The Free Will Show - Call for 2 Participants

(Closed) The Free Will Show will air January 2019, and you are invited to submit one of the two missing participants! Through the 4 editions Hugs / Cook & Clean / Pets / Monster four sims and one pet were already chosen. There will be no more editions, so the 2 remaining sims must be created and suggested by you guys!

Please see the vid below for requirements. Need 1 male and 1 female, both young adults. Create one and post your gallery link in your comment to the video.

The main show will be a little different from the editions. It's gonna be edited tighter, and some conversations will even have subtitles based on their talk bubbles. Participants will collect points based on a mix of the rules already used in editions, and points can be used to buy events/services to make living easier. Some episodes will also be followed by a couple days of voting where you can affect what event/service the participant in charge shall buy. Each episode covers one simday, and this time aging will be on! Complete set of rules will be posted later.

After 3 episodes, the participant with lowest score will be kicked out. After another 3 episodes one more will be kicked out. The remaining 4 sims will stay for the full show, and the winner is the last alive member of this household! Winner wins the Free Will House and becomes a resident in my Region 12! (Hopefully still young enough to found a family)


With some luck this show will be long running, with 1 - 2 episodes per month.

Deadline for suggesting participants is December 30th. The 2 randomly chosen sims will be announced on December 31st.

Free Will Show Monster Edition - part 2

Here's final part of the Monster edition, and we have a winner! I'm not unveil the result here, but as normal - you only need to watch the start and ending of the show, and perhaps a few snippets here and there from the main part. In the main show episodes will be more edited and hopefully more entertaining.

We now have 4 contenders, and within a few days a call for the last 2 contenders to the big show airing January 2019 will be announced (deadline will be Dec 31, so there's plenty of time to check back). Specific gender and traits will be required, so stay tuned.

For now, here are the 4 monstrous contenders:

As Sims Go By - New episode out now!

2nd episode of my soap series is called "Growing Farm Rights". So, farming is one of the highlighted subjects, but there is also lots of other stuff going on. You'll learn to know the 5 Councilors better, get a few more ideas about those mysterious people, and there is of course some hints for next episode.

In a week or so there will also be a new film in my "How I Play" series, explaining the Farm Rights a bit more in detail.

Enjoy:

Sneak Peak Upcoming As Sims Go By Episode

Tomorrow is release day for the 2nd episode of this community focused soap featuring real sims and locations from my game! Check out the previously released 1st episode here! One of the subjects for the new episode is the Farm Rights, an idea you might like to adapt. Here's a few teasers:

Free Will Show - Monster Edition part 1 of 2

So, here it is - the Monster edition! 4 evil or mean sims gathered in a house, roaming about freely. Bad behavior gives them points, and after 2nd part one of them wins a spot on the upcoming big Free Will Show.

Previously were chosen a hugging person, a neat person, and a pet loving person (with a pet). Now the bad participant is to be found. Finally you can help by creating one of the last two participants. Stay tuned for announcement mid December, there will be certain traits and genetics required.

So - get ready for the Monster edition! Remember to watch start and ending, but feel free to skip parts of the main section. It's a full simday real time, spying for that long won't be good for you.

As Days Go By - Year 215 Picture Post

Hello! Year 215 was completed long ago, actually the first As Sims Go By episode released Nov 15th took place in my game's year 215. My current routine is to bring you a picture post every year to show what's going on in my game that counts 50 households.

So, in these more or less monthly As Days Go By updates, you get a chance to learn the small stories and destinies taking place outside the film series. Every here and there you might also find some ideas for your own game, but I'll not be very detailed in these posts. They are mostly meant as easy reads for inspiration. If you have any questions, feel free to comment, and I'll explain more thoroughly.

Starting in Gloomville's poor hood, Muggerdale. The richest household is Mugger Farm, being run by the same family for a few generations. They still grow produce, and this farm has 3 Farm Rights (see the As Sims Go By film series episode 2, or How I Play episode 3 for details on Farm Rights).

The household is a bit odd. Alan and Janet are siblings, and although Alan is young adult and ready to establish his own family, he won't take over the farm. Their parents died when they both were teens, and even if not building his life here, Alan ran the family farm while his sister was a student.

