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Scholar
Original Poster
#1 Old 15th Jun 2016 at 9:21 PM
Default As someone who plays the sims 3 how do you like sims 4?
Hey guys I know there's probably been a million threads like this but I feel as though with the progression and things that have been patched and added I'd ask personally. I wanted to know how those who are more used to playing the sims 3 are enjoying the sims 4.

I recently have began hoarding 4 to 3 cc conversions because I absolutely love the flat low poly textures of sims 4 items. As far as I'm concerned as long as people keep converting sets and items I will be absolutely fine frankensteining my sims 3 game. I probably would only play the sims 4 if someone bought the game and its expansions for me.

But still what do you think of the sims 4 in comparison to the sims 3 so far?
(p.s. sorry if this is still the wrong forum ; u ; )
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Lab Assistant
#2 Old 15th Jun 2016 at 10:38 PM
In my opinion, the Sims 3 is better as sims 4 gets really boring and sims 3 has great gameplay. But they both have glitches and freezes, so be careful. If I was you, I'd get Sims 2. It is the best out of all of them and is extremely addictive!!
Top Secret Researcher
#3 Old 15th Jun 2016 at 10:59 PM
Haven't played Sims 4, and have no interest in it, as it takes out features I would expect and demand (toddlers, anyone?) and charges a ridiculous price. I already have both Sims 2 and 3 on my computer, as it is. Since that is the case, I have no need for Sims 4.
Scholar
Original Poster
#4 Old 15th Jun 2016 at 11:06 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Wow-Princess
In my opinion, the Sims 3 is better as sims 4 gets really boring and sims 3 has great gameplay. But they both have glitches and freezes, so be careful. If I was you, I'd get Sims 2. It is the best out of all of them and is extremely addictive!!

oh no lol I have the sims 3 and the eps. I'm very visual but i also love customization so the sims three is absolutely perfect for me. I'm sad but glad to know im not missing out with the sims 4.
Scholar
Original Poster
#5 Old 15th Jun 2016 at 11:07 PM
Quote: Originally posted by SusannaG
Haven't played Sims 4, and have no interest in it, as it takes out features I would expect and demand (toddlers, anyone?) and charges a ridiculous price. I already have both Sims 2 and 3 on my computer, as it is. Since that is the case, I have no need for Sims 4.


I agree I think EA is literally squeezing money out of people anyway possible.
Scholar
Original Poster
#7 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 1:54 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
I think there are plenty of threads in TS4 about this topic. hehehe

I'm sorry! I was expecting a different response here for whatever reason but there seems to be a general consensus on both sides of the ts4/ts3 argument.
Alchemist
#8 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 3:12 AM
Quote: Originally posted by pretenshus
I'm sorry! I was expecting a different response here for whatever reason but there seems to be a general consensus on both sides of the ts4/ts3 argument.

I think it's alright because some of us might never visit TS4 forum so we may have never seen a thread like this.

Anyway, how I like TS4? My answer is, I don't.

Just call me Nikel
Site Helper
#9 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 3:13 AM
I'm another one who has decided that EA can keep Sims 4,5,6 and any other Sims games they come out with in the future. I still don't even have all of the EPs for Sims 3. (I did just get the Sims 2 Ultimate Collection, so I've finally got all the EPs for Sims 2. )

They have managed far too often to come up with something that sounds as though it's going to be really cool, and then have the implementation of it be so warped that you end up looking for a mod to turn it back off. (How much does anybody want to bet that when Pets is released for Sims 4, it will, at the very least, break CC beds, couches, living chairs, and counters?)

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Forum Resident
#11 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 4:51 AM
The TS4 thread on this site is like a different world. It's just a toxic place where all the posters do is complain about the game. Just spending 5 minutes on that board is enough to deter me from TS4 but then I tried the free 48 hour trial and I was bored after only a few hours of gameplay. I can't for the life of me understand why anyone who has played TS2 (and owns it because EA gave it out for free) would spend money on TS4. There's nothing new and in fact, there's a lot missing compared to the base games of TS2 or TS3.

