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Eco lifestyle: First EP I won't buy.

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CAF84CAF84 Posts: 113 Member
After playing The Sims when it first came out when I was a teen and spending most of my life playing this game, I reckon I might kick the habit of a lifetime and stop playing (not that I've played months as I'm so bored by the game).

The trailer they released today was the total opposite of why I used to love playing. The Sims used to be a game that was all about Sandbox play; it had its crazy, quirky, supernatural, fantastical elements, but it was so open-ended and so wide-ranging (with plenty for each age group to do) that you could turn your game into whatever you want. Whereas the Sims 4 seems to be just turning into a play-it-once set of tasks for young adults to do with incredibly prescriptive packs that don't actually open up a new game-changing feature that can seep into all of your worlds, or all play styles.

Not a single child, elder, teen, toddler seen in that trailer - or if they did, I blinked and missed them.

Once you've cleaned up that world (boring in my eyes, but I get others might like it), what then? How does this enrich and expand gameplay? How does this hold your attention beyond a few days? Are they going to give us tools that help us customise and edit all worlds? Are all worlds going to be dynamic now? Of course not, this is Sims 4.

I'm prepared to be proved wrong, in which case I may take another look, but right now, I am feeling pretty glum. Been checking back here for news of the next EP, hoping it might be something that could enrich sandbox style play for all age groups; but nope, a boring theme with more checklist prescriptive game play for young adults to work through once and then never to be played again.

Comments

  • king_of_simcity7king_of_simcity7 Posts: 25,102 Member
    Welcome the the other side of the fence.

    Your reasons are why I avoided TS4 to begin with.

    The lack of sandbox play has hindered the game since launch and from what I have seen every expansion seems to bring another disappointment.

    Come back to TS3 if you still have it. We are big on family play amongst pretty much every other type of gameplay :smile:
    Simbourne
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  • JinkxJinkx Posts: 62 Member
    don't get me wrong but when will they stop with the futuristic stuff? In de trailer I saw like a robot arm with a laser. ITS AN ECO PACK???

    i hate ea atm, they really f up the franchise.
  • Jordan061102Jordan061102 Posts: 3,918 Member
    Well, welcome to the club. It's the second one I skip.
    Lu4ERme.gif
  • candystormcandystorm Posts: 321 Member
    You said exactly what I was thinking. Very disappointed.
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  • mollyllopemollyllope Posts: 4 New Member
    I just dont understand adding pollution in one world, when this never existed before, just to remove it. What's the point? This could have been really interesting, but instead they made it this boring single story line.
  • skelebeeskelebee Posts: 101 Member
    As soon as I saw the title of the pack this morning, my heart dropped. What a disappointing turnout. It wouldn't be so bad if it was a silly little stuff pack, but an ENTIRE expansion pack? EA are so out-of-touch it's insane. This'll be the first EP I'm skipping.
  • KaronKaron Posts: 2,332 Member
    edited May 2020
    I don't think its a problem for them to add a storyline... AS A SIDE FEATURE. I haven't played this pack yet, but I'm afraid its going to be a lot of skills, eco friendly related objects and interactions that don't tie together in other ways besides being the same theme. SOudns a lot like a compilation of ideas to me. But things like the club system, the calendar, the seasons system, the hobbies system, the story progression system, the occult-tree system, all have replayability to me. I can play different types of occults, I'll always use the seasons, I'm always making clubs for my sims (as I play rotationally), its always cool to plan events and parties with the calendar, etc etc... Maybe they could've make an eco friendly EP more useful adding a whole new system... heck... maybe even the interests from sims 2 would make sense to this pack.
    If your sim is interested on flora, they would help the enviroment using plants.
    If your sim is interested on politics, they would hel the enviroment working in the politics.
    etc etc
    IDK... I'm afraid too, but I'm not angry like many people are. I think the simmer community as a whole suffer from anxiety and they want what they want here and now, I bet we still have a couple of years before Sims 5 to get more occults, hobbies, generations, farming, etc... Makes me so sad to see everyone turning in this toxic creatures. Even the half-baked packs like IL lacking scuba diving and other stuff doesn't give you allowance to be a malicious being. Its ok to gith for your rights without being mean and evil y'all. And I bet the devs listen to the good people and totally ignore the abusive ones, so... Your voice might not being heard cuz you don't deserve attention, no one wants to have a bad day cuz of a mean little creature. Be respectful.
  • KaronKaron Posts: 2,332 Member
    @Jinkx I made a post on ITF a couple of days ago, and now I understand why everyone is complaining that "we already have into the future in SIms 4" with all that futuristic things. Like, I'd rather have the sculpting table from SIms 3 Ambitions than this futuristic 3D printer, or an inventing station like the one from S3 Athan that inventing machine from the trailer... whatever it is... Having a whole into the future pack in SIms 4 wouldn't even make sense for me now. IDK why I made that post. I think I didn't realize before everyoen showed me the truth.
  • DalekFridayDalekFriday Posts: 31 Member
    When I read the full description on the website, I have the feeling that there will be no new gameplay at all; just a new career and this "pollution" story-telling (that might be interesting but that's not sexy for now).

