How Random is Sims 4 Really?
So let me start with a real life example. I live up a one-lane gravel dead-end road in rural America. Yesterday, I was on my way home from a doctor's appointment when I got to a sharp turn just bef...
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I agree as well. The game feels like it should have random events, but then the design reveals itself to be more linear. The emotion system is a good example of this. In theory, adding emotions to Sims should make them unpredictable sometimes. As they navigate their lives and experience loss, heartache, bad days, arguments and frustrations, they should, in theory, have some unexpected reactions based on how they experience a situation and what their own personality is like. But what we see a lot of is all Sims reacting the same way to the same stimuli, which makes them all predictable. Now there have definitely been some tweaks to traits and systems to change this, and it has helped somewhat, but unfortunately the emotions were designed to be at the forefront to override trait influence, not the other way around, so we end up with samey Sims.
And I think this is what players of the older Sims games try to refer to when they say they enjoyed the gameplay better of those games. No two Sims were alike in response and reactions, (at least it felt that way) so the gameplay wasn't repetitive and predictable. It would be nice if the devs went back to the older personality designs (but better) for Project Rene. I never once saw players say they were bored with the older games and needed a break, but I see it said a lot about Sims 4.
I also feel that the unpredictability and surprises like burglars breaking in, Sims taking revenge on a bad breakup by knocking over trash cans, stealing your newspaper, leaving flaming bags of poo on the doorstep, or events like alien abductions resulting in unnatural births, were also a part of what made those games so exciting and fun. They were poking fun at life with good humor. I feel like there could have been some great opportunities in Sims 4 to have some of these things too.
For example, the influencer and social media gameplay should have had a chance for your Sim to choose extra posts they
could make online, like "try to start a new joke trend", "make a risque comment", "post your honest opinion"... and there's a hidden chance that your following will get upset at you because you inadvertently said the wrong thing and offended them. Now you've lost followers so you have to "post an apology", "repair your reputation", or stand" your ground, and there could be different outcomes of your choice, depending on your Sim's traits or skill levels. A high charisma would be more likely to recover, but a Paranoid Sim might still have a meltdown and cry or tremble under their bedcovers, lol.
It's all about seeing the humor of life and being able to laugh at the good, the bad, and the unexpected in a simulation game. Real life is unpredictable, as you said, and sometimes the darndest things go wrong. It would be nice to see this reflected in the gameplay.
And I think this is what players of the older Sims games try to refer to when they say they enjoyed the gameplay better of those games. No two Sims were alike in response and reactions, (at least it felt that way) so the gameplay wasn't repetitive and predictable. It would be nice if the devs went back to the older personality designs (but better) for Project Rene. I never once saw players say they were bored with the older games and needed a break, but I see it said a lot about Sims 4.
I also feel that the unpredictability and surprises like burglars breaking in, Sims taking revenge on a bad breakup by knocking over trash cans, stealing your newspaper, leaving flaming bags of poo on the doorstep, or events like alien abductions resulting in unnatural births, were also a part of what made those games so exciting and fun. They were poking fun at life with good humor. I feel like there could have been some great opportunities in Sims 4 to have some of these things too.
For example, the influencer and social media gameplay should have had a chance for your Sim to choose extra posts they
could make online, like "try to start a new joke trend", "make a risque comment", "post your honest opinion"... and there's a hidden chance that your following will get upset at you because you inadvertently said the wrong thing and offended them. Now you've lost followers so you have to "post an apology", "repair your reputation", or stand" your ground, and there could be different outcomes of your choice, depending on your Sim's traits or skill levels. A high charisma would be more likely to recover, but a Paranoid Sim might still have a meltdown and cry or tremble under their bedcovers, lol.
It's all about seeing the humor of life and being able to laugh at the good, the bad, and the unexpected in a simulation game. Real life is unpredictable, as you said, and sometimes the darndest things go wrong. It would be nice to see this reflected in the gameplay.
