Snowy Escape - First Impressions

[MrsFlynn]

What's your first impression of Snowy Escape? What do you like best about the pack? Was there anything that surprised you?

Please keep on topic of first impression of the pack. If you have questions regarding this pack, please create a New Topic so we can better help with questions.

[Nindigo]

As long as you don't expect something groundbreaking new, it's a decent Sims 4 expansion. I find it pretty, and there are definitely some cute and awesome little features relating to Japanese culture (I love me some culture!). Apparently, there is only so much that can be done with this game's engine, and so you need to have some basic appreciation for a lot of things already in the game in order to appreciate this pack.

I like that your Sim can actually live in Mt. Komorebi - I have moved my Duane to the middle neighborhood with the park and bar, and he is exploring the pack from there.

[deenahax]

The world is beautiful with lots to explore. CAS has some solid items. And the build buy - *chef's kiss*. It's a good mix of a few packs that are already out but I don't feel like it's a ripoff. I was only able to play a little bit today but I'm stoked for the weekend.

[ratchie]

In my first day my Sim got unhappy about her hike attacked by some kind of electric Caterpillar that gave her the dazed plus 3 moodlet tried to climb up a hill that had a collectable on but couldn't and really offended the neighbours.  I couldn't find any fishing spots and there wasn't any benches or ways to wash hands in the park that's a me thing because I love to do rags to riches. I would have liked more lots to build on but that's not happening.
Saying all that I actually like that it's not super easy and there are challenges. It makes sense that someone with no athletic skill would struggle with hiking. The hill thing really did annoy me theres some planter boxes up there too and I want to get to them.
Gonna give my Sim some better traits and see if more collectables spawn. Just to note I did get a upgrade part from what looked like a green patch of dirt which people may not even realise is a dig spot.

Rachel

[ratchie]

Second attempt tried to make a start on one of the new aspirations. Died after freezing to death swimming in the river. I get that it's a cold place but its Spring and it's one of the first things you have to do to complete the aspiration. So word of warning only swim in the river if you have the reward trait that makes you impervious to the cold or start your game file in summer. I read that vending machine death was a thing I'm almost too scared to use any right now.

Rachel

[MarianT]

Mt. Komorebi really is a beautiful world, and the houses designed by the game changers are great. Skiing and snowboarding are beyond anything we got in the way of winter sports from the earlier Sims games. I really like the hairstyles and some of the clothing. Hiking looks as if it will offer quite a few varied experiences, not just in terms of which hike your Sim goes on, but what happens during the hike.

Those are the main positives. On the negative side, players who already own Spa Day, Kids Room Stuff, and Fitness Stuff are going to feel somewhat annoyed by recycled activities. I suppose the best way to look at it is that you can use the indoor rock-climbing wall to gain skill before going out on the mountain, your Sim children will be able to acquire voidcritters in a new way, and you'll be able to add incense to the bathhouse if you have those packs.

The other negative, which I hope will be addressed soon, is that townie Sims show up on the slopes dressed for summer, swimming, sunbathing -- anything but skiing in the snow.

I haven't played long enough to have a Sim develop a lifestyle. Children don't get lifestyles, but teens can. A couple of my Sims have been told that they've capped their lifestyle points for the day. I think they get 20 points towards a lifestyle and when they reach 100, they pick that up. I might have a Sim start drinking more coffee just to get one that's a caffeine addict.

I had trouble getting my Sims to ski. I sent a Sim and her 2 granddaughters up in the ski lift (this works like the elevators in San Myshuno in that your Sims will arrive instantaneously), and then spent 10 or 15 minutes trying to figure out where the bunny slope was. Eventually one of the children decided to go down the easy slope on her own, and the grandmother got in line for the bunny slope (there was no line). I think if you buy the skis from a vending machine, the Bits & Bobbles, you might be able to choose the slope by clicking on the ski. At least I hope that's the case. The vending machines will take your Sim's money sometimes. Children can't risk death by hitting the vending machine, though.