But to the question: It's hard for me to play Sims games without the open world because of TS3. Even though in many ways, I much prefer TS2, I open it up and play for an hour and then quit and start up TS3. The open world to me is EVERYTHING. Once you dump the loading screens, it's hard to go back and with rotational gameplay with Nraas traveler mod, I can have a little bit of TS2-style control over my families while letting my ugly sims -- er, I mean, Sims I don't like -- age and progress without me having to play them.

So yeah, TS4 is a no go for me because there's no chance they will ever implement an open world and that's a dealbreaker for me for that and any future TS sequel that comes out.
Scholar
Original Poster
#12 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 4:57 AM
Quote: Originally posted by olomaya
The TS4 thread on this site is like a different world. It's just a toxic place where all the posters do is complain about the game. Just spending 5 minutes on that board is enough to deter me from TS4 but then I tried the free 48 hour trial and I was bored after only a few hours of gameplay. I can't for the life of me understand why anyone who has played TS2 (and owns it because EA gave it out for free) would spend money on TS4. There's nothing new and in fact, there's a lot missing compared to the base games of TS2 or TS3.

But to the question: It's hard for me to play Sims games without the open world because of TS3. Even though in many ways, I much prefer TS2, I open it up and play for an hour and then quit and start up TS3. The open world to me is EVERYTHING. Once you dump the loading screens, it's hard to go back and with rotational gameplay with Nraas traveler mod, I can have a little bit of TS2-style control over my families while letting my ugly sims -- er, I mean, Sims I don't like -- age and progress without me having to play them.

So yeah, TS4 is a no go for me because there's no chance they will ever implement an open world and that's a dealbreaker for me for that and any future TS sequel that comes out.


I agree, I think I was reading a review on Amazon where someone said the sims 4 shouldn't be a part of the series since it's almost like a spin off. I feel that describes it best for me. It is sad to hear that people have a hard time playing the game though. I absolutely love the way the Sims 4 looks but that's about it,
Lab Assistant
#13 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 8:07 AM
I didn't want to like TS4 at first, but it's really endeared itself to me? I still like 3 a lot, though.

Things I like about 4:

-Easier to just pick up and play if I'm feeling bored, faster-paced
-Less lag and loading times (this is a big one)
-FAR LESS ROUTING ERRORS OH MY GOD
-The Customize Gender options are pretty great
-Seems far less buggy in general tbh
-More streamlined needs that don't need to be constantly monitored
-My favorite part of TS4 is probably how the AI is a lot better and SIms, by and large, act like actual people now instead of robots going through the motions? For instance, Sims will now socialize with each other even if they're in the middle of two different tasks. I remember playing the game and being floored that Sims had the ability to multitask at all in TS4. Sims in TS4 also seem to have better time management skills, as it takes Sims here about the same amount of time to eat or use the toilet as you'd need IRL. As opposed to, IDK, taking an hour to pee.

Things I like about TS3:

-Better if you're doing plays that span over a lot of generations, like legacies or just watching towns grow (since while there's some limited aging control in TS4, it doesn't have straight up story progression the way TS3 does)
-Seriously, the story progression (when modded to hell and back) is probably my favorite thing about 3
-The open world
-TODDLERS even though I have a love/hate relationship with toddlers
-Has more stuff out for it in general, although TS4 is at a disadvantage here anyway since it's newer.
-Greater ability to customize your world
-Greater ability to customize pretty much anything really, because I also miss FREAKING CREATE-A-STYLE. I understand that all the textures contributed pretty badly to the infamous loading times for 3. But a streamlined/trimmed-down version of CASt for 4, where you just have a palette/color wheel instead of a bunch of textures and shit, would be great.

TBH it seems like a lot of the features that were taken out of 4 were done so because of performance issues, since TS3 is NOT kind to the average computer. So it really mostly depends on your playstyle. Here on out I like to go for TS3 for my extended campaigns that focus on all of one household at a time, and TS4 if I want to switch between households a lot and just dick around.
Lab Assistant
#14 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 8:20 AM
Quote: Originally posted by pretenshus
oh no lol I have the sims 3 and the eps. I'm very visual but i also love customization so the sims three is absolutely perfect for me. I'm sad but glad to know im not missing out with the sims 4.

