I’d love to know how other players keep their game fresh. I’ve recently realised that I tend to default to the same old stories and routines and though I don’t think I become bored with my game that often, I’ve been feeling nostalgic for the older games like TS2 which made sims’ lives way more difficult and unpredictable in comparison. I’m trying to think of what I could do to keep my play more interesting.
How do you add drama to your storylines? What are your favourite curveballs to throw at your sims when they’ve gotten just a bit too comfortable with their lives? My game needs a bit more flair!
The way I keep it interesting is by dice rolling everything in game that can be because then you get characters with flaws. I also play rotationally and make sure that some of my sims know others of my sims. I don't plan out their lives, although I have high hopes that are usually let down. I have favorite sims that end up in an early grave and ones I'm not very invested in that surprise me. The key that has kept me interested it actually letting things happen to my sims. I don't quit without saving, I don't micromanage. What happens is what happens and it's added to my town history.
Speaking of, another thing I do is actually make the worlds lively. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. The true MVP of this game is Get Together and the club system. On top of building or downloading lots that use all of my packs for all of the worlds, I also create clubs for every single family. Almost all of my families have their own clubs (bad parents don't) where they hang out with one another watching movies, helping with homework, cleaning, etc. Then every sim themself has at least one hobby that they are in a club for that meets at a community lot and then for their last club, I might have them doing something on a specific lot that I want to see...like I have teens pick on anyone who is child age on any lot. When I play on rotation, I see all these sims about town. It gives the sims I'm playing a chance to form new relationships to sims that I actually care about and know the history of. And when they have kids, I get even more invested.
But at the end of the day, it's still a game and I feel like having a real goal is the key to longevity. That's why I rarely cheat and when one of my sims does succeed, it makes me love my town and my characters.
I also play rotational and I must say I am having such a blast with the Sims 4 lately. As I don't own For Rent, I can still play without fearing to have my save corrupted.
As many here, the diversity of having multiple households does the trick for me. I spend 1 week with each of my around 15-20 active households before I go on to the next one. I always randomize traits and vary aspirations, Likes and dislikes as well. My Sims all have their flaws and I love it. Horses and infants made the game complete for me last year and there's always so much to do.
Now now EA, don't be stinking up our lovely lavender bath with your shopping fart. - My TS4 mods - Gallery ID: 83bienchen
I totally get that, because even having a lot of packs, things can become repetitive after a while. I've found that posting here on the forums really helped with my engagement and creativity with the game. I get excited to share my game play, so taking screenshots and zooming in to properly experience animations has been a fun way for me to appreciate the game more. So I'd definitely recommending finding an existing topic or starting your own and posting about your gameplay. And I have found that there are so many little things to discover in this game, no matter how repetitive some parts of it may be.
And I will agree with @aaronrulz - occult play can be a lot of fun in this game, especially since most occults have aspirations to help you explore gameplay too. I'm currently getting things set up to properly explore werewolves right now
I understand this feeling and recently I have had some moments where I felt like I was just kind of slogging it out. My main game is rotational play where I have a world of my own sims and some of the pre-mades. I have various customized lots or renovated lots that my sims play with. That game is a modern style so that I can use pretty much anything I want and play flexibly.
There are numerous likeable characters in my game so I usually have a great time. I'll also have fun as I eventually get to playing with different characters in the game or using features that I haven't used before. I keep getting "re-interested" in that game so it stays as my main save. I change what I do in it a lot and something that didn't interest me before can become suddenly very interesting.
I actually am using DHD and for example, right now, I am playing with one of my decorators. They do tend to customize residential spaces more. It would be nice to have some more customized public spaces. I use a mix of some Maxis community lots and I have built a few community lots of my own. Anyway, I tend to switch between different characters to have new experiences if it becomes to much of a grind or too similar or boring. I like having a sandbox but I also welcome having some optional challenges or prompts to work from. One of the best parts is when something that might not have interested me before becomes interesting and fun. I go with the flow of following what I want to do.
I agree with someone above, maybe you would have fun with other sorts of games. I play a bunch of different games, mostly life simulation games but most are very different from sims 4 (like Disney dreamlight valley, dinkum, coral island, animal crossing new horizons, animal crossing new leaf, the story of seasons games, cozy grove, etc etc - cozy grove isn’t exactly a life sim but I’m leaving it here for convenience), and some dungeon crawler (eg croixleur sigma) and bullet he11 (eg the touhou project games). A lot of games have quests, like Ddv is absolutely chock full of quests, which you may have fun with. I also agree that the sims can be fun, it is just a game that is more left up to the player to develop the story, which for me is good sometimes. I don’t always like quests, often I just do my own thing and ignore quests even in games that have them lol. And even in other games I come up with my own little lore for my characters, my own “fan fiction” or whatever. So for me, I can appreciate both styles of play, but some people prefer one or the other. There is nothing wrong with having a different preference. It’s what makes us individuals. If you play on steam you can try out a game for a certain period of time / amount of time playing the game / or something - i don’t know the parameters exactly - and if you don’t like it you can get a refund. I feel safer trying out new games on steam for that reason unless I know I’m going to love them. Anyway. I hope you find what brings you joy!
