Help Choosing a Christmas Present?

Thing is this player already has Pets, the EP with the highest potential performance impact out of all of them, and it sounds like the game is running fine for her. I wouldn't risk adding Seasons to that unless we can learn more about this laptop's specs, as that's the one that comes in second place, but it sounds to me like adding one (or two) of the lighter weight ones -- WA, Ambitions, Generations, maybe Late Night, would be far less likely to overload things. The remaining ones fall somewhere in between.

For outdoorsy stuff, besides Seasons I would think of WA and maybe not necessarily the linear tomb exploration quests which are not requirements anyway but having her sims stay in the base camps and hike around, check out the marketplaces, and camp out in the various foreign worlds might be a lot of fun for her. She may also enjoy nectar making, proper photography with the upper end cameras, and martial arts, all of which come with WA. IP is also very outdoorsy both on and off the water, with the understanding that the included Isla Paradiso world needs some fixing up first before it is really playable although its content can be used in other worlds, and that one does land more on the heavier impact side short of Pets and Seasons.

The only gameplay item, sort of, I can think of that a Stuff Pack adds is the Vehicle Enthusiast trait that came with Fast Lane. But it's not exactly much of a game changer, many players regard it as a nuisance even if they do like the fancy cars, and I believe the trait was eventually patched in for everyone else anyway.

On the Steam question, the player needs to have the Steam client program and the Steam version of the base game (so another $5 or whatever you are seeing it on sale for) in order to obtain but not install the Steam version EPs. They throw in Origin codes for each at no extra charge, again revealed in the Steam client even if none of this is actually installed through Steam, so that EPs obtained that way can be added to an Origin based game by way of code redemption instead of used on a Steam install if the player wants to stay on Origin.

If she like dressing sims up then Diesel stuff adds clothes and some furniture.

Thank you all for your input!

I gave it a lot of thought and decided to go with Ambitions. I'll point out the joys of becoming a Stylist, and she can go around giving the entire town makeovers, for better or worse.

:)