The Free Will Show - Pets Edition - Part 2 of 2

So, here's part 2! Because this edition only has 2 episodes, this part is where the winner is chosen!

The winning sim gets a spot on the upcoming big "The Freewill Show", and so does the cat or dog that the winner has the strongest relation to.

Feel free to jump and see random sections of the main part, but don't miss the beginning and the ending. For the main show airing in January the episodes will be shorter and much more entertaining as all dialogs will have subtitles :)

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Monster Edition opens in a week, and I really look forward to this last edition that will be quite different from the others!

The Free Will Show - Pet Edition (part 1 of 2)

Hello! The Free Will Show is planned to air in January, but first we need to find more contestants. We already found two in the Hugs Edition and Cook and Clean Edition. Pet Edition was set for November, and Monster Edition for December. In December you will also get a chance to create and upload the final 2 contestants, based on criteria posted here on the blog medio December.

Only a little delayed, but still within the original plan, Pet Edition is now ready for release! Because of the format of the editions, 4 episodes is a tad much, so the Pets and Monster heats will have obnly 2 episodes each.

From the Pets Edition we'll find not only the winning sim, but also a cat or dog that the winner has the best relation to after 2 episodes! So, if you are a pet lover, head over to check out the candidates! Feel free to jump and watch random parts, but make sure to watch the introductions and the final minutes.



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Episode 2 will be published in about 5 days.

Celebrities in my game

Hello! Wondering what I am up to?

The entire Sims community seems to be busy with the recently released Get Famous expansion pack. I've not grabbed this pack yet, but do keep an eye on let's play videos on Youtube, just to see if it might match my game play a bit more than I think.

Fact is, I already built a studio in my game, long ago. This was done to shoot a few scenes for my "As Sims Go By" Youtube series.

As Sims Go By (Ep1) - a New Beginning

Yay, it's premiere night! The waiting is over as first episode is now available on Simmerville Youtube channel. Grab the popcorn and get seated!



And please leave a comment either on Youtube or here, especially if you want more episodes. The response will decide how soon there will be updates.

Premiere Night!

Yupp, my new TS4 series "As Sims Go By" is finally ready for release! Yay and double yay! The first episode will air tonight, that is around midnight European time. Check back, or hang out near my Simmerville channel on Youtube!

I've tried to keep the editing tight, in fact there is hardly a single second that is not filled on purpose. This way it gets more entertaining all along, but it's also making it harder to tell stories because there is no time to dive into details. I hope it works well, and like I will post tonight - I might depend on feedback in order to move on with the grand plan.

The Free Will Show - Cook & Clean edition - part 4 of 4

So, there was a long delay, but finally the last part of the Free Will Show - Cook & Clean edition was published! This means the 2nd contender for the main Free Will Show is chosen!

The Pet Edition that was announced to air in October will be up in November instead, and the Monster Edition in December. Both these editions will be shorter, probably with only 2 episodes each.

But for now: Enjoy Cook & Clean part 4:

As Days Go By - Year 214 - Picture Post

So, here's an update from my TS4 game. I play fifty households rotationally, and a few of them are also featured in my movie series As Sims Go By, airing this weekend!

We're starting in Spring in San Myshuno. Single Sybil Harell visits the Oasis Springs main park. I always liked this park, and with a few additions like a small swimming pool, there's plenty to do for visitors. It's normally quite busy when I go there.

These kids do not belong to Sybil Harell's household. Sybil is here with her neighbor, Sculla Schwaini. They are both single and rent one section of a Spice Market flat each. That's right, I turned a flat into two small flats. Might post about that later on.

New episode: The Free Will Show - Cook & Clean edition

Part 3 is out! How do they do in the Cook & Clean edition? Only one more episode to go, before we know who will be the 2nd contender to the big show airing in January!

Read more about it in previous posts, or under the video on my Youtube channel.




Final part of the Cook & Clean edition will be released in one week!

As Days Go By - Year 213 - Picture Post

So, here's another update from my TS4 game. The movie series As Sims Go By is a little delayed, because I need to rush through a couple years first. Soon getting there, though!

