Mentioning the conservationist career is a valuable addition to the conversation, especially when it’s fun. Which doesn’t mean it’s not an incomprehensible flaw that both the lifeguard and scuba diving are rabbitholes but indeed, if the pack has another in depth open career, it needs to be mentioned.
@JoAnne65 , I agree, I am disappointed scuba diving and the lifeguard career are rabbitholes in IL! There is one little thing I like, and that is that there are NPC lifeguards on beaches. In TS3 I often wished I could actually see the townies employed in the lifeguard career performing their job on the beach. I can only hope that if TS5 gets a tropical expansion, we will get both an open lifeguard career and townie lifeguards.
I had a similar reaction to Jungle Adventure to you - loved it immensely at first, but once I discovered all the hidden lots I didn't feel the need to return to Selvadorada, unlike the WA destination worlds which I often visit with my sims without exploring any tombs. I think Island Living will be different because it doesn't have a linear storyline, but time will tell.
I've seen many differing opinions on depth of gameplay - in threads similar to this one in the TS4 section, I've seen players claim that the scuba diving in TS3 was boring and repetitive and that the resort system in TS3 was terrible because it's obviously fake (because a resort gets lots of reviews, but only one or two actual sims staying there). I must have really bad taste then, because I've played a lot with both scuba diving and resorts, and I'm not tired of either yet!
@Bettyboop55 , yes, the ocean looks a little strange because you can see into it sideways!
I must admit scuba diving has always been a bit boring for me too (and annoying because for some reason I keep having problems with the cave that resets my sim). I’m about to start a new generation and the first thing I’ll do is focus properly on scuba diving this time. And try to unlock all the islands.
This, by the way, is the thing for me... I haven’t done scuba diving properly (meaning maxing the skill and being able to dive on all the lots; I did play a mermaid who could and I liked how he could catch fish and eat under water) and I never played with the resorts either. And I haven’t unlocked all the islands. Oh, and the houseboats are ‘undiscovered territory’ for me as well. And still I played one and a half generation in IP, loving the island life. Because it has all the small islands and the atmosphere and all the boats passing by and the mermaids. I liked the lifeguard career myself by the way. It’s indeed a bit repetitive, but also funny, all those ‘drowning’ sims and their reactions. There was also an interaction available I remember, where my sim’s partner would fake fainting, hoping for mouth-to-mouth. That is one of those ‘nice for a few times and then it gets old’ kind of things, but it did make me laugh.
I agree with you that it’s a pity NPC’s never act like lifeguards!
Hello ApparentlyAwesome it is doubtful that a single pack can magically improve TS4 when you know your issues stem from the base game. Mind you there is always a vague hope that it might and IL looks so very attractive at first glance. If you are really enjoying your current TS3 experience there is no need to move on until you find something else you really like. I agree, if at the end of the TS4 run, you try the game again and still find it is not your cup of tea then it would be pointless to add it to the other games you play on rotation. Especially when you could still be enjoying TS3 The personality of the sims remains important whatever you eventually decide to do. The TS2 ones were decided characters but I still prefer the trait system of TS3. I never felt any affection for my TS4 sims but I have cried over the death of a favourite sim in TS3.
I wish I could play The Sims 3 right now. I'm currently prepping the kitchen to be painted and finishing up painting a bedroom while breaking to read the forums and eat. Both dogs are not happy being blocked out of the partially wet room right now, lol. The only thing left is to wash the walls now then I'm done for the day and onto the Sims 3!
I definitely have that vague hope sometimes. I kind of feel bad that I'm not even tempted to play the TS4 base game. I guess because I love The Sims franchise as a whole. Any Sims game I've bought I've loved and I want to love The Sims 4 too but if I'm not feeling it I'm not feeling it. Hopefully they'll fix personalities.
I prefer the personality trait system as well. I like the Sims 2 having personality points assigned with zodiac signs and in the future I wouldn't mind seeing it combined with personality traits, the zodiac providing a bit more depth but personality traits taking the lead. If done right I could see it going well, but my problem with the points was always the fact that I could either have the right zodiac sign or the right amount of points for my sims personality but I'm a perfectionist who wants both lol. But even ignoring the zodiac signs being right or wrong, I'd usually run out of points and have to fall short in areas so they never quite lived up to exactly what I had in mind. I didn't have that problem with Sims 3 but I wish there was more to the signs.
