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Carl's Guide: A History of the Sims 4

simgirl1010simgirl1010 Posts: 35,710 Member
edited March 2021 in The Sims 4 Game Feedback
And why the game isn't likely to get better.

https://youtu.be/kC2fda9k0yc

Comments

  • StrawberryYogurtStrawberryYogurt Posts: 2,799 Member
    edited March 2021


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC2fda9k0yc&ab_channel=Carl%27sSimGuides

    What are your thoughts? Agree or disagree?
    Do you consider yourself a 'castaway', why or why not?
    Do you think the game is improving and going in the right direction (or is already great)?
    Post edited by EA_Leeloo on
    The Sims has currently lost its identity. Bring it back for TS5

    FixedCoarseFawn-max-1mb.gif

    Personality,depth,humor,consequences,lore,customization.
  • logionlogion Posts: 4,712 Member
    edited March 2021
    I am happy that Carl will stick around. I agree with him and I think it's important that people make their voices heard. I don't want the sims community to turn into a silent community that will just buy packs over and over again but also ask for improvements.

    I guess I am a bit of a castaway. I don't really play the game like I used to. I do feel that there is too much focus on making packs and less time spent on improving the game which Carl shows several times in the video. And I have played the game since it released in 2014, I still can't believe that we did not get firefighters until almost six years later.

    I did say when I saw last month's patch notes that I will not buy anything from EA until they will fix more bugs and I am going to stand by that statement.
  • TS1299TS1299 Posts: 1,604 Member
    I still enjoy the game for me and the game was only getting better since when it first came out.
  • Sk8rblazeSk8rblaze Posts: 7,570 Member
    Thanks for sharing! Carl did a wonderful job going into the history of TS4 and showing its many downfalls. He's been such a huge help to myself and the rest of the community during The Sims 3, and it's very sad to see yet another content creator drift away from the series like many other players did, too.

    I think Carl is absolutely correct that now is the time to be very vocal and start a conversation of the lackluster gameplay and DLC in The Sims 4, especially if The Sims 5 is indeed being worked on. I've stopped purchasing DLC for The Sims halfway through TS4 for the many reasons Carl discusses in his video. Pack themes are too specific, even in expansions, and they are devoid of gameplay, focusing far too much on visual animations with no depth. This is supposed to be a game, a life simulator, but instead it feels too much like a shallow dollhouse, where you watch your Sim go here and there, and use your imagination to fill the blanks. There is so little challenge, the goals are too repetitive and a snore to attain, and the game is too predictable. It's barebones, yet still manages to be a very buggy game.

    My interest in this series is at an all-time low, and the introduction of yet ANOTHER DLC line, kits, is just laughable at this point. Until EA takes this series back in the direction of The Sims 2 and The Sims 3, focusing on making it feel like an actual game again, I will not be purchasing.
  • VeeDubVeeDub Posts: 1,862 Member
    I haven't been around since Sims 4's beginning, or even near that, nor am I really vested in the series as a whole. But I do understand what it's like to lose hope in such things, as there have been other series I've followed to eventual sad ends (and some that may yet end sadly). I've only played this one for a couple of years, so obviously I do have interest in its success and possible future, but I suppose I might be lucky not to expect as much as some longer-term fans might have done.
    FYI: Just because you can see my signature, don't assume that I can see yours.
    Because I can't; I keep all sigs turned off. ;)
  • ScobreScobre Posts: 20,665 Member
    I think I have always felt like a castaway with the Sims community and honestly don't view it as a bad thing. I like being different and I know if I ended up being like everyone else, I know something would really be wrong with me and I wasn't doing things right in my life. I think the game has gotten a lot better than when it first came out. When I first joined the Sims community negative feedback was frowned upon completely. Now it is like as long as you don't act like a monster to the Gurus, they will at least listen to feedback even if it isn't always acted upon and I think that is a much more positive communication we have now than back in 2014. Things were rough then and it seriously felt like I was walking into a version of West Side Story. When it comes to things faith always comes first in my life, then family, then friends, and my hobbies are the last of my priorities so it is like whatever happens to the Sims it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. I hope that my nephews and niece can be proud to call themselves a Simmer someday. I feel like right now it is an embarrassment to admit it just because of how depressing the Sims community has gotten during the Sims 4 years especially. I think world events do play a part in that, but when it comes down to it, Sims no longer provides that escape for players anymore which isn't 100% a bad thing, Sims 4 is more for playacting rather than for just being a game for fun anymore. It has gotten too strict with rules and everything so the entire joy that made me fall in love with the Maxis franchises in the first place has been completely zapped during this version and the death of SimCity on PC.
    “Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” –Helen Keller
  • Sk8rblazeSk8rblaze Posts: 7,570 Member
    Posted this in a dupe thread, but wanted to repost here -- Carl did a wonderful job going into the history of TS4 and showing its many downfalls. He's been such a huge help to myself and the rest of the community during The Sims 3, and it's very sad to see yet another content creator drift away from the series like many other players did, too.

