The Sims 4

 PC
User Score
4.2

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 2630 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 680 out of 2630
  2. Mixed: 543 out of 2630
  3. Negative: 1,407 out of 2630
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  1. TheExtraGuy
    Sep 14, 2014
    5
    The games biggest problem is that both the Sims 2 and the Sims 3 exist. It feels more like Sims 1.5 with the amount of things missing and dumbed down from both of those base games. The only things that save this are the emotions, the Multitasking, CAS and Build mode. But with no Create a Style, no pools, no todlers, no cars, no terrain tools, no lot placement or overworld map like that ofThe games biggest problem is that both the Sims 2 and the Sims 3 exist. It feels more like Sims 1.5 with the amount of things missing and dumbed down from both of those base games. The only things that save this are the emotions, the Multitasking, CAS and Build mode. But with no Create a Style, no pools, no todlers, no cars, no terrain tools, no lot placement or overworld map like that of Sims 2 or 3, this game is just bare bones and not worth full price and certainly not worth another full priced expansion which will certainly be coming. EA's worst blunder to date and you can certainly see the disregard they have for the consumer with the way they have treated this release along with that review embargo. Now we see why...… Expand
  2. Auntee
    Sep 14, 2014
    1
    I was excited to download this newest version and have been looking forward to the release. After playing for a couple of hours I wondered if I had somehow received an incomplete copy of the game. The neighborhoods are small. If there is a way add more empty lots (there are only 2 or 3 total in each neighborhood) I couldn't find it. Cannot merge households as far as I can tell. Its aI was excited to download this newest version and have been looking forward to the release. After playing for a couple of hours I wondered if I had somehow received an incomplete copy of the game. The neighborhoods are small. If there is a way add more empty lots (there are only 2 or 3 total in each neighborhood) I couldn't find it. Cannot merge households as far as I can tell. Its a big bust and I have already requested a refund from Origin Game guarantee. It really isn't much better than Sims 2 except the sims are more realistic. I didn't really mind the travel function much...the loading time was not long...but there is no place you really want to go with your Sims. I'm just so disappointed.… Expand
  3. IDeathstalkerI
    Sep 14, 2014
    4
    The game is an absolute disappointment, I'm not saying that the game is bad but it is very disappointing. I've been playing 'The Sims' since the first one, as a big fan of the series this is a big let down..
  4. Pvn
    Sep 13, 2014
    5
    Giving it a 5, may just be too nice.
    But the gameplay wasn't entertaining, it felt more forced on my part.
    I enjoyed going around in a car, sims 3 was where this shined. They just killed off too much of the fun things from the previous games. While there are some neat features, it's just not the same as it used to be. The fact that you have to buy all those DLC's again is just    Giving it a 5, may just be too nice.
    But the gameplay wasn't entertaining, it felt more forced on my part.
    I enjoyed going around in a car, sims 3 was where this shined.
    They just killed off too much of the fun things from the previous games.
    While there are some neat features, it's just not the same as it used to be. The fact that you have to buy all those DLC's again is just laughable. Just stick to The Sims 3, you'll probably be better off.    … Expand
  5. MadJaples
    Sep 13, 2014
    2
    UK GAMERS READ THIS ONE:

    To begin with, you can buy this game from amazon for sixty quid. I don't know how EA could possibly justify charging the same sum of money you could expect to dish out for oh, two microwaves (in real money, not simoleans), and what makes it more insulting is that it is at least TWENTY QUID CHEAPER IN THE STATES!!! This is a huge rip-off, and people wonder why so    UK GAMERS READ THIS ONE:

    To begin with, you can buy this game from amazon for sixty quid. I don't know how EA could possibly justify charging the same sum of money you could expect to dish out for oh, two microwaves (in real money, not simoleans), and what makes it more insulting is that it is at least TWENTY QUID CHEAPER IN THE STATES!!! This is a huge rip-off, and people wonder why so many are looking to piracy.
    Not only is it sixty quid, it's also all the dosh you need to buy the expansion packs in the future too. By the time you've spent that much money, you'll have probably needed to take out a third mortgage. Not impressed EA. Not impressed at all.

