The Sims Team have recently launched Motherlode Season, and it has not disappointed!
Motherlode Season in fact relates to the latest roadmap for The Sims and what players can expect to see content wise over the next few months. This new roadmap has content running from now through to the start of May.
As the next release for The Sims 4 is an expansion pack, we not only get the first glimpse trailer but also a deep dive into gameplay and the launch itself. Then we get a few weeks to explore and have fun with the new expansion pack before three new Kits join the collection.
Most notably, the eyes emoji that has been teasing something on 25th February has peaked many players interest as to what it could be about. There are some theories out there, but, I’ll get to that in a bit.
Businesses & Hobbies Reveal Trailer Impressions
First up, and before I talk about anything else, let’s have a look at the official reveal trailer for The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies!
From a first watch, I wasn’t too sure what I was expecting from the reveal if I’m honest. I knew there would be a focus on the new Tattooing feature, as that had been previously teased. Seeing pottery making being part of the pack as well was exciting. Even more so since this had been brought up as a suggestion for a The Sims 4 pack feature previously. Of course, you can now, thanks to this expansion pack, start your own business.
As for the new world, Nordhaven, it looks pretty for the world map previews that have been shared. It kind of reminded me of Windenburg at first glance. However, when it comes to building, there are definitely a number of new possibilities thanks to being able to fully customize lots between residential and work spaces.
I did need to rewatch the trailer a couple more times as I felt like something was missing. Yet, I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what. Maybe the gameplay deep dive event in a few weeks will help me figure that out.
Revealing More Details
If you are a seasoned The Sims player, you’ll know that alongside any reveal trailer, we get additional information shared via an official blog post. This is where I noticed a little something that usually The Sims team leave us to discover once the pack has launched. Cross pack play opportunities.
Cross pack play is something I’ve always been curious about and love discovering in game. Seeing how the multiple packs work and intertwine with one another. With the team going one step further and let us in on some of the many ways this upcoming expansion works with other packs, it certainly has given me some future building ideas.
Here are some of the ways The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies works with other The Sims 4 packs:
- Cats and Dogs Expansion Pack: Sims who love and adore their four legged friends can open pet cafés.
- Get Together Expansion Pack: Sims who are down to dance until the sun rises can create dance clubs, and Sims who game until the wee hours of the morning can open arcades for like-minded gamers.
- City Living Expansion Pack – Sing your heart out in your favourite city at your very own karaoke bar fitted out with your favourite Simlish tunes.
- Get Famous Expansion Pack – Did someone say paparazzi? Open an acting school where you teach celebrities how to play the part!
- Spa Day Game Pack – Fancy a massage, facial or meditative yoga retreat? Say namaste to all the Sims who choose to relax with you at your spa!
- Laundry Day Stuff Pack – Scrub a dub in your very own tub! Collect Simoleons as Sims wash their clothes at your laundromat!
- Bowling Night Stuff Pack – Sims who are competitive can open their very own bowling alleys. Get a strike or a spare on a fun night out with friends.
– Via The Sims
Detailing some of the many ways we can utilise features and themes from earlier packs had my attention. The types of builds you can create, the new stories you can tell and so much more! As someone who enjoys building in The Sims games (albeit not very good but still having fun) this was one of the main selling points of the pack for me.
To Pre-Order or Not to Pre-Order?
Is there any real benefit to pre-ordering The Sims 4 expansions? For me, not really. Yes, there is bonus content available, but you have time post launch to also get that. Other than that, there’s no incentive for pre-ordering really.
However, based on the confirmed information we have at the moment, I will be picking up this new expansion pack around the time it launches. Day one pick up? Potentially but I’m still unsure at the moment.
It’s All About The Eyes!
I mentioned I would come back to the long teased eye emoji, so let’s go.
There are many theories as to what this could be relating to within the community. Whether they are right or wrong at the moment, who knows.
Initially, I thought the emoji had something to do with a pre-expansion release patch. Maybe a new base game feature in the form of Burglars being added into the game. However, I was doubting myself with the timing and when we usually see patches for the game.
Yet, I haven’t ruled it out just yet. Burglars could add another range of challenges to running your own business. Maybe in the form of Lot Challenges or something similar to that.
I guess we will have to wait and see!
Kits, Kits, Kits!
The latter end of this roadmap is three new Kits. Now love them or hate them, Kits aren’t overly terrible and are nice little additions to the game. Yes, some of the themes I would love to see in bigger packs, but sometimes a Kit is the perfect size for a particular theme or more niche feature. Yet, that is a discussion for another day.
The three new Kits are Restoration Workshop, Golden Years and Kitchen Clutter.
I’ve not looked into these a great deal, and this is more just my impressions/thoughts on what each Kit is about based upon the names of them.
- Restoration Workshop: instantly makes me think about Sims doing up cars and working on more mechanical/vehicular objects. Maybe, we might see cars in the future? It is still a highly requested feature but even then, starting small to see the reception of the theme in the community isn’t a bad start.
- Golden Years: JUSTICE FOR ELDER SIMS! I just want to see more content for Elder Sims. That’s all, that’s just what I’m hoping for. It’s all I want in The Sims 4!
- Kitchen Clutter: Clutter for your kitchens. Need I say more.
These three Kits regardless, I’ll be picking once they launch over time to continue building on my Kits collection.
Overall Thoughts
Motherlode Season is shaping up to be one of my favourite roadmaps in a long time. From feeling nostalgic from The Sims twenty-fifth birthday to the new expansion and Kits, there is so much happening.
I will say, while tattooing and pottery making isn’t my go-to for activities that I was expecting for this pack, I am interested to explore them. The new tattoo paint mode also looks like good fun to play with and experiment with different combinations. As does explore the new pottery-making skill too!
It does feel like this new The Sims 4 expansion pack is a mixture of themes from The Sims 2 Freetime and Open For Business Expansions, as well as The Sims 3 Ambitions. There certainly are things from these earlier packs I’d love to see in The Sims 4, but we know a lot of previous features have been broken down into smaller bite sized chunks compared to earlier iterations. Additionally, we haven’t dived into the Gameplay trailer yet either so there may be some more surprises planned for this pack.
For the most part, though, I can say I’m somewhere in the middle with how I’m feeling with this roadmap. I’m excited but, at the same time, trying not to get too excited just yet as there is still a lot of information that we don’t yet know. Despite all that, I am excited to start some new business ventures in the near future with my Sims!
What are your thoughts on the Motherlode Season roadmap? Are you planning on picking up The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies expansion pack? Let me know!
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