Freewill vs Story progressing.

[Leto85]

When you start a new save file, there are selected Sims in each of the towns that are pregnant. It doesn't happen in-game, they are created pregnant. Somehow The gender and names of the born babies are totally random. They are treated like any nooboo born while you're playing the game, just their mothers got pregnant not in-game (well, maybe a day, but it's not obvious until you play that particular family).

So you mean that everything is random about the upcoming baby except for the fact that the baby is coming? They are setup to become a certain gender? Do they also 'popout' as twins or even triplets in another save file while being a 'simple' baby in the first?

[TheChronicR]

So you mean that everything is random about the upcoming baby exapt for the fact that the baby is coming? They are set-up to become a sertain gender? Do they also 'popout' as twins or even triplets in another save file while being a 'simple' baby in the first?

Their gender is absolutely random. But, for instance, Claire Ursine's baby tends to be born female, and Justine Keaton's is usually born male. Even though, in my Dynasty save file Justine's baby is female! That shows how random that is. I highly doubt about twins or even triplets, but maybe, who knows.

[Hosfac]

Do they also 'popout' as twins or even triplets in another save file while being a 'simple' baby in the first?

Well, a lot of the background operations revolve around odds and mathematics I suppose it's possible.  However, it wouldn't be any more possible than a sim you're playing who doesn't have the "Fertility Treatment" LTR, never watches kid's television and never listens to kid's radio having twins or triplets.  Statistically, it could happen...it's just extremely unlikely.

[Seabody]

Yes, that was indeed someone I was curious about. Thanks for clarifying this! They where pregnant right away when you started op the game? Or did they get pregnant while you where playing it?

Claire is pregnant from the start.

Yes, as a matter of fact they did.

That's why. It was mentioned in a house hunter's tips (House Hunters: Movin' on Up!)

[Pam]

I've seen Claire Ursine's baby be a boy, but only once.

[TheChronicR]

Pam is right. Some unborn babies that come with a new game tend to be a specific gender. Claire's baby tends to be a girl while Justine's - a boy.

[Leto85]

So in fact I can say that a few things are just 'meant to be happen' (in order words preinstalled) and other things are random?
The problem is that I'm not really happy with the word random. I am searching if those variable things are not random but maybe got influenced by your own sim. It could be that the townie sims are having a standard path they need to follow, like getting pregnant on day 6, divorcing on day 9 and getting remarried at day 10. Just an example.
But when you play the game your sim has influence on the storyprogression of the town, no matter what. Either by talking to a townie when that townie actually was about to go the another way to do task 8 or 9. When you talk to them at that time you either delay that 'task' or you simply wiping it out, which causes in the last part a tremendously huge storyprogression twist.

The best example to real life I can give is the theory of timetraveling through multiple universes: the traveler goes back in time, changes his or her past and comes back in another present, which is for him or her completely new but for the rest of the world (and universe) the absolute truth.

So, which of you can confirm that your sim has a impect on the storyprogression of the townies?

[Pam]

If your Sim does something significant, like ask a townie to break up with a spouse, then yes, it has an impact on the story progression of the town.  But I don't think the little things make any difference.  The townies start the game with certain skills, relationships, and situations.  At that point, story progression takes over and it never turns out the same way twice.

[ratchie]

I have seen the same thing happen more then once. For instance Claire Ursine gets married to Connor Frio a lot in my games.

Rachel

[Anushka]

I'm also positive that it is not preordered what will happen with certain Sim at certain day etc. Pregnant Sims are created pregnant, have skills and careers, and relationships (actually they are placed in CAW by creators, we can do that only with mods). There is no way EA programmed "the future" of precreated Sims. There is CAS random generator, many names generators, not shore why you doubt it.
I had a controlable pregnant Sim getting twin boys but lost that file, so I upload previous saved file, when she was 2 days pregnant. This time, she had only one son, with completely different genetic and favorites than previously born twins from that same pregnancy. I also did some testing, and it seems that newborn characteristics are determined when(or just after) you get the message to name a boy/girl and chose the traits. So if you save while mother is in hospital, you can test many many times what would baby look like and what are the favs. And when there is so much randomness in controlable household, in uncontrollable are even more.
There are some factors in the randomness which are already mentioned, but they are not exclusive. Family Oriented Sims will most likely have large families, and Ambitious Sims will probably progress faster in a Career, you'll find Angler fishing much more often than other Sims. But I had Christopher Steel being extremely large (looking for a nice word for being extremely fat),  and engaged to many many different townies, from Monika Moriss to Yumi Sekemoto - Leighton's mother even if in romantic interest with a Sim I controlled. I also saw a lot of movements from Alto's and Wolf's. Some strange relationship evolve like Mortimer get engaged with "never seen or heard of" Sim, or Sam Sekemoto had 3 wives and 5 children with all of them.
One more thing, Jamie and Thorton are only friends, no romantic interest, and I never saw them flirt, but am shore it can happen as this game is designed to surprise us.

