Sims 411 Recap - Inside Maxis 27th April, 2021

4 years ago

Hot Topics

When will the ‘Simulation/Autonomy Lag’ be fixed?

We’re on it! Particularly, what we’re doing right now is identifying what the root cause of this issue is. That means, we’re investigating what specific actions during gameplay do lead to the lag? This is the first step we need to take because the simulation/autonomy lag is not the actual issue, it’s rather a symptom that can have dozens of different causes. If the lag has happened in your game, you’ve probably experienced the following most common manifestations of this symptom:

Sims standing around doing nothing
Sims not doing anything on their own (with free will set to max)
Sims take forever to do a given command
Time jumping backwards after fast forwarding to Ultra Speed. The Sims will usually freeze while fast forwarded.
Sims come home late from school
FPS Drops

Once we identify what specific actions and circumstances lead to the lag, we’ll know what we need to work on. And the best way to find out, is by analysing your save files! The more save files we can analyse the higher the chance we’ll be able to find the cause soon. That said, please continue your awesome support and keep sending us your save files whenever you experience the lag!

How to share your save files

Please provide the following information when sending your save files. You can send your info through this form or DM SimGuruNick directly on AHQ.

Basic Information about your computer (CPU, Operating System, Amount of RAM, Graphics Card, Hard Drive Space). This is not to blame your computer for the issue but to see what kinds of systems this issue is occurring on)
How big is your save game ?
Does the issue also occur on a new save for testing purposes
Video of the issue happening. Just upload to youtube and post the link in this thread. You don't need to list it
Please add the following files to a .rar or .zip archive and share with QA
These files can all be found in the following folder: Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\
- lastException.txt (if it exists. If there is more than one, please include all of them.)
- lastUIException.txt (if it exists. If there is more than one, please include all of them.)
- Config.log
- the entire saves folder

Things you can try in the meantime

Empty out your Sims inventories (all households you have ever played)
Reduce the amount of objects in your house
Play in a smaller house with less art pieces and stuff lying around
If you over-clocked your computer, check how it goes if you revert that.
Once the freezing occurs, try saving your game (save as), go to your options and back or press M or to go to the world map and back
Lower Graphics settings
If you play with higher resolution than 1920x1080, try lowing to 1920x1080
Go to the Audio settings and remove the check next to Enable Mood Sting
Make sure you fulfill the minimum requirements of the game
Reduce the amount of mods and cc you use
Start a new game (completely shut down the game, then restart it and start a new save game)
Move your Sims to a new game

Why is there no response to my ticket?

While there's no guarantee that every post receives a response, we regularly review the forums, internal processes, and bug reports with the Quality Verification team. That way, we can sync across the business on what's happening and what's most important to our players. But AHQ is not just a tool for our teams! It's also designed to support players helping players, and, fun fact, The Sims community is one of the most active and engaged on AHQ - so keep up the great work, Simmers! Still, we are here to help, of course, and a support ticket through EA Help is a player's best friend for getting assistance with issues like account access, purchases, etc.

What personality traits were updated in the last patch?

Bookworm

Bookworm Sims will prefer to choose reading activities autonomously over other Fun actions.
NPC Bookworm Sims will be seen carrying books where possible.

Cheerful

When a Cheerful Sim socializes with a non-Cheerful / non-happy Sim, that Sim has the chance to get a Tense 'Cheered to Death' buff.
Cheerful Sims will autonomously try and perk up Gloomy Sims
Negative emotional buffs will decay faster than usual when Cheerful Sims are in a Happy mood.
Cheerful Sims have a greater chance of success with Friendly socials when in a Happy mood.

Clumsy

Clumsy Sims have a chance of failure when engaging in sporting activities like Using a Treadmill, Ice Skating, Snowboarding or Skiing.
Clumsy Sims have a chance of stumbling when walking around - this will elicit a response from nearby Sims.
Clumsy Sims with higher Handiness have a lesser chance of breaking objects.
Clumsy Sims have a small additional chance of breaking certain electronic devices like the Computer, Research Machine, Juice Fizzer, Cupcake Machine, Games Console, Arcade Machine and Popcorn Maker.

Genius

Genius Sims have a chance of a 'Eureka Moment' while showering or bathing that gives a small amount of skill for a random skill they already have,
Genius Sims get a new interaction 'Solve Hard Problems' that helps them build Logic skill.
Genius Sims get a new idle where they appear to be pondering / solving problems.
Genius Sims will prefer 'cerebral' activities like Chess over other more trivial Fun actions.

Gloomy

Gloomy Sims will choose to autonomously Mourn, or act in a gloomy way (like sighing to themselves) more often.
Gloomy Sims will get an Inspired 'Spectral Influence' buff when in proximity to Ghosts.
Gloomy Sims get Sad moods prolonged if they see Cheerful Sims doing cheerful things, and also react in disgust.
Gloomy Sims have an increased chance of waking up in a Sad mood.

Glutton

Glutton Sims will autonomously choose to grab snacks more often.

Good

Good Sims get a new interaction 'Help Out' that reduces negative mood duration on another Sim in a negative mood.
Good Sims have a lower chance of choosing to do Mean or Mischief actions autonomously.
Good Sims will autonomously choose to react negatively to seeing Mean actions being performed.
Good Sims are more likely to choose to do Friendly actions autonomously.

Goofball

Goofball Sims are more likely to autonomously choose Mischief or prank activities like Prank Toilet.

