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How do you "rotational" play

i have never rotated play between families but i see in the forums that many folks have. I think it would add a bit more depth to my play ..i tend to create characters to place in a save along with a main household...my sim begins single but over time develops a love interest...the majority of the time her love interest will be a sim i created and moved into a home. i generally have two additional families for "friends" and create a neighborhood. you can post anything about rotational game play but here are my questions i would be most interested in.
1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any)
2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings
3. how long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?)
4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why?
5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be?
6. other then using rotational play what type of simmer are you in game...for example ...do you prefer family related play....single sims over couples...do you prefer to begin as a teen in a family or something else.

Comments

  • DuvelinaDuvelina Posts: 2,619 Member
    1. The only real rule I abide by is switching households between 5 and 6 AM, so no one inconveniently comes home from work because you switched households.
    2. At the moment I play five households with 14 sims in total. The dynamics within the households differ. I can't say I usually play with a specific set-up because there isn't one. Two of my households consist of one sim. One household is a mother and daughter and the two other households are parents with some of their kids.
    3. I've been playing (and storytelling) with this save for months now, so I'd say it has kept my interest for quite long. I think it's the variety in household size and the different storylines that keep it interesting.
    4. I've barely used Newcrest. I put a roller rink and a park there and that's it. I started playing with premade households so they already had houses. Most of my sims live in Windenburg because that's where they started out and I wanted my related sims to be close to each other. One sim lives in San Myshuno in an apartment but that's because his girlfriend (at the time) moved there and he moved in with her.
    5. Depends on how long your rotations are. Mine are very short sometimes which means none of my households pay bills. I don't know why but they don't get them anymore. It's also harder to get a promotion with shorter rotations because you usually have to go to work twice with all your tasks completed so when I get back around to a sim they're a couple days older already. The coming home from work/school thing in the middle of the day whenever you switch is a real drawback too but avoidable by switching at a time when you know everyone in the other household is home anyway.
    6. I started the save with a single sim and that's my go-to starting set-up but I fell into the Villareal family and it all went on from there. I do enjoy bigger households so you could say I'm into family-play but I'm also really happy when I can switch back to a single sim and focus on them.
  • Calico45Calico45 Posts: 2,038 Member
    1. I do not really have rules beyond what fits with my story. For example, my vampire bartender that is too busy for kids is not suddenly going to become a teacher. I also try to maintain family bonds and develop a story to the world. Even minor characters need a little flavor.
    2. Me, I usually start with parents and kids or a group of siblings. Then slowly marry them off and start their own families. Like I said previously, part of my goal is to maintain these bonds as they grow into an expanded and more free world.
    3. This is complicated, because you try the formula out and either it sticks or it doesn't with that go through. The characters themselves I usually have saved in my library. My first big save like this I took over all of Newcrest and cannot bring myself to delete it to this day. I updated it regularly for nearly three to four years with new pack content and I may still go back. My other ones... If it sticks it can easily keep me preoccupied for three months. I save a lot of stuff in the library so the saves are not so vital anymore.
    4. Usually, no. I have to be in one of those moods and have a grand plan to take over Newcrest. That three to four year save I did and I saved all those lots to reuse, but this is not typical. I love the space of Newcrest, but the neighborhood itself is boring and some of the lots are super small. I only recommend it if you do have those grand ambitions because you can get bogged down.
    5. Just if you are trying to force it. I fell into this play naturally (when I do it) because I cared about the characters. I wanted to see them grow into houses with spouses and kids. Some I created parents or what not for later for some backstory. If you do not feel it for the characters it is just a chore, but if you do it comes naturally.
    6. I usually play with large families. Either parents with a bunch of kids or or siblings and their pets. I have several families where I have a Sim in every age group and then matching pets. A lot of times I just play this unit, but when I do rotational I break up my large family after playing with the original unit and exploring where their lives go. Sure this is family play, but it also has elements of single Sims getting back to the large family stage and all the steps in between. I also have a penchant to make them occult families normally, but I do not break up my occult families so often. Rotational play let's me shake up my normal play by letting the family grow up.
  • JustinJustin Posts: 731 Member
    edited August 2020
    A bit off topic but curious to know why people have an interest in rotational play? I tried to do it myself but it’s too much to keep up with & I prefer to just play a single household. So I guess my question is, how do you find it fun & not complicated to keep up with?
  • DuvelinaDuvelina Posts: 2,619 Member
    @Justin What's complicated about it? I don't think anything is complicated and like I said in my post, I think the variety is what makes the game fun for me. I haven't always played like this but it definitely started with TS2 for me already, so about ten years now maybe?
  • JustinJustin Posts: 731 Member
    Duvelina wrote: »
    @Justin What's complicated about it? I don't think anything is complicated and like I said in my post, I think the variety is what makes the game fun for me. I haven't always played like this but it definitely started with TS2 for me already, so about ten years now maybe?


