The Sims 4 has been enriched with a new content expansion. Soberly titled "Ecology", this pack takes you to Evergreen Harbor and brings a new way of seeing life, sustainable and collaborative.
Create a Sim
As always, with each pack, I create a focus, the opportunity to take a look at the additions made in terms of outfits, but also traits and aspirations. Two very distinct angles appear, with a "farmer" style and an "engineer" style. In the first, there are overalls or even a large vaporous dress. In the second, practical outfits, often in bright colors, with modern cuts.
Here is for these gentlemen:
And for these ladies:
As for the hats, I particularly appreciated this magnificent unisex bag which will appeal as much to the ladies who have missed their make-up as to the men who have missed their shave!
Aspirations follow the same logic, with Eco-innovator (this Sim wants to create a better and greener community) and Masterful Creator (this Sim wants to become an expert in crafting objects).
I finally noticed four new traits: Freegan, Disciple of Recycling, Hyper-Green, and Manufacturer. I invite you to read the descriptions in the screenshots below if you are interested.
Evergreen Harbor
This area is divided into three districts.
To the north (surrounded by green) is the Carrière Grims. Having become a community space with a natural well (40x30), a small suburb has been formed around it. The Harris home is installed in a small house, the residence on rue des Pierres contains two apartments and the ecological ground of the sources of the quarry offers an empty house with 2 bedrooms and a bathroom, also benefiting from a natural well.
To the east (in white) is Conifer Station, downtown Evergreen Harbor, with a disused station in which the Tinker Home resides. The district also hosts a square, the residence of the pines with two free apartments, and an empty house, the corner of the canal, on a small geothermal site.
To the south (in yellow), the Port Promise district is a particularly dilapidated industrial area which nevertheless tries to be welcoming with its atypical bar, the Wagon, and its community space in the middle of a landfill, Au Bord de l water, with all its fine garbage ... People live here: the Greenburg fireplace has taken up residence in a strange assemblage of modern and recycled elements, while the Sterling Rico fireplace has moved into a pretty house on the other side. Right in the center is the space I chose, made up of three stacked containers, on a 30x20 off-grid plot.
You will probably have noticed the new terrain characteristics in what I just said, here is a brief description:
- Natural well: Spring water flows under this land, reducing bills and providing clean, fresh water to the tap
- Ecological land: this land becomes ecological faster than the others
- Geothermal: natural heating reduces your bills by generating electricity and keeping your pool water warm
- Landfill: this land is a real dumping ground! Waste accumulates there.
- Reduce and recycle: this land generates compostable and recyclable waste, and outdoor garbage cans are no longer bottomless. Actively managing the amount of waste is essential.
Off-grid already existed. As a reminder, this land is not connected to the water and electricity network, and most objects that use water or electricity will therefore not work as expected. The advantage is that it avoids receiving a bill for water or electricity!
New objects
There are 114 new objects directly available in the tool, with virtually everything a household needs: bed, armchair, chair, sofa, dresser, table, bookcase, shower, toilet, sink, tub, green plant, wall decoration , curtain, mirror, awning ... The colors are pastel, often discreet, with a great use of light wood, and very modern lines. Lots of windows are also added, many of them very large with almost no edges, and wide patio doors, perfect for creating very bright spaces. There is also a whole series of windows which are, on the contrary, very angular, shapes which combine very well with the containers.
Here is the exterior of my house, almost exclusively built using new elements:
And the interior:
Water and electricity
There is now a new way of consuming with independent means of producing water and electricity. Obtaining water is facilitated on land with a natural well, otherwise it is necessary to resort to a dew collector (used or new), having a very low ecological impact. To have water more easily on off-grid grounds, the Atmospheric Water Generator extracts potable water from the ambient air, but requires fuel to operate. In winter, I also noticed that the snow made it possible to fill the reserves.
For electricity, it's a bit the same thing, with geothermal fields and two clean sources: the wind turbine and the solar panel. Each is available with a ground version (which still breaks down but improves) and a roof version (which requires no maintenance but does not improve). I really do not advise you to put one of these devices on the ground, I initially had three wind turbines in my yard and I had to repair at least two a day, it wastes life, not to mention that my fridge broke down all the time and my food was rotting! For convenience, there is also a generator, but which consumes fuel.
The surplus is sold, a very practical way to make ends meet for small budgets. In order to be able to reduce consumption as much as possible, lighting, electronics, household appliances, as well as all sanitary facilities (sink, sink, toilet, shower, bath, etc.) now have their water and electricity consumption indicated in the description. To help you find your way around, a new category has been created, "Off-grid", which lists objects that only work in part if resources are limited. The industrial sink allows you to quickly wash your hands or teeth. The outdoor shower gives access to a warm and quick shower. It's always better than nothing!
Subsequently, as was already done, but with more options, these objects improve to increase their efficiency, for example by adding a composter or a water recycler. It is also possible to add a tank (fuel cell or H20O siphon) to them, which will allow, if their resource runs out (for example at night or in the event of a breakdown), to be able to continue to be used for a certain period of time. time. On the other hand, you must remember to fill the tank when it is empty, because this is not automatic.
All these savings are then visible on the monthly bill of the house, perhaps another way to live your Sim life in perspective!
Manufacture of objects
This new skill is assembled with a special machine and by creating candles on a dedicated table, paving the way for quite a few gaming opportunities.
To create objects, everything starts with collecting waste by digging through the trash cans, although it is possible to obtain recyclable materials from just about anything, including new objects. Home recycler Gundatch takes care of turning all of this into recyclable materials and components, two new currencies that are saved in the same place as simoleons. A Recycling Disciple Sim will love doing this and will be sad if they don't do it regularly.
