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Activities for children?
Haids5987
Posts: 8,465 Member
I would love to see more activities unlocked for child Sims. The child stage is my least favorite because I feel like it's so limited--there are only 4 big goals they can accomplish, which is boring and tiresome for me once I have done them all. Some of the existing activities that teens-elders can do would even be perfect for those little guys!
A few ideas for activities:
-Baking! Not necessarily cooking, but one of my favorite memories from my own early childhood is standing on a chair in the kitchen helping Mom bake cookies. How cute would that be for a sweet little moment?
-Why can't children work in the garden? I understand not using the bug spray (for the sake of realism), but why not give them the ability to weed and water the plants? Even harvest them?
-Learning to swim/play games in the pool. Again, I'm imagining the animations and they would be adorable! And I remember being able to play Marco Polo in TS2 (Or rather, "Timla!" "Tourneau!!"
), that would be such a fun activity for all ages!
-Painting at the easel, or perhaps have a child's easel. I've mentioned before that I think that activity table looks too juvenile when you're trying to show preteen child, so a special easel for kids would be perfect.
Kids have so much untapped potential in this game! I do use poses and animations in-game, but having them readily available is so much more convenient.
EDIT: Wow, some of these replies are fantastic! I'm glad I'm not the only one who misses certain interactions. Thanks for the insight, you guys! I love this comment by @GrumpyGlowfish:
"I don't get why children need to have their own separate skills in the first place. When I was a kid, my hobbies included writing stories, painting/drawing, videogaming and playing the piano, all of which perfectly translate to adult skills in TS4, and I didn't just forget what I had learned when I grew up.
Of course, there are some objects which would be difficult for child sims to use, such as the treadmill and other sport equipment clearly designed for taller people, but there are other ways for children to gain fitness. I'm okay with them not being able to cook their own meals like professionals, or the parenting skill only unlocking when they're older, and imagining a child doing those weird yoga positions or becoming an expert massage therapist also feels a little unrealistic to me, but everything else should be available to them.
Why can't the child's personality and aspiration determine which skills they can and can't learn? Or just make their learning process for skills that don't match their traits much slower. That would be a way to realistically limit their experience, so they can't become an expert on everything before they grow up, but still don't feel as exclusive as they do now. For example, creative kids have a much easier time with musical instruments, writing, and painting, whereas their more extroverted friends gain social skills faster, and advanced stuff such as programming and rocket science is reserved for the brightest of them all.
Just do away with those child-specific skills, we already have that for toddlers, and there it actually makes sense."
A few ideas for activities:
-Baking! Not necessarily cooking, but one of my favorite memories from my own early childhood is standing on a chair in the kitchen helping Mom bake cookies. How cute would that be for a sweet little moment?
-Why can't children work in the garden? I understand not using the bug spray (for the sake of realism), but why not give them the ability to weed and water the plants? Even harvest them?
-Learning to swim/play games in the pool. Again, I'm imagining the animations and they would be adorable! And I remember being able to play Marco Polo in TS2 (Or rather, "Timla!" "Tourneau!!"
), that would be such a fun activity for all ages!-Painting at the easel, or perhaps have a child's easel. I've mentioned before that I think that activity table looks too juvenile when you're trying to show preteen child, so a special easel for kids would be perfect.
Kids have so much untapped potential in this game! I do use poses and animations in-game, but having them readily available is so much more convenient.
EDIT: Wow, some of these replies are fantastic! I'm glad I'm not the only one who misses certain interactions. Thanks for the insight, you guys! I love this comment by @GrumpyGlowfish:
"I don't get why children need to have their own separate skills in the first place. When I was a kid, my hobbies included writing stories, painting/drawing, videogaming and playing the piano, all of which perfectly translate to adult skills in TS4, and I didn't just forget what I had learned when I grew up.
Of course, there are some objects which would be difficult for child sims to use, such as the treadmill and other sport equipment clearly designed for taller people, but there are other ways for children to gain fitness. I'm okay with them not being able to cook their own meals like professionals, or the parenting skill only unlocking when they're older, and imagining a child doing those weird yoga positions or becoming an expert massage therapist also feels a little unrealistic to me, but everything else should be available to them.
Why can't the child's personality and aspiration determine which skills they can and can't learn? Or just make their learning process for skills that don't match their traits much slower. That would be a way to realistically limit their experience, so they can't become an expert on everything before they grow up, but still don't feel as exclusive as they do now. For example, creative kids have a much easier time with musical instruments, writing, and painting, whereas their more extroverted friends gain social skills faster, and advanced stuff such as programming and rocket science is reserved for the brightest of them all.
Just do away with those child-specific skills, we already have that for toddlers, and there it actually makes sense."
**Also known as EmeraldCityTaurus***
Post edited by Haids5987 on
7
Comments
if you have a sim with fitness skill, you can get them to learn swimming
I love in previous games how they can hold tea parties and dress up in costumes, they can play on the couch and jump on their beds. They just acted a lot more child like which I appreciate not everyone likes.
I totally agree about them not being able to help in the garden. It’s one of my earliest memories is helping my dad in our garden when I was little and i can’t understand can’t do it.
Right!! This!! There is so much that kids should be able to do, it makes no sense. Back in the TS1 days kids could do everything except pay bills, which was nice. And gardens take so much more than just watering now, it would be nice to have a helper who doesn't need to be a teen or above!
