- They should’ve done the eco living stuff pack that folks voted for without confusing them by introducing laundry.
- They should’ve branched out on the Off-The-Grid lot trait by including NEW objects, not just making certain objects no longer function.
- They should’ve included more ways to save energy and live with a smaller footprint in the Tiny Living Stuff Pack by including new combo/space saving objects.
They’ve had 3 chances (maybe more) to give us these true eco-living green things but they have chosen not to. I have to wonder why.
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You think so? Idk. I think I’d enjoy it. I guess you could consider it a gameplay challenge. The Rags to Riches is huge, so it kinda fits in with that.
Maybe they’re waiting to see how well the Tiny Living Stuff Pack does before they decide to go all in. At least that’s what I hope.
Bee keeping, Servo, juice keg, mini fridge, tiny home furniture "stuff", magic gnomes, grass roofs (I think that's what's in Island Living) off the grid lot trait... So I'd say we got way more than a stuff pack worth of the eco living stuff they had as options.
Nothing you listed is actual eco-living.
Obviously things like Servo, juice keg, mini fridge, magic gnomes are not really eco living but it goes to show how bad the poll was set up and why so many people voted for the eco living theme it really had so many random things tossed in vs such smaller themes like wedding dangerous and arcade nothing else stood a chance even though they were better.
On this we can agree.
I don't think we've got grass roofs in Island Living - we've got what are basically thatched roofs. A 'green roof' generally means that the roof is partially or entirely garden. (It's not on top of the roof in boxes, but actually part of it.) So, to have a green roof in the Sims, you'd need to tile a flat roof with soil or grass. I think we might be able to do that with one of the dirt tiles? It never occurred to me to try it. (The whole idea is that it keeps the building cooler and reduces reflective heat overall in a large city.)
In any case, I'd love to see them expand the options for off-the-grid and eco-living. It would also work for players who like to play Renaissance or medieval themes.
What does eco living mean to you?
I mean, the bees are, but aside from that, I completely agree.
That sounds like more of a gameplay feature than "stuff." So more of a gamepack, if anything.
How would eco living as a feature work in the game? How would it be different from the Conservationist career?
I'd like a more customised approach - for some people, living off-the-grid means cutting out the distractions and hubris of real life. For others, it simply means living in a way that best respects and conserves the environment. So, you might design your experience to be as self-sustainable as possible, living off the land, having no contact with the outside aside from perhaps a crank radio or occasional visit to the nearest town. Or it might be like some of my neighbours, who have added solar panels to their roofs, allowing them to live mostly off-the-grid in the middle of the city, but with all the amenities of modern life.
From a gameplay standpoint, I'd like to see more options - solar panels, bring pack the composting and recycling bins for a modern approach, as well as some truly non-electric items that would double for people who want to play Victorian or medieval houses. I love the concept of off-the-grid play, but I rarely use it because it's so limiting.
So, I had my Sim Miracle Growe give this a try, and you can 'pave' your roof with a grass tile, but there is no dirt tile that allows you to plant. (It's a terrain paint, not a tile that I was thinking of.) Even with MOO, you can't plant a harvestable on the roof without planters. However, you can tile it in grass and place outdoor plants on the roof. (I turned off MOO before I tried this, so I think it should work without MOO.)
Google 'green roof' and you'll find pictures of both ordinary houses and downtown skyscrapers with green roofs for your building inspiration.
Like it's not just that they most likely given very little time to actually implement it (because ea bad) but even if they didn't have time to make new items, they could have made this lot trait so much better. There aren't even any positive buffs. There could have been a buff every once in a while like, for happy buffs:"this sim feels good to know that they are making less of a carbon footprint" "it's nice to not have to pay bills and spend the money on other things" or for inspired idk like "this simplified life leaves more room for the ideas to flow" or focused: "without electronics taking up much of their mental headspace, they can focus on the important things"
And instead of making them tense literally every time they shower because bs uncleanliness reasons, the negative buffs could have been written in a way that made more sense. Like fine, I don't mind if there are negative buffs too, but how about a tense buff that SOMETIMES shows up like "this sim lost track of time in the shower and used more of their water supply than they planned to" and like there could be a new option on the woodstove to "add more wood" and it costs money to add wood, and there could be an amount to keep an eye on, and if they cook and it runs out the food isn't completely cooked, and that makes them uncomfortable.
Like...NONE of those things that I mentioned would require new objects, or new animations, none of it would be more complex to code than what they already have. It's just that the people who made it (or person? idk if it was multiple people or just one) seem to have no clue how any of it works at all. So the fact that the trait is...how it is...and that they let it be put into the game, tells me everything I need to know about how they prioritize that sort of stuff. So my hopes aren't high that that will change unless we really hound them to do so. Even then, who knows if they'll actually listen.
It doesn't mean giving up modern comforts.
It means choosing green energy rather than fossil fuels. It means shopping local when you can, rather than ordering online. It means eating local, rather than imported food. It means having a sustainably built home, naturally insulated, and designed to suit the environment in which it's located, requiring minimal heating or cooling.
Permaculture is a part of eco living, as it creates an ecosystem, unlike monoculture, which damages the soil.
Eco living can be small scale, as in living off grid, or larger scale, as in entire cities, with walkable neighbourhoods, rooftop gardens, cycle highways, large scale water recycling, community gardens, and green energy.
Water saving devices, composting toilets, solar panels, wind turbines, grey water sumps, etc, could all have been added as evo living objects.
I love your ideas for positive buffs related to "off-the-grid" and an eco-friendly lifestyle. They confirm in my mind that what the developers need to do is to continue to update this lot trait/ style of game play and add more green-friendly items and practices to the game as free updates. I think that they also perhaps intended that this trait mainly be used in Sulani (where I have indeed used it a lot and had a great deal of fun playing with it). However, on Sulani you can use the island barbecue pit for more variety in meals and the waterfall shower or shower in the rain to get rid of the uncomfortable buffs, so I agree there is no possible reason to use it anywhere else in the game's neighborhoods.
In my opinion, now the developers should overhaul the handiness skill, and permit it to allow sims to upgrade off-the-grid items. Allow sinks, toilets and showers to use recycled water and upgrade tubs to include water tanks and heating systems. Sims with high handiness should be able to dig wells and install rainwater collection and purification systems which would permit appliances to run more normally and permit sims to take baths and have showers with better water pressure etc. Lots with the off-the-grid trait should have water and energy meters so your sim can monitor how much water and energy are being used and take steps to replenish both if need be. Similarly, sims should be able to install solar panels and geothermal heating; sims should be able to upgrade the thermostat in order to connect these to central heating. On cloudy or rainy days there should be a noticeable drop in energy intake, (although rainy days would obviously be useful for water intake).
I agree that wood-burning stoves should actually burn wood and make use of the ovens. In fact, to use these ovens successfully (instead of burning everything they attempt to bake or roast), Sims should have both high handiness and high cooking. It is tricky to cook with no clear idea of temperature or with uneven heat distribution. Perhaps they (and other appliances) could even be upgraded so that they can draw upon another energy source to run more efficiently, or to add useable ovens and more recipes etc. Finally, in order to give us some new buffs, whims, socials and gameplay, an update should add a few new eco-friendly traits and an aspiration or two along these lines as well.
Thanks for the excellent suggestions, which inspired me very much (as you can see).