    Keeping up with as many families is a bit complicated for me personally . Remembering their stories & what not. But thank you for answering my question. I will continue to follow this post in hopes of trying it again
  • DuvelinaDuvelina Posts: 2,619 Member
    @Justin I guess that that could be a problem. I've always been good about remembering what was going on. It could help to write down a short bio for the family so you can easily get back into it. That's what I do for TS4, so I know what I was planning on doing next and I keep it updated.
  • JustinJustin Posts: 731 Member
    Duvelina wrote: »
    @Justin I guess that that could be a problem. I've always been good about remembering what was going on. It could help to write down a short bio for the family so you can easily get back into it. That's what I do for TS4, so I know what I was planning on doing next and I keep it updated.

    I will actually write down their story the
    next time I try rotation play. I’ll prob only start off with 3 first. The first 2 times I tried to do a whole neighborhood but failed because I couldn’t keep up & kept forgetting lol. Thank you for your the tips :)
  • CamkatCamkat Posts: 2,329 Member
    I used to never play rotational, but after I figured out there was no story progression, I had to do something because I was tired of all my sims in town dying of old age, single, and childless. I needed friends/cousins etc. I've turned aging off except for current household so I don't have people randomly dying or aging out of range for friendships etc (until I'm ready for them to). I keep it on for the current household though because the race against the clock (as it were) is one of the few challenges in the game. I don't rotate families on any set schedule, I just rotate whenever I get bored or need to rotate to keep age groups aligned.

    1. 9/10 times I begin with one sim. That sim becomes a "legacy" founder and that sim I will use to populate a lot of the world over multiple generations. Over time, I will have to add more sims, but I add them later when I have an idea what the offspring will need for personalities for potential friends and mates. They usually start with an empty lot or bare bones house and I "rags to riches" style game play. When the next generation grows up, I legacy style it, and one will inherit the house and the other siblings move out (if there's multiples). The ones that move out then move onto their own legacy of sorts and again back to the beginning with the whole rags to riches thing.
    2. Starting with one and then growing a family. They're all various sizes and I've played with anything up to 8 sims and a variety of pets and non pet households.
    3. Depends on my save and my RL. I play other games besides sims too so I will take a break if another game is catching my interest. If I want to play sims and bored with the current save, I have other saves I work on as well. I build. Right now this current save has been worked on since last February with small breaks.
    4. I use Newcrest as more of a place to dump a lot of venues. I have restaurants there, church, graveyard, outdoor cinema, shops, cafes. Depending on the save and the story happening in my head is where my sims live. I love Forgotten Hallow and Strangerville though, they are my favourties to look at, but I tend to use Sulani a lot. Lately I've been in Willow Creek the most.
    5. The biggest draw back for me is eventually there becomes too many households to keep up with. Right now I'm on Generation 5 and there's 5 groups of families all related. Of those 5 groups, 3 have 2-5 children each and when those kids grow up... I don't know what I'm going to do! :D
    6. I guess I prefer families. I just prefer to build them up from nothing. The only times I create entire families in CAS is when I'm making townies to move in for my sims to have friends/mates etc. I also prefer them to be occult too. Aliens are my favourites, but I have soft spots for the others as well. I also love to have chaos in the game. Anything that helps to hinder some of the family members is welcome in my game (murphy beds as an example). I like a little bit of risk and I like the challenges that come with that. When the game stops challenging me is when I usually stop a family or even an entire save.
    Origin ID: Peapod79
  • wickichickwickichick Posts: 11,130 Member
    oh i love this feed back ..how interesting to read through each of the posts and see such excellent ideas for using rotational play..i just started a new save...my single female has moved into the "neighborhood" and i am using Willow Creek. I do use builds i have placed in my library to put in venues i like to use...it is fun to add new things from time to time. I have played the single female for a bit now and she has a good friend who has moved in next door. The two girls are long time besties...i moved in two single guys now. I am going to use the guy who will date my main home and begin a rotational play. I am amazed with how large some folks rotations are but excited about it as well because this feels like a new kind of adventure to me. I have never used new crest ..but i might incorporate that somewhat this time. I do have some additional questions after reading through the responses i received originally.