All my daily trances, and all my nightly dreams, are where thy grey eye glances, and where thy footstep gleams.
I dance to the beat of my own drum, no matter how measured or far away.
I do love a road. You can always be wondering what is at the end of it.
I realised why I get bored, and it's because the lifespan is too long even on normal lifespan.
My teenager got an A after 2 days at school, because she achieved so much as a child. So only another19 days before she becomes a young adult!
Her parents had completed their aspirations before their adult birthdays.
I thought about just aging them up early but this doesn't work for me as it messes with friends for the whole family.
If I age up the teenagers early, that puts them in the same age group as their parents.
I'm trying to play on short lifespan and it's hard! The kids don't achieve so much, the teens are tricky and I love it! I'm not waiting around for birthdays or trying to think of ways to pass the time. The struggle is real but so much more interesting and better for me.
The packs come with more ad more lounges, libraries and parks because those categories are base game. Each pack is designed to work with the basegame. First thing to do is to rearrange community lots as well as residential lots
I played the same save on rotation for 10 years, now counting 150(?) households. They are sort of diverse as some are nobility, others middle class, and then there are a few poor. I also have a set of churches with priests, beyond serving a church they live almost regular lives, and whenever needed they will be replaced by monks educated from a Monastery. I also have a few boarding schools - played before I got HSY, so it was fun even without those added features. I have a political system, but it might be more on the paper and storytelling than actually making a huge difference in-game. It's fun to have a President and a few parties with diverse missions, though. By focusing a bit on the community aspects, I get less bored with the regular family events. You might enjoy rotational play with some community aspects, even if you prefer to scale it down... I think a good idea is to switch houses while the current house is still interesting, because then I will look forward to returning.
Not intending to spam, but maybe the latest NEWS edition from my game sums it up, LOL...
Do you have any free time activities you enjoy other than the Sims? The more you have the less dependent you are on any one of them. There is also the benefit of said activities being sources of new idea and things to try.
You don't have to enjoy everything forever. Once something isn't your interest anymore, you can just leave it behind and move on. That's your choice. As is sticking to something you no longer enjoy, if that's what you want to endure.
I've been playing The Sims 4 for almost two years, and I'm enjoying exploring things that are brand new to me. When I tire of it, I'll do something else. It's no big deal.
"You've got a face, I've got a face, it's all gonna be alright." - Noel Fielding
Hi, I found one way around the whole I'm bored thing. Mods. If you're able to have them. There are some great mods that add to your gameplay. For instance, I was first able to have my Sim become a Rock Star in Sims 3 with Showtime, the EP. When I brought him into Sims 4, there was no singing in the beginning. That was something my Sims could do in Sims2, if only in the shower. Then we got a modest singing ability with the Outdoor game pack. I quickly had him learn to sing as he played the guitar, but that was very limited. Then we got City Living and the singing skill was there. Then Get Famous was announced. I was so excited to create a way for my Sim to become a Rock Star by just having him perform at various places and have him earn Simoleons via MCCC (which is a marvelous mod). Then I learned that a mod I was using (wherein he was going to be able to earn fame via Simstagram) had been upgraded. Silly me I uninstalled it once Get Famous was announced. I was grossly unhappy that singing wasn't a part of this EP. Road to Fam was back on my radar. Not only that but the modder upgraded and updated it to include a Professional Singer Career. The mod works very well with the EP. Erik has taken off to heights, I never imagined.
I have had more fun putting my Sim through the paces of controlling his own career from writing songs, to be licensed, to learning how to expertly play all musical instruments this game offers, to cutting albums via Road to Fame.
One thing he lacked in Sims3. The right woman to settle down with. He was wildly famous back then, but he couldn't find love, real love to save his life. This incorporates family play. He now owns a ranch in Chestnut Ridge, and has a houseful of children to carry on his legacy.
Yes, I play rotationally too, and many of my rotational sims know each other and are friends. Of course the more packs you have, the more variety there is as there are more lot types and more things to do.
