The Things You Can Live Without

I received a copy of The Sims 4 as a gift and decided I would do some posts about how the game. I know a lot of people still haven't gotten it and are curious about what it's like. After all, all we've heard for months was either company propaganda or horror stories about how awful it would be.  Actually, we've heard little of either, really. People aren't talking about this game all that much.

One of the interesting things about seeing a new version of a game is realizing what was actually important to you and what wasn't. For instance, 4 doesn't have toddlers. I kind of hated this idea in theory, but now that I have the game, it really doesn't bother me. Not dealing with all the potty training and teaching little needy things to walk and talk is kind of nice. You can keep a baby around as long as you wish, but age it into a child when the novelty wears off. As it turns out, I rather like that.

I was also a bit disappointed by how empty and tiny the neighborhoods are. One of the things I really loved about 3 was the richness of the towns. They felt like real places, each with its own character and personality. In 4, the two starter towns are so small they're more like settlements. It's just a few areas of houses and then four or five public spaces. There are no rabbit hole buildings. No city hall. No schools.

However, I've noticed that in live mode, each area you visit has a pretty large open space around it. This is where you can explore for collection items and plants. There are lots of pathways and parks that don't show on the map. There is also a lot of access to fishing.

It's possible that the towns are small to make way for expansion packs. I have to admit that the farther we went with expansions, the more annoying towns became. So many new public buildings were added with each expansion that towns became glutted with items. Perhaps this change was an attempt to handle that problem. Everyone starts out with a bar, a gym, a library, and a museum. There is also a park. I have to say that I'm probably okay with this, though I do wish there were cemeteries. My sims always like those.

So these are some of my first major impressions. I'll give more over the next several days. Maybe not everyday, but as I'm busy learning the game, it's going to be on my mind a lot.