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Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#1 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 3:22 PM
Default What about seamless aging?
Everyone's talking about a seamless universe, but would anyone like to see seamless aging? That is, where instead of clicking on a birthday cake, each day your Sim ages progressively. This could give us the opportunity for more exact life stages (like Pre-Teen, Middle Aged, etc.)

It could be neat, but then again, I know a lot of people see the staged aging as a trademark Sims thing.

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Mad Poster
#2 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 4:03 PM
Seamless ageing would be very nice. I don't think people see it as a trademark. Simulating life is, the age groups probably a technical decision. Otherwise you could say no ageing at all is a sim trademark considering there was no ageing in the first game. If it's technically possible, having good animations for all the different heights, then EA should implement it.
Instructor
#3 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 4:09 PM
I think I mentioned before that this would be great to implement this into the game but I don't know if the technology would allow for it to happen yet. Maybe very small increments every year (which would equal once a day) would take lots of programming? Also need to align for each height/age and adjustments made.

I can see it being done for Sims 5 or later. I don't think we'll get it in the Sims 4. Heck, I'll be suprised if we even get height for Sims 4.

Love does not consist of two people looking at each other, but of looking together in the right direction. - Antoine de Exupery
Scholar
#4 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 4:22 PM
I do know there is a mod on this very site that allows your Sims to 'age up' by increments - I'm not sure if that is in size & height only, or if it ages them properly time-wise, too... I haven't played with it as yet. But if a modder can create something like that for Sims 3, then the Sims team could implement something similar for Sims 4?? That is, if that kind of aging is on the cards to begin with, or if the budget allows it, or if the developers think it's 'too hard' to do... Who knows with EA? But I love the idea of gradual aging - that would be another step forward for the Sims franchise... and if they don't do it for 4, then the tech most definitely should be there for them to do it in 5 (if there is a 5, lol)

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Lab Assistant
#5 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 6:02 PM
What issie stated. It would be pretty interesting though
Mad Poster
#6 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 6:24 PM
That would be fun, so long as there was still a way to mark a birthday. But, since we're talking about tracking time, it would also be great to have summers off and vacation days at other times.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Top Secret Researcher
#7 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 6:36 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Enjoji
I do know there is a mod on this very site that allows your Sims to 'age up' by increments - I'm not sure if that is in size & height only, or if it ages them properly time-wise, too... I haven't played with it as yet. But if a modder can create something like that for Sims 3, then the Sims team could implement something similar for Sims 4??


You should try the mod. It is nice if you don't mind the glitches in the animations. If two teens are different heights, the animations might be messed up when they interact. Most of us don't mind that in a mod created by players but we might be disturbed when our sims makeout lip-to-chin rather than lip-to-lip in animations made by EA.

I have played games where heights are different but it in all of those games the players don't get close to each other. They don't dance together and don't kiss.

It could possibly be done if heights are "sliders" that stop at increments so that they can create animations for a limited number of heights rather than an infinite number. Otherwise, I just don't see it being done in this sort of game. Of course, maybe there is some new way of doing it that would work. I have found animations to be the most time consuming part of a game but a company like EA may have some better processes.

Honestly, I don't care if we have gradual aging. I prefer more game play elements. It would be nice to have more categories, such as pre-teen and preschooler rather than the jump from toddler to child and child to teen. But I could easily live without it if the game was fun to play.
Test Subject
#8 Old 14th Aug 2013 at 10:55 PM
Quote: Originally posted by ani_
Seamless ageing would be very nice. I don't think people see it as a trademark. Simulating life is, the age groups probably a technical decision. Otherwise you could say no ageing at all is a sim trademark considering there was no ageing in the first game. If it's technically possible, having good animations for all the different heights, then EA should implement it.


there's already a height slider in sims 3 , it's user made but still shows that it's possible.
Instructor
#9 Old 15th Aug 2013 at 6:41 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Sweetlithium
there's already a height slider in sims 3 , it's user made but still shows that it's possible.


The problem isn't in adjusting the height, as you can do that with Sims 2 as well. All immersion is lost though when the Sims kiss, for example the lips don't touch and they end up kissing a chin or forehead...