I’m taking a bit of break and not doing much with my main rotational save and my scenario save till they fix not being able to change lots from residential rental back to something else ( For Rent ). I’m playing a practice save, so not investing a lot into it till they fix the problems for rent is causing me, I don’t want to corrupt a 9 year old save, currently I’m downloading some others lots and looking at them, in a practice save, checking out Tomorang, finding not much to actually do there unless you call rabbit holes playing the game …, lol, ( I don’t ).
But, before getting For Rent I was having a lot of fun with the horses, moving sims to new houses, giving some of them horses, having them practice for tournaments and exploring other worlds with horses, while at the same time carrying on full time careers.
I also started playing an infant ( with growing together ). I was having a blast raising the infant. With the growing together expansion infants can learn to do so many things. Then when the new Chefs hustle stuff pack came out the mother would go off and do some part time work selling food.
If you have Get Together you can make clubs. I have family clubs, friend clubs, skilling clubs, children’s clubs. If you have the bowling kit you can have bowling clubs and things like that. With just about each new pack you can make new clubs, or new things to do in clubs. My daughter in her game has clubs set up at many lot types, so when she visits there are certain types of people there.
With Get to work I had a fun time playing 3 sims in different families moving them up in their careers ( one in each of the 3 different active careers ). I also have some retail shops, a bookstore sims can buy books from, a grocery/bakery store sims can buy produce and other things from, a store with different items in which I play the owner running the store. A photography store which is fun as I take my photographer to other worlds to take pictures to sell in their store to other sims in my rotation. Moschino stuff also lets you have models come over to have photo sessions
I have an artist that lives in San Myshuno ( city living ) that is trying to become famous ( Get Famous ). I plan on him opening a shop fairly soon (Get to work ) where he can sell paintings to my other rotational sims, like my photographer does. He also has a baby, is having problems with the babies mother, and has found a new girlfriend, all while being a hot headed individual.
I have a musician that likes to go out and play in San Myshuno too ( City living ), while working on his skills. Then you add, having him in a club with friends ( Get together ) who visit each others homes, joke and talk to each other, watch movies (movie stuff), or go to a bars together to eat and socialize. He also has a girlfriend that he goes off and does things with, like going to a nightclub ( Get Together ).
I have a DJ (Get Together ), in one of my households ( 4 person household ), that goes off at night to make money at a night club. He has a girlfriend that is becoming famous ( Get Famous ), and he invites her over, where the other sims in the household can get to know her. In the same household I have a sim who does the basegame job or trendsetter ( the Fashion job ), , she often goes to family events with her brothers and sister as well, or seeks out mentor date.( I won’t go on about her sister who is now a top level Scientist , of her brother who is a top boss criminal, or her …. Lol ).
I have another household where the baseball player
(Basegame athletic career ) and his girl friend in social media ( City Living ), are both trying to become famous ( Get Famous ), and they are working on developing a vacation lifestyle by going on vacations, when they are off. they love active things like skiing ( Snowy escape ), riding jetskii’s in Sulani ( Island living ). While sharing posts on social media.
And this is just a small sampling of my different households. I didn’t mention, my farmer ( Cottage Living ), my archeologist (Jungle Adventure), or many of my other sims, like a single father, a daughter who lives with her brother and father and has a teenage son, a Granmother who is raising her child gradaughter, and I could go on and on, about different famiIies. I Have collected all the packs and kits over the years so there are lot of things to do.
Emphasizing, with a lot of packs there are a lot of things to do. And, I don’t even use Mods or CC, which a lot of people do.
The new lot type that comes with Eco lifestyle is fun to set up too.
If you are bored of playing, go in and change up lots, make some new sims to share and use, make some new lots to share, or download and look at others lots. I can literally spend hours looking at lots on the gallery.
Oh and I forgot to mention many people like doing challenges too. And scenarios can be fun too.
And, if none of the stuff helps, take a break from the game. I’m sure many of us do that from time to time.
Off the topic but how to make your sim a DJ?
there are many great fun things to do only if EA allowed it like working as DJ
I’d love to know how other players keep their game fresh. I’ve recently realised that I tend to default to the same old stories and routines and though I don’t think I become bored with my game that often, I’ve been feeling nostalgic for the older games like TS2 which made sims’ lives way more difficult and unpredictable in comparison. I’m trying to think of what I could do to keep my play more interesting.
How do you add drama to your storylines? What are your favourite curveballs to throw at your sims when they’ve gotten just a bit too comfortable with their lives? My game needs a bit more flair!
