Thin Ice or Thick Gameplay? The Sims 4 Snowy Escape Expansion Review
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- čas přidán 12. 11. 2020
- Presented by EA Game Changers. My unbiased review of The Sims 4 Snowy Escape, Is this a case of thin ice or thicc gameplay? Let's have a look at Mt. Komorebi, the ski resort and snowboarding, and the all new rock climbing skill which you can use to climb a mountain. We also review lifestyles, a new personality-improving feature the community asked for. Is it what we wanted?
My main Snowy Escape page: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/ex...
Here are Lifestyles to help you decide: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/ex...
Snowy Escape Cheats: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/ex...
Support Me on Patreon: / carlssims4guide
Follow Me on Twitter: / carlssims3guide
All My Videos: / @carlssimguides
#Sims4 #TheSims4 #SnowyEscape - Hry
I adore lilsimsies enthusiasm, but when it comes to finding out if a pack is worth it you're the only opinion that matters.
Lol she almost went into cardiac arrest over platforms. Idk when she started playing sims, she's pretty young but folks who've been around since the beginning and older than say 15 have more realistic expectations & and harder to please, but in a good way
agree......when I watch other ea game changers its always oh this is the best pack ever....2 weeks later it all about what they hate. The fact the game is now crashing for alot of people its like they are not even testing the pack before selling it.
Couldn’t said it better myself. I really like her content but Carl is much more neutral when doing reviews
@@rachray83 what dya mean about the platforms?
@@kayk6330 like the floor levels, so you can make a split level
I always thought it was weird how neighborhood sims show up when you're on vacation, I took a vacation to get away from them.
I always delete (or kill) all of them when I start a new save. :)
@@lauriec7435
I like clean slate saves, but you'd still have the issue of your own Sims running around Japan and South America.
Lolol IKR.
I like it when 1 comes, but not all of them lmao
Imagine if that happened in real life, everywhere you went you saw the same 10 people in mildly inappropriate clothing...
They could have added ramen restaurants, anime channel, omiyage (gift giving) , etc. It's so annoying that japanese sims are not populating this world but they run rampant in city living lol..
They didn’t even add not ONE bar drink. No SimSake?? They could’ve done a Japanese market booth attached to a shell to sell snacks, just like in realm of magic with items. Missed opportunities.
Ramen restaurants you can kinda create yourself, gift giving already exists, anime channel wouldn't really add much and certainly not enough to save this expansion from heavy roasting but it would've been a nice addition. I would've liked to have seen something like Karate or Kendo classes that allow you to enter tournaments, drawing manga and making a living out of it, creating origami for inspiration you could also give as gifts, a proper sushi bar where you order food from a conveyor belt and watch your sim grab it as it goes past and chow down at the table, bonsai trimming and Japanese caligraphy for small profits or to just decorate your home. And for just a little extra on existing content a new addition to robotics to create Japanese inspired robots would've been nice too - I mean, who wouldn't like their own Aibo or Asimo? It's just so frustrating watching EA shoot themselves in the foot with each new expansion that fails to deliver due to lack of inspiration and too much laziness.
They needed traditional futon beds that get packed away during the day. That should have been obvious.
Tea ceremony could have been a perk too... and yes, kendo!
Well next patch after they add in another 100 dark skin tones and nothing else all we will see is black Sims everywhere diversity of Sims will forever be gone.
Other 5 bucks for add new feature.
The subtle zoom in on Nina Caliente serving you Japanese street food. In Japan.
I HATE that also
Nina Caliente is a weeb comfirmed
Soooo tired of seeing the same townies in every single world.
I guess you don't need a work visa and you can go to any food stand across the world and serve food in The Sims 4 xD
But yeah, i totally agree, Sims 4 out of wack spawn system is a huge failure...
I made a random crappy hovel restaurant run by the townies and one of the chef was that 5 star celeb Judith Ward who was turning greasy burgers xD
@@Yomens123 oh dear god but if it was more of a volenteer restaurant it would make sense cus it's like if Kanye West decided to quit the music scene and start working at mcdonalds
The most unfortunate thing about almost all of the expansion packs is the price. If this was like a 12 dollar dlc I think I'd be more forgiving, but its like 50 dollars (im Canadian) and it feels like a reskinned compilation of other packs. And for me that's not worth 50 dollars especially when I can get triple A games on sale for less than 50 dollars. I feel like the sims needs to rethink its pricing model. If packs were cheaper more people might not complain about them and might purchase them.
I do agree with you. Back here in Brazil, when launched, the EPs were 40 bucks (reais not dollars), the GPs 20 and SP 10. I didn't have to wait for sales I would just buy everything lol. Now that it cost double of the original price, I can only allow myself to pay when 50% off, which doesn't happen very often
Ok wait this has nothing to do with what you said but I’m guessing u play kingdom hearts cause same !!!
Just 💕 illegally download them. I payed 30 euros for the BASE GAME. Everything else I just downloaded. Sorry, but if I can buy the witcher + all the dlcs for less than 20 euros I'm not paying 40 for an expansion pack to a cashgrab game.
they are on sale 50% off all the time
Sims 4 is by far the most expensive game I have ever seen, just because of the dlcs. I live in Europe and in my part of the continent it's quite hard to find the game bundles or the multiple packs on any discount. I'm actually convinced that the people here want everyone just to pirate it.
Last time I was this early, I still believed that Sims 4 could be fixed
Ha.. holy shit.
ohhh boy
This comment wins today.
Oof
You were never early. We never had faith in Sims 4.
I feel like this pack has good aesthetics but the overall gameplay is still lacking. I like the new world, so beautiful. But just wish that there's more animations, retail stores where you could buy winter gears etc (even just a window that pops up which allows us to buy through different clothing and gears) and jobs in this world should not be rabbit hole. I probably would have to skip this one.
Sims 4 in a nutshell: beautiful, but lacking substance.
Youre never going to get that amount in an expansion pack sadly.
