Happy 9th Birthday Sims 4!

It's only been 3 years for me, and TS4 is the only one I've ever really played. I downloaded TS3 later, but couldn't get the hang of the game mechanics

I've been playing since the start. Its amazing to look back how far the game has developed. I hope for many more years to come.

What really bummed me out was the look of the sims...at first. I hated them, them with their clay helmet hair. :# That's when I discovered the really easy mods folder and the rest is history. :D

I got it around June 2016. It wasn’t available for Mac until 2015 anyway, and then I wasn’t really sure whether I wanted it as it seemed to be lacking so much and a lot of the reviews weren’t great. But as I’d particularly loved Sims 2, and reviews said that Sims 4 was similar to Sims 2 in playstyle, and I could no longer play Sims 3 on my Mac, I thought I’d give it a try. I then didn’t get into it properly for a long time, partly because of life and partly because the game felt thin and empty, and also I didn’t really like the new aesthetic at first. For a while I just had one EP (I think it was Get Together), and I didn’t really settle to a way of playing - I was forever starting new games and so didn’t really get absorbed in it. Then I found this forum a few years ago and (by lurking) learnt so much - about different ideas for ways to play, and how much more there was to get out of the game. I feel I really only started playing ‘properly’ around 2019. I started a save game then that I’m basically continuing now, though it’s grown and got split up into different actual saves. For me, the content just gets better and better, and it’s strange to think back to how little there was to it when it was first released. I’m hoping there’s lots still to come…

I bought Sims 4 in November of 2014.

I was still happily playing Sims 2, although it was starting to become more difficult on the newer PC systems. I had gotten the base game of Sims 3 on its release, really excited to see what the new game would be like, but kind of hated the things that were changed/taken away that Sims 2 used to have, so I never crossed over. This experience made me more cautious of the 4th iteration, thinking I might not like it very much, but when the CAS demo came out and there was more diversity in hair styles (thicker, longer, wavier/curlier) and I could actually make some semblance of a Simself without any CC at all, I was actually very excited for that aspect. I decided to wait though, until I saw something about the features first, because I didn't want to buy another Sims 3 base game repeat.

I had to have the freedom of full rotational play. Check

I had to have playable venues. Check

I had to be able to cross worlds, both to visit, and also have my Sims live in them. Check

I had to have a flexible CAS Sim creator to make the Sims I wanted and even be able to replicate some likenesses. Check

It had to be modder/CC friendly. Check

I didn't want a microtransaction store in my face every time I was in CAS, showing me what I didn't have, and trying to get me to spend more money right after I'd already spent some on the game. Check

So after a little research and during a slow period of work that gave me more free time, I took the plunge and jumped into Sims 4 for the first time... and I enjoyed it. I thought Willow Creek was beautiful, the Sims were lively, I was able to easily make two Sims live in separate houses but on the same street and meet each other as well as other neighborhood NPC Sims, who I liked more than I expected to, as I had usually not paid too much attention to them in Sims 2. I was having fun in the new game and didn't even notice that Toddlers were missing because I was busy playing the young adult lifestyle with bars and nightclubs. Of course, I eventually did notice that the gameplay seemed to fall a little flat after a while, and this brought me to the forums about a month later to discuss and make requests.

The rest is history. I'm still here sharing in discussions and making requests, and I'm still playing the game, which has grown and improved in many, many ways over the years. Of course, every change isn't always to my own liking, and I'm obviously not afraid to voice that, lol, but overall, I still enjoy it and I've made some forum friends along the way, which is a wonderful bonus because there have been times when posts or threads or screenshots or just general discussions have lifted my mood. I do love this forum community a lot. And I've also had the pleasure of being able to interact with some of the devs now and then, which has truly been a wonderful opportunity that I deeply appreciate and never expected.

May the Sims 4 have more years ahead, may the devs stay inspired and creative, and may the forum community never tire of sharing happiness and constructive criticism. :) <3

Started on day 1. First and only time I've pre-ordered, complete with the add on whatever it was if one did so. I thought it would be a blend of the best of the first 3 versions plus new things benefiting from the advances in game technology over the years. Live and learn.

I got the game the Christmas of 2014. I did take a break looking for a gaming laptop I would be happy with about the time toddlers came out. I caught up quickly with the packs though, and saw how great the graphics were in sims 4 with the new gaming laptop.

Aah the sims 4… When diddit all start, huh? When . did . it . all. start?

Well, for me it all began on that sunny Wednesday afternoon, aye, twas the Summer of Lurv, and me, I was but a wee rosy cheeked whippersnapper, full of life, filled with joy and laughter, tumbling through the wild flower meadows near the cliffs, perhaps a little too close to the cliffs, in my tiny shorts with me big Hurlóg and my jolly little Bichon Frisé ( not too close to the edge now, Tayto!…oh no……)

Yes, that’s right. No.
That’s not how it all began.

Been here since the beginning, as I have been with every iteration of The Sims. I love jet skiing in beautiful Sulani, and going to festivals in vibrant San Myshuno. I didn't think I'd enjoy it as much as I did, but I loved raising a llama, chickens and a family in Henford-on-Bagley. Sims 4 has been good to me, and if Sims 5 turns out to be a Sims 3 redux, I don't think I'd mind staying right here.

I was actually really lucky with my copy of the Sims 4. Before the game launched, I spotted a bug on the Australian version of the Sims website regarding a pricing discrepancy. I forwarded it off to the guys at Maxis and after a bit of back and forth they fixed it, and as thanks they gave me the deluxe version for free. As a result, I didn't feel guilty about getting a few DLCs in the early days, figuring I would have spent that money on the base game anyway.