At Upperton, Gloomville (not Uptown as the picture says... sorry), elderly Fiona Crumpleton finds joy in smalltalking with the buttler. She was always shy, and perhaps that's why she used to be feared as a journalist, as hardly anyone knew her well or had a chance to bribe her.

She won't be around for much longer. Her husband passed away long ago.

New episode of The Free Will Show - Cook & Clean edition

Part 2 is out! This is a show where 4 participants don't know that their free will initiated cooking and cleaning actually give them points! This is the 2nd of 4 editions where the goal is to pick 4 winners who get a spot on the big Free Will Show, that will air in January.

Who wins the Cooking & Cleaning? This show is more than 30 minutes, but you don't need to watch it all. Watching the beginning and ending + random sections of the main part will keep you updated.

Future editions are the "Pets edition" and the "Monster edition". Stay tuned!


Part 3 will be available on Monday Oct 1st, and part 4 on Monday Oct 8th.

The Free Will Show - Cook & Clean Edition - Part 1

So, we are airing! This is the 2nd of 4 editions, where we'll pick contenders for the big upcoming The Free Will Show (airing January 2019). The Cook & Clean edition will have 4 weekly parts, equaling 4 days.

I hate filming anything with walls down, so in this edition we go much closer to the contenders, which makes those intervals with little actions but eating or talking more interesting. Spying on sims is fun, and as soon as their personality and relations get settled, there might occur unexpected situations like romances or fights, even!

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You are welcome to predict the winner of this edition, by posting a comment. Should be done before part 3 is airing!

The Free will Show - Cook & Clean Edition

Just a quick announcement!

Did you watch "The Free Will Show - Hug Craze Edition"? Well, this show has come to stay, and here is a little more about the upcoming seasons!

January 2019 the real thing, "The Free Will Show" will air. This show will run for as long as there are alive contenders in the house and will also involve the viewers!

Before the main show starts, 4 seasons (editions) will be running up to Christmas this year, in order to pick 4 of the contenders for the big show. Finally a couple more contenders will be found through contributions from other simmers, in order to balance genders.

We already picked a winner in the "Hug craze edition", and next up is the "Cook & clean edition", followed by the "Pet edition" and the "Monster edition"! These will get more interesting to watch as you will enter the house and periodically get closer to the contenders. Also the point system gets more advanced. Participants are no longer related, so a free will romance might actually occur, too!

"The Free Will Show - cook & clean edition" is set to air on September 17th with weekly updates!

Give your Sims a custom Lottery

With Seasons EP there was introduced a world wide lottery, where your sims can participate to win great prizes. I've played 4 full years now, and never seen the lottery, and I know other simmers have not got this random calendar event, either.

So, if you want an alternative way to run your own lottery, read on!

Back in the days of The Sims 2, I ran the busy Simmerville Hood website. The site was packed with ideas for your sim community, including organizations and a few tools to add fun activities and calculations. One tool was the Lottery presented by the Grey Sims Organization. It's basically a small JavaScript making it easy to run your own local lottery. Your browser must allow JavaScript and popup windows, I think most browsers do these days.

Go to this page and enter details like lottery title, how many prizes, what each prize is, and then how many lots were sold. Then you will need to add names on those participating, or just a lot ID if you rather like to refer to some other listing you already have. Finally you will get a notice with a random winner of each of your prizes.

Do a test run with just a handful lots to learn how it works.

Sims must be charged manually, and prizes must be arranged manually as well. Using the "money" cheat will fix both. Prizes can of course be anything that you find a way to add to the winning household, money or a TV or a dinner for four sims at a nice restaurant? Think of something that might add to a story or the way you prefer to play. If giving each resident one lot each, you don't really need to charge them because they will all get the same. It's all up to you :)

As Days Go By - y212 - Picture thread

I've just completed year 212, and here is a new update. But first some quick info that might be useful in case you follow my blog. I have shifted a bit between the titles "As Sims Go By" and "As Days Go By". It might be a little confusing using them both, but for future updates the former (Sims) will be used for the upcoming machinima movie series, while the latter (Days) will be used for these blog picture posts. Some sims will feature on both brances, but you will not need to follow both.

So, with that out of the way, here's y212!

Oups - first a few images from year 211...

