nothing).
(the rest of your complaints clearly attest to a computer processor that could have been better; I can see how that would be annoying)
I don't like open world. I like to leave Sims and go play a different Sim, and not 'worry' about them, true TS3 Sims take care of themselves and if you told them to skill etc. they are still doing that when you get back (sometimes) but sometimes I get sick of the whole bunch and just want to go off with one, and explore their life, one at a time without the other running back home etc.
What I do like is open neighborhood, in smaller sections, but then the neighbors would probably never be home, lol, I doubt it would work the way I wanted it to work so all the games have their pros and cons and why modders improve them one way or the other.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
I don't like open world. I like to leave Sims and go play a different Sim, and not 'worry' about them, true TS3 Sims take care of themselves and if you told them to skill etc. they are still doing that when you get back (sometimes) but sometimes I get sick of the whole bunch and just want to go off with one, and explore their life, one at a time without the other running back home etc.
What I do like is open neighborhood, in smaller sections, but then the neighbors would probably never be home, lol, I doubt it would work the way I wanted it to work so all the games have their pros and cons and why modders improve them one way or the other.
Then stop worrying about them, they really don't need you. Focus on that one sim and leave the rest. Sims 3's open world may have its flaws but that aspect they took care of properly.
I don't like open world. I like to leave Sims and go play a different Sim, and not 'worry' about them, true TS3 Sims take care of themselves and if you told them to skill etc. they are still doing that when you get back (sometimes) but sometimes I get sick of the whole bunch and just want to go off with one, and explore their life, one at a time without the other running back home etc.
What I do like is open neighborhood, in smaller sections, but then the neighbors would probably never be home, lol, I doubt it would work the way I wanted it to work so all the games have their pros and cons and why modders improve them one way or the other.
Then stop worrying about them, they really don't need you. Focus on that one sim and leave the rest. Sims 3's open world may have its flaws but that aspect they took care of properly.
I'm a micromanager, I can't help it. If I see a red icon I have to check it out. I had Sims run back home (their motives were just fine) when I took several to places to enjoy. I have little patience with Sims, I have killed them for a lot less. It's just a personal choice. Open world and Story Progression were a huge turn off to me, after about six months, when TS3 was first released. We didn't have any toggles back then to turn it off etc. It did get better over the years, and I don't like completely closed world anymore, but I play four to eight Sims for years in these games so sometimes I need some of them out of my hair...away. They all have their pluses and minuses though, I like them all for different reasons.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
I'm a terrible sim God, I leave households in the sims 3 and go out wandering with one or two sims. I never check on them. As long as their portraits are green I figure they are fine. If a fire broke out I would get a notification.
That's the one thing I do like about 3. I find it harder to do that with 4 when I can see the sims at home need bars are tanked. Sometimes they fix them themselves but always when I get back to the hole lot, if it's late at night every sim, elder, adult, child or toddler or teen will be out of bed. So you have to do the whole putting them to bed routine.
What would be hilariously annoying if TS4 had complete open world. Think about these monkies, they are like herding cats, in an open world, omg, I would have to kill more than half of them..musical chairs all over an open world..running from one end to the other. And still no 'run here' option.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
I agree with Joanne65 open world all the way for 5- no loading screens, no rabbit holes, no disappearing into the void. A proper Sims game.
I don't mind rabbitholes as such actually I do mind them when they are used out of 'laziness', standing in the way of potential awesome gameplay (prom, restaurant, shop and ridingschool come to mind). So I'd love a Skyrim kind of system. Open world galore, but for certain lots - visible from the outside though - a loading screen (the purely functional lots like city hall, school and some of the careers can stay rabbithole afaic).
A lot of those are actually because Open World limits how lots vary. When they explained the Rugs for the Savvy Seller Collection, they explained because the lots don't load separately, all lots are coded the same. So they had to use rugs which served as coding for the objects above to be have differently. I imagine it literally wouldn't be possible for them to have packs like Get To Work, Dine Out etc. that change the way the game plays.
Because you couldn't seamlessly switch from running a Restaurant to not and then back again. The game would have to change modes which would need to change how the whole game performs, which I'm guessing would require a loading screen.
I think Rabbit Holes weren't really laziness, but more a case of EA running into limitations of how these lots would work, because they can't code the lot any differently, all gameplay was based on object coding and attraction.
What would be hilariously annoying if TS4 had complete open world. Think about these monkies, they are like herding cats, in an open world, omg, I would have to kill more than half of them..musical chairs all over an open world..running from one end to the other. And still no 'run here' option.
