Probably a matter of cost effectiveness. They've released multiple packs that've lowered the bar, and lowering the bar means less work and less expenses for them. If they made a Sims 5, that itself is very time and resource-consuming. If the Sims truly is an anomaly where expansion purchases don't fall off with time and stay steady throughout the years, then the better question is what's their motivation to make a Sims 5 if the game they put little effort into is selling like hotcakes?

As long as the expansion packs etc. sell reasonably well (and I guess latest Cats&Dogs did), why should they stop?
The graphics might be so so, but they are a bit more cartoony and thus more timeless.


Oh, and regarding LGR. I think the reason that he isn't a Game Changer/Yib is because he didn't want to. I might remember it wrong, but I think, he mentioned once that EA offered, but he declined, because he didn't want to be bound to them in any way.

Cartooniess doesn't equate to timelessness. And given how hard TS4 has tried, more than any other game, to be "hip" and "trendy", I can see it becoming almost as dated as TS2 once its time is up.

Not saying it won't still hold up as a fun game years from now. TS2 still does after all. But given how fast society has been changing in recent years, I wouldn't be so quick to call anything about this game "timeless"

I meant that a cartoony graphic style helps that a game can carry on longer and stay relevant.
Does this magically transform the game into a timeless classic? Surely not.

I also wish they would work on Sims 5 to make a better base frame and correct where the gameplay direction of Sims 4 fell flat or is lackluster, but realistically they have no current reason to do so. There is no other life simulator in this form on the market that they have to compete with. Expansion packs still seem to make good money.
And to be competely honest, on the other hand, I don't know, if I want to "reset" and start with a Sims 5 and again, wait for Seasons, wait for University, wait for Vacations, wait for Pets etc.
I'm fed up with this rehashing cycle and Sims 4 is just starting to get to a level where it has some of the content the older games had in one form or another. I for one am curious what a future of 3 more years with Sims 4 could bring. Will we finally get some very new additions to the series? Is there gonna be room for creativity and innovation? Granted, chances are slim, but still, with 3 more years, I have my hopes up for entirely new gameplay content. The Vampire Gamepack showed me that they can put a new and interesting spin on old concepts, so I'm not as negative as others right now.

LGR knew that applying for GC would make him only relevant to EA, so basically feedback sent and receive through one person/player/simmers/comsumer/etc. He thought that is a no no. That's what I remember at least.

Well because Maxis had shifted into Mobile gaming with I guess not great results and right now The Sims is all they got after that huge screw-up that was SimCity 2013 that was their other big name, TS4 long run is because the costs of creating a whole new game from the ground up is likely too high and also that DLC release schedule is at this point too long and a new game isnt going to change that.

Also that The Sims doesnt really integrate with EA model of "games-as-services" and considering they tried that model before with The SIms 2 and 3, a potential TS5 would not fit within EA current model and also that if it started development now it would only be released in 4-5 years, it would likely be worst as EA would exactly be shy of doing BS like Bethesda Creators Club as a attempt to cash-in on CC that would be very divisive of the community, furthering the gap of "have and the have-not" in a worst way that TS2 Paysite did because at least that we did to ourselves.

It's a combo of both. He himself refused the position because it had conflicting interests (how can he review a company that pays him and bribes him?) and simultaneously, EA suddenly stopped sending him free copies and inviting him to events, which was something they had done in the past. He was accepting review copies, I believe, but that practice stopped around the time the Game Changers program began, and since then he's never gotten recognition from them during events again.

Well EA scored an own-goal there. It would have cost them an insignificant amount to go on sending him early releases, and by doing so they wouldn't have made it quite so obvious that all the yibs are *obliged* to give positive reviews or face losing their privileges. By continuing to include LGR in the distribution it may have left us thinking "hmm maybe SimsVIP REALLY like the game, cos they didn't have to say so if they didn't"

To be fair, if an installment of the series we actually liked had this expanded timeline of releases we would all be really frustrated. Only one Expansion Pack per year? Imagine a year with only TS3 Generations as the Expansion Pack. Although Generations is good NOW in the context of when everything else is available and when you can hopefully catch it on sale for a much more appropriate price, if it had been the only Expansion Pack released for the year it was released, that would have made people like me who saw how low in content it was even angrier, and it also would have made us all feel like EA doesn't care about The Sims... You know, basically where we're at today.



I do have to question this notion. Even games with cartoony style graphics become dated. You can also factor in the quality of the particular style that the company used for a game. Dragon Ball FighterZ? That game's style is not going to become outdated anytime soon. The Sims 4? I don't think there was ever a time when it wasn't dated. The Sims 4 looked like a PS2-era game when it was released. Now I know it's not fair to compare Dragon Ball FighterZ, because it is legitimately a different style of cartoony... But say we talk about the style of cartoony that The Sims 4 was going for... It still could have been done a heck of a lot better. Just look at Kingdom Hearts III.

For example, I was looking through the screenshots topic over at the OF just checking to see how the seasons were done in more detail and came across many screenhots, here's one by s1mszzang:



While I appreciate the developers' attention to detail to actually make the grasses brown for the winter (I really love that) the graphics here are just...not good. A cartoony style alone cannot make a game's graphics timeless. If anything The Sims 4 is a prime example. The poor graphics override any hope of timelessness that the cartoony style could have hoped to have achieve.

