Forum Announcement, Click Here to Read More From EA_Cade.

Why so much hate for the star wars game pack

Comments

  • KayeStarKayeStar Posts: 6,715 Member
    edited September 2020
    For me, it's simply that I do not give a flying flap about anything related to Star Wars.

    Even packs I don't care for usually have some things I enjoy, and I buy them for collector's sake. This will probably be the first pack I skip over entirely.

    I'm looking forward to LGR's review of it because I know it'll be funny.

    Also, a comment I saw on YouTube I agree with: Sims 4 has far outstayed its welcome. And as I said, I have every pack, so I don't hate the game.
    752d5ef1ccf6be4ae3b2e539a6376fe9ea400d9ar1-320-207_00.gif
  • CynnaCynna Posts: 2,369 Member
    edited September 2020
    LiELF wrote: »
    I don't see the problem with buying a Game Pack for build/buy and I don't think it's supporting "bad company practices" at all. It's a matter of perspective whether a pack is worth its cost or not, and each player has to decide for themselves how that weighs against their own play style and usage. A builder, for example, is only buying packs to build with anyway because they don't play in live mode. We have a huge builder community and I don't think it's right to tell them they're contributing to what's wrong with the gaming industry. If they're getting what they need from a pack, and it gives them more creative build options to share with the community, what is the problem? There are many different ways to play the game and none of them are wrong.

    Also, a GP costs $20 (US). In past games, that same cost got us a Stuff Pack with no gameplay. Furniture, objects, and CAS only. Stuff Packs were fluff. I think people forget this. If there's one major thing that I think Sims 4 has done right, it's offering GPs. I know some would disagree for a variety of reasons, but I hold my stance on this. The monetary value has gone way up. Even with a pack like Outdoor Retreat, which is the first and probably one of the skimpiest, there's a lot more to it than what previous SPs offered for 20 bucks. If anything, we used to be way overcharged for TS2 and TS3 Stuff Packs. Half the cost of an EP? We were nuts to buy into that.

    I think GPs were a way to replace TS3 store content, while upgrading the previous SP cost model. They are completely optional in content, experimental, created for a focused interest, and a way for players to pick and choose what they like. The EPs still exist for the standard content, and we've been getting two a year, so that hasn't been taken away.

    I strongly feel that GPs should be supported and hope that they will be carried over into Sims 5.

    I'm not sure, but couldn't some of the additional costs in the past have been due to extra overhead such as disc media, packaging, shipping, and shelf space in retail outlets? Distribution back then was a lot different than it is now. Game companies that have their own distribution outfits have cut out a lot of the "middle man" type costs it seems. It hasn't necessarily stopped those companies from charging heavy prices for games, however DLC costs seem more reasonable these days with frequent sales and bundles.

    The TS3 store was certainly a test of the community's tolerance for frequent DLC at a substantial price point. However, it seems that the general outcry against a separate, high-priced store was actually heard and acknowledged.
    KayeStar wrote: »
    For me, it's simply that I do not give a flying flap about anything related to Star Wars.

    Even packs I don't care for usually have some things I enjoy, and I buy them for collector's sake. This will probably be the first pack I skip over entirely.

    I'm looking forward to LGR's review of it because I know it'll be funny.

    Also, a comment I saw on YouTube I agree with: Sims 4 has far outstayed its welcome. And as I said, I have every pack, so I don't hate the game.

    His reviews are always amusing. :)

    LGR really dislikes TS4. However, based on what I've seen of his playstyle, if he likes SW, he might actually get a kick out of JtB. The question is whether the "world" or the way that gameplay has been restricted to Batuu will overshadow the gameplay for him.
    I3Ml5Om.jpg
  • LiELFLiELF Posts: 6,439 Member
    CelSims wrote: »

    Game play is important to me. But this game is used by many people as a building game. My wants are not more important than people who play a different way. You still come off as telling people to stop buying packs for the things they want, because it's not fair to other simmers. Builders, people who live in CAS, people playing the sims themselves, all should buy the packs that appeal to them. I'd be all for packs that are JUST CAS or JUST BB quite frankly.

    Yeah but these are GAME packs. They are supposed to deliver gameplay for people who like gameplay. We have stuff packs for people who like to build. Can we now have some gameplay for people who like to play? If not then turn the game into a building simulator cause this is what it is becoming. This used to be a life simulator you know.

    LiELF wrote: »

    It isn't lacking in gameplay though? It has more gameplay than StrangerVille with three story branches and side missions. I think what you mean is, it's lacking in the gameplay that you prefer. There's a big difference. And I'll just throw in that no one actually knows what the entirety of the gameplay includes (or doesn't) because there's still not enough info out there yet.

    Also no. What gameplay does this pack include? I dare you to tell me. It has like three lots that you can enter, one of them being just a bar. Eating and dancing is stuff I could already do before this pack so just doing it in a different place is not gameplay to me. You cannot create new occults, it's all costumes so no gameplay there. The new "missions" are change outfit, go there, eat this, ask this person something, which comes with 0 new animations since all of those are already in the game. Now they are just calling them missions. Then the funniest thing you can;t even enter the shops since they are rabbit holes and nobody is tending them. Then the new stuff is like a lightsaber that has the same animations always, a lifeless little round thing to follow you around and very few interactable objects.
    Even if there is more in this pack this is already lacking so much that it's crazy. I'm probably also forgetting something. This is not just my opinion. These are facts. You can see that from the gameplay videos. Go check, I dare you it's all decoration.

