So, we’ve learned how to build pond-pools in the first part of our three-part series on how to create cool pools.
Today we are going to go above and beyond… the ground!
Laying The Foundation
The first thing we need to understand is how foundations work in The Sims 4. This is where you find them:
They have adjustable heights, with several settings. They range from no foundation at all…
…to a rather tall foundation.
There are number of heights in-between, but, for maximum impact, we are going to stick with the tallest setting. You may be asking yourself what the height of the house foundation has to do with building an above-the-ground pool. The foundation height is universal to a lot. When you change it, you change it for everything in the lot that has a foundation. And above-the-ground pools are built on foundations. That is what set them apart from your regular, more mundane kind of pool.
Give Me Some Room
The secret to an above-the-ground pool is building a room first.
There we go.
What about we add a second room, so we can achieve an L-shaped pool?
Done. Because we have previously set our lot foundation height to the maximum and they are universal, these rooms are already on a tall foundation from the get-go.
Let’s use the Hammer tool and delete the ceilings…
…and walls.
We are now ready for the next step.
The Pool
Let’s use the pool tool and fill out the entire space available…
…except for a small spot to allow sims to get in and out.
We will need a one-tile landing for the stairs. Room tool again.
Delete the ceiling and walls.
Let’s add the stairs.
These are good!
Insert Tile
Wooden floor tiles will look great with what we are going for.
I’m not sure if anyone noticed, but I rotated the floor tiles, so they’d be parallel to the stairs. To rotate them, you simply press the period key.
Let’s apply a wooden foundation pattern as well.
I think we can add a ladder.
Done. Our pool is ready!
Circular Above-The-Ground Pool
For these we are going to use a special wall tool.
It’s called Rounded Deck.
There are three sizes. I picked the smallest due to the space available for this specific build. We are going to place four of them, creating a circle.
You can rotate the decks for optimal placement using the period key.
The next step is to use the hammer tool to delete the inside fences – keep the outside ones.
We can now add the stairs. I’m feeling metal.
A bit wider, perhaps.
Yes! Just right.
Octopool
We don’t have a round pool – at least yet. Therefore, we will use the octagonal pool tool.
Here we go.
Bigger!
Perfect.
Decorating the deck
Wooden floor tiles, anyone?
Let’s make the foundation wooden as well. Do you remember where?
Let’s change these fences, shall we? I really like the one from Spa Day, but you can choose any.
Let’s replace fences.
You just click on the old fences and they’ll be replaced by the new selection.
How about we add matching railings?
The very last detail is a ladder.
Let’s see the result!
If you think that is too tall, you can readjust it at any time.
Share Your Pools!
The world is ready for you to unleash your above-the-ground pools!
Upload pictures to Sims Community Social Media section.
Create threads about your creations at the My Gallery section.
Share at the Gallery using the hashtash #simscomunnity.
I am Kai Chen at Sims Community Social and kaichen04 at the Gallery. See you soon for the final part of this building pools series.
Back at E3, we unveiled three special designs of powerful female characters featured in our games at the show: a Rebel Fighter from Star Wars Battlefront, Faith from Mirror’s Edge Catalyst, and Alex Morgan who is featured this year in FIFA 16.
This week at gamescom, we unveiled two new female characters to the collection. Read on to learn what makes these characters so special and if you happen to visit our Business Lounge, be sure to try and snag an exclusive button of one of these characters.
Babs L’Amour
First Seen: The Sims 4
Skills: Romance
What Makes Her Tick: Her quest for true love (until her creator and controller changes their mind, of course!)
How does the Sims team approach building female characters?
“The team thinks that representation is important, so when creating the tools to create Sims, it focuses on inclusion, and being able to make whoever the players want to make. Since The Sims 4 is a life simulation game, it gives you the power to create and control people – so our players need to be able to make Sims that look like them, and look like their friends and family. You can make Babs an astronaut who doesn’t care about finding love, or make a Sim that befriends – or marries her. She can be whatever you want her to be.” – Lyndsay Pearson, Senior Producer, The Sims 4.
We’re happy to announce that Sims Community’s brand new design is now available for everyone! If you’re having issues with loading the website properly, please clear your browser cache.
Down below you’ll find some of the new features on Sims Community ver. 3! We’ll be adding more features in the weeks to come.
Thank you all for your dedication and we hope you like the new design! 🙂
Hover over the blue buttons below to learn more about the new features!
