A new Sims 4 update has added a brand new type of Scenario to the game which introduces new households, as well as a few bug fixes for the title. The Sims team has had a recently increased focus on the in-game challenges, with a new trend of increasingly creative Scenarios coming to The Sims 4 in recent months. This new addition is the biggest leap yet, although some players are disappointed the update brings few bug fixes to the game.
First introduced in November 2021, Scenarios are a new form of Sims 4 gameplay that gives players unique goals to achieve, often with a twist to make them more difficult. Scenarios have presented players with challenges like attempting to reach the top of the Culinary career track while having increased bad luck in the kitchen, or to get through the holiday season alongside a roommate they despise. Typically, these Scenarios have a few different possible outcomes, as well as a reward for successfully completing the Scenario like unique Sims 4 traits or Aspiration Points.
A large new update was announced by The Sims Twitter account this week, which linked to more detailed patch notes on the EA website. Scenarios are largely the focus of the patch, introducing a new variety called “Welcome Scenarios” which add entirely new households to the game. The update comes with three Welcome Scenarios: “New In Town” which introduces character Farrah Nouvel, “Stuck In Their Shadow” where fans will play as Nova, a new member of the Curious family featured in past games, and “Parenting Predicaments” which brings The Sims 3‘s Martinez family to the title. Farrah’s story focuses on working to build a name for oneself in a new town, Nova’s focuses on having to work with an enemy coworker, and the Martinez family Scenario sees parents Pablo and Jennifer trying to raise unruly twins.
New Sims 4 Characters Are Great News, But Not What Fans Want
While these new Scenarios are bound to excite many fans, there are many bugs from the Sims 4 July update that have seemingly not been resolved by this patch. In fact, in the list of 17 fixes for the base game, only five involve things that are not Scenario related. Thankfully a few important fixes for the High School Years Expansion Pack have been added, including a fix to the neighborhood’s lighting and an issue where Sims who graduated early did not receive diplomas – although it’s still unknown if the bug where the graduation event is never triggered is still present. The same can be said for a myriad of other in-game bugs, and in addition to the lack of fixes many fans are undoubtedly unhappy that the update has likely broken any mods or custom content they were using in-game.
It’s true that many players will be happy to start these new Sims 4 Scenarios, as they do add a welcome new twist to the Scenario concept. The inclusion of characters from previous games is a nice nod to long-time players, and it’s interesting to see known Sims make an appearance in The Sims 4‘s alternate timeline, particularly the fan-favorite Curious family. However, this latest update continues the Sims 4‘s pattern of adding new content rather than fixing existing elements of the game, which is incredibly disheartening for many players.
Source: EA, The Sims/Twitter