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Sooo can we expect to NOT get burglars then? Unnecessary nerfing
LadyKyn
Posts: 3,595 Member
Edit: Thankfully just a misunderstanding that SimguruNinja cleared on up. 
But, I do still by my point on things being unecessarily nerfed or possible nerfing in the future.
Looking at a thread about vampires recently and discovering they nerfed from what @SimGuruNinja said, this is honestly disappointing.
Same with the aliens, since I ever so rarely see aliens like at ALL in my game. When I did they were in disguise and I didn't even notice them til they usually did something to give them away (glowing or using their powers to mentally mess with sims.) Vampires aren't super dangerous towards sims but they are definitely a inconvenience much like burglars were in previous games. Which was great for me as vampires always seemed to be just there skulking about in 2 & 3. Is the uncontrollable thirst nerfed with vampires as well? because I haven't played with them for a moment.
I feel like it really bites (no pun intended) out a lot of the fun for those who actually enjoyed the featured (one of the bigger reasons I even bought the pack. I didn't buy it for build/mode purposes. I wanted VAMPIRES dang it.) Me personally I like seeing unpredictable random events in sims games and it really just makes me more so weary if not fearsome for this game to be even more watered down. If some players are complaining and getting "scared" by Vampire's breaking in now and again what does that mean for burglars that have been a staple since the first sims?
Never gonna come because of people getting scared? This isn't like some horror game it's the sims. Always seem like there's no in-between with certain game features or sim behaviors. It's either too extreme or just nothing at all.
Are toggles impossible in this game? Because I feel like something like this could have been remedied if we had the choice of a toggle for vampires. I mean even in game with vampire lore you can still prevent vampires from entering and biting sims, so now that feature in the game seems almost useless if there aren't going to be any vampire home invasions. The break ins weren't all that intrusive for me since I'd only ever get one every sim week or more, but now it's pretty much zero if not the chance for them being verrrry low? That really just puts a damper on things and makes me not want to bother with getting packs in fear that a interesting feature is going to be watered down due to complaints. Didn't buy that pack for the sake of gothesque aesthetic. I even thought a 'No vampires Allowed' lot trait could even work.
If burglars are going to be watered down I'm not too sure I even want them. Is swiping things from a sims home in the middle of the night just too 'scary' with the chances of them stealing a toilet or shower in a ridiculous fashion?
I feel like there should be workarounds than just pulling features. I know we don't make up the majority of the fandom here on the forums, but we still have a voice as well.
But, I do still by my point on things being unecessarily nerfed or possible nerfing in the future.Looking at a thread about vampires recently and discovering they nerfed from what @SimGuruNinja said, this is honestly disappointing.
Same with the aliens, since I ever so rarely see aliens like at ALL in my game. When I did they were in disguise and I didn't even notice them til they usually did something to give them away (glowing or using their powers to mentally mess with sims.) Vampires aren't super dangerous towards sims but they are definitely a inconvenience much like burglars were in previous games. Which was great for me as vampires always seemed to be just there skulking about in 2 & 3. Is the uncontrollable thirst nerfed with vampires as well? because I haven't played with them for a moment.
I feel like it really bites (no pun intended) out a lot of the fun for those who actually enjoyed the featured (one of the bigger reasons I even bought the pack. I didn't buy it for build/mode purposes. I wanted VAMPIRES dang it.) Me personally I like seeing unpredictable random events in sims games and it really just makes me more so weary if not fearsome for this game to be even more watered down. If some players are complaining and getting "scared" by Vampire's breaking in now and again what does that mean for burglars that have been a staple since the first sims?
Never gonna come because of people getting scared? This isn't like some horror game it's the sims. Always seem like there's no in-between with certain game features or sim behaviors. It's either too extreme or just nothing at all.