Yeah, I love the Sims 3, but I think I bought too many EPs so it started crashing every 10 minutes. It was also quite slow, but I still miss it a lot. I just wish EA would sort out these glitches, then I would be playing Sims 3 again!!
Instructor
#15 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 8:29 AM
EA made a strategic mistake with the Sims 4. Instead of coming up with a whole new game, they should have simply fixed the Sims 3. First, they should have made it a 64 bit game from the get go. This would have allowed them to use more memory. More memory means more options and playability. But they should have kept the same file formats. Then they should have fixed the bugs and shoddy programming which plague the Sims 3. They then should have expanded the features already extant in the Sims 3. More career options, more playable professions (like those in Ambitions), more animals (zoo animals and farm animals), more vacation worlds, bigger and better cities, larger worlds (possible without the memory constraints of a 32 bit game), additional universities (and a university EP) that allows for multiple generations to play in.

The Sims 3 was good, and I spent many many hours playing it. But it was limited and buggy. Just releasing a version which fixed all of the bugs would have made me happy. But, instead, EA decided to go in a different direction. I think that was a mistake.
Scholar
#16 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 11:35 AM
I got TS4 as present and playing it only made me angry. Angry about it being a missed chance for a cool new sims version. And angry about it having so many (imo obviously) stupid design choices and a hollowed out basegame, but still full of sometimes obvious bugs which shows that Maxis's bug squashing track record has not improved.
The two main reasons why TS4 is no option for me, is that it doesnt have an open world or CASt (seriously, downloading recolours again?!). These are the easiest and main reasons I can name. There is a lot more that I don't like in TS4, which I mostly forgot about by now. Only some leftover grumpiness about TS4 is left from that The fact that they release bitesized content for max prices, doesn't make it better either. The only redeeming part is one of those last updates that introduced the transgender stuff. That is quite brave for a lame company as EA imo.
Scholar
#17 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 11:52 AM
I don't play Sims 4 - not yet... I might in the future, if I get the game - but I have seen gameplay and challenge videos. I have to say, it has some good ideas, advantages compared to Sims 3, but it also has major flaws compared to Sims 3.

I'm torn on the world not being as open as in 3. I mean, I like that in 4, the community lots you visit ARE full of Sims there (I've had my share of, say, Late Night 'Hotspots' being empty as airtunnels). And I like the emotion aspect, especially how the emotion of the Sim can alter their way of walking. A small feature, but I rather like it. Adds a bit of realism; I mean, people walk differently to begin with and even more differently, depending on how they feel - emotionally or physically. I would like to have a "Meh" emotion, though. I mean, I'm not very emotional and not even 'Fine' would describe my Meh emotion times well.

I don't really like how... 'plastic' the hair looks at times.
I miss the CASt options. I know that it was done to prevent loading but if they didn't insist on giving us about five differently colored versions of the same pattern they probably could have prevented majority of the pattern-based load-lag in Sims 3. (You know, if there was a way to delete or maybe 'hide' the patterns you know you will not use, you could save load time there, too!)

The lack of toddlers doesn't bother me much, personally... The basegame of Sims 4 seemed decent, but it felt like it would have been much better received, had it been the next series after 2, but not 3.

tl;dr: Sims 4 is decent for what it is, but does lack stuff to make it 'better' than Sims 3.
Scholar
#18 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 2:02 PM Last edited by Elynda : 17th Jun 2016 at 3:07 AM.
I haven't played Sims 4 - my present computer wouldn't support it anyway - but I've watched a lot of LPs on Youtube and the only thing I like the look of is CAS. Even if I do upgrade to a better computer, it will only be in hopes of improved performance with Sims 3. I still play Sims 2, and there are some aspects of it that game that I prefer over Sims 3. But it is the open world of the latter that swings it for me and will probably dissuade me from ever buying Sims 4.

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Scholar
Original Poster
#19 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 4:03 PM
Quote: Originally posted by HarVee
I find TS4 is a good distraction from the behemoth (In good way) that is TS3, but lacks a lot of customization features from TS3 that make it difficult to enjoy extended game-play as a player that spends much the time fixating over details and designing lots.


