But, if they don't bother listening, I hope Paralives wipes them out of existence
The thing I worry about with paralives is it looks like it may be a better simulation game, but with its peculiar art style, everyone who stays in The Sims 4 to make hot sims and take cute modelling pictures aren't going to follow suit. The Sims franchise will never die because of that, unless a company makes what is essentially a modelling simulator which is way more customisable than The Sims 4 and actually well designed.
I like doing that and playing though - I use The Sims 4 for aesthetics and 2 and 3 to well, play the game.
In fairness, the "Well Decorated" moodlet is an element of classic Sims gameplay.
The goal of The Sims 1 and The Sims 2 was to earn enough money to decorate your house with objects that would raise your Sims' Room(TS1)/Environment(TS2) need, which in turn would keep them happy.
TS3 and TS4 keep the Environment score, but make it hidden, and reward your Sim with a Happy buff instead once it's high enough.
Removing that Environment score would mean removing gameplay.
The Sims 4 is already too easy, let's not make it easier.
Yes, storytelling has increasingly become the focus of the game (and this in turn is what has made gameplay easier and Sims more shallow, since the Gurus expect us to make our own fun instead of providing fun), but at its core, Sims being happy from well-decorated rooms is a core gameplay mechanic of this series.
Keep the "Well Decorated" moodlet.
What the game needs is to make other emotions last longer, and to make them not override each other. If your Sim is Energized, it should take a very powerful Happy moodlet to override that. If they're Sad, they shouldn't be so quick to become Focused. And happiness for its own sake needs an overhaul. What does it mean to be Happy? It should be treated like TS2's Platinum Mood; an emotion that rarely appears, but when it does, comes with powerful, tangible gameplay elements.
Essentially, the Meaningful Stories mod needs to be integrated into the game officially.
I feel like TS4 more so puts it in the hands of the player to make their own stories. They're very flexible while allowing the player to have specific perks to whatever way their story leans (i.e. gold digger female, slacker gamer, unloyal husbands, loving father, serial cheaters, etc.) while not binding them into one way of playing.
I feel like TS4 more so puts it in the hands of the player to make their own stories. They're very flexible while allowing the player to have specific perks to whatever way their story leans (i.e. gold digger female, slacker gamer, unloyal husbands, loving father, serial cheaters, etc.) while not binding them into one way of playing.
And yet it's the worst game for storytelling yet due to the shallow neighborhoods with lack of customizability and no thematic choice for items/clothes without CC.
In fairness, the "Well Decorated" moodlet is an element of classic Sims gameplay.
The goal of The Sims 1 and The Sims 2 was to earn enough money to decorate your house with objects that would raise your Sims' Room(TS1)/Environment(TS2) need, which in turn would keep them happy.
TS3 and TS4 keep the Environment score, but make it hidden, and reward your Sim with a Happy buff instead once it's high enough.
Removing that Environment score would mean removing gameplay.
The Sims 4 is already too easy, let's not make it easier.
I feel like if they had removed the difficulty already, cause in sims 1 if you had the lowest furniture in what concerns to confort and price the game would give very few room points, making the sim not happy. In sims 4 the only way to have a bad moodlet related to environment is when something is dirty. Even with the less expensive furniture my sims always get the well decorated moodlet.
I feel like TS4 more so puts it in the hands of the player to make their own stories. They're very flexible while allowing the player to have specific perks to whatever way their story leans (i.e. gold digger female, slacker gamer, unloyal husbands, loving father, serial cheaters, etc.) while not binding them into one way of playing.
But then i ask myself ... why did they add traits to the sims? It kind of deceives the player into thinking that they will matter...
I feel like if they had removed the difficulty already, cause in sims 1 if you had the lowest furniture in what concerns to confort and price the game would give very few room points, making the sim not happy. In sims 4 the only way to have a bad moodlet related to environment is when something is dirty. Even with the less expensive furniture my sims always get the well decorated moodlet.
I'd also like to add that it has no impact because you can drag and drop dirty plates into the sink yourself. The negative moodlet is basically pointless at this point because you can fix it with a matter of a few drags of the mouse.
In TS3 you had a passive negative moodlet for not painting walls or not providing a room with lighting. The Sims 4 has no equivalent.