These recyclable materials can be used with the "Crafting Machine" to create many everyday items, much to the delight of Sims with the Maker trait. In the catalog, furniture and all the improvement parts (kitchen, plumbing, common, ecological, electronic ...). My level 10 Sim even knows how to cook (although it takes longer than traditional cooking)!
To change the color of the furniture, you have to buy rather expensive dyes (count between 75§ and 95§ per bottle), fortunately reusable a lot of times. Otherwise, the designs are light brown by default. Note that, to obtain the recyclable resources illegally, all you have to do is click Shift on the machine, once the cheat has been activated from the game console.
The creation of candles first involves the purchase of raw materials, which is done on the machine. It is necessary to buy at least wax, I have not found a way to produce it (too bad the hive does not ...). The same dyes are reused here too to color the creations.
Candles can come in different shapes and when combined with flowers or herbs they become mood objects that influence the Sim's mood.
Art of petillery
A third dedicated machine is added, for budding brewers or all mixologists who want to offer their own drinks. It is mandatory to have the resources, so I grew mulberry trees using the new flower boxes, enough to get blackberries regularly to create a wonderful fruit juice.
The created bottles can then be drunk by The Sims, distributed or given to fans if you are famous. On the other hand, I find it a shame that these bottles have such a quick expiration date, 1 to 2 days maximum, thus drastically limiting their use.
Civil Designer
This new profession, which fills the aspiration of eco-innovator, does not place at the helm of the Sim: he goes to work alone during the defined hours. The task for the day is initially to discuss water and electricity with another Sim, then moving on to use the "Crafting Machine" to create an eco-upgrade room, which in both cases does not require not a big investment in terms of time. The related abilities are logic and object crafting.
I got a digital design tablet pretty quickly, to create a green invention concept plan. The Sim can then discuss it with other Sims, before working on it again, which can potentially increase its quality. Once ready, the concept is sent via the mailbox to the "Innovative Solution". If this external company appreciates, it offers a premium and a bonus in the civil designer career.
You will then have to choose between two specializations: municipal planner or ecological technician.
Living in self-sufficiency
Beyond the consumption of water and electricity, one of the objectives of this expansion is to make the Sim live as self-sufficient as possible, including with food. I spoke about it above, dishes are created with the manufacturing machine. In addition, a new object, the Paradise of the bugs, is there to breed insects: worms, locusts ... By feeding them properly and taking care of them daily, it allows to obtain flour to cook or biofuel to run electrical machines without impacting the environment. On the other hand, it is necessary to regularly change the colony which tends to die no matter what after two or three days maximum (costing 15§ each time).
This especially appeals to a Sim Freegan who enjoys the idea of cooking only with possessed resources. As a result, my Sim's favorite food is now the popcorn cricket!
Neighborhood action plans
Each neighborhood in the new zone can have up to four town plans. Each was selected by vote, for a period generally lasting a week. Our Sim can vote on their own, as well as invite other Sims they meet to vote for a particular plan, each offering their own bonuses.
If an accepted plan does not please, the only solution to have it canceled is to embark on a repeal campaign and collect at least 5 signatures. At the end of the period, if there are enough signatories, then it will no longer be in place, and it will be possible to vote again for another plan. For example, there was at one point an action plan legalizing theft, on a community principle of "everything belongs to everyone". After having to replace my coffee table for the fourth time, I got tired of it!
All this requires points of influence, which are gained by being a good citizen, by participating in the life of the neighborhood in accordance with the plan of the neighborhood or by working as a civil designer. Overall, I did not really understand this gain, because the amount of influence points requested is ridiculous, while I accumulated all the time, having finished with more than 1 points, without really seeing the usefulness of it. .
One of the neighborhood maps is impressive, leading to a total change in the environment, as the port is rehabilitated from a dirty and garbage-filled neighborhood to a very trendy pier.
Conclusion
The startup of this extension is terribly slow. I had decided to settle in the worst area, Port Promise, full of garbage, but which is misleading, because they are only decorations. Suddenly, I spent my time with my nose in the trash cans, struggling to bring up the needs of my Sim Freegan, who would sulk as soon as I cooked something decent or bought him new furniture. In addition, at the beginning, I was in an apartment, which did not correspond at all to his aspirations. The move to the Off-Grid area was the right thing to do, but it was laborious due to the recurring thefts and my wind turbines on the ground breaking down all the time and taking up a lot of my budget and free time. Sim. Admittedly, he progressed in DIY and often renewed his interior, but hey, it was not the most exciting to do ...
Then I started to have a little more money by progressing in the profession of civil designer and, although he was sulking too because it felt bad to be sold to a company like this, the money allowed me to expand his house, and to be able to install a solar panel farm on the roof. From there, I was able to start producing parts in series, and improving as much as possible, to reduce water and electricity consumption as much as possible. With two dew collectors, I had enough water to have a decent bathroom and, therefore, I really enjoyed making lots of things, recycling having become a pleasure and not a boring obligation.
This expansion clearly fits into the overall gaming experience. It's perfect, but not to be taken as such, only as an addition to the overall gaming experience. It offers a new way to bring your Sim to life, which can be combined with any other profession or activity in the base game or in the other packs. I recommend it without hesitation, because it would be a shame not to be able to take advantage of all that it brings, especially if you play often and are looking for more diversity for your Sims. Of course, the price is not given ... but it is consistent with the price of all the other packs, so unfortunately nothing surprising here:
Pack d'extension - 39,99€
