How would you all think about a difficulty option for TS4? «12...Next Go

Fallenxroses7

Hey everybody! I was kinda curious if anybody else thinks a difficulty option for sims 4 would be cool.
below is my idea of how it'd work:

Easy: Needs deplete much slower, chances of death are lower, chances of bad events are lower, negative buffs go away faster.
Medium: Needs deplete normally, chances of death are 50-50, chances of bad events are normal, negative buffs go away normally.
Hard: Needs deplete faster, death is more common, bad events are much more likely, negative buffs stay for longer,
Extreme: Needsdeplete much faster, Death chances are much much higher. bad events around every corner, negative buffs stay for ages.

I'd love this option. for me, the needs go down way too quick sometimes so it'd be great to have an option to play it easy for a bit.

EDIT: I made up a second idea of how a difficulty system would work bc people were saying how needs depleting is just annoying

Easy: fires happen less, death of embarrassment, laughter, and anger are almost never going to happen. being struck by lightning is harder (if you have seasons, of course) kids will be much easier to take care of. Pets don't go missing as much. (again, if you have C&D) negative buffs will go away much faster, partners won't cheat or break up with you.
Normal: the game as it is right now,
Medium: prone to fires with low cooking skill, being struck by lightning is easier, kids will be more frustrating to take care of, pets will go missing a bit more often, negative buffs stay for longer, chances of your partner cheating on you or breaking up are possible if you don't socialise for a while. money will be harder to gain, being demoted or fired is a bit easier, being promoted is a bit harder.
Hard: best to get your cooking skill up to around 2 or fires are most likely going to happen, being struck by lightning is extremely easy, kids will be a bit of a nightmare to take care of, negative buffs will stay for longer, chances of partner cheating on you or breaking up are higher. chances of demotion or firing is easier, being promoted is harder, money is much harder to gain,

please tell me if you have any more ideas for things that could make the game harder! I had fun writing this.

Rouensims

It wouldn't be helpful for me.

Chazzzy

I hear you, but if the needs deplete super fast, what exactly could anyone achieve in that time period?

Like, imagine sending your Sim to the shower and then telling them to eat. By the time they finish eating, the hygiene meter would be depleted again.

Just sounds more frustrating than fun to me. And I predict a lot of people would use those perks more than before.

Simmingal

the problem is i want easy play but with random happenings that shake it up a tons

like sim could be all happy with big family and big house and then one day one of the sims decides to buy a dragon and oh boy time for chaos

like i have no interest for added needs play i just want things to go wrong sometimes to the point of "your family died rest in peace"

Bluegayle

I dont feel the challenge I would like is in the needs. More challenge for the daily living. Having to actually go to a store to purchase food and clothing etc like in Sims2. Job promotions should be harder as well. Having the needs deplete faster which just make it more frustrating as Chazzy says kills the fun factor for me.

ListentoToppDogg

Bluegayle wrote: »

I dont feel the challenge I would like is in the needs. More challenge for the daily living. Having to actually go to a store to purchase food and clothing etc like in Sims2. Job promotions should be harder as well. Having the needs deplete faster which just make it more frustrating as Chazzy says kills the fun factor for me.

This.

Honestly, I've never heard of anyone saying the game is too easy is because of needs. It's things like food being easy to get, money being easy to get, jobs being easy to keep up with, school being easy to manage, toddlers and kids being extremely independent...those are the areas where the challenge is lacking if you ask me. Not needs depleting or "bad events" (whatever that consists of).

Smellincoffee

I've played The Sims 1. I don't need a "hard" difficulty setting in TS4.

MaggieMarley

Sure, so long as there is a setting for the current difficulty which I can choose to stay at

Fallenxroses7

Smellincoffee wrote: »

I've played The Sims 1. I don't need a "hard" difficulty setting in TS4.

Yep, TS1 was pretty exhausting! sims died all the time

Rae357

Difficulty settings are an interesting idea. I'd like higher difficulty to have some things the game now does not, like illness actually killing sims and pets. Maybe fire and electric kill immediately. Maybe a harder difficulty sims get pregnant more often when not trying for baby. I love the idea of choices for playing.

FlyingPotato659

Doesn't the number of sims in a household not define difficulty?

Lustianicia

The game already has a difficulty meter. Every Sim added to a household makes the gameplay increasingly difficult (unless you're using cheats).

So_Money

Options are always good, so I’d be for it.

Scobre

Toggle options for it I wouldn't mind. I know there are mods for it already.

