The Sims is a massive franchise, as you know. But you may not know there are many other ways you can enjoy The Sims 4 even more by making some changes to the game itself and how you play it. So strap in and try these tips at home if you haven’t done so already.
Get Comfy When You Play
Staying comfortable when gaming is very important. Games like The Sims 4 often require you to play for a long time. So if you aren’t as comfy as possible, you can get nasty injuries like backaches, shoulder strain and even sore bum cheeks! If you don’t have a gaming chair (or The Sims 4 on console), you can plug in HDMI or SVGA cables to your laptop or from your PC to your TV if supported. This will let you extend the range of your play area to the living room couch or in your bedroom.
Enjoy The Sims 4 with Friends
The Sims 4 is played by over 11 million people all over the world. And while it hasn’t made the jump to an online game yet (as the Sims 5 definitely will be), you can still play with friends. For example, you can create a family together and take turns controlling them. Or you can just have fun watching them go about their lives like Big Brother. Additionally, you could make families, pets, businesses and homes for each other and upload them to the Sims 4 Gallery.
Get the Base Game for Free
If you are yet to discover the wonderful world of The Sims 4, you are in for a lucky surprise. EA has officially announced that the base game will be available to download and keep for FREE from October 18th. Yay!!! And this includes ALL versions such as PC, Mac, Xbox and PlayStation. So if you are at the right age to be able to play, or perhaps you have always wanted to try the game but never got around to it, now you have no excuse since it will only cost time.
Tune Your Graphics for Older PCs
The Sims 4 isn’t exactly a groundbreaking title when it comes to graphics. But that’s because they need to make sure the game will run for the largest number of people. That being said, it does have advanced graphics features that can ruin your experience on older machines:
- Lower the resolution to something your machine can handle.
- Turn off uncompressed textures and enable laptop mode.
- Set the image smoothing (anti-aliasing) to off.
- Change advanced features such as lighting to lower settings.
- Update your graphics card drivers to the latest release (important).
Switching some of these off will make the game look a bit poorer in terms of visual fidelity. However, what it will lack in visuals, it will make up for in speed. You might get better game speed but also quicker loading times. So no more waiting for those splines to reticulate!
Make a Sims-Themed Area
Gamers all over the world are known to create a cosy area for themselves as they play their favourite titles. And Sims gamers are no different. Fortunately, you can make it more Simmy with officially themed devices, t-shirts and other goodies. But you can also get a Sims 4-themed mouse and gaming headset package. Which looks great with some green LED lighting in your gaming area. Just make sure you can change to colour to match your Sim’s plumbob.
Get to Know the Different Areas
The world of the Sims 4 is big anyway. But it’s huge if you have multiple expansions such as The Sims 4: Cats & Dogs, The Sims 4: Snowy Escape and the latest, The Sims 4: High School Years. What some people miss is that each new world comes with a built-in story centred around the people who live there. And if you hover over the individual icons in each area, you get a blurb about some of the history, which can lead you to secret discoveries if you pay attention!
Challenge yourself
If you find yourself a little lost in the game, or maybe you feel like you’ve done everything (impossible!) find a challenge created by another Simmer and make that your purpose when playing. Don’t forget the many aspirations and other story guiders in the game too!
Take Breaks to Enjoy The Sims 4
Of course, playing The Sims 4 is like any other game, your body can become injured with repetitive strain injury. People all over the world suffer from aches and pains from playing for three days straight when a new expansion is released. So you need to look after your mind and body when gaming. Take a break every hour. And always make sure you eat and drink. Doing this will actually allow you to have a better gaming experience.
Summary
Believe it or not, you can enjoy The Sims 4 even more. Make a comfy area by extending your cables so you can play on the couch. Also, try switching certain graphics options on or off to boost your gaming and loading speed. And always take breaks for stretching, food and water.
Not a fan of The Sims 4? (Or do you have a love/hate relationship with it like me?) The Sims 5 could be right around the corner!
