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Realm of Magic vs. Strangerville
simsonthemoon
Posts: 86 Member
Hey everyone. I'm looking to build a bundle to buy some packs I don't have since bundles are only $33 currently. I have chosen Eco Living and Tiny Living, but i'm struggling to decide between ROM or Strangerville. Honestly, I don't find myself playing as a spellcaster often and I don't think I'll even play through the Strangerville storyline unless I'm desperately bored so I don't really care on which pack I buy I just want the deal lol but figured I'd ask for opinions from people who have these packs to see if one is still worth it more than the other.
Which pack do you find brings more use in build/cas or you find brings something else that you use even if not playing as a spellcaster or playing the storyline?
Which would you choose?
Thanks for any opinions. Sorry if you think this sounds stupid haha.
Which pack do you find brings more use in build/cas or you find brings something else that you use even if not playing as a spellcaster or playing the storyline?
Which would you choose?
Thanks for any opinions. Sorry if you think this sounds stupid haha.
0
Comments
Strangerville
Realm of Magic
If you think you'll get more mileage out of a pretty good lifestate and a small temperate neighborhood then go with Realm of Magic. If you would rather have a story about killer plants and a larger desert neighborhood then go with Strangerville. I find the assets to be about equal.
Thanks for the opinion! I may just end up going with ROM because there will probably come a day where I'll be inspired enough to play as a spellcaster lol.
I'm aware of the sale going on which is why I was looking at the packs in the first place. I just thought it would be worth it to bundle because I'd essentially be getting a "free" GP for the same amount of money to just by Eco and Tiny. So I figured why not.
Oh nice
Thanks for the opinion!
build and buy both packs are awesome and I use them tons sv being bit more realistic tho so it fits better with other build stuff
for cas rom is more my taste tho
its about opinions
🏡 Gallery 📖 Stories 🌍 World Project 🥔 MOD/CC Free
+ Nice new world, great if you want a small-town feel that's still unique
+ Pretty nice, quaint BB/CAS
+ The Military career
+ You can control how much weirdness there is to the town once you beat the story.
+ George Cahill and his plane house.
- The "story" is nonexistent and basically amounts to a bunch of annoying fetch quests, rather than any meaningful gameplay
- No variation in the story, no replay value.
- Not that you'd want to play it again, because the whole experience is tedious and horrible
- If you don't like the strange, you'll have to finish its "story" before you can change it.
- Meta: It was Grant's pet project, many were against it, and it was made as a quick cash-grab because EA wasn't doing well and needed the money
- No hatchable dragons
- It sucks and I hate it
- Honestly, if you want a game pack with a narrative or quest, go for Jungle Adventure. It's superior to StrangerVille in like every way. It's one of the best Sims 4 packs, honestly
Realm of Magic
+ Spellcasters have a lot to play with - they can be evil, good, neutral, have various brooms and wands, practice different types of magic, etc. It's an occult storytellers dream.
+ This included unique eyes and ears (unless they only work if you also have Vampires? Idk), which expands your options even more.
+ The Spellcaster genetic traits are neat
+ It's fun to practice magic and see your spellcasters grow over time.
+ There are a few ways to creatively abuse the spells, like burning down sims' houses, committing insurance fraud and running a bakery without ever having to cook
+- It's better than Sims 2 and 3's takes on spellcasters, but this pack is far, faaaar behind Sims 1's Makin' Magic
+- You can duel sims, which is fun. THe problem is that they're all basically the same over and over again, and you don't have much way in controlling the outcome.
+- The sims have much more effort put into them, compared to all other Sims 4 not named Vlad. But that's not saying much. Also, they're ugly as sin. Absolutely hideous.
+- The Magic Realm is pretty and a nice idea. But it's way too small and there's nothing to do there. Aside from visiting it being a requirement for one of the aspirations, there's no reason to visit it. It's such a waste of a good concept
+_ Some of the spells are very handy and fun.But overall, spells are mostly glorified cheats or recycled content, with very few quirky and fun spells
- Glimmerbrook is dull and the houses are ugly. Like, some of the worst houses EA has ever done.
- The BB is decent, if niche. The problem is that there's not a lot in there, so you can't really make many houses with these. Very underdeveloped.
- The CAS is meh, you can tell that they sacrificed unique flavor for the sake of punk/normal clothes to appease the non-occult fans. Seriously, no witch hats? None at all?
- No hatchable dragons
- The familiars were terribly executed - they're glorified drones that make comments sometimes. They prevent you from dying of magical overload, but magical overload is so difficult to achieve that you have to actively work towards achieving it in the first place
- Potions are underwhelming, and you can't even make a good potion shop because they sell for almost nothing and need to be constantly remade. Seriously, most potion ingredients cost more than the potions themselves
- Overall, it should have been an expansion pack, because it couldn't reach its full potential in a game pack. It's decent or even good, but it could have been amazing
The Sims 4 hasn't introduced a new musical instrument since 2017
(I have both packs and like both)
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
Strangerville has a really nice world and the military career but the story mode is like no please no please don't.
If you don't care about the gameplay in either of the. I guess the Strangerville world is worth it more since it can be used as a normal neighborhood, while the realm of magic is not buildable and Glimmerbrook is maybe the most boring world in the game.