@JoAnne being cautious after previous TS4 packs did not match the hype is perfectly understandable. I would also say that was the case for the majority of TS3 EPs but then we really started to explore the pack content and found the hidden gems. I am still finding things in SN which surprise and delight even after all this time but the first time my witch flew on a vacuum cleaner remains one of my absolute favourites and I do not tire of it. With TS4 for some players the animations and task completion do not stand up to be constantly repeated. I feel this is more of a flaw with the iteration than each individual pack. Perhaps it is a sign of the times, people want to complete something quickly and then move on to the next best thing. Difficult also for generational play as someone else commented Sulani is not going to be the place for legacies.
You mention about finding out more about what some of these new features bring to the game. It is obviously very early days, most people only got their packs yesterday. I am sure the plethora of youtube videos will give us a much better idea in the next week or so. From what I saw watching EA play the volcano does do more but they were a bit coy about that. I look forward as always to seeing LGR's review
I’m getting some information by now and so far it hasn’t convinced me to buy tbh. LGR seems to have given up, that’s the feeling I had in his last reviews. He sounded mild, in a weary way. It feels like he’s given up hope but doesn’t want to hurt the feelings of all those simmers who do like the game, so he tries to be as constructive as possible. Which is good, for his views and for Sims 4 fans. But useless for me “So you want him to bash the game?” No, of course not, but I want to be able to read between the lines. He’s been quite critical, cynical about Sims 3 packs and sometimes I agreed, sometimes it just told me he’s a different simmer than I am. He’s a good reviewer, his reviews always enable you to draw your own conclusions, regardless what his personal opinion or preference is.
For me it is, I was never able to get Isla Paradiso to work for me, even on this new computer. I was able to get in and within minutes it would freeze and never stop. The new Island in Sims 4 works great for me, I have not had any issues with it, already going into the end of my 2nd season there. I have been enjoying it so much, that if my husband did not still play Sims 3 on this computer I would remove it and just play this now. I used to be tempted to go back to 3 and did some, but not anymore. I have still barely touched the surface of things to do and after all that time already, I cannot wait to do more things, it is so far my favorite pack (even tho vampires were my fave and still kinda are) Mermaids are now tied with how much I love vampires. I really love how they did the mermaids this time. I love how you cannot tell unless they bring out the tail in water. I love how they have powers and can do so many things with the weather as well as other sims. I am truly enjoying this pack more than any other pack I have had (and I have them all).
If IP didn't run on your PC I totally understand why you'd prefer anything else that does run. For the fans I hope there will be something underneath that surface, because so far that has been sims 4's main issue. The surface looks awesome and promising and everybody's scratching it, looking forward to the fathomless depth it covers and then, after two, three weeks, I see people begging for a new pack.
If IP didn't run on your PC I totally understand why you'd prefer anything else that does run. For the fans I hope there will be something underneath that surface, because so far that has been sims 4's main issue. The surface looks awesome and promising and everybody's scratching it, looking forward to the fathomless depth it covers and then, after two, three weeks, I see people begging for a new pack.
But that's not really a problem. More begging = more easy money to be earned.
Hello ApparentlyAwesome it is doubtful that a single pack can magically improve TS4 when you know your issues stem from the base game. Mind you there is always a vague hope that it might and IL looks so very attractive at first glance. If you are really enjoying your current TS3 experience there is no need to move on until you find something else you really like. I agree, if at the end of the TS4 run, you try the game again and still find it is not your cup of tea then it would be pointless to add it to the other games you play on rotation. Especially when you could still be enjoying TS3 The personality of the sims remains important whatever you eventually decide to do. The TS2 ones were decided characters but I still prefer the trait system of TS3. I never felt any affection for my TS4 sims but I have cried over the death of a favourite sim in TS3.
I wish I could play The Sims 3 right now. I'm currently prepping the kitchen to be painted and finishing up painting a bedroom while breaking to read the forums and eat. Both dogs are not happy being blocked out of the partially wet room right now, lol. The only thing left is to wash the walls now then I'm done for the day and onto the Sims 3!
I definitely have that vague hope sometimes. I kind of feel bad that I'm not even tempted to play the TS4 base game. I guess because I love The Sims franchise as a whole. Any Sims game I've bought I've loved and I want to love The Sims 4 too but if I'm not feeling it I'm not feeling it. Hopefully they'll fix personalities.