I don't understand the hate for backdrops. Every good game should have them.
Open World games have them too (Skyrim & GTA V both have them).
It's embarrassing and poor design when a world suddenly comes to a halt because the no one bothered to make backdrops. Your world literally stops as soon as you reach the playable area border.
The Sims 3 would have looked a lot better had their been backdrops surrounding the explorable area. The size difference wouldn't have changed. All they had to do was make the worlds bigger but keep the routable area the same.
It's grating to see a City like Bridgeport literally be an island the size of a small town. Had there been a city that continued around Bridgeport it would have looked a lot better.
The Sims 3 on Xbox/PS have backdrops in it's worlds alongside the normal world and it looks great. Not just distant terrain, but houses, objects, decorative pieces. Not just endless Ocean.
It was nice to play a Sims 3 world that wasn't a town on a random island.
What would be hilariously annoying if TS4 had complete open world. Think about these monkies, they are like herding cats, in an open world, omg, I would have to kill more than half of them..musical chairs all over an open world..running from one end to the other. And still no 'run here' option.
Sims washing dishes in their neighbours house!
LOL, walking three doors down with dirty dish in hand. You know how they leave hamburger plates out on the sidewalk? imagine open world and them leaving these in the neighbor's yard, lol. I know I would be raving. lol
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
Open Neighbourhood worked beautifully for The Urbz, The Sims 2 Pets (Town Square on console), The Sims 2 Castaway, The Sims 3 for Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3.
Open World was poor to mixed on PC/Mac (base game was well received, but the results changed with DLC), and terrible on the Wii (despite EA & another team working on it from memory).
Every attempt at Open Hood has been done well, both attempts at Open World failed. The Sims 4 worlds as they stand also fail.
Tech hasn't changed that much from 2009 & 2010 to say that Open World with a Simulation can work, without it being way too complex and expensive for EA to manage over time.
You either have a closed world like The Sims 2 console (create different locations with proper backdrops) or you build an open hood. This whole closed world within an open space makes no sense, and Open World clearly is too much for EA to maintain with a post-release budget for the base game.
It's clear that EA get next to no budget to maintain the base game post-release, so it has to be as easy to maintain as possible (they don't yet to have the budget to fix the shadow jump bug etc).
What would be hilariously annoying if TS4 had complete open world. Think about these monkies, they are like herding cats, in an open world, omg, I would have to kill more than half of them..musical chairs all over an open world..running from one end to the other. And still no 'run here' option.
Sims washing dishes in their neighbours house!
LOL, walking three doors down with dirty dish in hand. You know how they leave hamburger plates out on the sidewalk? imagine open world and them leaving these in the neighbor's yard, lol. I know I would be raving. lol
lol probably! For that reason I'm glad the sims 4 isn't an open world. The AI is horrendous.
I play many an open world game. I never think about back drops when playing these games because I can explore everywhere, every corner of the map.
What frustrates me about the sims 4 is the back drops first off don't make sense, what's in the map screen won't necessarily be there when you load the lot. I find it sad when I'm in San Myshuno looking at the gorgeous high rise buildings but knowing it's just for show does kill the immersion. My sim stayed in the apartments next to the train line and following the train line just to see it abruptly stop (literally disappear) was just weird. It does kill immersion. Back drops provide a pretty set dressing but I would personally rather be able to visit those buildings and use the train stations for example.
Sims 2 had back drops but at least they made sense.
Personally, I believe the lag in Sims 3 due to the large world is entirely EA's fault for bad coding/design. If I can run a game like Skyrim with minimal loading screens and no lag in the open world, I don't see how the graphics or AI in a Sims game could stress my game.
If EA can't manage a completely open world like Sims 3 without lag, I'd at least like to see what OP mentioned, explorable houses in an open neighborhood. It feels plum that I can lurk just outside someone's house but can't knock on their door without a loading screen. Tint the windows until we knock on the door or something, you don't have to load everything in the house unless we want it to!
Skyrim is an online game run on multiple servers. You cannot compare this type of game to offline single player games.
I have been playing The Sims since 2001, when Livin Large came out. My avatar deliberately looks like Chris Roomies from TS1.
I don't understand the hate for backdrops. Every good game should have them.
Open World games have them too (Skyrim & GTA V both have them).
It's embarrassing and poor design when a world suddenly comes to a halt because the no one bothered to make backdrops. Your world literally stops as soon as you reach the playable area border.
The Sims 3 would have looked a lot better had their been backdrops surrounding the explorable area. The size difference wouldn't have changed. All they had to do was make the worlds bigger but keep the routable area the same.