Try using some lot trait challenges. I like simple living ( came with cottage living ). You have to either grow or buy food to make meals. There are also some other challenges that add a bit of difficulty, or surprises, lol. I wish they would bring out a simple clothing trait so you would have to buy clothing to open the piece of outfit up.
You might also try to give your sims different likes and dislikes ( Growing together has the most ). Dream home decorator adds furniture types of likes and disikes too, and the basegame also has some.
Sometimes having animals and infants can add a challenge.
And, I love playing rotationally. My sims know each other. Get together adds clubs, which are Fun. Get to work adds retail lots, Dine out adds restaurants, etc.
Off the topic but how to make your sim a DJ?
there are many great fun things to do only if EA allowed it like working as DJ
@graventhe I'm currently playing a teen DJ. It's a self-employment career from Get Together where you make money from tips.
1. Your first step is to build up your DJ skills. Without decent skills you'll be tipped almost nothing. You can build skills by buying a DJ booth and practicing.
2. Then, when you're level 6 at least, you call the Ministry of Labor on your phone and register as an independent DJ.
3. Then you go to a community lot that has a DJ booth and perform for tips. If you perform on a lot that isn't a nightclub, you'll have a smaller audience, but you'll have the booth all to yourself and can start playing right away. If you perform at a nightclub, you'll be competing with other DJs, so you might have to wait your turn. Once you get up there and start playing though, you'll get bigger tips.
4. When you get to level 8 DJ mixing skill you can supplement your income by composing and releasing mix tapes for royalties. If you also own Get Famous, you could even win a music award.
5. If you max the DJ mixing skill, you unlock a Daft Punk robot suit in CAS that you can wear to your live performances.
Edit: One more thing. If you want your DJ character to earn more aspiration points, the DJ booth counts as a musical instrument for the purpose of the Musical Genius aspiration.
Post edited by Eleri on
-No, my almost-elderly mother, I don't think it's a good time for you to try for a baby.
-Yes, person I barely know, you have my blessing to hang out with Johnny Zest.
-No person with the mean, hot-headed and self-absorbed traits, I don't think you should get married.
I like to play rotationally. I find if I play with one family for too long it does become a bit boring. However I love get to work because I try and think of different retail shops I can set up and work towards getting them, rags to riches style. Another idea I've just thought of is camping in Sylvan Glade. Not done that before although have visited it briefly.
I guess I’m one of those who prefers the sandbox style of Sims 4. I want this game to provide tools for my own creativity. I don’t want it to hold my hand and tell me what to do. I get very bored, very quickly with games that are task based and require a lot of grinding for points to progress. I got Disney Dreamlight Valley last Christmas and I don’t even play it, now, unless there is a story based quest line to follow. FarmVille is not my kind of game. And, I could never just play legacy, family type sims. I would definitely be bored out of my skull with get job->get married->have kids, wash, rinse, repeat. But, others love that kind of play, and the great thing about TS4 is that it gives them tools to do that, while also giving me tools to create a fantasy realm full of Spellcasters, merfolk, werewolves, vampires and faux fairies. The downside is, you can get stuck in a rut, no matter how you play.
TS4 is a different game from its predecessors, and gets boring if you play it like the older titles. The thing I don’t like about TS2, is that I find that kind of gameplay too constraining, with the game having too much input. I rarely stuck with it, because I wanted to tell my own stories, not just participate in the game’s. But, that was the nature of TS2. It wasn’t the sandbox game I was looking for. TS3 was more balanced between sandbox and game directed play, and to be fair, I miss some of the randomness of TS3. But, I feel that TS4 gives me better tools to make my own adventures. And, as I look at the various packs I have, I haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s actually in the game.
I used to play one sim through a storyline. When that story concluded, or I got bored, I’d find a new story and start a new save. In this current save, I’m playing a whole world full of characters. When one sim’s story gets stale, there are 120 more I can play. I’ve been playing this save longer than any of my others. Quest based packs, like Strangerville or Jungle Adventure are nice diversions when the creative juices dry up and can actually spark new ideas. Paranormal also provides some interesting gameplay. And, with my fantasy theme, I don’t even have to start a new save. I also spend time building out my world and creating new characters when I’m really running dry. Sometimes, just doing that will spark a new idea. Also, I will find something in a pack that I haven’t really explored much, and put some time into it. Right now, I’m playing around with aliens and servos, something I really had not previously looked at.
So, TL;DR: I would recommend expanding your sim world through a more rotational play style, either organized or random, and spending time exploring game elements you never considered before.