Unfortunately i have to agree... The world's ir pretty and the concept is kinda good because of the japanese culture but i wish they've picked something different then japanese because i would have rather had like a full on japanese related pack, since they have so much cool stuff and not even half of it is in this pack, it's so empty and boring looking to me i don't know why is everyone so hyped because i legit only see just cool concept of having japanese culture that's all... like we don't have futons, nor did we get a table and pillows to sit without the heating, no dojos to learn/do traditional music, dances,games, tea making, singing, potery, poetry, fighting styles and so on, nor a tample to play full on traditional with being a monk and a maiden any other careers like voice actors, manga artists, animator, become a master of something run dojo...new tv shows?sake?tea?katanas?makeup?jewelry?convenience stores? restaurants where the chef cooks in front of you and stuff?.. i could probably find more... i wish they just did the pack separately then merging it with snow stuff that i'm legit not interested in at all when we compare it to cultural things of japan, for me it looks way more interesting and more game play could've been added then ...snow stuff...
Yea, a Tea Ceremony would be nice, but that would require 3x EP worth of animations to do properly, so, yes.
It’s the biggest problem with the sims. There are things to do but it needs to be expanded for immersion and the AI sims needs personality. They’re literally walking robots.
Just a nit-pick: They really could've used the animation when taking off the skates from Seasons...I mean they reuse other animations all the time, idk why they didn't just do it here.
Exactly
Lazy asses
@@lishan4657 they never get a win. They get torn to shreds for reusing but now they're lazy. I agree the animation sucks but it's a double edged sword every time.
Better suggest it to a guru.
Tbh I’d prefer if they just did the standard “change outfit” animation rather than the mini whirlwind. That could just be me tho
This probably sounds weird but I wanted to thank you for always including subtitles to your videos, as a hard of hearing person this makes it possible for me to watch them! Which is great because your reviews are just the best! Thanks!
Not weird at all my little brother is also hoh and his favorite gamers have videos without subs so they’re are out of the question for him, which makes me so sad!!
I also love the subtitles, I do hear but english is not my first languge so the subtitles makes it easier to understand
I agree. I've just watched with subtitles too. I am Brazilian and sometimes the different english accents might be confusing in some words. I had to re-check what he said on the subtitles a couple of times but is always nice to keep them going on for an eventuality. It's my first video from this guy and he got my like. I will check a couple more and I might subscribe. We need more trustful independent comments on TS and it's packs. :)
I agree with you.i watch vids at night and can't make em loud or my mom will hear and confiscate my phone.thars why I love his vids.
Agreed, I have a really hard time understanding if I’m not able to also read
My main concern is that it might seem more like a game pack in terms of gameplay, and it does seem like they’ve essentially remixed features from several other packs. Also, I’m wondering if simmers will find the Lifestyle system to be robust enough to merit it being a main feature of the pack.
Thanks for your review!
Especially since Sentiments are in the free update
@@frenchbreadstupidity7054 Yes, and unless I’m mistaken, it seems like most other Expansion Packs come with a pretty sizable system that changes overall gameplay. From what I’ve seen so far, Lifestyles don’t seem to be that substantial...but I dunno. 🤷♀️
I bought it and so far it’s about Island Living levels of expansion pack. It’s a beautiful world with a lot to look at, and beautiful build items, but it’s def limited. Its not at the level of Seasons or Get Together.
@@alyalvarado1667 That’s what I was afraid of 😕. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on it!
I'm hoping the lifestyles and sentiments will be expanded on, especially to include animals. But honestly, who even knows anymore.
3:15 Unfortunately, the previous Sims games were FULL of little detail animations - like cleaning the windows (an idle animation) or getting in and out of cars! Even honking on the horn! (Side note: The Sims 2 especially had a bunch of "small detail" animations.) It would add quality to The Sims 4 to have a "taking off shoes" (and putting on shoes) animation, even if the shoes disappear as a result (although it would be EPIC if the same shoes appeared near the door, inside, and wouldn't block Sims' paths).
Good in theory but Sims 4 does this horribly. I loved the idea of multitasking, but my sim takes 2 hours to eat instead of 30 minutes like the old games.
Theyre so lazy, gosh
As cool as this sounds, I think it would lead to the game breaking/lagging more often than not, especially on something like taking their shoes off. The details from the Sims 2 are pretty cool tho, it would be nice if the sims 4 could utilize some of them, like the changing table or something
Sims 2 was the best sims imo and if it worked on my computer that's wat I would be playing. Sims 4 unfortunately is boring and buggy and is lacking so many fun features the sims 2 had. It's really sad.
The creator of Sims was involved with 1,2 parts. That's why they are the best, esp 2nd.
3rd part was paying tribute to his concept.
And the 4th one is pure mocking.
I seriously love how you aren't easily impressed with this stuff anymore. I know for a fact that if you're bored with a new pack, I will be too. No impulse buys till after Carl says its good
This is Sulani part.2,if you have this expansion and play in another world it will not make any difference on gameplay,maybe just a little because of the lifestyles. It's just a beautifull map that you come sometimes to have fun.
Yeah, I think so, "Snowy Sulani".
I agree with people losing interest in 2 to 3 hrs of gameplay . How I play it is that I don't play for the sake of one pack that's just been released. I play it like a lifestyle type of thing meaning id use the new features of the new pack while proceeding with my Sims life with other packs .that way I don't get bored quick . I'll only use this when I feel my sim needs a vacation
I think this is how most people intend to play it lol
That's cool. Seems like a good strategy for getting some more replay value for a time. Many of us find it hard not to dig in with so many hours in the game (and you may as well) but it's cool you've found something that gives you some more value.
@@CarlsSimGuides yeah ive tried before to play it focusing on one pack but it never worked out for me and ofcourse the game still lacks alot of things so that people spend more hours and have fun
That's how I do it too
I mean like the first person said I think this is how it's intended to be played lol
Everything they release shows me how incomplete this game is. This isn’t worth $40. The could’ve just released this as a part of seasons or something. There are so many packs they could’ve merged together and actually made something worth wild instead of selling incomplete packs just to make bank.
