SIM-plified: A Look at What’s Good, Bad, and Missing in The Sims 4

Written by: Adam "ManKorn" Korenman, CC2K Video Games Editor

Creating a Sim is Better than Ever

One of my favorite parts of The Sims has always been creating my avatar. In past iterations, I’ve had to settle on a passing version of digital ManKorn. Maybe the eyes weren’t quite right, or the abs not popping realistically, but not anymore. Gone are the mysterious sliders, in favor of an intuitive grab-and-drag model of Sim development. Similar to another Maxis title, Spore, you shape and mold your puppet until it looks just right. 

OK, you’ve made a passable POTUS. Now what, internet?

In practice, this allows some pretty powerful creative license. I was able to model my friends, enemies, and celebrity crushes with little effort and impressive results. 

However, one of my favorite features–Create a Style–is mysteriously absent. Do you like that shirt, but wish it could be green? TOO BAD, D-BOX! No more customized textures or colors for you. What did you think this was? A sandbox for you to create to your heart’s content? Such a silly person you are. 

What this means is that the endless customization is gone. You cannot create the unholy Teal family of the past in the shiny new world, and that is just a shame. For a game that prides itself on giving freedom to the player, it certainly is limiting in the tools.