I feel like TS4 more so puts it in the hands of the player to make their own stories. They're very flexible while allowing the player to have specific perks to whatever way their story leans (i.e. gold digger female, slacker gamer, unloyal husbands, loving father, serial cheaters, etc.) while not binding them into one way of playing.
Sims 4 leaves a lot up to the imagination. The game is very surface level and beyond that it’s a matter of what you imagine your Sim and their story to be. I didn’t feel required to fill in obvious gaps with my imagination in previous games and I consider that a monumental failure of Sims 4.
I don’t play Sims to tell stories I make up. I play it as a game, and the story comes naturally as I play, which Sims 4 struggles to accommodate since it’s so reliant on the player picking up most of the slack while it tries to do ultimately nothing.
The thing I worry about with paralives is it looks like it may be a better simulation game, but with its peculiar art style, everyone who stays in The Sims 4 to make hot sims and take cute modelling pictures aren't going to follow suit. The Sims franchise will never die because of that, unless a company makes what is essentially a modelling simulator which is way more customisable than The Sims 4 and actually well designed.
I like doing that and playing though - I use The Sims 4 for aesthetics and 2 and 3 to well, play the game.
I think that's a good point. Paralives probably won't be as graphically impressive as The Sims. I also believe Paralives will be a cheaper game in general, certainly cheaper than the sims, and a lot of the content will be free with the Steam Workshop. The cheaper price might attract more people to buy Paralives, but the better graphics might keep people playing the Sims 4.
In fairness, the "Well Decorated" moodlet is an element of classic Sims gameplay.
The goal of The Sims 1 and The Sims 2 was to earn enough money to decorate your house with objects that would raise your Sims' Room(TS1)/Environment(TS2) need, which in turn would keep them happy.
TS3 and TS4 keep the Environment score, but make it hidden, and reward your Sim with a Happy buff instead once it's high enough.
Removing that Environment score would mean removing gameplay.
The Sims 4 is already too easy, let's not make it easier.
Yes, storytelling has increasingly become the focus of the game (and this in turn is what has made gameplay easier and Sims more shallow, since the Gurus expect us to make our own fun instead of providing fun), but at its core, Sims being happy from well-decorated rooms is a core gameplay mechanic of this series.
Keep the "Well Decorated" moodlet.
What the game needs is to make other emotions last longer, and to make them not override each other. If your Sim is Energized, it should take a very powerful Happy moodlet to override that. If they're Sad, they shouldn't be so quick to become Focused. And happiness for its own sake needs an overhaul. What does it mean to be Happy? It should be treated like TS2's Platinum Mood; an emotion that rarely appears, but when it does, comes with powerful, tangible gameplay elements.
Essentially, the Meaningful Stories mod needs to be integrated into the game officially.
Good point. The well decorated moodlet doesn't have to disappear per se, like you said, if they just made it harder to get that moodlet in the first place! Made other negative moodlets stronger.
I wish they'd just use the template of the Meaningful Stories mod and just redo the emotion system. Honestly, it doesn't seem that difficult
The thing I worry about with paralives is it looks like it may be a better simulation game, but with its peculiar art style, everyone who stays in The Sims 4 to make hot sims and take cute modelling pictures aren't going to follow suit. The Sims franchise will never die because of that, unless a company makes what is essentially a modelling simulator which is way more customisable than The Sims 4 and actually well designed.
I like doing that and playing though - I use The Sims 4 for aesthetics and 2 and 3 to well, play the game.
I think that's a good point. Paralives probably won't be as graphically impressive as The Sims. I also believe Paralives will be a cheaper game in general, certainly cheaper than the sims, and a lot of the content will be free with the Steam Workshop. The cheaper price might attract more people to buy Paralives, but the better graphics might keep people playing the Sims 4.
As far graphics goes for me that is an moot point if there is nothing beyond graphics, If Paralives gameplay goes beyond what Sims 4 have to offer I am with Paralives just like when Sims City 2013 bombed, I went with Cities: Skyline which did give me what Sims City 2013 could not give. So the same here with Paralives I owe EA/Maxis no loyalty as Sims 4 cannot provide me the fun or creativity I yearn for. If Paralives does not pan out I would still abandon Sims 4 or any future games dealing with Sims series.