    I think Carl is absolutely correct that now is the time to be very vocal and start a conversation of the lackluster gameplay and DLC in The Sims 4, especially if The Sims 5 is indeed being worked on. I've stopped purchasing DLC for The Sims halfway through TS4 for the many reasons Carl discusses in his video. Pack themes are too specific, even in expansions, and they are devoid of gameplay, focusing far too much on visual animations with no depth. This is supposed to be a game, a life simulator, but instead it feels too much like a shallow dollhouse, where you watch your Sim go here and there, and use your imagination to fill the blanks. There is so little challenge, the goals are too repetitive and a snore to attain, and the game is too predictable. It's barebones, yet still manages to be a very buggy game.

    My interest in this series is at an all-time low, and the introduction of yet ANOTHER DLC line 7 years after the base game is just laughable at this point. Until EA takes this series back in the direction of The Sims 2 and The Sims 3, focusing on making it feel like an actual game again, I will not be purchasing.
  • SallycutecatSallycutecat Posts: 269 Member
    I like the Sims 4. I can do what I want and there's not really any obstacle to overcome. I found Sims 2 to be too challenging. I didn't like the aspiration meter, the wants and fears, and the need decay was too fast. I got bored playing Sims 3. I find it boring to watch and wait while my Sim walks from one side of town to the other. The game was also very laggy and didn't run well on my computer. Sims 4 is the first Sims game where I don't need cheats to keep on top of their needs. It's easy to get promotions or do well in school, build relationships, and skill up in whatever I want my Sim to be good at. Sims 4 really suits me and my way of playing.

    I prefer the way Sims 4 packs are done. It's more a pick and choose what we want. With them being more themed it's easy to know if I'll like the pack. I like that it's easy to be a mermaid in Island Living and I find the gameplay that Snowy Escape adds to be a lot of fun. It seems that what I consider to be fun, "castaways" as he called them, find to be boring. (Which is actually rude to tell someone that their fun is boring.) Island Living's main gameplay is about living on an island which I find much more interesting than taking my Sims to a beach. It really seems like no matter what people will complain and often they complain about the packs I like.

    It seems to be that those who want challenge want Sims 4 to change to fill their wants and they don't seem to care that there are those of us who don't want challenge. Some can not seem to get over the fact that Sims 4 is not open world and can not handle that there are people who like that. Sims 2 provided challenge and Sims 3 provided open world. Sims 4 provides relaxing gameplay for those of us who don't like unexpected things happening. If there is a Sims 5 it will probably provide something else.

    I think Sims 4 is constantly improving, they keep adding new things to it without taking away what makes Sims 4 unique. I think people should just accept the Sims 4 for what it is and play whatever iteration makes them happy. Currently there are 4 Sims games to choose from and each one offers something different to the others.
    Please check out my YouTube Channel. I cover features from The Sims 4 game.
    https://youtube.com/channel/UCaj9o4hycNSPy8U1Ip0OCFA/videos
  • texxx78texxx78 Posts: 5,657 Member
    I love sims 4 (and i have loved all the other iterations at it's time). Atm it has provided me thousands of hours of entertaiment. So, i'm not a castaway at all.