I prefer the personality trait system as well. I like the Sims 2 having personality points assigned with zodiac signs and in the future I wouldn't mind seeing it combined with personality traits, the zodiac providing a bit more depth but personality traits taking the lead. If done right I could see it going well, but my problem with the points was always the fact that I could either have the right zodiac sign or the right amount of points for my sims personality but I'm a perfectionist who wants both lol. But even ignoring the zodiac signs being right or wrong, I'd usually run out of points and have to fall short in areas so they never quite lived up to exactly what I had in mind. I didn't have that problem with Sims 3 but I wish there was more to the signs.
Good Luck with the decorating and keeping the dogs off the wet paint. It's even more fun trying to stop cats
It is a very long time since I played TS2. I did get the UC but it kept crashing even on this quite powerful laptop and my disks are now useless.
So I don't really remember much about the points system. I think I was more inclined to use the zodiac signs. That is one disappointing thing about TS3, that the zodiac sign does not seem to influence your sim as it would have done in TS3. However there are enough traits to create some very interesting characters. I love the animations and thought bubbles you get with the miser trait.
I can't really see EA changing the personality system for TS4. I think they may have tweaked it but I haven't heard anyone say that has improved matters much. Let's just hope EA have a total rethink should there ever be another iteration of the Sims on PC. It would be lovely to have functioning zodiac signs going forward and behaviour and feelings appropriate to the traits assigned to each individual sim.
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
@JoAnne being cautious after previous TS4 packs did not match the hype is perfectly understandable. I would also say that was the case for the majority of TS3 EPs but then we really started to explore the pack content and found the hidden gems. I am still finding things in SN which surprise and delight even after all this time but the first time my witch flew on a vacuum cleaner remains one of my absolute favourites and I do not tire of it. With TS4 for some players the animations and task completion do not stand up to be constantly repeated. I feel this is more of a flaw with the iteration than each individual pack. Perhaps it is a sign of the times, people want to complete something quickly and then move on to the next best thing. Difficult also for generational play as someone else commented Sulani is not going to be the place for legacies.
You mention about finding out more about what some of these new features bring to the game. It is obviously very early days, most people only got their packs yesterday. I am sure the plethora of youtube videos will give us a much better idea in the next week or so. From what I saw watching EA play the volcano does do more but they were a bit coy about that. I look forward as always to seeing LGR's review
I’m getting some information by now and so far it hasn’t convinced me to buy tbh. LGR seems to have given up, that’s the feeling I had in his last reviews. He sounded mild, in a weary way. It feels like he’s given up hope but doesn’t want to hurt the feelings of all those simmers who do like the game, so he tries to be as constructive as possible. Which is good, for his views and for Sims 4 fans. But useless for me “So you want him to bash the game?” No, of course not, but I want to be able to read between the lines. He’s been quite critical, cynical about Sims 3 packs and sometimes I agreed, sometimes it just told me he’s a different simmer than I am. He’s a good reviewer, his reviews always enable you to draw your own conclusions, regardless what his personal opinion or preference is.
I shall be very disappointed if there is no LGR review. I have always found his reviews to be balanced and well informed, more importantly for me though, funny. There is always an extraordinary amount of hype around each pack release and the same was true for TS3. So having someone who can cut through the hype and see a product for what it really is has always been useful.
Yes the feedback has been most helpful in that it reinforced my original decision not to buy. I hope that those who have bought and are enjoying the game so far continue to do so. I suppose for others it is a case of waiting to see if the next pack along is sufficient to change their minds.
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
For me it is, I was never able to get Isla Paradiso to work for me, even on this new computer. I was able to get in and within minutes it would freeze and never stop. The new Island in Sims 4 works great for me, I have not had any issues with it, already going into the end of my 2nd season there. I have been enjoying it so much, that if my husband did not still play Sims 3 on this computer I would remove it and just play this now. I used to be tempted to go back to 3 and did some, but not anymore. I have still barely touched the surface of things to do and after all that time already, I cannot wait to do more things, it is so far my favorite pack (even tho vampires were my fave and still kinda are) Mermaids are now tied with how much I love vampires. I really love how they did the mermaids this time. I love how you cannot tell unless they bring out the tail in water. I love how they have powers and can do so many things with the weather as well as other sims. I am truly enjoying this pack more than any other pack I have had (and I have them all).
I'm glad to hear you are enjoying IL and that it is working for you. I'm also sorry to hear about your experiences with IP. That must have been very off putting. There are solutions for most known issues with IP but, as you also say it is a new computer it might be something simple like an adjustment to your graphics card. I appreciate you are happy with TS4 but maybe hubby might want to visit the TS3 help section because he might want to play IP.