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I feel like TS4 more so puts it in the hands of the player to make their own stories. They're very flexible while allowing the player to have specific perks to whatever way their story leans (i.e. gold digger female, slacker gamer, unloyal husbands, loving father, serial cheaters, etc.) while not binding them into one way of playing.
Sims 4 leaves a lot up to the imagination. The game is very surface level and beyond that it’s a matter of what you imagine your Sim and their story to be. I didn’t feel required to fill in obvious gaps with my imagination in previous games and I consider that a monumental failure of Sims 4.
I don’t play Sims to tell stories I make up. I play it as a game, and the story comes naturally as I play, which Sims 4 struggles to accommodate since it’s so reliant on the player picking up most of the slack while it tries to do ultimately nothing.
In TS2 I can just play the game and the sims take care of the stories themselves. If I want to tell a story I make up I prefer to do that with a word processor, write a book and publish it. TS4 so drops the ball it's hard to believe it comes from the same company as TS2.
The thing I worry about with paralives is it looks like it may be a better simulation game, but with its peculiar art style, everyone who stays in The Sims 4 to make hot sims and take cute modelling pictures aren't going to follow suit. The Sims franchise will never die because of that, unless a company makes what is essentially a modelling simulator which is way more customisable than The Sims 4 and actually well designed.
I like doing that and playing though - I use The Sims 4 for aesthetics and 2 and 3 to well, play the game.
I think that's a good point. Paralives probably won't be as graphically impressive as The Sims. I also believe Paralives will be a cheaper game in general, certainly cheaper than the sims, and a lot of the content will be free with the Steam Workshop. The cheaper price might attract more people to buy Paralives, but the better graphics might keep people playing the Sims 4.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
The gaps in having to play your own imagination is the fact Maxis of today has forgotten what that means. It doesn't mean releasing a pack where there is nothing left to imagine such as the rpg SV, but a balance of what we make up and what we see or feel.
Here is the difference. I don't have to imagine my Sim on rotation is angry with my other Sim down the block. First, they have a memory, sometimes what exactly made them angry. They show up at the other Sim's home and trash the can or steal the paper,etc. My imagination plays as if this is some vampire hunter who knows my Sim is a vampire. (There is the story in my head) but my Sims in older games go right along with it.
I don't have to imagine they are unhappy with another Sim, or they are probably going to knock their block off the next time they see them. They aren't going to be standing over there wishing to hug, or be best friends with an enemy. Their anger isn't going to disappear and want to do lunch with the cheating partners, either. Or get all happy and anger disappear because I put a painting on the wall. Enviornment scores in TS2 are separate from emotions. I can appreciate a beautiful outdoor scene without forgetting I'm angry at someone for something dispicible. Esspecially if they are there, too. But TS4 Sims forget all about their lives, they live in a moment like an animal. They don't have any more brains than my dog. I can't scold my dog five hours later for something earlier, dogs live in the moment. It would be cruel to scold long after the action is over. But TS4 Sims behave that way. They don't remember anything from moment to moment. Actually my real pets have more brains than these Sims' AI. At least if I train one not to walk this or that route they will remember and go around...TS4 Sims have no such intellegence no matter how many times you cancel something. They can't learn as the previous Sims of the past. Who would learn (even a sloppy Sim) if you made them make the bed a few times, they would auto get up and make it up because they learned you preferred they do it, even if sloppy. But the catch is the would grumble and or drag themselves to do it, relunctally.
The reason so many players like TS2 and TS3 better is because TS4 Sims are still shallow after six years...their DNA is merely push and shove and get to a next level. There is no depth to personality. All my Sims in TS2 don't like every subject discussed. Many put their fingers in their ears if they don't want to hear it, or disinterested and or cross their arms, like saying yeah, right, sure pal. That isn't left up to my imagination, I have the interest in the panel. I will know they like gossip and btw it's real gossip of real things that happened to other Sims, and or if they like talking about money, or sports and or romance or whatever. They don't have blanket reactions to every subject discussed. And btw, they are discussing stuff (partly imagination) but those devs deserve praise for at least making the icons they are using while they talk in speech bubbles the same as the subject they are discussing and not all willy nilly. That's why it's easy to play and know what your Sim thinks, likes and cares about in TS2...in TS4, all they do is get attracted to a stereo and a hug. Their conversations aren't real, they have no memory of five minutes ago and they all are the same no matter trait and or interest, just a different body and or head.