It's grating to see a City like Bridgeport literally be an island the size of a small town. Had there been a city that continued around Bridgeport it would have looked a lot better.
The Sims 3 on Xbox/PS have backdrops in it's worlds alongside the normal world and it looks great. Not just distant terrain, but houses, objects, decorative pieces. Not just endless Ocean.
It was nice to play a Sims 3 world that wasn't a town on a random island.
It's cute for a painting, yet in the same token it's a reminder how we can't go to those said places. Especially the beaches, and the Willow Creek fairies. Call me nostalgic, but I enjoyed going to beach for the first time in base game for TS3, even if it took us awhile to get the swimming interaction.
At least we didn't have to "paint" our pools in order for it to feel lake or beach-like .
It's not necessarily the backdrops as it is the limits that come with it. I guess i'm an explorer kind of girl, I like to get out and interact with the whole town. Not just...watch it go by and be like "uuuugh why can't I go there? I bet their having fun over there " <--- when TS4 launched I had moments like that so frequently that I couldn't play the game for less than 20 mins.
As someone who loves fashion and scenery, yes TS4's backgrounds are cute. But there's also a very very painful reminder of where we still can't go. Even though I do like this game a little more, I'm not going to lie, sometimes I still do have those moments where I just wish I could go to those places that they paint sooooooo well. It still gets me sometimes .
What is the alternative to having backdrops? Blank, white space? xD LOL. Every game has backdrops.
Every game may have them but they shouldn't feel like the focus. I remember the San Myshuno live stream. "Look at the Bridge' its so pretty etc" it is but it's a back drop and it's literally just set dressing.
The world in any game should be interesting and diverse enough without backdrops even being a focus in my view, when back drops get praised you have to question how good the actual game is.
Comments
If EA can't manage a completely open world like Sims 3 without lag, I'd at least like to see what OP mentioned, explorable houses in an open neighborhood. It feels stupid that I can lurk just outside someone's house but can't knock on their door without a loading screen. Tint the windows until we knock on the door or something, you don't have to load everything in the house unless we want it to!
My hubby causes chaos in How To Live With Grace - - Pine Point tells Miranda Cole's survival tale - - Criminals build legacies in Glassbolt Prison
But I'm definitely open to compromise. Compared to what we currently have, I'd certainly appreciate a semi open world where at least each neighborhood is open. Kind of ridiculous having to hit a loading screen to visit my sims' neighbor's apartment or house.
I don't have CL. I had no idea there was a loading screen to visit a neighbour in an apartment? Even S2 doesn't have a loading screen to visit neighbours in apartments.
A little OT, but you can even get your neighbours in S2 to babysit if you're good enough friends with them. They do a far better job than the nanny.
I love that feature!! Sims 2 apartments are a perfect example of a closed world done incredibly well.
One thing I also hated about The Sims 3 was that even though the free will was turned on, sims at home were lousy at taking care of themselves. So when I send someone out while a vampire stays home, then at one moment camera goes back home to show that the vampire has died by thirst. It was very hard to play The Sims 3 rotationally and in some cases if I did, The Sims 3 lagged more than The Sims 4, giving my sims the title "The Stone Statue of the Year". What was more annoying was the crying baby and these sims just stand around doing nothing despite of telling them to cook and take care of the baby.
Oh, and the fact that it is a open world didn't mean that I can see what does neighbors do. Even though I built a backyard, I never see them there unless my sim visits them. When my sims visits others, the first thing I see is that they are standing inside near the front door doing nothing. In The Sims 4, I had my sim visit their neighbors, who tried to cook some food but caused some fire. All of them ran outside. If The Sims 4 would have open neighborhood, then I would hear and see the neighbors die. All the time I spent creating them would have gone to waste. Don't think there would be gravestones then...
(the rest of your complaints clearly attest to a computer processor that could have been better; I can see how that would be annoying)
What I do like is open neighborhood, in smaller sections, but then the neighbors would probably never be home, lol, I doubt it would work the way I wanted it to work so all the games have their pros and cons and why modders improve them one way or the other.
I'm a micromanager, I can't help it. If I see a red icon I have to check it out. I had Sims run back home (their motives were just fine) when I took several to places to enjoy. I have little patience with Sims, I have killed them for a lot less.
That's the one thing I do like about 3. I find it harder to do that with 4 when I can see the sims at home need bars are tanked. Sometimes they fix them themselves but always when I get back to the hole lot, if it's late at night every sim, elder, adult, child or toddler or teen will be out of bed. So you have to do the whole putting them to bed routine.