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
For me it is, I was never able to get Isla Paradiso to work for me, even on this new computer. I was able to get in and within minutes it would freeze and never stop.
I don't know if you realize this, that if Isla Paradiso doesn't work for you and you don't feel like fixing it, you can play other tropical worlds similar to Isla Paradiso that won't freeze or glitch. They're all free too.
I'm glad to hear you are enjoying IL and that it is working for you. I'm also sorry to hear about your experiences with IP. That must have been very off putting. There are solutions for most known issues with IP but, as you also say it is a new computer it might be something simple like an adjustment to your graphics card. I appreciate you are happy with TS4 but maybe hubby might want to visit the TS3 help section because he might want to play IP.
I doubt they want the whole world to know how playable TS3 is and how fixable its "problems" are. It's apparent that EA is in "attack TS3" mode once again because a new TS4 EP is out that isn't as good as TS3's.
The latest disappointment about the island pack I'm finding out now is that this pack was supposed to be a GP - a game pack, not an EP. That's why it doesn't have as much as an EP should have. But it DOES have the EP price tag.
Hehe, I´m tempted! And just because of this thread and the feedback corner at the Sims 4 forum side!
I´ve bought Sims 4 at release, played a bit, disliked it from the bottom of my heart! Stopped playing it after a week.
Tried it again when Get to Work came out, disliked it again, stopped playing(well, playing would be an exaggeration) until the toddlers came out.
Tried them out and although I have to admit that they werde done ok, my game was unplayable for me. Time jumped back, Sims stood there without moving or taking orders from me, the toddlers were too independent (what kind of toddler takes a plate of food for itself, walks over to the couch, climbes onto the couch and eats the food there???), the whole game was a buggy mess for me!
I´ve quit playing it from this time on and wasn´t tempted a bit to try to play!
But after reading the feedback and how limited this pack is with this tiny lots, the boating just on a few places, rabbithole careers (no Sims 4 player can ever again argue that Sims 3 consists of rabbitholes anymore, I see much more rabbitholes in Sims 4!!), no diving (really, in this EP no diving???), the useless implantation of today´s political correctness (cleaning up the beach), .....
Well, after I´ve read and heard so much about it I´m soo tempted to buy this pack!
I doubt they want the whole world to know how playable TS3 is and how fixable its "problems" are. It's apparent that EA is in "attack TS3" mode once again because a new TS4 EP is out that isn't as good as TS3's.
Those of us who help on out the Tech Issues forum here and EA's Answers HQ boards are fellow players (although AHQ also has community managers available who can connect with Customer Support if needed). We do not work for EA and don't care a whole lot how much or little affection EA seems to have for TS3.
TS3 is a currently being sold product though. In addition to the base game and the available 20 EP/SPs, the still active TS3 store for added content has got to be very lucrative. It wouldn't really make sense for the company to "attack" its own revenue source, given there is enough room in many players' hearts and computers for both games. Neglect a bit, or something less than shower with attention might come to mind, but attack seems a bit harsh (notwithstanding what a guru here and there might jokingly say about games no longer in development).
One thing I see all the chatter about Island Living is doing is rekindling some of our interests in TS3's Island Paradise. My sims are about to vacation there (fixed up world, NRaas Traveler mod); they might have done so anyway, but I think the idea got planted in my head just by reading about the new TS4 pack. It's getting very warm where I am IRL and tropical destinations don't always leap to mind as places to play when this happens so subconsciously there may be a connection there intended or otherwise.
For me it is, I was never able to get Isla Paradiso to work for me, even on this new computer. I was able to get in and within minutes it would freeze and never stop.
I don't know if you realize this, that if Isla Paradiso doesn't work for you and you don't feel like fixing it, you can play other tropical worlds similar to Isla Paradiso that won't freeze or glitch. They're all free too.
I'm glad to hear you are enjoying IL and that it is working for you. I'm also sorry to hear about your experiences with IP. That must have been very off putting. There are solutions for most known issues with IP but, as you also say it is a new computer it might be something simple like an adjustment to your graphics card. I appreciate you are happy with TS4 but maybe hubby might want to visit the TS3 help section because he might want to play IP.
I doubt they want the whole world to know how playable TS3 is and how fixable its "problems" are. It's apparent that EA is in "attack TS3" mode once again because a new TS4 EP is out that isn't as good as TS3's.
The latest disappointment about the island pack I'm finding out now is that this pack was supposed to be a GP - a game pack, not an EP. That's why it doesn't have as much as an EP should have. But it DOES have the EP price tag.
