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Cars?
Ivyeyed
Posts: 358 Member
Been thinking about cars lately. They're pretty low on my list of priorities, but I know lots of people want them. And I always hope people can get the things they'd want.
Just been thinking about the logistics of implementing them in game.
There are, as I see it, two big problems.
The first is just that you'd need to build a new set of build mode and terrain tools. Lots aren't consistently placed enough for a uniform driveway object to work. And, more than that, the people who seem to want cars most are often those interested in build mode, and current builds often feature different kinds of driveway - winding or short, curved, elevated, etc. They'd need to make a tool that makes those actually driveable terrain, and allows for the manipulation of that terrain.
The second, and much bigger one, is where the cars are going to go. I don't mean "but loading screens!" - I played the Sims 2. I know the car can just pull out of the driveway and disappear and then you get your loading screen (and, potentially, the car parked at the new lot? - though then the game has to keep track of where the car is AND we need to find "parking" for all or most lots) - I mean when the car pulls out of the buildable lot, where does it go?
In some residential lots, this is obvious. There's a road. It goes to the road. Whatever driveway tool you make would have to make a ramp in the sidewalk just past the driveway area (that, also, seems like a lot of work, but at least there's a ROAD), but a lot of the residential lots are landlocked, with no nearby roads.
The most obvious example is all the island in Windenburg. Being an island (that your sims presumably travel to by boat), it has no roads. But there's also at least one lot (I think more? I'd have to check) in Brindleton Bay that doesn't have any direct street access. (There's a little gathering of cars beneath suggesting, I think, that the neighborhood shares a little parking area, but that's not gonna help for Car Gameplay). And I'm not going to check right now, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are more.
So not only would you have to edit the boundary world just outside of all lots with road access to make it interact with the lot somehow to create driveable driveways, but on some lots - what, you just can't have cars if you live there? Or?
Knowing what we can expect realistically, I feel like if we ever did get cars, either
They would not be driveable/have driveable driveways. Best case scenario, you click on the car and click travel, and it takes you to the loading screen, likely with no animation of the sims even getting in the car, and certainly no animation of the car actually moving.
OR
They would only be playable on select residential lots, with pre-selected points of entry and exit for each lot (sorry builders, but the alternative sounds like too much work to implement at this point. If they'd planned for it from the beginning, maybe!). They would then disappear at arrival (where's the car parked? We'll never know). Maybe these lots are even only in a new world built with cars in mind, with no real plans to add them to base game.
I know this won't deter people from wanting cars. Even if they're just things to work on your handiness skill (or a new Mechanic skill) and customize and such, they're an integral part of many regular people's lives, and some people really want that in the game. But I think either we'd get no driving animations or we can't have them on all or even most existing lots.
And they sound like a lot of work for limited return.
Just been thinking about the logistics of implementing them in game.
There are, as I see it, two big problems.
The first is just that you'd need to build a new set of build mode and terrain tools. Lots aren't consistently placed enough for a uniform driveway object to work. And, more than that, the people who seem to want cars most are often those interested in build mode, and current builds often feature different kinds of driveway - winding or short, curved, elevated, etc. They'd need to make a tool that makes those actually driveable terrain, and allows for the manipulation of that terrain.
The second, and much bigger one, is where the cars are going to go. I don't mean "but loading screens!" - I played the Sims 2. I know the car can just pull out of the driveway and disappear and then you get your loading screen (and, potentially, the car parked at the new lot? - though then the game has to keep track of where the car is AND we need to find "parking" for all or most lots) - I mean when the car pulls out of the buildable lot, where does it go?
In some residential lots, this is obvious. There's a road. It goes to the road. Whatever driveway tool you make would have to make a ramp in the sidewalk just past the driveway area (that, also, seems like a lot of work, but at least there's a ROAD), but a lot of the residential lots are landlocked, with no nearby roads.
The most obvious example is all the island in Windenburg. Being an island (that your sims presumably travel to by boat), it has no roads. But there's also at least one lot (I think more? I'd have to check) in Brindleton Bay that doesn't have any direct street access. (There's a little gathering of cars beneath suggesting, I think, that the neighborhood shares a little parking area, but that's not gonna help for Car Gameplay). And I'm not going to check right now, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are more.
So not only would you have to edit the boundary world just outside of all lots with road access to make it interact with the lot somehow to create driveable driveways, but on some lots - what, you just can't have cars if you live there? Or?
Knowing what we can expect realistically, I feel like if we ever did get cars, either
They would not be driveable/have driveable driveways. Best case scenario, you click on the car and click travel, and it takes you to the loading screen, likely with no animation of the sims even getting in the car, and certainly no animation of the car actually moving.
OR
They would only be playable on select residential lots, with pre-selected points of entry and exit for each lot (sorry builders, but the alternative sounds like too much work to implement at this point. If they'd planned for it from the beginning, maybe!). They would then disappear at arrival (where's the car parked? We'll never know). Maybe these lots are even only in a new world built with cars in mind, with no real plans to add them to base game.
I know this won't deter people from wanting cars. Even if they're just things to work on your handiness skill (or a new Mechanic skill) and customize and such, they're an integral part of many regular people's lives, and some people really want that in the game. But I think either we'd get no driving animations or we can't have them on all or even most existing lots.
And they sound like a lot of work for limited return.
Sometimes I stream.
This EA account is shared between two longtime roommates. The one most likely to be writing here is me, the taller of the roommates, whose opinions do not always represent the opinions of the shorter roommate.
