Forum Announcement, Click Here to Read More From EA_Cade.

The Sims 4 Community Voted Stuff Pack Deep Dive: New Stereo Stations!

SimGuruConorSimGuruConor Posts: 16 SimGuru
edited February 16 in Nominated Threads
For our latest Stuff Pack we’re adding not one, but two new stereo stations to listen to while you knit! You’re not going to knit in total silence with just your thoughts eating away at you, right? Let's drown out the voices with some new tunes!

First off is our aptly named Focus stereo station. And if you’re wondering, yes it will give you a Focused buff. Not only will it calm your earbuds, but also give your Sims a nice bonus to working on Homework and Knitting, neat huh? So if you just need to simmer down, the Focus station is here for you.

But what if you’ve had enough chilling?

What if you want something a little more LOUD?

What if you want something that will make you stand up and scream Viking expletives you never knew existed?!?!

Buddy, do we have a station for you!

Introducing the Metal stereo station, coming soon to a Stuff Pack near you!

Yes, you heard that right. The Sims 4 is getting Metal. Sims listening to Metal will feel Energized, and will gain bonuses to Knitting while they listen. Any stereo currently playing Metal will also gain some new flair for the available interactions. Check them out below:

ye7zi4ejpzjj.png

Wait, does that say AIR GUITAR TO METAL?

OH YES IT DOES.

mjxap5w7nt0p.gif

Animations are still work-in-progress, but I had to share. Knitting and Metal, together under the same roof. They go together like llamas and bunnies, tragedy and clowns, Goths and aliens, okay, you get the picture...

Adding new music stations to the Sims is always a lot of fun, and I wanted to integrate them into the knitting experience itself. So if you want to get a boost to your knitting skill, consider turning on one of our new stations while getting crafty.
Now I’d like to introduce Drew Boles, our Audio Designer for this pack. I did a little Q&A with Drew to give you some insights into the Audio development process.

Conor: Can you tell us what it means to be an Audio designer?

Drew: There are three primary components to being an Audio designer for The Sims 4:
1) working with the other disciplines - particularly the design team - to understand the vision and limitations of a feature, so as to determine what sounds are needed;
2) recording, manipulating, synthesizing, editing, and mastering those sounds;
3) implementing them into the game and then adjusting their parameters to ensure they not only work properly within the 3D space, but also convey the overall sense of quirky fun that has come to define the franchise.

Conor: Simlish is the language of The Sims, and all the songs are sung in Simlish. Can you talk a little a bit about the process and challenges around creating Simlish lyrics?

Drew: Whenever we enlist a band or musician to re-record one of their tracks in Simlish, we provide them with a translation. This can be tricky, particularly when the vocalist is singing or rap quickly. I always use our standard lexicon as a base - many players will recognize common Simlish words, such as “sul sul” (“hello”) and “lurve” (“love”) - and then fill in the rest with other non-specific words we have in our Simlish ‘dictionary’. When translating, I work to retain the music’s original flavor by emulating the original rhyme scheme and musical phrasing. And because singers are not used to singing in Simlish, it is very important that the Simlish be as easy to sing as possible; this often means being conscious of small things like how consonants and vowels stack up. I, myself, am a vocalist, so I always sing my translated lines along to the original recording; if something is even slightly challenging to sing, I revise it.

Things are less tricky when writing lyrics for a new piece of music. Because there is no pre-existing text to match, we simply ensure that the Simlish sings well and sounds natural to the ear.

Conor: The upcoming Metal Stereo Station is one of many stations we have in The Sims 4. What is your favorite station to listen to while playing the game?

Drew: It would be difficult to narrow it down to just one, but I do particularly enjoy the NuDisco and Island Stereo stations.

Conor: Can you tell us a bit about the stereo stations planned for our upcoming Stuff Pack?

Drew: As you already mentioned, we are adding a Metal Stereo Station. We have been wanting to do this in The Sims 4 for a while and have been on the lookout for various opportunities to do so. At first glance, a pack centered on knitting may seem like an odd choice, but when we heard about the Heavy Metal Knitting Competition last year in Finland, we knew it was, in fact, a perfect fit.
We are also including – for the first time in the history of the Sims franchise – a Focus Stereo Station. This station will feature music that has an organic feel and is pretty, repetitive, and nondescript. The sort of music you would not sit and listen to, but rather put on in the background to help you focus on something else, like studying. Or knitting.

Conor: What is your favorite feature you have ever worked on in The Sims 4?

Drew: Again, how can I narrow it down to just one?! I hope you’ll indulge me, as there are actually two features that immediately spring to mind: the Dr. June’s Weather Control Device (from the Seasons Expansion) & the Talk Radio station (from the City Living Expansion).

The Weather Control Device was particularly fun because it was an odd and complicated object with a lot of moving parts. I had to be creative not just in the materials I recorded (which included a plunger, a creaky metal ironing board, and the inner workings of an old VHS player, to name a few), but also in how I edited and implemented them, so as to bring them all together in a cohesive way.

The Talk Radio station was fun because, as a frequent NPR listener, I got to reimagine some of my favorite shows and bring them into the Sims world. I wrote the scripts, cast and directed the actors, and then edited all of the radio spots together with sound effects and music.


Hey Simmers, I’ve hoped you enjoyed this sneak peek into the features and development of our newest Stuff Pack. Just a general reminder that everything I’ve talked about here is In Progress development, so it could change between now and the final product. Please keep watching the forums as I’ll be sharing more information and insights in the weeks to come.