    The Create-A-Sim aspect of the game is arguably only one of two resounding saving graces of the game, but it still doesn't make the game actually worth sixty quid (or anything close to it!). The loading times are so shockingly quick in comparison to Sims 3 (mostly due to lack of content I should imagine, all you seem to get is the base elements of the game and that is IT) it makes you wonder why the hell did they make the Sims 3 so damn slow to launch up if they made Sims 4 launch up in far less time than it takes to boil a kettle.
    The travel aspects are okay, the rest of it, not too great to be fair. There's nothing new about the Sims, not since the third one, there appears to be no massively noticeable improvements or innovations to the game other than the Sim Creation process, and that is about IT.

    Can you smell the incoming expansion packery that is about to ensue over the next near decade?
    This is why I didn't get it after I played it. For shame EA, for shame. How dare you con the Brits.    … Expand
  6. teemas2000
    Sep 13, 2014
    8
    The sims 4 has made a partial improvement from the sims 3 in terms of the visual interface, build mode and the actual sims themselves. I'm disappointed with the loading screens being virtually everywhere. If you want to visit your neighbours house, BOOM, you're stuck on a loading screen. However, by looking at the simulation game on a whole, there have been multiple improvements. I'mThe sims 4 has made a partial improvement from the sims 3 in terms of the visual interface, build mode and the actual sims themselves. I'm disappointed with the loading screens being virtually everywhere. If you want to visit your neighbours house, BOOM, you're stuck on a loading screen. However, by looking at the simulation game on a whole, there have been multiple improvements. I'm thrilled to see what is in store for the sims 4 in the near future with many expansion and stuff packs set to release, hopefully enhancing the game in various aspects.… Expand
  7. Starshiner
    Sep 12, 2014
    0
    Here's some negative andvery little positive feedback on my take of Sims 4.

    First I will say I had always been a Sims fan. I've played them all. I even bought Sims 2 and 3 the day they had come out. I played them for hours and hours on end, rarely ever getting bored. The first hour of me playing Sims 4, I already had become so bored with it and left feeling completely disappointed. I    Here's some negative andvery little positive feedback on my take of Sims 4.

    First I will say I had always been a Sims fan. I've played them all. I even bought Sims 2 and 3 the day they had come out. I played them for hours and hours on end, rarely ever getting bored.

    The first hour of me playing Sims 4, I already had become so bored with it and left feeling completely disappointed. I was looking forward to the game, ever since it had first been announced them making a 4th installment to the Sims.

    Ever since Sims 2 had come out, my favorite aspect has always been toddlers. I loved having my female sims get pregnant and raising their babies. I loved the family side of the game. Actually, just a month ago I was explaining to my husband about the Sims games and how far they had come with it, explaining how silly the infants were in Sims 1. Then what do I find out they did with Sims 4? They made the babies like Sims 1! Right when I thought I couldn't have been more disappointed with Sims 4, I learned about the downgraded infants...then right after I find out about the toddler cut. I love the toddlers as many people do. I can understand some people not liking the toddler stage in Sims, but EA could have made that more flexible in Sims 4 by being able to remove the toddler stage.. perhaps near where you can turn off aging? They had some nerve taking out toddlers altogether!

    Another favorite aspect of mine in Sims 3 (which Sims 4 does not have) is story progression. In Sims 3, I loved creating a family, sticking them in a house, then forgetting about them as I played another household and then checking what the family I forgot about was up to, if the original couple I made got a divorce, if they had kids, what jobs they ended up getting, ect.

    The load time SUCKS. I know the load time isn't long, but it still sucks. It's just another thing to make Sims 4 feel so much more limited than Sims 3. (Keep in mind, I remember Sims 3 vanilla days as I bought it when it first came out). I miss the open world in Sims 3!

    I also don't like that they took out the style and color table tools.

    Now the couple things I did like...

    I liked what they did with create a sim. It was a bit awkward at first compared to what I was use to with Sims, but once I started to play with it, it grew on me. Again, the only thing I find it lacking is the style/color tools. Overall, I still had fun creating my sims.

    The build mode was nice, I do love what they did with it. It still wasn't enough to win me over (none of it was) as I've always been okay with the building aspect of Sims 3.

    I also love how much the Sims multi-task compared to any other Sims game.

    That's really the only positive things I have to say about Sims 4... and I would have rather have paid to have the features I did like, into my Sims 3 because I won't be playing the Sims 4... not unless EA find a way to make up for this crappy game by giving us the features we miss!

    I don't know how they will ever be able to give us open worlds again. Maybe when they make new neighborhoods, they can make some of them be like the open neighborhoods... but I won't count on it.

    The Sims 4 is more like Sims 1 and 2 combo with a couple cool features, but not enough cool features to keep you in the groove when playing.

