6 years ago

Island Living is a good “Expansion Pack”

I see very 50/50 opinions on Island Living.

A lot of people who are unhappy feel there’s isn’t enough new gameplay avenues.

For me, Island Living is perfect for what an Expansion Pack originally was. I feel like The Sims 2 Expansions were focused on Expanding the base game experiences.

A lot of The Sims 3 Expansions were focused on adding very specific gameplay that often worked best in the worlds and areas that EA provided and required a lot of hard work to get them to work elsewhere by players.

This pack kind of reminds me of Free Time or Apartment Life, in the sense those packs are designed to enhance and expand the way you play the base game. Giving you new experiences while ultimately making the base game more rich.

Packs like Island Paradise, while very similar, set out to do something very different (kind of like World Adventures).

In the sense that Island Paradise wasn’t built to enhance the base game, but to provide a very specific gameplay experience that isn’t really the same outside of the world it came with.

If you installed Island Paradise and then played in Sunset Valley, without heavy player modification, it’s like you would never have installed the expansion at all.

However, Island Living is different. A lot of the games new content, is designed to be accessible no matter how you play the base game. You can experience the content just by visting, or choosing the Odd Jobs.

I feel like EA are leaving the specific experiences to Game Packs, but Expansions are designed to make the base game richer and they’re trying to make content that’s only used if you play that Expansions (eg like how Get To Work is useless if you don’t want to play with Active Careers).

Get Together and onwards, all the EPs seem to be designed to expand the base game experience.

The Game Packs all seem very specific except for Parenthood.

I feel like that’s why there’s such a 50/50 about why people prefer Game Packs or Expansions.

Expansion Packs will appeal to people who want a richer base game experience.
Game Packs will appeal to people who almost want a game within a game, or offer content that sits outside how you would normally play.

I hope this makes sense but I feel like I finally understand after the stark contrast from Strangerville to Island Living, I can see what they want the packs to do.

What do you guys think?

expansion packs

drake_mccarty
6 years ago
This “expansion pack” is like a beefed up game pack. When I buy a $40 expansion pack I don’t expect to see the truly new stuff kept to a minimum. This pack rehashes a ton of stuff to pad it out while keeping the new gameplay to a minimum and mostly restricted to the new world.

Feature-wise, this pack has none and what fun stuff it adds can be consumed in a few hours if even that long. My recommendation is to save your $40 and get this one on a sale of some sort. It’s not worth the $40 price tag. EP’s for this version rarely are, but this one especially is not. $20 seems like a fair price for what you ultimately get.
MidnightAura86
New Spectator
6 years ago
According to EA, an expansion pack is a large pack that expands your game and takes your sims on new adventures.

I’m not sure I agree that this falls under that category when every CAS item of clothing is tropical themed as is every build objects. They are clearly meant for the new expansion and use in that world. I can believe this was meant to be a game pack. The main features of this pack is limited to the world. Unlike in sims 3 where you could swim, snorkel, windsurf, boat in any of the worlds and Apartment life where you could build apartments in any world. Those features opened up your worlds and gave you new ways to play everywhere as opposed to the features being heavily tied to one world. Perhaps they will unlock ocean swimming for all worlds.

I don’t personally feel unlocking rabbit hole jobs for all worlds is cause for celebration if I’m honest. Had we gotten ocean swimming for all or a conservation career that wasn’t focused on one world as well as giving us new gameplay, skills and traits with depth I could agree but as it stands I feel we paid expansion pack prices just to unlock ocean swimming. Very little of it is useful outside of Sulani besides suntanning and the way it works in 4, being limited to the beach towel or the lounger is restrictive.

It could have and should have had more game play for its price tag but as per usual with sims 4, it delivers less for more money.
timurjr96
6 years ago
Only seasons and get together seems to be a true expansion for the sims 4, because you can use the main features of these ep in every world, not so much with Island Living, or so i've heard.
astridentanja
6 years ago
If you installed Island Paradise and then played in Sunset Valley, without heavy player modification, it’s like you would never have installed the expansion at all.