    1. Duvelina ..(and anyone can answer) regarding the rules, excellent point regarding work schedules ..so when rotating to the next household i think i will be sure work shifts have ended ..kids (if there is any ..will be home from school) since the idea is to have families with progressive lives being able to be promoted to your next job level is important. Thanks for that pointer. My question is ...once saving one household and heading to the next ..all family members will be home ..so life should be good, right? Is there anything else to be concerned with that folks can think of or additional input on this one subject.

    2. in my neighborhoods i generally have a bowling alley..a spa...a nightclub with a dj....a restaurant....a outdoor swimming pool hang out....and a bakery.(or some kind of retail lot) I am very interested what other players like to place in their neighborhoods to create a good community feel and to include a kind of "memories" into play ..like first dates...celebrating anniversaries..weddings ..etc

    3. Do you create groups between your rotational play families ..it would seem like a cohesive way to have activities ..how do you usually use your groups ..i know some folks like for their kids to have a homework group ..but i wonder what do other folks do?

    I really appreciate the ideas and suggestions offered so far..thanks so much!
  • ChampandGirlieChampandGirlie Posts: 2,482 Member
    I'm a rotational player and I have a lot of households. This also means that a lot of my own sims walk around in the community worlds which makes them more interesting to me. If a sim marries into a household that I'm playing, they "join" my rotation. If I get uninterested, I'll make a household unplayable and then just leave them as townies wandering around. I don't play with mods. I switch households whenever I want to and I play with aging off for playable households. I tend to freeze time as I'm moving around between the different households so that it's like everything is happening at the same time but I'm seeing all of my sims evolve. Every so often, I'll age up the unplayables but lately I haven't because I might want to make a few households playable again later to see if they interest me more.

    To answer your questions:

