Ever since the sexual orientation patch dropped, I was hoping it would retroactively change pre-existing premade same sex couples like the heckings and the old couple from cottage living and was extremely disappointed when it didn't. It was a really huge missed opportunity that became even more aparent to me when the next expansion pack released after the patch, high school years, actually made use of the sexual orientation settings when it introduced premade sims that were strictly heteroromantic/heterosexual and a few others that were strictly homoromantic/homosexual.It'd really mean a lot to me (and probably a lot of other people) if all premade same sex couples prior to the patch got updated to only be interested in romance/woohoo with the same gender if possible. I understand that bisexual sims and simmers exist, but considering how the vast majority of premade and townie sims are already bisexual, having premade queer sims that aren't attracted to the opposite gender for either romance or woohoo would really improve the semi hollow representation ts4 currently has.The uncountable amount of times simmers online have proudly proclaimed they have succesfully broken the heckings apart to kickstart heterosexual lineages with them has actually gotten quite disturbing. A small change like this added in as a sims delivery content drop would have brought simmers like me some peace of mind.

Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode

If they were going to do that, why not retro-set ALL the premades' sexual orientations? Why just the ones that are (presumably) gay or lesbian?

"Duskregn;c-18314956" wrote:Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS modeWhile it's true that anybody can still edit them after the fact, what matters is that EA makes use of newer features meant to include explicitly queer sims in their game and improve upon past attempts at inclusivity with them. It would also mean that players will then have to actively go out of their way to change their orientations in order to form heterosexual relationships as or with said sims.This shouldn't affect simmers that don't do that, though. Ever since EA released the feature of having science babies with other sims, players should still be free to make use of their genetics without having to invoke real world bigotry in order to make it happen.

"Flikka_Flikka;c-18314962" wrote:If they were going to do that, why not retro-set ALL the premades' sexual orientations? Why just the ones that are (presumably) gay or lesbian?Because representation matters, and the sims as of late have been sharing the same general sentiment. It is not rare for heterosexual characters and people to dominate the media they are featured within in ways that are unquestioned and unharmed. The same cannot be said about people that aren't, however, so small changes like this help out a lot in ways people don't really think about.

It's sad that it's not only a thing that affects older premades but also premades that came after HSY.I just played with Aurelio Robles as an NPC in my legacy and I learned that he was intended to be asexual and probably aromantic (see https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Aurelio_Robles), but his settings are default (as well as all the settings of the other premades of GRO). That doesn't really make any sense. I'm not sure about the HR premades, but I don't think they have specific settings either.

Retroactive Orientation Updates For Premade Queer Couples

Duskregn
2 years ago
Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode
Jooleeyuh
Rising Vanguard
2 years ago
If they were going to do that, why not retro-set ALL the premades' sexual orientations? Why just the ones that are (presumably) gay or lesbian?
EneroDesyembre
New Spectator
2 years ago
"Duskregn;c-18314956" wrote:
Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode

While it's true that anybody can still edit them after the fact, what matters is that EA makes use of newer features meant to include explicitly queer sims in their game and improve upon past attempts at inclusivity with them. It would also mean that players will then have to actively go out of their way to change their orientations in order to form heterosexual relationships as or with said sims.

This shouldn't affect simmers that don't do that, though. Ever since EA released the feature of having science babies with other sims, players should still be free to make use of their genetics without having to invoke real world bigotry in order to make it happen.
EneroDesyembre
New Spectator
2 years ago
"Flikka_Flikka;c-18314962" wrote:
If they were going to do that, why not retro-set ALL the premades' sexual orientations? Why just the ones that are (presumably) gay or lesbian?

Because representation matters, and the sims as of late have been sharing the same general sentiment. It is not rare for heterosexual characters and people to dominate the media they are featured within in ways that are unquestioned and unharmed. The same cannot be said about people that aren't, however, so small changes like this help out a lot in ways people don't really think about.
flauschtrud
Rising Adventurer
2 years ago
It's sad that it's not only a thing that affects older premades but also premades that came after HSY.

I just played with Aurelio Robles as an NPC in my legacy and I learned that he was intended to be asexual and probably aromantic (see https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Aurelio_Robles), but his settings are default (as well as all the settings of the other premades of GRO). That doesn't really make any sense. I'm not sure about the HR premades, but I don't think they have specific settings either.
EneroDesyembre
New Spectator
2 years ago
"flauschtrud;c-18315085" wrote:
It's sad that it's not only a thing that affects older premades but also premades that came after HSY.

I just played with Aurelio Robles as an NPC in my legacy and I learned that he was intended to be asexual and probably aromantic (see https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Aurelio_Robles), but his settings are default (as well as all the settings of the other premades of GRO). That doesn't really make any sense. I'm not sure about the HR premades, but I don't think they have specific settings either.

I didn't even know about that! Thank you for pointing it out. It's odd that EA added new features only to forget about them shortly thereafter.
Horrorgirl6
Seasoned Veteran
2 years ago
"EneroDesyembre;c-18314963" wrote:
"Duskregn;c-18314956" wrote:
Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode

While it's true that anybody can still edit them after the fact, what matters is that EA makes use of newer features meant to include explicitly queer sims in their game and improve upon past attempts at inclusivity with them. It would also mean that players will then have to actively go out of their way to change their orientations in order to form heterosexual relationships as or with said sims.