    I hate to say it, but you really screwed up EA! I sure hope you find a way to fix this. If not, I will just keep continuing to play The Sims 3 which I'm more than fine with. I still have a blast when playing Sims 3, unlike I do with SIms 4.    … Expand
  8. jojimbo
    Sep 12, 2014
    3
    Featureless botch of loading screen hell. Want to visit next door = loading screen, Plots all disjointed and, yes loading screen. A massive step backwards into a dog turd.
  9. spankipie
    Sep 12, 2014
    8
    Let me start by saying I've played all the sims games and have always bought them on release day, until Sims 4. The main reason was people were saying such negative things about it. In the end, I spent the money and I'm very glad I did. I've played for

    20 hours now and here are my impressions: The Good: - Performance! So much faster, even with the loading screens - Build Mode is    Let me start by saying I've played all the sims games and have always bought them on release day, until Sims 4. The main reason was people were saying such negative things about it. In the end, I spent the money and I'm very glad I did. I've played for

    20 hours now and here are my impressions:

    The Good:
    - Performance! So much faster, even with the loading screens
    - Build Mode is awesome! I can finally build something nice looking. The re-sizable rooms help a lot for remodeling.
    - Multi-tasking allows me to FINALLY manage all my sims' needs and wants in a large household.
    - I play the game more slowly - I really enjoying actually playing my sims for once. Instead of just speeding through on ultra speed, I find myself taking my time and wanting to fulfill the sims whims and aspirations. and relationship interactions are great.

    The Bad:
    - Obviously less content and I should at least be able to change colors of things
    - Lack of family tree and memories
    - Feel like the sims can get away with too much. I had a sim who was living with and having woohoo with two brothers, one of which she was married to. No one said a thing...

    The verdict:
    I'm very glad I bought this game. At 17 hours, I have still only scratched the surface. I have yet to see a sim die. There are so many things I haven't done yet and I'm looking forward to doing more. I'm actually excited for the expansion packs. I feel like the base game of TS4 is so much better than any base game yet and I think after it's not so trendy to bash the game anymore, people will come around and say this is the best sims game yet.    … Expand
  10. dome_1986
    Sep 12, 2014
    1
    just played it for 7 houres and i am realy dissapointed.
    nice grafik but there is no content at all. i come from sims 3 and i have played with
    all the addons and to start again from zero pisses my of. why they are not continuing where they stopped and develop new stuff from there? why going 3 steps back to make 1 in the front?
    never ever EA again!
  11. J4MESOX4D
    Sep 12, 2014
    2
    Amazing job EA! You've taken The Sims 3; stripped it down to the bare bones, replaced the 3 with a 4 and made it full price again with possibly 10 DLC packs to buy in the future just to finish the game and add some content. Absolutely disgusting practice and it's no wonder EA are considered one of the worst companies on the planet.

    Yet another game on EA's books that is deliberately    Amazing job EA! You've taken The Sims 3; stripped it down to the bare bones, replaced the 3 with a 4 and made it full price again with possibly 10 DLC packs to buy in the future just to finish the game and add some content. Absolutely disgusting practice and it's no wonder EA are considered one of the worst companies on the planet.

    Yet another game on EA's books that is deliberately starved of content so players pay premiums on DLC. This feels like an early access game except it's finished and your wallet will be hemorrhaging more funds to 'finish' it further. Disgraceful.    … Expand
  12. IvanWong
    Sep 12, 2014
    4
    The Sims 4 is a game that takes EA's franchise one step forward and three steps back, with certain welcome features but a number of shocking omissions. Good music and graphics result in a polished game, but a single play-through exposes the limitations of this game compared to The Sims 3.

    The game starts off by giving you a good impression – loading times are noticeably shorter than    The Sims 4 is a game that takes EA's franchise one step forward and three steps back, with certain welcome features but a number of shocking omissions. Good music and graphics result in a polished game, but a single play-through exposes the limitations of this game compared to The Sims 3.

    The game starts off by giving you a good impression – loading times are noticeably shorter than they are in The Sims 3, allowing you to jump straight into Create-A-Sim Mode. It is here that the development time spent on The Sims 4 shines through, with virtually any part of the Sim being adjustable with an easy click-and-drag. One criticism of this mode is that while the functionality is improved, the organisation of the entire mode is not. For example, accessories on the face and accessories on the body are in separate categories. Furthermore, players (as far as I know) have to click on the Sims’ bodies at some point to get to other settings, as opposed to The Sims 3 in which every setting was accessible from the buttons at the side. Filters for clothing, while handy, are somewhat tedious to use because they do not switch themselves off when you switch to a different set of clothes (e.g. from everyday to formal) and they aren't always onscreen, necessitating a few more clicks than one would like.