This EA account is shared between two longtime roommates. The one most likely to be writing here is me, the taller of the roommates, whose opinions do not always represent the opinions of the shorter roommate.
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Comments
They could also give us stationary cars/motorcycles that your sims cannot drive, but can work on, upgrade, give a new paint job, show-off, cry in, listen to music in, ect.
As far as transportation objects go, I'm personally hoping for bikes, skateboards, and scooters for all ages to earn fitness/movement skill, and to exit a neighborhood (like instead of walking to the edge of a neighborhood and hitting a load screen, you could bike there). This would also be good for places like San Myshuno, which doesn't have roads in playable areas. You could just keep them in inventory or a bike rack object, and the neighborhood terrain doesn't have to be changed, even if you don't want sims to just appear on the road or sidewalk on their bike/skateboard/ect.
It's very easy. If the lot has a road next to it, you can place a car, if it doesn't you can't. Same with the boats. No water, no boats can be placed.
When we do get to a second location, the car can stay in the person’s inventory OR it can automatically appear onto that 5x5 driveway square if there is one.
I think it’s entirely possible, probable, and would be an awesome touch to add - I hope they do it sooner rather than later!
They can add parking lots for us to put in community lots and we'd be able to see sims parking there if they have a car in their inventory.
Yep
but we could at least have helicopter pick up our sims for level 10 jobs
since I mean if we can have alien abduction and rocketships shouldn't that be possible just as easily?
the cars themselves could work similar to boats +rocketships
meaning you can build them, upgrade them, sit in them, woohoo in them, drive them in routed areas and store them wherever on your lot
id also really love one car optimized world where driving would really make sense for this purpose
and oasis springs could be updated too since I don't see why not
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They don't have to update the worlds, just have them work like the rocket ships where you can place them on a parking lot. You could add stuff like a car mechanic skill where you could upgrade and tune your car and you could have a world where you could race with other sims. You could have different car races for different types of car, you could have races for simple older cars and then more expensive high-end sport cars.
I mean, the boats in sulani don't serve much of a purpose in other worlds either so I don't see why they can't have a car world added to the game.
It’s not easy that they wanna animate cars pulling out of the driveway (like how it was in TS2). In TS2, all lots are immediately next to a straight road so it was very easy to animate it. In TS4 though, the roads vary a lot depending on the lot. For some lots you got fences between the road and the lot that are blocking the way. For some lots the road is curved. Sometimes the road and the lot are of different terrain heights. It’s just way more complicated than TS2.
It wouldn’t be hard if it worked like TS3 (i.e. cars just teleport to the road).
tbh lowkey funny because im not planning to have one irl and here i am asking one for my sims
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Haha sure it's always different in real life. I love fishing and gardening in The Sims, it's clearly not the case in real life. ^^
They can still animate sims parking, inside the lot, in the parking lot, or coming out of the garage with the car and then disappear into the loading screen. They don't necessarily have to come from and into the road, into the lot. Because yes, that would not be feasible in TS4, we have to be realistic and work with what we got.
Ikr wth
Since Maxis created boats I think that set the stage for cars. I'm sure they ll find a way. I just hope more then 1 sim can ride in cars vs only 1 sim per boat.
They can make a combination of the Sims 2 and the Sims 3 cars easily. They can give us the animations for opening the doors, getting in, listen to radio, woohoo etc. on the driveway, but as soon as Sims want to ''drive away'' the car teleports onto the road and drives off. (If it makes sense in the world where they are in. I.e. in Windenburg there are parts where it's pedestrian only, so they wouldn't drive off, but just teleport away.)
This pretty much solves the ''not attached to a road'' problem.
And when Sims are arriving at their destination, they can either have a new parking lot object where cars automatically pop onto, or they can just ''put them in their inventory'' and when they are going back home again, or to a different lot, they can just pop it out and go. Not the most 'realistic' way, but well, it is the Sims 4 we are talking about.
I would say it's likely we're going to get cars by Late Fiscal 2020.
But besides just cars I would want transportation in general. Community busses that come every ingame 30 minutes, bikes, scooters, skate boards, the ability to rollerblade anywhere with Seasons, these forms of transport would be a lot more practical in Sims 4 worlds.
Don't forget about motorcycles. I want those back as well.
YES motorcycles are very much important and needed even if only for my gasoline row build (i literally had to use aqua zips for it and it looks so off)
cant see why we couldn't have motorcycle racing at least and building motorcycles for it it be so cool
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On the home lot, cars could be worked on and fixed as a new skilling object, be used by teens for parking and making out (with radios playing etc), and serve as a new woohoo spot for adults. Teens would still have to learn to drive to access a car but this would likely be a rabbit hole with chance cards — it could still be done well. It could require some skill and a focussed mood or there could be consequences (like with the rocket ship crash).
For drivers, cars could trigger loading screens (once Sims were inside) but much faster than the phone does, which usually requires a sim to walk to a departure point. However, unlike with the elevators in City Living, I see no reason why they couldn’t (as was done in TS2) animate sims getting in the car together, visibly starting the engine, doing a shoulder check and backing up, at least a little, before the loading screen kicks in. Upon arrival, if there is no parking space object available, the car just goes in the driver’s inventory like in TS3 (and it never gets left behind, unlike in TS3).
I love the idea bikes and skateboards — yes please, along with scooters, motorbikes and mopeds.
That would never be an expansion. Gamepack, maybe.