    LiELF wrote: »
    Threatening the "bigger picture" by tying it into your preferences is still not objective, nor is it factual. It's an attempt to manipulate other players to support or boycott in your favor over their own. Why would anyone do that? I've been fighting throughout the entirety of the Sims 4 to get more fantastical themes. I'm genuinely excited for this pack. I'm looking forward to playing through it. And I'm not sorry. I asked for more Star Wars. I fought to have more stimulating content than spas and laundry and baby fever. If others want those things and fight for them and win, good on them! And I really mean that. Putting that time and energy into making a difference is worth it. And if there's something we agree on to fight for together, I'll stand by you and do that.

    I will disagree with you on this one too because this is not what I meant. I love fantasy and sci fi in the sims and I will buy it. However, it seems to me that the team is always putting less and less effort in the gameplay which is the famous "less effort, more money" practice a lot of companies are following nowadays. You can tell by all the things they could have done better.
    Wouldn't you want SW aliens to be actual occults? Wouldn't you want to have more space in the world, more buildings to explore, no rabbitholes, more animations? What if your SW story involves living in Batuu and having your own house next to the Cantina. Can't do that can you? What about space explorations, since you know this is STAR WARS. Spaceships, galaxies, stars.

    Do you think those things did cross the teams mind? They just thought why put so much effort when Simmers will buy anything anyway, let's just release a half baked DLC, we have done so in the past and people still bought it. This is why I am saying it's not great to buy everything that comes out and ignoring people's factual criticism and calling it "their opinion". They could have done much more with this pack but if we all go buy it and not complain they will be like "we got away with mediocrity again and made billions from it"

    Well, since you "dared" me... :p (And I did quickly summarize the gameplay, which you again cherry picked in your reply, unless you truly haven't researched it, in which case means you're just uninformed, and that's understandable since very little info has come out.)

    I'm going to preface this yet again with the statement that the pack isn't even released yet, and all we actually know is what is filtered through a few choice Game Changers who were given the pack, the synopsis written on the game site, and the tweets from the devs. There has not been a "deep dive", so I can only cover what I've seen and/or read from these sources.

    So. The gameplay of Batuu consists of three separate main story arcs, each includes an allied "faction", and each path changes the influence and access your Sim has in certain areas of the world. This also affects the behaviors of the factions and citizens of Batuu. And according to SimGuru Romeo:



    He also states that the Mission system is a type of [story] progression system and that there are many side missions which work like the Odd Jobs. Those are open ended and "allow you to replay them with rotating objectives".

    The world was designed on purpose to have fewer lots in order to minimize load screens. So it was designed with rabbit holes in an "open world" hybrid style, hence one major lot in each "neighborhood". (They can be built on with the free build cheat.) According to devs, they didn't want players to have to go through a load screen every time they needed to do something. They wanted it to be more immersive.

    No, there are no Occults. The aliens are new "heads", with animated eyes and mouths, so a bit more than "costumes". Their reasoning is because alien races in Star Wars have no supernatural powers. The heads (under hats), I'm assuming can be used on other Occults, so if a player wanted other aliens with powers, they can use those head options. The problem that I see with this, is that if they are treated like hats, they will disappear under special wardrobe circumstances. So that wasn't very well thought out. They also don't change the full body skin tone, but partially, which is very strange and seems sloppy. I haven't seen them address the reason for this. Still, I didn't expect an alien overhaul because that would make Star Wars an addon pack for Get to Work, and as I stated, SW aliens don't have powers. I personally can find use for them as is.

    Force users would have been a great Occult addition that I would welcome, and I'm disappointed that they weren't included. I think they can most likely be replicated with the existing Occults, so I'll make do, but I'm pretty sure that if they had been included, people would have been calling them "recycled powers" anyway.

    Now, again, keep in mind that this is a GP, not an EP. Space travel, a variety of aliens, galaxies... what you're suggesting is getting into a much bigger pack realm. If you're still not convinced, let's revisit the actual "gameplay" of a few past GPs, which I'll remind you that for the same price, we used to get merely a smattering of objects, build items and CAS in Sims 2 and 3.

    Spa Day ~ Gameplay consists of a few spa themed interactive objects, some of which spawn an NPC to interact with your Sim. No world whatsoever. New animations and interactions, but limited. Teleportation power if you get to the top of the new wellness skill. Niche theme, use depends on the player. When it released, there was hardly a peep about it. No one really complained. No one really cared. It just kind of drifted by.

    Dine Out ~ Gameplay consists of owning a restaurant and managing it. Cannot play as chef, waiter or host. Extremely focused build/buy and most of CAS. Restaurants can be used and placed on any lot and visited. Other gameplay consists of taking Sims to the restaurant and ordering and eating food. Reusable if you like that kind of simple, real life gameplay. Added a lot more food and also customizable menus and outfits. No new world. The announcement caused hype that I didn't understand so to each their own. Pack is often quite buggy and people eventually got upset that they couldn't play as a chef. Mixed reviews.

    Outdoor Retreat ~ The very first experimental GP. It came with a small, non-livable, buildable world with an additional hidden lot, and special townies (rangers and bear outfits). Gameplay consists of vacationing in Granite Falls in a cabin or camp with some new interactive objects. Also herbalism skill and new collectibles. Main gameplay of the area besides vacationing is bug collecting. I can't really think of anything else it offers. Reusable but often reviewed as kind of boring.

    Parenthood ~ Gameplay consists of character values and new system for young Sim behaviors. Added small systems like curfews, new interactable objects, interactions between Sims, animations. Player directed actions affect results of Sim behaviors. No new world. Very well received pack by family players. Very focused theme towards family/domestic and/or "realism" players. Not as much by Occult/adventure players.

