TS4's Underrated Features.
One of my favorite things about this iteration of The Sims is the way the needs bars work. In previous versions of this game, I felt like I was spending so much time just managing needs, I could never...
Forum Discussion
Underrated features I love:
The half-open world - coming from TS2, (I skipped 3 altogether because no.) this is awesome. It is actually half-open, and sims can explore quite a large surrounding area off the lot. They can walk out and go fishing somewhere across the road, or meet other sims in the park - it's just really nice. I know some folks are really, really angry about the lack of a fully open world, but personally (and this is JUST ME) the half-open world is enough for me.
Toddlers - Toddlers are sooooooo adorable in TS4. Like, perfectly done - it's hard to beat the TS2 toddlers, but 4 gives them just enough babyness and just enough precociousness to make them SUPER cute.
CAS - the CAS in TS4 gives me life. My sims feel fully customizable and I can make them look like ANYTHING I want. No hats with hair, a fully customizable wardrobe, easy to edit clothing cc, and just so many more options for sorting and availability. I really think people sleep on how powerful it is. And for body types, it's by far the best CAS of the series.
Multitasking - someone else mentioned this, but I love that my sims can talk to each other while they're cooking, or watch tv and cuddle, or listen to music while working on the computer. These are small things that are actually quite realistic.
Changing outfits autonomously - this is one of my favourite things in the game. If I could have this in TS2 I'd be in real trouble lol. I love that my sims will choose an outfit from their wardrobe autonomously when they shower. I can give them a real wardrobe, with some pieces clothes and shoes repeated and see them 'wear' them to different places. It's perfect and awesome.
The weight gain - I actually love this. I've tweaked it in my game with mods to keep it more realistic, but I love that my junk-loving sims will get bigger, and that sims who work out become more muscular. I even love that teens are slimmer on the whole and will lose weight quickly (I was like that as a teen).
The Monster under the bed - this is freaking adorable. I'm sorry, it's so cute it's crazy. I love it.
Making Messes - see above. Toddlers and little kids make messes. I love that it's a thing, and that it stays there until some long-suffering adult sim comes along to clean it up and chastise the little monkey for being naughty. That's how kids are. It's awesome.
Parenthood traits - this is perfect. I've always wanted to have my sims actually 'parent' their kids and this gp does the job and then some. Again, I've tweaked this with mods as I like my sims realistically disfunctional, but If parents aren't very good about keeping an eye on the little ones, they grow up with some bad habits. Couldn't be more perfect.The only thing I'd want to add here is something like a 'wets the bed' action if the toddler isn't potty trained, and 'mumbles' if they aren't taught to speak - something like that.
Vampires - FINALLY WE HAVE DECENT VAMPIRES THAT ACTUALLY DO THINGS! I love the vampires in this game. I wish Aliens were more fleshed out, and I'm holding out hard for a good witch/fairy/werewolf supernatural to complete the set. The only thing I would want here is a couple of Vampire actions for toddlers and children (similar to TS3.)
The half-open world - coming from TS2, (I skipped 3 altogether because no.) this is awesome. It is actually half-open, and sims can explore quite a large surrounding area off the lot. They can walk out and go fishing somewhere across the road, or meet other sims in the park - it's just really nice. I know some folks are really, really angry about the lack of a fully open world, but personally (and this is JUST ME) the half-open world is enough for me.
Toddlers - Toddlers are sooooooo adorable in TS4. Like, perfectly done - it's hard to beat the TS2 toddlers, but 4 gives them just enough babyness and just enough precociousness to make them SUPER cute.
CAS - the CAS in TS4 gives me life. My sims feel fully customizable and I can make them look like ANYTHING I want. No hats with hair, a fully customizable wardrobe, easy to edit clothing cc, and just so many more options for sorting and availability. I really think people sleep on how powerful it is. And for body types, it's by far the best CAS of the series.
Multitasking - someone else mentioned this, but I love that my sims can talk to each other while they're cooking, or watch tv and cuddle, or listen to music while working on the computer. These are small things that are actually quite realistic.
Changing outfits autonomously - this is one of my favourite things in the game. If I could have this in TS2 I'd be in real trouble lol. I love that my sims will choose an outfit from their wardrobe autonomously when they shower. I can give them a real wardrobe, with some pieces clothes and shoes repeated and see them 'wear' them to different places. It's perfect and awesome.
The weight gain - I actually love this. I've tweaked it in my game with mods to keep it more realistic, but I love that my junk-loving sims will get bigger, and that sims who work out become more muscular. I even love that teens are slimmer on the whole and will lose weight quickly (I was like that as a teen).
The Monster under the bed - this is freaking adorable. I'm sorry, it's so cute it's crazy. I love it.
Making Messes - see above. Toddlers and little kids make messes. I love that it's a thing, and that it stays there until some long-suffering adult sim comes along to clean it up and chastise the little monkey for being naughty. That's how kids are. It's awesome.
Parenthood traits - this is perfect. I've always wanted to have my sims actually 'parent' their kids and this gp does the job and then some. Again, I've tweaked this with mods as I like my sims realistically disfunctional, but If parents aren't very good about keeping an eye on the little ones, they grow up with some bad habits. Couldn't be more perfect.The only thing I'd want to add here is something like a 'wets the bed' action if the toddler isn't potty trained, and 'mumbles' if they aren't taught to speak - something like that.
Vampires - FINALLY WE HAVE DECENT VAMPIRES THAT ACTUALLY DO THINGS! I love the vampires in this game. I wish Aliens were more fleshed out, and I'm holding out hard for a good witch/fairy/werewolf supernatural to complete the set. The only thing I would want here is a couple of Vampire actions for toddlers and children (similar to TS3.)