    1. I started this rotation by deciding not to pick an heir and to follow two brothers with different lives. I then decided that the town needed a lot more characters. I made potential spouses and then decided to follow some of the ones who weren't picked. In the beginning, some of my households joined because I wanted to see what would happen to some of the rejected love interests, would they ever find love? Now, I just have a whole lot of sims and I'm generationally farther along, so I now switch between various characters. I choose to switch when I get to a stopping point with a particular household. I try not to let one household age up way more than the others before going back to play them. I make myself check in on specific households every so often. I'm just able to keep track. If they were to get really boring I would quit playing them but usually, they get more interesting when I do. No one is an elder when someone of the same generation is a teen, if that makes sense. It means I get to experience a lot of different households with different homes, lifestyles, etc.
    2. They are all different types of households because it's a legacy rotation, so they might be single, then get married, most of them have at least one kid. Few of them stay single long term but they might go through a long time that way, in which case, I'll usually turn aging off. If I like a household or am working on some part of their lives, I'll turn aging off. Unless they have kids, I turn aging off in university. That's one rule of mine, when they have kids, the aging clock goes on for them. That's when time definitely moves on.
    3. If you are wondering how long I'll play a household before I switch, it depends on what is going on the game. I have Seasons with a long span on so I'll pay attention to the shifting weather and holidays. I might just check in with a household for a few days or I might spend weeks with one. With university, I obviously need to play at least a week at a time. If you are asking about how long it keeps me interested, I've had my rotation for years, but I have a life, interests and responsibilities. It keeps me interested when I play because the characters are "mine" and I like seeing what happens to them. It's like my own tv show in which I don't need to worry whether it entertains anyone else. I think I spend a lot of time on character development for sims I like.
    4. Newcrest is a centralized neighborhood that is mostly non-residential. I only have two households there and instead it's a neutral place where sims can go to hang out. I have a cafe, parks, a spa, the lost garden of time, a cinema/bowling alley, a different kind of library, bars, clubs, several restaurants, etc. Not sure what to do? Go to Newcrest. I don't have a specifically favorite world. I like switching between them and seeing how the neighborhoods develop.
    5. How long it takes especially with as many households as I have. I've sometimes wondered where it is going but it's entertaining. When I get into it, I'm generally happy. There are times that I've made myself play a household that I was bored of. With a big rotation, I need to just say, "It's ok to just make them unplayable," and to just concentrate more on the households I like. I don't need to explain why I like them, I just do.
    6. Eh, I like switching between different households and phases of life. I'm mostly interested in my characters and I like having very different visual environments. I just don't want anything to be too repetitive.
    Champ and Girlie are dogs.
  • DoloresGreyDoloresGrey Posts: 3,490 Member
    1. No cheating (except resetsim), strict schedule - changing household every Monday 6am, aging on for active household only, aging on for townies each first week of rotation, last day for trying for a baby is Thursday (so the baby is born before the end of the week and you get to name it right after it is born)
    2. It dependes. I play families since birth to death. Sometimes there are sims who don't have any children, so they are either alone, or with a spouse, with or without pets.
    3. My current legacy runs for about a year and three months. I am at gen 7.
    4. I use all the towns. My families live everywhere. Newcrest is just a regular town like Willow Creek and others :)
    5. I don't know if I understand this question properly so sorry if I answer to a completely different quiestion :D IMHO, if you figure out how to play rotationally properly for YOU, then there is no way going back to play "regularly". The only problem could be playing huge rotation and with a goal you want to achieve and you dont take notes. It dependes on your playstyle and rules if you set some.
    6. My playstyle is rotational realistic legacy.
    -probably just playing Phasmophobia :p
  • EVANGELlNEEVANGELlNE Posts: 51 Member
    1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any)
    I don't really have any rules, except I try and follow the Sim to their personality. So for example if they want to be an artist, I want to at least complete one aspiration on this sim. My entire save game is nice sims, so I actually have not played with any mean/evil/mischief sims. I actually created an alternate universe (new save file), and am thinking about playing with the evil sims in a separate world from my normal sims.

    2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings
    In my main save file, I have 32/80 active Sims (some are adopted NPCS), but some of these are pets. I have to admit, I don't really like playing with normal families that much. It feels boring to me, because what they're doing is very everyday. I usually play young adult sims, who date and have their own careers. I only have ONE family household, and it's with Caleb Vatore. So really even my one family-oriented household is supernatural. I felt pretty stressed out playing with the babies/toddlers because I try and max the children sims to max level to get the bonus before aging them up. Also when I played with families there was a leave lot issue, where babies didn't actually get put into daycare, so I would be stuck playing this family until I could age up the child.

    3. How long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?)
    One of my oldest households I've played from the beginning, so at least 1-2 years. They're a group of super sim vamps, and honestly they're just my favorite household, so when I get new packs I just play with them by default. I try and change households, but the other sims usually don't hold my interest for very long.

    4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why?
    Island Living is my favorite neighborhood. It's just visually the most beautiful.

    5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be?
    I feel like if you rotate, you'll progress each family a bit more slowly than if you focused all your energy on one household. I do think rotational play is interesting because it lets you play with careers/items that you may not have access to otherwise.
  • ChazzzyChazzzy Posts: 7,166 Member
    There’s no rhyme or reason other than I get tired of playing with a particular household so I switch to someone else.
  • SharoniaSharonia Posts: 4,853 Member
    edited August 2020
    1, I play each household for the same amount of time before rotating. At the moment it's a whole sim year with my seasons set at 14 days. I plan to change the amount of time eventually to a shorter length as I have a lot of families in my rotation now.

