Please Read... Ideas and Suggestions... for Sims Free Play!
Hello! i'm NEW! I'm only level 12 (& 1/2), with only 6 people in my city! So I may not have much to offer... but I'd like to offer some suggestions!
1) My first I found to BE very annoying, but sticking with the game anyway! Allowing Multiple households in one city, yet I have ONE buidget to use for all households? This should be a NO NO!! Surely the developers can do much better than that?? Please change or update, where every household has it' OWN budget!! If Sim 1 just gets paid, the budget goes to the common budget for whole city to allow for anyone to use to improve their house. If budgets are kept seperate, than maybe when I'm in their house for Sim 1, I see of on the side they have $$ so much simoleans for that house. Tha budget could belong to that house owner, or the house residents... obviously for the player of game to manage the household residents to use the budget for what, assuming when multiple residents sharing a house. So when Sim 1 gets paid, it goes into his budget! Sim 2 gets paid, it goes into His budget! If sim 2 wants to get chair for his house, it shouldn't take the budget from sim 1 to pay for sim 2 chair? Should it?
1.2) Furthermore... KEEP the town budget seperate as well?! IF doable with said above suggestion! When on the town Map, all the Simoleans collected on the Town map icons could go into the Town budget! This could be used to buy town projects like new buildings etc. When new homes are build, their should be included in the Town Budget cost how much will go into new house budget. Say, 1 bed condo with furnishings will cost 10k $$ and will add 5k for the new house budget! So building the house, cost the town budget 10k $$, when done, and you open house to first edit, or custom anything, you start with 5k $$. As well, new stores, shops, and anything else built on the town map will cost the town budget! As well, anything belonging to the town will cost against the town budget as well... like the Park!? maybe?
2) WHY only ONE job option for first Sim at the beginning? Their should be 2-3 options to choose from, not ONLY the FD?! Allow the first level player first starting to play choose to build FD, Corner Store, diner to start... from their as Town levels up... than add more buildings to choose to build... Each NEW lvl should include more than one option! Other wise, the game designers are dictating HOW we play? Not having options, we do not get to decide the path our town takes! With each option, could be various costs! Say at lvl 1, with first sim, the tutorial instructs to build the first worksite as it does now, it explains ea one, which has different cost options! The corner store could be the cheapest option, keeping more $$ for town to spend early, but the corner store clerk job may not pay much, so if THE SIMMER chooses cheap condo house and corner store, he could grow his town sooner adding second sim and bldg sooner but sim 1 won't make a lot starting out! Maybe the diner could be most expensive of options for starting, but the diner worker only making medium salty of $$! The FD would be medium cost for town starting, but have highest pay, but longest hours! So SIMMER obviously would have choices starting out and direct his city to grow how he wants from FIRST OPTIONS! As the buildings start to add up on the map for the town, more $$ pop up for town budget, like taxes so to speak!
3) HOMELESSNESS! A nuisance in the real world? Yes! But in EVERY society in the world, we have the poor people, who sit on the street with cups in hand... Everywhere! We find the needy all over! So I was curious as I began to play, if I could instill a homeless sim in my sim society! Could I? Not technically! Did I? Sure did! I realized every Sim needed a lot, so I bought an empty lot on my town, bought ONLY a lawn chair, and a flower garden! And that's it! No building! I was surprised I couldn't buy other sources of JUNK which every town has, to make a look alike junk yard or abandoned lot in a ghetto! I did the best I could to make my sim there LOOK homelessness! Long shaggy hair, vest over long sleeve shirt, jeans, and some black shoes! But he doesn't even stay there at his "house"! He spends all his time at the park! He has a toilet, he fishes, he BBQs, he sleeps on park benches, etc. He plays with the RC boat on lake and feeds the ducks too! I kept him unemployed. He can't shower, or BATHE?????? So he now has poorly low hygiene stat, obviously stinky! Perfect homeless character! Oh, he sometimes goes on rants and raves on a park pedestal trying to " warn simmanity" or preach the "end is high"! So he certainly reflects homeless character! I keep him fed from the BBQ, rested on benches, and solves his toilet urges in the park toilet. All those stay high. His hygiene is low, his social bar is low, but his entertainment is high! He is an expert fisherman now! What I want t SUGGEST? Allow bathing in the lake?! I selected all parts of lake, and the fountain, and he has no options for bathing! Homeless don't bathe much, but they do when they get chance. Maybe not even as bathing option, but merely on "Dip in Lake" or "play in fountain" options! Either bathing option should ONLY solve his hygeine maybe 30-50% not giving a full bar! Even have a block on the action, no matter how many times any sime "Dips in lake" it won't improve hygeine more than like 50% or so... cause, you get that in a shower or bath tub! On the same subject! Allow ALL SIM characters to reflect on their own inventory! So if my homeless sim is fishin, and has NO other meet with him at the park... than how could he BBQ Back ribs, or ALL THE meat? etc. When he goes to BBQ there should only be option to cook the fish! not a complete meal, it should NOT satisfy his appetite all the way. Sleeping on a bench? Should NOT allow a fully rested stat to appear for his zzz's, as one can NOT get full rest on a park bench! No matter how long they sleep there! So like the "dip in lake" may have a block on his hygeine stat, so should "rest his eyes" or "catch some zzz's" on the park bench. He should not get well rested!
