Who the Game is Marketed To

I'm not quite sure that I understand the complaints that the Sims is childish since the series being cute and childish has always been part of its identity. Probably the only time it sorta deviated from that is the spin-offs such as The Sims Medieval and Urbz but those are like, spin-offs and have more creative leeway in terms of changing tone (and even then, Medieval is still very a goofy and charming game). Even when the very first Sims was first shown off, that was also seen as a little girls' game (struggled to get ahold at first primarily because marketers feared that its unorthodox demographic being younger girls wouldn't buy the game); what did you think "virtual dollhouse" implies?

Anyway, I'm technically part of the target audience (a young female in her 20's) and I am a newer player, so I guess it catered to me? The marketing is clearly trying to appeal to my generation and younger (millennial and gen z, I'm smashed in between them) judging from the hip and trendy trailers they put out and the language they use and their appeals to a changing social norm. Even so, marketing doesn't necessarily mean that they're literally making the game for that market. Older players who played the Sims in the past already know what they're getting into so there's no need to like, market the game towards older gens since they'll likely buy it anyway.

The sims 4 is childish when you look at it compared to previous games.

Angry poops
No real consequence for behaviours and when there is it’s watered down.
Cats and dogs mate by touching noses.
Animations like goose being removed.
Romantic socials toned down.
No burglars, in fact most negative things have been nerfed or toned down.

I’ve played since the original sims came out. The sims 1 never felt babyish. In fact there is quite a few creepy and dark things in that game. It also wasn’t aimed at teenage girls. The surprise came when girls started to play it and enjoy it. In the sims 2 there is woohoo cut scene and things in that game that just wouldn’t land in the sims 4.

But I do understand times have changed. Humour has changed. The sims 4 is going for a different audience and to me a clearly different set of objectives. Previous sims games didn’t take themselves seriously and had their sense of humour, but sometimes I think the sims 4 takes itself too seriously.

Began simming past the half-century mark when it first came out so was never part of their target. In view of some of the content in TS 1 & 2 I think the 'teen' was more like 16+. Now it feels more like 13 and down. It's also more about looking pretty than actual gameplay, set dressing than areas we can actually work with.

I personally feel alienated by the Sims Marketing team. Their messaging does not resonate with me. I don't feel like a priority to them. I feel left behind. (I'm in my 20s.)

"CordeliaBeaufort;c-18195696" wrote:
Back to old Sims 1 game and packs, there were many adult jokes and features (do you remember the cake dancer? vibrating bed?) I was only 7 years old when I play these but I was out of target group, there was even a parental advisory that I should be above 13 years old but I think we all ignored that lmao.

Today, sims 4 have none of these, or any inappropriate feature for below 7 years olds. I think Sims 4's target group is broader than Sims 1 as it include children too.

So many major Sims content creators and influencers have made video essays and analysis videos reiterating these points. The "charm is gone" or "where's the drama" or "it's very family friendly."

I think the Sims Team must be aware of these observations and criticism. But they might not mean anything for the Project Rene if there is some top-down directive from executives who don't understand the audience but want to target certain demographics for business reasons.

I fear Sims 4 and Rene are competing with Roblox for Gen Alpha.

I think the game has always been family friendly, even the cake dancers, there was nothing really inappropriate about them. In my opinion, the main difference is that before they used to have animations for a lot of stuff happening in game, now they have emotions and what used to be a visual element is now a text element. Also some design choices have taken away some of the charm. Remember the pretty oversized flowers sims would grow in TS1? TS4 flowers have no decorative function when planted, you can barely see the flowers actually. It may be because people have requested realistic gameplay and characters, so a lot of the charm was lost in favour of realism.

i can tell you who the game is not marketed to

"crocobaura;c-18196650" wrote:
I think the game has always been family friendly, even the cake dancers, there was nothing really inappropriate about them. In my opinion, the main difference is that before they used to have animations for a lot of stuff happening in game, now they have emotions and what used to be a visual element is now a text element. Also some design choices have taken away some of the charm. Remember the pretty oversized flowers sims would grow in TS1? TS4 flowers have no decorative function when planted, you can barely see the flowers actually. It may be because people have requested realistic gameplay and characters, so a lot of the charm was lost in favour of realism.

