Forum Discussion

paradoxiKay's avatar
5 years ago

[LAUNDRY LIST] Unfortunate implications of Hates Children + Dazed

Product: The Sims 4
Platform:PC
Which language are you playing the game in? English
How often does the bug occur? Every time (100%)
What is your current game version number? 1.73.57.1030
What expansions, game packs, and stuff packs do you have installed? All.
Steps: How can we find the bug ourselves? Have a Sim ask a Sim with the Hates Children trait to Try for Baby; repeat with the Hates Children Sim in the Dazed mood.
What happens when the bug occurs? The Hates Children Sim will (sometimes) agree to Try for Baby while in the Dazed mood.
What do you expect to see? I realize that this is intended behavior, and not a bug. However, this aspect of the Hates Children trait seems to echo serious real-life issues a bit too closely. While I'm certain this was not the intention, it feels as though The Sims 4 has added elements of date * by allowing a Sim to convince a Sim who does not want kids to try for a baby if the Sim is intoxicated (in the Dazed mood). I just don't feel like complicated issues of consent while intoxicated belong in The Sims 4.
Have you installed any customization with the game, e.g. Custom Content or Mods? Not now. I've removed them.
Did this issue appear after a specific patch or change you made to your system? Yes
Please describe the patch or change you made. I believe this aspect of the Hates Children trait was added in the 3/23/21 patch.

Again, I understand that this is not a bug, but I think this aspect of the Hates Children trait should be reconsidered.

Edit By Crinrict: Added Tag to Title

16 Replies

  • Zzchnga's avatar
    Zzchnga
    New Traveler
    5 years ago

    This is not a new feature. All sims are more receptive to all forms of requests from other sims when dazed, including loans, woohoo, or marriage (I'm pretty sure). I think the developers were just clarifying that the updates to the hates children trait hadn't overridden that in the patch notes.

  • Zzchnga's avatar
    Zzchnga
    New Traveler
    5 years ago

    @Demintia I'm pretty sure dazed does affect hates commitment marriage as you've said, and these interactions with the dazed trait have been in the game since release

  • LeissaMyst's avatar
    LeissaMyst
    Rising Veteran
    5 years ago

    @SimsBarbie Tbpf, you can't fault the main game for things mods add; that being said, in vanilla it is nearly impossible to /intentionally/ kill a sim short of locking them inside a room without a food source. You have to be /really/ unlucky for your sim to die under such circumstances - in fact most magic (from ROM) can't kill if used directly on another sim (fireblast for example can only kill by proximity to fire, and not by lighting a sim onfire directly). Also the consent they are referring to is more or less "Woohoo" Consent, which is as close as I'll come to calling it by it's real life name out of respect for children who may be viewing the forms. Grim Reaper certainly doesn't ask a dying sim "Do you want to die?".

  • LeissaMyst's avatar
    LeissaMyst
    Rising Veteran
    5 years ago

    Also just for the sake of clarity, what eh laundry list is proposing WOULD be a special exception, for WooHoo, not a general removal of the entire dazed status. While I'm not saying one or the other is the right way to go about it, let us consider for a moment what inflicts dazed and what you would likely be thinking after such an event:

    Kicking a soccer ball until you bonk yourself on the head causes Dazed. Would you /really/ go along with marriage on account of that? Would you literally sign your life's savings over to the devil over that? Of course not. You'd be confused but not terribly so. You'd be more likely in fact to say "No" to such "suggestions" because the human defense system is to automatically ignore any event that does not pertain to survival when it is confused. In this reasoning, Sims should probably react the same way.

    Another thing that can inflict dazed, Electrical Shock, again you would be more worried about getting a ride to the hospital than proposing or having the time of your life with a stranger, if you got shocked.

    Generally Speaking, short of the Aliens Memory Erase thingy, dazed is not a sufficent reason to do something you normally wouldn't do. The Subconscious rejects any suggestion under duress, and as such it's probably safe to say Sims should too. It is however interesting to note: Drinking in the Sims, does NOT inflict dazed. 

  • Zzchnga's avatar
    Zzchnga
    New Traveler
    5 years ago

    @LeissaMyst  While I can definitely follow your train of thought, and I thoroughly appreciate your analysis of the situation, I think you may have misinterpreted part of what simsbarbie was trying to say in their statement. While it is impossible to literally commit murder in vanilla sims, it is fairly easy to imply murder in the game, like how it's impossible to commit the aforementioned crime featured in this thread but you can use game mechanics to make a situation where it's possible to imagine it. For instance, you can't set a sim on fire with magic to kill them, but you can set a fire at their feet for virtually the same effect. Or you can't actually kidnap a sim and starve them, but you can invite someone over and lock the doors (which is legally identical)

    Also, in reference to the dazed trait, I'm fairly certain it's more meant to reflect the cartoony 'birds flying around your head after getting hit with an anvil or electrocuted' as opposed to a real life 'I've just been severely injured and may have a concussion' sort of feeling. So I feel like it'd be more appropriate to ask if Elmer Fudd would be more willing to sign his savings over to Bugs Bunny when dazed, then if you personally would do so. The emotional responses of a sim are extremely exaggerated in all aspects by design, so it seems a little unfair to try and hold a sim to the standards of a rational and well-rounded real-life human.

  • LeissaMyst's avatar
    LeissaMyst
    Rising Veteran
    5 years ago

    I guess your right. It is a game after all. I'm pretty sure the whole point about it being a "Crime" is because people are holding the game to realistic standards in the same way I did. I mean, think about it: it's a video game, with no real people behind the screen, and nobody's feelings or rights to hurt. Any such crime would in any law of the land be victimless at best, and a waste of time at worst. We need to come to an understanding of what exactly the sims are, are they real people? Obviously not. The question therefore becomes "Will we hold them to a standard they are not designed to exist in?", I pretty much, feel as if this entire issue is overblown and largely unneeded. I mean, here we are recognizing that these are not real people and we're still legalizing their actions and responsibilities; it's almost hypocritical.

    Also I by no means feel this is something that anyone should feel offended by (the fact we're discussing it calmly like adults tells me we're mature enough to not get our feelings hurt over this), it's just a matter of the entire thing (The Bug and it's consequences) is somewhat of a mixed message. But I've hammered that point home a little too hard, and am sorry for getting off on a tirade, really didn't mean to. I know people have strong emotions towards this and potentially other criminal actions in the Sims, but at some point there's got to be a balance, and right now the bug is causing imbalance.

    Sincerely,

    LeissaMyst