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Family players - Podcast review on TS4
Wylsey
Posts: 383 Member
Hey guys, Some of us from the family players thread recently decided to create a podcast to voice our opinions on TS4 and other ideas/concerns we had. Here is the end result, Of course this is only part 1 and there will be 3 more to come! 
We had a ton of fun creating it so hope you guys like it!
we thought that by hearing our voices as we explain our differences with the game, it would be easier and better understanding how players such as ourselves feel about the current issues at hand.
The Sims family friends - Part 1 <<-- direct link.
The Sims Family Friends - Part 2 <<-- direct link
We had a ton of fun creating it so hope you guys like it!we thought that by hearing our voices as we explain our differences with the game, it would be easier and better understanding how players such as ourselves feel about the current issues at hand.
The Sims family friends - Part 1 <<-- direct link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JOWrIDMOUwThe Sims Family Friends - Part 2 <<-- direct link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CschqpQxL44
Penguin Party is a group made to encourage the community to share their visions, hopes and dreams for The Sims series, We as a group hope to get your voices heard and spread as far and wide as possible.
Post edited by Wylsey on
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Comments
I agree with the ending, they really have stripped the game away from all players ...
Hoping that someone from EA listens to this.
Me too i hope they do as well. i hope the dev's would even be willing to listen to the podcast.
You guys did a great job of expressing a lot of the things we've been talking about on the family play thread and other threads. Also, the pictures were all amazing.
https://twitter.com/sparkfairy1
Can not wait to hear Part 2!!!!
kim
Abraham Lincoln
So far the only thing they have gotten right, as far as I am concerned - actually was in the game day one - and that was the return to rotational play - which for me was very important to my family play style and something I was very verbal about being taken from us in Sims 3. But all the important things - for me, first being the toddler, not the disconnect of the poof baby that poofs into a 10 year old. Total disconnect there. Add to that the fact it is an object baby - and not remotely like I feel a life simulation should deplict an infant. An infant needs to be cuddled and bonded with it's family. Family members need to play with the baby, cuddle the baby. Sibblings in real life always - always - always ask can I hold the baby? Not once has the sims given us that - and with an object baby there is no hope at all of this relatively simple matter of a parent placing the infant in the child's lap on a bed or a sofa. In fact no reaction to the newborn but the child sim running off crying about unhappiness at a new baby is not what i call good family play at all. Not all kids hate the fact there is a new baby. I had 3 kids - I know for the most part children are often quite happy they are now an older brother or sister and it is very important to build on the relationship between an older child and the new baby so they are thrilled.
But anyway - I just know the vision is apparently to make a very antisocial society from what I see. Like no emotion in an emotion based game as far as spousal cheating. No emotion more times than I can count when a death occurs. We had ghosts plugged in but no cemetaries. No proper grieving. They should be up to funerals now after all this is the 4th series of the Sims. Heck in this game if the sim wasn't in front of me when they die - even their urns disappear and the household quickly seems to forget that sim even existed. So yeah, they plugged the hole of missing ghosts - but only plopped them a spoonful of filling into the hole instead of filling the hole properly. Donot tell me the game is all about emotions and then have hardly any emotions for most of the sims when deaths happen. Death even gives humans stages of grief and there is absolutely not any stage of grief with the ghost pluggin.
During the conversation it was mentioned about the base games generally keep people amused for the 6 month wait for new eps and Sims 4 seems to have all agreement on the fact it really does not fill that bill at all. Even when we find times of amusement within the game it does not keep us wanting to come back for more. I often almost have to force myself to play it out of some obligation to the fact I spent 60 dollars on the game, 20 dollars on the gp and 10 more dollars buying the special addition stuff. So I really tried to use "stuff" to make it more attractive - but honestly it fails miserably for me - for one big fact over all of the ones mentioned the toddlers. As I generally spend the waiting time after the new series comes out playing a legacy - preferably several households in legacy style played rotationally. (Sims 3 did not allow that either - but it did allow for a single household legacy without too many issues). Well I cannot play my form of legacy which is based off of Pinstars original Sims 2 Legacy challenge - not without toddlers. I tried - and it just does not work. A whole stage of the sims life does not exist - so I cannot get immersed in playing a legacy or playing the sims 4 everyday like I did with Sims 2 and even with Sims 3. To me the hole left in my game is like a giant meteor landing right splat in the middle of my town leaving my sim paralyzed and unable to move forward. Even worse I don't care about them either. It is sad seeing I always care about my Sims - almost to the point they are like precious little pets to me - but that is just plain impossible in Sims 4. The attachment - the umbilical cord is severed and at this point I just don't care about them at all.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
In dreams - I LIVE!
In REALITY, I simply exist.....
My flavour of family play just doesn't exist, it's like a nuclear explosion took place in the sims universe-it's that devastating to me, and I know to many others.
We have another three episodes and intend to do some more, there is a lot to discuss and we will hopefully get new participants joining us as guests along the way. Sometimes it's easier to feel the real background to the points we talk about here if you hear the tone of voice and way we express ourselves. Forums are very 'dry' in you can't see the nuances of what we say through these added social clues.
I hope that people enjoy listening. We had so much fun recording it. We actually ran away with ourselves and had a three hour long chat on it all-and we were pretty much instantly comfortable with the situation even though it was so new and alien to us. @Wylsey actually had to type us a message to say 'hey you are at three hours guys' Oops
https://twitter.com/sparkfairy1
They REALLY need to tell us that vision they have because try as hard as I can - I can't find it. Apparently that vision is on a map somewhere they flung out of the car along the way - so now they are just winging it because if what is happening thus far was their big plan - I think it exploded in their faces. I don't know - maybe i am just blind - but if ever any game was so without direction - it is the Sims 4.
