Mods vs DLC - New to the game

[~WiFiEmoGirl~]

I played Sims 3 very long ago, is Sims 4 better with mods or DLC?
Reason I ask is the DLC seem to add nothing interesting for a high price.

Also is an EA account required?

[Mokum]

i always recomend seasons and tiny living
i would wait with mods untill you atleast played a bunch vanilla sims 4 + dlc

[~WiFiEmoGirl~]

Originally posted by Mokum:

i always recomend seasons and tiny living
i would wait with mods untill you atleast played a bunch vanilla sims 4 + dlc

Why is that? Sims 4 DLC seems way too expensive for little content.

[Unknownsurfin]

Originally posted by Perennial:

Originally posted by Mokum:

i always recomend seasons and tiny living
i would wait with mods untill you atleast played a bunch vanilla sims 4 + dlc

Why is that? Sims 4 DLC seems way too expensive for little content.

Many mods require DLC. Yes DLC is way too expensive for so little content.

[~WiFiEmoGirl~]

Originally posted by BlueInfinity-💖RIP Kentaro:

Originally posted by Perennial:

Why is that? Sims 4 DLC seems way too expensive for little content.

Many mods require DLC. Yes DLC is way too expensive for so little content.

What DLC should I get then? Considering I enjoy this game as much if not more than Sims 3.

[Angela]

Originally posted by Perennial:

Originally posted by BlueInfinity-💖RIP Kentaro:

Many mods require DLC. Yes DLC is way too expensive for so little content.

What DLC should I get then? Considering I enjoy this game as much if not more than Sims 3.

Look at the DLC descriptions and decide what you like, then buy that stuff.

Can also google the -DLC name- and "CAS items" or "build mode items overview" to get images of whatever items they included with the DLC mechanics.

[Xautos]

TS4 does get better with more DLC's, but mods are a personal preference as not everyone wants mods with their games.

however some mods can fix certain issues or help mod out certain situations within the game itself to make it more enjoyable, or can add a lot of content that EA would never go anywhere near because of TS4's rating.

[Sledge]

If you're going to get any form of DLC, then Seasons would be the go-to because it adds just enough to bring the game out of the dull, monotonous space it resides in with it's vanilla state, so much so that Seasons should be base game at this point.

After that, it comes down to preference.

As a parent, I went with Parenthood for more fleshed out interactions, discipline etc with your kids. This is probably the one pack next to Seasons I would consider mandatory but that comes down to if you wanna have households with kids. I don't always play them, but when I take a break from modded playthroughs (script-based) then I appreciate this pack more.

City Living adds some nice stuff and the ability to live in apartments. Cats & Dogs if you're into pets but it's more limited this time around on pet choice. Get Together is a good pack with a nice area, new clothes and the club system.

I also own Discover University but I almost never use it because it doesn't mesh into the game naturally or sims don't really talk about or develop aspirations / whims / wants about going to University for me.

Then, there's mods, many of which are very good, will "age-up" the game if you're into more mature themes and work very well with the core systems in the game. I can't really do TS4 in it's base form with just DLC, it's too zany and kid-friendly to me.

[Xautos]

Originally posted by King Arthur:

I can't really do TS4 in it's base form with just DLC, it's too zany and kid-friendly to me.

after my first 300 hours on the game in the middle of 2019 when i first started playing i couldn't take any more of that padded room and hand holding business, around the time i got my first dlc bundle, the expac was Get Together and combining the mod MCCC with Get Together, i made over 1,500 hours on that alone, it was just after 1,800 hours of play where i went for the next DLC bundle with the expac being City Living. Seasons came about 300 hours after this.

i'm about 13,000 hours into TS4 over the last 3 years and a half because i got the right mods and DLC content at the right time to get the most out of each. At roughly 30p per hour since i put in about £450 to get the DLC content over that time, that's not too bad considering the price tag that most complain about.

[ouenji]

One thing I know is that with neither, the game is empty as hell. Shame that never really got better since release, with all the substantial features being paid. Mods are really, really helpful when it comes to breathing life into the game, but you'll still be missing out without any DLC, imo. Though the price is insane and I hate supporting it; I already paid full price for this thing nearly a decade ago, I'm not giving them £800+. So uh, I've just installed it for free. It's stupidly convenient, and works with a legal copy of the game; online and all. If anybody reading this wants to know how, lmk. I'd just say it now but idk if that'd get me reported for promoting piracy lmao.

