Something that just went through my head that should be in TS4 but I don't think it's been mentioned: Sims should have all the "talk" interactions, at the same speed, while seated that they have while standing, and in general Sims should prefer seated talking to standing and talking (as it is more comfortable, after all).

Some of my earlier homes had areas set up, like in real life, with comfy chairs and couches/loveseats around a coffee table, which in real life would be the first choice to sit and have a chat-- but while some talking is possible while seated in TS3 it's vastly inferior to what can be done while standing, and usually takes much longer, so it's better to just stand....

Dude, it is way too early to be talking about The Sims 4. The Sims 3 are missing a bunch of stuff that the Sims 1 and 2 had. I really hope for the Supernatural pack to be great. I frankly still miss Makin' Magic from the Sims 1 xD

Don't know if anybody mentioned it but... I wish there would be interaction to do few (or at least two) things at one time. Seriously, yesterday I was playing with my sim who owns a cat. Oh boy, I wanted her so much to be able to sit with the cat on her knees and watch tv at the same time. Or maybe teens doing their homework while sitting in front of the PC? Reading book and eating cookies. Bunch of stuff like this.

Recently in the same weekend, I briefly played the Sims 1 (for the first time), Sims 2 and Sims 3. The one thing that definitely struck me was the changes in Simlish. Sims 1 simlish practically made my ears bleed, Sims 2 was lovely, very fluid and very hard to pick out individual words/phrases. Simlish 3... it's nice, but the clarity and ease with which you can pick up what they're saying defeats the purpose in having a made up language. You quickly become aware of its repetitive nature.

So my wish for Sims 4 is a return to a more fluid, unintelligible, un-discernable simlish

Given advancing computer power and at least some attempt at proper process-management, I can imagine Sim 4 as being pretty much what we thought we were gonna get in Sims 3. A seamless, persistent overall world with an astounding depth of interaction and detail wherever you happen to zoom in. Generated in real-time, so that every world, for every player, evolves in markedly and even fundamentally different ways ...

On the other hand, they'll probably just hurtle into the Uncanny Valley, buy upping the polygons and trying to make everything more 'realistic'.

I honestly don't really know if I even want a Sims 4. I love 3 too much.

I said the same thing about Sims 2 when EA announced Sims 3 and ... here we are. Mind you, I couldn't bear to part with Sims 2 and I had it for a year on my computer before I officially uninstalled it. Haven't looked back since. This time I'll wait until all the reviews are in before I go out and buy it. Sims 3 we got on launch day. The only way I won't ever be getting Sims 4 is if it's an MMO or some other half baked TSO The Next Generation style game.

Gradual aging would be nice.

More sandbox as someone else mentioned.

More interactions + complex relationships.

No rabbitholes.

I must be one of the only people who actually likes the rabbit holes. I use them for management of large households... I never found it that much fun to have to jump between (for example) a stylist and a fireman, with the stylist constantly needing CAS and watching for emergencies with the fireman. With even fewer or no rabbit holes, I'd never want my sims to have kids!

I actually hope Maxis will work on TS4 again when they ever start working on TS4. And that they put weather and TS2-style community lots in the basegame! xD

I'm in the pro-rabbithole camp as well.

It seems to me that between the sheer number of animations needed for each rabbithole career; the number of sims each game would need to man all the careers (sports team, anyone?) and the actual depiction of career actions such as the cop working his beat, paramedic level of medical career, etc would probably bring most people's game to a standstill.

I love my rabbitholes. For some careers non-RH makes sense but generally, I prefer rabbitholes because micromanaging every sim for every little thing is just silly - ok not silly, it's RIDICULOUS. Non-RH professions that I really enjoy are Stylist, Interior Designer and Private Investigator. All others I don't give to any of my sims - no exceptions. I also love the Self-Employed jobs which really helps me manage those sims that want non-RH jobs.

I think rabbitholes for careers are good. Almost every employed Sim in my game works in one. I don't really have a desire to micromanage what they do at work.

However, I don't like that if you eat out (or go to the movies, etc.) you have to eat in a RH and the like, not being able to actually interact with the Sims your Sim came with. Fortunately, LN introduced bars and the like, so there are places Sims can go together to socialize; but all social areas should, ideally, be non-RH.