    Create-A-Style is absent, and perhaps the second-biggest turn off in The Sims 4. While EA has sensibly chosen to include more styles for each set of clothes, furniture, tiles and wall coverings, the lack of this feature means that if you wanted to make a copy of a house, The Sims 3 would give you much closer results. The exclusion of this feature brings us back by a decade to The Sims 2. In defense of The Sims 4 though, the addition of wall heights, movable rooms, easy-to-build foundations and roof trims make the rest of build mode more powerful than before. Oh wait, swimming pools and basements are missing too.

    So the second-biggest turn off is Create-A-Style. What’s the biggest? The Sims 3 came with an open world mode, allowing players to follow the Sims inside and outside their house. The Sims 4 doesn't. Loading screens separate any movement of Sims outside their homes, save for the two or three other houses in the same area. Granted, these loading times are short. However, they also take a lot of immersion out of the game, so I could either choose to have limited but immersive gameplay by making my Sims stay at home only, as opposed to going to community lots, or I could choose to tolerate the loading screens which do nothing except make me wish I was back playing The Sims 3.

    No review of The Sims 3 would be complete without talking about the new mood system. In my opinion, I do not care much for it. My Sims fluctuate between fine and happy very often, and every time this happens there will be some music to indicate this (and the music cannot be switched off). Little moodlets that Sims can have determine the final mood of the Sim. If my Sim happens to have +2 angry but +3 confident, then that Sim will be confident and not show any signs of anger at all. After a while, the confidence wore off and my Sim switched from confident to being angry. All the while my brain is screaming “That’s not how moods work!” and now both the Sim and I are angry.

    In Life mode, social motives take a lot more work to keep high, and chatting online is now virtually useless. Sims can talk for hours on end online and still not be particularly satisfied. Romance is improved to be more realistic, as it actually takes more work to build a romantic relationship, whereas in The Sims 3 you could spam romantic interactions and get your Sims married in a few in-game hours. Despite this, the game still feels backward because as stated above, there is no open world. Sadly, the absence of the open-world means that EA could put 50 new features in the game and still not make it as satisfying as The Sims 3 was. The sadder thing is that EA didn't put 50 new features in the game anyway. To depress you further, the maximum height of buildings is now three storeys instead of five.

    So let me now end off with the positives. The performance of the game is better on the same hardware than The Sims 3. The music sounds good. Sims look better. The user interface, as a whole, looks much more modern. The grass is greener? I’m struggling to come up with more positives already. The same can’t be said for the negatives of the game – here’s another three. Traits are more limited, careers are simplified and limited anyway, cars are gone, and toddlers have vanished. Oh wait, that was four. What more do I have to say? The Sims 4 looks polished enough to be branded an EA game, but is nowhere near complete enough to be a part of The Sims. The disastrous thing is that if the Sims 4 is successful, there weren't be a Sims 5 (Google it). So if you have a copy of The Sims 3, keep it well. You might be playing it for a while.    … Expand
  13. jojoba
    Sep 12, 2014
    0
    Omg, I played this game over at a friends house. But my God, did Maxis not learn from SimCity 2013?
    I hoped that there where some new inovations to the Sims and new content. Some originality to this new game and not just a copy of the original with better graphics.
    But its even worse! It is a copy of his predecessors with less than the half of its content and possibilities. I    Omg, I played this game over at a friends house. But my God, did Maxis not learn from SimCity 2013?
    I hoped that there where some new inovations to the Sims and new content. Some originality to this new game and not just a copy of the original with better graphics.

    But its even worse! It is a copy of his predecessors with less than the half of its content and possibilities.

    I allready decided not to buy any more games from EA, and till now I don't regret this decision. Only we as gamers can get this company on his knees and force them to make better games.