As Sims Go By - Teaser

This September my new series, As Sims Go By, will premiere! This is a story based on my played sims and the community of my game, combined with a litle bit fiction and drama. Keywords are politics, drama, romance and rivalry...

This will be my biggest machinima project this far. I'm investing many hours into the planning, filming and editing, and there will be several seasons. First season counts 5 episodes and will be released Fall 2018.



Here is a teaser, or more correct - it's what might be the intro for the first episodes. Hope you like it, because I can't wait!

The Free Will Show - Hug Craze Edition

So, I've made lots of movies lately. This activity will slow down a bit this Fall, as I will dedicate my time to a long term project, the "As Sims Go By" series, which will follow my regular game play, but with certain plots and twists to make it like a drama series. Can't wait to get this released, a short teaser will be out late August, and the series will premiere in September! Remember to subscribe to my channel to get the updates!

But for now I'd like to tell you about a brand new show - quickly produced, but still based on a fun and crazy idea. The Free Will Show is exactly what you think it is, you'll spy on sims roaming about by free will. In the Hug Craze edition the 4 sims involved are awarded points each time they hug! You might see the excessive hugging as something annoying in your game, but in this show you will see it can be entertaining, too!

There are 4 parts all released to my Youtube channel, each covering 1 simday. As long as you watch each part's beginning and ending, you can skip random sections of the main part, to reduce the show's duration. The score board will give you a hint on when there is some hugging activity. There are sound effects when they hug, so you could also let it run in the background while you work on your computer.

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Here's a direct link to Part 1. If you don't get directed to Part 2 automatically, you will find all the four parts in the Simmerville channel.

This edition of the show is complete, but there will be more versions of the Free Will Show later this year, with a different theme and probably also more variety when it comes to the filming.

How I Play #02: The Council

Yesterday I released a brand new video giving away a few hints and whatnots trying to explain how my game has a working Council, the election procedure and more. Have a look for yourself. I tried to make it short (only 5 minutes) - if you want more details, please leave a comment here or (rather) on the video channel.

And please note - my Councillors will be starring in my upcoming series, «As Sims Go By», premiering the September!

Bonus Movie: One Year in Sylvan Glades

Yay, my "One Year in ..." series is complete, and I'm closing it all with a short bonus movie, "One Year in Sylvan Glades". I had nearly forgotten all about this secret hideaway that can be accessed from a tree in Willow Creek, and it was nice filming there. The result is a mystic, romantic and hypnotizing 8 minutes film, quite different from the previously 7.

Oh, and the story unfolding is actually based on elements from my "Gloomville Diaries". Enjoy!

As Days Go By - y211 - Picture thread

Life goes on in Region 12, which covers my worlds San Myshuno, Gloomville (aka Willow Creek), Oasis Springs, Newcrest and Brindleton Bay. It's still year 211.

Sabrina Clump no longer lives alone. Jamiels Grossing moved in with her, from Willow Field, Gloomville. He is much better situated than Sabrina, and he doesn't like this tiny and filthy flat in Spice Market.

The flat is even smaller than you might think, because the owner decided to make it into 2 units.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 35 - The final Rush

It's time for the final report! Will they make it in time? Will Garvin Clump manage to max out skills in painting, cooking, singing and gardening + one more - while granny Donna is still around? Phew, I worry there won't be time enough, but let's try!

Garvin was still only a toddler, and yes you have some steep stairs ahead of you, little boy! Strategy is to focus max on his toddler skills, hopefully that might get him a jump start later.

The beautiful world of Windenburg

Yesterday the 7th part of my Seasons EP related series "One Year in My Worlds" went public. It's the longest movie, because there was so much to tell! The hoods are so diverse that they almost feel like different worlds. And - I got access to Windenburg only a week ago, so everything felt new and amazing.

This time you will meet mostly two families, plus Father Winter obviously, but there is no thorough story. I hope you will enjoy "One Year in Windenburg".

More Seasons: One Year in Oasis Springs

Part 6 of my Seasons based series is released! This time have a look arund the warm and arid Oasis Springs to see the changing seasons and weather. And yes - it can snow in Oasis Springs!