Careers have always sort og been rabbit holes though - unless you got ambitions. In Sims 2 your Sim went away in a car and came back later. You didn't have to control them. I've not play The Sims 1 but I'm pretty sure it would be the same

Most of the post-ambition careers haven't been rabbit holes and require a bit of management. I'm betting Supernatural continues this trend. I will say that, when doing a new career for the first time, it's can be pretty fun, but gets monotonous after a while. When you have a household of 3 or 4 workers each with a non-rabbithole job, each on a different side of town, then the idea loses its charm a bit.

I like KGirl's idea of the more social activities not being rabbitholes--especially restaurants. Late Night (and, to some extent, Adventures) and onwards did a lot to fix that with newer venues, fortunately, but some of the older restaurants are still holes.

One of the things I'd like to see as an expansion or in Sims 4 would be to bring back University. It was probably my biggest timesink of all the Sims franchises.

Micromanaging may appear silly but if you think about it you only need to pay attention to one sim at the time. If they can make the sims perform independently at their non rabbit hole job then that will solve the need to micromanage more sims at the time. Personally, I hope they will remove all rabbit hole careers and implement a new career system based on hiring and self-employment jobs and a real self sufficient economy where sims will contribute their skills and knowledge to the well being of the community. This will really open up the neighbourhood and will compell players to play and interact with most sims in the neighbourhood.

It was. If I have more than one sim in a household (or working ones at the very least), I *hate* doing an Ambitions profession. (Fishing, gardening, writing, etc. don't count)



I still miss TS1's Hot Date. You went downtown and actually got to enter the restaurant and ate at a booth, or table, with your date. You could play footsie under the table, and cuddle and kiss your date at the booth. I miss it so much...

Last edited by shadedgrey63 : 7th Jul 2012 at 03:31 AM.

I run into a problem when in a house of 3+ YA/Adult sims everyone wants a non-RH job. Here's the thing, I like that in Sims 3, we can see where our sims go to work. I'm very cool with that because in Sims 2, our sims went off the lot to work... somewhere out there. The idea of opening up the hospital or Doos Peas and watching my sim checking up on patients or sitting at their desk in front of a computer just doesn't do anything for me nor would it be value added to my game.

Having said that, I'm all for EA opening up restaurants and shops. I want my sims to shop for food, clothes, household appliances, etc., I really want an OFB style EP because it goes hand in hand with the self employed jobs we already have. Maybe throw in some cottage industries as well while they're at it. I'd love a farming EP so that we finally have real cows, turkeys, chickens, real livestock to get our meats, eggs, and dairy from. Have the farmer open a roadside stand of fruits and vegetables. Have the farmer's wife make jams and jellies, pickles and bread to sell at the stands too.

As far as opening up the neighbourhood and interacting with most sims... I don't play EA sims and townies. They're ugly and boring. I only like playing with my own sims. And my sims do socialize with each other - best friends, romantic interests, families. They socialize with the EA sims too but not as much and they never marry any of them. If I find one of my sims fraternizing with an EA sim past friendship, that EA sim is dead (so sayeth this sim goddess).

I still have hopes that EA (or some talented modder) will provide the means to create our own Spas in TS3. And yeah, while I see that EA made the decision that any building that had a career (Pre-Ambitions) had to be a rabbithole, I too hope that TS4 can open up all the "social" RH. But the job ones... not so much.

I still play the SIms 2 religiously and only really play the sims 3 because the houses I build on there always turn out nicer (though with core mods and expansion packs, actually plying the sims 3 is starting to become more enjoyable) I was actually kind of hoping the franchise would end with 3 unless Maxis is willing to take the sims back from EA (not gonna happen)

What I'm hoping for the most in the sims 3, like what somebody else already said, is more gradual aging. Either that or they could split the child age into child and pre-teen.

Who said you have to play EA sims? All you have to do is put your own sims into the neighbourhood. It's really nice going into a community lot and knowing the background story on each and every sim and at this point EA created sims that you know nothing about will seem very interesting, kind of like new people in a small town.

Well even if it were bought out by another game conglomerate, if someone in upper management was a Sims fan, the game would have a champion. If you go to EA's corporate site, it shows what the senior management are playing. Last I looked none of them were playing The Sims 3... So, it remains a cash cow, cuz you know, those crazy simmers will buy anything...