    DONT BUY ANYTHING ANYMORE THAT COMES FROM EA!    … Expand
  14. eldumloido
    Sep 11, 2014
    5
    Sims 3 is better in every way. heck even sims 2 is better if u have all the dlc. The game is technically worse with no 3d world map. The game also pauses to load (ssd hd 16g of ram). It's clearly a blanket for dlc and nothing more. When all the dlc is released ill give it another go.
  15. Morokish
    Sep 11, 2014
    3
    its not worth your money at all! Ea as usual is trying to ram up dlcs so, all things this game is lacking you will see it released on dlcs! but you my friend have the power, so dont buy this game or dlcs!
  16. Prisqua
    Sep 11, 2014
    8
    I like it. Loads of things are missing yes and yes EA will probably sell it as store content or expansions but nothing new there, I think we got quite accustomed to that by now.
  17. ArshiaGamer
    Sep 11, 2014
    7
    not bad :( Sims3 is better than sims 4 it don"t have new thing besides it lost something EA its a good company but I want to better scores 71 is a good score for this game
  18. sashkaa
    Sep 11, 2014
    0
    My last saved game which in essence should contain everything up to the point of my clicking "save" the last time played is in my saves folder. I am staring right at it. After the latest patch update it will not load the save.

    I built my own rig just to be able to play the Sims 3 "on the performance level it deserves to be played." It is a glorious PC, but it still cannot fully stand    My last saved game which in essence should contain everything up to the point of my clicking "save" the last time played is in my saves folder. I am staring right at it. After the latest patch update it will not load the save.

    I built my own rig just to be able to play the Sims 3 "on the performance level it deserves to be played." It is a glorious PC, but it still cannot fully stand the stress the Sims 3 puts on it. I thought the Sims 4 would be different, but after 60 hours of game play it too lags and twitches and slowly begins to murder my PC. I am sure I am not alone here.

    I would be so incredibly ashamed of myself if I was an employee of Maxis, EA or even Origin. The fact that this game was released prior to being ready for the gaming public (it seems every generation's release follows this pattern) is beyond criminal. These companies take FULL advantage of simmers who live and breath the game no matter the glitches and the quality they must suffer.

    Now the 7 day refund game guarantee window has closed. The money I have spent over the years supporting this game is such a despicable thing. The money and time we have ALL spent on this game is a disgrace.

    After 60 hours playing the Sims 4- the family growth, career development, home upgrades, special objects obtained, to start from the bottom again. It is exasperating. This game is a sad, disappointing thing, and I am defeated. I quit. Congratulations EA, Maxis, and everyone involved in this grand scheme. You win.    … Expand
  19. Mangastar
    Sep 11, 2014
    0
    If you like customization, build alot. Choosing textures etc. This game is not for you.
    Its a complete and utter disappointment. Loved EVERY other The Sims game. But this is more "1/4 The Sims" than "The Sims 4". They have removed SO many features. If you are ok with playing The sims with 4 houses in a neighborhood, you might be ok with this game. Same if you are ok with playing 1 sim at    If you like customization, build alot. Choosing textures etc. This game is not for you.
    Its a complete and utter disappointment. Loved EVERY other The Sims game. But this is more "1/4 The Sims" than "The Sims 4". They have removed SO many features. If you are ok with playing The sims with 4 houses in a neighborhood, you might be ok with this game. Same if you are ok with playing 1 sim at the time. Because you can forget controlling 2 sims at different locations at once. Also very unimpressed with the new AI of the new sims. The new mood system adds little or nothing to the game.

    End result: Looks VERY nice. But gameplay is ruined.    … Expand
  20. Maisol
    Sep 10, 2014
    8
    First of all, watching trailers and gameplay on YouTube was very misleading.
    Watching trailers and reading reviews I wanted EA and Maxis to burn in Hell for what they have done to this great franchise. But after actually playing the game I must say I was very wrong.
    1- Sims are not too cartoonish unless you make them so. As a person who hates cartoonish style in gaming I must admit that    First of all, watching trailers and gameplay on YouTube was very misleading.
    Watching trailers and reading reviews I wanted EA and Maxis to burn in Hell for what they have done to this great franchise. But after actually playing the game I must say I was very wrong.
    1- Sims are not too cartoonish unless you make them so. As a person who hates cartoonish style in gaming I must admit that I menaged to make my sims very realistic. And overall world aldow cartoonish is not ugly at all. I know what you're all thinking,"we have seen the trailers they are cartoonish" trust me during actual gameplay they do not feel that way at all, unless you make them so.
    2- Emotions are not overpronounced at all. Sims dont swag too much and none of my sims died from laughter. In fact they are more alive then ever and their reactions on world and situations are not annoying as they often are in Sims3.
    3- When I read about how they improved emotions, I was thinking "WTF sims already had emotions and personality just fine" but boy was I wrong. The new sims are truly alive, and you wont belive how enjoyable and engaging it is to see their personalities emerge during gameplay.
    4- I played on high graphics settings (not maximum) without experiencing a single glitch or lag, and I play on the same computer that could play Sims3 only on lower resolution and medium settings.
    5- On the other hand my game crashes a lot, and there is no autosave so I often lose my game witch is very annoying. And managing saved games is bad, although you can have multiple saves you can only load the last save. Or I haven't figured out how to load previous saves yet.
    6- Yes, not having open world is unforgivable.
    7- It is more challenging to manage sims now than before, or to say it in another word gameplay is more engaging.
    8- This is definitely not the final product. There are gaps everyware telling us that only with a few expansions this game will be complete.