Are toggles impossible in this game? Because I feel like something like this could have been remedied if we had the choice of a toggle for vampires. I mean even in game with vampire lore you can still prevent vampires from entering and biting sims, so now that feature in the game seems almost useless if there aren't going to be any vampire home invasions. The break ins weren't all that intrusive for me since I'd only ever get one every sim week or more, but now it's pretty much zero if not the chance for them being verrrry low? That really just puts a damper on things and makes me not want to bother with getting packs in fear that a interesting feature is going to be watered down due to complaints. Didn't buy that pack for the sake of gothesque aesthetic. I even thought a 'No vampires Allowed' lot trait could even work.
If burglars are going to be watered down I'm not too sure I even want them. Is swiping things from a sims home in the middle of the night just too 'scary' with the chances of them stealing a toilet or shower in a ridiculous fashion?
I feel like there should be workarounds than just pulling features. I know we don't make up the majority of the fandom here on the forums, but we still have a voice as well.
Post edited by LadyKyn on
19
Comments
1) Dangerous stuff did really well as a concept in the polling. People were excited for Jungle Adventures partially because they wanted danger. How exactly do they determine that they should just fully ignore this group of fans who want danger while catering 100% to a group with opposing views on the matter? I mean to me it makes sense to try and please them both in different areas, but both Vampires and Jungle Adventures seem heavily toned down now to cater to that group of fans.
2) How are people more bothered by the vampire than the alien abductions? If I'm playing my Simself and a vampire breaks into my house, then it means I'll have a bad night of sleep. No biggie. If I'm playing my Simself and I get abducted by an alien, the implication is I was just 🐸🐸🐸🐸 and now I'm going to have an unwanted baby (weird) that doesn't reflect my real life status at all. I can absolutely understand why they needed to tone down and tweak aliens, (and I don't understand why they don't do a middle-ground of just making "contact aliens" provide a 30% chance of being abducted that night or something) but by SimGuruNinja's own words, it seems like vampires were toned down partially due to misinformation. Fans were poorly informed about their product and what happens during a vampire raid, so we all have to pay for it...?
I'm not too bothered by the loss of the feature itself, but the way it was done rubs me the wrong way. It feels like catering to the lowest common denominator, but the result of that is always gonna be "don't do anything potential unhappy, controversial or sad ever." That's boring though. Part of games is overcoming challenges. It feels like they want to encase the world of Sims 4 in bubble wrap though, so how are we supposed to craft stories if tragedy doesn't exist. Comedy and Tragedy are both equally important in storytelling, but the Sims team is acting like tragedy doesn't exist, and any feature is always just one complaint about triggering content away from being axed.
Alternatively, I propose we all start saying how deeply disturbed and uncomfortable we all feel when we get happy moodlets or packs focused solely on CAS clothing. Maybe that'll get us somewhere...
Unexpected death and turns of the story. And that's what life is. It isn't predictable and that's what I'd like from a LIFE SIMULATION as well...
There in lies the problem.
Say goodbye to burglars, if people are upset by a mythical creature then a man wearing a black and white striped sweater and carrying a swag bag will never be permitted.
I’m more disturbed that my sims husband died and she was very happy and didn’t care that her husband was in an urn until three days later. That’s more worrying than a hissing sim coming to make a midnight snack.
Making stories for sims feels pretty limited without some sort of obstacles for sims or even inconveniences. Things like energy failure to certain emotion buffs that flip flop a lot just doesn't really cut it. Feels like my sims are stuck being the stepford wives if there isn't anything random or even a bit challenging for them. When this game actually starts to feel more decent and rounded it feels like someone just took a knife to just gut it some more. 'Nah, you don't need that, but hey you'll survive.'
@JoAnne65 When did things in sims games that seemed like a normal staple now seem too 'stressful' or not as appropriate anymore for some people? Makes me feel like it's mostly newer people who are just now getting into these games and can't handle a certain level of maturity with the game. Yeah, they can't cater to everyone, but just getting rid of things definitely don't solve i like you said. I mean, what else to tone down? Woohoo? Taking out the sfx for that. Fire and sims dying are too much gotta take that out too. If people can't handle things like this maybe it's really not the game for them. I shouldn't have to mod my game out for a feature that was there to begin with.
There definitely gotta be a balance somewhere.
What does this mean for any other Sims game down the road?
