Outside my Sim's front door stands a statue of Moppy the goat, a beloved animal that played a key role in the founding of Ravenwood. It is unusual for a goat to discover a village, but this place is also strange. A walk through the neighborhood will reveal traditional rural scenes, including wooded areas, rivers and bays, village squares and stunning architecture. Only when you look closely can you see the secrets hidden beneath.
Ghosts wander the playground next to the town square, often joined by the ghosts of long-dead Sims as they play chess or relax by the fountain. Head down the dirt path and you'll find a cellar, an ominous-looking well, and a lectern containing books that tell of an ancient society bound by a shared, sacred mission. Near City Hall there are also two houses with interesting, uninvited residents. And this is just one of three unique neighborhoods in Ravenwood.
relevant
Building Relationships is the Weirdest Dating Sim I've Played
The most enjoyable thing you can do at home without having to take off your clothes.
The Sims 4: Life and Death is one of the most packed expansion packs we've seen in a long time. I've been playing for a week now and I'm still discovering little secrets in that world. To find out more about what the expansion has to offer, I caught up with Production Director Dave Miotke and Producer Morgan Henry to talk life and death, and whether the ominous swamps are really scarier than the fissures and countless crypts of the underworld.
“We really wanted to play with death.” Miotke explains. “With the ‘Play With Life’ and death aspect of our tagline, we really wanted to do something fun with the Grim Reaper. We knew that funerals were a space that was lacking in The Sims and could be added. [the initial idea] It was just a general idea of death, and we created a few pieces around that.”
Images taken from alpha builds may be subject to change.
The previous series had never featured funerals, so why now? Miotke said the team felt now was the right time. “We knew there would be a Halloween launch pack. So we wanted to be a little part of the spooky season. And we had all the pieces. We felt this was a pack we could build on a technical level.”
After exploring the pack my way, I thought this direction made sense, as Life & Death expands on many of the existing features. Reaper Career is based on the existing Active Career engine, and Funeral is based on the holiday event and wedding systems. While Crypt Exploration is a choose your own adventure text system that can be found in many already existing hidden locations, the Souls Journey mechanic is an extension of your desires, whims, and aspirations.
Learning more about the Grim Reaper is a staple of The Sims. This pack gives the Grim Reaper his time to shine as Sims can now join the Reaper career path and guide their clients to the afterlife. This is a completely active class that offers a lot of options, and it doesn't seem any different from what Miotke and his team are working on in The Sims 4.
Images taken from alpha builds may be subject to change.
“I would say it’s probably our own work lives,” Miotke says of the impact on new career paths. “There’s a lot of good office humor and office hijinks. I happen to be Morgan's boss. So, when he jokes about how solemn his boss is, it always makes me laugh.”
Given the similarities, I asked both men if they thought their new career paths could shine if they were possible in real life. They decided to comment on each other's suitability.
you're going to be so horrible [the reaper career] Because your heart is so big that you have to meet the quota – Morgan Henry
“Then, Dave, it will be like failing to meet your quota once again. “You have not taken a single soul.”
Miotke agrees: “I’m a bit anti-authority, so I think I would definitely be against quotas.” “I think you’ll do really well, Morgan. “The only thing you’re not good at is setting everyone on fire.”
You have firebugs so you will have no problem harvesting, but you will always be next to the fire. – Dave Mioke
Henry's penchant for starting fires, especially on live streams, is well known in The Sims community and was only highlighted when preparing for a press live stream, which resulted in two further people being burned to death. Are you curious? She decided to go with it.
Henry confesses this. “At first I was really angry. “I can’t remember the last time I saved. I'll have to start again. And I thought, 'Nah, we're going to go with that.' People think I did it on purpose, but that's not true. “I’m really unlucky.”
Images taken from alpha builds may be subject to change.
Going back to the contents of the pack, Miotke explains that there are three core features: the Grim Reaper career, the Ravenwood universe, and the Souls Journey system. These in particular form the pillars of expansion where the world becomes the real focus.
“We wanted to create a world that was best in class. Not just size and lot number; [also with] There's a lot to do there. Lots of activities, fun festivals, interesting NPCs and points of interest to interact with. The world was very important to us.” Miotke explains.
“Our world is loosely inspired by Romania.” Henry continues. “There are three neighborhoods in our neighborhood. The first two are a bit more realistic and you can see more of the Romanian influence. One is rural and the other is village. The third is the afterlife. It's really scary because of the vines, sounds, and swamps. That's a little more fantastic. “I think I’m inspired by a variety of fields and media.”
“We also took inspiration from previous Sims games,” Miotke added. “This is a story-heavy pack, so I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but if you dig deeper you’ll find some really interesting references from the past.”
Images taken from alpha builds may be subject to change.
When I played, I was mostly in the countryside, which is my hometown, but both Miotke and Henry said they would settle elsewhere if given the chance. “Crossing the Crow.” Henry spoke without hesitation. “I don’t want to live in a creepy ghost town. I think that might be a bit excessive. [While] The countryside is lovely and I like the amenities, so villages are a happy medium. “It’s just a little haunted, but still a little fun and beautiful.”
Miotke, meanwhile, is much more chill about settling down. “I plan on moving every few weeks,” he said. “I don’t want anyone knowing where I rest. “I will continue to pursue them.”
This world has several unique spooky features, including explorable crypts hiding dark secrets, evil swamps where a brief dip in water can temporarily transform you into a ghost, and fissures in the underworld that hide everything. But which side do you want to face? It's a difficult decision, but since neither Mioke nor Henry are horror fanatics, they are both cautious in their choice.
Images taken from alpha builds may be subject to change.
“I looked at this question in advance and gave it a lot of serious thought.” Henry informed me and I was very happy. “It’s not a basement. I think I'd be too scared to actually do that, and too smart to stick my hand through the cracks. I would probably do a noxious bog. I think it would be really fun to be a ghost for a while if you knew you could do it once and be safe.”
Miotke disagrees. “I’m going to put my hand in the crack,” he decides. “It feels natural, like nothing is going to happen. The basement is so scary. No, it's a trap. And thoughts of something beneath the surface, like a noxious swamp, brushing against my legs. I can't see the floor. I don't want to swim in it. “No.”
Personally, I'm on Team Miotke on this issue. It took a while to encourage my Sim to stick his hand in the crack, but it was worth it. So far, the rewards have outweighed the risks, leading to a rift across the board. Now I go to find the secret of that legend. Let me tell you what and who I exposed.
next
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed Review – Real Shellshock
Mutants Unleashed is rough around the edges, but it's surprisingly ambitious and puts Mutant Mayhem Turtles on notice.
All images in this article are from the alpha build of Life & Death and are subject to change.
