Stargrace

Recent Sims 4 Updates

There have been a handful of great updates for the Sims 4 lately, and of course I had to check them out. Unfortunately one of the biggest problems I have (my screen going black every time I enter design mode and want to purchase an item) still has no permanent solution. I’m still able to temporarily fix this problem, but dang it gets frustrating.

A small handful of free content has been added to the game so far, mostly quality of life changes that were needed. One of the more recent updates included a bunch of career additions, along with some Christmas decor, which I was excited to get. My legacy house (pictured above) got a bit of a makeover with some snowmen, wreaths, and garland – plus a Christmas tree, of course. It’s not quite as good as the ‘seasons’ expansion from Sims 3 (there’s no actual holiday) but at least it’s something.

On the career side of things, there were some bigger changes. Your sims get PTO now, along with family leave. Even my little Emily who is still in elementary school gets to take a few days off of school if she wants (I’m not sure if that’s intended). New careers were added, such as business and athletic career tracks. Plus there were a whole lot of other changes which you can read about on the EA site here.

Excited? Yes, yes I am.

Challenge Servers

Wurm Online is an interesting game. Every year or so a new ‘thing’ happens that causes a brief influx of characters. This is typically another server, and this year was no different except that the rules on the new server are completely different than what players are used to. The new server is called Storm, and it’s considered a “challenge” server. Skillgain on Storm goes SUPER fast, you can reach 90 in a matter of hours. It is also a pvp server, though I think the Wurm Online team constantly over estimates how many people want to play PvP.

The server gets wiped every month. You lose your village, get back the typical disband amount, and keep your character but have to start fresh (fresh stats). There’s no premium required for this server but you do have to pay the usual amount for deeds if you want to place one.

Personally, I don’t see the thrill. I made a character there and yes the skill gains are very fast, but knowing that everything will reset every month makes for very boring repetitive gameplay (for me personally). Nothing will last. Some players wanted the old servers to be fixed / changed instead of adding new servers, the PvP servers especially. Adding yet another server just thins the population on already quiet servers and doesn’t make them much fun when 90% of the game is based on player interaction (whether it’s from PvP, trade, etc). It also makes priests useless as they require almost a full month to gain priesthood and their skills are not changed (you have to pray 5x a day). I’m sure it will be fun to the small group who enjoy focused pvp, but I would be surprised if it got the turn out that the team expected.

Do you Feel Bad when you Don’t Feel Like Gaming?

Lately I just haven’t felt like playing an MMO. While I really enjoy WoD, I dislike that the first hour or so of every play session is spent working on my garrison. By the time I’m done with them I want to take a break and some days that’s the only time I have to play. Logging in just to do garrisons gets a bit boring. I had this same issue with Pandaria and dailies. I hate logging in JUST to do dailies. It makes game play seem like work and chores. Why do I want to pay $15 a month just to do chores (I don’t).

I had started playing ArcheAge a bit, but just like Rift, there’s something ‘missing’ for me in that game. I can’t pinpoint what it is, maybe it’s the graphics? Maybe it’s the hands off crafting system? Maybe it feels too generic? I have no idea. Whatever it is, even though I have friends playing I just haven’t felt like joining in.

I’m still playing WildStar and having a lot of fun there but again lacking some of my usual desire to log in and play for a few hours each day. Maybe it’s just this time of year? In any case, it’s most certainly a ‘me’ thing and not the fault of the games that I typically enjoy. The only MMO that I have still logged into regularly has been Wurm Online, my sandbox of choice.

Of course I feel a bit guilty not playing an MMO, especially if I’m paying for one. Take EQ2 for example. I purchased a year of subscription on not one but two accounts earlier this year as well as the new expansion, and I have barely even played. Now typically I don’t get all upset about these things because playing games is one of my main hobbies, and that means I have a budget for spending that I stay within, but looking back I have to wonder at my decisions. Maybe in the new year I’ll work on being a bit more thrifty with those game choices.

In any case, I’m still gaming even though I’m not feeling the desire to hop into an MMO. I’m perfectly content playing single player games like The Sims 4 (an update to professions and jobs soon!) and Dragon Age. Maybe it’s just a simple matter that the more hectic my life seems, the more I want to play single player games. I’m sure I’ll be all excited to dive back into MMOs before too long (knowing me, next week or maybe after that Steam sale coming up December 18th).

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

The Legacy Family Continues (Alonzo Does Not)

Ah, my poor neglected legacy family. With rumors of a careers update just around the corner, I decided it was well past time I returned to the Sims 4 and see how everyone was doing. When we last visited, the family consisted of Jessica Little (founding sim), Alonzo (her elderly husband) and Emily Little, their daughter. At some point I decided to scrap their entire home and start them over new. The place I created for them was a disaster. Jessica works as a writer, Alonzo a programmer, and Emily was just going to school and doing whatever it is that kids do.

I knew it wouldn’t be long before Death came to visit the family due to Alonzo’s age, but what I wasn’t prepared for was Emily’s quiet acceptance of the death, and befriending of Death himself. Screenshot above shows the two hanging out like best mates, discussing cartoons on TV. I haven’t decided at this time if Jessica will remarry, or if her and Alonzo had the sort of relationship that lasts through the ages. I did begin a graveyard in the back yard, I figure when possible all legacy family members should have a grave there.

Emily is focusing on her creative talents and spends a lot of time with her violin. At those times I turn the volume down because dang that kid just does not play well AT ALL. The home that I eventually remodeled for them includes 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, and while that may seem like an enormous home it actually only cost $27,000 and is quite small (especially compared to their gigantic plot of land). I’m hoping to get some time to have Emily age up and begin on the second generation of legacy family members, but I’m enjoying the slow progression.

As always, happy gaming no matter where you find yourself!

Content Locked Behind Levels?

In games (especially in MMOs with linear progression) I expect that certain content will be ‘locked’ behind levels. Things like raid content especially. Then there are games that seem to lock everything behind obtaining some magical number, and those games I’m not quite as fond of. I feel that locking content, behind levels in specific, deters a certain group of gamers who may otherwise enjoy that aspect of the game and continue to play because of it.

Lets take housing for example. In WildStar housing is locked behind obtaining level 14. Now, that’s not a huge amount of leveling in the grand scheme of things, but then there are fabkits and other useful housing items that are also level locked. Even some decor is locked behind a level. Motivating people to play your way is one method of doing things, sure, but for the truly casual gamer all this will do is deter them from sticking around.

In games like EQ2 housing (in specific) is not restricted by level. Casual and hardcore alike are free to decorate to their hearts content starting at level 1. Aspects of housing, are of course locked. For example if you want the best of the best, you’ll need to work towards it. Working towards it does not always include leveling or adventuring. It could include finding methods of earning in-game currency in order to afford the items you want, or hiring players who are level appropriate to obtain rare items for you. There are workarounds to getting what you want.

How do you feel about games locking content behind levels? Does it have to be this way? Does it not matter to you any more because it’s simply the way things have always been? When World of Warcraft released Warlords I was pretty excited about garrison, but then I saw how locked behind leveling they were. It’s great for your main and your first run through the content, but what about all those alts who wanted to have a garrison too.

Is there a point to playing games where everything is just handed to you and there is no progression locked behind levels? Even Sims 4 has gone the rout of locked content where you need to level up your skills before obtaining certain house items – though this can be bypassed with cheats at least.

Thoughts?