Example Maxis: If I played Sherlock in TS2 and one of my other Sims had a break in they may show up and my Sims home, be invited in and may sit down and guess what Maxis, the speech bubble is about that burgarly. That's depth. Now, yes, he isn't really a Sherlock trying to solve crimes, lol, but TS2 was so indepth it was easy for me to imagine a lady showed up and told him about some crime that had happened to her. TS4 can't do that, and I don't want scripted play either. But I didn't have to imagine if her speech was about crime or not because she had just suffered it a few days ago.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Oh, well I stand corrected.
It's DEFINITELY a Sims-killer in that case.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Oh, well I stand corrected.
It's DEFINITELY a Sims-killer in that case.
Six people! Whoa!
Wake me when they show some actual gameplay.
It's sad to me that I have more faith in a brand new game that's still in development over a game series that has over 20 years of experience but that's where I'm at. More people doesn't necessarily mean a better game anymore than as few as 5 or 6 people do. I hope they take their time on Paralives. If it's not here for 3 more years so they can work everything out I'm fine because I never want something like what happened with The Sims 4 to happen again.
I was just talking about this in a Sims group. Sims 4 sims lack a personality. The issues with personalities and emotions have been mentioned numerous times and still little has been done to fix it. Then when you look at their history of how they left the previous games it's really no surprise.
Maybe Sims 5 will be better or maybe it won't. Who knows how Paralives will turn out, but I know based on the innovation and detail I've seen so far I like it. I wish EA did more of that. I like that they're listening to all ideas and that they want to know why players prefer certain types of gameplay to better understand. I wish EA thought like that.
I'm not saying it's going to kill The Sims but I really hope Paralives makes EA change some of their ways.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Oh, well I stand corrected.
It's DEFINITELY a Sims-killer in that case.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Oh, well I stand corrected.
It's DEFINITELY a Sims-killer in that case.
Six people! Whoa!
Wake me when they show some actual gameplay.
Wake me up when EA does the same for The Sims 4.
Yeah, Sims 4 has no pizzazz for me and I can't even play it no more and enjoy myself.
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The game really lacks personality. If I will be honest they create great dlc for the game that *could* add depth to the game, but this features never reached its full potential because the sims in the base game are lacking. They keep expanding sims with no personality with dlc rather than fixing them first.
Comments
The thing I worry about with paralives is it looks like it may be a better simulation game, but with its peculiar art style, everyone who stays in The Sims 4 to make hot sims and take cute modelling pictures aren't going to follow suit. The Sims franchise will never die because of that, unless a company makes what is essentially a modelling simulator which is way more customisable than The Sims 4 and actually well designed.
I like doing that and playing though - I use The Sims 4 for aesthetics and 2 and 3 to well, play the game.
Magnezone, the lover of Calientes, Lotharios, Landgraabs and Curiouses everywhere.
The goal of The Sims 1 and The Sims 2 was to earn enough money to decorate your house with objects that would raise your Sims' Room(TS1)/Environment(TS2) need, which in turn would keep them happy.
TS3 and TS4 keep the Environment score, but make it hidden, and reward your Sim with a Happy buff instead once it's high enough.
Removing that Environment score would mean removing gameplay.
The Sims 4 is already too easy, let's not make it easier.
Yes, storytelling has increasingly become the focus of the game (and this in turn is what has made gameplay easier and Sims more shallow, since the Gurus expect us to make our own fun instead of providing fun), but at its core, Sims being happy from well-decorated rooms is a core gameplay mechanic of this series.
Keep the "Well Decorated" moodlet.
What the game needs is to make other emotions last longer, and to make them not override each other. If your Sim is Energized, it should take a very powerful Happy moodlet to override that. If they're Sad, they shouldn't be so quick to become Focused. And happiness for its own sake needs an overhaul. What does it mean to be Happy? It should be treated like TS2's Platinum Mood; an emotion that rarely appears, but when it does, comes with powerful, tangible gameplay elements.
