The Sims 4 Reviews
A fair attempt to bring the game to consoles, although after first deleted save you'll probably move over to PC. It's still an amazing title full of content and challenges, but it's missing finishing touches in some crucial parts.
Review in Polish | Read full review
The Sims 4 will be worth it. Right now, it's too hamstrung by EA's need to make those expansions worthwhile to be a solid standalone title.
There is still something decidedly relaxing if not therapeutic about creating Sims characters and letting them live out their fanciful little lives in this virtual environment. And so there is still fun to be had here, but I suspect newcomers will be more accepting of what The Sims 4 has to offer than fans of the earlier iterations. Currently The Sims 4 feels more like groundwork that has been put down for future DLC packages. There is nothing wrong with that. Fans of the series have come to expect and even look forward to those releases because of the enormous amount of options and personality that they inject into the core game. However, The Sims 4 leaves me feeling like the potential for greatness is there, but at this point we will have to wait and see if it ever gets realised.
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.
The graphical staleness that is presented as an update, slight overhaul to building mode, and new sim creation system don't make up for the wholesale removal of content and features that are now expected to be mainstays of the series.
The Sims 4 is basically The Sims 3, but shrunken and sterile. While some tweaks and enhancements are nice, none of them can offset the overall lack of engagement provided, and the looming promise of DLC is no compromise.
The Sims 4 is just like a dollhouse: it's pretty and polished and there are all sorts of possibilities, but in the end, it's really quite empty.
The Sims 4 attempts to bring genuinely happy moments throughout your Sim's lifespan; occasionally, you will even find yourself smirking. However, those moments are quickly bogged down by tedious goals, a terrible HUD and menu navigation, and gameplay that is outright boring. Life events like a date or wedding put less emphasis on the occasion and more on completing monotonous objectives. These goals wouldn't be too dreadful if the commands given to the Sim would actually follow through. However, there were too many times where the Sim would completely ignore what I wanted them to do. All of these gameplay problems are bundled up in a poor performing port that chugs more than it should. The Sims 4 is an unsatisfying experience right from the start.
Only die-hard Sims fans should go anywhere near this and even then you should strongly consider sticking with The Sims 4 on PC — or better yet, The Sims 3.
The Sims 4 is a very complex game. This shouldn't be surprising, the series is known for it and the various possibilities in character creation alone more than indicate this. In the course of more than seventeen years a lot has changed, the AI is quite good and the possibilities, as said before, enormously diverse. Like in real life there are many connections to consider. If the player creates a lazy Sim, he shouldn't be surprised if he loses his job after three days. If the Sim is phobic about commitment, it will be difficult to start a family. After a certain settling-in period, not least because of the controls, the Sims are quite entertaining. The player can determine the characters and their actions himself and realize his fantasies in the game. Something to fight the Sims games always have with the extreme extent of the predecessors by numerous published extensions. For example, if you have played The Sims 3 with some expansions, you will miss some things in The Sims 4, although the basic game The Sims 4 itself offers things that were not available in The Sims 3. Nevertheless The Sims 3 was in some respects a bit more extensive and well thought out. But for newcomers Die Sims 4 offers a successful entry into the series, especially on consoles. The one or the other consolero might be overwhelmed by the numerous menus (in the beginning). But don't be put off, that's the motto here.
Review in German | Read full review
The Sims 4 is a beautiful new act in EA's popular franchise. Even with its controversial changes and missing features, I've never had this much fun playing with my Sims.
Superficially, The Sims 4 is the upgrade everyone wanted. It's prettier, rife with the possibilities only the fourth entry in a longstanding simulation series can provide.
Once I settled into The Sims 4, I discovered that I didn't want to go back to The Sims 3. This is definitely an upgrade, but with the small towns, loading screens, and all the missing content, it doesn't feel quite finished—it's like moving into a fixer-upper. After a bit of construction you might actually have your perfect house, but it's going to take some time and will likely be quite expensive.
In time, it may prove the definitive Sims, the last gasp for the series or anything in between. For now though, while its primary changes are good, the trade-off is hard to recommend.
Sim 4 has all the appetizers, but no main course. It may work for some, but it's just not for me.
Overall, I have bought and loved the game enough to continue to play. As a Sims fan from the beginning I may be disappointed with what we have as a result in the game but I still think it's something not to be missed in buying!
That was where I found that The Sims 4 sparkled – in the moments when I did nothing at all. And it almost felt insulting that the game didn’t exactly trust me to do anything. In passive view it is pristine, but the minute that I tried to do something it baffled, confuddled, and told me that I just did not have the skills to do things right.