The build and buy items are great in both packs but again there are a few more magical looking items that come with RoM so if you don't care about magic you won't be using them much.
The CAS in both is really nice.
Strangerville
Pros:
-Paranoid Trait
-Lovely desert world that is different than oasis springs
-Great CAS and BB featuring hippy clothing, Victorian architecture, and Mid-Century furniture
-Laptops
-Military Career
-Some of the best music in the Sims 4
Cons:
-The story is soooo boring, I solved it once and never bothered with it afterward, it's a chore really don't bother
-The possessed sims can be annoying if you live in Strangerville
Realm of Magic
Pros:
-Magic
-Great Art Nouveau BB
-Music is nice
-Pretty world
-Familiars
Cons:
-Magic doesn't really have consequences in the same way vampires do so it ends up becoming really easy to have an overpowered spellcaster
-Children cannot do magic despite having an animation for spellcasting and the fact Makin' Magic in the Sims 1 had kids that can do magic
-Almost all of the spells are repeats of aspiration point rewards or things you can achieve by other means
-2/3 of the really cool looking sages from the trailer weren't included in the actual game
So, in conclusion, both are great looking packs that have a lot to offer in terms of world and items but are kind of lackluster as far as gameplay. Since it's basically free with the bundle I'd go with whatever one you vibe with more. Maybe watch the trailers on youtube.
ROM build by is wonderful but it's kind of limited to a certain style that may or may not be appealing for I guess more standard homes.
I like the build/buy in Strangerville more especially the doors and windows. I like American Gothic kind of builds and it nails it for me.
I like the world better in Strangerville too although if you don't play it you will see those little plants around .. they won't grow if you don't get past the first part of aspiration though. That's the state most of my saves are in... except some weirder ones where I want full plants and weird skies/effects.
Also you have the military career in Strangerville. I love the music also.
ROM barely wins for me personally as a pack but that's because I play a lot of spellcasters, many of which live in Strangerville lol. They are my top two packs. I need them now.
Strangerville even deals with plants too. These 3 together would make a great big expansion in the likes of the Sims 2 ones.
Legacy Photomode
This is actually a really good point. I personally like to put themes together so if you are looking for a thematic bundle, this suggestion is perfect. Strangerville has some really good grungy build/buy in it as well as some nice Victorian pieces and weird plant stuff. The CAS is interesting and a little bit "southwest USA" and the world is pretty cool with a few more lots than most Game Packs have. Just keep in mind though, that the world starts out weird, not "normal", and you'll have to play through the story to get it to a normal state if you want. Also, Eco Lifestyle does not affect Strangerville.
Realm of Magic is one of my favorites, but I love to play Occults. It actually comes with two small worlds, but one is the magic realm and you can't live there or build without a cheat. The other, Glimmerbrook, is a beautiful woodland area that feels both peaceful and mystical. Great for Sims who want to live in a little bit of rural isolation. The build/buy is an absolutely gorgeous art deco style with a little fantastical twist. Roundish doors and stained glass...it's just beautiful. And the CAS has some great outfits from hoodies and streetwear to cute dresses to odd styles. But if you like more "normal" gameplay, you might not get as much out of this pack because most of it has a sort of mysterious, magical flavor.
I think they're both great overall, so it's a win-win.
I use a lot of strangerville items for a usual rundown look. Been enjoying building rusty looking trailers or shacks with things that can look like an overall junkyard or using them in run down apartments. With the combination of eco living I can achieve that even more. ROM has some nice furniture for some modern and fancy looks for sure. Plus have made from rustic looking shacks as well with some things for a witch's hut so it's pretty versatile. They both have some really great stuff kinda just depends on what you think you'd use a lot more.
@simsonthemoon With Strangerville you get a new career and aspiration. I really like the world. And I play it alot, in some saves I have solved it, others, left the world with weird weather and most others don't bother with the story. It is just a pretty word.
Do you have a link for that mod? I've already got a template save with the "mystery" solved but just in case I have to rebuild it from scratch it would be good to know.
I like Strangerville mainly for the Military career and the laptops, though I do like much of the CAS as well. The town is a bit underwhelming but it's a good spot to park Sims I don't want culled but I'm not actively playing.
Fun must be always -- Tomas Hertl (San Jose Sharks hockey player)
https://deichschafblog.de/bienchen/strangerville-strangerville/
last mod in that page
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
Strangerville is very western. You get adorable yeehaw outfits and I personally love the town itself. It also has some cool sci-fi objects in BB that compliment Get to Work well. So if you enjoy the scientist career in that EP, or have an astronaut sim, or just nerdy sims in general, then there are objects that go well with that. So if you prefer western and/or sci-fi over fantasy halloweeny stuff, then go for Strangerville.
I wasn’t expecting much from strangerville, but I was pleasantly surprised. It had a large town for a GP, and the story play through was fun the first time. I love the look of the world, it’s very pretty. I love the crashed airplane of CaHills lot. I wish the lab had been changeable after the play through though. it has a military career in the pack, wish it had more military stuff as career rewards though). It has some nice stain glass windows and such, And if you want a bit of mystery in the beginning the pack has that. Then it’s a normal beautiful town afterwards.