I really HATE EA at this point.
Can I take your last point first? Unless you have 100% confidence in your source of information then it is best to treat such data with a degree of caution. I have fallen foul of this kind of thing when searching for information on the next iteration and have concluded it is best to verify the data elsewhere preferably from an EA source. For me it was part of my training when dealing with ancient texts for my degree. That said if you are reasonably confident then it is very disappointing to find out, particularly given all the things you previously mentioned which could have been added to improve IL. On the other hand I have watched several videos on the content of IL and it seems more than some previous TS4 EPs. None of them have been overly generous compared to TS3 EPs though.
I would urge you not to hate. It is such a negative emotion. If I may say you come across as a real lover of TS3 and your posts help give this game a more positive image which spreads the word about how good it really is. There is nothing to say that we the players can't promote this game and at this stage in it's life cycle that is probably far more effective than anything EA might say or do.
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Hehe, I´m tempted! And just because of this thread and the feedback corner at the Sims 4 forum side!
I´ve bought Sims 4 at release, played a bit, disliked it from the bottom of my heart! Stopped playing it after a week.
Tried it again when Get to Work came out, disliked it again, stopped playing(well, playing would be an exaggeration) until the toddlers came out.
Tried them out and although I have to admit that they werde done ok, my game was unplayable for me. Time jumped back, Sims stood there without moving or taking orders from me, the toddlers were too independent (what kind of toddler takes a plate of food for itself, walks over to the couch, climbes onto the couch and eats the food there???), the whole game was a buggy mess for me!
I´ve quit playing it from this time on and wasn´t tempted a bit to try to play!
But after reading the feedback and how limited this pack is with this tiny lots, the boating just on a few places, rabbithole careers (no Sims 4 player can ever again argue that Sims 3 consists of rabbitholes anymore, I see much more rabbitholes in Sims 4!!), no diving (really, in this EP no diving???), the useless implantation of today´s political correctness (cleaning up the beach), .....
Well, after I´ve read and heard so much about it I´m soo tempted to buy this pack!
You forgot the dolphins and turtles ........ whereas all we got with IP was sharks and the kracken Let us know if you finally succumb to temptation.
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
I doubt they want the whole world to know how playable TS3 is and how fixable its "problems" are. It's apparent that EA is in "attack TS3" mode once again because a new TS4 EP is out that isn't as good as TS3's.
Those of us who help on out the Tech Issues forum here and EA's Answers HQ boards are fellow players (although AHQ also has community managers available who can connect with Customer Support if needed). We do not work for EA and don't care a whole lot how much or little affection EA seems to have for TS3.
TS3 is a currently being sold product though. In addition to the base game and the available 20 EP/SPs, the still active TS3 store for added content has got to be very lucrative. It wouldn't really make sense for the company to "attack" its own revenue source, given there is enough room in many players' hearts and computers for both games. Neglect a bit, or something less than shower with attention might come to mind, but attack seems a bit harsh (notwithstanding what a guru here and there might jokingly say about games no longer in development).
One thing I see all the chatter about Island Living is doing is rekindling some of our interests in TS3's Island Paradise. My sims are about to vacation there (fixed up world, NRaas Traveler mod); they might have done so anyway, but I think the idea got planted in my head just by reading about the new TS4 pack. It's getting very warm where I am IRL and tropical destinations don't always leap to mind as places to play when this happens so subconsciously there may be a connection there intended or otherwise.
I am looking at a grey, cold English summer day. It was raining earlier. I envy you and you are right, this thread and the weather are forcing my subconcious to consider a game in IP. Trouble is I haven't installed the fixed world yet
I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
LGR has said his review will be up on Friday. I’m curious to see what he thinks.
As for me, well the day has finally come when I can say isla paradiso runs better than a sims 4 world. My Isla paradiso does not have simulation lag, it doesn’t have sims stealing my food, nor sims walking into my house, it doesn’t have sims who refuse to wear anything besides their swim wear and the game play is far more in depth than just staring at at the water surface. My sims 3 runs far better and far smoother than sims 4 these days.
@PalmArrow : Let me explain what I mean by political correctness! Hopefully I can make clear what I mean and forgive me when I´m not, I´m not a natural English speaker!
At first: cleaning beaches or caring for our environment isn´t political correctness, it is a must! (we have something similar here in Germany, at some Saturdays in spring we clean road ditches)
But: there are a few examples in the Sims 4 game where things are implemented as modern or as game enhancements (like the gender patch, the flags, cleaning the beaches..) which are (in my opinion) not implemented because this shall enhance the game but it shall increase sale! And they chose especially such things just to appear modern and inclusionistically, again to increase sales!
