I love The Sims 4. It plays well in comparison to its predecessor, the graphics are very lovely, and I am often amused by how the emotional status of a Sim will change the way they execute a task. Being able to multitask? Superb. My Sims have surprised me several times with the different things they've been able to do simultaneously. That is perhaps my favorite feature in this latest version of the franchise.
I know some of my suggestions/dislikes may already be addressed through bug fixes, but I did want to list them all out anyway:
- I would prefer that my Sims do not secretly gain muscle tone/fitness from doing everyday activities. My first female Sim looks like a freakish bodybuilder, and all she's done is tend her garden regularly! I don't want any other Sims keeping a garden if that's going to keep happening.
- Speaking of gardening, it just seems odd to me that Sims cannot eat the fruits and veggies fresh from the garden. I know that might eliminate the need for cooking, but the fresh fruits/veggies could fill only a fraction of the hunger meter, and they could give a positive/negative moodlet depending on their quality. Using them only as ingredients seems like a waste of some good produce, especially since my Sim's garden provides a regular harvest.
- I feel very hampered by the limited color choices in CAS. I like to pick a symbolic color for my Sims to wear, but since not all articles of clothing have that color (not even the PRIMARY colors, for pity's sake), it starts to limit what I have to choose from. Additionally, not all the articles of clothing in the current CAS selection have a matching top, bottom or pair of shoes. It can be a real puzzle trying to get certain Sims color-coordinated. If there's one thing I miss from TS3, it's the ability to color clothing and furniture any way that I wanted.
- The CAS is very impressive, but sometimes it can be difficult to tell how to make certain modifications. As of this posting, I still have no idea how to make my Sims' eyes larger, if that's at all possible. If a hovering tooltip would temporarily appear to describe the action I'm about to take, I'd appreciate that. Perhaps make it optional for those people who are much better with the CAS.
- I would like to check on my Sim's needs while they're at work/school. It is very frustrating to see them tense/uncomfortable and not know the true reason why so I can try to adjust their workday accordingly. It's equally frustrating not knowing what time they'll be home from work, which I usually use to plan their family's activities. Same thing with being able to see their needs. Are they tired? Hungry? In need of a good conversation? Knowing which meter is at what state lets me plot their actions for when they finally get home. I can understand not letting me fiddle with their inventory since realistically they're not home to do that, but I should still be able to see their stats.
- I don't know if it's just because I turned off autonomy, but I noticed that my Sims do not engage each other in conversation when they're sitting down at dinner together, or sitting on the couch to watch TV. I have to make them start up a conversation and by then, one Sim's nearly done eating and about ready to get up. It would be nice if, even when autonomy is turned off, family members would talk to each other when they're eating dinner/watching TV.
- "Cleaning Out Spoiled Food" when one Sim has taken the last of the family plate from the fridge: Why? When that Sim took the last serving of food, shouldn't they have already taken out the last dish? It's become an annoying extra step to my Sim family's mealtime.
Overall, I love the game and I can't wait to discover more interesting things my Sims can do within it. I'm waiting eagerly to see what the first bit of additional content will be.
EA Staff (Retired)