Further... the Homeless guy has a job... so to speak! He begs! Allow other sims to gift money to the homeless guy! So the homeless guy can beg at the park... or maybe goe to the grocery store, or the corner store, or where ever on game map... have option to "work here, begging for help". So as other ideas here are implemented, the homeless sim could actually be homeless and beg from street corners in front of houses, or stores, or places of work.
4) EVERY building unlocked/ built Should allow a job for that building! I WAS sorely dissappointed when I built the Music/hobby store and seen I could not work a sim there! Even the Park should have a "job" option, allowing someone to clean/maintain the park as job. When I built the Witch Store... I already had a lady picked out dressed as witch hoping to "work" at the witch store! But their is NO JOB for the witch store! Every building built in town should have a Job opportunity with it, opens up when the building done!
5) Inventory kept per person. I suggested this with homeless guy! To reiterate this! Everyone has his own inventory! I shouldn't "store in inventory" a table from Sim 1 Kitchen, and turn around and place it n Sim 2 kitchen! HOWEVER... allow sims to buy, sell, or trade items between eachother if they are meeting in person? would be cool!! FURTHER to improve on this inventory! Going to Fridge and picking a meal to cook when there is Not even a store in town seems?? Lame? So if a store is allowed in the beginining, and Sims must go shopping to get food for their fridge, would make for more fun and adventurous play having to work the sim in the store.... even allow sims to walk through store, telling them what to buy!! AND gardening as well! What happens now with the tomatoes, carrots, watermelons I grow in a garden? NOTHING! It seems. They should go into that sims inventory, and he browses when he in his kitchen! SIZE of inventory could change according to what you build in one's house... so the house with more more cubbord space and fridge space... has more inventory space to use! Buy the small shot stack fridge cause it's cheaper? Great, you get less fridge space for cold foods! Further... expand this "Inventory idea" to cover their clothes options in the bedrooms. The bookshelf options. Toy options for kiddos! When you FIRST instill a NEW sim in their NEW house, and you go through and choose what they are wearing... that should be chance to include so many options to choose for their wardrobe! That cost per House that one starts with... is reflected when choosing those startup clothes. So when starting Sim 1, who has 5k $$ starting, i pick his shirt, pants, shoes, hat, etc... reflects from that starting budget of his... and than i can add extra garmets which go into his wardrobe closet for his home... according to how much wardrobe inventory he has. Buying bookshelf, should NOT automatically come with books on the shelf! Sim should have to go to Bookstore and find the books you want the sim to have at the book store! This gives another building for town! This gives another job for a sim! Same with Kids toys! Even go wild with this idea... furniture... electronics... etc. These need respective "Stores" before having anymore than the basic items available... so everyone (sims) start with the basic of stuff... tv, couch, table, fridge etc....when they ready to "Upgrade" these, they need visit the store appropriate in town to buy what they want...> THAT is where they do the shopping for what TV and what Fridge, and what furniture etc... any, all this goes to their inventory, than when they get home... you build it where you see fit making that home! THIS would bring a real LIFE LIKE experience to playing Sims Free Style... and allow a REAL free Style feel!!
6) What about criminals? I haven't seen if criminals become part of sim society. They should. They could have options for "rob sim", burglar house, arm rob business? This could give the Police something to actually do in Sim Society!
7) Que actions... allow you to que up different actions on your sims! Maybe as each sim starts out, they have levels. Each sim level allows more interaction options with others, more que slots, etc. The higher ea Sim gains in levels, the more que slots he gains. So a L1 Sim can only que 2 actions... Action one is the immediate action! 2+ subsequently follows. So Sim 1 is Cook bacon Eggs than Grab a plate! Sim 2 is "use the toilet" than "wash hands". Any action qued is automatically done without further interaction, unless canceled. Any current action canceled takes away the time spent on it as they get no exp for that action, but any que action not started, and canceled, makes no different to the Sim.
8) and last... I think! Sim should allow "habits" to develop. So as SIMMER is playing, and is constantly sending sim 1 to bathroom at 50% need for bathroom... it develops the habit, so... having another feature included, if set on Auto Play cause managing many sims, Sim one need for toilet gets to 50%, he goes to bathroom, as his Hbit. Habits could include when to go to work, when to eat, etc.. all sims could develp habits reflecting Each NEED of the 6 needs! Maybe how long they auto play is determined by the Sims' level as well. So the HIGHER the sim lvl is, the longer he can auto play without interaction, but MUST be set on! This could change the game how played a lot, as you can focus on one sim in town, and allow more AUTO interactions with other Sims... if you don't like how a SIM is behaving, you can change whom your controlling any time, and change a Sims actions!
EVERYONE please let me know what you think! I'd love to see any follow comments on these ideas...
EA Developers, if you see these, or comment on these... please... let me know what you think!
Even if they can't be implemented right away, cause how long programming could take... let me know if it's something you can work on for the future!
Thanks for Reading!
Lets go Sim!!!