I feel ya. When I bought for rent - something I’d really always wanted in the game was to be able to build apartments - and found myself oddly bored within 20 minutes (and also incredibly annoyed with all the bugs), I was just like: maybe it’s time to stop buying stuff for TS4 and just wait for Life By You or any other competitor that’s about to launch this year. It’s just not engaging and everything they add, while always cool in theory, is either executed poorly or just reuses the same exact gameplay elements over and over and over. I swear my hopes for TS5 are so low. I feel like EA truly does not understand what made this game so popular and doesn’t give its devs and creatives the freedom they need to make truly interesting products.
I feel ya. When I bought for rent - something I’d really always wanted in the game was to be able to build apartments - and found myself oddly bored within 20 minutes (and also incredibly annoyed with all the bugs), I was just like: maybe it’s time to stop buying stuff for TS4 and just wait for Life By You or any other competitor that’s about to launch this year. It’s just not engaging and everything they add, while always cool in theory, is either executed poorly or just reuses the same exact gameplay elements over and over and over. I swear my hopes for TS5 are so low. I feel like EA truly does not understand what made this game so popular and doesn’t give its devs and creatives the freedom they need to make truly interesting products.
That right there is a huge problem. I'm not shy about staying my favorite game in the series was sims 2 and it's because of the style of game it was. Not only did they animate everything, they also gave us open systems that we could use to create our world, our way. With OFB, we could create any type of lot with or without CC, there were multiple ways to pay for things, there shopping bags and registers and actual payments. They created a game that was visually stunning for the time and had features that made everyone's game unique. Not only that, but that game employed true cross pack compatibility and added features upon features if you owned everything. And did I mention the animation? Oh I did? Well it deserves mentioning again. Because TS4 feels like they just reuse the same 5 talking animations and the same 1 grab and set down animation for everything. They barely ever touch one another and do nothing together. In sims 2 they opened cabinets. They grabbed things. They animated a whole game of chess so you can watch and actually see who wins. That was my favorite surprise I just happened to see one day and realize they were playing a real game and moving individual pieces each turn. But as you can see...I love the detailed animations. I feel like the game loses some necessary component to the life sim genre when they get lazy with animations. One of the reasons I love this game is so that I can take pictures as I play and hang family memories on the wall...it's hard to do when every animation is the same.
Don't know if it's just me but..
I get on TS4 to play mods. Not the actual game.
Like maybe I shouldn't even consider myself a simmer no more since I only use TS4 to run the mods I wish to play ><
Without mods I wouldn't be playing the game at all.
You may need a break. Sometimes it's good to step away for a bit. I took like a 2 year hiatus from the Sims and tbh it took playing dreamlight valley to make me miss the Sims enough to go back to it and I've been having a blast since. There's so much content for this game that i think if you focused on exploring pack by pack you may find new and interesting ways to play. Admittedly I usually spend most of my time building so when I do get around to playing it is always fun fairly new and fascinating, even the infuriating things and unexpected bugs sometimes. Maybe try a randomizer those are fun too.
Personally, playing rotationally has kept me interested. If I get bored with a household I simply switch to another one. Also, I stopped selling plants for extra money to make them actually struggle. If they want to sell something they have to use a sales table or plopsy. I also have more fun when I give my sims some negative traits. Basically, try to make everything more challenging, lean into the chaos, and let the sims be unhappy sometimes.
Also, having more packs helps 😏
And replacing basically every build with better ones from the gallery.
I also have a tendency to fall into ruts with legacy-style play. I had a great time playing scenario challenges when they added those to the game, and sometimes I'll set challenges for myself (Sims with traits that clash, werewolves going to university, blowing all my Sims' money on a nice house and dealing with the consequences).
I find it helpful to try to let go of the mentality that my Sims need to have perfect lives. Letting them fight, not insisting on perfect fitness, making bad relationship choices for them, having them do what's in character for their traits instead of what makes the most sense. Essentially, doing what makes a more interesting story instead of trying to win the game.
I really like your backpacking Sim idea! Wonder if there are modifications to that idea that would make it more interesting for you? Like having them live on lots with different challenges, making a goal to seduce a bunch of the premade household Sims, working on completing collections?