They know who plays their game and who then praises EA for such things on twitter louder and better than an adverts could do that! So being political correct is just for sales figures and this cleaning the beaches thingy counts like that, too, in my eyes.
So hopefully I could make clear that I´m not against caring for environment (or people) but I´m against it to put it into a game and use it as sales promotion!
@AlexaKry , thank you for the clarification! I'm glad you weren't dismissive of caring for the environment, just doubting EA's motives, which is fair enough! Of course their decisions will be made with profit in mind, that's to be expected.
I still think there is nothing bad in taking a positive cause from real life and putting it into a game. I think all the fiction we consume influences us a little bit - books, TV shows, films and games too - and that reminding people that tropical locations have their traditions and their ecosystems that ought to be preserved, and are not just there to be exploited for tourism, can't be a bad thing.
(I'm not a native English speaker either, BTW!)
@AlexaKry While I'm not, in any way, a cheerleader for EA/Maxis I'm not sure that they include things like gender identification or cleaning beaches as a selling point. I like to think they are included as a way of bringing actual acute situations to the attention of people who might not normally think about them.
"People really love to explore 'failure states. In fact, the failure states are really much more interesting than the success states." ~ Will Wright
@PalmArrow : good that you´ve understood me!
I agree with you that every fiction influences us. But I think that there is a difference in implementing it and the motives behind it.
For example: If I read a book, this book covers a certain topic. This book might has a topic about man destroying the environment embeded into a detective story. Than this book clearly wants to point out to the reader that we have to save the planet. Or take a TV series: if there is made an episode at "Lucifer" where a computer programmer is killed, because he invented and programmed mass destruction weapons (just an example ) then this whole episode is filmed in order to bring this topic near to the viewers. So before this fiction is made the persons in charge think about the topic and want to point out what problems could appaer and what could be done to save the planet.
and @PHOEBESMOM601
But The Sims 4 was programmed as a superficial "life simulator" and implementing such things as above mentioned (afterwards!) shouts out loud: implemented in order to get more sales, not because we care! This is the problem I have. I doubt their aims!
I think EA will jump on any political hot topic so they can pat themselves on the back and say “Look we care, we are bringing attention to it/being inclusive.”
When actually The Sims has always been a progressive game ahead of its time in many aspects anyway.
@PalmArrow : good that you´ve understood me!
I agree with you that every fiction influences us. But I think that there is a difference in implementing it and the motives behind it.
For example: If I read a book, this book covers a certain topic. This book might has a topic about man destroying the environment embeded into a detective story. Than this book clearly wants to point out to the reader that we have to save the planet. Or take a TV series: if there is made an episode at "Lucifer" where a computer programmer is killed, because he invented and programmed mass destruction weapons (just an example ) then this whole episode is filmed in order to bring this topic near to the viewers. So before this fiction is made the persons in charge think about the topic and want to point out what problems could appaer and what could be done to save the planet.
and @PHOEBESMOM601
But The Sims 4 was programmed as a superficial "life simulator" and implementing such things as above mentioned (afterwards!) shouts out loud: implemented in order to get more sales, not because we care! This is the problem I have. I doubt their aims!
While I've no doubt EA is in it for the money...let's face it, why else would they be in business? ...... I do think The Sims has always been a game that's ahead of the curve for social situations.
"People really love to explore 'failure states. In fact, the failure states are really much more interesting than the success states." ~ Will Wright
Comments
This, by the way, is the thing for me... I haven’t done scuba diving properly (meaning maxing the skill and being able to dive on all the lots; I did play a mermaid who could and I liked how he could catch fish and eat under water) and I never played with the resorts either. And I haven’t unlocked all the islands. Oh, and the houseboats are ‘undiscovered territory’ for me as well. And still I played one and a half generation in IP, loving the island life. Because it has all the small islands and the atmosphere and all the boats passing by and the mermaids. I liked the lifeguard career myself by the way. It’s indeed a bit repetitive, but also funny, all those ‘drowning’ sims and their reactions. There was also an interaction available I remember, where my sim’s partner would fake fainting, hoping for mouth-to-mouth. That is one of those ‘nice for a few times and then it gets old’ kind of things, but it did make me laugh.
I agree with you that it’s a pity NPC’s never act like lifeguards!