Yes this is exactly what I was thinking. I thought it may be a decent game for people who don't spend hours, days, or weeks, designing and perfecting worlds, houses, or sims like in the sims 3. I could see it more as a retreat from the sims 3 after you get tired of a project but not as an actual long term playable game.
#20 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 4:49 PM
Even I don't like TS4 (the cartoon factor), I applause the richness of animation variety in TS4. New animations, new interactions, especially the different ones for teens which are lacking in TS3. Actually I had downloaded free-trial TS4 (as long as it's free) but have no motivation to run it.

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Forum Resident
#21 Old 17th Jun 2016 at 1:41 AM
Quote: Originally posted by mithrak_nl
The two main reasons why TS4 is no option for me, is that it doesnt have an open world or CASt (seriously, downloading recolours again?!).


I forgot to mention CASt! That's right up there with the open world for me. I totally forgot that WASN'T a thing in Sims games until I started playing TS2 with the Ultimate Collection and had to download cc recolors. WTF? It's so exhausting! It was like stepping out of a time machine and realizing you're in the early 1800s. "Candlelight? Why don't you just turn on the....oh my God, get me out of here!"

Quote: Originally posted by pretenshus
Yes this is exactly what I was thinking. I thought it may be a decent game for people who don't spend hours, days, or weeks, designing and perfecting worlds, houses, or sims like in the sims 3. I could see it more as a retreat from the sims 3 after you get tired of a project but not as an actual long term playable game.


I can see EA's logic behind that. They wanted to capture the now-massive casual gaming market for the Sims. Hence why they originally envisioned it as an online only game. I think they just did not "read the room", as it were in terms of knowing what fans what and what made the games popular in the first place. I do think they did make a genuine effort to replicate TS2 which is arguably the most popular of the 4 games now but somehow made a wrong turn at Albuquerque and they also just blatantly cut A LOT of corners in order to meet production deadlines.

I LOVE the idea (dream) of them just fixing and expanding on TS3. Who can I throw money at to make that happen? That to me would have been a win-win. TS3 sold way better than TS4 has. As people inevitably upgrade their computers, it would be easier to play the game on their systems and creating new content would bring in new players. They could have moved to smaller packs on the Store and focused on stabilizing the game. And the fans would get to enjoy more content and smoother gameplay.
Scholar
Original Poster
#22 Old 17th Jun 2016 at 2:44 AM
Quote: Originally posted by olomaya
I forgot to mention CASt! That's right up there with the open world for me. I totally forgot that WASN'T a thing in Sims games until I started playing TS2 with the Ultimate Collection and had to download cc recolors. WTF? It's so exhausting! It was like stepping out of a time machine and realizing you're in the early 1800s. "Candlelight? Why don't you just turn on the....oh my God, get me out of here!"



I can see EA's logic behind that. They wanted to capture the now-massive casual gaming market for the Sims. Hence why they originally envisioned it as an online only game. I think they just did not "read the room", as it were in terms of knowing what fans what and what made the games popular in the first place. I do think they did make a genuine effort to replicate TS2 which is arguably the most popular of the 4 games now but somehow made a wrong turn at Albuquerque and they also just blatantly cut A LOT of corners in order to meet production deadlines.

I LOVE the idea (dream) of them just fixing and expanding on TS3. Who can I throw money at to make that happen? That to me would have been a win-win. TS3 sold way better than TS4 has. As people inevitably upgrade their computers, it would be easier to play the game on their systems and creating new content would bring in new players. They could have moved to smaller packs on the Store and focused on stabilizing the game. And the fans would get to enjoy more content and smoother gameplay.


Yes I don't know why they moved away from the sims 3! Modders are still creating amazing content in EA's place. EA (sadly but srsly) could've done the same and cashed in!
Inventor
#24 Old 17th Jun 2016 at 5:49 AM
WARNING: Long essay ahead.

I find it so hard to like TS4. Believe me, I tried really hard. It has a great ideas but most of them are executed horribly.