    Vampires ~ Gameplay consists of being able to create a variety of vampires, choosing from a new powers and weaknesses system and physical customization. Behaviors and animations affected by new system choices. New animations and behaviors. No way to "turn off" Vampires. Small, creepy, livable, buildable world included. Pack received well by Occult players, not so well by "realistic"/family players. Very focused theme towards Occult players.

    StrangerVille ~ Gameplay consists of a single, linear mystery story full of tasks that fully affects environment of world and citizens. Medium sized, livable, mostly buildable world included. When story ends, can be restarted or world can be played as "normal". Outside townies come in, but "infected" townies stay in StrangerVille. Martial Arts skill. Mixed reception. Very strange and niche theme.

    Anyway, my purpose for putting some comparisons on here is to note that all GPs are not created equally. Where one thing is absent, like a world, there is usually more focus on something else. When there is a world included, there will be limitations somewhere else. Sometimes the theme focus is extremely narrow, meant to please only a minority of the player base. How that crowd is pleased is most likely a consideration in how that pack is constructed and what kind of decisions are made for its gameplay. There is no standardization with GPs. They are experimental in nature and are meant to have features that suit the chosen theme.

    So returning back to the case of SW Batuu, they put the focus in this far away world, where the story is contained and doesn't mix as directly with Sim Nation. It is meant to be immersive in the nature of SW and feel separate, while giving your Sims a way to be part of the known story. And by choosing to design it after the theme park, they have given an opening for players who want to treat it as such, like in the real life immersive experience you get from going to Galaxy's Edge, and they can do that. Devs have designed it so that items brought back to the Sim's "reality" become collectibles. Not as good for those of us who want Batuu to always be real, but then, just returning there gives that immersive experience again. A player could even just bring a Sim there to hang out in the cantina and do odd missions without following one of the three linear stories. That gameplay even makes sense to cross over with Sim Aliens. There's no reason, as far as I can tell, why a player can't take their own Alien to Batuu to get droids, gamble at sabacc in the cantina or do side missions and treat it like a separate, bustling planet.

    Anyway, we'll all know more this week how it actually plays out. For me, the pack releases at Midnight tomorrow and I'll be there to get it. I love Star Wars and I want it in my game. I will not be protesting to send EA a message of discontent. And for those who truly want the pack, I encourage them to follow their own needs as well, for whatever reason they wish.
    #Team Occult
  • GoldmoldarGoldmoldar Posts: 11,966 Member
    Cynna wrote: »
    LiELF wrote: »
    I don't see the problem with buying a Game Pack for build/buy and I don't think it's supporting "bad company practices" at all. It's a matter of perspective whether a pack is worth its cost or not, and each player has to decide for themselves how that weighs against their own play style and usage. A builder, for example, is only buying packs to build with anyway because they don't play in live mode. We have a huge builder community and I don't think it's right to tell them they're contributing to what's wrong with the gaming industry. If they're getting what they need from a pack, and it gives them more creative build options to share with the community, what is the problem? There are many different ways to play the game and none of them are wrong.

    Also, a GP costs $20 (US). In past games, that same cost got us a Stuff Pack with no gameplay. Furniture, objects, and CAS only. Stuff Packs were fluff. I think people forget this. If there's one major thing that I think Sims 4 has done right, it's offering GPs. I know some would disagree for a variety of reasons, but I hold my stance on this. The monetary value has gone way up. Even with a pack like Outdoor Retreat, which is the first and probably one of the skimpiest, there's a lot more to it than what previous SPs offered for 20 bucks. If anything, we used to be way overcharged for TS2 and TS3 Stuff Packs. Half the cost of an EP? We were nuts to buy into that.

    I think GPs were a way to replace TS3 store content, while upgrading the previous SP cost model. They are completely optional in content, experimental, created for a focused interest, and a way for players to pick and choose what they like. The EPs still exist for the standard content, and we've been getting two a year, so that hasn't been taken away.

    I strongly feel that GPs should be supported and hope that they will be carried over into Sims 5.

    I'm not sure, but couldn't some of the additional costs in the past have been due to extra overhead such as disc media, packaging, shipping, and shelf space in retail outlets? Distribution back then was a lot different than it is now. Game companies that have their own distribution outfits have cut out a lot of the "middle man" type costs it seems. It hasn't necessarily stopped those companies from charging heavy prices for games, however DLC costs seem more reasonable these days with frequent sales and bundles.

    The TS3 store was certainly a test of the community's tolerance for frequent DLC at a substantial price point. However, it seems that the general outcry against a separate, high-priced store was actually heard and acknowledged.
    KayeStar wrote: »
    For me, it's simply that I do not give a flying flap about anything related to Star Wars.

    Even packs I don't care for usually have some things I enjoy, and I buy them for collector's sake. This will probably be the first pack I skip over entirely.

    I'm looking forward to LGR's review of it because I know it'll be funny.

    Also, a comment I saw on YouTube I agree with: Sims 4 has far outstayed its welcome. And as I said, I have every pack, so I don't hate the game.

    His reviews are always amusing. :)

    LGR really dislikes TS4. However, based on what I've seen of his playstyle, if he likes SW, he might actually get a kick out of JtB. The question is whether the "world" or the way that gameplay has been restricted to Batuu will overshadow the gameplay for him.

    I agree and the potential of just having features contained in the pack restricted to that pack has yet to be confirmed. However I have an sinking feeling it is as this is becoming the norm now and widely accepted.
    Omen by HP Intel®️ Core™️ i9- 12900K W/ RGB Liquid Cooler 32GB Nvidia RTX 3080 10Gb ASUS Ultra-Wide 34" Curved Monitor. Omen By HP Intel® Core™ i7-12800HX 32 GB Nvidia 3070 Ti 8 GB 17.3 Screen
  • kemowerykemowery Posts: 370 Member
    I called basically everything in the pack, except for the isolated inventory, by thinking of it like a theme park rather than an actual destination.