I usually wait for the pack to go on sale anywhere so
@@trublacking8572 Same here but I shouldn’t feel like it’s only worth my money when it’s on sale, ya know? The sims 3 was so amazingly packed with things to do that it was hard to get bored. The only mods I used were CC. I didn’t bother figuring out what script mods were until the sims 4 came out and I’ve been a fan of the franchise for years. With sims 3 it just seemed like they were onto something amazing and the bar was set so incredibly high that this is just saddening. I didn’t expect it to be the sims 3 but I didn’t think it’d be this bad either.
@@ArianSage yeah the sims 3 dlc packs were just as pricy if not more, but it really felt like you got what you paid for. Every ts4 expansion feels lacking and just not worth it, even if there's a nugget or two of it that feels worth it.
@Sergeant_Smidget But this is how EA does things. They give you half of an expansion and give you the other half at full retail under a different name. I wouldn't be surprised if in a years' time we get another Japanese inspired pack that has all the sushi bars in it.
Spooky stuff, realm of magic, vampires, paranormal, and luxary party stuff should of just been one pac
Coming from a shoes off country I appreciate the shoe feature.
I just wish they included it on the free patch
Same here. Sims, hanging out inside of the houses in their shoes, made my eye twich...
@@eva-charlottalisander841 i know right! Always when I build hoses I make a place for them to take of their shoes. So nice they can actually take em off!
Sadly it's glitchy and slightly broken. There have already been cases, where the Sims don't put their shoes back on or have to be reset because they are stuck in a loop taking of their shoes.
@@12wer3wer9 as expected, wich is mighty sad
I’ve always said that Jungle Adventure was seriously underrated for a $20 game pack compared to many of the other packs. Even more so compared to this, which is a similar level of content for double the price.
I’ve had that one for months now but haven’t even bothered because the gameplay. I mostly use the packs I buy now for CAS and build and tho I’ve improved greatly in both areas, it’s not the reason I initially fell in love with the sims. Sucks, I miss the gameplay of the sims 2&3.
Putting Lifestyles behind a pack is lame regardless of if you buy it or not. If you ever decide you don't want to play with a pack you have to take in to account the fact that you are stripping a piece of your sim's personality away. No interest in skiing? No personality for you!
It'll probably be player-dependent. If people really like the feature, it will get expanded.
The key to remember is mods, though, because smart modder's can take/run with the idea to add any desired depth.
@@TheGrandAlliance i just got chills
@@TheGrandAlliance
That's been the case with Get Together's club system. They might add some stuff here and there, but for the most part you're reliant on mods to add new activities.
Even if you are new to the Sims 4, I don't know how you could ever justify the pricing of these packs to yourself (51.99 here in Canada for this pack is UNREASONABLE. Sorry not sorry). It's been said before and I'll say it again: the Sims team is trying to fit too much into game packs, too little into expansion packs, and have not produced one worthwhile stuff pack to date. When did it become so hard to just fully commit to an idea or theme and flesh it out properly? Don't get me wrong, the personality updates should absolutely be free, but if you take them away from everything else that was announced for and released in this pack......H O W can you say that this is a good and complete expansion at that price? This would be a bit more marketable to me as a game pack. I appreciate the new aesthetic and culture we get in game from the hood, but still, those aren't even explored to their full potential (ex: HUGE ball drop on not putting small apartments in a Japanese inspired town). And sentiments will never be able to fix the fact that our sims are empty shells. After Batuu it's hard to say that this isn't an improvement, and we can see where the sims tried on this one, but it's still only a tiny step in the right direction imo. It just breaks my heart to see this game falling short with every update. I really wish EA would rethink their strategy for making packs going forward :(
Sarah - have you tried purchasing from CDkeys? I’ve bought plenty of packs from there for years without issues,even did a few giveaways. I was able to get this one for $11 cheaper for what’s it going for origin. Even at that price tho, I’m disappointed with the pack.
Paralives: *announces taking off your shoes will be a basic part of the game*
Sims 4: Hey look! You can take off your shoes now!
You can't even take off you shoes in ts4 XDDD it's more like you can make them disappear in the awful animation
@@lishan4657 Yeah, it's more like:
Paralives: announces taking off your shoes will be a basic part of the game
Sims 4: It's on! We'll make your sims' shoes disappear!
Not knowing about the 'no shoes indoors' feature at first, I had no idea what was going on when I first saw that little whirlwind animation around their feet. Like, I thought it was a glitch, it was so bad. They really couldn't add in a single animation showing sims taking off shoes? This is an expensive pack made by one of the richest game studios in the world, lol.
I just can't believe I preordered this pack days ago but, can't play at all due to the patch update! The Sims says we will fix it next week! And thanks for your patience! Um bite me EA! You suck!
I heard people saying they had trouble! Sorry to hear it... hopefully the fix comes quick.
Wow that sucks, I'm definitely not buying it now
At least they are fixing it .other games end up leaving it as it is
@@Cibbic Ehem.. Bethesda lol.
@@Cibbic True👍🏻
I think it really shows how thin this pack is when they list both building and sentiments in the pack features.
I find Rotational Gameplay keeps things pretty fresh. I’m not playing the Sims for 1 pack. I’m paying for the culmination of all of them.
Turn aging off for I played households, rotate families every in-game week and do something different. Don’t raise a household. Raise a town. It’s fun!
Yeah i agree thats the only way i can play S4 now.
You also have to pay for that culmination...a lot of money. I'm not willing to spend hundreds of dollars on a game to make it slightly less lack luster. But happy that you've found a way to make it fun for you!
Same. I usuallly start with one family then follow siblings as they start their lives and extend our to their good friends (give them makeovers and back stories) and continue generations on from there. I've had one save for the past two years and I know most everyone (whonisnt homeless). Starting a new save now because the save is too large. You can mix it up by adding characters from your fave TV shows and movies for potential partners and friends .