I wish I could play The Sims 3 right now. I'm currently prepping the kitchen to be painted and finishing up painting a bedroom while breaking to read the forums and eat. Both dogs are not happy being blocked out of the partially wet room right now, lol. The only thing left is to wash the walls now then I'm done for the day and onto the Sims 3!
I definitely have that vague hope sometimes. I kind of feel bad that I'm not even tempted to play the TS4 base game. I guess because I love The Sims franchise as a whole. Any Sims game I've bought I've loved and I want to love The Sims 4 too but if I'm not feeling it I'm not feeling it. Hopefully they'll fix personalities.
I prefer the personality trait system as well. I like the Sims 2 having personality points assigned with zodiac signs and in the future I wouldn't mind seeing it combined with personality traits, the zodiac providing a bit more depth but personality traits taking the lead. If done right I could see it going well, but my problem with the points was always the fact that I could either have the right zodiac sign or the right amount of points for my sims personality but I'm a perfectionist who wants both lol. But even ignoring the zodiac signs being right or wrong, I'd usually run out of points and have to fall short in areas so they never quite lived up to exactly what I had in mind. I didn't have that problem with Sims 3 but I wish there was more to the signs.
But that's not really a problem. More begging = more easy money to be earned.
Good Luck with the decorating and keeping the dogs off the wet paint. It's even more fun trying to stop cats
It is a very long time since I played TS2. I did get the UC but it kept crashing even on this quite powerful laptop and my disks are now useless.
So I don't really remember much about the points system. I think I was more inclined to use the zodiac signs. That is one disappointing thing about TS3, that the zodiac sign does not seem to influence your sim as it would have done in TS3. However there are enough traits to create some very interesting characters. I love the animations and thought bubbles you get with the miser trait.
I can't really see EA changing the personality system for TS4. I think they may have tweaked it but I haven't heard anyone say that has improved matters much. Let's just hope EA have a total rethink should there ever be another iteration of the Sims on PC. It would be lovely to have functioning zodiac signs going forward and behaviour and feelings appropriate to the traits assigned to each individual sim.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
I shall be very disappointed if there is no LGR review. I have always found his reviews to be balanced and well informed, more importantly for me though, funny. There is always an extraordinary amount of hype around each pack release and the same was true for TS3. So having someone who can cut through the hype and see a product for what it really is has always been useful.
Yes the feedback has been most helpful in that it reinforced my original decision not to buy. I hope that those who have bought and are enjoying the game so far continue to do so. I suppose for others it is a case of waiting to see if the next pack along is sufficient to change their minds.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
I'm glad to hear you are enjoying IL and that it is working for you. I'm also sorry to hear about your experiences with IP. That must have been very off putting. There are solutions for most known issues with IP but, as you also say it is a new computer it might be something simple like an adjustment to your graphics card. I appreciate you are happy with TS4 but maybe hubby might want to visit the TS3 help section because he might want to play IP.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
I don't know if you realize this, that if Isla Paradiso doesn't work for you and you don't feel like fixing it, you can play other tropical worlds similar to Isla Paradiso that won't freeze or glitch. They're all free too.
I doubt they want the whole world to know how playable TS3 is and how fixable its "problems" are. It's apparent that EA is in "attack TS3" mode once again because a new TS4 EP is out that isn't as good as TS3's.
The latest disappointment about the island pack I'm finding out now is that this pack was supposed to be a GP - a game pack, not an EP. That's why it doesn't have as much as an EP should have. But it DOES have the EP price tag.
I really HATE EA at this point.
I´ve bought Sims 4 at release, played a bit, disliked it from the bottom of my heart! Stopped playing it after a week.
Tried it again when Get to Work came out, disliked it again, stopped playing(well, playing would be an exaggeration) until the toddlers came out.
Tried them out and although I have to admit that they werde done ok, my game was unplayable for me. Time jumped back, Sims stood there without moving or taking orders from me, the toddlers were too independent (what kind of toddler takes a plate of food for itself, walks over to the couch, climbes onto the couch and eats the food there???), the whole game was a buggy mess for me!
I´ve quit playing it from this time on and wasn´t tempted a bit to try to play!
But after reading the feedback and how limited this pack is with this tiny lots, the boating just on a few places, rabbithole careers (no Sims 4 player can ever again argue that Sims 3 consists of rabbitholes anymore, I see much more rabbitholes in Sims 4!!), no diving (really, in this EP no diving???), the useless implantation of today´s political correctness (cleaning up the beach), .....
