Mods unscathed!

Written by Basemental

A new game patch was released 14 Mar that I absolutely expected would break my mods. Well…

My mods are all unaffected by this patch and thus did not require any fixing, repairing or nothing on my part.

It did break a few other mods, though. I encourage you to check out this list of broken / fixed / incompatible mods to see which works and which doesn’t, and remember to not play with this new patch and mods that hasn’t been cleared by the mod creators.

In case you missed it: Behind The Sims Summit

Written by Shunn

Phoebe Robinson hosted the much anticipated Behind the Sims Summit. Like Phoebe said, simmers have been waiting to hear how we can “exercise their inner sociopath” next.

Phil Ring, Executive Producer of The Sims 4, reminds us that the Sims 4 base game is free-to-play today. A “Play for Free” button is already up here:
https://www.ea.com/games/the-sims/the-sims-4

To the 50 million Sims franchise veterans: Let’s say Sul Sul to new players, creators, and modders joining us.

Teaser images show new gameplay to be season-based: Rise and Shine, Something to Celebrate, Summer of Sims: Stay Up, This Season it’s Light Out, and Summer of Selves. We know simmers are going to be rewatching and analyzing these images (starting at (9:26 –9:33 in the replay) for the infamous EA foreshadowing. Did we see dentures?

CC creators and modders will have a new platform to share their creations. Lyndsay Pearson, VP of Franchise Creative for The Sims, describes this new program as a “new, safe, and curated space” for mods and custom content. Pearson says we will hear more about this program and partnership with Overwolf around the holiday season. The announcement of the “modsquad” of creators from the Sims 4 community is another way EA is embracing player input in the development process.

Not everyone thought it was “simthing” to celebrate. Others were expecting something bigger, or at least more immediately playable.

If YouTube and Facebook comment are any indication, many simmers were expecting an outright, confirmed announcement of The Sims 5. Others suspect that “Project Rene” was a hint that Sims 5 is in the works. Either way, Project Rene is bringing advanced color wheels, patterns, and tools to reshape the items we spend hard-earned Simoleons on.

Pearson mentions we can choose to play or create by ourselves, or with others. Not only is being able to play with your BFF in the works, but we will also be able to play and create with them across platforms!

The Summit ends with simmers getting a sneak peek at a crawling infant sim being picked up by its mother. It looks as if our Mommy and Daddy Sims might be able to interact with their infants away from the cribs!

If you missed it, you can watch the replay here.

The Desert Luxe Kit won’t be free forever. It’s redeemable at no cost until October 17th. Kits will usually cost you a Lincoln ($4.99 USD).

The Sims 4 base game is going free-to-play on October 18, 2022.

This is a heads up in case you already didn’t get it dirt-cheap during a sale by now. EA’s 9/14/22 announcement said, “With The Sims 4 going free to play, our team is more dedicated than ever to developing new and meaningful The Sims 4 experiences for our players.”

For those of us fluent in Simlish, we know this translates to lots of money going toward packs, kits, and Sims Delivery Express drops.

Recent trends might just mean lots of new content made by talented modders and inspired by The Sims franchise veterans.

The new kit is available for PC and Mac via Origin™ and Steam®, PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One systems.

Wait, wait - back up: Prepare for updates!

Written by Shunn

If you’ve ever felt a little panic when you see UPDATE REQUIRED, you are not alone. If you are a mod user, how will you prepare for updates?

The upcoming Sims 4 Growing Together Expansion promises fundamental changes to the way we play. While Simmers anticipate the arrival of infants, mod developers are also expecting… to have their mods broken by the expansion pack and subsequently  have to spend the hours/days post patch in repair mode to get their mods working again.

Definitely get excited by the expansion pack, but also get your Mods folder ready so you don’t do irreparable damage to your saves after the pre-expansion patch drops the 14th of March!

  • Consider manual updates over automatic updates. In the EA game Launcher, you can toggle Sims 4 automatic updates ON or OFF. This will give you time to back up game saves and check if your favorite mods are compatible with new updates.
  • Back up your game saves! You can find them in your Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\saves. Put the slot files (ex: Slot_0000001f.save) in a separate folder on your Desktop or a flash drive. If your favorite family crashes with an update, you won’t have to plead to the grim reaper for your save file.
  • Delete the localthumbcache.package from the Sims 4 folder. This file might be holding on to old versions of mods or custom content that are no longer compatible and will cause issues with your game. In fact it is recommended to delete this file after making any changes to your Mods folder.
  • Move all your mods and cc from your mods folder into a temporary folder on your desktop. Most mod creators make post-update announcements on their website or Discord. Sims VIP also maintains a Broken/Updated mods list you might find helpful. Move mods from your temporary desktop folder to your Mods folder when you know they are compatible.
  • It is highly likely you need to re-download a lot of mods. Be sure to delete old versions of mods from your Mods folder when updating to the new and repaired versions.
  • Check the creator’s website or Patreon for announcements or to download the latest version. Some mod creators also have a Discord channel where you can check for post-update announcements and join the conversation about mod changes.

socially awkward!