SiliClone

I balanced my own game with a combination of tunings I made and MCCC. I think the game is balanced for short and maybe normal lifespan.... But the team totally ignored the long life span. It's also balanced if you play rotationally, but on long lifespan on a single household... Way too easy. So yeah... I'd like an hard mode.

Hestia

I would much prefer if the game didn’t have a difficulty option.

Smellincoffee

Fallenxroses7 wrote: »

Smellincoffee wrote: »

I've played The Sims 1. I don't need a "hard" difficulty setting in TS4.

Yep, TS1 was pretty exhausting! sims died all the time

I tried playing it again a few months back and it was CONSTANT grinding. Fortunately one of my old hard drives still has a lot of TS1 objects on it, including some hacked chairs and portapotties that max motives. (Why a portapotty, I don't know...)

nerdfashion

This would be neat, but I think you should be able to customize the settings instead of being stuck with the above.

DeKay

Smellincoffee wrote: »

I've played The Sims 1. I don't need a "hard" difficulty setting in TS4.

I need this type of hard difficulty in TS4. XD

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Anyways, I think some of these suggestions by OP are good but maybe not all the needs will deplete fast but could maybe deplete faster depending on the traits of the sim? Like I remember back then in TS1, the social bar went down so fast for outgoing sims that I just hate making outgoing sims. I don't really see much effect on the social bar in TS4 even tho I have a few outgoing sims.

SheriSim57

SiliClone wrote: »

I balanced my own game with a combination of tunings I made and MCCC. I think the game is balanced for short and maybe normal lifespan.... But the team totally ignored the long life span. It's also balanced if you play rotationally, but on long lifespan on a single household... Way too easy. So yeah... I'd like an hard mode.

I wish they would give us something like MCCC in game so we could fine tune our game without having to seek outside mods.....I’m not that good with computers anymore, so give us something in game.

Kimmer

I play Sims 4 to relax. I just want to have fun, I don't need or want it to be challenging. If I want a challenge I go play other games.

comicsforlife

Simmingal wrote: »

the problem is i want easy play but with random happenings that shake it up a tons

like sim could be all happy with big family and big house and then one day one of the sims decides to buy a dragon and oh boy time for chaos

like i have no interest for added needs play i just want things to go wrong sometimes to the point of "your family died rest in peace"

yes please this is also what I want

Themrsg4422

Needs depletion is not the issue. The problem is you get a warning or a way out for everything. You have to get electrocuted TWICE, eaten by a cow plant TWICE, if you're poisoned in Salvadorada there is an easy fix, rabid rodent disease had a simple cure. There is no risk anymore, no shocking deaths at unexpected times. In fact you have to WORK to get a sim gone of anything other than old age. I miss the uncertainty of the older versions.

cheescaeks

there are other things i'd like the team to focus on. it would help to have more negative random events like burglars and more obtrusive fires (with firefighters back), meteors, etc which they could add in with ease. reworking the entire game to have difficulty options? nah. they just need to add more negatives that shake up the player's game without them purposely going out of their way for it.

cheescaeks

Themrsg4422 wrote: »

Needs depletion is not the issue. The problem is you get a warning or a way out for everything. You have to get electrocuted TWICE, eaten by a cow plant TWICE, if you're poisoned in Salvadorada there is an easy fix, rabid rodent disease had a simple cure. There is no risk anymore, no shocking deaths at unexpected times. In fact you have to WORK to get a sim gone of anything other than old age. I miss the uncertainty of the older versions.

this is my issue too. once i figured out that the electric shock only kills if i got a dazed moodlet its been easy to avoid death. would be nicer if it was more a random chance if electrocution or cow plant will kill you on first go. actually makes repairing objects or hiring someone to do it something meaningful.

Vampris

Honestly I would just like a chance of something bad to happen, even something small would help shake things up abit.

Themrsg4422 wrote: »

Needs depletion is not the issue. The problem is you get a warning or a way out for everything. You have to get electrocuted TWICE, eaten by a cow plant TWICE, if you're poisoned in Salvadorada there is an easy fix, rabid rodent disease had a simple cure. There is no risk anymore, no shocking deaths at unexpected times. In fact you have to WORK to get a sim gone of anything other than old age. I miss the uncertainty of the older versions.

Exactly, if you managed to kill a sim you either did on purpose or had some really bad luck. The only lethal thing in this game I can think of is fire, but it only happens when you just start.