How does the community feel about TS4 chance cards?

Teens who work in fast food only get a chance card that either decreases their work performance, or make them sad... and it pops up pretty much every day. Totally awful.

I like the concept but really, it needs to be way more varied than it is, and not always have the same consequence either.

I loved the chance cards in the other games, especially TS2. TS4's chance cards are more repetitive than ever. Also, the results are so clearly lacking in effort. Is a small increase or decrease in job performance the best that they could do? If it is, that's evidence of a really sad state of affairs with TS4. Because the game that is fifteen years older was able to do it so much better.

Since TS4 is supposed to be a live service, I would like to see them regularly introduce new chance cards in order to keep the game fresh. Furthermore, I would love it if the chance cards were more closely related to forming and further solidifying our Sim's personalities -- good, bad, neutral, selfish, compassionate, romantic, commitment phobic, driven by the pursuit of happiness, driven by the pursuit of money, etc. However, a Sim answers, the punishment or reward should have lasting effects to those ends.

Perhaps, answering in a particular way would add a hidden trait to a Sim that makes them respond to situations differently than the average Sim. For me, that would go a long way towards making Sims more individual and believable. It would also encourage some role-playing on the part of the player in that, answering according to the Sims' given personality, rather than or own, would ultimately prove more rewarding.

"OEII1001;c-16258208" wrote:

"Sonata13Singer;c-16257598" wrote:
I think there should be more variety in the chance cards and an ignore button. They seem repetitive right now.

I agree with this. I would like more of them, but I would also like the consequences to be more severe. I don't feel like my sims are currently punished enough for bad decisions.

EDIT: I should also add that I would love to see attribute-specific cards that would operate like skill checks. It might works like this.

Scenario: A child has set off a firecracker in the boy's restroom at school. The principal calls several suspect boys to the office, little Johnny among them.

With the following scores the options are available:

With responsibility 50 or higher -- Johnny points out the individual responsible. +1 level grade performance -40 friendship with a random child.

With responsibility score between 49 and -10 -- Johnny stays silent and is punished. Johnny arrives home at 4:00 for the next three school days.

With responsibility or emotional control score -11 or lower -- The other boys point out that Johnny is responsible for the incident. He is expelled from school. -3 levels grade performance, -40 friendship with 3 random children.

With a responsibility score of 50 or higher all three options are available. With a score between 40 and -10 the bottom two options are available and with -11 or lower Johnny is the culprit and will face the consequences. If his emotional control score is -11 or lower it automatically removes the ability to select options 1 and 2 regardless of the responsibility score.

I wish that I had seen this post before I made mine. This is exactly the type of thing that I'm talking about.

With today's computational power, these kinds of checks and direct connections to existing traits are more than possible. In addition, answering in a manner that is not in keeping with the Sim's existing personality could result in a positive/negative personality change due to the Sim's "life choices". I would like to see rewards and punishments that are much more significant than what we have had so far.

"OEII1001;c-16254289" wrote:
As a fan of old cRPGs I am big on random events and/or encounters -- ie 'chance cards'. I feel that they add a wonderful, unpredictable element to any gaming experience, especially the occasional no-win scenario. In the case of The Sims 4 it helps to bring a dose of downside to the sims' otherwise perfect existence. It, for an instant, takes the control out of the player's hands and reminds the player that he or she is not the only force in this world. That is an awesome thing, and makes everything feel a little bit more alive to me.

I totally agree. I like all the ones we have thus far anyway. LOL. I always liked them in the Sims games - sort of another little staple since the 1st game. The volunteer ones, the school ones, and the job ones - I get most of the time as a positive but the JA ones often get my sims in trouble. LOL.

I love the chance cards - they do give the game a bit of unpredictability, and since I usually play with autonomy off, my Sims live rather regimented lives. I especially like the Parenthood school calls. What I hate, hate, hate are the constant phone calls from random Sims - sometimes several within a few minutes. If my Sims want to invite someone over or visit someone or go to a festival, they can do that. Every time I get these calls, I have to pause the game, figure out which Sim is being called (because it's never the active Sim), cancel the bloody call, switch Sims again and return the game to mid-speed or fast.

I love the chance cards in TS2, they are fun, unpredictable and best of all could be ignored if you weren't feeling risky. TS4 cards are okay, but a bit blasé in comparison. I personally think the cards need to be expanded upon and an ignore button added.

A little OT...but in my opinion the same goes for treasure maps and boxes. I usually just sell them. It's been my experience they're usually worth a lot more than opening the boxes and getting... Surprise! Another MySims trophy. Pfft... I know some people have gotten voodoo dolls, and other stuff, but that seems to be a very rare occurance.

The treasure boxes need to be overhauled, in my opinion, to include other collectibles and when using a treasure map a higher chance of actually acquiring one of the 'rare' MySims or something more valuable than 'normal' boxes. *shrugs*

"OEII1001;c-16258208" wrote:

"Sonata13Singer;c-16257598" wrote:
I think there should be more variety in the chance cards and an ignore button. They seem repetitive right now.

I agree with this. I would like more of them, but I would also like the consequences to be more severe. I don't feel like my sims are currently punished enough for bad decisions.

EDIT: I should also add that I would love to see attribute-specific cards that would operate like skill checks. It might works like this.

Scenario: A child has set off a firecracker in the boy's restroom at school. The principal calls several suspect boys to the office, little Johnny among them.

With the following scores the options are available:

With responsibility 50 or higher -- Johnny points out the individual responsible. +1 level grade performance -40 friendship with a random child.

With responsibility score between 49 and -10 -- Johnny stays silent and is punished. Johnny arrives home at 4:00 for the next three school days.

With responsibility or emotional control score -11 or lower -- The other boys point out that Johnny is responsible for the incident. He is expelled from school. -3 levels grade performance, -40 friendship with 3 random children.

With a responsibility score of 50 or higher all three options are available. With a score between 40 and -10 the bottom two options are available and with -11 or lower Johnny is the culprit and will face the consequences. If his emotional control score is -11 or lower it automatically removes the ability to select options 1 and 2 regardless of the responsibility score.

great idea

One thing I do like is that the outcome of the chance cards varies. I had a teen Sim who volunteered at a homeless kitchen get the option to help the cook or hide. Obviously, I chose 'help the cook', and she got a boost in Responsibility. Another teen Sim with a slightly red Emotional Control got the same card and made a mess of it, losing Manners. (She also got a chance card at the Senior home - she could either listen to a resident's music or force the residents to listen to modern music. She made the right choice, but ended up destroying the stereo because she couldn't get it to play the resident's music.)

Never like chance cards. Just random click :)

Don't like them. They made me stop playing. My Sim just made it to the top of his career and I get tested on what moral decision I would make about a short cash register. Its not my life so why am I being tested ? The consequences will affect him not me.
eta so I quit playing to find a work around because irl if the cash register is short and you report it, you won't lose your job, but Sims 4 is not real life so the outcome could be anything.

The sims 4 chance cards are a waste of time , within a few days of playing you know how to answer each time , The outcome never changes once you know how to answer . And the non stop chance cards when you have a large family is a pain , Just like the constant ask for advice that overrides every kids actions