    You can't live there. The aliens aren't real aliens. You can't learn the Force. You can't romance the quest-giver NPCs. You're not going to be able to kill or maim other sims with weapons. There won't be multiple worlds. You won't get to live on a starship. All of the clothing and NPCs are isolated from the main neighborhoods.

    Just like the Galaxy's Edge theme park, all of it. The isolated inventory is kind of surprising, but it makes some sense, because there's a lot of things your sim can carry in their inventory that you couldn't bring into the park. Kind of annoying that, for instance, my fashion photographer sim can't bring their good camera and tripod and will just have to make do with their cell phone, but okay. It's meant to be immersive. And I'm a little surprised that there's only one buildable lot per neighborhood, but that's mostly because I know there's a simmer out there who says they've cracked the code for making large lots that you can stick multiple sub-lots onto. And it's not like a bunch of us don't try to do that anyway, building multi-purpose parks and pools, or if we can't have hotels, we can at least make fake inns by putting some bedrooms on the upper floors of a restaurant and hoping the wait staff won't just take naps at random.

    There is a bunch of build/buy and debug stuff that we can choose to put into our regular games if we want it. There's a lot of CAS parts that won't show up randomly outside of Batuu, but that we can choose to dress sims in if we want.

    Basically, it seems to me like this pack was designed specifically to be broadly useful for multiple play styles and competely nonessential if you don't want it:
    • If you want it to be the Galaxy's Edge theme park, it can function basically exactly like an immersive theme park/ARG experience that doesn't intrude on the rest of the worlds at all.
    • If you want Batuu to be actually real, you can do that (and a fair number of us are working on all-Star Wars saves), with some limitations.
    • If you don't want Star Wars in your game at all, even as a theme park destination, there's nothing in the pack that's not Star Wars themed and no new gameplay elements or occults so there's no reason to complain EA is making anyone buy it.

  • DannydanboDannydanbo Posts: 18,057 Member
    Well said @LiELF , thank you.
  • SimmerGeorgeSimmerGeorge Posts: 2,724 Member
    edited September 2020
    LiELF wrote: »

    Well, since you "dared" me... :p (And I did quickly summarize the gameplay, which you again cherry picked in your reply, unless you truly haven't researched it, in which case means you're just uninformed, and that's understandable since very little info has come out.)

    I'm going to preface this yet again with the statement that the pack isn't even released yet, and all we actually know is what is filtered through a few choice Game Changers who were given the pack, the synopsis written on the game site, and the tweets from the devs. There has not been a "deep dive", so I can only cover what I've seen and/or read from these sources.

    So. The gameplay of Batuu consists of three separate main story arcs, each includes an allied "faction", and each path changes the influence and access your Sim has in certain areas of the world. This also affects the behaviors of the factions and citizens of Batuu. And according to SimGuru Romeo:



    He also states that the Mission system is a type of [story] progression system and that there are many side missions which work like the Odd Jobs. Those are open ended and "allow you to replay them with rotating objectives".

    The world was designed on purpose to have fewer lots in order to minimize load screens. So it was designed with rabbit holes in an "open world" hybrid style, hence one major lot in each "neighborhood". (They can be built on with the free build cheat.) According to devs, they didn't want players to have to go through a load screen every time they needed to do something. They wanted it to be more immersive.

    No, there are no Occults. The aliens are new "heads", with animated eyes and mouths, so a bit more than "costumes". Their reasoning is because alien races in Star Wars have no supernatural powers. The heads (under hats), I'm assuming can be used on other Occults, so if a player wanted other aliens with powers, they can use those head options. The problem that I see with this, is that if they are treated like hats, they will disappear under special wardrobe circumstances. So that wasn't very well thought out. They also don't change the full body skin tone, but partially, which is very strange and seems sloppy. I haven't seen them address the reason for this. Still, I didn't expect an alien overhaul because that would make Star Wars an addon pack for Get to Work, and as I stated, SW aliens don't have powers. I personally can find use for them as is.

    Force users would have been a great Occult addition that I would welcome, and I'm disappointed that they weren't included. I think they can most likely be replicated with the existing Occults, so I'll make do, but I'm pretty sure that if they had been included, people would have been calling them "recycled powers" anyway.

    Now, again, keep in mind that this is a GP, not an EP. Space travel, a variety of aliens, galaxies... what you're suggesting is getting into a much bigger pack realm. If you're still not convinced, let's revisit the actual "gameplay" of a few past GPs, which I'll remind you that for the same price, we used to get merely a smattering of objects, build items and CAS in Sims 2 and 3.

    Exactly what I meant. No gameplay whatsoever like you just proved.
    I know all of the things you said and have read all of the tweets.
    And like I already mentioned these are the only pieces of gameplay in this and it is very little.
    The 50 missions that exist are like the missions we have been seeing in the Let's plays. "Eat this" "wear this" "talk to this person". Very little amount of missions actually include any interesting interactions and new animations and I have seen a lot of them so far.
    Many consist of just chance cards and pop up messages which I wouldn't call necessarily interesting or immersive.
    Now to the world. I also read the tweet and I know they did it so there wouldn't be loading screens. Was it a good idea though? No. The neighborhoods are all very small and all consist of rabbit holes and decoration. There is not much to explore. Once you've been to a district you've seen everything. They should have come up with a better idea to make up for the lack of lots, but they didn't and it shows. Means what? No exploration gameplay.
    The new "aliens" like you said are not new occults and function like normal sims so yeah not gameplay there either. The fact that their eyes and mouths move isn't gameplay.
    This might be a GP but if you want to make a Star wars GP then you need to make sure you cover as much ground as possible and try to give a full experience as much as you can. The GP is already lacking in gameplay features so maybe adding more star wars fantasy would have been possible. But still doesn't exist.

