The Sims Team is back! And they’re bringing out the big guns with their latest expansion pack, Cottage Living! This newest addition to The Sims 4 lineup is bringing in new gameplay features, a brand new neighborhood and, of course, enough Build/Buy items to have you Motherlode just one more time. This pack may be bigger than some other we’ve received in the past, but it’s worth every bit. Finally, The Sims 4 has given us an expansion pack that feels like an actual game!
Story
For the most part, The Sims 4 has always been a game where you make your own story. You create a sim, pick a career, and then your imagination determines how much fun you actually have. While all that is mostly still true, The Sims 4: Cottage Living actually gives you some foundation for whatever story you come up with. That’s right: We’ve got LORE! I won’t give too much of it away, as the game actually makes it relevant as opposed to previous packs where you’d have to accidentally stumble upon content. What I will say, however, is that Mrs. Crumplebottom is back all the way from The Sims 2, and she’s come to stir some mess, so I hope you’re ready.
Gameplay & Mechanics
Where to begin? Let’s start with the new Hendord-on-Bagley neighborhood. As customary for The Sims 4, they don’t give us a lot of room to work with. Out of the 11 available lots there is only one empty 50×40 and two 30×20 starters. I would have loved to have the possibility of converting a 64×64 lot into massive farmland, but I guess the EA & The Sims Team wanted me to live a simpler, humbler lifestyle. This is evident by the new Lot Challenge system, which allows you to add as little or as many challenge elements to a lot, such as Simple Living, which only allows you to cook based on ingredients within your inventory. Some of the older lot traits like Off The Grid, Haunted, and Cursed, have now moved into this new Challenge Section, which allows you to stack them on top of your existing lot traits. As if running your own farm wasn’t challenging enough, you’ll have the option to add the Foxes trait to your lot, which allows foxes to randomly spawn and assault some of your smaller farm animals.
Speaking of animals, there are a handful of farming delights to smell up your farm. We’ve got Chickens and roosters, which can be acquired by purchasing a Chicken Coop, Cows and, The Sims mascot itself, Llamas! Raise and take care of these animals to gain sellable products for your Farmer Sim. There are also special rare feeds that you can treat your animals too, which can turn them into different types and yield different items. While there’s plenty to do on your farm, there’s also contests within the town where you can take your props and show them off, finally giving you a reason to get your sim out of their home and mingling with others.
Aesthetics & Sound
There isn’t much difference or improvements in the visuals of the games, but EA & The Sims Team put extra effort into making sure the animals you’ll be raising are as cute and appealing as possible. An effort was made here, and it shows. The Bagley neighborhood is an enchanting place to walk through from the small town mainstreet where events are held to the quaint farmlands that lead up to the beautiful waterfall, there are a lot of nice things to look at and plenty of screenshottable moments to be had.
Summary
This was honestly a pleasant surprise in quality. I was very impressed with what The Sims Team delivered and a lot of my faith has been restored in the franchise. It would seem that The Sims Team has been looking and listening for the fans; finally delivering something we actually wanted instead of another obvious cash-grab that nobody asked for. I’ve found a lot of enjoyment in the challenge lot traits and have created even more hours of gameplay for myself and my Sims families. While I am disappointed that we didn’t get a 64×64 lot, it’s not like I was expecting a perfect product to be released. There are also a lot more features within The Sims 4: Cottage Living, such as children now actually being able to do things that The Sims Team has improved upon that will enhance any simmer’s experience across packs.
Thanks for taking the time to actually listen to the fans. Please keep it up!
Check Out The Sims 4 Cottage Living Trailer:
The Sims 4 Cottage Living Expansion Pack is rated T for Teen by the ESRB and is now available for $39.99. Players who purchase the Expansion Pack by September 2 will also receive the bonus Gnome on the Go Digital Content. For more information about The Sims 4, follow @TheSims on Twitter and Instagram, like The Sims on Facebook, and visit TheSims4.com.
Related: THE SIMS 4 COTTAGE LIVING Expansion Pack Lets You Live Your Best Village Life
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As the (self-proclaimed) King of Casuals, I'm always seeking out new titles to play and experience across all platforms. Eventually, I have ambitions to take the many different styles of this medium to create titles that will wow the masses in fresh, innovative ways.
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