Difficulty Levels

"mightysprite;d-992635" wrote:
In advance of the Aug 19 collection of feedback for what kinds of challenge we'd like to see in the game, I'm wondering if people have input as to a Difficulty Levels system for The Sims 4. People have suggested this many times on the forum.
Good idea?
Bad idea?
What variables would we like to see changing at higher difficulty levels?

My thoughts: The current game has a Tutorial level and an Easy level. Here are some variables that could be changed to create other difficulty levels, perhaps Medium, Hard, and Deadly.
(I think we do need to keep the Easy level of difficulty available for new players, "I do this to relax" players, and for the sake of some kinds of storytelling gameplay where the storyteller needs to get certain things to happen.)

Depletion of needs
Depletion of needs in special circumstances (while pregnant, while sick)
Size of bills
Risks of spell failure and overcharge for spellcasters
Frequency of vampire visits
Frequency of alien abductions and pregnancies
Upon meeting, there is a random chance as to whether two sims find each other attractive; if not, building a romantic relationship is much more difficult (romance actions have a much higher chance of failing). Random chance is easier to implement than a full-blown attraction system.
(Unrequited attraction would be another level of difficulty too but that seems like it would be harder to implement)
Upon meeting, there is a random chance as to whether two sims find each other aggravating; if so, building a friendly relationship is much more difficult and they have autonomous mean actions toward each other
Length of duration of illness
Chance of death from untreated illness
Chance of random sudden death for adults and elders
Chance of death in childbirth
Chance of promotion at work
Rate of progress in work and school performance
Chance and size of performance gain/loss from chance cards at school and work
Some university classes are harder than others (longer homework, more papers/projects, chance of failing even if you do all the work and take notes every class)
Rate of pay of careers
Rate of pay for crafted objects and busking
Cost of services
Daycare costs money
Sad, tense, or angry moodlets appear once in a while for the rest of the life of a sim who lost a parent or sibling while young, or whose parents divorced (like the Happy Toddler moodlets now). Or some other lasting impact of events like that

I think your concept of the sims is a little bit off. It is mostly a sandbox game that they currently aim mostly at 8 year olds, although it has teen rating I think…..Lol.

But, that’s not the biggest problem with giving sims 4 a difficulty rating….. there are enough game breaking bugs already, and adding 3 more difficulty levels is sure not going to help with that.

Besides they already are beginning to give us challenges ( probably as a test for the new sims 5 that I hope we will be getting someday ), so we are going to more or less start choosing our difficulty level in some things by the challenges.

If they were going to give us more difficulty I would like to see that difficulty more like some of the earlier sims games…..having a fridge that you can’t get free food from, having to buy each piece of clothes your sims wear ( like they used to when you bought clothes and it went into a dresser )….. so you could use anything you bought, but not anything else. Making it where you can make your own apartments, more active careers like the 3 get to work careers, but adding the option to work from home. Things like that.

I already look at some packs as not exactly an easy level, like jungle adventure and the first 3 get to work active careers. Heck, discover university had me perplexed at the start. I still don’t know the exact formula for grades. I can get an A+ in one subject and a D in another…. Lol. But I haven’t played it much because I like rotational play.

But, some of the things you suggested could be good challenges, now that they have brought them In. It would be nice if they went to more past packs and brought out some more challenges.

I like some of the realistic play like being able to die from illness if you don’t treat it. It not being quite so easy to pick up anyone romantically, so quickly. Like having to actually hire a baby sitter if you go off without the your baby or toddler, but first they need to make it where you can take your baby to any lot with you like you can your toddler.