It’s been 14 long years since the original The Sims was released. I played that game obsessively for years, buying every single expansion, and camping out inSims community forums to talk with other addicted players. Several years later The Sims 2was released and the story was the same. Then came The Sims 3. When the game wasn’t crashing, it was still enjoyable but didn’t turn me into a recluse the way the first two did. Then came an absurd number of sequels and spin-offs that took the series everywhere from The Urbz to back in time, and nowhere I was much interested in going. So here we are in 2014 and The Sims 4 is set to launch in just under a month. Is it the return to form that this former Sims-addict has been waiting for?

The game begins, as always, with the ability to create your own Sims. The cosmetic customization options have been greatly expanded, with a wide array of body types, skin tones, hair styles, and more to make your Sim look like just about anyone you can think of. Players can now literally click and grab body parts to sculpt them beyond the game’s preset body-types. As a mixed race person with a somewhat atypical body type I’ve often struggled to successfully recreate myself in a game and The Sims 4 is the closest I’ve ever gotten. I will say that with the level of customization available clothes and accessories are still dictated by gender, which I’m sure will be restricting to non-binary players or players who simply want to go against the grain with their designs.

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Via PC Gamer! (can you spot the MySims Statues? 😉 )

Video Link (Thanks for the tip @Simmaniac383)

The Sims Facebook Page posted a teaser featuring Pancake Bob with ‘Tune in tomorrow to watch Pancake Bob keep it weird in The Sims 4.’‘.

Not sure if that tomorrow was planned for 5th or 6th of August, but I guess we’ll figure out today!

Source: Kotaku

I tried to be as evil as possible in The Sims 4, and I was not disappointed.

You might have heard that The Sims 4 removed a (according to some players) pretty key series feature: pools. While swimming was, in previous games, a great way to build up athleticism and take a load off, many gamers would use pools as watery testbeds for demented social experiments. That in mind, I decided to play The Sims 4 with a mind toward discovering new, different forms of evil. Mwahahaha, etc.

However, when I first showed up to a recent Sims 4 preview event in San Francisco, I found myself at a loss. Step one? Create a new Sim. Other journalists had come up with some damn cool character ideas (Game of Thrones families!), but I was running on the sleep deficit from hell. What could I possibly do to be interesting? I hate playing “myself” in these things, because the most interesting thing about me is my collection of off-kilter pants.

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Via Multiplayer.it!

Getting Simotional support.

Following the review for Magic The Gathering 2015, I’ve seemingly stumbled onto games that face outrage from the community, and The Sims 4 is no exception. Electronic Arts and Maxis Studios have become punching bags since the debacle with SimCity, and it’s easy to jump on that bandwagon and begin pointing fingers and poking holes into The Sims 4. While some of the absences are indeed baffling and fans have the right to be angry, the numerous improvements in The Sims 4 reveal a much deeper redesign than I previously thought, and I would much rather judge a game on all its merits before bludgeoning it with trollish predispositions.

That said, let’s get the controversial parts out of the way first. The majority of the complaints stem from the lack of pools and the absence of toddlers. The former is sadly true, though it’s not a terrible hit for me since I tend to use precious backyard space for gardening anyway, but the former is, if everything goes according to plan, thankfully false. Though I wasn’t able to get a female Sim pregnant in the hands-on session I had at Electronic Arts Redwood Shores, embedded in the Lessons menu were several images and instructions on how to care for a toddler. So while babies don’t officially have a life state, adult Sims will still need care for babies by feeding and holding them before they reach childhood.

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The Sims Team added an Easter Egg on The Sims 4 Music Blog. This Easter Egg is a ringtone/SFX for, what I assume, fulfilled aspiration in The Sims 4. You can listen to it down below by clicking the play button!

Source: JeuxVideo Originally found by Downs Sims 3

Via Jeuxvideo! (Thanks SimCookie for the find!)

Since there was no available USgamer Sims expert, I thought I’d volunteer to head down to EA’s Redwood Shores offices and give an “everyman” take on the game. I thought it might be fun to see what happens when someone with only the most cursory understanding of the Sims series is dropped right into the very deep end of the game, with no guidance or instruction.

The depth of my Sims ignorance was immediately hammered home during the pre-playtest brief. My lack of context and reference meant that a lot of its detail was lost on me. However, I did get the gist of it, and the long and the short of it is that smarter Sims are what fans can look forward to in this fourth outing of the series. Smarter Sims that now feel, and express emotions that are influenced by interactions with other Sims, objects, and events. These, apparently, will help you bring your stories to life?

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Telegraaf.nl published 4 new screens of The Sims 4! Some of them include a small peek at Oasis Springs! Thanks Simlicious for the find 😉

This year the week of July 28^th to August 1^st Simmers from around the world gathered in Redwood, California to visit the EA/Maxis studio for The Sims 4 Creator’s Camp. Small bites and pieces of their time at the camp snuck its way onto The Gallery, but today, August 4^th the embargo lifts and those who attended the camp are able to talk.