    Also comparing the features of this GP to the other ones has absolutely nothing to do with what I stated before and is honestly not necessary because it doesn't prove anything. If there is a GP out there that has less gameplay that Star Wars it doesn't mean Star Wars has a lot of gameplay.
    Comparing a bad situation to a worse situation doesn't make the bad situation any much better.

    The Sims 2 and the Sims 3 had different pack models. They gave us stuff packs, which were meant to just have stuff. So don't compare apples to pears
    Where's my Sims 5 squad at?
  • LiELFLiELF Posts: 6,439 Member
    LiELF wrote: »

    Well, since you "dared" me... :p (And I did quickly summarize the gameplay, which you again cherry picked in your reply, unless you truly haven't researched it, in which case means you're just uninformed, and that's understandable since very little info has come out.)

    I'm going to preface this yet again with the statement that the pack isn't even released yet, and all we actually know is what is filtered through a few choice Game Changers who were given the pack, the synopsis written on the game site, and the tweets from the devs. There has not been a "deep dive", so I can only cover what I've seen and/or read from these sources.

    So. The gameplay of Batuu consists of three separate main story arcs, each includes an allied "faction", and each path changes the influence and access your Sim has in certain areas of the world. This also affects the behaviors of the factions and citizens of Batuu. And according to SimGuru Romeo:



    He also states that the Mission system is a type of [story] progression system and that there are many side missions which work like the Odd Jobs. Those are open ended and "allow you to replay them with rotating objectives".

    The world was designed on purpose to have fewer lots in order to minimize load screens. So it was designed with rabbit holes in an "open world" hybrid style, hence one major lot in each "neighborhood". (They can be built on with the free build cheat.) According to devs, they didn't want players to have to go through a load screen every time they needed to do something. They wanted it to be more immersive.

    No, there are no Occults. The aliens are new "heads", with animated eyes and mouths, so a bit more than "costumes". Their reasoning is because alien races in Star Wars have no supernatural powers. The heads (under hats), I'm assuming can be used on other Occults, so if a player wanted other aliens with powers, they can use those head options. The problem that I see with this, is that if they are treated like hats, they will disappear under special wardrobe circumstances. So that wasn't very well thought out. They also don't change the full body skin tone, but partially, which is very strange and seems sloppy. I haven't seen them address the reason for this. Still, I didn't expect an alien overhaul because that would make Star Wars an addon pack for Get to Work, and as I stated, SW aliens don't have powers. I personally can find use for them as is.

    Force users would have been a great Occult addition that I would welcome, and I'm disappointed that they weren't included. I think they can most likely be replicated with the existing Occults, so I'll make do, but I'm pretty sure that if they had been included, people would have been calling them "recycled powers" anyway.

    Now, again, keep in mind that this is a GP, not an EP. Space travel, a variety of aliens, galaxies... what you're suggesting is getting into a much bigger pack realm. If you're still not convinced, let's revisit the actual "gameplay" of a few past GPs, which I'll remind you that for the same price, we used to get merely a smattering of objects, build items and CAS in Sims 2 and 3.

    Exactly what I meant. No gameplay whatsoever like you just proved.
    I know all of the things you said and have read all of the tweets.
    And like I already mentioned these are the only pieces of gameplay in this and it is very little.
    The 50 missions that exist are like the missions we have been seeing in the Let's plays. "Eat this" "wear this" "talk to this person". Very little amount of missions actually include any interesting interactions and new animations and I have seen a lot of them so far.
    Many consist of just chance cards and pop up messages which I wouldn't call necessarily interesting or immersive.
    Now to the world. I also read the tweet and I know they did it so there wouldn't be loading screens. Was it a good idea though? No. The neighborhoods are all very small and all consist of rabbit holes and decoration. There is not much to explore. Once you've been to a district you've seen everything. They should have come up with a better idea to make up for the lack of lots, but they didn't and it shows. Means what? No exploration gameplay.
    The new "aliens" like you said are not new occults and function like normal sims so yeah not gameplay there either. The fact that their eyes and mouths move isn't gameplay.
    This might be a GP but if you want to make a Star wars GP then you need to make sure you cover as much ground as possible and try to give a full experience as much as you can. The GP is already lacking in gameplay features so maybe adding more star wars fantasy would have been possible. But still doesn't exist.

    Also comparing the features of this GP to the other ones has absolutely nothing to do with what I stated before and is honestly not necessary because it doesn't prove anything. If there is a GP out there that has less gameplay that Star Wars it doesn't mean Star Wars has a lot of gameplay.
    Comparing a bad situation to a worse situation doesn't make the bad situation any much better.

    The Sims 2 and the Sims 3 had different pack models. They gave us stuff packs, which were meant to just have stuff. So don't compare apples to pears

    Oh come on now. The pack just isn't to your liking and that's fine. Why can't you just admit that?

    Comparing the GPs to past SPs is perfectly relevant. It shows how much content and "gameplay" we have gotten for the monetary cost, which can give an idea of the overall pack budget level and what they have to work with and what we should expect out of it. It's to show you that you're not going to get EP level gameplay in a GP.

    And my GP comparisons were definitely valid, as the point was to objectively prove that there are different kinds of gameplay and different kinds of players, and in order to portray a theme in a GP, the gameplay has to be designed to suit it specifically, so it's never going to be a static formula. But I think you know that. You can keep ignoring it if you wish.