    But... i bought it at release, found it lacking a lot, left it and only started playing it again in 2019, when it was much more complete. I am never tired of saying i won't buy sims 5 at release, i'll never buy any sims game at release again... that trust is def gone.

    I agree with Carl in what concerns to depth. For instance, fizzy drinks vs nectar making... i loved nectar making, creating recipes with several fruits/plants, having the nectar get old in the basement to sell it for very good money... fizzy drinks are very linear and it was a bit of a disapointment to me. There are other things in sims 4 lacking the depth i would like/expect, like traits, relationships, aspirations and others...

    In what concerns to challenge, i'm fine with sims 4. My attention span has decreased a lot, so i don't want to play an idea/skill or whatever for an eternity. I love that i can get to higher levels fast and move on to other goals. I feel like i play in many more different ways than i did in the other iterations, where i would often give up. When i do want a challenge, i have hundreds of player's made challenges to try or i can set up my own. I know that some want more in game challenge but i prefer to set my challenges and the game provides me with the ability to go through features in a fast way. My attention span thanks a lot :)
  • StrawberryYogurtStrawberryYogurt Posts: 2,799 Member
    What are your thoughts? Agree or disagree?
    • Big yes. Everything was spot on for me. It seems like Carl and LGR have a similar mindset to me when playing so I usually agree.
    Do you consider yourself a 'castaway', why or why not?
    •Yes. I gave up playing or buying dlc a lot sooner than Carl did lol. TS4 is not designe for me.
    Do you think the game is improving and going in the right
    direction (or is already great)?
    I think its getting better, but not for my playstyle. Like the video said its still insanely popular, but there are just different people playing and enjoying it now. Its not designed for my kind of simming. The direction is right for those simmers. The direction for my simming? Completely wrong.
    The Sims has currently lost its identity. Bring it back for TS5

    FixedCoarseFawn-max-1mb.gif

    Personality,depth,humor,consequences,lore,customization.
  • Calico45Calico45 Posts: 2,038 Member
    I have gotten hours of enjoyment out of 4, but it came at the cost of heavily twisting my playstyle and it is not the "old reliable" game it used to be for me. Originally, if I did not want to play anything else, I still wanted to play the Sims. 4, not so much. It isn't unusual for me to not play for long periods (be it content droughts or occasionally game breaking bugs). Yet even I cannot dispute my playtime after 7 years.

    4 has definitely improved, but any sort of expectation for some big base game overhaul has not ever really been there. Plus all my favorite packs from the other iterations felt woefully underserved in 4. So to say I have never been jaded or frustrated would be a lie as well. It all boils down to shame. A shame that 4 was not anything like the potential that had been seen for it. A shame still being extended.

    Yes, I have had fun with 4 and will continue to do so, but because of it... I cannot imagine 4 will be a game I long to return to after it ends. Regardless of whether I purchased 5 or parted ways with the series, when if you had asked me when 1, 2, or 3 ended, I would have thought it obvious that I would have purchased 5, 6, 7 or anything else Sims.
  • Mstybl95Mstybl95 Posts: 5,883 Member
    I agree with Carl and I was a castaway. I bought this game at release and tried really hard to get into it. It just didn't have the simple gameplay that I needed to make it enjoyable. Simple things like making sure sims who should be at work or school are not roaming the neighborhood when they shouldn't. Or grown ups requesting that my child sim meet them at the bar during school hours. That stuff was weird and immersion-breaking. So I forgot about this game for the past 4 years and continued playing 2 and 3. Also became a patreon for Paralives in that time and got excited that sims would have a competitor. What brought me back to the sims was Snowy Escape and that paralives released a video showing their Para removing his shoes and then the sims added that feature. So I came back to give the sims a go again. So far, I still feel like the gameplay is severely lacking. To this day, every single sim acts exactly the same way. The traits do nothing to distinguish them. And they all accept any social interaction and smile constantly. Now with the dust kit, they're constantly inspired and there's no way to change their mood. Mods were absolutely necessary. But now, an update is coming in a few days and I don't know if this version is worth the trouble of going to update every single mod.