Edit to add: I'm really glad that Sims can take off their shoes when they come home. On the other hand, I'm disappointed that they still have no winter hats that cover their ears, although there is a helmet and goggle combo that might do the trick.

[Brian_Z]

@MarianT   When you're at the bottom, looking uphill, the bunny slopes are off to the left.  You don't take the lift to use them.  That's also where you go for sledding.

Anyway, my first impressions-  I really like this pack.  We have to go all the way back to last year to find the last pack with actual FUN stuff!  Important, good gameplay stuff, but the whole Eco thing wasn't especially interesting.  Nifty Knitting was a well-made pack, but I still don't believe knitting really won that survey.  Star Wars was important in that the angry backlash finally got through to the devs.

I haven't tried the rock climbing or the climb to the peak yet, or the onsen.  But I do really like the skiing/snowboarding, and the sledding with the little ones.  Has anyone seen their sim crash land a jump yet?  I saw one ragged landing, but mostly if my sims crash it's when they stop at the bottom.  The group hiking and jogging- I've wanted that for quite a while!  Though it hadn't been at the top of my list, I've always wished my couples could jog together.  Maybe this will one day work in your home neighborhoods as well.

I haven't picked up a Lifestyle yet, though I've seen Sentiments.  Seems my male sim is totally crazy about his wife!  Also he and their son enjoyed sledding together, they both got happy sentiments about that.

Dislikes?  Hmm... really, I just hope they scale back the frequency of wildlife attacks while hiking.  They seem to happen way too much, so stock up on all the repellant items at the Bits and Bobbles machine.  Just get all of them, because you can still be attacked by something not mentioned in the wildlife report on the bulleting board.  Multiple attacks can be fatal, they're part of that stacking injury system.

[Nindigo]

...I'm disappointed that they still have no winter hats that cover their ears

This so much. I went into CAS expecting to finally find some blizzard-appropriate hats, but nope.
Good thing that my Duane has a natural, thick curly mane that covers his ears.

[Tigerskin]

I really love the pack so far. The world is beautiful, the outdoor pursuits are fun and the sentiments and lifestyles add to more interesting gameplay.

[Brian_Z]

I moved my family to the mountaintop neighborhood for a while.  It was awesome that they could go hit the slopes without traveling, but there was a couple bugs driving me crazy and I ended up moving back out.  The toddler wouldn't eat, so I had to cheat her Hunger.  And people kept walking right into my house.  Yamachan was the worst offender there, I was kicking him out using MCCC at least 3 times a day.  If they get those fixed, I'll definitely live there again.
The sentiments are interesting, especially negative ones.  My child didn't get a blessing at the Festival of Youth, and days later he was still getting upset about this.  It took me a while to figure out that this was because it was a negative sentiment, toward his father.  By the time I figured this out, it had turned into a festering grudge!  He and Dad needed to have a lot of positive interactions to finally undo that.

[Tigerskin]

@Brian_Z I didn’t realise the sims coming in my house all the time was a bug. Just thought I needed to lock the door (which I still haven’t done...).

First time a sim of mine has been bitten by a vampire lol. Vlad came into my house and compelled me. I was sleeping, so rude 

Other people have knocked on the door though? But the mascot also just came in uninvited.

[Franki]

I've played a little bit in the snowy escapes world, I quite enjoy it.. currently visiting in the middle of winter so things are interesting..

The climbing to the top aspiration is a little confusing, easy to do if you have high enough skills but they don't really elaborate that you need to move to certain spots to reach the next point or when you have to do a specific task like get climbing gear... considering the vacation lots without any modifications, don't come with a computer or a tv so you have to befriend a local and use their stuff, if they even have it.. Personally I'd love for climbing gear to be available to buy over the phone instead of just the computer. Also no critter attacks but did get surprised by two spirits.

Middle of winter festivals are hit and miss, so you need alternate entertainment (tv show premier as an example), you need to add to the lot before letting sims stay.