Below you will find a list of the attendees with their websites and what they are known for/produce for the community so you can get a better idea of their perspective and if they are more likely to focus on a certain aspect of the game.

*It has been reported that a few of the attendees were able to get videos of actual gameplay so  keep an eye out for that. I’ll add a tag to the link so you won’t miss a thing 🙂

(Watch this thread throughout the day as it will be updated with links to new information)

The Sim Supply (Australia) – YouTube / Build Mode / Let’s Play

The Sims 4 Creator’s Camp – Vlog Day 1

Sara De Moor (Belgium) Build Mode

The Sims 4 Preview

Alala Sims/The Sim Series (Brazil) News / Custom Content

SimsPost Drops #1
SimsPost Drops #2
SimsPost Drops #3

Simatography (Canada) Machinima / Photography

Sims Artists (France) Custom Content / Build Mode

Travel Blog : Creator’s Camp
Creator’s Camp : Mini Class

SimCookie (France) News

The Sims 4 Preview

Simsoucis (France) News / Game Guides

L’UniverSims (France) News / Community

Garry’s School (France) Youtube / Let’s Play

SimFans.de (Germany) News / Custom Content

(following article titles are from the google translation)

The Sims 4 Worlds, Neighborhoods, Public Areas & Land
The Sims 4 Build Mode – Tools, Features, Options, Cheats
The Sims 4 Properties – Buy Mode Operation, Objects Purchased, Babies, Cars
Special features in The Sims 4: Pregnancy, rocket building, holo-game, invoices, Easel, Pirate ship and workbench
The Sims 4 Wishes and Rewards
The Sims 4 Interactions and Emotions
The Sims 4 Careers – Astronaut, Entertainer, Babysitter etc
The Sims 4 Skills – Comedy, Cooking, Programming, Gardening etc
The Sims 4 collectibles – Frogs, Fish, Fruit, Fossils, Vegetables, Flowers, Herbs etc
The Sims 4 Game Achievements
The Sims 4 Events, Parties and Rewards
Death in the Sims 4 – Fire, Electric Shot, Old Age, Laughter etc
The Sims 4 Cheats and Codes
Modding The Sims 4
The Sims 4 In-Game Camera, Screenshots and Video
The Sims 4 Conclusion

SimTimes.de (Germany) News

Hands on : The Sims 4 Mega-Preview

Gronkh (Germany) Youtube / Let’s Play

Babylonia (Korea) Custom Content

Salamul Heyo (Korea) Community

Sims Network (Netherlands) News / Custom Content

SNW @ Creator’s Camp : New Screens and Music

Sasha Spilberg (Russia) Youtube / Let’s Play

PekeSims (Spain) News / Custom Content

Mods and Custom Content in The Sims 4
Live Mode Sims 4 : My Top 10
The Sims 4 : Vivid, Different and Daring
The Sims 4 : Animations

ChrillSims3 (Sweden) Youtube / Let’s Play

Rachybop (United Kingdom) YouTube / Let’s Play

English Simmer (United Kingdom) YouTube / Let’s Play

The Sims 4 Creator’s Camp : Information Overview

The Sims Resource (United Kingdom) Custom Content

Creator’s Camp Teaser Before The News
Creator’s Camp News Part #1

Bill’s Sim Creations (United States) Build Mode

Creator’s Camp From a Builder’s Perspective

ehaught58 (United States)

Sims 4 Creator’s Camp : ehaught58 (Official Sims 3 Forum Post)

SimsVIP (United States) News

Cheats, Hotkeys & Controls 
Creator’s Camp Exclusive : The Sims 4 Theme Song
Lifetime Rewards
New Screenshots
Interview w/ Argus Hulin
Creator’s Camp Modding Masterclass
Live Mode Lessons

Ruthless_KK (United States) Build Mode / CAW

Gimme Some Controls : The Sims 4 Build Mode Hotkeys

Pinstar/The Sims Legacy Challenge(United States) Legacy Challenge

Sims 4 Creator’s Camp – Careers and School
Exclusive Interview with Graham Nardone about The Sims 4

AsiaShaMecca (United States) SF Magazine

The Sims 4 is a quirky take on life, but developer Maxis is cautious about what it wants to make a game of.

Like previous titles in the series, players tailor tiny people to their liking, tweaking their look, personality and more, before living out their lives. Sims can slouch around the house, get jobs and even get married and have kids, if players choose. The Sims franchise is considered progressive by many for its inclusion of same-sex relationships, and that’s an assessment the developer agrees with.

Speaking with Polygon at a recent event, associate producer Graham Nardone said that Maxis strives to find a balance between being fun and being respectful. Finding this line is a big part of why the series hasn’t included non-binary characters — people with gender identities that don’t fit with the binary of male and female — so far.

“You don’t want to trivialize somebody’s life by making it a gameplay feature,” Nardone told Polygon. “You have to have the right respect for people and who they are, and I think that’s one of the most core things that’s important about The Sims — being respectful about people’s lives.”

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Source: DOTSim, SimsVIP