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Social Seniors Pack idea
DaWaterRat
Posts: 3,355 Member
Okay, so people want “something for elders to do” and an elder’s pack. I’m still of the opinion that elders can do everything YA+ can do and it’s believable, but I thought I’d put my mind to what I’d want in this hypothetical elder’s pack. For the most part, this is based on the actual activities and such posted in my town’s monthly magazine as things for seniors to do in our community.
So I present my ideas for an elder's pack, focusing on a Community Center venue lot type. Now, I have no idea how feasible this is. Also it recycles a lot of existing gameplay, but I don’t really care that much. It’s also complicated enough that it would probably be a game pack.
On the Community center lot, Elders would gain social significantly faster, and fun faster as well. (An argument can be made that teens would loose fun faster, but let's not play into stereotypes more than we have to.) When building it, the suggested items would include card tables; easels; chess tables; flower arranging tables (if you have seasons); yoga mats, including instructor mats (if you have spa day); a new shorter easel type that allows for a dining or desk chair to be slotted to it, but only allows small or medium paintings; a puzzle table that increases logic (and recycles the small and medium painting images for the puzzles); and a Tai Chi mat (allowing a small gain to fitness while helping reduce weight slightly – and with no chance of overexertion. The animations could be new, or if there’s not enough budget for that, the defensive moves from the Sparing animation could be re-purposed and played at a slower rate.)
With this pack, your elder sims could take classes similar to DU’s “Attend a skill class” option, but cheaper. However, the skill gain would be significantly less. Instead the elder’s fun and social bars would be filled (baring a chance card ruining the evening). Younger sims could take the classes, but they’d be more expensive (elders are on reduced income, after all) and they wouldn’t get as great an increase to fun and social (though still some. Could also add a chance of some bored, tense, or embarrassed moodlets from the class being too slow, elders asking nosy questions, etc. Ideally there would be an option for "parent and tot" classes for one adult and a toddler as well that would raise one of the toddler's skills, but I'm trying to focus on elders here.)
The other thing this pack would add would be weekend trips to places, where the elder sim would come back with some souvenirs of a place (sweatshirts, hats, pictures, and/or clutter.) If you have vacation world packs installed, those worlds would be included as options (maybe Sulani as well, but that’s not designed as a vacation world.) These trips would be rabbit holes, more or less getting the elder sim out of the house for a couple of days while the player could then focus on other sims in the household. There would be a new set of interactions available, such as “Enjoy the sights” (raises fun) and “make friends” (raises social) while your elder was away on their trip. These trips would be cheaper than renting a mid-sized vacation house for a day and they’d be elder only.
But the key thing that makes a Community Center a Community Center is the Multi-Purpose room. This would be a 10x10 (or 8x12, but it has to be large) block that would have to be placed next to a wall where it could generate a double door. For programming reasons, the door probably would have to be in a set location, either the middle or end of the wall, and changed with swatches for the room.
Now, this seems like a huge dead space, and yeah, it is. Most of the time. On most days, the Multipurpose room would serve as another way to “attend a class” Click on the door, choose the class from the interaction wheel, and the sim is in a rabbit hole for an hour or two.
However, one or two nights a week, the room would be accessible. Because it would be a social event night. On those nights, the room would generate kiosks, items and tables similar to the campus events and city festivals, except that you’d have Bingo night, maybe Casino night (not sure if that’s something they can include in a teen game) Club night, where it’s basically a nightclub venue but with big band music… or similar events that would rotate through.
With Seasons installed, it could also generate event rooms for certain holidays (not quite sure how… maybe based on a specific tradition being included, such as decoration or grand meal) that would allow many of the traditions to be filled. Or at least Grand meal and anything requiring a TV or being social.
As for CAS assets – female hair would mostly be short or updos, male hair would include a couple of different balding patterns, and maybe something wispy and mostly bald – not sure how well that would work in maxis style. Clothing would be modest, and suited to an elder’s body type. I personally would prefer mostly somewhat timeless looks, but there’s some room for the 50’s grandpa (and grandma) stereotypical clothing in there. Oh, and liver spots would be a thing we could add.
So I present my ideas for an elder's pack, focusing on a Community Center venue lot type. Now, I have no idea how feasible this is. Also it recycles a lot of existing gameplay, but I don’t really care that much. It’s also complicated enough that it would probably be a game pack.
On the Community center lot, Elders would gain social significantly faster, and fun faster as well. (An argument can be made that teens would loose fun faster, but let's not play into stereotypes more than we have to.) When building it, the suggested items would include card tables; easels; chess tables; flower arranging tables (if you have seasons); yoga mats, including instructor mats (if you have spa day); a new shorter easel type that allows for a dining or desk chair to be slotted to it, but only allows small or medium paintings; a puzzle table that increases logic (and recycles the small and medium painting images for the puzzles); and a Tai Chi mat (allowing a small gain to fitness while helping reduce weight slightly – and with no chance of overexertion. The animations could be new, or if there’s not enough budget for that, the defensive moves from the Sparing animation could be re-purposed and played at a slower rate.)