I hate the child skills for that reason. Very frustrating to watch your child sim play the piano beautifully at level 10 creative skill (or whatever it's called) to have them have to restart at level one piano skill where they sound like a toddler walking over the keys.
The "reward" isn't worth it. It's just another grind system.
you don't have to start at level 1 as a teen you can unlock the piano skill for children after the creativity skill is mastered.
I know. But regardless of when it's unlocked your sim starts again at level one and goes from sounding good on an instrument to sounding terrible like they have never played the instrument before in their lives.
There apperently must be something wrong with your game then.
On three different pcs ? I don't think so.
That's how the game is designed. The child gets better at an instrument as they build their creative skill. As soon as that's mastered and the child goes back to the instrument you get a pop up saying the child has reached level one of instrument skill and they are playing said instrument like they have never played it before in their lives.
I think we have crossed wires. How did your sims sound when she was level one piano skill? That's the point. I'm not saying that when they age to teens if they were a level 6 they will no longer be a level 6, you are right they will. The point I'm making is by time they get to level 10 the child will sound quite good on an instrument right? Appropriate for a level 10 creativity skill.
Start them on the instrument and they start again I.e back at level one and they sound bad on the instrument, it's like they are picking up the instrument for the first time and may as well have not bothered with learning the instrument as a child at all. That's what I mean.
In any case, the child Sims are adorable and have so much potential, but I would really love to see them able to do more. Like, even being able to feed a bottle to a baby would be helpful. Making them more than a prop, giving them realistic activities and interactions, is on my wish list for this game.
You need to level the child skills up to ten then you'll be able to learn normal skills, that's how they work. When you learn normal skills, those are not forgotten.
Sadly they can't to my knowledge. Which is a shame as it's something many kids do. Like you I also did, sims 3 kids can write comic books so it's a shame they can't here.
Most little kids really want their parents to "look what I can do!" so maybe there could be some interaction where they say that and then do something. It doesn't have to be anything amazing but it would something they are learning to do, so they are proud of themselves.
I think kids should make funny noises too. Make animal noises or something.
Little kids just like to run around laughing sometimes. Just the joy of running around and maybe even they like someone to chase them.
Kids should be able to sing their own little songs too, it would be so cute, especially if they sang together.
Mischievous young sims could copy something someone else is doing or saying, up to a point. Sometimes mimicry is just a way to learn too, not meant to be annoying.
You know sometimes you get a big expensive toy and while you are putting it together the kid is over playing in the box and having a good time. Just a big ol' box would be a good toy. They could color on it and pretend it is anything. Pets can come in too!
Sims of all ages should sing to their pets. I would sing to my pets and they seemed to like it.
Young sims can definitely teach another baby sim how to start talking and they should play and learn together.
Sometimes kids like to play with each other's hair, so you could have an animation of them sitting on the ground together. One facing forward and the other behind them. One is playing with the other's hair. Then you go into create a sim for a second. Then some pretty unique hair styles come up, just messy with lots of braids or bows all randomly place, like kid likes it. Lots of strands of beads and hair chippies, barrettes and stuff. Then you go back to what they are doing and they will start moving their hands and make that hairstyle.
You could have two little sims facing each other and doing a sort of clapping game, rhryming game with movements, stuff that kids learn to do in school.
If you had enough of these kinds of interactions you could sort of have a preschool going on, with lots of stuff they do.
Maybe they could actually drag a blanket around for comfort? Hold a toy and carry it everywhere, actually out and visible for the world to see?
If they lose it or grow too old for it, they could get sad for a while. Or they could secretly still have it, just don't let anyone see them with it.
You could at least let them pick some flowers for their parents or and apple for the teacher and that is the very start of gardening skill.
You could have a parent sim pick the child up and let the child reach for something. This could be an animation used for a lot of stuff. Like a kite stuck in a tree, picking an apple off a tree, petting a cat in a tree to get it down, reaching something off a shelf for their parents, so they think they are helping and being a big kid for their parents. They could put a star or decoration on a tree like that.
If a kid makes a face too much it could "stick like that". For real. It would be so funny for a little while. You'd have to take a nap to get it to go away.
I see kids "Enthuse about candy" But tell me, is there actually any candy in the game? How do they even know what it is? There should be a special candy tree or a place to get some. If there is a way to actually get candy in the game, someone tell me?
When I was little I would drag out pots and pans or get into drawers and pull things out. It was fun to bang on pots and pans. I would play inside cabinets too.
I was afraid of random objects when I was a kid, sometimes things just look like they have a face, I guess. Maybe little sims could be really afraid of a certain thing, so they don't like going into a room if that is in there.
I think it would be more interesting to have the option of placing larger toys as 'already assembled' and 'some assembly required'
With 'some assembly required', when you place it, it's a big box, and an adult sim hast to take the pieces out, and assemble it (can be done in a dust cloud, with sounds of frustration), meanwhile the toddler/child/pet gets to play in the box. The box remains, until a sim puts it in the recycling (no automatic action for it, only player directed).
And this is one of the things that could 'require some assembly'
Another bigger toy could be a play kitchen (like what you can find in ikea), it too may require assembly.
This concept could go on to other items for your sims home, things that come in a box, and need some assembly...
Can we have a 'Some assembly required' stuff pack?