The Sims is letting fans and players vote to determine the contents of an upcoming Stuff Pack to be released in 2018. The reception of the game’s latest stuff packs have been ‘meh’ compared to expansion packs and game packs, and it looks like the team is hoping to remedy with a little fan service. A blog post released this weekend includes a poll which lays out five proposed ideas. Voting for the first phase of the project (there are six total) closes April 6.
Eco Living Stuff
Adopt new home technologies to help your Sim with domestic responsibilities and live an eco-friendly life. Potential areas of focus include laundry, home technology and solar energy.
First thoughts: I wouldn’t be surprised if this won. Players have been talking about laundry on the forums for years. While new household objects would be cool, the downside here is interactions and gameplay could be limited. A new lot trait, like ‘energy saver’ and a new personal trait like ‘eco-friendly’ would be cool, but not necessarily a game-changer.
Starter Home Stuff
Customize your household with affordable, pre-owned furniture and clothing that’s perfect for Sims just starting out (or struggling to get by). Potential areas of focus include space-saving furniture and yard sale items.
First thoughts: This seems to expand on the idea of reselling furniture from City Living , which gave players the option to buy used furniture at a lower price at the flea market. While space saving objects are absolutely needed in the game, the stuff pack may need to include something like thrift stores or a ‘stylish’ or ‘vintage’ Sim trait to spice things up.
Arcade Stuff
Take your Sims to an arcade for a fun afternoon of entertainment with friends. Potential areas of focus include arcade activites, games of skill and social experiences.
First thoughts: TS3 did arcade games right ( Click here if you need a reminder ). All we have in The Sims 4 is that extremely huge four-person arcade game center. It looks bulky and never fits right in a space. As much as I’d like arcade games, the other Stuff Pack ideas could provide more meaningful gameplay. On top of that, one of the main complaints about the recent Bowling Stuff pack was that it lacked arcade games. Every good alley has a whole section of games. I’d rather see arcade stuff included as bonus items in an expansion or game pack than have a whole stuff pack devoted to it, no matter how fun it would be.
Dangerous Stuff
Live life on the edge by subjecting your Sims to new dangers that celebrate the afterlife. Potential area of focus include Sim deaths, funeral experiences and the Grim Reaper.
First thoughts: Dangerous Stuff could be the creative outlier here. While the results of the poll are not in yet, it could be an option many Simmers overlooked that could bring small features with lasting impact. Death has always been and still is one of the fan-favorite features of the game. Watchings Sims die in a fire or drown in a pool with no ladder never seems to get old. While bringing back the grim reaper and adding funerals to the game seems like a safe option, it could be the one that the Sims team is most passionate about designing.
Wedding Stuff
Make your Sim’s big day and even bigger celebration with new wedding content and experiences. Potential areas of focus include wedding customization, the ceremony and cultural diversity.
First thoughts : Marriage happens so quickly in The Sims . Extending that experience, as it is done in real life, would certainly be a valued feature. However, this one can wait. I’m not sure a stuff pack would allow for features like a honeymoon vacation or a destination wedding. This DLC may be better suited for a game pack or expansion pack with traveling involved.
This is only the first stage of voting. Gameplay feature selection will take place in June, but before then, voters will have a chance to decide on clothing, objects and art styles. The Sims blog post reveals fans will have access to details all throughout the development process to help inform the decision making process.
“The entire development of this new Stuff Pack will give you a transparent look into how Maxis works together to make new experiences for your Sims. Not only will your votes help determine what we create, but we’ll also be sharing in-depth information about our progress throughout the development process. We’ll show you images and videos of the Stuff Pack throughout development, so you can see what we see when we’re building the game. You’ll have a window into our process, be it an inside look at the meetings we hold, to gaining insight into how we respond to unexpected challenges. Along the way you’re going to meet other developers on our team, and learn about what they contribute.”
In the meantime, keep an eye on these forums to see what the community is talking about and to brainstorm features with the game’s most devoted players. Here’s the full voting schedule:
-Theme Vote (April 3 - 6): Select the overall theme for the pack. Every part of the pack will be influenced by this key decision.
-Art Style Vote (April 10 – 12): Select between proposed art styles for the pack, which will guide our concept artists in the objects and clothing they create.
-Objects & Clothing Vote (May 18 – 21): Browse through the concept art we’ve drawn for the pack, and select your top choices to help us determine which objects and pieces of clothing are included.
-Feature Vote (June – 26): Select the top gameplay feature(s) you want to have included in the pack.
-Pack Icon Vote (Fall): Pursue different icons and select the one that will appear in the pack's box art and within the in-game catalog.
-Pack Title Vote (Fall): Select a title that best summarizes the pack's atmosphere and content.
If you have questions about this whole process, check out the ‘Create A Stuff Pack’ FAQ on The Sims website. The Stuff Pack chosen and built by the community is expected to release in 2018.
