Reality Players, How Much Is Too Much?
We often see many different threads about reality play vs occult and or things that are all in our imaginations being discussed for gameplay and argued here on the forums. That's a good debate to hav...
Forum Discussion
Quite honestly, the Sims has basically always been a grounded lifesim with occult elements, I don't think we can really have a game without them at all. They've been commonplace since the first game with the Ghosts, Makin Magic expansions (that had fairies, ghosts and mummies long before TS3 did) spellcrafting and zombies. Things like Zombies and genies as far back as the first expansion... And even the Monkey Butler from the Console ports
I always saw my playstyle as relatively grounded, minus that I play occults a fair bit. Although there have been times I do just want a normal neighbourhood without Joe Shmoe being abducted and Impregnated by aliens. (Even worse in the Sims 3 where its just completely unavoidable if you still have your males avoid telescopes like a plague (so I just mod aliens abductions out of every single game))
I'd like to point out the Sims 2 did the mix of occults and realism perfectly fine, EA added all the nice grounded things already although the occult area was lacking in the game, probably making it the most realistic, minus the ghosts and rather odd Social Bunny.. Plus aliens, while it still managed to expanded on the normal elements with each expansion even if it adds some odd things each time like bringing in Bigfoot with vacations.
And even the occults pretty much fit in, neutural Witches in the SIms 2 would be pretty much unidentifiable with normal clothes until they did magic, vampires were rare to showup at any downtown lot leaving you only with a non-grounded over the top caricature of a pickpocket. (Still wish they made him look and act less silly though)
The problem is I think comes from the later games, while they are definitely adding some grounded everyday things like vacuuming, universities and laundery, the silly elements still manage to force themselves in. I'll use the Sims 3 University Life as an example, if you just happen to have Supernatural installed you'll be unable to just have a normal university of people (plus the two plantsims which are relatively hard to meet personally) and it feels like 2/3 of the students are all occults with no toggle on if you want them. Which is fine for people who don't mind the occults, but then also still a problem if you just want a mostly grounded save... Or how Seasons in the Sims 2 will have penguins walking down the side of a city in the Winter...
...This has really just been a thing since the Sims 1 though with Claire the Bear thieving from trashcans since 2003...
Avoiding overly silly things from expansions that add them for most part isn't really that difficult outside of a few exceptions like above, or the downright loud ITF portal that invades every single new save within seconds. But I really think they need to be toggles in the future. Like I'd love Seasons as it is without alien abductions if there was a simple toggle.
EA cutting out the actual life sim elements like cooking with utensils and actually serving food at the dinner-table to guests, instead of having a job end up with you becoming a literal Super-hero is something all on EA since they could easily keep the grounded careers (mob-boss was the last rank for a criminal in the first game) and smaller details, while still having a few sillier elements to brighten the mood. Which the first 2 games did exceptionally.
I can't blame the less realistic elements for taking away from the life simulation area, its all on EAs developement and what they're aiming for. If the Sims 5 was a game about filing taxes and only earning a minimum wage taking a whole lifespan to finally buy a house I'd not enjoy it, but if the Sims 5 was a game about fighting dragons with only bare basic motive management I also wouldn't enjoy it. EA just need to keep remembering the old fans who liked to live a normal life with the occasional break from reality.
I always saw my playstyle as relatively grounded, minus that I play occults a fair bit. Although there have been times I do just want a normal neighbourhood without Joe Shmoe being abducted and Impregnated by aliens. (Even worse in the Sims 3 where its just completely unavoidable if you still have your males avoid telescopes like a plague (so I just mod aliens abductions out of every single game))
I'd like to point out the Sims 2 did the mix of occults and realism perfectly fine, EA added all the nice grounded things already although the occult area was lacking in the game, probably making it the most realistic, minus the ghosts and rather odd Social Bunny.. Plus aliens, while it still managed to expanded on the normal elements with each expansion even if it adds some odd things each time like bringing in Bigfoot with vacations.
And even the occults pretty much fit in, neutural Witches in the SIms 2 would be pretty much unidentifiable with normal clothes until they did magic, vampires were rare to showup at any downtown lot leaving you only with a non-grounded over the top caricature of a pickpocket. (Still wish they made him look and act less silly though)
The problem is I think comes from the later games, while they are definitely adding some grounded everyday things like vacuuming, universities and laundery, the silly elements still manage to force themselves in. I'll use the Sims 3 University Life as an example, if you just happen to have Supernatural installed you'll be unable to just have a normal university of people (plus the two plantsims which are relatively hard to meet personally) and it feels like 2/3 of the students are all occults with no toggle on if you want them. Which is fine for people who don't mind the occults, but then also still a problem if you just want a mostly grounded save... Or how Seasons in the Sims 2 will have penguins walking down the side of a city in the Winter...
...This has really just been a thing since the Sims 1 though with Claire the Bear thieving from trashcans since 2003...
Avoiding overly silly things from expansions that add them for most part isn't really that difficult outside of a few exceptions like above, or the downright loud ITF portal that invades every single new save within seconds. But I really think they need to be toggles in the future. Like I'd love Seasons as it is without alien abductions if there was a simple toggle.
EA cutting out the actual life sim elements like cooking with utensils and actually serving food at the dinner-table to guests, instead of having a job end up with you becoming a literal Super-hero is something all on EA since they could easily keep the grounded careers (mob-boss was the last rank for a criminal in the first game) and smaller details, while still having a few sillier elements to brighten the mood. Which the first 2 games did exceptionally.
I can't blame the less realistic elements for taking away from the life simulation area, its all on EAs developement and what they're aiming for. If the Sims 5 was a game about filing taxes and only earning a minimum wage taking a whole lifespan to finally buy a house I'd not enjoy it, but if the Sims 5 was a game about fighting dragons with only bare basic motive management I also wouldn't enjoy it. EA just need to keep remembering the old fans who liked to live a normal life with the occasional break from reality.