With all these free patches and giving back to the community by now in previous Sims games the players would be on cloud 9 - just full of joy and sharing - but instead I see less and less players coming to the forums and when they do post there is just no joy to be found... at least not like we had in the previous 3 Sims forums. Never before have we gotten so much after a game launch and for free - to still have so many unhappy customers. Well personally I think the dev team needs to have a big pow wow and either change their vision back to something the rest of us can see or at least give us an explanation so we can see it too.
I do look forward to hearing each one of the podcasts. You all are a delightful group of ladies and I found fascinating to listen to. I could see everything and fully associate with all that was said. Very good job on the editing it down as well.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
In dreams - I LIVE!
In REALITY, I simply exist.....
I am a rotational player at heart, but I'd rather play Sims 3 than Sims 4 (and I also play Sims 2) because even with better support for rotational play in Sims 4 as opposed to Sims 3) there is simply too much else missing or broken. And even the rotational play is flawed in many ways due to Sims randomly getting romantic relationships when you are playing another houses and the pregnancies still continuing when you are playing other houses (until I found a mod to stop that).
I think we are suffering from the ridiculous rush that sims 4 became. Now it's 'out there' it's harder to get the changes made for the developers and the first impressions and first six months have been terrible for public relations and the image of the sims4.
What's daft is at this point it will be costing them more to fix the issues than it would have to delay in the first place. And after Andrew Wilson promised no more unfinished games being released I have to ask myself why the sims wasn't the first on this policy of making sure it's created well and finished before release.
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/05/andrew-wilson-of-ea-we-never-want-to-be-worst-us-company-again
I genuinely believe it's a rescuable situation. And we certainly aren't afraid to invest in the sims series-simmers are amongst the most devoted gamers out there so roll your sleeves up EA and come up with a plan to turn it round. I'm sure many of us simmers would devote our precious time to help you in finding sensible ways to cater widely and would be more than happy to do so if it meant better for the sims.
Imagine the great press reception to that sort of strategy, let alone amongst the community? People would get excited again! It may take time to repair trust but it will come with acknowledgement and actions to show good faith EA
https://twitter.com/sparkfairy1
Those pics of sims 3 families ect makes me wish my sims 3 wasn't so darn glitchy. Even with that, I had some mighty nice families.......unfortunately I'd grow bored, though only playing one family. Doesn't help that I'm not overly fond of my sims marrying npcs so I tend to create their spouses if they don't come from one of my families already in the game. I really had issues doing even that with the rotational play not working properly.
Sims 4 does have rotational play back, thank our lucky stars, and while there are a few things to do with the kiddos.......missing a whole stage of childhood ruins it.
I loved the sims 2 toddlers interaction with the family pets. It was so adorable.
I am sure Andrew Wilson will eventually be a much better CEO than EA has seen in some time if they actually give him a good enough chance and not pull on his tethers so tight they take away what can make him eventually a great CEO. For one he was a former gamer - a game maker as well, and he is young and cares. He has history with EA and being on both sides of the gaming bandwagon from player to eventual game maker - to head of his department to head of the company he already loves. I see it as a win-win if he gets the chance. But no one can rebuild Rome in one day after the great fires - so it will take time and of course any change implemented has to meet the approval of all the investors, the Boards, the legal group - it is a work in progress. Most CEO's take about 4-5 years to really be the head of the company and to implement what they want it to become. He has ideas - and he shares them - something EA has not done the last 16 years. To me that is a start in the right direction. He had zero say in the Sims 4 - that game was totally in wrap mode by the time he got the CEO job. I think he handled it well to post they won't be sending out any more unfinished games... because he now has a hand in what is to come. So we cannot let anything to do with the Sims 4 be on his head. That would be very unfair in my view.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
In dreams - I LIVE!
In REALITY, I simply exist.....
When I saw his appointment I expected much better from EA because he sounded great, it's just at this point I'd like to see the 'player first' strategy in action. He can't turn back time no, but he certainly could make moves to address the situation and I'm sure with his personable attitude people would be happy to give them room to address the issues.
Everyone makes mistakes-and at this point unless they are living on Mars they must be aware of what the biggest issues are. Purely from a public relations and customer service stand point I find this prolonged situation without hearing anything worrying and quite disrespectful to me as a huge investor in the sims series for its entire life span. Everyone thinks differently, that's just my position.
https://twitter.com/sparkfairy1
I can see your point of course - i would just be very surprised though for him to address it seeing it did not happen on his watch b ut happened before he had the job. Guess we wait and see.
I do see his guidelines go into effect for the next rendition of the Sims though - as by then he will have his own policies in affect. Don't forget a CEO cannot change a company by himself no more than a USA President can change law - all they can do is implement changes they want to occur - and for the boards to vote in favor - then from there it takes the legal teams to make sure there are no loop holes or errors - so it is not ever an instant process.... It took almost 3 years after JR started with EA before he started getting policies set and changes made -
JR set up a lot of hard nosed barriers - believe me - and why it's like getting blood from a stone to get any info.... I suspect it will take as long for Andrew to add his own - and never mind even longer to change archaic or bad rules. Not much we can do about it - it is the way things work - painfully slow in the USA. Believe me - many of us in the US hate how long things take to change...
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
In dreams - I LIVE!
In REALITY, I simply exist.....
Oh I know, trust me
Really I just think we deserve better, and so does the sims. We've given so much to EA over the years and so has this series. I think it's a shame that this situation has been allowed to occur but most of all that it's been allowed to carry on in this fashion. It's painful to watch for anyone who loves the sims series.
https://twitter.com/sparkfairy1