[ult_hotspot main_img=”37114″ main_img_size=”main_img_original”][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”The Sims Community logo, along with other header elements are now centered.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”3.272727272727273,45.931283905967454″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”Smooth scroll for Google Chrome users.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”52.034090909090914,94.9367088607595″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”New, modern slider that shows all the latest posts on Sims Community.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”77.32386363636363,47.920433996383366″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”Bigger background with overlapping content, so that both design and pages are shown together in a more stylish way.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”33.07386363636364,18.083182640144667″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][/ult_hotspot][ult_hotspot main_img=”37161″ main_img_size=”main_img_original”][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”The News Feed now shows all posts made on Sims Community in 3 rows.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”22.549854085603112,15.18987341772152″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”New posts are now automatically loaded when scrolling down.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”88.82538910505836,20.976491862567812″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”Categories received a sleek, more ”simified” revamp.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”33.086089494163424,86.25678119349006″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][/ult_hotspot][ult_hotspot main_img=”37163″ main_img_size=”main_img_original”][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”Post title is now shown right next to the date of the post. Also, new colors!” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”2.3802570093457946,7.05244122965642″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”New font that matches with The Sims typography.” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”53.46451518691588,62.74864376130199″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][ult_hotspot_items icon_type=”custom” icon=”Defaults-search” icon_size=”32″ icon_color=”#81d742″ icon_style=”none” icon_color_border=”#333333″ icon_border_size=”1″ icon_border_radius=”500″ icon_border_spacing=”50″ img_width=”36″ hotspot_content=”New colors for quoted content!” tooltip_continuous_animation=”on” tooltip_custom_color=”#ffffff” tooltip_custom_bg_color=”#07a0f2″ tooltip_width=”300″ tooltip_trigger=”hover” tooltip_position=”top” enable_bubble_arrow=”on” tooltip_animation=”fade” tooltip_font_size=”12″ tooltip_font_line_height=”18″ hotspot_position=”26.073306074766357,2.1699819168173597″ tooltip_custom_border_size=”border-style:none;|border-top-left-radius:3px;border-top-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-right-radius:3px;border-bottom-left-radius:3px;” icon_img=”37154″][/ult_hotspot]
Simlicious was present at EA’s Community Lounge at Gamescom and together with Sims Online, they made a list of all the Ice Cream Recipes, Garnishes and Toppings that you get in The Sims 4 Cool Kitchen!
Summer is still strong and your sims still have a few weeks left to enjoy the sun. However, the people of your own virtual world no longer care for a simple square…
Just no!
They want to live the high life, with style and glamour! Therefore, we will be publishing a three-part article to help you out. Regardless if you are an inexperienced or avid builder, take a look at these step-by-step designs and give your sims more than simple water in a boring stationary container! Here’s the first:
The Pond-Pool
A Gallery favourite, this ever popular design is easy to achieve and with stunning results.
You are going to use the Custom Pool Tool.
Start drawing a line by left-clicking the mouse as you go. The more irregular, the better.
Make sure the last postmark meets the first, completing the drawing.
There you go!
Our Little Secret
For the next step we are going to need a cheat. Don’t worry! Nobody needs to know!Move Objects will allow us to place objects anywhere, without any sort of restriction. To activate it, you you press Ctrl, Shift and C all at once. That will open a cheat box on the top left corner. Type in bb.moveobjects on. Finally, hit Enter.
As you can see above, there is a confirmation that you’ve entered the cheat correctly.
Rocky V
Now we are going to place rocks around the pool’s border. If you don’t know where to find them, simply search for Rocks and press Enter.
Let’s do this!
Try to intercalate different rocks and rotate them, so they look more natural and not like this:
This, below, is what you want.
When placing rocks, smaller ones that are part of the sets might look like they are floating, a fairly unusual behaviour for rocks!
Please, rotate them, so the laws of Physics can be maintained!
Keeping It Fully Functional
In order for sims to be able to swim in it, you’ll need to leave a few access points, not covered by rocks, similar to these indicated by red the circles.
The red circles are illustrative. No red circles appear in game.
Interior Design
A stone finish will help. First, let’s change the floor tiles.
Matching walls are next!
This is a good time to decide how deep our pond-pool will be. Click on the pool and you’ll see three available depths.
I think we are going for shallow here.
Waterscaping
Normally, we cannot use fountain decorations in pools. But, because we have Move Objects activated, we are able to and will. Let’s add a some water plants to feign a more natural look.
Remember to rotate the plants a bit and use irregular placement patterns, much like we did with the rocks. Also, make sure you leave space for swimming.
And since we have started landscaping, let’s add some plants around our pond-pool.
Because of , again, Move Objects, we can place plants close together and it looks much more seamless and real.
Final Touch
The last step will be applying terrain paints around the pond-pool. First, something sandy.
After using it around the entire pool, let’s get a second paint, darker. Move the strength slider to the softer side. We just want to add some nuance and detail closer to the border and to the plants’ roots.
Are We Done?
The pool is ready and you can set it as a Generic lot. However, only your own sims will visit a Generic lot. A simple solution is to add a grill, a picnic table and a trash can. Now you can set it as a National Park! You can set any lot as a National Park, even if you do not own Outdoor Retreat.
Share Your Pools!
Whether your pool is standalone, like the above, or part of a home or community lot, we want to see it!
Upload pictures to Sims Community Social Media section.
Create threads about your creations at the My Gallery section.
Share at the Gallery using the hashtash #simscomunnity.