Happy Simming,
SimGuruConor
Post edited by EA_Cade on

Comments

  • DaWaterRatDaWaterRat Posts: 3,351 Member
    Ha ha! I love it! Someone was inspired by the Metal Knitting video, I see.
  • x4m1r4x4m1r4 Posts: 3,901 Member
    edited May 2020
    Metal sounds cool! :D I would probably getting this pack just because of this.... and the rocking chair.
    OID:- x4m1r4
  • EgonVMEgonVM Posts: 4,926 Member
    One of the new stations is focus...

    Doesn't The Sims 4 Spa Day have New Age station that grants a focused moodlet when listened to? Though I do understand: not everyone owns Spa Day.
  • NindlNindl Posts: 510 Member
    I'm excited and happy about both radio stations! And the interview is very interesting! Thanks for sharing! :smiley:
  • GordyGordy Posts: 3,015 Member
    Jeez, what kind of budget does this pack have, if it's getting so many new animations, new music, a skill, Plopsy and rocking chairs?
    TS1_dragons_hatching.jpg
    The Sims 4 hasn't introduced a new musical instrument since 2017
  • calaprfycalaprfy Posts: 3,927 Member
    EgonVM wrote: »
    One of the new stations is focus...

    Doesn't The Sims 4 Spa Day have New Age station that grants a focused moodlet when listened to? Though I do understand: not everyone owns Spa Day.

    It does. Well, it did. It stopped working around Xmastime.
  • 12JEREMIA12JEREMIA Posts: 3,143 Member
    Yo! That's so darn loud!!
  • adele_katadele_kat Posts: 130 Member
    edited May 2020
    The Sims 4 is still too childish and I'm afraid that metal songs will sound too happy.
    giphy.gif
  • AnmirlaAnmirla Posts: 3,835 Member
    YEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!! <3
    baby%20bat_zpsgzvzhrnc.gif
  • kalaksedkalaksed Posts: 2,643 Member
    totally in shock here... can't believe they're actually adding metal to the pack because of the metal knitting competition i brought up (and linked) in an early knitting thread since so many were complaining knitting is 'just for old people'

    ...was already planning on making some heavy metal knitters when the pack dropped but seeing the station and animations are being added to the pack just makes everything so much better for me and these still unformed sims. so absolutely looking forward to this even more

    (also, shoutout to my finnish friend, @Lumiasta who is the one that let me know that competition even existed)
  • LiELFLiELF Posts: 6,439 Member
    Metal knitting?

    Metal knitting!!

    Oh, I'm here for it. \m/

    Hey, will there be head banging and the "metal sign" if you're a music lover?
    #Team Occult
  • RavenSpitRavenSpit Posts: 1,387 Member
    This is so cool!
    Thank you Finland B)
    Gallery ID: ra7orrat

  • ScobreScobre Posts: 20,665 Member
    Cool I have wanted Metal music awhile. I wonder if Sims will getting a knitting tattoo with this pack?
    “Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” –Helen Keller
  • fruitsbasket101fruitsbasket101 Posts: 1,530 Member
    edited May 2020
    Weird pack to put metal music in but i'm not gonna complain. The more music genres the better.
    Have a super fantastic awesome splendid amazing day! -TheQxxn
  • ListentoToppDoggListentoToppDogg Posts: 2,103 Member
    Why is it every time they talk about something in this pack, I get more and more annoyed :/ Of all the things to include in a knitting pack, why radio stations? Why couldn't this just be a free update before the pack comes out? Where is the actual knitting of this knitting pack? Once again, if this pack comes out, and it turns out kids and toddlers don't get any knitting gameplay because it went to all of this other stuff, I'm going to be hugely disappointed.
  • Destin2016Destin2016 Posts: 568 Member
    🤦‍♀️🙀😑😴😴😴😴😴
    You like me because I'm a scoundrel. There aren't enough scoundrels in your life.
  • cheescaekscheescaeks Posts: 902 Member
    edited May 2020
    hahah love it. i hope you guys add vaporwave/synthwave into the game at some point lol.

    perhaps an 80s style arcade stuff pack? :D
  • GwennogJonesGwennogJones Posts: 79 Member
    Sounds brilliant. As a metal loving hippy this is right up my alley
  • kaiwrysimskaiwrysims Posts: 1,532 Member
    Omg I can't stop laughing I can't believe their adding metal to a knitting pack
    Check out my twitter and tumblr
  • divanthesimmerdivanthesimmer Posts: 1,462 Member
    Metal! Finally!
    phULnBI.png
    Check out my SimLit blog here: https://ageekylegacy.wordpress.com/
    Follow me on Twitter @divanthesimmer
    Follow me on Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/divanthesimmer
    Origin ID: divanthesimmer
  • netney52netney52 Posts: 1,214 Member
    Awesome finally something I like about this pack.
  • KimmerKimmer Posts: 2,370 Member
    edited May 2020
    Oh my metal, I didn't expect this. I'm proud to be a Finn.
    Thank you so much, I don't care about knitting but metal station and air guitar... yes. I can finally give my metalhead Sims music to listen to. B)
  • crocobauracrocobaura Posts: 7,342 Member


    I love this! :smiley:

Leave a Comment

BoldItalicStrikethroughOrdered listUnordered list
Emoji
Image
Align leftAlign centerAlign rightToggle HTML viewToggle full pageToggle lights
Drop image/file
Return to top