[~WiFiEmoGirl~]

Originally posted by King Arthur:

If you're going to get any form of DLC, then Seasons would be the go-to because it adds just enough to bring the game out of the dull, monotonous space it resides in with it's vanilla state, so much so that Seasons should be base game at this point.

After that, it comes down to preference.

As a parent, I went with Parenthood for more fleshed out interactions, discipline etc with your kids. This is probably the one pack next to Seasons I would consider mandatory but that comes down to if you wanna have households with kids. I don't always play them, but when I take a break from modded playthroughs (script-based) then I appreciate this pack more.

City Living adds some nice stuff and the ability to live in apartments. Cats & Dogs if you're into pets but it's more limited this time around on pet choice. Get Together is a good pack with a nice area, new clothes and the club system.

Thanks for the descriptions, seasons and city livings sound very fun.

Originally posted by Angela:

Originally posted by Perennial:

What DLC should I get then? Considering I enjoy this game as much if not more than Sims 3.

Look at the DLC descriptions and decide what you like, then buy that stuff.

Can also google the -DLC name- and "CAS items" or "build mode items overview" to get images of whatever items they included with the DLC mechanics.

I meant best DLCs regarding mods but thanks anyway.

[Angela]

Originally posted by Perennial:

Originally posted by Angela:

Look at the DLC descriptions and decide what you like, then buy that stuff.

Can also google the -DLC name- and "CAS items" or "build mode items overview" to get images of whatever items they included with the DLC mechanics.

I meant best DLCs regarding mods but thanks anyway.

What do you mean by "DLC vs mods" and "best DLCs regarding mods"? You mean like -

DLCs give ability to mods to do more things, obviously hardly anything for Bust the Dust apart from mods controlling dust accumulation, but for things like Seasons or Cats and Dogs or Get to Work mods exist to change a bunch of things there.

In short, bigger the DLC the more mods are made to control or change things for them.

But the biggest and most game changing mods change the entire game and not just some aspect of a DLC.

[76561198213095365]

A few things I want to point out.

Number 1, already mentioned earlier, but some mods may require dlc or else the specific type of mod will not work as intended.

Number 2, not all mods and cc are free that may cost money. Those types of mods and cc also cannot be updated automatically from Curse Forge, because of them being behind a paywall.

Number 3, some of the funnest mods may actually cause bugs/crashes even during gameplay such as the extreme violence mod for example.

Number 4, I would still recommend getting at least a few dlc packs including at least one, two, or three additional closed worlds depending on the world's size even with the use of mods/cc. Unless if it one of the biggest closed worlds on the game such as Windenburg or San Myshuno for example I would recommend at least two or three more closed worlds than basegame. Two or three extra worlds minimum (especially from at least some of the game packs and Get to Work) may be recommended because some worlds only have four, five, or six lots available for building on.

Number 5, some people may be content with only just a few dlc packs just as long as they are some of the best ones (especially Seasons, but highly recommended for getting this with a bundle instead of getting it as only an individual pack) and stop buying anything else from The SIms 4. Some of the most commonly owned packs from the gallery are Seasons, Get to Work, Get Together, City Living, Holiday Celebration (because it is free), and Cats & Dogs expansion packs in addition to Outdoor Retreat (despite the mostly negative reviews on Steam) mainly because of them being some of the older packs that are also included from some of the bundles.

[76561198213095365]

In reference to Yukimo's comment, Brichester may be have 13 lots and has mixed reviews, but Discover University is not one of the first dlc packs that someone should get even though I own this expansion pack and would recommend it as one of the later dlc packs in the game. Discover University does not come with a bundle either and only has a few lots that could even be considered residential lots instead of it being included as part of the campus. Discover University similar to High School Years and My Wedding Stories (which I only got because of the free dual weddings system mod in addition to me wanting more lots in my game) should be one of the later packs for someone to get in my personal opinion. If someone only wants a few dlc packs in their game contrary to me who owns most of the dlc in the game then I would not recommend any of these three packs.

[Xautos]

Originally posted by ღ𝒀𝒖𝒎𝒊𝒌𝒐:

always wait for sale and buy in "bundles" when able - Steam will still offer a "bundle" discount, on the individual item in your cart if you already own a DLC in an available bundle. ** Just to Clarify this point - I was referring to DLCs in general, some expansions may/may not be available in a bundle **

In addition to the suggestions made here <above> I approach it a bit different.

