One of the reasons some companies aren't so vocal about updates and addons is because things can be dropped or changed, things can be promised and never actually appear in the game.

More broken promises means more backlash and shorter game lifespan. Sometimes it is better to say nothing rather than make someone mad.

I've often wondered about this statement. What if that's what Grant's boss said to him..?

That's just something they are saying, the cow is still able to get milked some more by EA in their eyes.

At first, sales were not what they expected (this info is from late July Stockholder meeting). Sales picked up though (probably due to Zerbu's Get to School mod, lol). Time will tell if things continue to sell well. I don't think we'll see toddlers or weather or pets, for that matter, because they're not willing to spend any more money than the bare minimum. If sales take off big time, then maybe, but I'm not optimistic. I know I've stopped buying any more content because the game has too many omissions and bugs. I don't enjoy playing it. I'll reassess that if they start making more improvements.

This may be why they're mostly silent; they don't know if they're going to be able to continue making content or not - as that might depend on hitting specific sales targets.

The thing is, The Sims 4 unfortunately has no passion. Rachel is a hypocritical woman who says all these things because Marketing. "A strong foundation for the best Sims game ever.". Riiiiight. That explains why there's so many dead/scrapped content intended for online gameplay, and the game is technically underwhelming (Seriously. 32 bit in this day and age on such a large title? No open world? Dumbed down game mechanics? ). That was the first sign for me that The Sims 4's future is doubtful and that it's really just a bomb waiting to go off.

I appreciate the things they do put hard work in, but... It's not a lot. It's mainly EA's marketing that makes me furious. Like with the latest stuff pack. "ICE CREAM!!!!!" is what everyone screams because the pack has literally nothing else to offer. No specific styles of furniture or clothing. Just generic crap. I honestly can not believe how people go "omg thank you EA!". It's a pathetic attempt to grab the cash of more, unforgiving, dumb souls. Off-topic aside, I'd still love to see a different developer taking on a similar game. Man I'd just love to see EA's face if such a game were to sell twice as much only with a "base-game". The big boys are dying. It's just a matter of time!

If EA really wants to cash in on mobile games that badly, they should just make the call and move, and stop leading us on with their evil, pathetically cheap marketing scheme. That's a big part of the issue!

I took the statement about there not being a Sims 5 if Sims 4 didn't do well as more of an statement about business than a threat. I think Grant just didn't express it very well. No company will continue very long with a series that doesn't produce money. One would hope, however, that since the series has been so successful in the past, that EA would be willing to continue even if the current game did not do well.

Of course, that is not a reason to buy a game. I've heard some people express the thought that the fans should "support" EA or the Sims series. I don't agree with that. EA does not need our "support", but only our patronage which we should only give if we want their product.

Why are there people so snobbish in this thread? The holier than thou attitude is as obvious as a ginormous pink elephant in the middle of the room. It's like people have to hide behind their own sense of decency to express opinions that are veiled as "Respectfully". Um...no, you're not trying respectfully...you're just aiming to infer something rude and masking it as a empathy. The op is just stating his insights, which was intelligent and seemingly not insane, it doesn't mean he isn't optimistic. The guy is probably reluctantly optimistic if anything.

Just say what you want to say, stop hiding behind inferences.

I'm sorry you interpreted it that way, it was not my intent. ... No wait. Let me just say what I mean. Not sorry. Your misinterpretation.

EA marketing.... is like most marketing departments, only, they don't quite do research as thoroughly as they should, or for that matter, neither does some levels of the management departments either.

SWTOR: Has not had a truly major story content update focused on the classes yet, what has come out has been piecemeal at best..

The above game is EA's second venture into space/ scifi mmo, which, likely due alot to the name of Star Wars, has been fairly popular...

Earth and Beyond: EA's very first venture into space and scifi mmos crashed and burned nearly from the release date. Marketing failed and management failed this one...

For the Sims, Its not surprising that TS4 isn't performing to Marketing/management expectations, but as far as being at fault for the lack of sales, its purely the management department. Or that's my feeling anyway. No one can really know how close EA is to the proverbial "cliff" as far as remaining US based instead of off shore somewhere, but they need to take a look at their recent past as far as decision making regarding game development pre-release and do serious audit in that aspect, because otherwise, they will end up going offshore sooner or later.

I'm not against EA, its just that they've made some bad choices which imo should be looked at and options reconsidered for the future. If they want to remain where they are.

SWTOR's problems lie entirely on Bioware, not EA. When EA bought bioware they basically allowed those studios free reign on their projects. It was Bioware who didn't understand what drives most MMO players (not story) as well as underestimating how resistant story driven CRPG players would be to trying an MMO (the most single player MMO in perhaps... ever). EA only stepped in and changed direction of that game after the shit hit the fan and players left in droves.

Have they had any major class story updates since then? No. And you know why? Because players voted with their wallets, canceled their subs, and showed EA that the majority of them weren't willing to pay a sub and wait a reasonable amount of time to get story content. It had nothing to do with marketing. And guess what? The game is making a steady profit now. So while I'm one of those who was devastated about the destruction and devolution of that game into becoming a grindy shell of how amazing it could have been, EA made absolutely the right business decision since they're a business, pure and simple, and not a charity for wayward gaming nerds.

Merging with existing thread. See note in first post.

I am kind of confused as to why my thread was merged into this one. My post had nothing to do with which game was better. My post was simply reviewing what's been said about Sims 4 by Devs and EA themselves and what we can expect in the future/if anything at all. Sure, the beginning of my post started off with nostalgia... but that was simply it.

Told ya so!

Was only a matter of time before the hawks swooped in and dropped this thread either in the garbage bin, or in the backwaters.

It kind of defeats the purpose... one moderator says it's fine & then another comes in and overrules the other? I don't understand...

You don't need to understand, it's just how it is.

Whatever. It's fine. At least a few people were able to contribute to the discussion and I am thankful for that.

Both of the threads I merged had been reported for flaming / harrassment. If you can't have a civilised conversation then at least keep it in one place and do not spam the rest of the forum with it.

Well if you thoroughly researched my posts you would see that I've harassed or flamed no one. In fact, that thread was the first time I've contributed to MTS in quite a while. But any how, thanks anyway.

That was a general "you", I didn't address anyone in particular.

I saw no one flaming or harassing anyone. Care to give any examples?

I wish this thread wasn't seen as something hidden or off of the beaten path. There's no reason why this thread couldn't be lively.

well you were kinda right. It didn't get locked so much as it got "receptacled"

I don't either. That's why I was so shocked to see my thread merged into a thread that was barely active.



I agree wholeheartedly. It's funny (to me) that one person of authority deemed my thread to be safe for discussion and then another came in overruled that decision. Oh well. I'm not trying to be a sourpuss, I just thought that my thread was something that we could contribute to in a professional and respectful manner.

You're not being a sourpuss at all, this has been a recurring annoyance lately.

Ahh I see. Like I stated to the mod that merged the thread, I haven't really been active here as much as I used to be. For what it's worth I am glad my thoughts weren't locked/deleted. At least people can still read what I had to say. I am appreciative for that. And I am personally thanking you for contributing to the discussion.