[Leto85]

What I had forgotten to mention is that I have did some experience with interfearing paths a long time ago. I don't even remember if it was with The Sims 2 or 3, but I saw that if I load my save file and follow my sims from above, just following, they will do the exact same thing when I load without saving the exact same save file. One sim walks to an electronic thing which he breaks by excident. Every time after each other.
When I interfear the interaction by letting another sim talk to that sim who was 'ment to be to break something' the path occasionally seems to stop and he didn't break the machine when he was using it after the 'break.'

I don't know what I have to think about this. Maybe the fact he would have broken the machine (I thought to remember it was a stereo) was installed at the moment he desided to use it. Which than got remembered when I saved it. If that's true than the game is planning ahead, although not very far in the future; at least only one click.

[Hosfac]

I don't know what I have to think about this. Maybe the fact he would have broken the machine (I thought to remember it was a stereo) was installed at the moment he desided to use it. Which than got remembered when I saved it. If that's true than the game is planning ahead, although not very far in the future; at least only one click.

That's what I think happens.  I have often saved while an object was in use, and upon reloading the game, if the object breaks once, it will break every time if you quit without saving and reload the game.  Although I wouldn't exactly say it's predestined...that decision was already made.

It's sort of the same with pregnancies, too.  Once you hear the baby bells, the decision about it's gender is pretty much made unless you do something to interfere.  When I first started playing, I had a sim couple try for baby, and the bells indicated success.  For whatever reason, I wanted them to have a boy and this was well before I knew about eating apples or watermelon, so I saved it so I could go back if the baby was a girl.  Of course it was, so I reloaded the save and went through it again.  It was born a girl again.  I repeated this about 5 more times before finally giving up and raising the girl.

I doubt it's any different with townies.  Claire's baby is usually a girl and Diane's baby is usually a boy because that's what was decided during their creation.  However, uncontrolled townies go out and about and do different things.  One of the things they do is eat at the Bistro.  Perhaps, in one game, Claire goes out and gets a plate of french toast or Diane goes there and gets Eggs Machiavellian.  Now, this one random event has weighted the numbers and perhaps Claire or Diane will have a baby of a different gender than is typical.

Also, uncontrolled townies talk to each other.  They meet in the park or other parts of town and chat each other up all the time.  You can also occasionally hear them get phone calls while their inside that little blank space that is their house before you get invited in.  So it's entirely possible in the big random scheme of things that Pauline Wan could meet Christopher Steel somewhere, and after some time talking with each other she decides that she likes him better than Hank Goddard.  So she divorces breaks up with Hank (edit: they're not married yet lol) and moves in with Chris...although the two might not ever get married because she has commitment issues.  

Story progression actually did that in one game I played.  

[Pam]

 Perhaps, in one game, Claire goes out and gets a plate of french toast or Diane goes there and gets Eggs Machiavellian.  Now, this one random event has weighted the numbers and perhaps Claire or Diane will have a baby of a different gender than is typical.

Only fresh apples and watermelon can determine the gender of a baby.  Eating Eggs Machiavellian won't make a difference at all.  I've never seen a Sim eat fruit except for vampires eating a Plasma Fruit.  So, I don't think the townies can do anything to determine a baby's gender.  It's all part of random story progression.

[Hosfac]

Only fresh apples and watermelon can determine the gender of a baby.  Eating Eggs Machiavellian won't make a difference at all.  I've never seen a Sim eat fruit except for vampires eating a Plasma Fruit.  So, I don't think the townies can do anything to determine a baby's gender.  It's all part of random story progression.

Ah well, it was a thought anyways.  I figured that food cooked with fruit might make a small difference, although it obviously wouldn't have made as much difference as eating the fruit.  My theory was that it would be 1/8th of a watermelon per serving of Eggs Machiavellian...not enough to guarantee a different gender, but possibly enough to skew the original result.

But I'll defer to your knowledge on the subject, as you have far more experience with it than I do. 

[Pam]

Ah well, it was a thought anyways.  I figured that food cooked with fruit might make a small difference, although it obviously wouldn't have made as much difference as eating the fruit.  My theory was that it would be 1/8th of a watermelon per serving of Eggs Machiavellian...not enough to guarantee a different gender, but possibly enough to skew the original result.

But I'll defer to your knowledge on the subject, as you have far more experience with it than I do. 

Sure, there's a possibility that apples or watermelon in a dish could skew the results, but it's never come close to being proven.  And considering how small the serving of fruit would be (as you said, 1/8 of a watermelon), it's pretty much not making a difference.  It takes a lot of fruit to guarantee a gender (I use at least 10) that even if you got the gender you want from eating Eggs Machiavellian, it's most likely coincidence.