Wow! I can’t believe it’s already September. Hard to believe that it’s already been three weeks since we were in Germany revealing The Sims 4 to the world! My favorite reveal to date has been the unveiling of the completely rebuilt The Sims 4 Create A Sim which we showed off at gamescom. In case you missed the news, it’s now more powerful and intuitive than ever before and allows you to create Sims in any likeness you wish.
I personally can’t wait to create friends and family members with more authenticity and accuracy than I’ve ever been able to achieve before. And lest I forget to mention the wonderful and amazing things I’ll make them do for my in-game Sim. I’m already imagining my in-game family and friends cooking dinner for me and abiding by the wants and demands that I will place on them. Mwahaha.
I know there are tons of questions out there about Create A Sim from fans, so I decided to ask Designer Nick Corea to sit down and give me the what’s-what on what makes Create A Sim in The Sims 4 so new and exciting.
SimGuruRaeEliz: So what’s new about this Create A Sim and why should we be excited?
Nick Corea: One sentence: You get to the fun faster!
SimGuruRaeEliz: OK, so what does that mean?
Corea: Simple. It means that Create A Sim has been completely revolutionized. Gone are the days of detached sliders. There’s no more guess work while inching a slider along to try and perfect that Grecian nose or master those big doe eyes. Now you can shape and mold your Sim just like an artist, by pushing and pulling directly on a Sim’s body and face. It is as if you are the artist and your mouse is your paint brush.
SimGuruRaeEliz: Can you walk us through the process of creating your own Sim in the new tool?
Corea: You get started in Create A Sim by selecting from a range of body shapes and faces. Once you’ve found a Sim that fits your vision, the real fun begins. Nearly every point on a Sim’s body and face can be fine-tuned. Imagine being able to look in a mirror and push and pull on your foot to create a desired foot size. It’s that easy.
SimGuruRaeEliz: Wait! Foot size?
Corea: Yes! The Sims 4 now allows you to adjust the size of your Sim’s feet. There are tons of new points on a Sim that can be directly manipulated. Some of our favorites include: chest, shoulders, thighs and, you guessed it, feet! In addition to the new manipulation points that can be adjusted on Sims, you can now select different facial structures for your Sims’ faces – allowing you to create Sims that authentically represent different ethnicities. It’s now easier than ever to sculpt the Sim of your imagination.
SimGuruRaeEliz: Or my future digital boyfriend? Eh!? TMI? Ok, but surely there’s more to it than that though. What about outfitting your Sim?
Corea: Well, we’ve been listening to your feedback and we’ve added a lot of great new ways to customize your Sim’s style and fashion. For example, in The Sims 4 you can add a hat to whatever hairstyle you like. Yep! No longer will your Sim be stuck with a hatless hair-do.
SimGuruRaeEliz: As a Simmer who has her share of bad hair days, I am beyond elated.
Corea: Simmer down there, SimGuruRaeEliz. There’s more to share! Additionally, we’ve added some really cool tech that improves the pairing of your Sim’s boots and pants. Now, skinny pants will be tucked into boots! And if you love those boots but want to dress your Sim in flared pants, those pants will automatically adjust to cover the boots to create a desirable look and style for your Sim.
SimGuruRaeEliz: If only my fashion was that easy to fix. Where’s my Create A Sim in real life?
Corea: We’re working on it!
SimGuruRaeEliz: With all this talk of new, new and more new, I’m curious if anything stayed the same. Is there is still an option to set traits and quickly create pre-made Sims?
Corea: Selecting your Sims’ traits is definitely still in The Sims 4. But there’s more than just that! In Create A Sim, you can now select a Sim’s walk style to go along with their personality, or not –you decide. Pre-made Sims still exists but have been improved. There’s a new feature called ‘Smart Randomization’ where individual parts of the Sim can be randomized. For instance, if you love everything about your Sim but are having trouble picking the right hair, you can now freeze all areas of your Sim except the hair and scroll through a series of options until you find the right one.
SimGuruRaeEliz: One last question for you. What’s your favorite part of Create A Sim?
Corea: There’s no question about it! I’m the most excited about being able to directly manipulate my Sims –it’s so easy and fun! Oh and the broad range of ethnic diversity is also something I’m very excited about as well. And I can’t wait to see what players are going to do with the facial structures.
Thanks for taking the time to speak with us, Nick. You took the words right out of my mouth!
We know you have a ton of questions about Create A Sim so be on the lookout for when we reveal more information on a Sims’ lifecycles and their genetics. And get excited because makeup and accessories are now smarter, too! Now to find a way to create a ‘Smart Randomization’ in my real life. Anyone want to help a fellow Simmer out?