    It's just like in Sulani when the beaches are cleaned... Well, butterflies and turtles, then back to booo-ring.
  • ListentoToppDoggListentoToppDogg Posts: 2,103 Member
    Agreed. Everything in this pack just looks like another Strangerville checklist. I wouldn't be surprised at all if the pack adds a new aspiration telling you exactly what you need to do to fix the Evergreen Harbor properly. And once everything is done and world is pretty again there will be nothing left to do.
  • cheescaekscheescaeks Posts: 902 Member
    it looks like a gamepack, which i will buy at the proper game pack price. so i'll be buying it, but its not worth double the asking price.
  • catloverplayercatloverplayer Posts: 93,362 Member
    edited May 2020
    Yes I agree this should have been a Gamepack. I ll still buy it but I would rather have gotten a Winter Destination Pack that added resorts.

    The hairstyles are nice and I'm hoping we can swim in that dam area with the waterfalls. I hope they atleast made the lakes swimmable.
  • Sk8rblazeSk8rblaze Posts: 7,570 Member
    This is actually the 3rd or 4th expansion pack I refuse to buy entirely myself. For the same reasons as you. This is not the same Sims game that we used to play.

    Mind you, I used to actually preorder packs during TS2/TS3 and happily play them once they were out. I bought the premium edition of TS4, and slowly went from purchasing packs full price, to half price, to not at all.

    The Sims 4 really killed my interest in this series, turning it into something it just isn’t. I vote with my wallet and I implore anyone else to do the same. Simply posting on the forums is not enough to get the message across.
  • Tay-way654Tay-way654 Posts: 50 Member
    The amount of packs I haven’t bought for the sims 4 compared to the sims 3 is astounding. I wondering if the developers are actually profiting more from sims 4 because all the packs seem to be consistently missing major features compared to sims 3. This ep is so far off from what the majority of people have wanted. Granted everyone wants different things, but all I have heard about lately is generations, farming or a supernatural pack... and the fact that we got this random nonsense.... Honestly is so disappoint because if this continues I can only imagine sims 5 will be the last sims game.
  • SheriSim57SheriSim57 Posts: 6,934 Member
    I was hoping for a pack with farm animals..... but, I’m really excited about this pack! I haven’t played much since Realm of magic came out. No witches hat, and I was hoping it would be more like making magic, and I really wanted witches! I wasn’t much interested in University, though I got it, but didn’t play it, at least not yet. But this, this I am interested in. I like the idea that you don’t have to clean up the city if you don’t want to..... I think I might leave it the way it is or clean it part way and then leave it. I’m into science fiction though, and this pack appeals to me. There seems to be at least a few hobbies you can make money from too. I may move my sim that I started off in another world with no money to this world ( I got bored before she got very far). Now I’m hoping they will bring out a farm animal game pack or farming expansion pack to go with this one.
  • keekee53keekee53 Posts: 4,328 Member
    IKR, OP!!! This is getting crazy. When did Sims turn into a quest based system?? What is up with this find out what is ailing strangerville, clean up the island and now clean up another world.

    How about cleaning up these sims personalities so they actually have one? How about adding an attraction system for more uniqueness? How about actually having these sims dance face to face??
  • keekee53keekee53 Posts: 4,328 Member
    SheriSim57 wrote: »
    I was hoping for a pack with farm animals..... but, I’m really excited about this pack! I haven’t played much since Realm of magic came out. No witches hat, and I was hoping it would be more like making magic, and I really wanted witches! I wasn’t much interested in University, though I got it, but didn’t play it, at least not yet. But this, this I am interested in. I like the idea that you don’t have to clean up the city if you don’t want to..... I think I might leave it the way it is or clean it part way and then leave it. I’m into science fiction though, and this pack appeals to me. There seems to be at least a few hobbies you can make money from too. I may move my sim that I started off in another world with no money to this world ( I got bored before she got very far). Now I’m hoping they will bring out a farm animal game pack or farming expansion pack to go with this one.

    The dirty city is its only redeeming feature for me. I will not clean it up. The crafts seem interesting so I will get for the game pack price of 20 dollars. Definitely not paying full price. I just don’t see the worth.
  • logionlogion Posts: 4,712 Member
    edited May 2020
    Never buying a pack or just waiting to buy a pack is a good thing, because that makes you look elsewhere and what other people are doing. I waited to buy Tiny Living and I ended up playing and enjoying a lot of other games instead.

    I know a lot of people prefer to just play the sims but I would definitely recommend other games that people make because they put down so much more effort into them compared to what maxis do with their packs.