The randomness of it all I enjoyed from a lot of the earlier games and being unpredictable.
Feel the first game was probably all very chaotic, especially when needs were low and your sims had very little money things take definitely take a nose dive, but there was always that reward of things being stable for awhile too because there was a balance. Now? Not so much I keep feeling like the Sims 4 is a flower constantly having it's petals plucked because it's too much when eventually there just won't be enough or nothing when you reach the stem.
I wanna know this too. I mean I'm not the biggest fan of alien pregnancies, but they've been around since Sims 2 and I just deal with it and try to avoid them. The only thing that's gotten worse is the conditions to trigger it. (Sims 2 wanted you to use a telescope at a certain time, Sims 3 wanted space rocks in inventory, Sims 4 kinda said "lol just whenever, brah")
There's something kind of baffling about knowing burglars were considered perfectly acceptable in 2013 and a staple of the franchise dating back to Sims 1, yet now suddenly they're not allowed...? This is honestly the first time I've "believed" they're being genuine with that stance too. If you had asked me last year, I would've told you I felt the "it triggers players" answer was just an excuse not to develop burglars and an excuse for their absence on release. (which lacked a lot) Now they actually seem sincere, and it's not exactly more comforting knowing that.
This is just my personal opinion here, but I do think there comes a point when people need to be expected to toughen up a bit. If virtual robbery or being virtually attacked by a mythical creature is that upsetting for people....I remember playing Mario Party as a little kid and I would yell at that game cause that computer character was a total cheater that would magically land on the "trade your score with the winning player" space on the last turn. Didn't help that some of those minigames were so hard we kids would rip the skin off our thumbs trying to spin that joystick fast enough. Mom always told me it was just a game and that it was time to take a break if I was getting that worked up about it. How come if kid me gets mad at a game for cheating (it TOTALLY was!) and actually causing me some small degree of bodily harm (blisters and torn skin to hands in a hopeless effort to beat nearly impossible minigames) then it's unacceptable, but now if Sims fans get upset by virtual events, they're not encouraged to recognize "it's just a game" and instead we wrap everything in bubble wrap and remove anything potentially scary so they can't possibly be virtually hurt?
It's impossible to make game packs that appeal to everyone if people can't toggle off features -- but removing features after a year seems excessive and unfair to the people who got the pack for all the advertised features.
Edit: I miss burglars and the police who fought them adding a random element as to whether you got your stuff back. I miss fire fighters and their lectures about and fines for "false alarms" when you put out the fire too quickly. I miss meteors that occasionally hit schools.
Why is there the need to sanitize Sims 4 to the extent it's being sanitized?
And I agree regarding people being too sensitive. What I have to say is this. It is a teen rated game, therefore it's perfectly fine to have enough bad/scary/violent things happen that meets the age rating criteria. If you find it upsetting and you are under 13, then really, you shouldn't be playing it. You can't expect the game to change because you're too young to be playing it in the first place. If you're over 13 and you find it upsetting, then you have a problem, not the game. If you're finding age appropriate content too much then I'm sorry but that is your own issue, and it's unfair to expect the game to adapt around you.
I'll also point out that the sims team are so bothered about violence, yet there's woohoo stuff everywhere in this game. It's very in your face, much more so than previous games. Seems to me they're being selective about what is inappropriate.
I also agree that dev's have child proofed the game way too much and now it seems like nothing bad can ever happen.
They have done certain things to try and make the game more 'random' and even more 'disastrous' for the player, but it still hasn't worked. All of the efforts that they have made to make the game more interesting seems to hit a barrier very quickly. Perhaps something has changed with the ESRB rating guidelines ... but I don't see how adding a few elements of danger or surprise would increase the T for Teen rating. Not quite sure what they are going for by making the TS4 an ultra happy environment where nothing ever goes "wrong" unless you forcibly disrupt the game.
