The Sims 4 Vampires and Parenthood. The Perfect Balance of Game Pack.
Vampires in my opinion is the best game pack in The Sims 4, alongside with Parenthood. This packs are focused on new systems and add depth to them, and focuses on gameplay additions.
Outdoor Retreat was the first game pack so I understand if it was not on par. The pack introduce a world, and then some extra activities. (Traits, Aspiration, Recreations, etc.) However it does not introduce a new system that will impact your gameplay when you are on exploring the content. IT feels like you can camp in every world and not miss anything, aside from the scenery. There are alot of Great Build and CAS items.
Spa Day has great build mode items, great gameplay opportunities and I love the pack. It did not introduce a new system that could impact a sim everyday life (A wellness/fitness system for sims would be great) but it is similar to outdoor retreat. Lots of new activities, but no cohesive way to encourage players in playing it. Still a fine pack.
Dine Out was the third and was almost there. It has a great amount of Build and Buy with CAS items, and for the first time a new system to play with it. Managing and running your own restaurant. If you do not play it nothing will change, but once you go decided to play with Dine Out business aspect, you will get a deep system that provides a new gameplay. The problem is the Bugs overshadows the gameplay so it is almost there but not quite.
And then Vampires and Parenthood comes out. The two top favorite packs in the community. This packs did not just provide new build buy and CAS. But a new system that will impact your gameplay if you decided to play with them and it delivers. Unlike Dine Out, this are not buggy making them enjoyable. Character Values? Powers and Weakness? Bring it on. This provides a new way to play the game that impacts the gameplay if you decided to play with them. Something that newer game packs lack. It balances gameplay while not being ambitious.
Most Notably Realm of Magic. The pack was so ambitious that it feels that it should have been an expansion pack so much so that the spells and potions are just cheats because they cannot create new mechanics in the game because they have limited time in a gamepack.
And this is the conclusion.
Game Packs are amazing especially when they have the a bug free new gameplay mechanic that will keep you playing particularly if you decided to play the features that they have. They provide depth on the features in the pack. They did not just add new traits, aspiration and side activities but a new mechanic that engages the player. The mechanic should not be overly ambitious to the point that it fails (such as Spells in Realm of Magic) and can impact a sim day to day life. For me, that is the perfect balance of a game pack.
What do you think?
Outdoor Retreat was the first game pack so I understand if it was not on par. The pack introduce a world, and then some extra activities. (Traits, Aspiration, Recreations, etc.) However it does not introduce a new system that will impact your gameplay when you are on exploring the content. IT feels like you can camp in every world and not miss anything, aside from the scenery. There are alot of Great Build and CAS items.
Spa Day has great build mode items, great gameplay opportunities and I love the pack. It did not introduce a new system that could impact a sim everyday life (A wellness/fitness system for sims would be great) but it is similar to outdoor retreat. Lots of new activities, but no cohesive way to encourage players in playing it. Still a fine pack.
Dine Out was the third and was almost there. It has a great amount of Build and Buy with CAS items, and for the first time a new system to play with it. Managing and running your own restaurant. If you do not play it nothing will change, but once you go decided to play with Dine Out business aspect, you will get a deep system that provides a new gameplay. The problem is the Bugs overshadows the gameplay so it is almost there but not quite.
And then Vampires and Parenthood comes out. The two top favorite packs in the community. This packs did not just provide new build buy and CAS. But a new system that will impact your gameplay if you decided to play with them and it delivers. Unlike Dine Out, this are not buggy making them enjoyable. Character Values? Powers and Weakness? Bring it on. This provides a new way to play the game that impacts the gameplay if you decided to play with them. Something that newer game packs lack. It balances gameplay while not being ambitious.
Most Notably Realm of Magic. The pack was so ambitious that it feels that it should have been an expansion pack so much so that the spells and potions are just cheats because they cannot create new mechanics in the game because they have limited time in a gamepack.
And this is the conclusion.
Game Packs are amazing especially when they have the a bug free new gameplay mechanic that will keep you playing particularly if you decided to play the features that they have. They provide depth on the features in the pack. They did not just add new traits, aspiration and side activities but a new mechanic that engages the player. The mechanic should not be overly ambitious to the point that it fails (such as Spells in Realm of Magic) and can impact a sim day to day life. For me, that is the perfect balance of a game pack.
What do you think?
