Bits 'N' Bobs in The Sims 2

 

I have been playing The Sims 2 again in earnest for quite a while and it's amazing how, just after 20 minutes of gameplay, so much can happen as The Sims in TS2 are so quirky!  

I always have OBS running so that I can catch all the little things that happen and also the stuff that we don't have in TS4.  In fact, most of the things we had in TS2, we never had again.  

I have been uploading these snippets to my Twitter and TikTok accounts and Simmers have been loving them!  Some of the stuff is related, such as snow snippets and gardening but there are other things that remain one-offs.

As I have loads of "one-off" video snippets, I decided to put them all in a video and upload them to YouTube.

So "Bits 'N' Bobs" came about through having many snippets of little bits and pieces and things and stuff we had in The Sims 2, all unrelated and bunched together in a bigger video.

Now you may be thinking, "if I can see them on Twitter and TikTok, why would I want to watch your video on YouTube?".  Well, first of all, you may not have or even like Twitter and/or TikTok but there's also a catch!  I haven't uploaded ALL of the snippets to Twitter and TikTok, only some of them.  I kept some back for the YouTube video so there will be clips that you won't see on my other social media accounts!

If you're into The Sims 2 or have never played it, I hope you enjoy watching my Bits 'N' Bobs video!  If you do, be sure to follow me on my other accounts (if you're into Twittering or TikTokking) for more Simlish Shenanigans!

Cheers!

- Minicart (Jules)

Teaching the Basics to Toddlers in The Sims 2

 

Teaching toddlers basic skills such as walking, talking and how to use the potty is a feature that started in The Sims 2.  Obviously as there were no toddlers in the original The Sims, these basic skills were already learned as soon as the baby grew into a child.  The same happened in The Sims 4 when that was first released as toddlers were omitted from the game in the beginning.

These basic skills continued in The Sims 3 whereby the toddler learning these skills would grown up well, unlike in The Sims 2 where growing up well depended on the aspiration level the toddler had at the time of aging.  Nevertheless, having this feature introduced was a welcome addition to the game.

In both The Sims 2 and The Sims 3, to enable the toddler to learn these skills, an active sim must click on the toddler and then choose the option to teach to walk or talk.  Clicking on the potty will bring up the interaction to teach the potty skill.  This takes a little while to do but once the toddler has learned all skills, they can take themselves to the potty, get around much quicker and chatter away to all and sundry.

In The Sims 4, although the interaction for teaching toddlers to use the potty is still available, learning to walk and talk can be gained from the little tablet that you can purchase in buy mode.  Building blocks are also available which will enable the toddler to learn to walk.  This means that the toddler can learn these skills all by themselves without the interaction of an adult sim.  And while they walk around, they get much quicker, to the point where they can run without wobbling.  

Thinking and imagination skills were also introduced with the toddlers for The Sims 4 and although, in my opinion, the toddlers for TS4 are the best ever, I still think that having the parents or adults interact with the toddlers to teach them the walking and talking skills makes for better gaming and better parenting too.

What do you think?

- Minicart (Jules)

Babies in The Sims 2

 

I have been playing The Sims since 2001 when my son borrowed the original The Sims from a friend at school. I had played Sim City for a while on the Sega Saturn and was completely hooked, so being able to play The Sims themselves was even more fun.

In the original The Sims, babies grew straight from a baby into a child by jumping out of their cribs.  One minute they were babies and the next they were children, having to go to school.

The Sims 2 however had a different approach and brought the game up to date with babies growing into toddlers, then children then teens and on to adult then elder.  With the addition of The Sims 2 University expansion pack, a new lifespan of young adult was added which a teen entered into upon going to university.  But I digress...

The Sims 3 gave us babies that grew into toddlers and then children but unfortunately the babies had no limbs.  Other Simmers have called them "burritos" because the babies were just wrapped up in a type of blanket.  No arms.  No legs.  You couldn't even bathe them in a sink.  Then along came The Sims 4 and things got even worse.  Babies in this fourth incarnation of The Sims are no longer offspring.  Although breast feeding was brought into the mix, the babies are seen as objects with the player only being able to interact with the "baby" via the crib or "bassinet" as it is called in game.

When The Sims 4 first came out, even toddlers were omitted.  The "babies" jumped out of the bassinet and grew up into a child - just like in the original The Sims.  Toddlers were added to the game later as a free update.

Although the toddlers in The Sims 4 are the best toddlers ever in my opinion, the "babies" leave a lot to be desired.

I, like many other simmers, would love to see The Sims 2 babies back with their arms and legs and being able to bathe them in the sink, carry them around and play with them.  If you have never played The Sims 2, the little video I made above will show you just how lovely Sims 2 babies were and why simmers today, including myself, are unhappy with the babies of The Sims since TS3.

- Minicart