I agree. I’ve essentially become the god of my town. I have only 1 save and I control every little detail for every single household. Since there’s no story progression, I have to do it myself or else I get bored.
Honestly making over the whole town is a great way to be the dictator of the sims. I’ve been creating a large save file where everyone has random relationships with neighbors and such, plus different skills. It’s a great way to rotate around the town while making large stories. Fun part is that save files take so long that by the time you start to catch up, more packs are released.
Wherever the world you are, the stall owner mostly belongs to Caliente, Pleasant, and Lewis clan.
You can assign sims as maids, stall vendour with cheats only.
After LGR seemingly quit everything related to the Sims 4, I'm solely relying on Carl for TS4 reviews now.
Me too. LGR and Carl are the only ones I trust
LGR didn't quit everything to the sims 4 he only didn't do the star war pack he is making a review on this pack currently check his twitter
@@SomebodyWon I've zero interest in social media, but I'm genuinely glad to hear the news. Appreciate the heads-up!
Same. And I don't even play this game.
@@SomebodyWon I'm glad to hear he will be reviewing this pack. I don't play Sims 4, anymore, but I do listen to the reviews and I hope the game gets better for those who still play it, but I don't have a lot of hope with the repeated patterns I keep seeing with EA.
Is it just me that legit don't get the point of the lifestyles? when i said i want sims to have personaliti, i did not meant to add traits that we already have as lifestyles that adds more depth to the traits we have... i ment add a legit aspirations that are not tutorials, FIX the traits like add few more slots , do more traits and make them more meaningful, we could legit just have traits do the same thing as lifestyles... why add more thing to be annoyed by ... i legit don't get it ...
I cannot understand why they haven't just copy the trait system from TS3, it was so workable, so exciting. And lifewishes as well. Ex. Gold digger. And now what? Thieves or gold digger may hurt someone's feelings, really EA?!
This pack looks a bit disapointing again. I mean the gameplay looks interesting but i'd be sick of it in 2 hours just like with earlier pack and this was my last look at this game... I am honestly giving up on TS4.
What new gameplay? Aside from skiing, snowboarding and sledding, this pack doesn't add much else in terms of gameplay. Its just another pretty world with unusable set-dressing. Its getting tiring.
@@digitalgloop12 It still LOOKS interesting but is most likely boring af after 2 minutes.
As i said i have given up on the game.
I gave up a year or 2 ago... Zelda botw gave me 10x more satisfaction than every sims 4 pack put together and it’s the cost of around 2 sims expansions...
@@Pippemi I'm playing Sims 3 and 2 more.
Bye see ya
I really, really enjoy the aesthetics of this pack. The clothes and build and buy items are just my style and I love the theme of Asian culture. But I feel the gameplay is lacking. Yeah you can go sledding and hiking, which is cool, but I feel like once I do these things a certain amount of times I’m gonna get reallyyyyy bored. I think overall this is a very good pack though. I feel like they met many simmers expectations. I also enjoyed how they collaborated with the community for the creation of the pack and I look forward to seeing it again. I’m also reallyyyy debating on buying this pack, I have city living already which I personally think is pretty similar to this pack.
Once LGR lost enthusiasm for reviewing sims 4, I lost all enthusiasm for the game. Now, you're the only reviewer I watch concerning the sims.
I saw someone say LGR isn't quite done yet, he was just skipping that star wars pack! I think he's working on this pack right now.
@@CarlsSimGuides hopefully you're right
Just curious if EA gave credit to Kawaii Stacie for the "inspiration" to make Lifestyles after seeing her 16 Personalities Mod 😂
But seriously, I wonder what the difference is between their Lifestyle system and her Personalities Mod. So far, all I can tell is that Lifestyles come and go depending on what you do, and her Personalities are more hard-wired (because...personalities, lol). But I'm not a modder, so I have no idea.
Im 90% sure the "putting up signs to control sim behavior" thing is originally from WW lmaoooooo
Going on past experiences with EA, I'll be sticking with the mod, if its updated lol
I was thinking the same thing. I just recently started to use mods, the lifestyles reminds me of the personalities in SOL. I only buy sims 4 from build the bundle option so not getting this pack anytimes soon, but seems neat enough.
@@jasmineparisttv She knocked the update out super quick. Just make sure it's Slice of Life 4.7.0.
@@illiciumverum6149 Seriously? Like, did they nerf the way they did celebrity status from him?
I don't have Get Famous, so my only experience is from Sims 3 when it comes to how EA does fame.
I do like the idea of this pack, and the features seem good. But I imagine when/if I get it, it'll be the same thing: I'll play it and love it for a few hours, then get bored, and at most, use some build/buy objects in my more normal game, or use it to spice up various challenges like legacy challenges. I just can't stop preferring Sims 3, but by Sims 4 standards this seems good-ish.
Edit/PS: Am I the person who finds it strange/funny that Paralives started out with the idea of having a "no shoes in the house" rule whereas it took The Sims this long to do it? It doesn't seem like that hard an idea. I guess it is pretty niche though.
Because Sims 4 is American Middle-Class Family Simulator? I’m quite sure that someone from the Paralives team is Asian, as he is the same dude who helped make PewDiePie’s game.
There is no way the Sims team was going to make a Japanese inspired world and not add removing shoes inside the house. Idk about Paralives but this is about Japanese culture not a contest between games.
I mean... The sims is American based. A majority of Americans don't take off their shoes upon entering a house, so I can see why they didn't include that until an Asian EP
@@AmaHeart Yeah, as I said, I think it's a really niche thing for the general American audience. I just thought it was funny that Paralives mentioned it so quickly. Besides that, I think there are Americans that do the "no shoes" thing because of carpet, but I think they're usually a bit more upper class.
But yeah, an Asian-themed pack using the feature makes perfect sense.