Well, there is this... :D

https://i.imgur.com/q9KkrTO.png

(Shang Simla, can’t imagine this doesn’t happen when you play in Sunset Valley; all I did here was click the Dragon’s Maw and say ‘go there’)
Mermaids are in every Sims 3 world (can’t avoid them), I played a life guard in Dragon Valley, I don’t quite see how what you say is true. I love being able to modify the game by the way, that’s part of the fun. You present it as a con, but for me it’s a pro.

Genuinely curious by the way, would it be possible for you to praise the pack without comparing it to the Sims 3 version? Can it stand on its own ‘feet’? Can you explain what’s great about it if IP wouldn’t exist?
loveinstereo
New Spectator
6 years ago
i don’t hate the pack (don’t love it either. there are things i like and things i dislike..) but i disagree, i don’t think it enriches the base game. if it added swimmable oceans to every world, or hotels that could be placed in any world, then yeah. but you experience most of (almost all of) the content by living in sulani or visiting sulani...not in the other worlds. even a lot of the odd jobs bring you to sulani.

as for game packs... dine out and parenthood enriched the base game imo. for me, vampires actually did too since i play with occults in almost every save.
konansock
6 years ago
"MidnightAura;c-17135507" wrote:
According to EA, an expansion pack is a large pack that expands your game and takes your sims on new adventures.

I’m not sure I agree that this falls under that category when every CAS item of clothing is tropical themed as is every build objects. They are clearly meant for the new expansion and use in that world. I can believe this was meant to be a game pack. The main features of this pack is limited to the world. Unlike in sims 3 where you could swim, snorkel, windsurf, boat in any of the worlds and Apartment life where you could build apartments in any world. Those features opened up your worlds and gave you new ways to play everywhere as opposed to the features being heavily tied to one world. Perhaps they will unlock ocean swimming for all worlds.

I don’t personally feel unlocking rabbit hole jobs for all worlds is cause for celebration if I’m honest. Had we gotten ocean swimming for all or a conservation career that wasn’t focused on one world as well as giving us new gameplay, skills and traits with depth I could agree but as it stands I feel we paid expansion pack prices just to unlock ocean swimming. Very little of it is useful outside of Sulani besides suntanning and the way it works in 4, being limited to the beach towel or the lounger is restrictive.

It could have and should have had more game play for its price tag but as per usual with sims 4, it delivers less for more money.

The conservation career can impact every other world though, if you’re an environment manager you can consult on global policies. I think we need to give the devs credit on nailing that career.

I still believe this pack lacks gameplay though, rabbit holes with texts aren’t gameplay... This pack, as opposed to op, is quite self-centered in my opinion.
MaddieLovesAll
6 years ago
7/10, it doesnt really enhance the base game because everything you do needs to be sulani
jcri60
6 years ago
"jackjack_k;d-961830" wrote:

packs are designed to enhance and expand the way you play the base game. Giving you new experiences while ultimately making the base game more rich.

This doesn’t expand on base game experiences though ??? You cannot swim in any other world, whereas TS3, you could. The conservationist career needs specific tasks to be completed in sulani. Mermaids have a hard time keeping hydration up outside sulani (since, y’know, they’re sea creatures) That’s about the whole pack gameplay wise, none of it adds to the base game. You’re essentially paying for the world and a heap of re-used animations. This isn’t an expansion on base game at all.
elliebreton
Seasoned Ace
6 years ago
I love the pack but am happier that I bought it at a discounted price :)

To me it seems like a larger version of Strangerville, in that it's very world-specific.

I did go through the other worlds making a few edits after I bought it, but this was basically adding loungers and towels around pools and building sand pits in parks.
Beardedgeek72
New Spectator
6 years ago
"drake_mccarty;c-17135503" wrote:
This “expansion pack” is like a beefed up game pack. When I buy a $40 expansion pack I don’t expect to see the truly new stuff kept to a minimum. This pack rehashes a ton of stuff to pad it out while keeping the new gameplay to a minimum and mostly restricted to the new world.

Feature-wise, this pack has none and what fun stuff it adds can be consumed in a few hours if even that long. My recommendation is to save your $40 and get this one on a sale of some sort. It’s not worth the $40 price tag. EP’s for this version rarely are, but this one especially is not. $20 seems like a fair price for what you ultimately get.

Again I honestly don't understand any of this criticism. It just doesn't make sense since I look what's in the pack vs the criticism and it seems like the criticism is of another pack than what I bought.