How Much Planning Goes Into Your Gameplay?

I usually play without stories in mind, and wing it as opportunities present themselves. I think of it more as a roleplaying game where I think about what my character would do. So, I have an idea of the sorts of things said character thinks, wants or does and go from there as life plays out.

Good topic, by the way.

When I played often I played with a small story in mind. I've taken a break from TS4 while waiting for other things to come to the game, and I've been planning a more in depth story in that time.

A lot of planning in terms of characters, some light story planning, then I see where the game takes me and steer my story accordingly.

I make a lot of plans, but change them often also based on what happens in game. My current save is more goal oriented among other things I'm trying to complete all the careers and aspirations by the end of the third generation of my sprawling family, so most of my plans involve which branches of the family are going to do what.

So... when you've been sitting behind the GM's screen as long as I have, you learn to make... adjustments in your session planning based on your players. Thanks to one particular player who got in the habit of finding the fastest shortcut through a plot due to a railroad happy previous GM, I tend to plan an inciting incident, the characters who can help, the characters who will hinder, and my intended "victory conditions" and improv the path to get there, keeping in mind which PC I intend to highlight that story and any themes and story arcs I may have going on.

I apply about that same amount of planning to my Sims play, with the added backstory of my main characters, since the characters being featured are always mine. :smiley:

I always start a save with a single sim and my main goal is to take it to the 10th generation. I roll random traits and aspirations and i always have a slight idea of what i can do to help that sim acomplish whatever i see fit for him. But then i love to see their lives and goals change and be surprised with what ends up happening in the game.

@OEII1001 I find myself winging it also. I'll have my main sim, the female head of the household working on an aspiration and then get the urge to switch to a different one. Especially when a new pack releases. I love that you can switch aspirations and not lose any progress in a previous aspiration.

@Daephene I think one reason I don't rely on stories is that I'm also a goal oriented player. I have one sim who will complete all aspirations and careers and that doesn't leave much room for veering off course. It may seem unimaginative but I like it like that and in between I do have time for all the family activities.

My current game (brand new) has had some planning go into it, but I don't plan every step of every sims story. These are the things I have planned for this game:

A list of 23 couples and a single sim, each with their names and careers sorted in advance (different career for each sim - shout out @Elliandre for the awesome idea).
I plan to have the single sim become an astronaut and fall in love with an alien (he will also solve the Strangerville mystery).
I have a vampire couple, one a writer and one a freelance writer.
I have a spell-caster couple in part-time retail who will one day open a potions store.
I have a mermaid conservationist married to a diver who will work on making Sulani beautiful.
I have a couple living in Brindleton Bay who will one day run a bakery, and another couple who are going to run a restaurant.
I have a few pets scattered around the households (my vet-to-be, for instance, has a dog).
I am sending a few sims to uni - those who want to be a doctor, politician, lawyer, scientist, astronaut, engineer, vet and robotics maker.

So, parts of their lives have been pre-destined but I haven't decided if they will have kids, break up, have affairs or anything like that. That sort of thing will just happen on the spur of the moment.

Not much, my sims end up doing the same things anyway. xD

I’ve been playing the same save since I got the game. I’m god knows how many generations in now. The only “planning” I really do is skip around town to make some matches to keep the world populated. Sometimes I go in with the intention of refurnishing a house or to CAS some townies. Otherwise I just bounce into a household that tickles my fancy and don’t really think about it too much.