> @DaWaterRat said: > I find "normal" legacy play a little bland too. Fortunately, I have several expansions and years (decades even) as a Game Master for TTRPGs; Right now, I'm in my third attempt at a Seven Stories legacy (they're attempts because for each of the previous ones, I had technical issues - the first time, an update caused major mod breakage, and the second time it was my computer that died) where rather than having a "success" based goal, each generation is put through one of the Seven Basic Plots - Facing the Monster (Strangerville) Rags to Riches (City Living), Tragedy (Get Famous), Voyage and Return (Originally Realm of Magic, this time probably Journey to Batuu), Redemption (Any, probably focus on Base Game), Comedy (High School years/Discover University), and The Quest (either Jungle Adventure or Snowy Escape, depending on the status of certian bugs when I get there.) In most of these cases, the pack I'm using for it isn't actually required, but it's the one I plan to use. > > Some of these, I know the game is going to fight me on, but I'm ready for that. > > So I'm going to agree that maybe you should look beyond what you think is how you "should" play the game and try to come up with ways to make the game fun for you. There really is no wrong way to play this game, as long as you find a way to have fun with it.
This sounds super interesting, have you done/do you plan to do a writeup on the concept and how it plays out in game?
> @DaWaterRat said:
> I find "normal" legacy play a little bland too. Fortunately, I have several expansions and years (decades even) as a Game Master for TTRPGs; Right now, I'm in my third attempt at a Seven Stories legacy (they're attempts because for each of the previous ones, I had technical issues - the first time, an update caused major mod breakage, and the second time it was my computer that died) where rather than having a "success" based goal, each generation is put through one of the Seven Basic Plots - Facing the Monster (Strangerville) Rags to Riches (City Living), Tragedy (Get Famous), Voyage and Return (Originally Realm of Magic, this time probably Journey to Batuu), Redemption (Any, probably focus on Base Game), Comedy (High School years/Discover University), and The Quest (either Jungle Adventure or Snowy Escape, depending on the status of certian bugs when I get there.) In most of these cases, the pack I'm using for it isn't actually required, but it's the one I plan to use.
>
> Some of these, I know the game is going to fight me on, but I'm ready for that.
>
> So I'm going to agree that maybe you should look beyond what you think is how you "should" play the game and try to come up with ways to make the game fun for you. There really is no wrong way to play this game, as long as you find a way to have fun with it.
This sounds super interesting, have you done/do you plan to do a writeup on the concept and how it plays out in game?
I always intend to write up the stories and post them, but I'm honestly terrible about remembering to get screen shots. Or do you mean a clear set of rules for each generation... in which case, sort of? I'm willing to go into it more, but maybe in a different thread unless the OP is interested too.
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The way I keep it interesting is by dice rolling everything in game that can be because then you get characters with flaws. I also play rotationally and make sure that some of my sims know others of my sims. I don't plan out their lives, although I have high hopes that are usually let down. I have favorite sims that end up in an early grave and ones I'm not very invested in that surprise me. The key that has kept me interested it actually letting things happen to my sims. I don't quit without saving, I don't micromanage. What happens is what happens and it's added to my town history.
Speaking of, another thing I do is actually make the worlds lively. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. The true MVP of this game is Get Together and the club system. On top of building or downloading lots that use all of my packs for all of the worlds, I also create clubs for every single family. Almost all of my families have their own clubs (bad parents don't) where they hang out with one another watching movies, helping with homework, cleaning, etc. Then every sim themself has at least one hobby that they are in a club for that meets at a community lot and then for their last club, I might have them doing something on a specific lot that I want to see...like I have teens pick on anyone who is child age on any lot. When I play on rotation, I see all these sims about town. It gives the sims I'm playing a chance to form new relationships to sims that I actually care about and know the history of. And when they have kids, I get even more invested.
But at the end of the day, it's still a game and I feel like having a real goal is the key to longevity. That's why I rarely cheat and when one of my sims does succeed, it makes me love my town and my characters.
As many here, the diversity of having multiple households does the trick for me. I spend 1 week with each of my around 15-20 active households before I go on to the next one. I always randomize traits and vary aspirations, Likes and dislikes as well. My Sims all have their flaws and I love it. Horses and infants made the game complete for me last year and there's always so much to do.
And I will agree with @aaronrulz - occult play can be a lot of fun in this game, especially since most occults have aspirations to help you explore gameplay too. I'm currently getting things set up to properly explore werewolves right now
There are numerous likeable characters in my game so I usually have a great time. I'll also have fun as I eventually get to playing with different characters in the game or using features that I haven't used before. I keep getting "re-interested" in that game so it stays as my main save. I change what I do in it a lot and something that didn't interest me before can become suddenly very interesting.
I actually am using DHD and for example, right now, I am playing with one of my decorators. They do tend to customize residential spaces more. It would be nice to have some more customized public spaces. I use a mix of some Maxis community lots and I have built a few community lots of my own. Anyway, I tend to switch between different characters to have new experiences if it becomes to much of a grind or too similar or boring. I like having a sandbox but I also welcome having some optional challenges or prompts to work from. One of the best parts is when something that might not have interested me before becomes interesting and fun. I go with the flow of following what I want to do.