All featured sims are sims that I play. This time the Rosewood family is in the spotlight, but with no bold story line. You might recall Ona Rosewood as the runner up in my "Sims by Numbers" show back in 2014. Now she is married with politician and Region 12 Councillor, Josue E. Rosewood, and they have 2 teens in the house. Ona works as a Florist.

Only 2 more movies to go - phew!

Movie: One Year in San Myshuno

The 5th part of my Seasons based series is up! This time have a look arund the city of San Myshuno to experience the changing seasons and weather. All featured sims are sims I play, but this time there is no story line.

Only 3 more to go!

As Sims Go By - Year 211 - Picture Post

My new approach for this blog will be the project "As Sims Go By" (movie series) accomplished by "As Days Go By" (blog picture posts). There will be a couple movies every month (I hope), focusing on both how I play the game and what's going on in certain families. But I will also share a few tidbits as picture posts, and here is the first. Actually, there was one previously when cats and dogs were moving in.

So, my families have been frozen in the year 210 for ages, but finally their clocks are ticking again! With seasons comes the calendar, which is a superb addition for pushing both game play and stories forward!

Starting with a funny picture of farmer Agaton Oaksdale. He runs Oaksdale Farm with his wife Sonia and their daughter. Hm, formerly named Willow Farm, I don't recall whether there was a formal name change, actually...

One Year in Gloomville

Yet another episode is out! This is the forth of my The sims 4 series "One year in my worlds", and this time you get to see how the changing seasons affects my oldest world, Gloomville. This is Willow Creek, the one we all know because it came with the base game! We probably developed it differently, though.

And while the previous episodes focus a lot on weather and nature, this time there is a loose story. Several households are featured, and the Bootwig family is in lead! They have been among my favorite households ever since the start. You can read their introduction elsewhere on this blog (2014).



Four more Seasons-related movies will be released in July, so please subscribe to my Youtube Channel not to miss any. Most updates will of course be announced here, too.

New Seasons based movie: One Year in Granite Falls

The third episode of my The sims 4 series "One year in my worlds" is out! This time we're exploring the beautiful deep forest of Granite Falls during a full year.

Fabian and Anders Rumple are featured, and long timers might remember that Fabian was one of the participants to my series "Sims by Numbers" on this blog. He now resides in Oasis Springs with wife and son, Anders.



Five more Seasons-related movies will be released in July, so please subscribe to my Youtube Channel not to miss any. Most updates will of course be announced here, too.

New movie: Seasons in Newcrest

The second episode of my The sims 4 series "One year in my worlds" was just released. Taking place in Newcrest the Clump family is featured. Yes, that's the family from "The Five Units Challenge" that is about to be completed these days.



Six more Seasons-related movies will be released in July, so please subscribe to my Youtube Channel not to miss any. Most of them will of course be announced here, too.

TS4 movies - more to come!

In the future I will focus a lot more on the Simmerville Youtube channel. Several new series are currently in production - make sure to subscribe!

These days I'm making movies from all my worlds, exploring the ever changing weather and seasons. This series is called "Seasons - One Year in...", and if you already love the latest EP, or you want to check out some beautiful scenes and fun events while waiting to get it, make sure to subscribe to the Simmerville youtube channel. The Seasons series will probably count 8 movies, Brindleton Bay is already released and the others with release during July!

And there will be plenty more movie content for months to come, as I'm planning weekly movie releases!

The Five Units Challenge - Report 34 - The final generation

Only two more reports! This one gets rather long, so I'll try keeping the text to a minimum. So much is happening when you try to rush a story to complete it before the Seasons release! I actually managed to prepare both reports before Seasons release, and the final report #35 will be out late next week!

Our main character Olivia Clump grew up, she had been dating a few guys already. Somehow the conversation felt easier with the guy she met at the romance festival, Kayson Dorman. He worked as a servant at Civic Cliffs, a dining located in Crestville (a hood in my Newcrest).

They met again at the museum next to his job. It was the perfect location for some quiet conversation.

Seasons: One Year In Brindleton Bay

[The Sims 4, Seasons] Yay, I've enjoyed the latest expansion pack for 2 weeks, and I'm planning a series of new movies from my various worlds. Today the first was released, «One Year In Brindleton Bay»!