Essentially, the Meaningful Stories mod needs to be integrated into the game officially.
And yet it's the worst game for storytelling yet due to the shallow neighborhoods with lack of customizability and no thematic choice for items/clothes without CC.
Magnezone, the lover of Calientes, Lotharios, Landgraabs and Curiouses everywhere.
I feel like if they had removed the difficulty already, cause in sims 1 if you had the lowest furniture in what concerns to confort and price the game would give very few room points, making the sim not happy. In sims 4 the only way to have a bad moodlet related to environment is when something is dirty. Even with the less expensive furniture my sims always get the well decorated moodlet.
But then i ask myself ... why did they add traits to the sims? It kind of deceives the player into thinking that they will matter...
In TS3 you had a passive negative moodlet for not painting walls or not providing a room with lighting. The Sims 4 has no equivalent.
Magnezone, the lover of Calientes, Lotharios, Landgraabs and Curiouses everywhere.
Sims 4 leaves a lot up to the imagination. The game is very surface level and beyond that it’s a matter of what you imagine your Sim and their story to be. I didn’t feel required to fill in obvious gaps with my imagination in previous games and I consider that a monumental failure of Sims 4.
I don’t play Sims to tell stories I make up. I play it as a game, and the story comes naturally as I play, which Sims 4 struggles to accommodate since it’s so reliant on the player picking up most of the slack while it tries to do ultimately nothing.
I think that's a good point. Paralives probably won't be as graphically impressive as The Sims. I also believe Paralives will be a cheaper game in general, certainly cheaper than the sims, and a lot of the content will be free with the Steam Workshop. The cheaper price might attract more people to buy Paralives, but the better graphics might keep people playing the Sims 4.
Good point. The well decorated moodlet doesn't have to disappear per se, like you said, if they just made it harder to get that moodlet in the first place! Made other negative moodlets stronger.
I wish they'd just use the template of the Meaningful Stories mod and just redo the emotion system. Honestly, it doesn't seem that difficult
As far graphics goes for me that is an moot point if there is nothing beyond graphics, If Paralives gameplay goes beyond what Sims 4 have to offer I am with Paralives just like when Sims City 2013 bombed, I went with Cities: Skyline which did give me what Sims City 2013 could not give. So the same here with Paralives I owe EA/Maxis no loyalty as Sims 4 cannot provide me the fun or creativity I yearn for. If Paralives does not pan out I would still abandon Sims 4 or any future games dealing with Sims series.
In TS2 I can just play the game and the sims take care of the stories themselves. If I want to tell a story I make up I prefer to do that with a word processor, write a book and publish it. TS4 so drops the ball it's hard to believe it comes from the same company as TS2.
This meta moment, when TS4 child sims play dolls at the dollhouse, and you realise you're doing the exact same.
Well the latest demo / quick film shows Paralives being at least twice as better graphics than Sims 4... And I like Sims 4's art style.
Here is the difference. I don't have to imagine my Sim on rotation is angry with my other Sim down the block. First, they have a memory, sometimes what exactly made them angry. They show up at the other Sim's home and trash the can or steal the paper,etc. My imagination plays as if this is some vampire hunter who knows my Sim is a vampire. (There is the story in my head) but my Sims in older games go right along with it.
I don't have to imagine they are unhappy with another Sim, or they are probably going to knock their block off the next time they see them. They aren't going to be standing over there wishing to hug, or be best friends with an enemy. Their anger isn't going to disappear and want to do lunch with the cheating partners, either. Or get all happy and anger disappear because I put a painting on the wall. Enviornment scores in TS2 are separate from emotions. I can appreciate a beautiful outdoor scene without forgetting I'm angry at someone for something dispicible. Esspecially if they are there, too. But TS4 Sims forget all about their lives, they live in a moment like an animal. They don't have any more brains than my dog. I can't scold my dog five hours later for something earlier, dogs live in the moment. It would be cruel to scold long after the action is over. But TS4 Sims behave that way. They don't remember anything from moment to moment. Actually my real pets have more brains than these Sims' AI. At least if I train one not to walk this or that route they will remember and go around...TS4 Sims have no such intellegence no matter how many times you cancel something. They can't learn as the previous Sims of the past. Who would learn (even a sloppy Sim) if you made them make the bed a few times, they would auto get up and make it up because they learned you preferred they do it, even if sloppy. But the catch is the would grumble and or drag themselves to do it, relunctally.