    As a tool with all freedoms that it gives us The Sims3 is definitely much better game, but Sims4 have the same charm that Sims2 had. Although I am saddened by limited options we now have, I must confess that very quickly I learned to enjoy limitations, and now I have opportunity to actually meet my sims and truly play with them instead of endles building environment they live in.    … Expand
  21. Kaliarii
    Sep 10, 2014
    4
    All right, I can't bring myself to give this game an entirely bad review. It DOES have a lot of good points. First, the graphics are beautiful on any setting, allowing even those with lower-end computers to enjoy playing. Additionally, the music is well-done, the interface (once you've gotten used to it) is a nice improvement, and the game itself loads faster than any of the other baseAll right, I can't bring myself to give this game an entirely bad review. It DOES have a lot of good points. First, the graphics are beautiful on any setting, allowing even those with lower-end computers to enjoy playing. Additionally, the music is well-done, the interface (once you've gotten used to it) is a nice improvement, and the game itself loads faster than any of the other base games - especially TS3. So overall, not a bad game, right? Wellllll.....

    The issues I take with TS4 are multi-fold. First and foremost, the price vs the level of completion. I wouldn't have minded shelling out $70 to a small, indie game with lots of potential, where devs actually needed the money to continue development. However, dropping $70 into a multi-million dollar franchise and getting a game that is, well... not finished.... is a little ridiculous. I didn't complain too much about the loss of open world - honestly, the loading pages take about as long as cross-map travel would have anyway, and probably won't get much longer with added DLC, so we're good there. Fortunately, the immediate area is open, so I can still visit next-door neighbors without dealing with loading.

    That said, I find it absolutely unacceptable that EA left so many bugs in the game. I've run into the majority of the known bugs at this point, and the two updates I've seen since launch a little over a week ago, seem to be making things worse. Showers keep running, even when there's no one in them (and seem to break faster when they do)... Conversations with other family members become "stuck", where no matter what those sims are doing, they're conversing - which messes with their ability to do other things - like bathe. With any other installment in the series I would hit one, maybe two bugs if I were really unlucky, and rarely more than one in the same day. With TS4, it's every two or three Sim hours (yeah, seriously.)... EA's best solution? Create a secondary "save" file, and send one sim travelling - and follow that sim. That *should* fix the issue. They think. Insert eye roll.

    Honestly, I was a bit concerned with the demo Create a Sim. The game just didn't look the way I'd expected it to. But I shook off my trepidation, and told myself this was probably an earlier version that EA wanted to use as an example. This was true - there are, in fact, subtle improvements to the full create-a-sim that weren't present in the demo. That said, however, the improvements just weren't significant enough. There are an extremely limited number of options - even down to the color combinations one can choose per clothing article. With base TS3, even though there were very few available choices for content (just like any base Sims game, kids)... The possibilities were infinite - you could literally make a hundred (or more) different outfits from the same shirt, pants, and shoes - all dependent on what patterns/fabrics you chose for each piece. I could spend hours in TS3 perfecting my sims. TS4 takes that ability away, and now, while I like the more intuitive style of designing the actual sim, I spend about 5 mins finding a clothing combination I hate the least, before being over THAT hot mess.

    The career choices are wildly unrealistic - what happened to the cop, the doctor, the businessman, and all the rest of the "normal" career paths? I mean, come on. I like the amount of challenge that's been added into promotion - I always play my sims on prolonged lives, so promotions before were just way too simple. I can also appreciate the challenge added to the "major wishes" - and I especially like that they're now relative to the age groups and you can have more than one! It always seemed stupid to me that a sim would finish his or her lifetime aspiration as a teen (or child), and just be done with "it all"... So that's kind of cool. However, putting the same amount of difficulty getting a child's "promotion" or "goal" there as an adult's is stupid. Their age-up time is less.