    The bottom line is, gameplay that isn't to your liking doesn't stop being gameplay. Something you personally don't enjoy doesn't mean someone else won't find enjoyment from it. You are trying to restrict what gameplay is by defining it (or rather, not really defining it, just denying it) to fit your own bias. I really can't continue this discussion with you if you're going to move the goal posts like that. You are clearly unable to truly be objective, nor seem to be willing to acknowledge that what constitutes as "good" gameplay is completely subjective and up to each individual player to decide for themself.

    So that's that. I'll learn more about the pack when I've actually played it myself. I'm sure you can find a way to move on. Maybe the upcoming EP will be more to your liking.
    #Team Occult
  • DecafHighDecafHigh Posts: 669 Member
    I will buy it because I can. It's my wallet.
    This is why they are making a Star Wars pack no one asked for and don't care about the things people do want. Sims players will buy anything put in front of them. They have no repercussions for not listening.

  • CAPTAIN_NXR7CAPTAIN_NXR7 Posts: 4,451 Member
    I wonder if some people even read the discussions on this forum and take other people’s posts into consideration.
    I guess not, because how else do we always end up with “NOBODY ASKED FOR THIS”.

    At this stage I have no butt left from laughing, which is a pity, because it looked good on me.
  • DannydanboDannydanbo Posts: 18,057 Member
    I wonder if some people even read the discussions on this forum and take other people’s posts into consideration.
    I guess not, because how else do we always end up with “NOBODY ASKED FOR THIS”.

    At this stage I have no butt left from laughing, which is a pity, because it looked good on me.

    My thinking is if they don't care that others might have wanted a SW (or space at least) pack, then why would they care about other players opinions too? I'd be more surprised if they DID read other posts and understood them much less agreed with them.
  • NindigoNindigo Posts: 2,764 Member
    I wonder if some people even read the discussions on this forum and take other people’s posts into consideration.
    I guess not, because how else do we always end up with “NOBODY ASKED FOR THIS”.

    It's an attempt at empowering oneself to seem more believable. Unfortunately, it only reflects that the person in question is so overwhelmed by their emotions that they can't make a rational assessment.


    Origin ID: Nindigo79

    A smile is the prettiest thing you can wear
    Time enjoyed is never time wasted

  • HaflingerHaflinger Posts: 973 Member
    I wonder if some people even read the discussions on this forum and take other people’s posts into consideration.
    I guess not, because how else do we always end up with “NOBODY ASKED FOR THIS”.

    At this stage I have no butt left from laughing, which is a pity, because it looked good on me.

    For some funny reason, Odysseus springs to mind when someone says "Nobody asked for this." 🤣🤓


  • tmcevoy1121tmcevoy1121 Posts: 304 Member
    DecafHigh wrote: »
    I will buy it because I can. It's my wallet.
    This is why they are making a Star Wars pack no one asked for and don't care about the things people do want. Sims players will buy anything put in front of them. They have no repercussions for not listening.

    Who said no one wanted the Star Wars pack? You? Oh well that your choice but I for one am glad they put a Star Wars pack in instead of a knitting pack, which to me is boring and I didn't want. See how that can go. I didn't like the knitting pack and could have been like you and said no one which would have been false, just like your comment no one wanted a Star Wars.
    A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous. A girl should also always be a lady even when arguing
  • DannydanboDannydanbo Posts: 18,057 Member
    I think there's more hate for the players that like this pack than for the pack itself.
  • MidnightAuraMidnightAura Posts: 5,809 Member
    But the majority didn’t ask for it. A few individuals might have wanted more Star Wars stuff but at the past four live streams the chat has been begging for things like cars, freed babies, skin tones, Bunk beds, horses, farming and pre teens. Ditto on forums (not just this forum) social media and YouTube.

    In fact after Moschino stuff, many people expressed the wish for no more collaborations.
    The vocal majority has been very clear about the themes and things it wants. Unless I missed all the posts begging for a Star Wars pack and I’m pretty sure I didn’t.

    That’s not to say I’m sure many are excited about this pack and I genuinely hope they aren’t disappointed.

    Had the game not just turned Six years old And many requests still ignored, I think this pack wouldn’t have had such a poor response. And by the looks of it, the pack looks very limiting and full of recycled animations so arguably it’s not even a good Star Wars pack.
  • LoanetLoanet Posts: 4,079 Member
    edited September 2020
    Simple answer?

    1: I didn't ask for this.
    2: I can't think of a single person, anywhere, who asked for this.

    Is this the kind of thing we can expect for the next couple of years? Story packs that last a few hours whose only other purpose is for builders?

    Oh, I dare say there are people out there who like Star Wars and The Sims and will enjoy hanging around on Batuu. But I never saw them standing up and saying "You know what's missing from Sims 4? STAR WARS!"
    Post edited by Loanet on
    Prepping a list of mods to add after Infants are placed into the game. Because real life isn't 'nice'.
  • kemowerykemowery Posts: 370 Member
    Loanet wrote: »
    Simple answer?

    1: I didn't ask for this.
    2: I can't think of a single person, anywhere, who asked for this.

    That's an example of both selection bias and an insufficient sample size. "The people I know" is not a useful pool for a survey of anything except that specific group of people. This forum isn't representative of all Sims players, nor are the comments section on a YouTube video, nor are online web polls for what packs you'd like to see in the future, regardless of whether they were conducted by EA. People who know how to do those sorts of things get paid a lot of money to conduct actual marketing surveys that contact thousands of people, chosen as close to randomly as possible, and get the opinions of players across the spectrum, not just the ones who post here or whatever. In the case of a Star Wars pack, EA probably also looked at whether people who didn't play The Sims currently, either total non-players or lapsed players, would buy a Sims pack (and maybe the base game) if it had a Star Wars theme.