    So far, I'm having fun, but I am spending most of my time in build/buy mode and CAS. And to be honest, I am a builder and even that is losing its charm.
  • GoldmoldarGoldmoldar Posts: 11,966 Member
    edited March 2021
    For me I think Sims 4 has reached it peak as far as features goes, items or content can always be added but as far as enhancing the features goes which enhances the game more than content, I can't see it. If they do it will be minor and not anything to get peps over. It has been over six years and Sims 4 has yet to show me it has an lot of gas left in it. Out of all the Sims games, where I am ready to see it end so soon is Sims 4 and that is my feeling alone. Times has changed for the Sims series and Sims 5 may not be any different if anything.
    Post edited by Goldmoldar on
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  • filipomelfilipomel Posts: 1,693 Member
    I agree with most things said in that video, there are a couple things I would actively disagree with but besides that this video is excellent and the conversation needs to continue.

    In my personal view, Sims 4 has come a long way, I very much enjoy the game for what it offers, I acknowledge where the game needs improvement but it's hard for me to be cynical towards a game I very much enjoy. I don't think the Sims 4 is anywhere near as bad as many players make it out to be, the game definitely took a different direction than the previous games, but I'll be honest it's a direction that works very well for my personal playstyle. Regardless, deepening the core game would only make my gameplay better, so anything to deepen the game I welcome with open arms.
  • BreeNillaBreeNilla Posts: 160 Member
    Definitely a castaway here~ Haha.

    Yeah, he made a bunch of very good points. I think they've improved, but I don't think they're going in a "good" direction. They are going...somewhere. They've been partnering with celebrities, made a reality show, they've been getting Game Changers to help out with builds...Kits exist.

    But the biggest issue is the lack of improvement to the actual *base game gameplay*. There are so many builders out there because Build Mode has been catered to for years over the other two playstyles. CAS, as good as it is, still needs some work. Live Mode has been neglected since Toddlers, honestly.

    If you take DLC out of the equation, TS4's Base Game is still poor. It doesn't matter how well made an expansion/game/stuff/kit is made, the base game struggles in many areas. Challenge is one as he mentioned, but that's not all. The actual lack of personality in the sims, what makes them different and unique from each other, is a huge problem ~to me, at least~. The Sims all end up becoming the same because they react to things the same way regardless of traits because of the broken emotions system. They tried to give personalities through Lifestyles (a poor and failed decision, I think). What the base game needs is ways to make your game feel different and not repetitive. The Sims 4 doesn't need cars, open world, farms, playable schools, or even improved babies to be a good game, but it has to do what it does well. And it...really doesn't.

    I have over 2K hours in the game. Yeah, I have nearly all packs and I have gripes about pretty much every single one of them. I don't buy them at full price, lol. I don't think it's as simple as "don't like, don't buy" or "why keep buying packs if you're not happy with the game". I'm not happy with TS4 in the least, but the way I make it work is by pumping my game full of mods and not playing it for months at a time.
    8a597ff0f1eef1830795b3ae467ad12c6bb980ae.jpg
    I made a Sims 4 Save File set 15 years into the future using the premade sims by giving them family trees, storylines and lore, fixed and added relationships, and more!
    Check it out here! -> kookablarn.tumblr.com
  • bella_gothbella_goth Posts: 1,770 Member
    edited March 2021
    Kevin VanOrd's quote that says ""The Sims 4's biggest problem is that The Sims 3 exists" is soo true. i'd dare to say even ts2's existence.
    the management of ts4 has been terrible, be it the prices, the marketing, the priorities, etc. the game had so much potential.
  • EternalSunshineEternalSunshine Posts: 339 Member
    edited March 2021
    As someone who primarily enjoys the gameplay aspect of the Sims, I agree with Carl. I like certain things about the Sims 4, but I miss the challenge, personality, and lore that was present in Sims 1 and 2 (I skipped Sims 3). I came to the Sims 4 late in its release, and despite the updates that have been made since launch, and the now 40 available DLCs, I find the gameplay of Sims 4 to be lacking when compared to the prior iterations. Most of my current Sims feel largely the same, no matter what traits I give them, and when new gameplay is added, it is not particularly unique or engaging. As a result, I tend to become bored with the Sims 4 rather quickly, and I frequently take long breaks between play sessions. My personal frustration with the Sims 4 started to grow with Island Living, which has a beautiful world and nice BB, but to me, extremely lackluster gameplay. It is one of the few packs that I have purchased for the Sims 4 that I regret buying even at 50% off. Since then, my disappointment with the Sims 4 has gradually continued to grow, with a only few bright spots in between.