I am Kai Chen at Sims Community Social and kaichen04 at the Gallery. You can download the lot from this tutorial HERE.
A new survey requesting select people via e-mail has revealed the concepts and descriptions of expansion packs being considered by Maxis / EA Games for The Sims 4. Are you curious?
Here are the short descriptions of the nine options the recipients were asked their opinion on, provided by Sims Online!
On The Road:
Get behind the wheel of different vehicles, including cars, trucks and motorcycles. Fix up old cars, build a hotrod or jump on your ride and explore a number of tourist destinations.
New Vehicles: Your Sims can now choose from a variety of vehicles to own and drive including cars, trucks, and even motorcycles.
Build A Garage: Build a brand new garage where you can work on your vehicles and display them for all to see.
Become A Mechanic: Fix up, customise, and build new cars with the new Mechanic active career.
Visit Tourist Destinations: Take your ride on the road to visit tourist destinations like the Grand Sims Canyon, the World’s Largest Ball of Twine, or the Secret Mystery Spot.
University:
Send your sims off to University.Explore the university campus and decide whether your sims are going to study to ace their exams or spend their days partying it up. Sims can also pledge fraternities and sororities and try to become members of these prestigious organizations.
Generations:
It’s time to raise a family! Raise your children from babies into toddlers. Watch your children grow into moody pre-teens and help them overcome the tribulations of youth. Create a Sims family dynasty that will last forever.
Get Real:
It’s time to become a reality star! Join the cast of Sliced ‘N’ Diced to compete with other chefs, Finding Love to become the most desirable bachelor/bachelorette or Runway Take Off to become a fashion designer star!
Find Love:
Find true love in The Sims 4! Meet your date on SimsMatch, take your date to romantic getaway spots, build up your romantic reputation, and have the wedding of your dreams!
SimMatch Dating App: Help your sims find their soulmate or a fun fling for the night with the new SimMatch app. Pick out the perfect selfie, fill out their profile, and decide how honest your sims want to be.
Romantic Getaway Locations: Take your sims out for the perfect date at one of the new romantic getaway locations including a cosy bed and breakfast or the swanky eco-lounge.
Romantic Reputation: Build up your romantic reputation as you go out on dates with different sims. Will you be known as a loyal companion or the town heartbreaker? Your reputation will determine how sims in the world react to you and earn you unique romance rewards.
Ultimate Wedding: Live out your Sims’ wedding fantasies and have the ultimate bachelor or bachelorette party, select and customize the perfect wedding party, and spruce things up with exclusive wedding food and decor.
Metropolis:
Move into a bustling, modern city! Live in new apartments and penthouses eat food at carts and shop at street markets and immerse your sims in the different cultures of the city by exploring the many diverse neighbourhoods.
Power Up:
Turn your sims into superheroes! Use powers like mind reading, telekinesis, and teleportation. Learn new powers at the Super Hero Academy and use them to make the world a better place or terrorise the population.
Back To School:
Take your sims to school! Have your child and teen sims participate in school activities including classes, dances and student government elections or become a teacher with the new teacher active career.
Vacation:
Take your sims on vacation! Head to Mt. Wright for fun winter getaway with ice skating, sledding, snowboarding and mysterious ice caves. Or head to Isla Cordinda to soak up the sun and build sandcastles, surf the waves, and uncover ancient tombs.
Summer Vacation: Experience the best of summer at an island getaway, with sand castles, surfing, and delicious island food and drinks.
Winter Getaway: Enjoy a winter wonderland with a snowy mountain vacation. Go snowboarding, sledding, make snowmen, or hit the lake for some ice skating!
Explore Ancient Locations: Explore ancient tombs in the jungle, or avoiding deadly traps and yetis.
Winter & Summer Seasons: Bring the weather home with you. Experience the warm days of summer or magical snowfall in your home town!
Rebuild:
The apocalypse has struck The Sims 4! Explore abandoned neighbourhoods and rescue survivors, rebuild your town into a thriving community, and fight off zombies to protect your new town.
We were for you at this year’s gamescom and have the new Pack The Sims 4 Cool Kitchen accessories looked at more closely.The expansion will be released on 11thAugust 2015 as a digital download and will cost about 10 euros.
With the pack we will get a completely new kitchen set with a variety of decorative objects.The kitchen is in modern colors and thus provides a very considerable design freedom.Bene from the SimFans team has put together a few color variations for you.
Once you have chosen the taste of your ice, your Sim is ready to make an ice box that will be placed in your inventory as a result you have the choice of garnish your ice cream with banana slices, cinnamon stick, flowers, mint leaf, nut bar, orange slice, strawberry … There are a lot of choices about the filling.
That is not all !You can also add your topping on ice, for example syrup caramel, cherry, chocolate sauce, coconut shavings, raspberry coulis, glitter … The Sims certainly appreciate the toppings, they can get a moodlet “perfect toppings “which will make them happy 4:00.