Well, after I´ve read and heard so much about it I´m soo tempted to buy this pack!
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale
TS3 is a currently being sold product though. In addition to the base game and the available 20 EP/SPs, the still active TS3 store for added content has got to be very lucrative. It wouldn't really make sense for the company to "attack" its own revenue source, given there is enough room in many players' hearts and computers for both games. Neglect a bit, or something less than shower with attention might come to mind, but attack seems a bit harsh (notwithstanding what a guru here and there might jokingly say about games no longer in development).
One thing I see all the chatter about Island Living is doing is rekindling some of our interests in TS3's Island Paradise. My sims are about to vacation there (fixed up world, NRaas Traveler mod); they might have done so anyway, but I think the idea got planted in my head just by reading about the new TS4 pack. It's getting very warm where I am IRL and tropical destinations don't always leap to mind as places to play when this happens so subconsciously there may be a connection there intended or otherwise.
NRaas has moved!
Our new site is at http://nraas.net
Can I take your last point first? Unless you have 100% confidence in your source of information then it is best to treat such data with a degree of caution. I have fallen foul of this kind of thing when searching for information on the next iteration and have concluded it is best to verify the data elsewhere preferably from an EA source. For me it was part of my training when dealing with ancient texts for my degree. That said if you are reasonably confident then it is very disappointing to find out, particularly given all the things you previously mentioned which could have been added to improve IL. On the other hand I have watched several videos on the content of IL and it seems more than some previous TS4 EPs. None of them have been overly generous compared to TS3 EPs though.
I would urge you not to hate. It is such a negative emotion. If I may say you come across as a real lover of TS3 and your posts help give this game a more positive image which spreads the word about how good it really is. There is nothing to say that we the players can't promote this game and at this stage in it's life cycle that is probably far more effective than anything EA might say or do.
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
You forgot the dolphins and turtles ........ whereas all we got with IP was sharks and the kracken
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
I am looking at a grey, cold English summer day. It was raining earlier. I envy you and you are right, this thread and the weather are forcing my subconcious to consider a game in IP. Trouble is I haven't installed the fixed world yet
Wherever I am friends call me Betty
Sim enim est vita
As for me, well the day has finally come when I can say isla paradiso runs better than a sims 4 world. My Isla paradiso does not have simulation lag, it doesn’t have sims stealing my food, nor sims walking into my house, it doesn’t have sims who refuse to wear anything besides their swim wear and the game play is far more in depth than just staring at at the water surface. My sims 3 runs far better and far smoother than sims 4 these days.
At first: cleaning beaches or caring for our environment isn´t political correctness, it is a must! (we have something similar here in Germany, at some Saturdays in spring we clean road ditches)
But: there are a few examples in the Sims 4 game where things are implemented as modern or as game enhancements (like the gender patch, the flags, cleaning the beaches..) which are (in my opinion) not implemented because this shall enhance the game but it shall increase sale! And they chose especially such things just to appear modern and inclusionistically, again to increase sales!
They know who plays their game and who then praises EA for such things on twitter louder and better than an adverts could do that! So being political correct is just for sales figures and this cleaning the beaches thingy counts like that, too, in my eyes.
So hopefully I could make clear that I´m not against caring for environment (or people) but I´m against it to put it into a game and use it as sales promotion!
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale
I still think there is nothing bad in taking a positive cause from real life and putting it into a game. I think all the fiction we consume influences us a little bit - books, TV shows, films and games too - and that reminding people that tropical locations have their traditions and their ecosystems that ought to be preserved, and are not just there to be exploited for tourism, can't be a bad thing.
(I'm not a native English speaker either, BTW!)
I agree with you that every fiction influences us. But I think that there is a difference in implementing it and the motives behind it.
For example: If I read a book, this book covers a certain topic. This book might has a topic about man destroying the environment embeded into a detective story. Than this book clearly wants to point out to the reader that we have to save the planet. Or take a TV series: if there is made an episode at "Lucifer" where a computer programmer is killed, because he invented and programmed mass destruction weapons (just an example
and @PHOEBESMOM601
But The Sims 4 was programmed as a superficial "life simulator" and implementing such things as above mentioned (afterwards!) shouts out loud: implemented in order to get more sales, not because we care! This is the problem I have. I doubt their aims!
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale
When actually The Sims has always been a progressive game ahead of its time in many aspects anyway.
While I've no doubt EA is in it for the money...let's face it, why else would they be in business? ...... I do think The Sims has always been a game that's ahead of the curve for social situations.