Hates Children

Sims with the Hates Children trait are very unreceptive to being asked to ‘Try for Baby’
Hates Children Sims will get Tense, then Angry around child Sims, and also move away when they get to the Angry stage,
Hates Children Sims will look annoyed when idling in the Tense or Angry buff stages.
Hates Children Sims get a Happy 'Quiet Environment Child-free Zone' buff if away from children for a time.

Hot Headed

Hot Headed Sims who get pranked have a greater chance of getting Angry.
Having other Sims Enthuse about things can make Hot Headed Sims Angry.
Hot Headed Sims get Angry if they lose career performance
Hot Headed Sims won't be targeted by other Sims as for Mischief actions.
Hot Headed Sims get Angry at failed romance attempts (giving or receiving).

Jealous

Jealous Sims get a new interaction "Talk through issues" which gives a chance of a reduced duration of negative Buffs from less serious Jealous buffs
Jealous Sims get a reduction in the duration of less serious Jealous buffs
Jealous Sims are now less sensitive to time spent away from their SO.

Mean

Mean Sims will autonomously laugh at other Sims misfortune.
Mean Sims are more likely to choose to do Mean actions (like Kick Over Trash Can) autonomously.

Neat

Neat Sims are more likely to autonomously choose to do cleaning actions more frequently.
Neat Sims will try and clean things that aren't dirty autonomously.

Noncommittal

Asking a Noncommittal Sim to 'Try For Baby' has a very low chance of success.

Perfectionist

Perfectionist Sims will get an increased chance of Masterclass crafted objects, and will react favorably when they do.
Perfectionist Sims may choose to autonomously repeat some crafting actions (like Painting) numerous times.
Perfectionist Sims who create any Masterwork have a high chance of gaining a Focused ‘In The Zone’ buff which has a chance to increase the quality of another crafting interaction.
If they do achieve a better quality during this buff, they gain an Inspired ‘Focused Payoff' buff.

Ambitious

Ambitious Sims will autonomously mock Goofball Sims for Goofball actions.

Slob

Slob Sims will autonomously mock Neat Sims for cleaning things.

What’s On Your Mind?

What do you want us to talk about in the next Sims 411? We’d like to know what’s on your mind when it comes to The Sims, what topics you’re interested in, what your concerns are and what you’d like to chat about with us.

On May 6th starting at 6AM Pacific Time, we’ll be welcoming your comments during 24 hours in The Sims Forums. We’ll close the conversation after 24 hours. But don't worry if you missed the window. You’ll be able to share any additional comments in the next Sims 411 forum thread that will be open before the next Inside Maxis livestream (our team is made of humans, and there’s only so many comments one human can read at a time... :) ).

Tell us what’s on your mind on May 6th, beginning 6AM PT on The Sims Forums here.

Closer to the date, we’ll share the link to the forum thread again on The Sims Twitter account and on The Sims Forums.

We appreciate your understanding that:

This is not a wish list for content requests, but a place where we can listen to your thoughts without distraction.
This is not a guarantee we’ll provide an answer in the next Sims 411, but rest assured that your comment is being read and will be addressed whenever possible.
This is not a place to report bugs, but please continue to report bugs on AHQ.

THE GOLDEN RULE
We’ll only read comments that adhere to our Positive Play guidelines.

GUIDELINES AND RULES

We’ll only read comments that adhere to our Positive Play guidelines and our forum rules - here are some of the most important points when it comes to giving feedback:

Be respectful. We want to hear what you have to say but please be kind and respectful when posting here. Being mean or aggressive as well as cursing and swearing doesn't help to bring your point across.
Keep it game-related and on topic. As we said before, this is not the place to post a wish list and bugs, or talk about all things The Sims 2 (even if it's a great title!).
Don't make things personal. It's not cool to target other players who may have different opinions or attack SimGurus and other officials. This also means: please no mass taggings.
Don't bully, troll, bait, or derail the conversation. This is never okay - which should go without saying! If you do this, you will be moderated as per our forum rules.
Don't spam or flood this thread. Posting the same thing over and over will not get your question into the Sims 411 but it may lead to moderation.

We’re looking forward to your comments on May 6th on The Sims Forums!

Next Patch Sneak Peek

What’s coming

We’re including the updated retro style Large Afro and a new Short Afro into the next patch update. Both hairs will be available for adults, children and toddlers.

We’ll also add six new hair colors in a future patch. In our Inside Maxis livestream on 4/27 we stated the colors will be updated in the next patch. However, the update will not happen in the upcoming but in a future patch instead. We apologize for any confusion.

Last but not least, there will be new Asian eye presets that specifically are intended to bring in more options for east Asian representation. We’ve received some feedback from you about adding more diverse body features in CAS and this is part of our ongoing effort to continue updating the game to bring in more diverse content that allows users to re-create their authentic selves in game. We appreciate your ongoing and passionate engagement to support us in making this game the best it can be!

Our approach

We put a lot of effort into delivering the most authentic design to make sure we create hair and body features that are truthful to representation. We did loads of research and took inspiration from real world examples. But we also talked to a variety of people such as our ERGs (Employee Resource Group) and most importantly, to the Game Changers that consulted us on skintones.

Why is the hair red?

During the development process, we use a lighter color - red or orange - because it's easier to better see highlights and shadows when designing the hair. Working with darker colors off the bat can be more difficult because noticing the contrast can be tricky. Once we have the hair completed, we translate it into the different colors and adjust the levels from there.

What will it look like?

Take a look at a selection of the concept art below. Please note,these concept arts are work in progress and do not necessarily represent what you’ll see in-game.

Retro Style Large Afro

Spoiler