Your best tips on historic gameplay
I'm playing a historic save for the first time, and in some ways it's easy, in others it's a steep learning curve. Things like figuring out how fast time should move, how to deal with the changes of d...
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I find it helps to be flexible about details. For instance, the typewriter looks much better in period homes than a regular computer, even though typewriters are a fairly recent thing. Still, it gives your sim game play otherwise missed, and is not quite so jarring. Having "not quite the right style" by using clothes from inside the game is still closer to period play than not, so I overlook the obvious and suspend disbelief. A floor length dress may be more Victorian than Regency, but it is certainly not from 2024. Horse tack may not be a match for each era, but having a horse to ride is much closer to era play than we have had available before. It is like the fact that sims of all genders are the same height and teens are already adult sized. Game constraints are what they are. It is best to not fight it too hard.
When I run into something stand out that is hard to avoid, I just pretend it is not only another time period, but also an alternate universe that developed slightly different from ours, so in that alternate universe, this stuff is normal. That helps keep things light rather than getting bogged down in a too serious play attitude.
I find it helps to play on the longest setting for aging, or the no aging option. Period play is more intensive than regular play and I want to spend time enjoying the nuances, not just rushing through to the next generation. I also cheat lots of simoleans, because I do not want to spend my time waiting for my sims to return from work. Most period play is about wealthy sims living a carefree life, anyway, so it fits in.
But the biggest thing for me is judicious use of CC when it comes to period play. Jane Simsten has wonderful CC that makes any era more fun and immersive. Watching your sim play the harp, cello, flute, harpsichord, and lute is something that sets the right mood. There is even a piano/violin duet feature. You can also bypass the computer issue entirely by using a feather pen and parchment, if you are willing to use her CC. Archery, hair brushes, unique dances and so forth, are all a download away. Her Regency mod has so many features that you need her PDF to read them all. I am amazed at all she has been able to accomplish. (She is currently working on a ballet mod that looks mouth watering good and a hunting mod, too, if you are into that.) I try to keep CC to a minimum in my game, but her mods are a must have for me.
I have not tried the royal type mods, allowing you to play King/Queen/aristocrats much more accurately, but that is another option for immersive play if you are willing to use CC. We do have armor, even if stylistically it only fits one era. And the castle set is wonderful for period immersion. But I did finally capitulate and download CC crowns, because using prom crowns was just too clownish for me.
I have also found, paradoxically, that leaving a period game and returning to ranch style play for a time is very helpful. Staying immersed for a long time in a period game gradually chafes at the non-period aspects of the game. But after playing modern for a while, it is easier to overlook things, once again.
When I run into something stand out that is hard to avoid, I just pretend it is not only another time period, but also an alternate universe that developed slightly different from ours, so in that alternate universe, this stuff is normal. That helps keep things light rather than getting bogged down in a too serious play attitude.
I find it helps to play on the longest setting for aging, or the no aging option. Period play is more intensive than regular play and I want to spend time enjoying the nuances, not just rushing through to the next generation. I also cheat lots of simoleans, because I do not want to spend my time waiting for my sims to return from work. Most period play is about wealthy sims living a carefree life, anyway, so it fits in.
But the biggest thing for me is judicious use of CC when it comes to period play. Jane Simsten has wonderful CC that makes any era more fun and immersive. Watching your sim play the harp, cello, flute, harpsichord, and lute is something that sets the right mood. There is even a piano/violin duet feature. You can also bypass the computer issue entirely by using a feather pen and parchment, if you are willing to use her CC. Archery, hair brushes, unique dances and so forth, are all a download away. Her Regency mod has so many features that you need her PDF to read them all. I am amazed at all she has been able to accomplish. (She is currently working on a ballet mod that looks mouth watering good and a hunting mod, too, if you are into that.) I try to keep CC to a minimum in my game, but her mods are a must have for me.
I have not tried the royal type mods, allowing you to play King/Queen/aristocrats much more accurately, but that is another option for immersive play if you are willing to use CC. We do have armor, even if stylistically it only fits one era. And the castle set is wonderful for period immersion. But I did finally capitulate and download CC crowns, because using prom crowns was just too clownish for me.
I have also found, paradoxically, that leaving a period game and returning to ranch style play for a time is very helpful. Staying immersed for a long time in a period game gradually chafes at the non-period aspects of the game. But after playing modern for a while, it is easier to overlook things, once again.
