Grateful for the details about the differences between personalities, traits, etc in Sims3 and Sims4...and learned something new! Didn't know there were such things as "Forbidden words" in Sims4, or that coffin woohoo was a thing (must be a Vampires thing, and I don't have that).
It is true that the tendency of moodlets to override and obliterate all else, can be unsettling. Going from the depths of grief to Happy and Energized while the Grief plays on in the background as a blue bar, but doesn't appear to affect them right then, is weird. Having an enraged husband of a cheating spouse go from Ranting to smiling and chatting at the table in an instant, while his outrage lives quietly on, but somehow suppressed enough that he can act the image of courtesy, is weird.
I do think a lot of what makes Sims4 characters so potentially tantalizing to me, is what is hidden from me, but I keep picking up on. I call it Hidden Architecture, but can only surmise its existence from noticing that some couples have chemistry and some don't, even if I make them do all the interactions to make a romance work...it will work superficially, and even their woohoo isn't as good. When the compatibility isn't there, they don't seek out each other's company in odd moments, or initiate romance, or much of anything, together.
Some Sims seem to have more initiative than others toward self-care. I actually had one that earned the No Excuse award for wetting himself in a lot with 5 toilets. He never did anything for himself, and I got tired of micromanaging him, so I deleted him, no regrets. Other Sims seem to vary in how quickly or effectively they respond to their own needs, or the needs of their babies (some will even respond to any baby, without prompting, and without being made to by selecting certain traits. I think those will make superb parents or nannies)
So, far less is up to us, and yes, moodlets and objects give us the ability to overcome a lot of things. That does flatten the game a bit. But I still love the surprises I keep running into with some Sims having such individual tendencies, that weren't made by me.
"Common sense and training prohibit me from divulging information for which both the need and the right to know have not been adequately demonstrated" -Redacted
The one thing the Sims 4 does better than the other Sims game I've played is kind of wack -- abusive relationships. Getting the friendship bar down while keeping the romance bar up leads to some seriously messed up scenarios. Hurl insults and then make up in bed. In Sims 3, since the friendship/romance bar are the same, being mean just drops the overall relationship, and if it gets too low, they break up. I think it's pretty weird given that the "point" interaction was taken out because the person being pointed at would flinch back, and that was seen as abuse, and slap was moved to mischievous for the same reason, yet you can have an outright abusive relationship that plays so naturally I found it quite surprising.
Interviews like that are the reason I don't have hope for The Sims 4 to improve. That part about the technical directors looking terrified when he talked about 5 more years of content doesn't make the prospect of 5 more years of content sound promising unless they were joking with the looks.
I am all for them being inclusive but I still can't help but think all that energy put into making sure there were flags for my lesbian sims to rep themselves and yet still all my sims, lesbians included, lack distinct personalities. Appearance over substance. That's the trend, and even though ROM looks good in the trailer I think that's still going to be the trend. And it's not even just about appearances as far as how the game looks either, but about how the team wants the game to be perceived which makes the good things they've done on behalf of inclusion and diversity feel a bit disingenuous because it's not something that they ever didn't do they just didn't make a that big a deal of it. Now it's a talking point to ride a wave of popularity, like they have to point out that they were into being cool before being cool was cool.
Them implementing certain features are logical to me considering this day and age, of course some of the improvements he listed were going to happen, but they lack a balance or evenness so to speak. All the focus seems to be on the (not so) new, inclusive play, making everyone feel accepted. They can pat themselves on the back for that, it's a good thing and they should feel good about it. But the other things that made The Sims games good in addition to inclusiveness have been put on the backburner or just set aside entirely instead of being improved as well. Heck, some of them didn't even come into The Sims 4 as good as they used to be and they happen to be the main problems that need to be addressed. Yeah, players can, for the most part, visually be whoever they want to be but depending on who it is we want to be in this game it's a struggle because poor personalities, because nonsensical emotions, because lack of options, because lack of depth. There are tons of more things they could do or add that they have and haven't done before to aide all players in telling their stories.
What’s more, lesbians may have their own flag in the game now, they’re not actually lesbians because they fancy anyone who’s willing throughout their lives. I prefer no flags and actual sexual preference in my game.
