Journey To Batuu is just a fetch quest world and worse not a livable sim world.

Having played the new pack for 2 days straight, I have a serious issue with this pack feeling like series of fetch quests in world that is basically just a pretty looking hub to do them. I was actually looking forward to this pack and all the sci-fi decor and an off world "lot".

Except you can't, there isn't a single LOT anywhere in Journey To Batuu or way you could live there. Even the sims you interact with walk away after very short conversations. So if I can't live here, or socialize than all there is to do is quests...

Except its like a bad MMO RPG that keeps offering the same quests over and over, simply resetting whatever asset you used the first time to complete the quest a second time. So the quests feel utterly pointless other than to move your "progress bar along" so you can unlock all the rewards and go back to your own world. My entire experience in Batuu is basically fetch quests with a building I click on to sleep and pee.

Unlike a lot of simmers, I was EXCITED for a new alien world I could life out my sci-fi fantasy sims with...except I can't.

Outside buying parts...I will probably never revisit this world again because it just feels so hollow and empty. The world is literally a shell. For $30CAD I expected more than that, if nothing else a vacation house lot would have made it worth it.

They could have added a 4th, single livable lot area (the top left or top right areas of the map would have been perfect) and although Disney might have said that doesn't exist at the park - well this is the Sims and now everybody gets a light saber! Whatever canon they were trying to follow gets thrown out the window at this point and if its just an amusement park vacation world - all the reason more why it should have a livable/buildable lot area. But no...its just fetch quests and droid part shops. For $30. I wish I'd waited for a sale now because I know after I'm done the quest lines I won't be revisiting this world...because all there is to do fetch quests here.

It definitely wasn't worth the price and I saw this as a Star Wars fan who was looking forward to having Sims live in that world. This really does feel like an amusement park advertisement without any rides.

I'm not saying I wont re-use the decor because I know I will in my sci-fi sim stories...but its too bad I have to make a "pretend' sci-fi lot in a base-game world rather than in the ACTUAL sci-fi neighborhood. Maybe thats really what bugs me the most.

EDIT: Some people have pointed out you can place objects on 3 buildable areas (rebel base, scoundrel and first order) using cheats, but these aren't lots just areas within a open neighborhood.

More so I've seen some developers respond that there are over 50 quests in this pack - which sounds great except - they are legit all fetch quests. Go here click this item or sim, report back. Go to this rabbit hole, click explore, report back and it was commented that you couldn't do all these in a day.

Well I did in two days and it was soooo boring. I've never been so bored playing the Sims 4. The only challenge is FINDING whatever it is you have to click. Like for example as the first order you can only recruit humans. So you basically zoom out and wait until you see a human, click on them and click "recruit".

Repeat twice, than report back. Its just not fun gameplay and having to do it 50 times, 3 times each...is just...uh.

expansion packs

31 Replies

leo3487
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
"TOLKIEN;d-981210" wrote:

It definitely wasn't worth the price and I saw this as a Star Wars fan who was looking forward to having Sims live in that world. This really does feel like an amusement park advertisement without any rides.

Is a vacation world, with story like Strangerville
Then to the lore of The Sims 4, it is just a park based on Star Wars, no an alien planet
EntityofDesire
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
"leo3487;c-17655073" wrote:
"TOLKIEN;d-981210" wrote:

It definitely wasn't worth the price and I saw this as a Star Wars fan who was looking forward to having Sims live in that world. This really does feel like an amusement park advertisement without any rides.

Is a vacation world, with story like Strangerville
Then to the lore of The Sims 4, it is just a park based on Star Wars, no an alien planet

Yes but even in vacation worlds and strangeville you had lots. This world has NO lots and the sims aren't interactable for longer than a 2-3 part conversation. There is no real story line either, its more like eco living where you do activities to move a bar left or right.

Its definitely not an amusement park if thats what they were going for. Scanning crates and asking for IDs, ect is not amusing. Its fetch quests.
Karamazov123
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
I really don't know why they insisted on a quest-driven pack when their options are so limited. The game has no real combat system, there's almost nothing in terms of stealth, individual sim stats don't mean much, there's next to no characterization, and it's hard to have a proper narrative when your only source of dialogue comes from the notification box. StrangerVille already showed us that there's only so much you can do with the game's mechanics, and they barely learned anything from that.
OldeSimsFan
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
Thank you all for confirming Carl's review. Now there are 3 more people saying the same thing. Definitely a pack I'll be avoiding.
rpk333236
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
I haven't bought the pack yet, but isn't there a lot in each section that can be edited with cheats? I saw screenshots of people adding in beds, toilets, kids activities, etc.
RouenSims
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
Strangerville is actually my favorite pack, but so far this is my least favorite.
EntityofDesire
Seasoned Ace
5 years ago
"Drakos;c-17655162" wrote:
I haven't bought the pack yet, but isn't there a lot in each section that can be edited with cheats? I saw screenshots of people adding in beds, toilets, kids activities, etc.

