The Sims have been around for quite some time now… 14 years in fact. The first title in the franchise represented what could only be described as a card board cut-out of something that reminded gamers of a virtual representation of something very similar to Barbie’s playhouse. However, the franchise has evolved since then… thankfully!
Now you may feel that I am being a little harsh when it comes to the lovable world of The Sims. Truth be told, I have always been a fan of The Sims; however, the first few games felt like hollow representations of life. Fast forward to 2014, and the Sims have made a triumphant return to the PC in The Sims 4. With the franchise being around for 14 years, have the developers moved away from the cardboard cut-outs of the past and given us Sims that not only have charm, but also have lasting appeal? Well, it’s time to find out.
Over the past few weeks I have found myself playing The Sims 4 quite often, not to the point of obsession, but more to the point of enjoyment. While past releases were slightly mediocre, EA Maxis and The Sims Studio have finally given me quite a few reasons to venture back into the world of The Sims.
Kicking things off is the new version of create-a-Sim. Gone are the days where your Sim was either overweight or the splitting image of someone who may spend their life in a gym. Let’s face it, one of the best features of The Sims is actually giving your Sim a customised appearance. The Sims 4 goes a step further when it comes to customisation and actually lets you push and pull different parts of a Sim’s body. This essentially gives you the power to quite literally shape your Sim’s body type and appearance. Sims can now have larger thighs and skinny waistlines… or skinny thighs and larger waistlines. The decision is now actually yours to make now.
Next up is emotions. According to the developers, for the first time, the Sims will reflect a range of emotions which influence your choices in the game. I must say that I was quite impressed with how the developers have actually incorporated emotions, even if they are virtual, into The Sims 4. While emotions can be a blessing and a curse, they are most definitely a welcomed addition to the franchise. Emotions are similar to moods, but are more easily affected by in-game events and social interactions with other Sims. When it comes to emotions Sims can feel inspired, angry, bored, confident, dazed, embarrassed, energised, fine, flirty, focused and happy. There are a plethora of emotions; however, you can experience these for yourself. A prime example of how these emotions have been incorporated can be seen when a Sim may feel humiliated they may tell a self depreciating joke or simply go hide under their bed.
One thing that bugged me profusely about The Sims was the fact that Sims could essentially only do one thing at a time. Granted, you could queue up certain actions, but watching a Sim drone around the room performing one action at a time was quite honestly painful to observe. Thankfully, The Sims 4 actually allows Sims to multitask. Sims can now talk to other Sims while performing multiple tasks. My Sim, for example, has an obsession with his PC; however, instead of pulling him away from it, in order to talk to his fiance, he can actually have a full blown conversation. To add to this, his PC is located in the bedroom, with no additionally seating available, but thanks to the developers my Sim’s fiance can actually sit on the bed and converse with my Sim. It is little touches like this that make me want to play the Sims.
One thing that could put players off The Sims 4 is the vast amount of loading screens. Travel to the city… loading screen. Visit a next door neighbour… loading screen. If you run a fairly speedy machine this may not matter much, but if you are just on the recommended specs you may face a few issues. Another problem with The Sims 4 is its actual game world. It is smaller than some of the other titles. Hopefully some of the upcoming expansion packs will build upon the world, but for now you only really have a limited amount of places to visit, including: gyms, parks, museums and other stock-standard locations.
In previous Sims titles you could visit your Sim at work as well as have a nice dip in pool. Not this time! When Sims head to work they basically step out the front door and simply disappear. While this is not entirely a bad thing, I kinda miss the realism that travelling to the work place brought to the game. As stated above, there are no swimming pools this time around as well, which was a bit of a downer.
Venturing back to the positive, The Sims 4 features most probably one of the best build modes to ever grace a Sims title. The new Build Mode now features a drag and drop building option with the choice of furnished or unfurnished rooms, allowing players to create their dream homes quickly. The added tools to Build Mode also allows for exact adjustments when expanding or building a home. It is this sort of intuitive gameplay that makes The Sims 4 worth checking out. In past titles you had to recreate rooms if you wanted to move them around… now you just move them around as you please which is a fantastic feature.
Graphically, The Sims has never looked better. I personally prefer the cartoon like appearance of each Sim, which really makes the game less serious and more charming and quirky. The Lots also look great and the team over at EA Maxis has done a great job when it comes to creativity placed behind the furniture as well as other objects that can be placed within a Sim’s home.
Conclusion:
I could quite honestly sit here for the rest of the day telling you about The Sims 4; however, the best way to experience it is by playing it yourself. The Sims 4 is worth checking it out… but be prepared to sit through loading screens, have no swimming pool and ultimately wait for the first expansion pack because the game lacks the amount of content that past titles included right from the get-go.
Apart from this, overall, The Sims 4 is a great step up from past titles especially when it comes to graphics. It features emotions that actually effect gameplay on a positive note. Additionally, the overhauled Build Mode is most definitely a keeper. To sum things up, The Sims 4 is a great title, but it could be even greater once decent content and expansion packs begin to roll-out to extend upon the slightly limited gameplay.
Darryl Linington