Honestly I think it's unlikely but not impossible. They've already stated that this game will go on for a couple more years and they seem to be more open to hear us as time goes by (providing things like terrain tools and plain white/black doors). I think they are aware of the problems with Sims 4 and they want us to enjoy de game (cause $$ with more DLC) so I think they will try to solve most of the issues we're pointing. Of course, if you're asking for open worlds or color wheels, I say give up, but I do believe they can do a personality overhaul, add cars and solve minor issues. At least I hope so.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
Exactly, 100 % agree. I thought the selling point of TS4 was the Emotions, as we were told we had never seen emotions like these...well, after five years of recycled 'tense' for just about anything new they add in a pack, I think I have seen enough of that 'emotion'. Some people never get tense but they never thought once of a trait that would magnify that. Any trait, any Sim becomes 'tense'...it's the go to emotion when they just want to recyle basegame emotions and not put in the work to understand human behaviour. And I can't agree more, is this a game about the Sim or a game to make Maxis feel good abou their causes and agendas.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
Exactly, 100 % agree. I thought the selling point of TS4 was the Emotions, as we were told we had never seen emotions like these...well, after five years of recycled 'tense' for just about anything new they add in a pack, I think I have seen enough of that 'emotion'. Some people never get tense but they never thought once of a trait that would magnify that. Any trait, any Sim becomes 'tense'...it's the go to emotion when they just want to recyle basegame emotions and not put in the work to understand human behaviour. And I can't agree more, is this a game about the Sim or a game to make Maxis feel good abou their causes and agendas.
I hope to never see emotions like these ever again too.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
Exactly, 100 % agree. I thought the selling point of TS4 was the Emotions, as we were told we had never seen emotions like these...well, after five years of recycled 'tense' for just about anything new they add in a pack, I think I have seen enough of that 'emotion'. Some people never get tense but they never thought once of a trait that would magnify that. Any trait, any Sim becomes 'tense'...it's the go to emotion when they just want to recyle basegame emotions and not put in the work to understand human behaviour. And I can't agree more, is this a game about the Sim or a game to make Maxis feel good abou their causes and agendas.
I hope to never see emotions like these ever again too.
As this game's lifespan trucks on, it becomes less and less likely that the emotions system and traits will be upgraded to work more believably. Still, I hold out a shred of hope that these things will be taken care of by 2021...Then it'll be 2025 with TS5 having the smiling animation for sims being a loot box add-on with a .2% drop rate, and we still won't have decent emotions and traits in TS4...
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
I completely agree. Excellent post. In the process of becoming a safe space where we can all learn and grow they have forgotten their roots. They have forgotten what made the Sims fun and now it’s a tool to use to escape your troubles and live a perfect life.
I never thought I would see a sims advert not actually showing off game play, just a bunch of young adults sitting on stools talking about their lives as a way of advertising the game.
I vaguely remember on one of the Guru topics on here from aaages ago (back when the Gurus would chat to us) the Guru saying they actually consulted with psychologists to ensure emotions were done realistically. The Guru explained it in that from the moment we get out of bed, as we go through out our day we go through many emotion changes. I’m paraphrasing of course but I’m pretty sure a Guru said it because even back then I remember thinking “That didn’t work out well then did it”
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
I swear you life would have been so boring if we were as dumb and dull as these sims in TS4.
I have many mods installed that fix the emotions systems for me. It's weird that maxis struggles so much with something that can be fixed by fans in their spare time.
I also have other mods installed that make things more interesting, like higher bills, lower pay, less 'happy' mood (more Fine), and some other things
I feel like, if it can be done in a mod, why can't it be done officially?
Of course. It is not ending any time soon so it is never too late. I mean the beginning of the year I didn't expect magic or an ocean world and we got both!
Bugs get fixed when they can and sometimes there are big patches that changes things. Emotions are fine, I just want a story progression and attraction system. Modders can do it, they can. So it is possible and as long it is possible and not ended, there is hope, especially if I keep asking.
Those who think Sims 4 has jumped the shark might be interested enough to check out Lee Williams on Twitter. An EA cloud gaming announcement and testers wanted for four games (not Sims though).
Those who think Sims 4 has jumped the shark might be interested enough to check out Lee Williams on Twitter. An EA cloud gaming announcement and testers wanted for four games (not Sims though).
as this will probably what you will get with a new iteration.