Yes you can "cheat" the existing "areas" but they aren't "true" lots per say but areas built into the map that can be "maniputed" to place objects like tents.

There is a huge difference though between putting down a tent vs building a vacation home on a loadable/individual lot. Partially its the ownership OF the lot itself - its not your sims, but a working part of the neighborhood. So every sim who wants to can walk into it. So your not so much editing lots but public spaces.

Per say there are NO lots in this pack. Everything works basically as an open neighborhood, the only loading areas are between map destinations.
logionX
Legend
5 years ago
If they want to make their sims4 packs into an RPG... then I think they should look more into what makes RPGs fun. Fetch quests are something that are often looked down upon in RPGs... and the one's who still do it often include fun reasons or challenges with it. I think they should have looked at games like Witcher or Mass Effect and how they do quests.
jess1z1
5 years ago
The thing about Strangerville is, even if the single quest offers no replayability, going through it once was fun because there's actual places to keep discovering as you move long (the world changes around you too) and the animation of the final showdown with the mother has some decent action, feels unique and it's interactive as it's happening. It's not just telling me I'm fighting the mother rather than showing me. Sure, some of the steps of the quest do involve lot of talking and some were repetitive, but that wasn't all there was. My only true lasting complaints are not making physical combat a skill and not doing more with the spying devices.

But also, when you're done with the quest, you still have several lots to do what you want with. You can live there or you can add commercial venues and just keep using it like you would any other world. You had a new career and... I think that's it, but still. I have a save where I use it as a regular desert town and another where I have all the infected walking around and pretend they're zombies. I appreciate Strangerville and I appreciate Jungle Adventure, I like that they give me a chance to either stick to the goal or do something else.

I was absolutely thinking of repurposing the lots on Batuu to fit my own sandbox stories later on, but there are still way many more limitations than in JA or SV, like with clothing and inventory and occult powers. I'm sure I'll enjoy some of it, but it's not going to be even close to what it could have been what with all the missed opportunities.

And it's funny because I kind of have always liked the odd jobs from Island Living and wished they could do something more with that, have more active ones that you could do outside of Sulani, even if it really was just delivering food. This isn't really it.

I honestly don't care if it's a "cash grab" or trying to attract new players, I only wish it were better lol At least as customizable as the other GPs. The very reasons I wanted to play a Sims Star Wars game as opposed to any other Star Wars game are not there because I'm not allowed to bend it like the sims usually allows. When I wrote in Star Wars in that survey, I never thought we'd get a pack. If I'd known it was possible, I would have been more specific and asked for a Jedi lifestate lol
ck213
Legend
5 years ago
The Sims 4 is mostly a list of instructions and fetch quests.
Aspirations: do this, this, and this 5 times.
Careers: do this, and this, and this.

Why can't we get general goals and allow us chose what activities makes the most sense for their skills and traits.
This game is too specific in what it tells you to do. There should be multiple ways to go about goals with levels of risks and rewards for what you choose to do.

The only thing that is fun and flexible is building skills and fulfilling needs because there are multiple solutions to achieve them.
You choose what makes the most sense for your sim and their situation.

I remember going after and aspiration goal for my sim's daughter.
Her task was to create a work of art in a very specific way, like some particular medium. I was like, why can't I choose a medium that I intend for her to create in when she becomes an artist?

"logion;c-17655192" wrote:
If they want to make their sims4 packs into an RPG... then I think they should look more into what makes RPGs fun. Fetch quests are something that are often looked down upon in RPGs... and the one's who still do it often include fun reasons or challenges with it. I think they should have looked at games like Witcher or Mass Effect and how they do quests.

I was actually thinking about this very thing today while at work (don't tell the boss).
When you are on a quest in an RPG, very interesting things usually happen on the way, and there are obstacles that you have to overcome.
In TS4 it's just "do this", done. Next.

What I have liked, and want to see more of is what Jungle Adventure did with it's rabbit hole..., I'm not sure what to call it.
The part where your sims cut down the barrier to the next area. You have these little events where you have to make a choice.
The best choice depends on how prepared your sims is. Do they have the right equipment? Is a particular skill's level high enough?
Are they in the right emotional state. So much better than, "Do you want to go left or right?"