A new expansion pack for The Sims 4 launched on 16 March 2023, and thanks to the EA Creators’ Network, we got a chance to have a look.
This is a large pack, so we will be sharing a series of articles that talk about the various parts of the pack. Links to those articles will be found below, and I will give my overall impression of the pack at the end.
CAS and Build/Buy – All the clothes/hair and all the objects! (Article here)
Gameplay – Activities and Skills – Coming Soon!
Aspirations, Characteristics, and Conversation Preferences – Coming Soon!
Family Dynamics, Life Events and Keepsakes – Coming Soon!
Milestones and Infant/Toddler Quirks (Article here)
Exploring San Sequoia – Coming Soon!
Summary
Growing Together’s focus is on relationships – mostly family relationships, but also friendships. The new world, San Sequoia, is inspired by the San Francisco Bay area, which is where EA’s headquarters is located.
A new life stage – infants – was introduced in the 13 March game patch, and Growing Together expands a bit on them. Infants and Toddlers can now get quirks like “hates to be held” or “loves water”, which will affect how they interact with other Sims. Sims have conversation preferences and characteristics that change how other Sims perceive and interact with them. Sims will also experience Milestone memories like “First Kiss” and “First Breakup” that will affect their lives for a long time, if not the rest of their lives.
Families can now have various family dynamics. Close families call each other all the time. Difficult families fight a lot, and distant families mostly ignore each other. Parents can be strict or permissive, or somewhere in between. All these things affect your Sims’ day to day interactions. Is your Sim distant with their mother, who lives in that nice retirement village that you built over in Oasis Springs? Well, she’ll probably never call you. On the other hand, if they have the close family dynamic, maybe she’ll bring her suitcase and visit for a few days! San Sequoia is a gorgeous world, after all, with places to explore. Maybe she’ll see the crocodile in the lake! Hopefully not too closely, though!
Conclusion
I really like this pack. The style of the clothing and decor very much fits my personal preferred aesthetic. I am also liking what I have seen so far of the gameplay. If Sims are set up with lots of likes and dislikes (this takes some time to do, but it’s worth doing) then their interactions actually feel fairly individualized. Before this pack, it really seemed like if you have any two Sims converse, it was more or less just like having any other two Sims converse. The conversation preferences and family dynamics have really added depth to Sims in all worlds, not just San Sequoia. They’ve also added more conflict and opportunities for more drama, which I believe is a good thing.
Only you can decide if the pack is worth it to you, of course, but hopefully the information we have provided will help you make that decision.
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