    2, First born child to each generation will inherit the family home and carry on family lineage.

    3, No premature aging of sims. It has to be their birthday on the calendar for them to age up.

    4, No game play cheats. Only bb.moveobjects or reset sim if needed are allowed.
  • DuvelinaDuvelina Posts: 2,619 Member
    wickichick wrote: »
    oh i love this feed back ..how interesting to read through each of the posts and see such excellent ideas for using rotational play..i just started a new save...my single female has moved into the "neighborhood" and i am using Willow Creek. I do use builds i have placed in my library to put in venues i like to use...it is fun to add new things from time to time. I have played the single female for a bit now and she has a good friend who has moved in next door. The two girls are long time besties...i moved in two single guys now. I am going to use the guy who will date my main home and begin a rotational play. I am amazed with how large some folks rotations are but excited about it as well because this feels like a new kind of adventure to me. I have never used new crest ..but i might incorporate that somewhat this time. I do have some additional questions after reading through the responses i received originally.

    1. Duvelina ..(and anyone can answer) regarding the rules, excellent point regarding work schedules ..so when rotating to the next household i think i will be sure work shifts have ended ..kids (if there is any ..will be home from school) since the idea is to have families with progressive lives being able to be promoted to your next job level is important. Thanks for that pointer. My question is ...once saving one household and heading to the next ..all family members will be home ..so life should be good, right? Is there anything else to be concerned with that folks can think of or additional input on this one subject.

    2. in my neighborhoods i generally have a bowling alley..a spa...a nightclub with a dj....a restaurant....a outdoor swimming pool hang out....and a bakery.(or some kind of retail lot) I am very interested what other players like to place in their neighborhoods to create a good community feel and to include a kind of "memories" into play ..like first dates...celebrating anniversaries..weddings ..etc

    3. Do you create groups between your rotational play families ..it would seem like a cohesive way to have activities ..how do you usually use your groups ..i know some folks like for their kids to have a homework group ..but i wonder what do other folks do?

    I really appreciate the ideas and suggestions offered so far..thanks so much!

    1. Things should be good otherwise!

    2. For now, I've mostly been using what was already there. I do try to make my sims stay in their own town for activities to keep it more realistic unless it's close by. I envision my older sims to have driver's licenses so they can go to other places but I wouldn't randomly go to Sulani for example. That should be a vacation or an immigration.

    3. I don't use the group feature all that much right now. I only use it to recreate a 'gang' feeling for one of my characters. In another save I do have a gardening club for my elderly ladies. In reality, they gossip more than garden. 😂
  • elanorbretonelanorbreton Posts: 14,518 Member
    edited August 2020
    Here's mine:

    1. My only rule is to switch around 6 am to avoid most of the 'missing work/school' scenarios.

    2. Lots! In my current save I have played 10 households so far, but still have a lot more to go through. Singles, couples, families, some with pets, a few supernaturals, a few off-the-grid, some at uni, lots of different careers/traits/hobbies/skills/aspirations.

    3. I have enjoyed rotational play for a long time, but started my current game only a short time ago as I only just started using MCCC so that they would not lose friendships whilst I played other homes.

    4. Newcrest is currently my community town. It has one of each type of main community lot in it (though my other worlds do have a few community lots too). The households I play are from all of the other worlds but I guess my favourite is Windenburg because it has the island, the countryside and the town areas and it's very festive in the snow!

    5. Drawbacks: If you do not use a mod in rotational play then relationship scores decrease while you are not playing previous sims and, if they drop far enough, then the relationship will be culled. I found this out the hard way after playing for weeks and then returning to earlier homes and finding they no longer had their friends. I now use MCCC solely to set the relationship decay to zero. It doesn't generally happen if you only rotate a few houses and the time gap is not large, but I wanted to do a really, really big rotation.