@@AmaHeart Hmmm America is a varied place my friend. Asian Americans live here and I have many friends who are Americans and when I go to their homes, I take off my shoes.
The review that matters! Thanks Carl!
Also, the gameplay is only a one time thing, at least for me, just like any other packs. After you go through all the quests like climbing mountain and practicing your skiing and rock-climbing skills, its just going to be repeating the same thing over again until your sims get better at it. I guess it's not the pack's fault, it's just the whole sims game needs be revamped.
I dont understand why they dont have free walk mode yet.
Also during walks things should randomly spawn into wilderness that you can observe to gain rewards or familial bond.
It's The Sims ...what do you expect?
overall my feeling on this pack is "doesnt blow my mind, but has some nice stuff" i guess journey to bantuu didnt set a high bar either though. still i dont think ill be bothering to reinstall sims 4 just for this... and i have to admit i kind of cringed when i remembered this is $40...
Its 50 in Canada smh :/
Just wait until the sale next month. TS4 Eps are never worth 40 or even 50$ uff...
They did it on purpose, they knew bantuu was gonma raise many eyebrows so they waited and released snowy mountain after the bar was set low, its just a strategy
It's just not worth the price for me... I see people play it and I'm like yeah it looks quite but it's just not expansion pack worthy. Where's the extra gameplay? I know i'd get bored after a few hours
@@lidac.wurschmidt8955 exactly. And this pack being nothing special, yet still being labelled as an EXPANSION pack keeps the bar low. If they included so little content in an expansion pack, think how much content will be in their next smaller game pack?
This is why I rely on you. The trailer looked pretty thrilling and I was gonna buy it today, but after seeing your review of this just being reused packs and no change to gameplay, I'mma have to reconsider
Maybe when it goes on discount I'll buy it, but this EP doesn't look all that entertaining
Same, I may get it on sale for building but thats it.
The idea sounds great: A map setting in Japan with Japanese culture and aesthetics, climbing up mountains and surviving harsh conditions, and new lifestyles. And yet, they all seem to have been implemented poorly, such as how you describe that climbing a mountain might take time, possibly days, but was in fact the complete opposite.
I finally have a reason to use socks other than pj's or swimsuits
You wear socks with swimsuits? 🤨
^
2:53 ok.. so nina caliente open her brand new business instead of send bella goth to the moon
Uff hate that. I'm sure Nancy Landgrab is also there somewhere. 😒
I've found cheats to assign sims npc's such as maid, stall vendour, etc. Life without them now seems impossible!
the onsen are literally just a wider hot tub, they even used the same animations for it
the stuff that made me consider this pack was all stuff that actually came with the free basegame update. maybe i'll consider it when it's on sale
I think I will get it, but definitely when it's on sale. I want the setting, but it doesn't look worth more than a GP.
Locking away lifestyle... some thing that deepen your sims personality, behind a paywall is beyond outrageous...
They could had easily added Lifestyle to the base game and get some extra one specific to Snowy Escape or other packs instead of locking the WHOLE system behind a 50$+ pack...
the thing that caught my eye about the 'create your sanctuary' part is that they re-used the wellness skill logo. just another aspect of the spa day pack that they recycled here :///
I have a lot of these other packs, but I never use Jungle Adventure because I’m mostly a family player. This pack provides family fun. I grew up sledging every year and it was exciting for me. Now I can take toddlers and kids sledging like when I was a kid! As a teen I grew to enjoy snowboarding and I loved my trips to snowboard. Plus the hiking animations and stories make it fun. You can talk to each other and take pictures like a real vacation. I’m so excited to play this pack!
I wish the sims team put this much research and outside input into the other packs.
I love that you can finally take off your shoes, as Scandinavians also don't wear shoes inside. I didn't know until a few years ago that some countries actually wear shoes inside, so i always found it odd before when they had shoes on while not being outside of the home. It is nice with some more adaptability to match your own culture more.
@Alika Fifi if they did, I would be kinda happy. But they didn't. That awful 'animation' or should I call it no animation grr looks hideous
My game crashes after the update that was larger than the exp lol
Sad to hear about the crashes. The size of the patch vs DLC is not too surprising :/
@@CarlsSimGuides ugh. The last patch really helped rid me of a ton of bugs that made the game unplayable. With the crashing now I just make sure I save often, ots annoying but I'm sure I'm not the only one and itll be addressed soon
Have you tried switching to offline mode in origin? I saw someone recommend it on Twitter and was skeptical but it actually stopped the crashing in my game after the update. Worth a try! Could play normally but I was still saving frequently out of fear.
rachray83 Yes OMG! My game is unplayable now because of the crashes.
If you have mods, lilsimsie said it would crash:/
You mentioned there not being paces to explore in the neighborhoods when you were in Senbamachi. You bypassed the temple, bamboo Forrest, and caves there lol. The festival of Light works like city living tbh.. but there was a tanabata tree there to make wishes from which creates a sentiment if you make a wish with another sim. Out of all the festivals the Festival of Youth was my favorite because you can go on a Voidcritter hunt! I do wish we got better aspirations because a lot of them feel like tutorials 99.9% of the time lol!
But you the temple isn't even clickable. The bamboo forest is a quick walk. Are you able to get in the caves, or just shout in them? Because that's all I've seen.
Been Waiting For Carl Review On This ~ Worth The Wait
Thank you!
Yea me too I won't buy any packs without a carl review tee hee
This pack is the first pack for a while where I really want to buy it (once it’s on sale!) haha
The build and buy I think is awesome.
I love the Asian theme through out.