    My final complaint, before I run out of characters, is this: TS4 just isn't as "immersive" as earlier base games in the franchise - the player just doesn't get sucked in the way past games did. In a running series like this, the games should be GROWING, always improving (and, you know... finished BEFORE release). My hope is that future DLC and updates will correct the glaring flaws, of which there are unfortunately many with TS4. The game has potential, and for a first-time indie game, or even an open beta, it'd be a great start. The problem lies in the fact that this ISN'T an indie game - EA and Maxwell have been doing this long enough at this point to have known better than to release an inferior product.    … Expand
  22. saris1
    Sep 10, 2014
    1
    This game is bad, bad, bad. It's basically nothing but a framework to add DLC to. No open world, no basements, no pools... no nothing. It's more or less the Sims 2 (base-game) with a graphical update. I'm still not sure if there is story progression in this game or not.... but from what I've experienced so far it doesn't really matter. Terrible and honestly I don't think that 'official'This game is bad, bad, bad. It's basically nothing but a framework to add DLC to. No open world, no basements, no pools... no nothing. It's more or less the Sims 2 (base-game) with a graphical update. I'm still not sure if there is story progression in this game or not.... but from what I've experienced so far it doesn't really matter. Terrible and honestly I don't think that 'official' DLC is going to make it much better.… Expand
  23. BillG08
    Sep 10, 2014
    7
    Before I get into the review I was to start by saying did not pre order and watched plenty of reviews, which were mostly mixed but being a fan I thought Id give it a go..Managed to grab it for £25 so not too bad! So I have had this game a couple of days and have already put 20 hours into it...If that doesn't say addictive I don't know what does! The new UI along with emotions multitaskingBefore I get into the review I was to start by saying did not pre order and watched plenty of reviews, which were mostly mixed but being a fan I thought Id give it a go..Managed to grab it for £25 so not too bad! So I have had this game a couple of days and have already put 20 hours into it...If that doesn't say addictive I don't know what does! The new UI along with emotions multitasking etc makes the game such breeze to play and feels so much more "real". The CAS is pretty good with many features available but I must say I'm disappointed at the lack of clothing choices but I'm sure knowing EA we will get more in 100 DLC packs...The Building is also really enjoyable as it offers new things for both new and old sims players; can be simple for new and advanced for old. I'm loving how the game is keeping up with the times with a great focus on tech even a TECH CAREER! :-) Sadly careers are quite limited and there isn't much choice...Once again more in DLC...The graphic style is another talking point and personally I really like it..I think of it as Marmite you're gonna love it or hate it. Most of the negativity I'm seeing is from people saying it's a step back..I personally see tons of potential in this game and look forward to the future. What am I not looking forward to is the fact a lot of things we hope to see will probably come in future expansions and DLC..I'm just hoping we get some free as EA is starting to take the P**s..I know Sims has always been about expansions but EA is terrible.. Worse company 3rd year running ? We shall see.… Expand
  24. thegadfly44
    Sep 10, 2014
    7
    Not sure why the score for this game is so low, I think it's fun and engaging on many levels. I know a lot of people are upset about some of the things that are "missing" from Sims 3 I guess I just don't miss them very much. I had no use for pools and the toddlers were annoying anyway. Though I do miss create a style, my score would be higher were it not for that missing.

    It's a Sim    Not sure why the score for this game is so low, I think it's fun and engaging on many levels. I know a lot of people are upset about some of the things that are "missing" from Sims 3 I guess I just don't miss them very much. I had no use for pools and the toddlers were annoying anyway. Though I do miss create a style, my score would be higher were it not for that missing.

    It's a Sim game, if you liked the previous installments you'll probably like this one too.    … Expand
  25. PHJ
    Sep 10, 2014
    5
    Innovate, innovate and innovate, that's what we've been wanting for a long time from Electronic Arts, the most surprising part is that it's clear that EA really tried to innovate the game, to imrpove the franchise, but they need to learn something with The Sims 4, you never change what is working, you only improve, that's what they didn't do and that's why Sims 4 may be weird, confusing,Innovate, innovate and innovate, that's what we've been wanting for a long time from Electronic Arts, the most surprising part is that it's clear that EA really tried to innovate the game, to imrpove the franchise, but they need to learn something with The Sims 4, you never change what is working, you only improve, that's what they didn't do and that's why Sims 4 may be weird, confusing, annoying and frustating for most of the players.