    To me, with the Sims 4, it seems like the developers take one step forward and two steps back. Most recently, they went from the creation of Paranormal Stuff, which appears to be the best stuff pack to date, to making kits, which are essentially stuff packs broken up into three overpriced components. I think that one of main problems of the Sims 4 is the parsing of content, and the continuous addition of "stuff" without equal attention being paid to gameplay and bug fixes. If the numerous bugs and the gameplay aspect of Sims 4, were given as much attention as BB, and to a certain extent CAS (CAS is still lacking for life stages other than adult/young adult female), the Sims 4 could easily become my favorite version of the Sims franchise. But, this late in the Sims 4's release, it looks like that is not meant to be. Based on how the Sims 4 has progressed, and the rumors that I have read about Sims 5, I doubt that I will carry on with the series once the Sims 4 is finished, and that makes me very sad, since I have loved the Sims for over 20 years. So, I suppose I am a member of the Castaway club.
    Post edited by EternalSunshine on
  • Bluebeard45Bluebeard45 Posts: 3,889 Member
    Carl is dead on the money. It's all about the money not the community just look at Kits. We wait for fixes and the stock holders are getting rich. I'm not a EA brainwashed monkey thus the reason EA dislikes people like me. Played this game since one and it's becoming a money grab and testing isn't getting done.
  • AineAine Posts: 3,043 Member
    edited March 2021
    The Sims as a franchise has the best fans in that we keep telling them what they could do better, and so far they haven't bothered listening. In the long run they'll lose customers once we get more competitors in the genre. They don't see a reason to change their ways, which is pretty sad.
    I do like Sims 4 once in a while, and I do play and enjoy the game, but once there's a better option I won't look back and I'll forget the game even existed probably.
    Allons-y!

    ---> Afterlife Game Pack Idea - improved ghosts, cemeteries and funerals, psychics, new skills, new career and more! <---
    ---> Burglary Stuff Pack Idea - Burglars, alarm systems, and diamonds to steal!<---
  • calaprfycalaprfy Posts: 3,927 Member
    This is my first Sims game on a PC and I entered somewhere in between GT and DO so I cannot compare, but I can understand how more experienced simmers were 🐸🐸🐸🐸 at release.
  • SimmerGeorgeSimmerGeorge Posts: 2,724 Member
    Looking back at the state of the game during launch it was so obvious the team wanted to take advantage of DLC. They released a full base game with almost nothing in it. The worlds are tiny and there were no lots to play on.
    Of course now with the Sims 4 you can travel from world to world in the same save but this requires you have enough worlds and how do you do that? You have to buy DLC. You want more lots than the tiny amount that the base game has? You have to buy DLC.
    Whenever they say "We made the worlds so small so that we can add more with DLC" I get disgusted by how greedy it is to assume that all players want to buy extra DLC after purchasing a game that is supposed to be full.