Personally, as much as I want height in my game it needs to be adjusted for all life stages and animations need to be smooth and line up.

Love does not consist of two people looking at each other, but of looking together in the right direction. - Antoine de Exupery
Mad Poster
#10 Old 15th Aug 2013 at 5:25 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Issie
Personally, as much as I want height in my game it needs to be adjusted for all life stages and animations need to be smooth and line up.


Exactly. Otherwise, why bother? At this point, gameplay is the most critical for me. But a varying height for all Sims would be an added bonus.
Lab Assistant
#11 Old 15th Aug 2013 at 8:54 PM
If TS4 did have gradual aging, it would look something like this.

I used CmarNYC's height slider to make the preteen lifestate.
Screenshots
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#12 Old 18th Aug 2013 at 5:13 PM
I'd also like gradual skilling. You don't just spend a day talking to your toddler and then all the sudden he can talk. Same with walking; it's a gradual process.

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Instructor
#13 Old 18th Aug 2013 at 5:53 PM
Quote: Originally posted by lipglosschaos
Everyone's talking about a seamless universe, but would anyone like to see seamless aging? That is, where instead of clicking on a birthday cake, each day your Sim ages progressively. This could give us the opportunity for more exact life stages (like Pre-Teen, Middle Aged, etc.)

It could be neat, but then again, I know a lot of people see the staged aging as a trademark Sims thing.


I think EA need to solve the animation problem with flexible body height first...

Seeing male and female have the same body height, seamless aging is not yet featured in TS4.
Top Secret Researcher
#14 Old 18th Aug 2013 at 6:09 PM
My main objection to seamless aging, as I think I've mentioned before, relates to clothing and CC creation: If there were no longer any life stages, how would the game determine when a clothing item becomes usable or unusable for a sim? How would a CC creator define who can use whatever clothing items they create? It'd be a programming nightmare at best and a giant impediment to modding and CC at worst.

As for the growth mod made for TS3, remember that it still uses life stages- it just causes a sim at the end of the child or teen stage to look noticeably different to one at the beginning of it. This, perhaps, would be a more reasonable way to include gradual aging- they'd still age up, but not change in size or appearance quite so drastically due to having steadily grown or aged throughout whatever stage they just reached the end of.
Forum Resident
#15 Old 18th Aug 2013 at 7:22 PM
It would be more realistic yes. I would like this. But i also want a feature to fully turn off aging too.
Forum Resident
#16 Old 18th Aug 2013 at 7:25 PM
Even with gradual aging, though, you'd still have to have set times when they officially transition between age groups in order to mark off when they don't sleep in cribs or can sit in the hot tub or drive, i.e. there would still be a need for discrete age groups in some form. All the gradual parts would be resource-intensive (not necessarily computer spec-resources, but all the time & labor resources to create the system) aesthetics (and largely subtle aesthetics at that, especially compared to seamless world aesthetics).

Quote: Originally posted by rian90
Honestly, I don't care if we have gradual aging. I prefer more game play elements. It would be nice to have more categories, such as pre-teen and preschooler rather than the jump from toddler to child and child to teen. But I could easily live without it if the game was fun to play.

This is my feeling on it, as well. The child ages (well...all non-adult/teen age groups, really) lost out on a lot in TS3, and having more interactions for and with them would be more impactful on the game. You know, if we have to choose one or the other, hypothetically speaking. Additional life stages would be nice, though: they did take a step in that direction by separating the adult and young adult stages in TS3.

Quote: Originally posted by lipglosschaos
I'd also like gradual skilling. You don't just spend a day talking to your toddler and then all the sudden he can talk. Same with walking; it's a gradual process.

You also don't necessarily teach them words one-on-one; real toddlers are able to pick up words they hear from conversations around them, too. I guess in Sim terms that'd be the equivalent of the talking skill automatically gaining some small increment per day. Can't figure how walking could be easily stretched out, though. There's got to be some allowances for the fact that you only have X days to achieve everything rather than Y years.
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