 I didn't actively play many households in Brindleton Bay yet, but my sims often visit this beautiful world. It's a world liked by many. This movie focuses most on the landscapes and weather, but in some of the others you will also step inside some of my family's homes.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 33 - Olivia growing up

Rushing this challenge to complete it before the release of Seasons. Trying to focus on the essentials, only, but you know I always liked details in my stories, lol, taking pictures of every little event :)

Starting of with the Clump family tree, because they are currently 11 sims spread on 4 households and 2 worlds. Might be a tad hard to keep track on.

Sylvia (green) and Abraham, had 4 kids, all married and currently with kids. This challenge follows Donna Clump, only because she was born with the right looks, black hair and green eyes. That's required to take this challenge along.
  Donna Clump married Gerald, they had two kids, August and Olivia, only the latter has black hair and green eyes. This family resides in Rivercrest (southern hood of my Newcrest)
  Rudolph Clump resides in San Myshuno's Spice Market with wife and two teen daughters, Cybil and Carolina.
  Sammy Clump resides in San Myshuno's Spice Market (actually same building as twin brother Rudolph), with wife and one teen daughter, Sabrina.
  Fiona C. Meshram became the black sheep of the family, she cut off all contact with her siblings, and they think her hubby forced her. She is in bad company. Resides San Myshuno's Art Quarter, with hubby and kids Nadia (teen) and Alexander (taken away).

The Five Units Challenge - Report 32 - Skills and Duties

Hey - guess what! Because of Seasons coming soon, I decided to complete this challenge before the new features are added! I wouldn't mind seeing some rain or snow in the Clump family's everyday, but you know, with calendar and other new stuff there might be adjustments to how things work, and I don't feel like reinventing anything regarding this challenge.

So, 4 more reports are planned, meaning each update will cover about 7-9 simdays/years.

The challenge founder, Sylvia Clump, recently died from old age, and current challenge keeper, Donna Clump, is facing lots of trouble. She is only half way maxing ut her three required skills; cooking (from mom Sylvia), painting (from dad Abraham) and singing (Donna's personal skill). Donna's daughter Olivia will soon grow up and Donna must be all set by then!

- Oh my, why by Similius was I boern into this silly challenge?

The Sims 4 Seasons is coming!

Maybe you already know, but returning from my vacation finding these news made my day!

The Sims 4 Seasons is coming to PC and Mac on June 22! Hey, that's only a couple weeks!



I loved the seasons for all my sms games because the season and weather adds so much to most activities. Your sim's outfit when going somewhere. Romancing in Spring vs Autumn? Choosing indoor or outdoor arena for your party might be essential - who wants an outdoor wedding during a snow storm? So, will more sims get married during Summer? Kids growing up in Winter will build skills differently from their siblings growing up in Summer. Will cats be less likely to go prowling on a snowy day? And so on...

There's not only weather, but also new activities. How about ice skating, roller skating, bee hives and snowball fights? Seasonal decorations, weather controller, interactive scarecrow, satisfaction points and you ca even design your own holiday! Your sim can now join the Gardening Career to become a Botanist or Floral Arranger!


Seasons are said to affect all worlds in various ways. It would be nice if visiting Granite Falls gave different experiences depending on season, and maybe the San Myshuno outdoor markets will get surprised by heavy rain? Willow Creek sunset might look different in Autumn?

This is the expansion pack that I've been longing for the most. I can't wait to find out more!

The Five Units Challenge - Report 31 - Goodbye Sylvia

Donna was still upset about meeting her sister few nights ago. Fiona never showed up to the Sunday family dinner. She looked tired and not very healthy, and she obviously had no desire to let others in on her, not even her closest family. Donna was convinced, something was wrong!

Thankfully, there were positive matters to keep her mind busy. Like her son, August, wanting to practice music!

Donna invited August to sing karaoke with her at San Myshuno's Spice Market.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 30 - Dorothy's secret

So, they were back from their quick vacation, let's take a closer look at Olivia! After all, she is the third and last main sim in this challenge. This challenge will be successful if Olivia's futur main heir maxes out all five required skills while Donna is still alive. Will it be possible? (Challenge rules here)

Olivia became a teen, and her traits are now Self-assured Loner and Chief Mischief. That might be some interesting personality!