    6. I probably enjoy families or large households most, but I like any kind of play which is why I have a big variety in my rotation.
  • calaprfycalaprfy Posts: 3,927 Member
    1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any) One week per household, rotating at 7am on Saturdays.
    2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings I have around 12 households, all families, mostly all related.
    3. how long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?) Forever!
    4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why? Newcrest is my last resort should I fill the other worlds up.
    5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be? Most packs unfortunately. You would have to cheat the weather with Seasons for all households to say, experience Xmas, and you cannot experience university life if you stick to your rotation.
    6. other then using rotational play what type of simmer are you in game...for example ...do you prefer family related play....single sims over couples...do you prefer to begin as a teen in a family or something else. I like families as I need the population to keep ticking over.
  • vancanuckfan86vancanuckfan86 Posts: 1,156 Member
    I love rotational play - not all my saves are rotational but I do have a few.

    1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any)?

    I usually ensure that I switch families at about 6 AM (when most families are waking up). I make sure everyone is at home the home lot when I switch households. I have aging off except for my played household. I also create all the families and move them in to their houses before starting to play. I place seasons on 28 days when I'm playing rotationally. I sometimes have other rules but it depends on what type of game I feel like playing.
    2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings.
    For rotational play I usually start with married sims and usually start with somewhere between 6-8 families. I let them develop their careers, skills and relationships with the others for the first week or two before starting to have kids.
    3. how long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?)
    A while - usually longer than a month. I do tend to take breaks from this style of play every so often but I always come back to it at some point.
    4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why?
    I pick different worlds depending on the story line I'm playing with. I've played in Willow Creek, Oasis Springs and Brindleton Bay so far. I usually do place new community lots from the gallery - but I also tend to put community lots in all the worlds because if I'm playing 8 families I like various different lots.
    5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be?
    Rotational doesn't always work the best if you are sending Sims to university. Sometimes I really get into a family story line and I don't want to rotate even though I still do because I want to keep the rotations the same.
    6. other then using rotational play what type of simmer are you in game...for example ...do you prefer family related play....single sims over couples...do you prefer to begin as a teen in a family or something else.
    I'm a family player so even when I play rotationally I'm usually playing families and then it is fun having all the kids grow up together and giving them different relationships (some are positive and some are negative). I usually start the Sims as young adults but I have started as teens before.
  • RouensimsRouensims Posts: 4,858 Member
    edited August 2020
    1. My rotation is sheer chaos. I do what I want, when I want. However, I limit Sims to doing only things I think they would naturally do. For example, it took a long time for me to see the magic realm, because a Sim had to naturally find it by doing things I thought were within that Sim’s character. Sometimes I set a specific rule for a specific Sim or household. I do try to rotate when Sims are sleeping, because I got tired of Sims being “late for work” when I rotated to a new household.

    2. I have about 250 played characters, after some painful self-culling. They are a little of everything, but probably 2/3 single. I have 10 or 12 families now that are related either directly or through marriage. I started with one Sim, who got married, then I added his parents, grandparents, and cousin. My Sim had five children, and the cousin was created with three children. The cousin married a Sim, and I gave that Sim a brother and parents. My main Sim also has extended family of a grandmother and seven grandchildren. Then I added my main Sim’s wife’s parents and brothers. My game keeps growing like this. But I also play single Sim households with no family at all.

    3. Sometimes I play the same family for a month, or sometimes just an hour. I rotate freely. I may play one household over and over, while I play another household only once every six months. It always holds my interest this way. This is the same save I started in 2015.

    4. I love Newcrest because it is such a blank slate, but I edit all the worlds. I play in all the worlds. I rarely play in Selvadorada or Granite Falls because I can’t get the residential mod to work. Most of my play ends up happening in Strangerville and Willow Creek, but all of the worlds are involved.

    5. Rotational play is hard to coordinate with acting gigs and college classes. I usually play one household for at least a Sim week when dealing with those matters. Otherwise, rotational play is ideal and the only way I personally want to play.

    6. I like it all! I have families, singles, humans, mermaids, vampires, aliens, and pets. I have Sims who started as babies and Sims who started as elders. It just depends on my mood.

    Ooh Be Gah!! Whipna Choba-Dog? Whipna Choba-Dog!! :smiley:
  • RouensimsRouensims Posts: 4,858 Member
    Justin wrote: »
    A bit off topic but curious to know why people have an interest in rotational play? I tried to do it myself but it’s too much to keep up with & I prefer to just play a single household. So I guess my question is, how do you find it fun & not complicated to keep up with?

