So is this officially the worst year for sims 4 ?

I was really disappointed with the pack haul this year, while I haven't played or been around for any of the older sims games, even I can feel the lackluster sorta aura what packs I have give off.

After getting eco living on sale, I haven't bought any new packs, hecc, I don't even have all the packs to begin with. Eco Living really suited elements of some of my gameplay, but the NAP can be really frustrating from what I've seen and what others have experienced. I expected more then what I got, and some elements of what I got... We don't discuss that.

Journey to Batuu really pushed my buttons, they could've at least added more to Alien lifestates and they had that opportunity to do so, instead we just have... Outfits...

It's all one big mess, and I'm not spending money I can use for my bills anymore unless they pick their motivation pens for the community back up. CC is my now my go-to.

Sorry if this is a mess like the packs, but the general gist is I'm a disappointed parent.

I LOVED Tiny Living. It was a surprise pack yes, but it was right up my alley. I basically only build small houses anyway, they are so much more fun to play.

(I am still not sure what people mean with "elder gameplay". I don't know any "elder" people IRL that does anything different than me. I am 48, my parents are 75, and they do what I do. The "elder" gameplay people talk about sounds like things my grandparents did, or even a generation before that.)

So far stuff packs are the most positive thing happening this year. Hope the next leaked one will continue this tradition. Eco Lifestyle isn't bad at all, it has lots of cool ideas and mechanics but BUGS from it are unbearable. SW to me is a disaster but I simply ignore it. So overall putting emotions aside this year definitely not too good, but not a complete disaster.
But then again... emotions - PR, promotion, communication this year is horrible. They hint basegame improvements with their survey last year and then never gave any feedback on it. They promised "the best year" and failed to stand to this standard. So with all wishes and hopes and hype and speculations this was destined to go downhill. It's not the content itself that's horrible this year it's the state of franchise perception overall as a result of sales politics based on constant hype.

"Beardedgeek;c-17677510" wrote:
I LOVED Tiny Living. It was a surprise pack yes, but it was right up my alley. I basically only build small houses anyway, they are so much more fun to play.

(I am still not sure what people mean with "elder gameplay". I don't know any "elder" people IRL that does anything different than me. I am 48, my parents are 75, and they do what I do. The "elder" gameplay people talk about sounds like things my grandparents did, or even a generation before that.)

I am an elder, and do what I did decades ago other than restrictions imposed by reduced physical capability. One almost gets the impression we are simply mobile vegetables from what some posters are saying.

I was indifferent towards all the packs besides the Star Wars pack - I’m not a fan of that pack for many reasons, the thing is not everyone will like a pack, but you definitely did something wrong when a majority of people don’t like it. To make the most amount of money, you should listen to what a majority of people are saying. I’m trying to figure out what EA’s game plan is here and why they won’t listen to their fan base. Bad packs shouldn’t be too much of a problem if the base game wasn’t lacking so much. The Sims community has been saying what they want for years now and the things they wanted back then are still the things they want now. Between 6 years ago and now, the Sims 4’s base game hasn’t really changed, for the most part they’ve only been adding packs (which wouldn’t be a problem if the base game was good).

"Beardedgeek;c-17677510" wrote:
I LOVED Tiny Living. It was a surprise pack yes, but it was right up my alley. I basically only build small houses anyway, they are so much more fun to play.

(I am still not sure what people mean with "elder gameplay". I don't know any "elder" people IRL that does anything different than me. I am 48, my parents are 75, and they do what I do. The "elder" gameplay people talk about sounds like things my grandparents did, or even a generation before that.)

Elders in my town play bingo. It's every Tues, and Thurs. :p they win big bucks, they stand in lines at the stores to get those pull tabs, and scratch off tickets. But the big outing for the week is always bingo. It's a social event. They care who shows up and who doesn't. Some because they care about others and if they are doing ok, others because they are glad so and so didn't show up this week because somehow that person always wins a jackpot. It may be stereotyping elders but it is a thing for some. Just visit Nevada and see how many elders are at those machines. They need that cash.