I bought it through CD keys. It was £21.99 😏
I’m sure around Christmas or new year it will be 50% off. For £15, yer I’ll get it lol
not gonna lie, i dont even see the point on holding on to TS4. they just....cant fix it. its sad. back to TS2 i guess
And 3 for me. Strange that such old games still hold up compared to 4. It's not just nostalgia. They are just more fulfilling games. 🙌
TS3 is my favorite game of the franchise. I was so excited for Sims 4 when it came out, and I think CAS and build mode are awesome... but the game play is just really bad. It doesn't hold your attention. I find myself going back to TS3 every single time. I just feel so much more involved and interested in the lives of my sims there instead of in TS4.
i do think most of the problems stem from the fact that it started as a multiplayer game, then simcity failed and stopperd the multiplayer part. but instead of restarting from scratch, they build opon what they had, thats why we have such small maps, all the loading screens and them having difficulty getting basic stuff in, the core was build for multiplayer.
All recycled content in this pack:
Festivals - city living
Rock climbing - fitness sp
Bushes - get together (also jungle adventures, cats and dogs, island living)
Tents - outdoor retreat
Bonfires - outdoor retreat (also get together, island living)
Lockers (that open) - spa day
Onsens (partially hot tubs) - perfect patio sp (patched on 20 years anniversary).
Snowing, snow fights, snowmen - seasons
Bugs and repellents - jungle adventures
Food stands - almost every ep starting from city living (eco lifestyle, cats and dogs, university, seasons, island living +jungle adventures, strangerville, realm of magic)
Eating with chopsticks,, chopsticks progression, chopstick savvy reward trait - city living
Hiking - outdoor retreat
Ice cream - cool kitchen
feel free to add more
Tents aren't in Jungle Adventure; as someone who has JA but not Outdoor Retreat, it sort of limits what you can do with JA.
I have to say I really like the food stands, though. The more the better. Love the ones that came with Seasons.
@@Oscitant_Otter ok i fixed it
You could also add the spirits, because they used that idea in University.
The sims team: sims should shower before entering the Onsen
Also the sims team: sims can woohoo in the Onsen
I know it's a game buuuuuut gross much ? 😂
Sims team obessed with whohoo 😔
Onsen*
@@Momo-po5tn
Every pack must have a unique death and unique woohoo.
Sims has turned me off hot tubs for life, though it’s the most realistic part of gameplay
@@Smulenify yeah me too haha!
Resort is one that was highly requested as well. Rental is the very watered down version of that so I don't think they will ever make resort. It would be really nice if they do 😂
This is another glorified Game Pack with an EP price tag. Just what the stalest game of the franchise needed!
It's at the point where I'm looking at the new features and all I can think is, "I wonder what the modders are gonna make with this". Not, "wow, this adds a lot to the game" or "wow, that looks like so much fun, I can't wait to try it". I was excited when this was announced but I held off and I'm glad I did. Forget it, I'm playing TS3 again and having more fun than I've had with the Sims in years. It's clear that no shiny bandaids are going to make TS4 interesting at this point and if EA doesn't care, why should I?
i loved this pack,it will go great with my family gameplay style,i don't expect super different things since I don't like doing crazy things with my sims,but I wish hotels came with it,cause it would expand the gameplay in all world's
BTW... where's the family from the trailer? They even not available in the game anymore... not like those gamepack such as eco-livestyle, realm of magic, vampire, island living....
The lesbian couple? They're not in the game?! You can't be serious...
@@frenchbreadstupidity7054 they’re not. You have to get them from the Gallery...
@@MsBabbi you mean in here?
www.ea.com/en-gb/games/the-sims/the-sims-4/pc/gallery/browse?category=all&searchtype=ea_origin_id&sortby=newest&time=all&searchquery=Maxis&max=50&maxis=false
there's no one yet in there from snowy escape
@@EroDhika I dunno, I saw someone post that EA would upload them to the gallery themselves, like they did the girl from Journey to Batuu, supposedly
@@MsBabbi ok.. remember me if the household available in the gallery, thanks before
Always look forward to your review. Although I don't intend to buy any more sims dlc, it's still lovely to see your review and get involved in the community after having a long, hard day :') Stay safe Carl!
i like the little nod to sims medieval in that gachapon machine and the grim figure.
the lifestyle thing just feels so... well stripped down, i think the free update sentiments and lifestyle were ment to be a singular feature going hand in hand but someone decided to pull them apart to give it a price tag, not only that but it also does exactly what i hate in every single addition to the aspiration or individual impact. CRUTCH ON MOODLETS. and not even in a great way.
i for example would have made say as an example a "genius" lifestyle that when you go deep into it you unlock 2 abilities on a cooldown that are in the mean and friendly list (or special), the mean interaction would be "Superior Intellect" which if the target sim does not have the following traits: Genius, Geek, Perfectionist, Paranoid or goofball (cant confuse someone who cant understand) or a +7 in logic they are given a strong +5 dazed state for 2hours that increases their social and fun decay but if they have the following traits the user takes a +3 angry moodlet for 2 hours called "out smarted" that slows fun gain and takes a upfront hit to fun.
the friendly side of things would have the "Knowledge is power" that gives the sim a +3 fine moodlet that buffs skill gains and lowers fun decay for 5 hours but if they have the Genius, Goofball, Paranoid, Perfectionist or Snob traits or have +7 Logic they will consider the help an insult and become +3 angry for 5 hours and make the user +3 embarrassed for 4hours with a higher social and fun decay and slower gain.
i mean its not a great idea but it will make lifestyles feel like they have an impact, imagine playing as a sim working from home as a handiness DIY furniture seller with the genius trait and your rival who happens to have the genius lifestyle comes along and tries to confuse you with to much information but being a genius he ends up making himself look dumb and storms off in a tantrum. it might not be much but it would be the little things like those that would increase how "lively" the sims world feels.
point being the world is the saving grace for this pack in my eyes and sadly gunna wait for it to go down in price same with eco friendly pack, this IS an improvement over the... batuu pack but its still kind of lacking for its price tag :(
Carl is the only real one when it comes to pack reviews. I only trust him
I think the last time I was actually excited about a DLC, was Seasons. To be honest, nothing excites me anymore when it comes to The Sims 4, not even a free update, or a new announcement. It will never be fixed, it will never be what it should have been. And yes, it makes me sad, but I have come to accept it and no long create expectations because EA will never deliver what we truly ask for. So, not buying Sims 4 DLC anymore (last one I bough was Cats and Dogs) and I will play TS3. Hope TS5 isn't as bad as this mess.