I'm not pointing at you here because I know you weren't exactly saying this, but I am tired of people excusing The Sims 4's poor graphics because they're 'cartoony'. Cartoony graphics do not have to mean bad graphics. I can't help but feel like this excuse is exactly the trap that EA wants people to fall into. They could have done a heck of a lot better, but making it 'cartoony' is supposed to magically handwave that all away.

I think after TS3 ... technical ... mishaps .... they gone conservative, well that and how TS4 started as a Online title, sure there are great looking MMOs out there, take *barf* Black Dessert Online online that can look gorgeous ... until you try to fight a World Boss without turning down the graphics to low were it became a collecting of screenshoots as your FPS goes down to the single digits, they actually had a event were pretty much everyone was AFK fishing for Koi and because off all the players, their mounts and their stupid overpriced P2W tents it ... also could crash the game out of sheer stress of trying to render all that crap.

Sacrifices sometimes have to be made, sure TS3 design idea was great but there was a cost on performance that got worst as more was piled up, you could even see that on their demonstration machines as lag was present and again, those were demonstration machines only running basegame and whatever they were showing, starting as a Online game meant they became even more conservative due to having to deal with netcode as well.

Ugh, just read complaints about Father Frost - Apparently he's like the reaper and starts calling you and runs around town in summer? That sounds so immersion-breaking and annoying. It already annoyed the hell out of me to have the reaper in the gym all the time

MCCC has an option to stop the Grim (and some others) from stalking on your sims..
maybe he will add an option to stop the new guy as well

Cute launch trailer, I wish the Sims felt as alive in the game as they do in this trailer though. Also what is that castle background in the toddler's vision, is that a hint to what's to come? Magic fantasy land game/expansion pack?

I posted the link one minute too late XD
this trailer is so adorable, loved it :lovestruc

the background of the toddler seems like a scaled up dollhouse tho..

Clint's Review is up:

His reviews are not as entertaining when he likes the pack... Can't wait for the next SP

Really liked the dig at the ball pit texture I haven't seen that bucket yet, so I never realized it had the same texture. And the dig at the lame water balloon fights. Oh, and my favorite regarding the non-frozen pools - "But eh, truthfully I'd be surprised if it went that far. It's still The Sims 4."

I pretty much agree with him. As usual it has things lacking, but having actual weather and seasons and just a new look for each world is a really good thing and gives the whole game a bit of a newer/better feeling

I always imagine those pools were heated or something. Actually, has a matter of fact TS2 at least have steam coming off of them, so yeah - those are mistaken and that's why it's unrealistic. Though would kinda be cool If you could turn on and off the heating thing.

I knew that clint would like this pack. Especially when it's favorite season. Also for the fact that the pack was very appraise by mts community, so you can tell If Clint or Simmers will like it If the other side likes it. His Review about pack does tempt me to get TS4 because it makes it interesting. Hasn't won me over yet, but it did grab my interest.

I really miss in this Season how it was in TS3, where when it rains you can see the water running off the roof eaves

The thing about LGR's review that made me laugh the most (about the scarecrow)





The funny thing is The Sims 2 also had one rain detail that didn't carry over to The Sims 3 - The rain actually running down the roofs. There was no rain dripping off the roof, but there was a neat effect of it visibly running on the roof.

(Correct me if I'm wrong and that's *supposed* to be in The Sims 3 Seasons as well, and it's just something wrong with my PC)

Seems like EA just can't ever get that right. But hey, the puddles form more realistically, the rain blows sideways during thunderstorms, and the trees sway quite realistically, too. I know a lot of people are complaining about some downgraded effects with the rain, but really the EP is still jam-packed of details that we never saw previously. Personally, I'll take bushes/shrubs/grasses/flowers changing with the seasons (instead of it just being the trees) and the terrain changes for the seasons as well over rain dripping off the roof. But that should be something they should patch. Or could it be modded? Would be neat.

http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/dis...vevered-by-snow

Lol, interesting.... (not trying to ruin someone's hype parade, but...)

I mean, there were objects in The Sims 3 that didn't get covered by snow, as well. I actually saw one of them the other day when I was testing to see if electronics were ruined by rain/snow, one of the items placed outside, a flat-screen PC, never had any snow accumulate on it.

I don't know how TS4 handles this but in TS3 this is just a matter of changing one parameter in the OBJD data from false to true. I think it's labeled as something like "can accumulate snow" in the ObjectTypeFlags2.

That pink table in that gif from the OF thread is a bit bizarre though when it accumulates snow only while you've grabbed it in BuyMode to move it around and loses the snow again once you've placed it.

I’m wondering why they didn’t add other traditions for holidays if other packs are installed?

Get To Work - Go Shopping, Alien Appreciation, Flu Shots
Get Together - Group Activities
City Living - Fireworks, Contests, Cultural Appreciation
Cats & Dogs - Animal Appreciation

Outdoor Retreat - Camping, Collecting, Go On Vacation
Spa Day - Skip Work, Relax
Dine Out - Eat Out
Vampires - Vampire Appreciation
Parenthood - Parent Appreciation, Child Appreciation
Jungle Adventure - Go On Vacation, Cultural Appreciation

I think Fireworks is added. I remember assigning it to my Eid holiday. Go on Vacation is also available.



Also Skip Work is redundant considering you can make the holiday a non working day?
But yeah more traditions would be appreciated. Also: MORE HOLIDAY ICONS!

That's kind of rotten that fireworks and jack-o-lantern carving are features from packs other than Seasons. They added so much Spooky Day stuff (according to members on this forum IIRC) so why not just add those two essential holiday features?