I don't think the original Sims 1 is really a child-friendly / family-friendly game like Disney Dreamlight Valley. I think it leans more into the Teen rating whereas the Sims 4 leans away from it.

"simmerorigin;c-18196687" wrote:

"crocobaura;c-18196650" wrote:
I think the game has always been family friendly, even the cake dancers, there was nothing really inappropriate about them. In my opinion, the main difference is that before they used to have animations for a lot of stuff happening in game, now they have emotions and what used to be a visual element is now a text element. Also some design choices have taken away some of the charm. Remember the pretty oversized flowers sims would grow in TS1? TS4 flowers have no decorative function when planted, you can barely see the flowers actually. It may be because people have requested realistic gameplay and characters, so a lot of the charm was lost in favour of realism.

I don't think the original Sims 1 is really a child-friendly / family-friendly game like Disney Dreamlight Valley. I think it leans more into the Teen rating whereas the Sims 4 leans away from it.

I think perceptions changed a lot since then and people behave and react differently since when TS1 was released. I struggle to think of something that was inappropriate about TS1 content and not suitable for a 6 year old. People keep mentioning the cake dancer, but they were dressed and the only inappropriateness is that perceived by the player due to their experience with cake dancers outside of the game. There was nothing explicit in game. But like I said, perceptions have changed and nowadays people think even Tom and Jerry cartoons are not appropriate entertainment anymore.

"CordeliaBeaufort;c-18196707" wrote:

"crocobaura;c-18196692" wrote:

"simmerorigin;c-18196687" wrote:

"crocobaura;c-18196650" wrote:
I think the game has always been family friendly, even the cake dancers, there was nothing really inappropriate about them. In my opinion, the main difference is that before they used to have animations for a lot of stuff happening in game, now they have emotions and what used to be a visual element is now a text element. Also some design choices have taken away some of the charm. Remember the pretty oversized flowers sims would grow in TS1? TS4 flowers have no decorative function when planted, you can barely see the flowers actually. It may be because people have requested realistic gameplay and characters, so a lot of the charm was lost in favour of realism.

I don't think the original Sims 1 is really a child-friendly / family-friendly game like Disney Dreamlight Valley. I think it leans more into the Teen rating whereas the Sims 4 leans away from it.

I think perceptions changed a lot since then and people behave and react differently since when TS1 was released. I struggle to think of something that was inappropriate about TS1 content and not suitable for a 6 year old. People keep mentioning the cake dancer, but they were dressed and the only inappropriateness is that perceived by the player due to their experience with cake dancers outside of the game. There was nothing explicit in game. But like I said, perceptions have changed and nowadays people think even Tom and Jerry cartoons are not appropriate entertainment anymore.

As I remember, there was an official parental advisory that states you should be above 13 years old, but I was not when I was playing Sims 1 and indeed, I dont think any content harmed my childhood or anything. If anything, back to 2000's I was also playing Bloodrayne or Vampire Masquerade Bloodlines kind of games and they indeed, had a lot more violance and definetelly more inappropriate for my age group. You are right about perceptions have changed through 2000's to today, as there were no social platforms for parents to rant about how inappropriate a game for their children, so most game companies dont feel the pressure of creating family friendly games to not deal with angry parents. I doubt my parents would let me play the games I played if they have known when I was 7. (Sims 1 was one of the safe games I can say.)

You are also right about change of sensiblity. Back to Tom Jerry days, parents thought its a fun cartoon thats appropriate for children but today, even some might think it encourages bullying or violence. I think it was more acceptable for children to play games / watch films that normally out of parental advisory. If I were a parent, I personally would let my children to play all Sims games through 1 to 4. Okay, they wouldnt be allowed to play Silent Hill or Vampire Masquerade untill age 13 but Sims is, in my opinion, safe for all age groups, even though many disagree with me.

I dont think current Sims 4 targets children only, but also not teens or adults only unlike previous franchises. Sims 1 specially targeted 13+ year old people as they include some jokes and eastereggs that only 13+ would understand while Sims 4 avoided these jokes.

TS4 is rated T for teens, not E for Everyone. Anyway, I think that it's a complex game that younger children cannot fully play and understand, but they see parents and older siblings playing and want to play too. And they would need to be really good at reading with the amount of text in TS4 gameplay. That being said, I do wish TS4 would bring back staples of everyday life like cars, "entertainers", casinos and poker game, real vacations, etc.