Same!
While I agree with you I still end up buying packs but only once I can do so using the "Build a Bundle" feature (1 expansion, game and stuffpack for just a littlebit more then the price of an expansion). without that I don't think I would bother.
@@AliaslsailA I was so excited for Cats and Dogs I was over myself I even created families for the pack and which pets they would have. I never played with them after giving them their pets because they were all the same...
@@Boethion I don't even do that (but moatly because I don't have a job or my own money, and bc where I live DLC cost a lot in my currency). So I gave up buying, I play with what I have or pray to win a giveaway 😂
@@candiegray4037 That pack doesn't add too much gameplay.. it's just going for a walk with your dog or playing with them for a bit. Then, you go back to the same old boring sims
Do you remember when in The Sims 3 almost every expansion pack feature can be applied to ANY world? Miss those times.
Carl taking a deep sigh at 6:00 before continuing HAAHHAA..shows his genuine lack of enthusiasm with this newest pack
Are we not going to mention how the game is currently unplayable and they still sold this? I don't need some new rims if my car doesn't run.
The main thing I love about this pack is the base game update 🤷🏻♀️ I lost count of the times you said “this is a feature from...” (city living, jungle adventure, outdoor retreat) and that just makes me roll my eyes SO HARD that they lent the “new things” from old packs 👎
From this point i declare Sims 4 is building house simulator, cause gameplay better not to talk about
Facts!
I mean building using platform is a game changer but it isn't gonna cut it lol
I'm gonna be the "well actually..." guy but Sims originally was based on building software, the simulation was just an added bonus. That's why in the pre-SIMS times you got Sim City, Sim Ant, Sim Earth, etc.
@@giselletorres4156 ok but youre talking 20 years ago. Irrelevant now especially starting with TS1 which began the more personal life simulating
@@giselletorres4156 I mean but, aren't games supposed to grow and evolve over time? Once the second and third game became more "life simulator," the fourth game should've expanded on it, rather than reverting back to aspects of the first 1, and in some aspects even below that :0
I like the aesthetics, but that's all.
I'm going to be honest here: I am going to buy this pack when it's on sale, but only for the world. Hotpots, onsens, and taking your shoes off are just bonuses. I am 100% most interested in the world, because I am completely and utterly sick of Suburban America Simulator.
nah just pirate it man
taking off your shoes was introduced into the base game as well, you just have to use a shoe rack for it
1:51 ... $40 for this?
everyone: ugh the Sims 4 is so boring this pack is boring!! don't buy it!
me: hehe build mode go brr
and? just pirate it🙄
its nice that you like it but a lot of people dont play the sims *just* for build mode
@@pillypoomis4535 did you miss the joke
@@arcanine_enjoyer no, i didnt
i think i misunderstood? i thought the comment said that you were going to buy snowy escape just for build mode
might as well buy a building simulator
I gladly give you a like. You're the only one I watch who's honest about this game.
Actually, what EA is "giving" to us as a "basic" update is about all I want from this pack. Thanks, Carl, for the insights and honesty. I'll give this one a miss.
i feel like this is just an over priced game pack with half the content. Sure if it had 12 slops, some more building areas on the ski mounten and creating and managing your own ski resprt now that is worth more of an expansion pack but we get what we get so i wait for a sale.
YES!!! I was hoping this would be up so I can decide how to spend my weekend (and money). Absolutely trust your videos more than anyone!
I bought it last night and just like with Island Living, I bought it 100% for the world. I love Asian culture and have been getting really into building lately so that's where my expectations are.
Here are Lifestyles to help you decide: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/expansionpacks/snowyescape/lifestyles.php
Snowy Escape Cheats: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/expansionpacks/snowyescape/cheats.php
My main Snowy Escape page: www.carls-sims-4-guide.com/expansionpacks/snowyescape/
Great review! I’m glad I resisted buying this one as it looks like another letdown. After going back to Sims 3 and remembering how much stuff was in a single pack including gameplay, not building, as the core feature, I wonder what happened to the Sims team...
Greediness, that's what happened
This looks like a game pack honestly, but still gonna buy it lol. But can't Sims go back to making expansion packs that add to normal gameplay?
Not if people buy the lackluster packs as well. Why would they out more effort into their packs then. I for one will wait for a sale, because it tells them that they are slacking in general.
I feel like any destination pack will lack meaningful gameplay and only add a new destination and couple activities. they should just be game packs.
Yeah. Most packs I'm done with in about a week. Every now and then I'll create a few saves to have "dedicated" packs because by the time my Sims have kids, I'm done with the family and ready to move on.
I think I’m just going back to sims 3 and will spend my money getting more expansions for that.
If I were to buy this pack, I would only be buying it for lifestyles, and that is not worth $40 to me.
Waking up to one of your videos was a good feeling
That was a super helpful breakdown. After looking at the lifestyles, I think it will definitely be worth it to add this pack to my game eventually, but only when it finally goes on sale. That could take a while, but good things come to those who wait.
I don't think every game changer is biased, but you can definitely tell who is and who isn't way too enthusiastic when it comes to packs and what is wrong with them, including people just not liking them for the theme or focus of the pack. Being too positive is just as annoying as being unnecessarily critical. However, most critical reviews I've seen have pointed out real and pressing issues, so I'll believe them more than the ones who are trying to be positive for positivity sake; I need to know if something is worth my money or not and Sims 4 hasn't been, so far.
I've always appreciated Carl and LGR (to a lesser degree, Pixelade and Plumbella) because they tell you exactly what is there, if something is bad or half done, they will say it. If something is good, they will say it. I want reviews like that, not reviews that make me FEEL like EA is just paying for the game changer to just hype up the game without truly going in-depth about it. And I'm sure we know exactly which game changers those are, lol.