A lot of those are actually because Open World limits how lots vary. When they explained the Rugs for the Savvy Seller Collection, they explained because the lots don't load separately, all lots are coded the same. So they had to use rugs which served as coding for the objects above to be have differently. I imagine it literally wouldn't be possible for them to have packs like Get To Work, Dine Out etc. that change the way the game plays.
Because you couldn't seamlessly switch from running a Restaurant to not and then back again. The game would have to change modes which would need to change how the whole game performs, which I'm guessing would require a loading screen.
I think Rabbit Holes weren't really laziness, but more a case of EA running into limitations of how these lots would work, because they can't code the lot any differently, all gameplay was based on object coding and attraction.
Insta: https://instagram.com/jkarajs?igshid=oef2ymrand3g
Sims washing dishes in their neighbours house!
Open World games have them too (Skyrim & GTA V both have them).
It's embarrassing and poor design when a world suddenly comes to a halt because the no one bothered to make backdrops. Your world literally stops as soon as you reach the playable area border.
The Sims 3 would have looked a lot better had their been backdrops surrounding the explorable area. The size difference wouldn't have changed. All they had to do was make the worlds bigger but keep the routable area the same.
It's grating to see a City like Bridgeport literally be an island the size of a small town. Had there been a city that continued around Bridgeport it would have looked a lot better.
The Sims 3 on Xbox/PS have backdrops in it's worlds alongside the normal world and it looks great. Not just distant terrain, but houses, objects, decorative pieces. Not just endless Ocean.
It was nice to play a Sims 3 world that wasn't a town on a random island.
Insta: https://instagram.com/jkarajs?igshid=oef2ymrand3g
LOL, walking three doors down with dirty dish in hand.
Open World was poor to mixed on PC/Mac (base game was well received, but the results changed with DLC), and terrible on the Wii (despite EA & another team working on it from memory).
Every attempt at Open Hood has been done well, both attempts at Open World failed. The Sims 4 worlds as they stand also fail.
Tech hasn't changed that much from 2009 & 2010 to say that Open World with a Simulation can work, without it being way too complex and expensive for EA to manage over time.
You either have a closed world like The Sims 2 console (create different locations with proper backdrops) or you build an open hood. This whole closed world within an open space makes no sense, and Open World clearly is too much for EA to maintain with a post-release budget for the base game.
It's clear that EA get next to no budget to maintain the base game post-release, so it has to be as easy to maintain as possible (they don't yet to have the budget to fix the shadow jump bug etc).
Insta: https://instagram.com/jkarajs?igshid=oef2ymrand3g
lol probably! For that reason I'm glad the sims 4 isn't an open world. The AI is horrendous.
I play many an open world game. I never think about back drops when playing these games because I can explore everywhere, every corner of the map.
What frustrates me about the sims 4 is the back drops first off don't make sense, what's in the map screen won't necessarily be there when you load the lot. I find it sad when I'm in San Myshuno looking at the gorgeous high rise buildings but knowing it's just for show does kill the immersion. My sim stayed in the apartments next to the train line and following the train line just to see it abruptly stop (literally disappear) was just weird. It does kill immersion. Back drops provide a pretty set dressing but I would personally rather be able to visit those buildings and use the train stations for example.
Sims 2 had back drops but at least they made sense.
Skyrim is an online game run on multiple servers. You cannot compare this type of game to offline single player games.
It's cute for a painting, yet in the same token it's a reminder how we can't go to those said places. Especially the beaches, and the Willow Creek fairies. Call me nostalgic, but I enjoyed going to beach for the first time in base game for TS3, even if it took us awhile to get the swimming interaction.
At least we didn't have to "paint" our pools in order for it to feel lake or beach-like
It's not necessarily the backdrops as it is the limits that come with it. I guess i'm an explorer kind of girl, I like to get out and interact with the whole town.
As someone who loves fashion and scenery, yes TS4's backgrounds are cute. But there's also a very very painful reminder of where we still can't go. Even though I do like this game a little more, I'm not going to lie, sometimes I still do have those moments where I just wish I could go to those places that they paint sooooooo well. It still gets me sometimes
Yes, but they are usually much farther away.
Every game may have them but they shouldn't feel like the focus. I remember the San Myshuno live stream. "Look at the Bridge' its so pretty etc" it is but it's a back drop and it's literally just set dressing.
The world in any game should be interesting and diverse enough without backdrops even being a focus in my view, when back drops get praised you have to question how good the actual game is.