Ugh. That is all. (and honestly, I played multiplayer online back in 2000 without the need for cloud gaming on way slower connections than now. This is progress for progress's sake and honestly if TS5 goes this way, I'm not touching it)
The way things are going it very bad. So if things keep missing and not being added into the packs and get patch in later. Very bad when a art mod can do it better than the Sims art team can. It very bad sign for this game esp when they want to push out this game longer than other Sim franchise in its history. Sims 3 2.0 bug fest coming again. You have to turn off certain packs just for performance sake.
Us Simmers need to consider is the packs up to par. Measure them by quality they have and value. If a pack into a new bug for previous packs it not good pack.
Those who think Sims 4 has jumped the shark might be interested enough to check out Lee Williams on Twitter. An EA cloud gaming announcement and testers wanted for four games (not Sims though).
as this will probably what you will get with a new iteration.
Ugh. That is all. (and honestly, I played multiplayer online back in 2000 without the need for cloud gaming on way slower connections than now. This is progress for progress's sake and honestly if TS5 goes this way, I'm not touching it)
They are not after us. They are after the newer generations who will be quite used to cloud gaming if we have to wait another 4 or 5 years for the new games Maxis have apparently, started on. I expect there will be a single player version available if the player wants it.
Those who think Sims 4 has jumped the shark might be interested enough to check out Lee Williams on Twitter. An EA cloud gaming announcement and testers wanted for four games (not Sims though).
as this will probably what you will get with a new iteration.
Ugh. That is all. (and honestly, I played multiplayer online back in 2000 without the need for cloud gaming on way slower connections than now. This is progress for progress's sake and honestly if TS5 goes this way, I'm not touching it)
They are not after us. They are after the newer generations who will be quite used to cloud gaming if we have to wait another 4 or 5 years for the new games Maxis have apparently, started on. I expect there will be a single player version available if the player wants it.
That's fair, yeah. Doesn't make it any less annoying (and makes gaming, considering how much cloud gaming is pushing the socializing aspect, very kid-unfriendly which saddens me).
I think what I'm afraid of most is the possibility that there won't be a single-player option at all, at least not the way we know and love it.
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
I completely agree. Excellent post. In the process of becoming a safe space where we can all learn and grow they have forgotten their roots. They have forgotten what made the Sims fun and now it’s a tool to use to escape your troubles and live a perfect life.
I never thought I would see a sims advert not actually showing off game play, just a bunch of young adults sitting on stools talking about their lives as a way of advertising the game.
I vaguely remember on one of the Guru topics on here from aaages ago (back when the Gurus would chat to us) the Guru saying they actually consulted with psychologists to ensure emotions were done realistically. The Guru explained it in that from the moment we get out of bed, as we go through out our day we go through many emotion changes. I’m paraphrasing of course but I’m pretty sure a Guru said it because even back then I remember thinking “That didn’t work out well then did it”
Isn't that funny? I remember the exact opposite and I've been complaining about it ever since. Let me try to find my source, but I swear they said they didn't feel they needed to consult a behavioral psychologist because we all can see how people feel and react.
Comments
It is true that the tendency of moodlets to override and obliterate all else, can be unsettling. Going from the depths of grief to Happy and Energized while the Grief plays on in the background as a blue bar, but doesn't appear to affect them right then, is weird. Having an enraged husband of a cheating spouse go from Ranting to smiling and chatting at the table in an instant, while his outrage lives quietly on, but somehow suppressed enough that he can act the image of courtesy, is weird.
I do think a lot of what makes Sims4 characters so potentially tantalizing to me, is what is hidden from me, but I keep picking up on. I call it Hidden Architecture, but can only surmise its existence from noticing that some couples have chemistry and some don't, even if I make them do all the interactions to make a romance work...it will work superficially, and even their woohoo isn't as good. When the compatibility isn't there, they don't seek out each other's company in odd moments, or initiate romance, or much of anything, together.
