Let's talk about the flawed emotion system

"foxx_fennec;15197466" wrote:
I don't agree that any emotions should be made permanent for a given amount of time. That isn't realistic, either. Even in real life, it's possible for people to be happy even in the worst of times. I do agree that TS4 could handle the emotional effects of such events better, though. I think the moodlets from any major bad event (death of a loved one, breaking up, being cheated on, etc.) should be stronger and have their effects fade gradually. Big negative moodlets like the +5 Sad moodlet that comes from the death of a loved one can be overcome without too much trouble; then they're gone and everything's fine again.

To make it more realistic, the response to a Sim losing someone close to them should be something more like this:
+10 Sad moodlet for 2 days. They're going to be pretty sad while they're mourning, and it's going to take a lot of positive moodlets to pull them out of that before some time has passed.
+5 Sad moodlet for 24h after the first moodlet. The pain of grief is still strong, but it is healing.
+2 Sad moodlet for 24h after the second moodlet. They're adjusting okay to life without the one they've lost, and their baseline emotional state is returning to normal.

Another touch of realism could be added by allowing a Sim to have a keepsake from someone they've lost, which would give them the option to reminisce and have a chance of giving either a +1 Happy moodlet (from fond memories) or a +1 Sad moodlet (from missing them) for a few hours.

I think other major events should have a larger initial impact and a "tapering-off" effect like this as well. I just chose having someone die as an example because that's probably the most devastating thing that can happen to a Sim.