A Sims Community Magazine
Issue 23 | July 2022
Get Real with
OshinSims PixelVibes CC creator
Basemental Mods Delight
Making a Simmer with
MelanieDrakeYT
Titan Architect
CokiCreative
Sincerelyshon
Must Watch
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
Letter from the Editors
2 | Letter From The Editors
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Ivana:
Sami:
Hello again, and welcome to the July issue of the SIM Magazine! It’s me again, Ivana (a.k.a. BunnyBananaSims) .
This month we dedicate SIM Magazine to SueSimming, we may have missed your Birthday but know you will always be someone we hold dear and love very much, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY from all the team.
This is another jam-packed issue of SIM Magazine, and this July, the theme is all about friendship and community. Well, our team and magazine have been always about the community and showcasing the talents of Simmers everywhere. This time though, our team and featured Simmers have gone a bit deeper and brought to light how awesome and an inspiration this community really is, and how it inspired them to pursue content creation and passion careers with The Sims. We have lots of amazing and talented Simmers featured here who are really creative machinimists, custom content creators, artists, renderers, builders and players from The Sims community, and I’m pretty sure they’d inspire you too with your own content! Sincerely Shon and Marc Coronado are two of the brilliant machinimists in the community, their creativity would wow you. PixelVibes and Simsonico brings you whimsical CC that looked like they came from a fantasy dreamland. Pencil Spaghetti would amaze you with their illustration and artistic skills with nostalgia from The Sims 2 and The Sims 3. Melanie Drake and Scoozie Sue bring you creative builds from their gallery. We also got a special guest here, the team of Farm Folks, and they chatted with us about their game and how the community is important and inspires them in the development their game. And so much more…. I hope you all love this issue and continue supporting us, and each other. A huge thank you to this beautiful community of ours, The Sims community, for without you, this magazine wouldn’t even be possible in the first place.
After that grovelling apology for missing our Sue’s Birthday we had a lovely chat with one of our favourite simmers OshinSims and with thanks to AsGraceCreates for our beautiful cover Oshin Sim. The Reverend Sandie Woolford joins our team full time for our Exclusive Simscopes each month, go and find out what's in store for you! We also have MelanieDrake in our Making a Simmer this month and we are happy to say Basemental is back and to our Mods' delight lets us know what's what in the mod world. Non-Bob News is going all-out Awoooo with The Sims Werewolves. We want to wish our sister mag SIMStyle a Happy Birthday shout-out for reaching the big 1. Make sure to head over to their Twitter page for all giveaway information and get your Sims posing with the background free to download, so lets get the party started. We do know there are 4 packs/kits up for grabs, so can you afford to miss out? SueSimming had the pleasure of chatting with Snayke.Tattoo aka Crys one of the Tattoo artists who created a design for The Sims ‘More Than Skin Deep’ update. CokiCreative is Titan Architect this month, and as much as we tried skill really is her secret, get to know Alana right here. We are going crazy over FarmFolks, a new game coming soon that we are sure any Sims lover would want in their gaming bag. We can't wait to show you what they have in store for us.
Our magazine will always be dedicated to you.
Guess the CAS and Spot the Difference: how good just are you?
Thank you very much. Happy reading, and happy Simming!
Have fun and enjoy this issue dedicated to Community and Friendships. catch you next month
Letter From The Editors | 3
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
04
64
NonBob News New High School EP
12
SincerelyShon
72
Tips & Tricks Friend of the World
18
Introducing Members Only
86
Off Topic
102
Retro Corner
Were going FarmFolks Crazy
MinicartTSR
ScoozieSue
34
Titan Architect CokiCreative
Michas.Moon
26
MachinimaX
108
CC Spotlight
SnaykeTattoo aka Crys The Sims Tattoo Artist
PixelVibes
42
Oshin Sims
54
Community Sims
Gets Real (from front cover)
108
Your Sims from social media
146 34 4 | Contents
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
156 120 126
Dedicated to SueSimming Happy Birthday from the SIM team
Simspiration What inspires me to play The Sims
134
Game Packs/Kit Reviews The Werewolves reviewed
146
Making a Simmer MelanieDrakeYT
156
Sims Art & Blender PencilSpaghetti, Marco and Simsonico
18 180
Mods & Modders Basemental
190
Just for Fun Guess the CAS, Learn Simlish and Spot the difference, can you find all 10?
196
CC Finds CC we found by creators for you.
200 SimScopes Your monthly forecast with Sandie Woolford
204 The Winner Is? SupShell winner for June is revealed
206 Behind The Scenes Get to know the SIM team
86 Contents | 5
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
NonBob News With ikea UPDATES UPDATE 6/14/2022 Reticulating Lupines PC: 1.89.214.1030 / Mac: 1.89.214.1230 Console: Version 1.60 Bug Fixes Base Game Snowy Escape Spa Day Realm of Magic Dream Home Decorator My Wedding Stories This patch included bug fixes and updates to accompany the Werewolves Game Pack’s release! It added the Lunar Cycles, the small Telescope, a new beard, new swatches on the Base Game wedding dresses, a Base Game version of the MWS hijab and more! The patch notes accompanying this update were amazing and so funny, you can read them HERE!
6 | NonBob News
Welcome to Non Bob News, the direct news gossip source for Your Sims gaming gossip.