    EA isn't going to show us their internal marketing data. We just have to believe that if they're putting out this pack it's because their data said it would be profitable. That data might be wrong, but it's not the result of not listening to "the fans."

    And, to get ahead of a couple of arguments:

    The poll that ranked Star Wars last as a thing Sims players wanted was (a) not done by EA and (b) an online poll which is useless as far as market research, since it only measures the opinion of people who read that article and wanted to vote in that poll. It didn't even control for whether or not people played the Sims, so the poll could have been bombed by people still carrying a grudge that there are girls and minorities in Star Wars now.

    The survey that had the fans select Nifty Knitting as the next stuff pack? I guarantee every option on the list was something that EA knew fans were interested in. They weren't going to put in an option that they thought no one would buy and hope that the voters didn't vote for it as a joke. That was a way to build fan engagement, not market research.
  • GoldmoldarGoldmoldar Posts: 11,966 Member
    edited September 2020
    I think why people may be saying "I did not ask for this" may be because like some other packs EA/Maxis did go to it's customers and asked feedback on an upcoming pack. and I may be wrong I never saw an survey on anything pertaining to Star Wars. However, EA/Maxis made the decision and is taking an big gamble as others do when introducing new games. I do not hate Star Wars, I am just disappointed in how this GP will be implemented as an whole as it appears it will be just like Strangerville limited on adventures as Sims 4 is not adventure heavy but more of an simulation and for me it will have an limited appeal and Oh yes I will buy it but never for the $20 it is asking and I can wait an long time for that time I can get it real cheap as I will be playing Cyberpunk 2077 soon enough provided it does not get another delay. :) But the analogy is correct if it does not interest you do not open your wallet or get it at an price you feel would be good. EA/Maxis may have to change it forecast on how much income it will generate if enough do not pay full price or even at all. But I wish those that do rush out and pay full price have an blast. :)
    Omen by HP Intel®️ Core™️ i9- 12900K W/ RGB Liquid Cooler 32GB Nvidia RTX 3080 10Gb ASUS Ultra-Wide 34" Curved Monitor. Omen By HP Intel® Core™ i7-12800HX 32 GB Nvidia 3070 Ti 8 GB 17.3 Screen
  • FelicityFelicity Posts: 4,979 Member
    kemowery wrote: »
    Loanet wrote: »
    Simple answer?

    1: I didn't ask for this.
    2: I can't think of a single person, anywhere, who asked for this.

    That's an example of both selection bias and an insufficient sample size. "The people I know" is not a useful pool for a survey of anything except that specific group of people. This forum isn't representative of all Sims players, nor are the comments section on a YouTube video, nor are online web polls for what packs you'd like to see in the future, regardless of whether they were conducted by EA. People who know how to do those sorts of things get paid a lot of money to conduct actual marketing surveys that contact thousands of people, chosen as close to randomly as possible, and get the opinions of players across the spectrum, not just the ones who post here or whatever. In the case of a Star Wars pack, EA probably also looked at whether people who didn't play The Sims currently, either total non-players or lapsed players, would buy a Sims pack (and maybe the base game) if it had a Star Wars theme.

    EA isn't going to show us their internal marketing data. We just have to believe that if they're putting out this pack it's because their data said it would be profitable. That data might be wrong, but it's not the result of not listening to "the fans."

    And, to get ahead of a couple of arguments:

    The poll that ranked Star Wars last as a thing Sims players wanted was (a) not done by EA and (b) an online poll which is useless as far as market research, since it only measures the opinion of people who read that article and wanted to vote in that poll. It didn't even control for whether or not people played the Sims, so the poll could have been bombed by people still carrying a grudge that there are girls and minorities in Star Wars now.

    The survey that had the fans select Nifty Knitting as the next stuff pack? I guarantee every option on the list was something that EA knew fans were interested in. They weren't going to put in an option that they thought no one would buy and hope that the voters didn't vote for it as a joke. That was a way to build fan engagement, not market research.

    That is what EA should do, but I don't think they actually do much survey research. They rely heavily on telemetry and focus groups, which explains some of the head-scratching decisions they make. For instance, they made the decision to leave toddlers out of Sims 4 based, at least in large part, of data collected from telemetry which showed people generally aged up toddlers as soon as possible. Of course, telemetry did not tell them why, but I'm not sure it occurred to anyone to try to find out why. One of the more appalling interviews with, I think it was SimGuru Drake, was regarding teenage girls and how the game was being geared and marketed towards them. However, she said that they couldn't actually talk to teenage girls, so they talked to adults who work with teenage girls.

    IOW, EA doesn't seem to understand that data collection and interpretation of the data is very much an art.
  • ScobreScobre Posts: 20,665 Member
    But the majority didn’t ask for it. A few individuals might have wanted more Star Wars stuff but at the past four live streams the chat has been begging for things like cars, freed babies, skin tones, Bunk beds, horses, farming and pre teens. Ditto on forums (not just this forum) social media and YouTube.

    In fact after Moschino stuff, many people expressed the wish for no more collaborations.
    The vocal majority has been very clear about the themes and things it wants. Unless I missed all the posts begging for a Star Wars pack and I’m pretty sure I didn’t.

    That’s not to say I’m sure many are excited about this pack and I genuinely hope they aren’t disappointed.