Elders in my town book Caribbean tours, they all go together on a ship around the islands. Some visit other lands for religous reasons, they travel in groups. They have a senior citizens' building where they host dances, pot luck dinners, and other services and activities. The lack of elder play is obvivous in TS4 if we are going to call it a life simulator.
They host bazzars and craft shows, they mentor to younger adults and children. They organize politcal movements and or charitites, they do a lot for the community work younger people don't have time to do. They also run a historical society preserving history for younger generations. They also decide which buildings and areas should be deemed historical to prevent any parking lot from replacing it and or ugly highrise. There are a lot of group activites that elders do together that TS4 hasn't even scratched the surface.

"Beardedgeek;c-17677510" wrote:
I LOVED Tiny Living. It was a surprise pack yes, but it was right up my alley. I basically only build small houses anyway, they are so much more fun to play.

(I am still not sure what people mean with "elder gameplay". I don't know any "elder" people IRL that does anything different than me. I am 48, my parents are 75, and they do what I do. The "elder" gameplay people talk about sounds like things my grandparents did, or even a generation before that.)

I like Tiny Living too. I found that some of my houses counted as Tiny when I checked them, so that was welcome.

I'm glad someone else thinks that about elders. I'm now 78 and if not made to self-isolate I would be out enjoying life, travelling and eating out. I'd leave things like violent sports or skiing, to the young though some still do it and marathons! It's only lack of pots of money that holds me back. I was saving to go on a cruise and now they are breaking up the cruise ships for scrap. Sad.

If they bring in anything else for elders to do it should be walking with two hiking sticks as they do where I live walking around our National Parks, lawn bowls, walking the dogs with their partner, ballroom dancing, gentler exercises, walking canes, more hats .......

.......and less of the bent backs.

The elderly are more upright than teenagers these days, bent over their screens and mobile phones. Elders should get a bit shorter though as you do lose height a bit when you age. I've lost an inch.

"Oldeseadogge;c-17679366" wrote:

"Beardedgeek;c-17677510" wrote:
I LOVED Tiny Living. It was a surprise pack yes, but it was right up my alley. I basically only build small houses anyway, they are so much more fun to play.

(I am still not sure what people mean with "elder gameplay". I don't know any "elder" people IRL that does anything different than me. I am 48, my parents are 75, and they do what I do. The "elder" gameplay people talk about sounds like things my grandparents did, or even a generation before that.)

I am an elder, and do what I did decades ago other than restrictions imposed by reduced physical capability. One almost gets the impression we are simply mobile vegetables from what some posters are saying.

Exactly. What exactly are "elder activities" these days?
Binge Netflix? Nah.
Knitting? Nah.
Owning cats? Nah.
Listening to Spotify? Nah.
Listening to Vinyl records? Definitely Nah, that's hipsters and younger people than that.

I still want an explanation from the people demanding "More elder gameplay" about what they actually mean.

I mean teens? Maybe. Tho most i can think of is not apropiate for Sims anyway, like under age drinking, under age um... stuff, being caught by cops doing something illegal... The two things I can come up with is Skipping School (which you can already do) and Starting a Band.

But yes, I have absolutely no clue what these Simmers mean when they say Elder Gameplay??

Not for me. Every year is the same. So far, I like the add on.

The only thing that they need to do is to update on the current gameplay by giving us more in-depth gameplay across the packs & of course the base game, instead of adding more packs.

"Beardedgeek;c-17681432" wrote:

But yes, I have absolutely no clue what these Simmers mean when they say Elder Gameplay??

I’m not quite sure either. My folks are considered elders, but they can dance the jive better than me or anyone else I know of my age (I can’t jive at all though).
My dear grandmother on the other hand, she’s close to 100 and sure she loves dancing but she can’t, only because she has mobility issues. I’d pick her up and dance with her, but she’s too fragile. It comes with age, but in all fairness it can come with any age and things like that should not be considered elder gameplay.
Knitting, canes, bingo, they’re only elder stereotypes.
I love the canes in Sims 3 and always wanted my YA to use one too, but unfortunately canes are limited to elders only.

I believe the addition of disabilities or elements like slow dancing would be more interesting for all ages, so we as players can make that choice ourselves. Who is it more suitable for in that save? The elder, or the teen?
If anything, gameplay for kids should be prioritized. Again, they can’t even ride a bike...