Take for instance multitasking. It seems like such an amazing idea until you realize that is completely broken. Musical chairs, Sims joining conversations with strangers, Sims talking to each other while doing other things and not even LOOKING AT each other but using hand gestures (in real life, you WILL NEVER use hand gestures if you're not looking at your interlocutor). Then you got gimmicky and pointless additions such as the emotion system that is pretty much the moodlet system of Sims 3, just that now it has labels for some emotions (fear???). But it's also broken. If your Sim has lost a loved one, don't worry just take him to a room with nice decor (+3 Happy) and you'll see his face smiling from ear to ear. Then why don't you take him to that room with the flirty lamp and see how his mood changes as fast as a speeding bullet. It makes no sense. I prefer the Sims 3 system, which determines mood according the addition and subtraction of different moodlets. Even if you manage to make your Sim happy, certain moodlets such as Heart Broken will make them cry from time to time; which is the reaction you would expect. This doesn't happen in TS4 so I can't understand how some people say that Sims behave more realistically in Sims 4 when it's more evident than ever (even more than in Sims 1 dare I say) that they're pixelated people, no more than that. I can't connect with them... at all.

Then you have the sheer amount of gameplay features missing, some of which will never be implemented in Sims 4. The lack of an open world and story progression is impossible to bear. Going back to loading screens and static neighborhoods is just a slap in the face. Most games of this nature (sandbox games) have open-worlds nowadays, how come Sims 4 is going back to 2004. I understand that routing was a major concern in Sims 3 when they implemented the open world for the first time (and empty lots as well). But it's 2016 (2014 when Sims 4 was released) and technology has evolved so much. There's no excuse not to implement this feature. Performance should be a non-factor, unless you cater for PC with specs from 2006. Then as regards customization, I find myself in disbelief that we have gone back to recolors. FYI, CASt was not a cause of major lag in Sims 3 if you had a decent graphics card. It could've been even better with today's technology. But let's say that they were concerned about performance and they wanted to make the game VERY accessible, then why don't include a COLOR WHEEL. It has literally 0 performance impact. But let's say that you HAVE TO go back to recolors, why would you not provide an official tool so at least people can create their own recolors with a couple of clicks. They were many ways they could've tackled the lack of CASt... but alas, this is EA were talking about here. They don't give a s*it about the modding community, which for the most part makes their games playable.

Family play has also been butchered. We're back to Sims 1 when only children and adults were playable ages. Young adults, teens and elders are almost exactly like adults now, with minor differences. They didn't even bother to design different bodies and heights depending on age. Babies for God's sake are objects. Children have more interactions than in Sims 3, I'll give you that (can't believe they can't play instruments) but the fact that you go from a newly born baby to 8-year-old child just creeps me out. What they did to toddlers has no name for it.... Love 'em or hate 'em, but they were an essential life-stage. You just can't go from a baby to a child, you just can't. It break any immersion the game could have (which it really doesn't).

On top of all I mentioned before, we have to add the fact that Sims 4 feels less sandbox than Sims 1. The goal-oriented nature of the game makes it so that the game no longer feels like a Sims game. They just don't understand what the game is about. Why won't you let me play it the way "I" want? Why do I have to mop the floor three times, analyze 2 samples and examine 3 patients or else I won't be promoted. And then there's the strong emphasis on skill grinding, aspirations (which are nothing more than goals) and collecting crap. One thing is to have an RPG component to the game, which I don't mind at all. A different thing is to have all these elements to the detriment of sandbox features.

All in all, I find it hard to believe this is happening. By most beloved game has become a casual, goal-oriented, sterile, glitch-ridden mess. It really breaks my heart because I have no faith there will ever be a good Sims game after 3. This team and its executives have no idea what most players really want. They're targeting their game to a new audience, but they alienate their long-term fans in the process. They have no shame at all. This woman Rachel Franklin tries to justify every decision, as if we didn't know that it was the fact their repurposed Olympus what started it all. The Sims 4 has no vision... it's just an attempt to capitalize on fans' loyalty.
Lab Assistant
#25 Old 17th Jun 2016 at 6:22 AM
Its fine. Just don't go the TS4 sub-forum- its all whining, bigotry, and rudeness. :C I much prefer the TS3 sub-forum..
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