    EA, when you release a game, you have to release a full one, especially when people pay 60$ for it. No matter how many years pass I will still not forget the greediness this base game was by relying on its DLC to make it any good.
    Where's my Sims 5 squad at?
  • SimmerGeorgeSimmerGeorge Posts: 2,724 Member
    edited March 2021
    Yes I have to agree with Carl. The Sims 4 is a bad game that only relies on its DLC, hence the "content drought" people are talking about when this game has the most DLC out of all 4. People get bored unless there is something new to play, it's what EA is counting on "Give them less for the same amount of money and watch them come back for more".
    I am very dissapointed in the Sims community because of that. Really a base game should be a full game and not something that relies on extra paid content to not be boring. If you look at the base game itself, it is so empty, it's just a rip-off.
    They make so much money from this game and they could make so many great things with it but as Carl said: "The Sims 4 is a very big game that is created like it has a shoestring budget'

    It's sad to see your favorite franchise turn into this money-greedy buggy mess, when it used to stand for passion for games and believing in you own ideas.
    Where's my Sims 5 squad at?
  • PreCiiousPreCiious Posts: 353 Member




    Hello very good Video. I would also recommend watching this. Its very long but also very well made



    So...What Happened to The Sims 4? | Part Two: The Downfall

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSyeb5RnWXg&amp;ab_channel=Asmara




    What are your thoughts? Agree or disagree?

    I agree with some of his points, because the marketing was/is very misleading and manipulativ.. These surveys are annoying, because they only fuel hope and are there to keep players engaged. I dont even know what to expect (nothing is better) from this game, when it comes to live mode. I am very careful with wishing for stuff. I had to set my expectations so low, its baffeling. Definitly agree that there are always trade offs with these packs... Big World = less gameplay. I am also not grateful for these lifeservice. I am never gonna applaud them for adding skin tones. Or see firefighters as free content to be grateful for. Its ridicouless how they hyped up naming cow plants. Sould have been in the bug fixing section. Or how they hyped up white shelfs... please!



    Do you consider yourself a 'castaway', why or why not?

    Not really because even though some things are shallow i can make it a a fun game.
    The girl in the Video sums it up... at around 44:15Minutes
    I am type two:
    (I like the imaginative freedom. I enjoy the looks. I am okay with downloading some mods. (always have in every iteration). And dont mind spending coins for the DLCs (half off, of course). i like to experience every aspect the game has to offer.

    i try to just accept the game for what it is these days. I think its pointless to give feedback about core aspects (personalities, emotions, autonomy) of the game this late, when they always make it clear these days, that YOU make the sims.



    Do you think the game is improving and going in the right direction (or is already great)?

    Yes it is improving. I think they acknowledge more, adress some of its feedback faster, give us roadmaps instead of silence treatments, people can look forward to something (patch, bunk beds), gamechangers have a bigger impact than just beeing advertisements (like building houses). Some Fan Favorites (NpCs) are added. I also think some DLCs adress some of its feedback (random Phone calls, autonomus behaviour with Eco Lifestlye Trait) Yes its locked behind a paywell thats bull*** but oh well.

    No i dont really like the Direction

    This trailer will never sit well with me. Cringe. Released in 2019. No more Words about ''Smarter Sims, Deep Emotions''

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKVaEM0VfXU&amp;ab_channel=TheSims

    I think its sad, that this game is about the players and not so much about the sims themselfs, basically confirming that its also the community that keeps the game a float. I dont like how they made this game a tool for a safe space to express yourself. Everything is a trigger. Maybe thats why we dont have burglars. I dont like how they try to make this game a second life kind of thing you know? Or how they try to be Diverse(TM) or politicial. I liked it better when it was an alternative Universe with some refrences.

    Mt.Komorebi Disscussions and cultural controversy.

  • Mstybl95Mstybl95 Posts: 5,883 Member
    PreCiious wrote: »


    I dont like how they try to make this game a second life kind of thing you know?

    I'm pretty sure that when TS4 was in development, it was supposed to be a second life competitor. That's why the focus is on the player rather than the sim. You were supposed to only use these sims as avatars and not play a family or how we have played in the past.
  • SimmerGeorgeSimmerGeorge Posts: 2,724 Member
    PreCiious wrote: »


    I think its sad, that this game is about the players and not so much about the sims themselfs

    But then when you tell people you want to play an actual game and not make everything up like its a dollhouse they say "It's your fault you find it boring, you are not creative enough".
    Since when do we have to make such a huge effort to enjoy a game?
    Where's my Sims 5 squad at?
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