    Had the game not just turned Six years old And many requests still ignored, I think this pack wouldn’t have had such a poor response. And by the looks of it, the pack looks very limiting and full of recycled animations so arguably it’s not even a good Star Wars pack.
    But some Simmers did ask for a space pack and a world for aliens years ago:
    https://forums.thesims.com/en_us/discussion/884591/the-sims-outer-space-pack

    https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/922409/sixam-as-a-playable-world

    Speculation was going about it too:
    https://extratime.media/2020/08/05/sims-4-new-game-pack-theories-clues-hints-all/

    People looking for CC Star Wars content:
    https://sims4studio.com/thread/19127/wcif-request-star-wars-cas

    Anyways I never believed the "majority" claim. Because that was told to family players to silence us about content we wanted and others didn't like toddlers that could have been spent on other content like parties. There is always going to be content that some Simmers want and others don't, but I don't think content should stop being made for the Sims franchise just because it offends some people. Otherwise we would never get a skin tone update or gender update or packs for toddlers and kids or the Muslim content of the New Year's content. I am tired of politically correct opinions influencing the Sims franchise to keep it a "safe place". We need content to appeal to everyone equally. That is what inclusivity is about and I am tired of the Sims franchise being only exclusive and narrow minded. About time they experimented because being an OG Simmer was never about playing it safe. It was always about breaking the barrier of the social norm and about time Sims got back to its roots with that. My family play includes sci-fi and supernatural content. Sure it might be different from the norm of humanoid only stories, but Sims was never just about normal stories, it was about adventure and taking chances and trying new things too whether it is fantasy or sci-fi.
    “Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” –Helen Keller
  • NindigoNindigo Posts: 2,764 Member
    I hope the bitterness will subside soon. Ultimately, it isn't our call as players what will be added to the game. I have a feeling that this part is what bothers people the most - a lack of power they believe themselves entitled to. But nowhere does it say that players can expect to have that kind of power.

    Then people claim that throwing a fit gave them toddlers, and that it justifies throwing more fits. Well, I think it is fundamentally wrong to communicate this way, and I hope EAxis will stop rewarding such behavior.

    In my opinion, they should not have added toddlers as a response to that kind of behavior. Perhaps they have made the same conclusion and will not cave to angry masses in the future, as that will be a really toxic relationship. I'm glad that the least wanted pack is now released, because I hope it's also a message to players - that they shouldn't get too comfortable thinking they can just bluster and then have their way.

    I'm sorry if this offends anyone.


    Origin ID: Nindigo79

    A smile is the prettiest thing you can wear
    Time enjoyed is never time wasted

  • FelicityFelicity Posts: 4,979 Member
    Nindigo wrote: »
    I hope the bitterness will subside soon. Ultimately, it isn't our call as players what will be added to the game. I have a feeling that this part is what bothers people the most - a lack of power they believe themselves entitled to. But nowhere does it say that players can expect to have that kind of power.

    Then people claim that throwing a fit gave them toddlers, and that it justifies throwing more fits. Well, I think it is fundamentally wrong to communicate this way, and I hope EAxis will stop rewarding such behavior.

    In my opinion, they should not have added toddlers as a response to that kind of behavior. Perhaps they have made the same conclusion and will not cave to angry masses in the future, as that will be a really toxic relationship. I'm glad that the least wanted pack is now released, because I hope it's also a message to players - that they shouldn't get too comfortable thinking they can just bluster and then have their way.

    I'm sorry if this offends anyone.

    It doesn't offend me, but you're making it sound like business decisions are the same as disciplining a child. And you're wrong. They make decisions based on what they feel will make the most money, not based on positive/negative reinforcement to encourage behaviors. The only behavior EA cares about is the opening of the wallet. I'm okay with that.
  • ScobreScobre Posts: 20,665 Member
    edited September 2020
    Nindigo wrote: »
    I hope the bitterness will subside soon. Ultimately, it isn't our call as players what will be added to the game. I have a feeling that this part is what bothers people the most - a lack of power they believe themselves entitled to. But nowhere does it say that players can expect to have that kind of power.

    Then people claim that throwing a fit gave them toddlers, and that it justifies throwing more fits. Well, I think it is fundamentally wrong to communicate this way, and I hope EAxis will stop rewarding such behavior.

    In my opinion, they should not have added toddlers as a response to that kind of behavior. Perhaps they have made the same conclusion and will not cave to angry masses in the future, as that will be a really toxic relationship. I'm glad that the least wanted pack is now released, because I hope it's also a message to players - that they shouldn't get too comfortable thinking they can just bluster and then have their way.

    I'm sorry if this offends anyone.
    I do agree it isn't our call. I don't think people are entitled to not wanting toddlers or Star Wars too. Communication has to be done equally without bias. I think ever since the yibSims started in the Sims 3, communication has gone downhill.

    Anyways some ways communication has worked:
    https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/880216/ideas-at-a-glance-for-toddlers/p1

    https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/973106/knitting-gameplay-questions-for-the-community/p1

    It was great sharing ideas with the dev team and I hope they do communication like this so that there can be some transparency. We just got to keep it business related rather than treating the Gurus like they are rock stars. They are real people and I think Star Wars was a wakening call that Gurus have nerd fandoms just like Simmers do which actually made them more relatable to Simmers which not everyone likes. It is ok for Gurus to make mistakes and not hit a homerun every time. Sims 4 needs more of that imperfection and experimenting. Gurus aren't Sims that the community can control, they are real people too. Simmers are real people too. It is that humanity that society has lost touch of that it is wrong to show emotions.
    “Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” –Helen Keller
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0 New Member
    edited September 2020
    The user and all related content has been deleted.
Sign In or Register to comment.
Return to top