Did you have to design them to have a stupid L or h-shaped opening footprint on the floor above that doesn't easily allow for deleting those extra floor tiles to make a rectangle? This ruins any aesthetic I'm trying to go for on the upper floors of the houses I build. It's also not realistic. Most real-life stairwells, including those with L or U-shaped stairs, have an I-shaped opening upstairs, especially if the lower floor has a higher ceiling. I get that the smallest section isn't less than 4 steps tall (why not? Why not configure that, too, to 1, 2, 3 or 4 steps?), and people that make movies or take screenshots won't want Sim heads clipping through the floor above as they turn the corner, but come on! Upper floors frequently have less square footage than the bottom floor, so having a gigantic stairwell opening makes it extremely difficult to realistically build around. I guess most of the time I'm just going to have stick with the I-shaped stairs we had. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

My excitement was dampened when I realized that being able to customize the number of stairs would help when trying to shape the upstairs opening from a rectangle to a square...But we can't do that. Also when I saw that on a U-shaped staircase, the stair railing clips through the upper stairs.

I expect it is something we will have to learn how to use. I've been experimenting and it looks like I'll have to build new houses around them rather than expect them to fit into my old builds. This is the first time I will be checking for "how to do it" videos. :)

Can anyone post pictures, please? It's a little difficult to understand what you mean otherwise.

"Cynna;c-17234086" wrote:Can anyone post pictures, please? It's a little difficult to understand what you mean otherwise.https://i.imgur.com/SeRx3iw.png^ Stair railing clips through upper stairs. ^https://i.imgur.com/abMuhly.jpg^ The second-story opening that I wanted, with an equal number of stairs visible on both levels. ^https://i.imgur.com/7wdKCSz.png^ And the opening that I got. ^https://i.imgur.com/nWYbeKq.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/FxjODSv.png^ What happens if I change the landing height --- an annoying tile separating the stairs from the rest of the second floor ^

Ah, okay. I get it now.That's very messy. :/ Edited to add: And there's no way to change the color of that landing? I mean, the stairs are white. The landing will stay that odd brownish/grey color?

Dear Sims Team: Thank You for the Stairs, But.....

21 Replies

faktririjekt
6 years ago
My excitement was dampened when I realized that being able to customize the number of stairs would help when trying to shape the upstairs opening from a rectangle to a square...But we can't do that.

Also when I saw that on a U-shaped staircase, the stair railing clips through the upper stairs.
Simburian
Seasoned Ace
6 years ago
I expect it is something we will have to learn how to use. I've been experimenting and it looks like I'll have to build new houses around them rather than expect them to fit into my old builds. This is the first time I will be checking for "how to do it" videos. :)
Cynna1065
6 years ago
Can anyone post pictures, please? It's a little difficult to understand what you mean otherwise.
faktririjekt
6 years ago
"Cynna;c-17234086" wrote:
Can anyone post pictures, please? It's a little difficult to understand what you mean otherwise.

https://i.imgur.com/SeRx3iw.png

^ Stair railing clips through upper stairs. ^

https://i.imgur.com/abMuhly.jpg

^ The second-story opening that I wanted, with an equal number of stairs visible on both levels. ^

https://i.imgur.com/7wdKCSz.png

^ And the opening that I got. ^

https://i.imgur.com/nWYbeKq.png
https://i.imgur.com/FxjODSv.png

^ What happens if I change the landing height --- an annoying tile separating the stairs from the rest of the second floor ^
Cynna1065
6 years ago
Ah, okay. I get it now.

That's very messy. :/

Edited to add: And there's no way to change the color of that landing? I mean, the stairs are white. The landing will stay that odd brownish/grey color?
faktririjekt
6 years ago
"Cynna;c-17234335" wrote:
Ah, okay. I get it now.

That's very messy. :/

Edited to add: And there's no way to change the color of that landing? I mean, the stairs are white. The landing will stay that odd brownish/grey color?

I'm not sure. I didn't try to change it.
thecatsred
6 years ago
"Cynna;c-17234335" wrote:

Edited to add: And there's no way to change the color of that landing? I mean, the stairs are white. The landing will stay that odd brownish/grey color?

There's no way at all to change the color of the landing, which is a massive oversight.
Cynna1065
6 years ago
"thecatsred;c-17234382" wrote:
"Cynna;c-17234335" wrote:

Edited to add: And there's no way to change the color of that landing? I mean, the stairs are white. The landing will stay that odd brownish/grey color?

There's no way at all to change the color of the landing, which is a massive oversight.

I'm not too surprised, to be honest. Every time that I get excited about something for TS4 there's a huge drawback of some kind -- something that requires a workaround, a patch, or a mod to fix. Or worse, there is something that will never be fixed, like the single person boats and jet skis from IL, or the rabbit hole scuba diving.
TomasGrizly
6 years ago
Have you tried to move the stairs (for the moment), add that tile of flooring manually (which should make it normal customizable floor) and then move the stairs back? That might work. I believe it worked for me when I was trying things.
The extra landing square is something that was the case since terrain tools when I built split-level outdoor terraces. After this patch, the stairs work pretty much the same, just with the added corner mechanisms.

In TS3, a staircase took 4 squares (+ landings) so U-shaped stairs took 2+2 (if you went through the cheats and other hurdles to build them). In TS4, they take 3 squares on normal wall height, so we're down to 1+2 or 2+1 which feels a bit strange, considering U-shaped stairs are prevalent in multi-level buildings where I live (offices, universities, apartment houses,...) and they have even length on both 'branches'.
faktririjekt
6 years ago
"TomasGrizzly;c-17234550" wrote:
Have you tried to move the stairs (for the moment), add that tile of flooring manually (which should make it normal customizable floor) and then move the stairs back? That might work. I believe it worked for me when I was trying things.
The extra landing square is something that was the case since terrain tools when I built split-level outdoor terraces. After this patch, the stairs work pretty much the same, just with the added corner mechanisms.

Could you provide pictures showing what you mean, please?