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Combination Community Lots
MissyHissy
Posts: 2,022 Member
So with my BACC, I'm looking to combine lots where possible. I love doing this in Sims 2 and Sims 3 and I'm looking forward to doing the same in Sims 4. So I'm interested in what others have done with community lots to make them multi purpose.
One idea I've had is a cafe/internet cafe. The lot tag would be Cafe but I'd have a separate building (same lot) with computers in so the lot would be a literal Internet Cafe.
I've also got my museum/art gallery (pictured) which will double as an archaeology meeting place when I eventually have some archaeologists in town.
So what else have people done with the community lots?
*All my mods can be found on The Daily Plumbob*
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Comments
@MissyHissy Great idea for a thread!
I've already built an Internet café (again in Del Sol Valley, where that tiny park was), but it doesn't appear that my sims are actually using those computers. They just sit in front of them drinking coffee. Then again, they might just be distracted by all the celebrities as I gave it the Hottest Spot in Town lot trait.
However, I recently build a massive café in Oasis Springs, which is really more like a swimming pool. I had serious doubts whether sims would even use the pool, but they do! I then added a fitness studio along with a VIP area and some hot tubs. Again, no problems and sims use all of it. I then went a bit nuts and created an arcade with rooms for kid's & toddlers in the basement and finally placed a DJ booth plus bar near the pool area. Apart from the bar and booth, sims are using all of it autonomously. I closed the remaining holes of autonomy by assigning a few clubs to have gatherings there and now that place has become one of the busiest venues in my game. And it's still just a "café". Ultimately, this whole development made me change its name from "Oasis Café" to "Oasis Multiplex".
@LaBlue0314 As for the gym spa Idea , I'm going to be doing that from now on !! Awesome
I must admit I have not worked a lot to combine functions/builds, but I often add a small café or some offices to existing lots in order to give some of my sims an office away from home etc.
The Kasbah Art Center in San Myshuno works as the original Arts center in combination with my Casbah Art School. + in the basement I put the region's Court House with separate entrance from the side of the building.
Behind the Orchid Go Go Lounge there is a backyard, big enough for a couple small businesses/offices. My sims will not benefit from features like retail, but I make sure they make some money.
In Magnolia Promenade I built a culture house called "Fun Factory" that includes misc studios that artists can use for free, and there is a bar and a stage with seats for a audience of about 25. The build also include a café, exhibition section and a spot for meet&greets that can be altered a bit as needed.
Back side of the library in Willow Creek's commercial area, is a small café. It's not operated, but whenever I want to bring a small group of guests there I can simply bring a cake and there is a coffee maker there.
If I want more guests etc, I'll just use the club feature.
In Oasis Springs I combined a Spa with a Lawyer office. The Lawyer will typically not have many clients at the same time, so she will just invite over 1 or 2 sims.
In the future I'll focus more on community services. My region hires Janitors and I might build them a small central at the corner of a community park or in some backyard. I also want a bigger business/offices build where the units can change over time. Perhaps a bakery on ground level, and offices on the next couple floors.
There's probably a few more...
One of mine is a restaurant with bowling and dart
All sections of the building had to be connected to work properly. With restaurant and bowling in separate buildings, bowling was not available to guests in the restaurant, and nobody went there. After the two sections were connected properly, the bowling hall works like a part of the restaurant, meaning guests are assigned to the tables next to the bowling lanes, and the waiters sometimes play bowling.
In the picture food is served on a table next to a bowling lane. In fact, it is the table of the sim playing bowling.
I have several other multi purpose community lots, too, like bars, libraries or culture houses with laundromats. Perhaps I show you later.
This is the premade bowling bar with some modifications.
On ground floor is a laundromat.
A coffee bar is found on first floor.
Player: *instructs sim to prepare meal* "Then eat something, you little goofball!"
Sim: *starts cooking meal*
-5 seconds later-
Sim: *Stops cooking meal* "I'm so hungry!"
Player: *head hits desk*
You could even have the first floor be an actual business, like a restaurant or retail store, and then all the other floors would be private access.
On EA forum Stories and Legacies board and on QueenOfMyshuno.tumblr.com
@Frn0731 Are you using mods for that? I'm sure I've seen some about for that sort of thing. If that also works well without mods, even better!
@Simmerville Thanks for sharing, there's some lovely ideas there! How are you working your lawyers office, out of interest?
@secretlondon123 Did you have the lot tagged as a bar? Maybe a nightclub tag would have worked better?
@BoergeAarg61 Thanks for the pictures, they're great. Useful information about the restaurant/bowling alley. Lovely to see they work so well together!
@Oldeseadogge That sounds like a lovely lot. I'll have to look for it!
@TWSimGamer82 That also sounds like a lovely lot. I've always enjoyed combining shops
@QueenofMyshuno I love that idea! I'd thought of something similar for one of the penthouse lots in San Myshuno, where I want to build it as an office block with doors locked for different groups. I think it sounds quite fun.