    For me, the complication IS the fun. I love having my Sims’ lives intertwine and develop richer meanings.
    Ooh Be Gah!! Whipna Choba-Dog? Whipna Choba-Dog!! :smiley:
  • So_MoneySo_Money Posts: 2,536 Member
    edited August 2020
    I only rotate between a handful of households, so I’m not a “pure” rotational player, and I don’t have any hard and fast rules. Basically when I start to get bored, I switch it up to see what’s going on elsewhere.

    Oftentimes I’ll switch to a sim who has somehow become involved in one of my played sims’ stories, just to nudge them in a certain direction.
  • RouensimsRouensims Posts: 4,858 Member
    edited August 2020
    wickichick wrote: »

    1. Duvelina ..(and anyone can answer) regarding the rules, excellent point regarding work schedules ..so when rotating to the next household i think i will be sure work shifts have ended ..kids (if there is any ..will be home from school) since the idea is to have families with progressive lives being able to be promoted to your next job level is important. Thanks for that pointer. My question is ...once saving one household and heading to the next ..all family members will be home ..so life should be good, right? Is there anything else to be concerned with that folks can think of or additional input on this one subject.

    2. in my neighborhoods i generally have a bowling alley..a spa...a nightclub with a dj....a restaurant....a outdoor swimming pool hang out....and a bakery.(or some kind of retail lot) I am very interested what other players like to place in their neighborhoods to create a good community feel and to include a kind of "memories" into play ..like first dates...celebrating anniversaries..weddings ..etc

    3. Do you create groups between your rotational play families ..it would seem like a cohesive way to have activities ..how do you usually use your groups ..i know some folks like for their kids to have a homework group ..but i wonder what do other folks do?

    1. Family members actually may not be home. When you’re not playing them, they may show up as NPCs at a different lot, wearing something weird. So when you rotate back to them, they may still be at that other lot, wearing that weird outfit. But you can quickly have them change and return home, then proceed from there.

    2. Most of my play happens at home. My Sims like to visit libraries, parks, museums, festivals, and the pool, but events happen at home.

    3. I have tons of clubs! I have several clubs for my main family, because there are far too many extended family members to all fit into one club. I have clubs for aliens, and for mermaids. I have a club for geeks to get together and play video games and watch sci-fi. I have a club for democrats. I have a chess club. I have clubs for music groups; for example, I have a club for The Mothers of Invention. I have a religious club. I have a club for astronauts. I have a few teenage clubs and an elder club. I have an ecology club. I have a NAMI club (mental health organization). And way more! My clubs are used for fun, for socializing, and for practical purposes. For example, Sims may need to improve their logic skill, so a Sim will hold a meeting of the chess club.

    By the way, I was just looking at my main Sim’s stats, and I saw that he has slept 177 times. So I guess I have played him for 177 Sim days. I recently aged him up from young adult to adult.

    Ooh Be Gah!! Whipna Choba-Dog? Whipna Choba-Dog!! :smiley:
  • elemmeleelemmele Posts: 689 Member
    edited August 2020
    Thought I'd chip in my two cents since "rotational" play is my poison of choice!~

    1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any)?
    - I don't really have any rules except "have fun." I know it sounds so cheesy, but my rotational save is my "relax and just play" save, meaning I boot it up when I need to de-stress, or just want to play the game. I use cheat codes for some households, some I don't -- it just depends on what I'm feeling like at the moment. Oh, and all my aging is turned off, of course!

    2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings)?
    - This is probably going to sound insane (or should I say erratic?), but I have...roughly 300* Sims give or take (and that includes the premades, of course), but obviously I don't play them all at the same time. Most of them I haven't played as at all -- yet. I just really love to make Sims, and it makes me happy to see them walking around town, even if they're just there for scenery for now. As for their marital status and stuff, it varies widely. I've got single Sims, big families, small families, roommate groups. Everything goes!