Written by Shunn

The Sims 4 has given simmers the opportunity to follow their teen Sims into the most awkward, judgmental institution around: High School. What High School would be complete without socially awkward teens? We have EA intern Anna Machata to thank for the new “Socially Awkward” trait.  Testing out this trait was a wholesome, adorable way to explore the newest Sims 4 expansion. If you are normally averse to attributes that make socialization harder, being “Socially Awkward” is worth stepping out of your comfort zone. 

Socially awkward Sims get overwhelmed easily. However, this doesn’t deter them from wanting to tell everyone about their personality characteristic. The Sim may:

  • Develop the whim “Confess to Being Socially Awkward.” 
  • Open up to others about their uneasy feeling by being able to “Express Nervousness Around New Sims”.
  • Post about being socially awkward on Social Bunny.  The post narrative can be upbeat  or self-defeating. Here’s a hint if you are for more followers on this new social media platform: A positive attitude gets positive feedback.
  • Ask others for social advice. The reactions vary. The other sim becomes “Tense”. This will be followed by an eyeroll and the other Sim walking away. When Sims patiently stuck around to have a conversation, your Sim may develop a new Close Sentiment: I know They’ve Got My Back. 

It seems like there was a 50/50 chance of romance interactions landing. You can ask your crush or partner “Am I doing this right?”. If the answer is yes, your Sim will be Flirty and feeling encouraged by their partner.

The gameplay is full of props and perks for being open about anxiety. Venting to other Sims will decrease the time your Sim spends feeling “Overwhelmed” (Tense +1). While not every Sim will be understanding, these unique Sims receive nothing but encouragement from their main crew. Your socially awkward Sim can expect confident moodlets and supportive interactions when their squad is around. This is notably true if that squad member is also socially awkward (Sentiment: Two Peas In a Pod).

If you want to jump right in with a pre-made Sim, Kevin Puri is a teen with the Socially Awkward trait. Kevin is featured in the hype around the recent release of Sims 4: High School Years rocking a sweater vest. During gameplay, you’ll see Kevin at Copperdale High or at other venues around Copperdale.

This could be the beginning for more relatable traits that reflect IRL mental health struggles. The new attribute nails a step toward neurodiversity in the Sims 4 franchise the creator aimed for. You can read the interview with EA Intern Anna Machata and her experience developing the “Socially Awkward” attribute here:

https://www.ea.com/games/the-sims/the-sims-4/news/the-sims-4-and-neurodiversity

Are you on Discord yet?

In case you never even heard about it, Discord is an instant messaging platform. Users can communicate via voice calls, video calls text messaging, media and files in private chats or Discord servers. The servers are basically persistent chat rooms and voice chat channels which can be accessed via invite links.

Discord runs on Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Linux and in web browsers. As of 2021, the service has over 350 million registered users and over 150 million monthly active users.

Now that we got the wikipedia copy-pasta out of the way, why should you be on Discord? 

Mainly due to the Basemental Mods Discord Server, where you can get real time support, chat with likeminded people and get instant announcement regarding mod updates and other news.

What are you waiting for?

  • Consider manual updates over automatic updates. In the EA game Launcher, you can toggle Sims 4 automatic updates ON or OFF. This will give you time to back up game saves and check if your favorite mods are compatible with new updates.
  • Back up your game saves! You can find them in your Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\saves. Put the slot files (ex: Slot_0000001f.save) in a separate folder on your Desktop or a flash drive. If your favorite family crashes with an update, you won’t have to plead to the grim reaper for your save file.
  • Delete the localthumbcache.package from the Sims 4 folder. This file might be holding on to old versions of mods or custom content that are no longer compatible and will cause issues with your game. In fact it is recommended to delete this file after making any changes to your Mods folder.
  • Move all your mods and cc from your mods folder into a temporary folder on your desktop. Most mod creators make post-update announcements on their website or Discord. Sims VIP also maintains a Broken/Updated mods list you might find helpful. Move mods from your temporary desktop folder to your Mods folder when you know they are compatible.
  • It is highly likely you need to re-download a lot of mods. Be sure to delete old versions of mods from your Mods folder when updating to the new and repaired versions.
  • Check the creator’s website or Patreon for announcements or to download the latest version. Some mod creators also have a Discord channel where you can check for post-update announcements and join the conversation about mod changes.