I dance to the beat of my own drum, no matter how measured or far away.
I do love a road. You can always be wondering what is at the end of it.My teenager got an A after 2 days at school, because she achieved so much as a child. So only another19 days before she becomes a young adult!
Her parents had completed their aspirations before their adult birthdays.
I thought about just aging them up early but this doesn't work for me as it messes with friends for the whole family.
If I age up the teenagers early, that puts them in the same age group as their parents.
I'm trying to play on short lifespan and it's hard! The kids don't achieve so much, the teens are tricky and I love it! I'm not waiting around for birthdays or trying to think of ways to pass the time. The struggle is real but so much more interesting and better for me.
I played the same save on rotation for 10 years, now counting 150(?) households. They are sort of diverse as some are nobility, others middle class, and then there are a few poor. I also have a set of churches with priests, beyond serving a church they live almost regular lives, and whenever needed they will be replaced by monks educated from a Monastery. I also have a few boarding schools - played before I got HSY, so it was fun even without those added features. I have a political system, but it might be more on the paper and storytelling than actually making a huge difference in-game. It's fun to have a President and a few parties with diverse missions, though. By focusing a bit on the community aspects, I get less bored with the regular family events. You might enjoy rotational play with some community aspects, even if you prefer to scale it down... I think a good idea is to switch houses while the current house is still interesting, because then I will look forward to returning.
Not intending to spam, but maybe the latest NEWS edition from my game sums it up, LOL...
I've been playing The Sims 4 for almost two years, and I'm enjoying exploring things that are brand new to me. When I tire of it, I'll do something else. It's no big deal.
I have had more fun putting my Sim through the paces of controlling his own career from writing songs, to be licensed, to learning how to expertly play all musical instruments this game offers, to cutting albums via Road to Fame.
One thing he lacked in Sims3. The right woman to settle down with. He was wildly famous back then, but he couldn't find love, real love to save his life. This incorporates family play. He now owns a ranch in Chestnut Ridge, and has a houseful of children to carry on his legacy.
http://www.getfreeebooks.com/star-trek-original-series-fan-fiction-trilogy/
Off the topic but how to make your sim a DJ?
there are many great fun things to do only if EA allowed it like working as DJ
Try using some lot trait challenges. I like simple living ( came with cottage living ). You have to either grow or buy food to make meals. There are also some other challenges that add a bit of difficulty, or surprises, lol. I wish they would bring out a simple clothing trait so you would have to buy clothing to open the piece of outfit up.
You might also try to give your sims different likes and dislikes ( Growing together has the most ). Dream home decorator adds furniture types of likes and disikes too, and the basegame also has some.
Sometimes having animals and infants can add a challenge.
And, I love playing rotationally. My sims know each other. Get together adds clubs, which are Fun. Get to work adds retail lots, Dine out adds restaurants, etc.
@graventhe I'm currently playing a teen DJ. It's a self-employment career from Get Together where you make money from tips.
1. Your first step is to build up your DJ skills. Without decent skills you'll be tipped almost nothing. You can build skills by buying a DJ booth and practicing.
2. Then, when you're level 6 at least, you call the Ministry of Labor on your phone and register as an independent DJ.
3. Then you go to a community lot that has a DJ booth and perform for tips. If you perform on a lot that isn't a nightclub, you'll have a smaller audience, but you'll have the booth all to yourself and can start playing right away. If you perform at a nightclub, you'll be competing with other DJs, so you might have to wait your turn. Once you get up there and start playing though, you'll get bigger tips.
4. When you get to level 8 DJ mixing skill you can supplement your income by composing and releasing mix tapes for royalties. If you also own Get Famous, you could even win a music award.
5. If you max the DJ mixing skill, you unlock a Daft Punk robot suit in CAS that you can wear to your live performances.
Edit: One more thing. If you want your DJ character to earn more aspiration points, the DJ booth counts as a musical instrument for the purpose of the Musical Genius aspiration.
-Yes, person I barely know, you have my blessing to hang out with Johnny Zest.
-No person with the mean, hot-headed and self-absorbed traits, I don't think you should get married.
I dance to the beat of my own drum, no matter how measured or far away.