    3. How long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?)
    - I'd say I've had my current rotational save for two or three (maybe four) years now. Sometimes I'll go on long bouts without playing, but it's always there when I come back!

    4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why?
    - Tbh Newcrest is like...the bane of my existence. I've filled out maybe half of it, but I use it mainly for large families and restaurant/other types of community-based lots. My favorite world is apparently San Myshuno, where 12 of my played households live. Although I do personally have a soft spot for Oasis Springs~ 💖

    5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be?
    - I'd say that, for me anyway, it can be a little overwhelming sometimes. There's still lots I want to do in my world (remaking/adding community lots, making more Sims to fill out empty houses, etc.), but I try not to feel too bad if I put it off to just play the game for a while.

    6. Other then using rotational play what type of simmer are you in game...for example ...do you prefer family related play....single sims over couples...do you prefer to begin as a teen in a family or something else.
    - The Sims I usually wind up spending the most time with are the young adult, single Sims. They may have a roommate or two, but it's just less stressful for me than playing with large families (especially ones with toddlers). I mainly have fun trying to get to the top level of different careers, fill out aspirations, etc.!

    *Edited to reflect the...actual number...of Sims I play with...

    i may or may not have a problem
    Post edited by elemmele on
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  • WintermuteWintermute Posts: 36 Member
    wickichick wrote: »
    i have never rotated play between families but i see in the forums that many folks have. I think it would add a bit more depth to my play ..i tend to create characters to place in a save along with a main household...my sim begins single but over time develops a love interest...the majority of the time her love interest will be a sim i created and moved into a home. i generally have two additional families for "friends" and create a neighborhood. you can post anything about rotational game play but here are my questions i would be most interested in.
    1. When you begin your play what rules do you abide by (if any)
    2. How many characters do you play and are they usually single..married...married with kids or are they direct family members (example ..mom dad and/or siblings
    3. how long does this type of play hold your interest approximately? ( for example..a week...a month ...longer?)
    4. Do you usually use NewCrest so you can create your own town or do you have a favorite neighborhood and why?
    5. Would you say there is any draw backs to rotational play and if yes then what would those draw backs be?
    6. other then using rotational play what type of simmer are you in game...for example ...do you prefer family related play....single sims over couples...do you prefer to begin as a teen in a family or something else.
    1. No real rules. My rotational save is one in which I allow myself to cheat, but not excessively.
    2. I don't know the exact number, but in my current save the number of Sims that I actually play is probably somewhere around 20. Each of my households has, at least, a married/betrothed couple of any and all sexual orientations. Most have children at the moment. My plan for this save is to connect all the families through marriage or friendship.
    3. I've been playing the same save for months, and I keep things fresh by occasionally adding new households to the rotation.
    4. My households are spread among several worlds.
    5. The main drawback is that because I have a mod that requires degrees for promotions, most of my adult Sims have to attend University at some point, which forces me to play a household at least seven days if I want the best possible GPA, even if I didn't necessarily want to play them one full week.
    6. I prefer to begin with YAs, send them to college to earn honors degrees and find their soulmates, get them well-paying jobs, and get them married with children once they're firmly established. I rarely deviate from this.
  • mustenimusteni Posts: 5,403 Member
    1. I do try to rotate around 5am because I don't want sims to miss work/school. Other than that I have no rotation schedule or anything. I try to keep siblings and friends aging up so that it makes sense. I don't usually cheat, but it depends on the circumstances.
    2. I play over 20 households, so that's quite many sims, not even sure how many! Some I play a bit more actively than others. It's all kind of households really.
    3. I have played the same rotation since I got the game, so years really. I hardly play other saves.
    4. I use all of the worlds. Some neighbourhoods like Willow Creek are more "finished" as I've been playing them longer and have had more time to work on them. Some like Strangerville I have barely done anything with.
    5. For me I guess the drawback would be that rotational play is addicting, I would find it very hard to play just one family. Then another one would be that sometimes sim relationships get culled while playing other families.
    6. I love variety! Overall though I often end up doing familyplay at some point because I want my sims to have offspring that I can play later on. Then again I also like to give most of my sims some time when they're single living alone to get a better feel on what kind of character they are.
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