Even if you were to add something like a slider for unfortunate events to increase/decrease the likelihood of an event. And in their coding, I'm pretty sure they have already been categorizing events like alien abductions, vampire raids, etc. so I would find it a feature that they could add to the game to give players more control. Kind of like how Overwatch has a bunch of customization options for your play style, they will often have a general slider for something like mouse sensitivity, and then sub-sliders that target the X axis, Y axis, etc. You can even set a whole set of new conditions between each character in case you prefer to play one hero a certain way but another hero completely differently. I think The Sims would benefit from giving players these "back-drop" customization options. Now for The Sims, I feel like these options would mean setting the conditions of the game. Probability of disastrous events in general, perhaps even being allowed to define the probability of specific events like house fires, electrocution, etc. Also would be interesting to be able to set probabilities of pregnancies, fatality, etc. This stuff is like "technical" options. In CaS, I think it would also be really interesting for players to set the frequency of emotions for specific Sims. And depending on your traits that would affect emotions, your Sim could have a "minimum" and/or "maximum" frequency for certain emotions. So the Gloomy trait would mean that your Sim can only have a "minimum" Sad frequency of say 60/100, whereas they can only have a "maximum" Happy frequency of 60/100. And perhaps setting your Sims within these thresholds would automatically apply that trait to your Sim. Of course all of this would be optional, and for the people that don't care about controlling conditions this much, the game would automatically have "default" settings. There are a ton of ways to make a system very intuitive without forcing people to adhere to one certain style of play but also without forcing them to choose each and every option available. Have you ever had programs that have a "basic" mode and "advanced" mode? I feel like the game could function the same way, since there are people that wouldn't care about setting the conditions for every little thing. But there are people that would love that and would make the game a lot more enjoyable if they had the options available. I also don't think it's an issue of age either. Perhaps people who are younger would prefer to not have as many options, but I'm sure there are young people who would enjoy having those options. How many 9-16 yr olds that play Minecraft create all these intricate designs and maps with the tools that they are given? I remember when I was a kid playing things like Habbo Hotel and teaming up with other 13 yr olds to set up websites and radios. I would even design website templates in Photoshop and then my friends would code it. So I think there are players that would benefit from having these options and it would make the game feel a lot more dynamic and provide a unique experience to the players the choose to utilize those options.
So I do believe that the framework of the game could have given users a lot more customizability which may have improved the response of the game and could have assuaged peoples frustration over the restrictions of the game. In my opinion, a lot of this could have been avoided. To me, it seems obvious to give players at least some of my suggested "back drop" technical options. Maybe some stuff is over the top. Meh. Who knows.
The sims game I enjoyed so much and was quirky with a much appreciated maturity for the game for sure. (considering sims could get in the buff and 'play' in bed before it was called woohoo). If people want a more watered down or easy going sims game I feel like they should look to sims mobile or there should be a spin off game for console/handheld. The Sims games always felt not too childish but not too adult either that kept a certain balance, but now it feels like it's being catered to certain groups of players.
WHY are burglars not appropriate in this game? WHY is it not appropriate for vampires to no longer do home invasions or is that the key term. 'Home invasion.' Sims with the klepto trait seems to be fine and they definitely swipe stuff at different places, restaurants and even my sims home. But a not so menacing piano playing on the lot is too much for some to handle? Get out of town with that. A fire alarm sounding off in my sims home might as well just be just as panic inducing. Goodness forbid sims starting fires in the kitchen gets watered down or taken too.
With the GTW expansion, I would have thought it'd be a good place to even re-introduce burglars or eventually put them in place. I really don't want to think the reason burglars aren't in this game is because it scares or heightens some people's anxiety.
I like this game but I don't like the fact that features I was enjoying are getting a childproof top shoved on it.
I think many on this forum would be happier playing My Sims rather than Sims 4.
All of this needless controversy, by the way, in a game where you can:
- WooHoo ghosts (T rated necrophilia, if you want to get technical).
- WooHoo in public saunas, closets and even bushes.
- Have extramarital affairs (and illegitimate children).
- Test tainted potions in other sims (basically, poisoning).
- Work your way up through the criminal career.
- Bully other sims (through mean interactions).
- Have a male young adult get into a fight against an elderly lady.