This shouldn't affect simmers that don't do that, though. Ever since EA released the feature of having science babies with other sims, players should still be free to make use of their genetics without having to invoke real world bigotry in order to make it happen.

Also how do you know the Heckings are both meant to be homosexual? They could meant to both bisexual?Anyone can change sexual or identity to hetero,bi or homosexual they want.Just ignore the players who do it.I am not against Ea update the sexual preference want too.Just that this does not seem problem.
EneroDesyembre
New Spectator
2 years ago
"Horrorgirl6;c-18315456" wrote:
"EneroDesyembre;c-18314963" wrote:
"Duskregn;c-18314956" wrote:
Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode

While it's true that anybody can still edit them after the fact, what matters is that EA makes use of newer features meant to include explicitly queer sims in their game and improve upon past attempts at inclusivity with them. It would also mean that players will then have to actively go out of their way to change their orientations in order to form heterosexual relationships as or with said sims.

This shouldn't affect simmers that don't do that, though. Ever since EA released the feature of having science babies with other sims, players should still be free to make use of their genetics without having to invoke real world bigotry in order to make it happen.

Also how do you know the Heckings are both meant to be homosexual? They could meant to both bisexual?Anyone can change sexual or identity to hetero,bi or homosexual they want.Just ignore the players who do it.I am not against Ea update the sexual preference want too.Just that this does not seem problem.

Idk honestly I just felt like they should be. it would be pretty cool for, you know, the first same sex couple in ts4 to specifically be gay. Having them by default not reciprocate romantic interactions with female sims prevents the unfortunate homophobic implications of "meeting the right woman magically fixing a man's same sex attraction", unless the player themself makes them explicitly bisexual in which case they either do so because they themself are bisexual or because of other reasons that will become quickly apparent if they aren't.
CAPTAIN_NXR7
Seasoned Veteran
2 years ago

The reason this sexual orientation feature was added is to support inclusiveness. It’s open to everyone to do whatever they want with it.

Does this mean that the sexual orientation of some of these households must be retroactively changed? I get the argument and it wouldn’t bother me in the slightest if their orientation was changed. At the same time I don’t think it should be changed. Keep it open, regardless of what the household description says. Everyone’s Heckings are different:

Spoiler

It’s established that The Heckings are married. That’s all. This could suggest that they’re gay, but does it mean they’re truly gay? Does it mean they TRULY love one another, or just their little Pug Rosie? Perhaps Brent married Brant for the money. The scoundrel. The one with the auburn hair sometimes flirts with my sim’s girlfriend. Maybe he’s a gay man, maybe he’s a con man, maybe he’s up to something. Who knows? I chuckle at it, because I treat this game as lighthearted entertainment unless we’re talking about obsessive phone use, which I cannot control without a mod, unlike sexual orientation. If a feature does not work, such as dislikes ( they don’t really work do they?) that’s when I might start complaining. That means the core gameplay is faulty and needs fixing. If sexual orientation feature doesn’t work, well, that’s just not good enough. But if it does, we can do with it whatever we want.

My humble opinion: people should stop judging others for how they play or out of fear for how they might play. You may never know why others play the way they do, even if you think you do. You don’t. I got called ever ugly name under the Milky Way for even suggesting different gameplay methods.

I’d say just enjoy your own game. It’s a single player game. I suggest creating a template save with all the sims exactly the way you want them to be. That’s how I do it these days, it saves time.
I’ve got gays I’ve got bis I’ve got straights and I’ve literally got…nuns. The Heckings…well, they’re the Heckings. If I want them to be gay gay…it takes about three clicks and done. Easy woopin’ Peasy. ?
crocobaura
Seasoned Ace
2 years ago
"EneroDesyembre;c-18315479" wrote:
"Horrorgirl6;c-18315456" wrote:
"EneroDesyembre;c-18314963" wrote:
"Duskregn;c-18314956" wrote:
Why do you care what other simmers do in their games? And it's not like EA setting them to gay-only stops anyone who wants to from going into full edit CAS mode

While it's true that anybody can still edit them after the fact, what matters is that EA makes use of newer features meant to include explicitly queer sims in their game and improve upon past attempts at inclusivity with them. It would also mean that players will then have to actively go out of their way to change their orientations in order to form heterosexual relationships as or with said sims.

This shouldn't affect simmers that don't do that, though. Ever since EA released the feature of having science babies with other sims, players should still be free to make use of their genetics without having to invoke real world bigotry in order to make it happen.

Also how do you know the Heckings are both meant to be homosexual? They could meant to both bisexual?Anyone can change sexual or identity to hetero,bi or homosexual they want.Just ignore the players who do it.I am not against Ea update the sexual preference want too.Just that this does not seem problem.

Idk honestly I just felt like they should be. it would be pretty cool for, you know, the first same sex couple in ts4 to specifically be gay. Having them by default not reciprocate romantic interactions with female sims prevents the unfortunate homophobic implications of "meeting the right woman magically fixing a man's same sex attraction", unless the player themself makes them explicitly bisexual in which case they either do so because they themself are bisexual or because of other reasons that will become quickly apparent if they aren't.

They aren't straight if they swing both ways, so there's no superwoman there to fix them.