Move MODS folder location or add option to

Shadohz​  Sims 3 also stores mods in the Documents directory.

Using Documents makes adding mods more accessible for the casual user and also keeps users from inadvertently damaging program files.  I don't know how it would work to have mods in %ProgramData% or %AppData& since the game doesn't load assets from either location, and reprogramming it to do so would be something of a task and also not account for the files already stored there.

Personally, I think it's bad design, not to mention rude and presumptuous, to have any files automatically synced by default, and that's a Windows setting, nothing to do with EA.  Sims 4 also existed prior to Windows 10 and the default imposition of OneDrive.

I've moved your post to Feedback.

"Sims 3 also stores mods in the Documents directory." In other words "It's always been that way/always been wrong." If I had a nickel for everytime I heard that in a tech meeting for why my co-QA/co-Dev didn't want to change or fix a bug.

"Using Documents makes adding mods more accessible..." There are quite literally millions of casual players that learn how to use Publisher-supported mods (e.g. Bethesda), third-party mod managers that access non-user profile areas, or following directions from Forum comments. In addition, Sims could add a launch button within the game itself to open only the MODS folder, thus not requiring players to have intimate knowledge of the file system. I've seen casual users mess up their user profiles and junction points as well because they were digging around in areas they had no business. Game publishers for the longest time (preceding Sims 3) only used Userprofile for logs, config files, and save games (all for good reasons that devs already understand). 

"I don't know how it would work..." I just explained in my comment how I was able to alter the behavior of the game by redirecting the folder with only two lines of code. All of this can be scripted with a few lines of codes to change the working directory and moving files. This is also why I suggested an alternate solution of allowing us to make the change ourselves so at least those of us with the know-how can do it. No this isn't difficult.

"Sims 4 also existed prior to..." This isn't just about OneDrive. I'm talking about all cloud storage, syncing, and backup/restore procedures. If I had noticed EA doing this with prior game versions or different games I would've made the same objection without the cloud sync consideration. It's why I/we took Rockstar to task over their handling of music files, video files (for Editor), and read behavior that lead to its notoriously slow launch times which only became exacerbated if you were syncing those files while the game was active (you know, like how Sims 4 takes much longer to launch when reading the MODS folder unless you disable it). Even then Rockstar still ignored the problem until someone outside the bubble went in and fixed one of the major issues.

"I've moved it to Feedback." Thank you. If they fix it, they fix it and I'll say thank you. If they don't...

Shadohz​  You said you didn't know of another game that stores mods in the Documents directory.  I mentioned the first one that came to mind.

My "I don't know how it would work" comment was about the fact that there are already files in ProgramData and AppData that need to be there for other reasons.  And the EA App team is unlikely to completely reconfigure how the App works because the Sims 4 team wants to use one of these folders.  Popular as it is, Sims 4 is not the only game being supported, and the App has enough existing issues without adding another variable or requiring a reorganization.

Regular players did have more trouble adding mods to Sims 2, or Sims 3 in the first year or so, when mods needed to be added to the game's program files.  Of course they could learn, but fewer people did, relatively speaking, and more who tried ended up breaking things.  The decision was deliberate with Sims 3, to make things easier for more of the player base, and it continued with Sims 4.

Personally I think user data should be in %UserProfile%\Saved Games, as it is with Respawn and many other developers, and also with the Sims 1 rerelease.  (This is only about Windows of course.)  But I don't think anyone working on Sims 4 is particularly interested in changing course now.  Among other things, the player base would be confused and probably angry for a very long time.  There would be a steady stream of players who came back after years and had no idea that anything had changed, and more who found older guides that pointed to the wrong location and were never updated.  It still happens on this forum with Origin-related issues, and there has been plenty of messaging about the switch to the EA App in the last few years.

Agree.

This is 2025, and the proper place is the AppData folder.  Documents folder should be the user's documents.