I do love a road. You can always be wondering what is at the end of it.TS4 is a different game from its predecessors, and gets boring if you play it like the older titles. The thing I don’t like about TS2, is that I find that kind of gameplay too constraining, with the game having too much input. I rarely stuck with it, because I wanted to tell my own stories, not just participate in the game’s. But, that was the nature of TS2. It wasn’t the sandbox game I was looking for. TS3 was more balanced between sandbox and game directed play, and to be fair, I miss some of the randomness of TS3. But, I feel that TS4 gives me better tools to make my own adventures. And, as I look at the various packs I have, I haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s actually in the game.
I used to play one sim through a storyline. When that story concluded, or I got bored, I’d find a new story and start a new save. In this current save, I’m playing a whole world full of characters. When one sim’s story gets stale, there are 120 more I can play. I’ve been playing this save longer than any of my others. Quest based packs, like Strangerville or Jungle Adventure are nice diversions when the creative juices dry up and can actually spark new ideas. Paranormal also provides some interesting gameplay. And, with my fantasy theme, I don’t even have to start a new save. I also spend time building out my world and creating new characters when I’m really running dry. Sometimes, just doing that will spark a new idea. Also, I will find something in a pack that I haven’t really explored much, and put some time into it. Right now, I’m playing around with aliens and servos, something I really had not previously looked at.
So, TL;DR: I would recommend expanding your sim world through a more rotational play style, either organized or random, and spending time exploring game elements you never considered before.
Tales From The Myst
The Blue Moon Jukebox
That right there is a huge problem. I'm not shy about staying my favorite game in the series was sims 2 and it's because of the style of game it was. Not only did they animate everything, they also gave us open systems that we could use to create our world, our way. With OFB, we could create any type of lot with or without CC, there were multiple ways to pay for things, there shopping bags and registers and actual payments. They created a game that was visually stunning for the time and had features that made everyone's game unique. Not only that, but that game employed true cross pack compatibility and added features upon features if you owned everything. And did I mention the animation? Oh I did? Well it deserves mentioning again. Because TS4 feels like they just reuse the same 5 talking animations and the same 1 grab and set down animation for everything. They barely ever touch one another and do nothing together. In sims 2 they opened cabinets. They grabbed things. They animated a whole game of chess so you can watch and actually see who wins. That was my favorite surprise I just happened to see one day and realize they were playing a real game and moving individual pieces each turn. But as you can see...I love the detailed animations. I feel like the game loses some necessary component to the life sim genre when they get lazy with animations. One of the reasons I love this game is so that I can take pictures as I play and hang family memories on the wall...it's hard to do when every animation is the same.
Don't know if it's just me but..
I get on TS4 to play mods. Not the actual game.
Like maybe I shouldn't even consider myself a simmer no more since I only use TS4 to run the mods I wish to play ><
Without mods I wouldn't be playing the game at all.
Also, having more packs helps 😏
And replacing basically every build with better ones from the gallery.
I find it helpful to try to let go of the mentality that my Sims need to have perfect lives. Letting them fight, not insisting on perfect fitness, making bad relationship choices for them, having them do what's in character for their traits instead of what makes the most sense. Essentially, doing what makes a more interesting story instead of trying to win the game.
I really like your backpacking Sim idea! Wonder if there are modifications to that idea that would make it more interesting for you? Like having them live on lots with different challenges, making a goal to seduce a bunch of the premade household Sims, working on completing collections?
Good luck!
> I find "normal" legacy play a little bland too. Fortunately, I have several expansions and years (decades even) as a Game Master for TTRPGs; Right now, I'm in my third attempt at a Seven Stories legacy (they're attempts because for each of the previous ones, I had technical issues - the first time, an update caused major mod breakage, and the second time it was my computer that died) where rather than having a "success" based goal, each generation is put through one of the Seven Basic Plots - Facing the Monster (Strangerville) Rags to Riches (City Living), Tragedy (Get Famous), Voyage and Return (Originally Realm of Magic, this time probably Journey to Batuu), Redemption (Any, probably focus on Base Game), Comedy (High School years/Discover University), and The Quest (either Jungle Adventure or Snowy Escape, depending on the status of certian bugs when I get there.) In most of these cases, the pack I'm using for it isn't actually required, but it's the one I plan to use.
>
> Some of these, I know the game is going to fight me on, but I'm ready for that.
>
> So I'm going to agree that maybe you should look beyond what you think is how you "should" play the game and try to come up with ways to make the game fun for you. There really is no wrong way to play this game, as long as you find a way to have fun with it.
This sounds super interesting, have you done/do you plan to do a writeup on the concept and how it plays out in game?
I always intend to write up the stories and post them, but I'm honestly terrible about remembering to get screen shots. Or do you mean a clear set of rules for each generation... in which case, sort of? I'm willing to go into it more, but maybe in a different thread unless the OP is interested too.