Attempted the festival of lights, didn't seem to see much, I possibly was overlooking the obvious or in the wrong area.. so that's on me.

It seems to be really easy to chat to locals or get knocked up by them... one of my sims is pregnant after a quick woohoo in the onsen with a local. Death by vending machine is a fun one to watch, found that out first go when buying skis and snowboards to try and get rid of the 'sore feet from rental equipment' buff.
Hiking is a little tricky, simply because it is the middle of winter and blizzards are frequent so my sims aren't enjoying the hikes or anything much at the moment.

Will certainly holiday at Mt. Komorebi when it's not winter, see what is different and really work on the festivals.

The only sentiments I've had is the loved up one, blanking on what it's called.. got that from the woohoo in the onsen, and I picked up a positive sentiment because one of my sims lead a good climb to the top of the mountain.

[scoed]

OK, I will say this pack it great eye candy. I love the build/buy items. I love the world. There are some cool CAS items though most are not really that usable in standard play. Of course there is new deaths and woohoo locations, witch I love. And I do like lifestyles. Since they aren't instant it give something to work for. Unfortunately their effects that great but at least they take work. Even a small personality upgrades are welcome.

But the rest is kinda a waste. The three new skills are pointless for the most part. Outside of traveling to a hidden lot climbing does nothing, skiing and snowboarding mostly are just seem to unlock a set of new animations. The other new activities like sledding and hiking are like the new skills world dependant. Honestly the new career is nothing new ether. Outside of lifestyles the new game play is very lacking in my opinion. This pack falls real flat in the game play department and feels more like game pack then a full expansion pack.

Now the free stuff that came in the patch is another matter. I love the platform feature. It is a boon for all you builder, but it is not part of the pack. I also love the sentiment system. it adds personality and consequences to relationships. It was much needed. Plus the vacation anywhere thing is much appreciated by me.The free stuff is actually a better add than the stuff I paid for.

Grades

Patch A+ outside of breaking the game that is. F- with the breaking of the game added in. After all if you can't play the game does the rest matter? Glad it is fixed now for me but others not so much.

Snowy Escapes C- maybe a D+ if I really am being honest. Game play is word dependant outside of lifestyles and repetitive. Lifestyles are cool but limited. Great build/buy but nothing you couldn't find for free in CC. Great world, love the world but is it worth $40? I just don't see it. This pack just doesn't add much gameplay wise to the game. For the price I expected more. This pack is like Island Living in that way. Looks great but it is so very shallow.

[oshizu]

I only bought this expansion last week and have been living in the new world for the new dynasty challenge.
So I've played the pack for about 3 real-life days now.

As a simmer born in Japan, I love seeing sims that look like me.
The availability of the new Build/Buy mode items are great, though I've seen better-looking cc kimonos.
Some culturally weird stuff going on as well, which I won't go into here.

For me so far, the biggest negative is how easily my teen sim becomes hysterical for hours due to the Playful +1 "Same Wavelength" moodlet (forgot the name).
She has both the Close Knit lifestyle and Deeply Connected sentiment, so I don't know which one is the culprit.
It's already too easy for a sim to die from hysteria. I'm worried that my teen sim will be constantly at risk of a hysterical death after aging up.
Or is that just me being paranoid?
Also, the weather in Mt. Komorebi sucks so far, lol.

[Brian_Z]

@oshizu If you have Parenthood, teens and children are exempt from emotional deaths.  That's because they frequently come home in +50 moods, so if it was Angry or Embarrassed it would kill them- so they disabled emotional deaths for toddler through teen, IF you have that pack.  Plus, I'm pretty sure I've seen a "No Emotional Deaths" mod somewhere. 

Yes, there IS a "No Emotional Deaths" mod, by thril1, on Mod The Sims.  It comes in 4 varieties:  No Mortified, No Hysterical, No Enraged, and all three in one.  I just got the No Hysterical version, I hate hysteria.  You can be having a great time, everybody happy and enjoying each other's company, then someone cracks a joke and someone else keels over dead.  Not cool!