I added Seasons just because I wanted weather, but you also get holidays and a functional calendar year. (if that is something you want in your game)

Going forward I add/will add expansions to "expand" my World, specifically Residential Lots. The Base Game comes with (I could be sightly off my count atm but...): Willow Creek 16 Lots, Oasis Springs 16 Lots, and Newcrest 15 Lots. I am counting Residential Lots, but in some cases, if you want, you can change the style of Business or Park for example.

Newcrest is a blank slate so I just drop various buildings that I have created OR some from the gallery and then place my Sims OR let game decide who lives where (at least to start)

** BELOW - These are NOT in any order that I suggest purchasing, really just a list of some of what they ADD, with a few comments also **

Windenberg: 14 Lots (I like this World a lot, a small island area, wooded area, and town area)
San Myshuno: 18 Lots (however these are Apartments, Loft, and Condo) so a bit different/restricted how you edit/add.
Forgotten Hollow: 5 Lots (a vampire fan, but disappointed at the number of Lots, oh well)
Brindleton Bay: 11 Lots (big Pet area, but some nice looking areas, tress etc)
Sulani: 11 Lots (I like the feel of Island Living so this is High on my List)
Mt. Komorebi: 15 Lots? (Residential, Business, and Rentals)

...and the remaining

Glimmerbrook: 5 Lots (especially if you want Realm of Magic, Witches etc)
Britechester: 13 Lots total (Discover University) few homes & business and "on-campus living"
Evergreen Harbor: 7+2apartment lots (Eco Lifestyle)
Henford-on-Bagley: 12 Lots? (Cottage Living)
Moonwood Mill: 5 Lots? (not positive, but don't care for how the werewolves actually look, so this will be last, if I ever add this expansion. Also since it adds so few lots, like Vampires did... shrug)
Magnolia Promenade: 4 Lots total (boring, lol)


Not sure about the some of the others, yet. Reading forums it appears there are lots of bugs that still have not been addressed yet. For example:
High School Years, Copperdale
Wedding Stories, Tartosa (TBH, interested in style of this World)

There are also Destination Worlds
Batuu, Star Wars Theme
Granite Falls, Outdoor Retreat, 5 Rentals?
Selvadorada, Jungle Adventure, 4 Rentals?


...apologies for the long reply, but again, this is just my opinion and I am sure many other veteran players may approach it differently

<edit typos>
<added some clarifications, noted by "**" hopefully helps>

Total lots:
Willow Creek - 21 lots
Magnolia Promenade - 4 lots
Newcrest - 15 lots
Oasis Springs - 21 lots
Strangerville - 11 lots
Copperdale - 9 lots / 1 rental lot
Del Sol Valley - 11 lots
Evergreen Harbour - 9 lots / 4 apartment lots
Brindleton Bay - 16 lots

Forgotten Hollow - 5 lots
Moonwood Mill - 5 lots
Glimmerbrook - 5 lots

Windenburg - 27 lots
San Myshuno - 9 lots / 21 apartment lots
Sulani - 14 lots
Mount Komorebi - 11 lots / 3 rental lots
Tartosa - 8 lots / 1 rental lot

Britechester - 5 lots / 8 university lots
Henford-on-Bagley - 12 lots.

[~WiFiEmoGirl~]

Originally posted by Angela:

Originally posted by Perennial:

I meant best DLCs regarding mods but thanks anyway.

What do you mean by "DLC vs mods" and "best DLCs regarding mods"? You mean like -

DLCs give ability to mods to do more things, obviously hardly anything for Bust the Dust apart from mods controlling dust accumulation, but for things like Seasons or Cats and Dogs or Get to Work mods exist to change a bunch of things there.

In short, bigger the DLC the more mods are made to control or change things for them.

But the biggest and most game changing mods change the entire game and not just some aspect of a DLC.

Makes sense, thanks for a short simple answer.

Originally posted by davidnoble1996:

A few things I want to point out.

Thank you for elaborating on the topic. Are sims mods expensive? Are they actually worth the price? At times I see mods around $10 that add basically nothing,

Originally posted by ღ𝒀𝒖𝒎𝒊𝒌𝒐:

Very long reply. [/quote[/quote]

[quote[ [/quote] [/quote]
I usually always wait for sale anything regarding EA or DLC unless good price. Seasons may be the 1st DLC I get if I like this game. From what I have seen seasons seem like the best, although I feel like it should have been base game. Aside from that do DLCs like pets or expansions add anything actually interesting? Are there any DLC/expansion related to cities like NYC, SF, Boston? quote