    The AI in Sims 3 was pretty good, the Sims answered nice your commands, they act like real people, so you never get tired of playing it, otherwise in The Sims 4 the IA is trully bad, the Sims took too much time to do simple things like eat, cook, take a piss and principally, they took a lot of time to change from an action to other, for an example, your Sim was playing on the computer, than you command him to go to the bath, he took almost 30 min (in the game) just to go to the f*cking bath, I mean, what?

    The game just stills with 50 out 100 by some nice improvements, like the Sim creation and the House Bulding, which are pretty improved and pretty good, the graphics are lighter, brigther and more friendly, ah, and the Sims emotions are better expressed.

    Conclusion, well, EA trully needs to learn how to improve in something.    … Expand
  26. The_Seaman_
    Sep 10, 2014
    2
    With the lack of content, and features that we are all familiar with the previous sims you can't call this a full game.
    Stay with the The Sims 3 or even better The Sims 2.
  27. gabnel1991
    Sep 10, 2014
    5
    I liked the graphics, they were ok and it seems they focused more on the Sims and their emotions and left out everything else.

    Create-a-Sim is great even though the color limitations for the items surprises me. The build mode is by far the best out of their make overs. It appears the NPC Sims do not evolve and everything else seem so easy. Basically it improved some of the Sims aspect    I liked the graphics, they were ok and it seems they focused more on the Sims and their emotions and left out everything else.

    Create-a-Sim is great even though the color limitations for the items surprises me. The build mode is by far the best out of their make overs. It appears the NPC Sims do not evolve and everything else seem so easy. Basically it improved some of the Sims aspect of The Sims 3 but fell short, excluding many good aspects of The Sims 3.

    With the exception of the emotions and multitasking everything else seems to have gone backwards.    … Expand
  28. dkakdkkskk
    Sep 10, 2014
    10
    I Love this game... The Best Sims Game Ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  29. Fist
    Sep 10, 2014
    7
    I have played this game for 87 hours already. I can say I have had a lot of fun playing this game. The game is additive like the other Sims version I played in the past. I think the key to having fun with this game is make quite a few Sims so that you have more of a variety of Sims to interact with. I would recommend this game if you haven't played the other versions in a while.
  30. WetPig
    Sep 10, 2014
    2
    I have played previous Sims games.Its sorta fells just like the sims 2.I liked sims 3 because on the new things it added but this doesnt add anything to the Sims games.And i fear that the DLC for the game will be even more than in the Sims 3 which was a lot.The game is OK but thats the problem.They could have made something far better instead of adding to the game they took from it.ItsI have played previous Sims games.Its sorta fells just like the sims 2.I liked sims 3 because on the new things it added but this doesnt add anything to the Sims games.And i fear that the DLC for the game will be even more than in the Sims 3 which was a lot.The game is OK but thats the problem.They could have made something far better instead of adding to the game they took from it.Its just not as good as the previous Sims games.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014
7
#7 Most Shared PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
70

Mixed or average reviews - based on 75 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 75
  2. Mixed: 42 out of 75
  3. Negative: 2 out of 75
  1. Cubed3
    Jul 23, 2020
    60
    While an enjoyable title that has been polished up and seems generally very modern, it cannot be expected that The Sims 4 is not going to be compared to The Sims 3. In this respect, it seems that while the game took a few steps forwards, it also took a few steps backwards by abandoning features that were very helpful and appreciated in the previous versions. It does have new features that people have been waiting for, such as emotions and more personality for the Sims. As for now, for some players it may not quite be worth to abandon The Sims 3 for it, but for new players looking for a first experience with the franchise, they may have an easier time navigating than former The Sims 3 players. People that have previously enjoyed the latter may be disappointed by the menus (Sim creation, building, or navigating town), as they have been so massively oversimplified that they are now actually confusing.
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  2. Pelit (Finland)
    Oct 25, 2014
    80
    The Sims 4 is once again a new beginning. Needs more content and soon, please. [Oct 2014]
  3. CD-Action
    Oct 24, 2014
    40
    The Sims 4 is just a foundation of a game. How would you react if you bought a new Elder Scrolls game and realized that half of the cities are unavailable (because TES6: World Adventures is around the corner), there are only 4 weapons (TES6: Accessories), you can’t ride horses (TES6: Pets), there are only 12 quests (TES6: Careers), 2 guilds (TES6: Friends) and 3 spells (TES6: Supernatural)? [Nov 2014, p.50]
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