Should The Sims Stop Collaborating?

"AnnLee87;c-17767462" wrote:
Collaborations make money. Money is needed to make the game. If I don't like it I don't use it or buy it. It does not directly affect me so I'm not worried. I don't wear makeup. They made a Sims palette that I am not buying. They made expensive cloths a while back that I did not buy. I'm not getting my panties in a wad because a company that makes a game I like is making money.

If drink a Coke it does not mean I buy all their merch that Coke puts out or agree with what their parent corporations do.

If I watch a YT video it does mean I have to go buy the creators merch.

This is all capitalism at it's best. (an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state)

Just because something is produced does not mean I have to consume it or use it or buy it.

This. ^^^

I don't think they should completely stop per say, but, I feel like the managers/whoever is in charge should have a better understanding of what the community would like and dislike. For example, a stuff pack with a popular brand like Ikea, would be something that I feel would be well received by the community. Additionally, they should have a fair idea that their community would be against a collaboration with something like, idk, the star wars disaster.

I feel like the Mac collab could've been really good, being a makeup brand and whatnot, however I feel it was just poorly executed with a chunk of the community being unhappy.

Last good collaboration they did was H&M & IKEA. Although Katy Perry's House of Pain did amuse me a great deal.

No
Absolutely not.

I would like to see BETTER collaborations but by no means abandon collaborating to produce new and interesting content for Sims 4 or future Sims games.

That is not to say that I disliked the Moschino or the Star Wars pack. I loved both of them in fact though both left wishing there had been more in them. (To be fair, I have said I wished there were more in EVERY pack though.) The free MAC make-up content was of no interest to me but, again, I spend far more time in "build mode" than I do in
playing the game and "create a sim" combined. And both the Moschino and Star Wars packs have items in it that are quite usable in builds if you are creative.

I also love that "Batoo" is a destination world and not "livable" and don't mind not being able to build there (without cheats). In fact, I would love more destination worlds with a similar function to them.

All of that said, I still want to see BETTER collaborations.

- Collaborations that will allow the "Sims Universe" to expand in creative, interesting, and unique ways. The "Star Wars" collaboration wasn't a bad example of this: The Sims got a vacation destination (Star Wars Theme Park), some fun story and game play additions, and some nice build items. The Moschino pack offer a few "new and improved" game play mechanics as well. However, I still feel like the surface hasn't been scratched on what is possible there. A collaboration with a historical society to create another exploration destination? A collaboration with a theme park? What about The Smithsonian to improve the museums in the game.

- Collaborations that might allow the expanding of existing skills, aspirations, and traits in the game. True, it could be done without the input from them but could you imagine the Athlete job getting a new branch that didn't have to do with team sports or being a bodybuilder? Like maybe an Olympic Athlete or MMA fighter or a pro-wrestler? I could and wish those options were in the game. (I know a few pro-wrestlers who would love Sims made of them except the career option isn't there to do them justice.) And I partially joke here but what about a collaboration with Gordon Ramsey to improve the restaurants and culinary career in the game. (Any "celebrity chef" would be fine here but the idea of Gordon Ramsey as a Sim has me laughing... A LOT)

- With regards to "corporate collaborations", I don't have any strong impulses. There's no specific brands with regards to clothing that I could sit there and say "I'd love their clothing in the game". Some build items like furniture and decor could be fantastic though.

I've always thought real life collaborations were dumb. H&M, Katy Perry, didn't matter.

I'm still hoping for a Disney Princes/Princesses, Star Trek, Stargate SG1 & Doctor Who.

In Sims 3 there was these wonderful Mad Hatter items, a collaboration, but an awesome one. Since you could change colors and textures in Sims 3, I used those pieces alot. Kids room of course, but also in a Mad Hatter Casino build, and in all my dark and supernatural homes. It wasn't free, but it was useful, so worth the money. Sims 2 had some decent collaborations too, but nearly all the Sims 4 collaborations have been terrible. Only thing I liked was a sweater.

I wasn't looking forward to the Star Wars pack, but it could have been good if it was more than a giant empty backdrop.

For the most part, even the packs that are not collaborations lack substance, but when they add another company to the mix we end up with an advertisement and little more. Would be fine if all this stuff was free, but charging players for a giant advertisement is not a great business model.

Yes and no. There have been some free content that was done as cross/promotional over the years (such as Fiat and Ford cars; and I'm still trying to find the Fords for TS2 or TS3; which one I can't remember), and then there has been paid content. While I own Star Wars, I regret getting it. There is zilch that I use. Moschino I bought for the photography stuff. Katy Perry is the only TS3 pack that is (at present) discontinued. Most of these have been really tacky kind of stuff. I personally think IKEA wasn't that bad, and honestly, I feel that as a SP in TS4 it would sell well.

With the brands I wear there's a ton of Carhartt (coats and jackets, jeans), Wrangler (jeans), Berne (my current work coat; feed store had it at 75% off), and Ariat (work boots) but hardly any fancy label stuff unless it was a Christmas gift from relatives; I don't think they'd be interested in doing anything with the Sims franchise, but it would be good stuff to come with a farm pack. However, I feel some Ariat-branded stuff that would come with a horse pack would work out, and they may be more willing to work with EA than other brands since they are well known, nad are heavier on equestrian and style-forward clothing than most of the brands I wear. As a dude who really only cares if it's comfortable and lasts a long time, the clothing and brands they collaborate with at present just don't work out.

No, BUT they should make retail a fun experience again. Like in Sims 2.

I don't mind either way whether they do collabs or not. Collabs are fine for free updates and the occasional stuff pack, but I don't think they should have a branded game pack or expansion pack. I think collabs are best for CAS or build buy, just small things that won't impact the game.

With the recent makeup thing with MAC, this is entirely on MAC. So many people are blaming EA and calling it cashgrabbing, but EA are not to blame here. MAC are the ones who chose to use that particular palette. EA gave us the makeup free to the game, while MAC are selling it. I think people are overreacting about the whole thing. If they don't want to spend their money on something, they don't have to.