Now I see why the Sims Team disable other packs while reviewing new packs. They don’t want to be embarrassed by the normal offenders showing up. ( The Goths, Marcus Flex, Katrina Caliente, Judith Ward and last but not least The Landgraabs!)
When it comes down to it this EA/ The Sims team caters more to builders. Gameplay is slowly disappearing. Soon it will just be an aesthetically pleasing game where you just build and decorate.
So far the pack looks about like what I expected. Neat but lacking in content. The attempts to add some more personality to Sims and the builds being done by game changers is a nice step in the right direction, but at the same time Sims 4 has been out for 6 years now and I doubt we'll get too many more expansions and/or overhauls that continue in this direction. I'll probably pick this pack up when it starts going for $20. That seems like a more reasonable price for the stuff you get in expansions nowadays. Plus new expansions tend to introduce game breaking bugs and mess up mods for a while as well.
I've been following you and taking in your advice about the sims for ages (10+ years), no one presents relevant information as good as you do. Thank you for your hard, remarkable consistente and high quality work Carl! You're awesome ^^
Carl you're the only channel I turn to to find cheats. I've been watching you for a very long time and I appreciate your honesty about the Sims game. When I need to know someting I turn to Carl. Thank you for all the time and work you put into your channel for us 😊
Oh look, another pack that'll add 2 hours of gameplay for $40. Pass. I've given up on the Sims 4 and switched back to the Sims 3. Huge difference in terms of gameplay. I can actually play a family and not get bored after a couple of hours. I don't think I'll ever go back.
At this point only fixed emotions and an extensive Generations pack can pull me back to 4 again. Until then 3 it is. Now I'm off to my happy little family driving to the beach with the dog in the front seat. 😂
@@12wer3wer9 It would take a LOT to pull me back to the Sims 4. Babies that aren't objects, teens that aren't just slightly shorter adults, a colorwheel for hair color and skins tones, more things to spend your money on (once you're rich, it's boring), more things for kids and elders to do, emotions that aren't easily manipulated (Want to get better at repairing objects? Just put this "focused painting" in the room!) I could go on and on for a long time. Sims 4 is an empty cash grab.
Why is 3 better than 4?
Just asking as someone who barely started playing 4 a couple days ago.
@@babagames2413 The Sims 3 is cheaper than the Sims 4 with much more to do. For instance, the Sims 3 Late Night cost $40 when it launched. It included a celebrity system, vampires, a city world with apartments, and a bunch of activities. Want that in the Sims 4? Well you'll need to pay separately for each pack. City Living=$40, Vampires=$20, Get Famous=$40. So that's $100 for something that cost $40 in the Sims 3. Sims 3 Pets has cats, dogs, horses, rodents, birds, snakes, raccoons, turtles, and even unicorns. $40. Want that in the Sims 4? Well you can, but it's ONLY cats and dogs, NOTHING ELSE for $40. Want rodents though? Well that's another $10 for the "My First Pet" stuff pack. If you add up the total for sims 4, you're gonna be spending $720 for everything. And the game is still incomplete, and missing a lot of features that previous Sims games had.
I tried recently to play 3, and it just is so horrendously slow, laggy and choppy.
I tried the GPU thing to add my hardware, all nraas mods and the world fixes because of all the horrible routing issues, and still runs like absolute trash; I don't get it my pc is a beast.
Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz, RX 5700 XT 8GB VRAM, 32 gig of ram; and It still can't run! What the hell does it take? How do you guys get it to work?
Sometimes I think "are we as simmers too demanding?" But then I remember how expensive these packs actually are...and content to price ratio is just unfair.
I love this pack! My Sims needed some more activities and I absolutely love snow sports. I’m enjoying the build features! Thank you for this video. 👍🏻💕
I have been having nonstop bugs and crashes since the update. No mods. Personality traits can't be learned at all but one friendly introduction and the friendship bars is 95% full, crashes anytime you're in Forgotten Hollow and occasionally in other worlds.
idk if its because of the lack of sounds, but the vending machine death seems more like a draft lmaoo
I would like EA to bring back the "scroll lever" thing for a personality. It made the Sims2 simulation of people pretty realistic. I find that the "button" version used in Sims4 really lends to a more artificial or stereotype behavior. So, instead of clicking "outgoing", I liked being able to choose a "grey area" between shy and outgoing for a more realistic person. It also put into perspective for a young me that you can't have everything, so try being well rounded. I had way more fun adding people I knew into the game and watching them behave on-point instead of it looking like a sitcom with overacting on my screen. Without a realistic simulation, all these cool places to visit are just not as fun....because the company you are with kinda sucks. I have resorted to creating outlandish sims who steal and do things I would never do in real life just to keep an otherwise boring game interesting. I would prefer to have dynamic sims that make a neighborhood feel more real.
One part of the pack thats really cool and I didn't hear Carl mention is that the pre-existing sims have really immersive background stories and the sentiments that go with them which makes me actually want to play with them instead of my own sims
It's always refreshing to get your view of things. I'm excited for this pack even still. But then I am a builder more than a player. Thanks for your time. As always, a great review.
Unpopular opinion: i hate the platform tool.. like, yea, it’s nice to have platforms... but it’s so buggy it’s not worth it! Like, it forces the camera to change drastically rather than staying the same for the entire room. &DONT get me started on building with them...
Haha, understand you completely. I don't use platforms at all
In sims 4, of course
I was cautiously excited for this pack when it was first announced. Since then, I’ve gotten a new computer and was finally able to return to Sims 3 and.... man, I can’t go back. I know this sentiment has been beat to death but it really is so much more enjoyable. I just can’t justify spending $40 on an expansion for a game I haven’t touched since returning to its predecessor.
Thank you so much for your review! I am always so excited to see when you post and to hear what you have to say!
Yes omg I've been waiting for this! I've been debating buying this pack so thw review is super helpful