Thanks for the input, there's some great ideas here. While I'm on the subject, what have people done with the cinema objects from Movie Stuff? I've built a cinema before but combined it with a restaurant which didn't seem to work too well. However, if I had a couple of movie-going clubs, that would probably change things a bit. Any thoughts?
My community simply needed a Lawyer, so I hired a sim and built her an office
The office is rather simple, with 2 client chairs in front of her desk, and a waiting room. In the back there is a room for her to take her breaks. She normally deals with testaments and separate property, but will also be working in the Court House whenever a local is accused for something and needs her assistance. in the future I might hire one more Lawyer or combine the office with Real Estate.
Oasis Multiplex (Café):
View from the back:
Cutaway view of the main floor:
Cutaway view of the ground floor:
By the way, I just noticed that some sims actually do use the computer in this café! (As you can see in the 3rd picture on the left side.)
So you might want to go ahead and give your Internet café a try!
LaBlue0314,
I couldn't continue without saying how cute that little cat is.
Also, I like your gym/spa idea, I'm going to try it.
I once had a family restaurant with the residence upstairs, it was nice and I was glad it worked.
Cine-Bowl (Bar):
Cutaway view of the second floor:
I have to say that this 2-in-1 works extremely well. I even had to expand the seating capacity of the cinema as it tended to fill up fast. As you can see, sims use both buildings at the same time, and no clubs are needed to close any gaps in autonomy either.
@mlnov39 Lovely to hear that worked, with the restaurant downstairs!
@DMDCT Those buildings look gorgeous! I absolutely love the way you've got them set up. Fantastic to hear the computers get used too, thank you for showing me! I also love your cinema and bowling alley. Very handy to see how well they work as a 'bar'. Definitely going on my list now
@MissyHissy I didn't as it was a new years eve party in Sulani. The bar was on a beach - I knew I couldn't set the lot as beach and get a bar tender - I didn't think about setting as a nightclub.
Hiring a DJ didn't distract them from the bar.
A food court using food trucks. I've forgotten what I set this one as. I was only allowed to hire a certain number of people so not all the trucks could be open at once. No-one came.
General 'greening' venue with pool, stocked fridges, tent, toilets/showers, hot tub. Set as pool. The pool (and therefore fitness increasing) was very popular until I installed the hot tub. Then they all preferred that instead. Bah.
Spa with underground pool. They ignore the pool - because it's further away? However they will go into the basement to have a mud bath. The drive for a mud bath is greater than the drive to swim? It could have been the tiny 'plunge' pool next to the sauna. Maybe those that wanted to swim were routed there instead.
My cafe above a shop got no traffic. Set as a shop.
Cafe/Laundrette
Restaurant/B&B
Frn0731 Are you using mods for that? I'm sure I've seen some about for that sort of thing. If that also works well without mods, even better!
No I do not have any mods in my game. Put your sims on a empty lot and simply buy any business and build living quarters above, below , beside, wherever and lock the door and allow only household members in. When children go to school they will end up at the empty lot so you just need to click on their icon and have them come to the business lot. The same for any sim who has a outside job, as long as someone stays on the business lot .
Also when you close the business in the evening make sure everyone leaves otherwise the clock won't go full speed. If your sim needs to give birth she must go to the empty lot first as sims do not give birth on community lots.
@Coley666 I know what you mean. I've never fully understood the separate pool lot tag, even back in Sims 3. I always combine those. Love the idea of a café/launderette.
@Kniga_Sitara Thanks for sharing the video. You've really put a lot of combinations in there!
@Frn0731 Thanks for the explanation, I'd never thought of doing it that way.
I never figured out how to make the NPCs do laundry. I don't think there is a Club Activity for that, is there? I've also heard washers/dryers don't work on retail lots. I never tried using them with my active Sim as I figured I would need to have dirty laundry with me, and I don't know if you can put that in your Inventory. I don't think linen piles even spawn unless you have the machines, do they? And then there would be no point in going to the laundromat, haha. Or do the hampers fill up without machines on the lot? Has anyone actually used a laundromat in some fashion, or are yours just decorative?
I was going to use the Ballroom for a Fundraising Ball for my Charity Organizer by scheduling some sort of party on the lot after I changed it to a Bar. I wonder what type Party would be the best? I would hire a musician and bartender, stock the buffets and go around asking the Sims that were invited for donations. Later on, I would hire a DJ, for dancing. Hopefully they wouldn't wander all over the rest of the lot, which would be "closed," but I might need to remove doors beforehand. I need to play that Save and see how that goes, but I get distracted with new stuff, haha.
my second generation becoming adults, I plan to move them all to Newcrest. I have a lot where I built 4 small shops with an outdoor foodcourt area in the middle. It will be interesting to see how that plays out.