The Five Units Challenge - Report 29 - Looking for Fiona

Life goes on, and this series might be speeding up a little as I did not plan to follow this challenge for the rest of my life...

Donna, wearing red top, is only the 2nd generation, while Olivia, all to the right, is Donna's daughter and heir to the challenge. Donna's mom, Sylvia, wearing a yellow tee, is a widow since many years.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 28 - Shooting the Criminal

Life goes on in Rivercrest, a hood within the larger Newscrest district. Just south of the golf court, is the Clump residence. Below you can see the redish roof in the distance.

It's such a lush neighborhood, perhaps that is what inspired legacy founder Sylvia Clump to become a dedicated hobby gardener?

The Five Units Challenge - Report 27 - Family Photos Again

Yes! Donna finally redecorated her kitchen! Red happened to be her favourite color.

She upgraded the counters. Added a few shelves for spices and herbal mixtures to clear the counters.

As Days Go By - Changes for this blog

Changes coming to this blog! I always played The Sims in a complex community like way, regardless of series. Rotating households, building community structures that are not necessarily handled by the game itself, keeping track on more genetics than the game actually opens for, knowing exactly what sim is responsible for specific community matters. It took a while for TS4 to grab me, but even when playing stand alone stories, I normally end up keeping all my families within a common universe of time, rules and residents. They are all somehow connected.

With constantly more worlds added, my families did spread, and it's time for me to look into the larger community. I'm now re-introducing many of the community rules and assets fro my Simmerville hood back on TS1 and TS2.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 26 - Farm Rights

Olivia developed a close relation to the cat Sasha. They spent lots of time together and Olivia obviously didn't mind hugging a sick cat, either. Now, hopefully that red nose disease wouldn't be easily transfered to a sim?

Instead of going to school that morning, Olivia took Sasha to the Vet in Brindleton Bay.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 25 - Traits

After Abraham's death, there was always an empty dining chair. He looked at them from the framed photos, and Donna was expecting her father to walk back into the room at any time. But no - he was forever gone!

There was no tradition for graves in this region (Region 12), no cemeteries and only a very few families secretly kept the gravestone of their beloved relatives.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 24 - The Loss of Abraham

Now that Donna's sister Fiona finally moved out, there was less worries about household size. The family counted two elders, two young adults, two toddlers - and a cat.

Toddlers August and Olivia were quite easy going.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 23 - Sylvia's Birthday

Both Sylvia and Abraham were extremely lucky that their grandchild met the strict challenge requirements; black hair and green eyes. Perhaps a challenge like this would have been more fun with a wider genetic spread, making it harder to match the goal, but I doubt it would be possible to succeed if say there was a successful DNA match on 10th try. Donna and Gerald could easily have 10 kids, but the 10th kid would not be able to fulfill its tasks while Donna is still around.

Little Olivia was such a charming toddler!

The Five Units Challenge - Report 22 - The Unwanted Household Member

Well, you probably got it - the stray cat Sasha was the unwanted. Donna had nothing against animals, but she disliked strongly how her sister Fiona brought a stray into the household. Donna was the one in charge and expected to have been asked before anything like that happened.

- I did suggest for Fiona to move out, but I'm not sure she even started looking for her own place.
- Did you ask Sammy or Rudolph? They might have some available space, Sylvia suggested.
- Fiona loves San Myshuno, Abraham added.
But Donna had already checked with her brothers living in the city of San Myshuno. They needed their small flats for their own families.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 21 - Stray Cat Moving In

Life went on at the Clump residence. Donna was definitely pregnant again, while thinking a lot about life in general. Seeing her dad Abraham getting older, and waiting for her mom Sylvia to become elderly - it all happened so quickly - would there be time enough for herself to see her future grandchild reaching young adult stage, like this challenge required?

Donna loved to cook, but she was not yet very skilled. Both her dad and mom were constantly at the BBQ grill or kitchen stove, preparing another group meal. With plenty of leftovers around, Gerald would accuse her for not caring enough about environment, which in the end could harm his political career.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 20 - Fiona's Cat

But, no!!! Little August grew up to a toddler, and while his hair is black, his eyes are brown - not green. He sure is a charmer, and he would make for a good runner up. But Donna and Gerald should go for a second try. Sorry Donna, you might need to fill the house with more kids!