With this pack, your elder sims could take classes similar to DU’s “Attend a skill class” option, but cheaper. However, the skill gain would be significantly less. Instead the elder’s fun and social bars would be filled (baring a chance card ruining the evening). Younger sims could take the classes, but they’d be more expensive (elders are on reduced income, after all) and they wouldn’t get as great an increase to fun and social (though still some. Could also add a chance of some bored, tense, or embarrassed moodlets from the class being too slow, elders asking nosy questions, etc. Ideally there would be an option for "parent and tot" classes for one adult and a toddler as well that would raise one of the toddler's skills, but I'm trying to focus on elders here.)
The other thing this pack would add would be weekend trips to places, where the elder sim would come back with some souvenirs of a place (sweatshirts, hats, pictures, and/or clutter.) If you have vacation world packs installed, those worlds would be included as options (maybe Sulani as well, but that’s not designed as a vacation world.) These trips would be rabbit holes, more or less getting the elder sim out of the house for a couple of days while the player could then focus on other sims in the household. There would be a new set of interactions available, such as “Enjoy the sights” (raises fun) and “make friends” (raises social) while your elder was away on their trip. These trips would be cheaper than renting a mid-sized vacation house for a day and they’d be elder only.
But the key thing that makes a Community Center a Community Center is the Multi-Purpose room. This would be a 10x10 (or 8x12, but it has to be large) block that would have to be placed next to a wall where it could generate a double door. For programming reasons, the door probably would have to be in a set location, either the middle or end of the wall, and changed with swatches for the room.
Now, this seems like a huge dead space, and yeah, it is. Most of the time. On most days, the Multipurpose room would serve as another way to “attend a class” Click on the door, choose the class from the interaction wheel, and the sim is in a rabbit hole for an hour or two.
However, one or two nights a week, the room would be accessible. Because it would be a social event night. On those nights, the room would generate kiosks, items and tables similar to the campus events and city festivals, except that you’d have Bingo night, maybe Casino night (not sure if that’s something they can include in a teen game) Club night, where it’s basically a nightclub venue but with big band music… or similar events that would rotate through.
With Seasons installed, it could also generate event rooms for certain holidays (not quite sure how… maybe based on a specific tradition being included, such as decoration or grand meal) that would allow many of the traditions to be filled. Or at least Grand meal and anything requiring a TV or being social.
As for CAS assets – female hair would mostly be short or updos, male hair would include a couple of different balding patterns, and maybe something wispy and mostly bald – not sure how well that would work in maxis style. Clothing would be modest, and suited to an elder’s body type. I personally would prefer mostly somewhat timeless looks, but there’s some room for the 50’s grandpa (and grandma) stereotypical clothing in there. Oh, and liver spots would be a thing we could add.
6
Comments
As you mentioned elders can already do everything the younger life stages can do but your stereotyping all elders as youthful healthy young people when the reality is that is not the case and its okay for people to what to play that too.
For example, I do like your idea of weekend trips and games like bingo. Those are things I personally associate with elders, especially the weekend trips since my godmother goes on random holiday trips and bring my sister and I souvenirs back all the time. I'd love things like that.
But a lifetime of fire and rescue work broke my back a bit too much for that these days.
I still do all the other stuff I always have though. Stupid ageist kiddies, just wait until you Get Old!
Hadehar.
LMAO you gotta drag those bad boys up manually
Perhaps, maybe it would be really cool if there was a mini world that was a retirement community. It would have all of the events and you describe, but elders could be moved in there and live together in the apartments. Obviously there are some elderly that wouldn’t want to live there, but I could see the Gurus adding buffs and making the world an enticing place for elderly to go- especially for narratively driven simmers- i.e. an elderly widow going to the retirement community and finding love again, an elder abandoned by their family who finds their chosen family at the facility, etc.
Sims who have parenthood can show up their physically when they volunteer. Elders can be seen in the neighborhoods going to museums and admiring the art together, there would be a theater lot- either a rabbit hole or something- where elders can watch theater shows put on by the High School drama club, Sims in the entertainment career, comedians, or local drama troupes. Bars will have senior night discounts.
NOT HOW DO WE GET THIS IS THE GAME??😃 ANYBODY???😆
A Senior is a 65-79 years old, who may or may not be retired. They usually don't bend over & chew their own gums. They are usually mostly as active as a Middle Ager. The only exception is if they are sick or disabled.
An Elder is an 80-100 years old or more. They usually are slowing down & don't realise that their bodies are preparing for death. They will evenually become more forgetful.
This sounds pretty good.
I'm really liking these ideas.
In ts3 there was a chance of your adult+ sims winning a rabbit hole night away, your suggestion is similar. It's a good idea.
I'm not too sure about this part of the idea.
Perhaps it might be better if the room spawns all the activities and classes, in a similar way to how the festivals and food vendors spawn.
There could be a player controlled element to it, similar to how holidays can be controlled.
The room could have 3 slots per day, morning, afternoon, and evening.
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings might be classes, Thursday might be bingo night, Friday night might be card and board games night, and Saturday could be the Saturday night social, with partnered dancing, whether it be a swaying shuffle, a saucy tango, or an energetic swing
I have loads of ideas for the styles of clothing I'd like to see for elders
Now, with the Community Lot style from Eco Lifestyle, I think a variation of that - where the different types cycle through, rather than being chosen by vote - would be a better way to represent the multi-purpose room.
me to and bingo and grandma's soup for when your sims are sick