Some Sims seem to have more initiative than others toward self-care. I actually had one that earned the No Excuse award for wetting himself in a lot with 5 toilets. He never did anything for himself, and I got tired of micromanaging him, so I deleted him, no regrets. Other Sims seem to vary in how quickly or effectively they respond to their own needs, or the needs of their babies (some will even respond to any baby, without prompting, and without being made to by selecting certain traits. I think those will make superb parents or nannies)
So, far less is up to us, and yes, moodlets and objects give us the ability to overcome a lot of things. That does flatten the game a bit. But I still love the surprises I keep running into with some Sims having such individual tendencies, that weren't made by me.
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https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Gender_preference
The initial purpose of the series as a game has been totally lost. Apparently, it's now in the hands of people who feel that they're saving the world, one DLC at a time. It's a tool for self-soothing.
The Sims series has officially jumped the shark.
The sad part is: if they want to provide a tool for introspection and analysis of self and others, they simply refuse to move beyond the superficial. A person's sexual preference, gender, and physical appearance do not determine who they are. It doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. If he wants to do what he says, more focus should be placed on delving deeper into personality, emotion, and actions vs consequences -- all thing that, IMO, TS4 fails to do.
EA needs to determine what the purpose of this program is and do the best job it possibly can at attaining that goal. Right, now it's not succeeding as a game or as a tool for whatever it is that guy says that he's trying to accomplish. I suggest as a first step, they hire behavioral psychologists to help add perspective and stop futzing about.
Superficial, superficial, superficial.
Exactly, 100 % agree. I thought the selling point of TS4 was the Emotions, as we were told we had never seen emotions like these...well, after five years of recycled 'tense' for just about anything new they add in a pack, I think I have seen enough of that 'emotion'. Some people never get tense but they never thought once of a trait that would magnify that. Any trait, any Sim becomes 'tense'...it's the go to emotion when they just want to recyle basegame emotions and not put in the work to understand human behaviour. And I can't agree more, is this a game about the Sim or a game to make Maxis feel good abou their causes and agendas.
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/958714/cinebar-custom-content-clothes-updating-links/p1
I hope to never see emotions like these ever again too.
This unfortunately appears to be so.
Seriously agree.
I completely agree. Excellent post. In the process of becoming a safe space where we can all learn and grow they have forgotten their roots. They have forgotten what made the Sims fun and now it’s a tool to use to escape your troubles and live a perfect life.
I never thought I would see a sims advert not actually showing off game play, just a bunch of young adults sitting on stools talking about their lives as a way of advertising the game.
I vaguely remember on one of the Guru topics on here from aaages ago (back when the Gurus would chat to us) the Guru saying they actually consulted with psychologists to ensure emotions were done realistically. The Guru explained it in that from the moment we get out of bed, as we go through out our day we go through many emotion changes. I’m paraphrasing of course but I’m pretty sure a Guru said it because even back then I remember thinking “That didn’t work out well then did it”
I swear you life would have been so boring if we were as dumb and dull as these sims in TS4.
I also have other mods installed that make things more interesting, like higher bills, lower pay, less 'happy' mood (more Fine), and some other things
I feel like, if it can be done in a mod, why can't it be done officially?
Bugs get fixed when they can and sometimes there are big patches that changes things. Emotions are fine, I just want a story progression and attraction system. Modders can do it, they can. So it is possible and as long it is possible and not ended, there is hope, especially if I keep asking.
Lets make this a reality!
and
as this will probably what you will get with a new iteration.
Ugh. That is all. (and honestly, I played multiplayer online back in 2000 without the need for cloud gaming on way slower connections than now. This is progress for progress's sake and honestly if TS5 goes this way, I'm not touching it)
Us Simmers need to consider is the packs up to par. Measure them by quality they have and value. If a pack into a new bug for previous packs it not good pack.
They are not after us. They are after the newer generations who will be quite used to cloud gaming if we have to wait another 4 or 5 years for the new games Maxis have apparently, started on. I expect there will be a single player version available if the player wants it.
That's fair, yeah. Doesn't make it any less annoying (and makes gaming, considering how much cloud gaming is pushing the socializing aspect, very kid-unfriendly which saddens me).
I think what I'm afraid of most is the possibility that there won't be a single-player option at all, at least not the way we know and love it.
Isn't that funny? I remember the exact opposite and I've been complaining about it ever since. Let me try to find my source, but I swear they said they didn't feel they needed to consult a behavioral psychologist because we all can see how people feel and react.