The reason so many players like TS2 and TS3 better is because TS4 Sims are still shallow after six years...their DNA is merely push and shove and get to a next level. There is no depth to personality. All my Sims in TS2 don't like every subject discussed. Many put their fingers in their ears if they don't want to hear it, or disinterested and or cross their arms, like saying yeah, right, sure pal. That isn't left up to my imagination, I have the interest in the panel. I will know they like gossip and btw it's real gossip of real things that happened to other Sims, and or if they like talking about money, or sports and or romance or whatever. They don't have blanket reactions to every subject discussed. And btw, they are discussing stuff (partly imagination) but those devs deserve praise for at least making the icons they are using while they talk in speech bubbles the same as the subject they are discussing and not all willy nilly. That's why it's easy to play and know what your Sim thinks, likes and cares about in TS2...in TS4, all they do is get attracted to a stereo and a hug. Their conversations aren't real, they have no memory of five minutes ago and they all are the same no matter trait and or interest, just a different body and or head.
Example Maxis: If I played Sherlock in TS2 and one of my other Sims had a break in they may show up and my Sims home, be invited in and may sit down and guess what Maxis, the speech bubble is about that burgarly. That's depth. Now, yes, he isn't really a Sherlock trying to solve crimes, lol, but TS2 was so indepth it was easy for me to imagine a lady showed up and told him about some crime that had happened to her. TS4 can't do that, and I don't want scripted play either. But I didn't have to imagine if her speech was about crime or not because she had just suffered it a few days ago.
We haven't seen the people yet. This is what I was getting at. The houses themselves are visually impressive thus far (when teased earlier on though, the graphical style was a little eh, but it was pre-alpha clearly), don't get me wrong. But whether or not they get the humans right is what will make or break turning some people over from The Sims to Paralives.
I don't care too much. I like cute sims, but I prefer good gameplay. It's why I play TS2. But others spend most of their sims time modeling and making sims. If Paralives gets that aspect wrong, those players won't have any interest.
Magnezone, the lover of Calientes, Lotharios, Landgraabs and Curiouses everywhere.
Honestly I think it'll be a long time before we see people, and even longer until we see some equivalent to Live Mode.
What Alex Massé has made, is essentially a level editor.
I don't think it's wise for people to hype up Paralives as a Sims killer the way they do; it might be good, but let's see some gameplay first.
Apparently they are now about 5 or 6 people working on it. The same number of people, btw, that the team that makes Cities: Skylines has. And that blew Sim City into last decade.
Oh, well I stand corrected.
It's DEFINITELY a Sims-killer in that case.
Six people! Whoa!
Wake me when they show some actual gameplay.
It's sad to me that I have more faith in a brand new game that's still in development over a game series that has over 20 years of experience but that's where I'm at. More people doesn't necessarily mean a better game anymore than as few as 5 or 6 people do. I hope they take their time on Paralives. If it's not here for 3 more years so they can work everything out I'm fine because I never want something like what happened with The Sims 4 to happen again.
I was just talking about this in a Sims group. Sims 4 sims lack a personality. The issues with personalities and emotions have been mentioned numerous times and still little has been done to fix it. Then when you look at their history of how they left the previous games it's really no surprise.
Maybe Sims 5 will be better or maybe it won't. Who knows how Paralives will turn out, but I know based on the innovation and detail I've seen so far I like it. I wish EA did more of that. I like that they're listening to all ideas and that they want to know why players prefer certain types of gameplay to better understand. I wish EA thought like that.
I'm not saying it's going to kill The Sims but I really hope Paralives makes EA change some of their ways.
Wake me up when EA does the same for The Sims 4.
Yeah, Sims 4 has no pizzazz for me and I can't even play it no more and enjoy myself.
http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/924539/features-that-needs-depth-and-ways-to-improve