I actually love all of the above features (but no, I do not go around fighting old ladies, unless the old lady is a vampire and I have the cure): they make the game much more random and interesting. But if you are going to be sensitive about bad/inappropriate things, at least be consistent about it.
Nothing happens unless you make it happen or use your imagination.
I don't see any reason to nerf vampires.
Avoidance is built in. All you have to do is plant garlic and put up some garlic wreathes.
My sim was attacked once and I never saw another vampire again after planting some garlic and putting garlic wreathes near the entrance.
This is what makes it a game. You have a problem, you find a solution.
And if you are buying a vampire pack, you want vampires in your game, doing vampire things.
Instead people are buying it as a stuff pack to get the objects, clothes, and hair, and complaining about vampire attacks.
Exactly, this was a game pack and these random infrequent "attacks" were an advertised game play feature. The people who got this nerfed actually wanted a Victorian Gothic themed stuff pack, and now that's exactly what we have a bloomin' $20.00 stuff pack.
Alien abductions? Once they start (i.e. once you play a SINGLE scientist in save to a certain length), they can happen anywhere, anytime, to any Sim, anywhere in that save. What's more, they can impregnant any male they abduct, anytime in that save, without your say-so. All of this is pretty much out of player control.
Vampire break in? Can't travel while it happens. (Can't do much of anything while it happens, tbh.) Just gotta sit there while it plays out, then have to deal with the tedium of Sims who haven't slept well or whatever else. Again, the game just pushes it all on you and you're stuck.
Burglars were the same way. As I recall in Sims one, it was basically a cut scene that happened. A theif would show up, go steal something, and run away. You could not stop them, or chase them. The only thing you had available was a burglar alarm, which if it wasn't placed on the very corner of lot (with walls on every corner of that lot, mind you), was barely of use. And again, it interrupts gameplay. No control at all.
If burglars are introduced and there is no way to control the event as it happens, then yes, it will most likely be nerfed. Lots of dangers are in the game that no one has a problem with. JA does danger well, in that you can prep at the marketplace for it, and if you get infected or whatever, you have enough time to cure it if you want/need to (but in either case, you're not FORCED to). Laundry day has fire which can be avoided with cleaning or an upgrade. Most of the Vampire pack itself, in regards to vampires, is just fine. They were done well. But again, it's the one thing where players have no say in the matter, save for spamming garlic everywhere I guess (cuz that makes a build look good (sarcasm)), that is the issue.
I even like the aliens, except for the abductions. I feel like the abductions should only happen to the scientist household. That way, I could elect that house to the risks of abductions, pregnancies, etc. None of my other Sims ask for that stuff, but the scientist practically begs for it, lol.
It's not that it's scary. Nothing in the game (or series for that matter) is scary. It's that some situations are out of the player's hands, and thus are at best annoying, and at worst, really super obnoxious. If burglars are going to be an event I have no say over besides an alarm (which had better work over the entire lot and not just one room, I swear) then no, I don't want them again.
I can fire a klepto Sim that works at my store or restaurant. I can make sure none of the Sims I play with are kleptos. I can even find one way or another into most klepto Sims inventories and get my stuff back if I really wanted. So, I don't mind them. But I have a feeling it wouldn't be the same with burglars. They'd spawn, steal something, then disappear if not caught. And what's my consequence at having no say in the matter? I get to hop into buy mode and get what they stole again for no good reason. Thanks for the tedium and time sink.
Your wrong-ish about burglars in the Sims 3, fwiw. If you have no athletic or marital art skills and aren't brave and don't have a burglar alarm, yes, you were pretty stuck with your only option being to call the police, who sometimes would arrive in time and sometimes would be able to get your stuff back. But if your sim was fit enough, ninja enough, or brave they could confront the burglar and usually win the ensuing fight. And if you had a burglar alarm, as long as it was placed in a location where it was set off before the burglar stole anything, it would scare them off.
Edit: Misread Sims One as Sims Three for some reason. I'll blame it on the flu.
Agreed. Though you could and must have the ability to call police through the smartphone of your sim's If you fail the install the alarm before the event disables build mode in bad case scenario. Still would give you a chance to stop them from swiping.