I never keep babies until they grow up by game, instead I'll age them up after 1 day. Then I'll keep a toddler for 4 days, until growing into a child and starting school. I find toddlers very cute, but it easily gets chaotic when all household members rush to the toddler to do stuff that might even interrupt with whatever some other sim is currently doing. So, toddlers are challenging not so much because of themselves needing attention, but because of parents, teen siblings or grandparent rushing to assist them by free will. The programming for this seems so wrong compared to previous sims series - a sim should not rush to a toddler who is already being helped by someone else. I just had to mention this... :)

At least Sylvia adored her new grandchild. August was her 3rd grandchild, because both Rudolph and Sammy got kids downtown. Rudolph got daughters Sybil and Carolina, while Sammy got daughter Sabrina.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 19 - Donna's Wedding

The day of the wedding was here! Donna wanted a formal arrangement, and so did her mom, Sylvia. I'm not really sure what Gerald, the groom, wanted.

The essentials were bought and placed in the garden. For a second I thought that one of the 5 garden units could actually be a permanent wedding plot, but no - there's no skill involved. Those units must be dedicated to skills, it's part of this challenge, after all.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 18 - Donna's Engagement

Pregnancy tests are exciting, especially when they announce that your sim is eating for two! Donna was proven pregnant, and in a way she was relieved, because it meant she was now on the ball, one step closer to having a baby with black hair and green eyes!

Of course, her main heir won't need to fit the bill 100%, but bringing on the right genes will make it a lot easier for the next generation.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 17 - Donna dating

Donna spent hours on painting, almost daily she painted various motives and tried to learn new techniques. She needs to max out her painting skill, just like dad Abraham did.

But Abraham worried a bit.

The Five Units Challenge - Report 16 - Donna Grows Up

Sorry for the long break - but now this story is back on track with many future updates already well prepared. Today is Donna's young adult birthday, and finally the next generation can get some focus!

Donna is 1st generation after the founders Sylvia and Abraham Clump, who already filled the first 2 garden units. Donna will fill the 3rd, and her main heir and main heir's child will complete those remaining 2 units.

Cats and dogs moving in!

(TS4 - EP Cats & Dogs) I'm really enjoying this expansion pack. The pets come with a much better individual approach than in previous versions, I find their personality is a lot more diverse. They are charming, too, and a great assets to most families.

I'm not really into RL pets enough to gasp over all those breeds that are available. To me it would be just fine to have five generic versions to choose from. I'll never make use of all those detailed breeds on offer, and never did in previous series, but other simmers will enjoy the rich library, of course.

Also, there was introduced a new sim count meaning there is now a limitation to how many sims your game can handle. It's a rather generous limit though, but you obviously is not meant to fill up all your worlds and homes with families, like I do. You would reach your limit rather quickly. My game is the kind of played families on most residential lots in all worlds, and I like them to spread and mix, building family trees over the generations. Families I played the week TS4 was released are still in my game. So, it would be a headache needing to get rid of a single soul. Luckily I can go on with my strategy, but I can't add many more, and it means only a few families can have pets because they count as sims in this manner. Fair enough.

In my Gloomville (aka Willow Creek) the Crumpleton family has resided Uptown for ages. This family more or less founded Gloomville, and they built themselves a fortune. They have two Siamese cats, Bart and Lucia.

Touring Brindleton Bay, Whiskerman's Wharf

(The Sims 4, EP Cats & Dogs) When getting access to a new world, I love wandering about exploring all those small nooks and streets, finding those hidden views and trying to figure the location's history. In 4 parts I'll show you my Brindleton Bay favorites.

Let's start with the Whiskerman's Wharf district, nice area packed with great dockside atmosphere alongside those small, cozy streets climbing into the hills. What's this place's history, and what might the locals be like?

Taking a step back, I'm surprised to see how crowded Brindleton Bay actually is. On both sides of the waters you will find tight groups of small residential houses. It's a lush area, still with plenty of industry, old and new.