    I'm not saying boycott the sims4, stop playing the game or stop watching people making videos about but give other games a chance as well. Games made by people who invest in developing their games and make new animations and gameplay mechanics.

    I find that to be a healthier mindset at least, it's easier to deal with the sims4 when you have other things to look forward to.

    If they are investing less time into making their packs, then I will invest less time in playing them, simple as that.
  • GrynnGrynn Posts: 260 Member
    edited May 2020
    Just something I got to say before going back to my retirement from this franchise:
    Tay-way654 wrote: »
    The amount of packs I haven’t bought for the sims 4 compared to the sims 3 is astounding. I wondering if the developers are actually profiting more from sims 4 because all the packs seem to be consistently missing major features compared to sims 3.

    Look at this

    They are profiting because they are putting in the lowest amount of investment possible.

    Literally everything they revealed up to now is a system that is already implemented in the game, there's almost nothing to code there, then they can outsource the graphical aspects to some cheap third-world country business which pays slave-wages to its workers.

    I highly doubt this pack took more than a week to be made.

    There will always be people that buy packs regardless of how mediocre they are, so they still profit.
  • BimleSimBimleSim Posts: 2,979 Member
    I'm with you on this. What really got me into Sims was the creative sandbox-style play. I'm sort of confused why they changed that. But in any case I jumped the ship on Sims 4 way before these packs, just because of the sims themselves lacking so much depth, and nothing so far has tempted me to come back, it's actually only scaring me further away.
  • aprilroseaprilrose Posts: 1,832 Member
    If I buy it'll be because it was half off or less.
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  • Placebo7Placebo7 Posts: 107 Member
    keekee53 wrote: »
    IKR, OP!!! This is getting crazy. When did Sims turn into a quest based system?? What is up with this find out what is ailing strangerville, clean up the island and now clean up another world.

    How about cleaning up these sims personalities so they actually have one? How about adding an attraction system for more uniqueness? How about actually having these sims dance face to face??

    You mean, you want EA to actually DO THINGS THAT WOULD IMPROVE THE GAME OVERALL??? That would require them to care about the game...so.

    You're right, though, the whole thing about the Sims was THERE WAS NO QUEST. It was a character-based game where characters were unique, acted uniquely, and actions had consequences. That was cool. Because everyone had DIFFERENT ideas, goals, and motivations. These "expansion packs" just tell you that everyone has to check the same boxes, want the same things.

    Why? What the heck happened to the cool and different game that was The Sims?
  • MortryddMortrydd Posts: 20 Member
    Im a builder by heart, I care very little about the typical family play (although maybe that is because their personalities are lacking, who knows. This is my first Simsgame after all).
    I didnt mind packs like Strangerville and Island Living because they came with so much good stuff! Island Living changed the way I build because of its amazing world, and the b&b from Strangerville was phenomenal for my buildstyle.

    I have always been excited about an environmental (stuff)pack as I adore solarpanels, composting and rainwater tanks.
    However, this pack is just not it (from what I have seen so far). It seems to me as if the world will be polluted until you change it by gameplay, and how fun apocalyptic builds may be, I wont make more than two before Ill be bored. And though the b&b so far looks kinda cool? I haven’t seen things that will improve my builds (or the range of builds I can make).

    I’ll probably buy it in sale or whatever. The knitting pack also doesnt excite me, still hoping for Farming, American Highschools and more European worlds (and Asian, and African, and South-American).
  • keekee53keekee53 Posts: 4,328 Member
    Placebo7 wrote: »
    keekee53 wrote: »
    IKR, OP!!! This is getting crazy. When did Sims turn into a quest based system?? What is up with this find out what is ailing strangerville, clean up the island and now clean up another world.

    How about cleaning up these sims personalities so they actually have one? How about adding an attraction system for more uniqueness? How about actually having these sims dance face to face??

    You mean, you want EA to actually DO THINGS THAT WOULD IMPROVE THE GAME OVERALL??? That would require them to care about the game...so.

    You're right, though, the whole thing about the Sims was THERE WAS NO QUEST. It was a character-based game where characters were unique, acted uniquely, and actions had consequences. That was cool. Because everyone had DIFFERENT ideas, goals, and motivations. These "expansion packs" just tell you that everyone has to check the same boxes, want the same things.

    Why? What the heck happened to the cool and different game that was The Sims?

    LOL I’m convinced it died. This new direction is terrible. There are plenty of quest based games out there. Sims used to be some unique. If I want to play a quest base game where I am the “hero” saving the world cough cough town lol I will go play mass effect, assassins creed, Witcher...definitely not the sims.
  • ScobreScobre Posts: 20,665 Member
    I really hope that there is gameplay for all ages too. CAS and gameplay wise has been super focused on Teen-Adult.
    “Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” –Helen Keller
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