Sul Sul! First of all, Happy Pride Month to all simmers, despite it being over now! Secondly, we keep having so many wonderful updates as of lately that it’s hard to write a Non Bob News article compiling all of them! But, I’ll do my best!
A New EP So, sticking to the most exciting stuff first: on June 30th, the trailer for a new Expansion Pack came out! And, guess what simmers, there is going to be a HIGH SCHOOL pack! Now, this had been sort of expected for those that are active on twitter as, about a month ago, there was a leak in an official survey sent by Origin to players in Australia. That survey asked players which EPs they had played with and, right at the top, there it was: High School. Simmers on twitter were divided in their opinions; some were happy we were getting something new for teenagers, others were upset that “a pack like The Sims 3 Generations is being split up into multiple packs in The Sims 4”, others were worried it would be too similar to Discover University. However, after the trailer, we’ve noticed a lot of overwhelming excitement and interest in the pack, which will be called “High School Years” and will feature a cool fully customizable high school (Copperdale High), where you can attend class, join after class activities, pull some pranks… And you’ll also be able to go to the pier and have fun in the rides, go get Boba Tea with friends, go shopping and even attend Prom! You can check out the trailer Here!
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
NonBob News | 7
The Next Few Months The new pack comes as part of the new roadmap! Every 2-3 months, the official Sims account has been releasing “Road Maps” on Twitter! They usually feature a theme and mention, very broadly, the kind of DLCs we can expect during that season. The last road map we had was the one revealing werewolves and it was called “Lights Out”, and the new one is very aptly named “Rise & Shine”. The roadmap mentioned it will last from July to September and that it will feature a Build Kit, a Style Kit, a Base Game Update and an Expansion Pack! We can speculate on the
8 | NonBob News
nature of these kits and BG update by looking at the icons around it and from information we got a while ago so, let’s have a little speculation session! The Build Kit sticker on the roadmap post features a cactus/desert drawing which seems to indicate that we will get some type of desert or maybe even Native American inspired décor, possibly relating to the décor Sims FreePlay got not long ago. The person who first noticed this was LuddySimmer on twitter! The Style Kit is a little less precise and we’d have to do a full-on conspiracy theory to try and discern something from their sticker,
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
which features a crop top and a beanie. It could be connected to the high school pack, looking to give simmers some more youthful clothes, but we’re not quite sure! Finally and most importantly, the Base Game Update which we can say, with almost 100% certainty, will be bringing back something simmers have been begging for since 2014 (and that we mentioned in last month’s issue of the magazine)! Can you guess what it is?
Yup, it’s body hair! Even the trailer for the High School Years pack features it on the backs, arms, chests and legs of a couple of sims! We’re so excited for it! So, what do you all think? Are you excited for the new EP? What about Body Hair? Be sure to let us know! Happy Simming, everyone! Ikea (she/her)
S�����e�i�.c�� Where fashion meets Gaming
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
Tips & Tricks In The Sims 4 week. To reach the final stage of The Friend of the World aspiration you need 20 friends, a BFF and to level up your charisma to 10.
What Traits Should My Sim Have?
When building in The Sims there are vital cheats that every builder needs to know but this month we move our focus to improve your gameplay. With July being our Friendship and Community issue, we decided to focus on Friendships for Tips and Tricks and that's where being a Friend of The World Aspiration comes in. Just how do you get this aspiration, how easy is it and are there any cheats to help you along the way? Find out below how we did with our Sim Billy Bob Thornton below!.
To be a Friend of the World in real life could take a lifetime but luckily this is The Sims and it is quite possible to have all this done within a
12 | Tips & Tricks
We used the following Traits: Outgoing, Good and Cheerful, after all a cheerful Sim, is a happy Sim and a happy Sim means more friendships which in turn boosts your skill gain rate of Charisma. This is essential to reach your goal as the higher level of Charisma your Sim has, the more friendships they will be successful in gaining.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
New in Town In this first stage to reach success, you need to: •
Introduce yourself to 10 Sims
•
Have 3 Friends simultaneously
sure to learn all about the Traits of your potential Sims friends, then this will also show you which Sims have which traits and therefore are more compatible with your own Sim and more likely to become a friend.
Well Liked To become Well-Liked, after completing the first stage of this Aspiration, send your Sim off to 3 different lot locations to introduce themselves to more Sims and reach level 4 in Charisma, the more Sims you meet that have common traits with your Sim the better as these will help out with the friendship requirements coming up next.
Make sure to take your Sim to a place that has a lot of activity, that way making 3 friends in the day should be super easy and give you enough satisfaction points to buy the Observant reward.
The Observant Reward This reward can make a big difference for the Friend of the World Aspiration, and if you make
Super Friend To be a Super Friend in this stage 3 of the Aspiration you need to reach level 6 of the Charisma Skill and this can be pretty easy too if you make sure to choose socials that will help to boost this skill and 12 friends simultaneously. Your Sim is now well on its way to being a Friend of the World so make sure to concentrate on making friends. One way to check who you have a better chance of becoming friends with is to check on the relationship panel, if you make sure to concentrate on the Sims here you are closer to being friends with already, and your chances have improved far easily. Go hunt down those friends!
Tips & Tricks | 13
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
Friend of the World You have reached the final stage (well done), and this should only take you around 4-5 Sim days to complete. In this final stage of the Aspiration you will need: 20 Sim Friends simultaneously, get your Sim to level 10 Charisma (cap that Charisma) and you need to make 1 BFF. In this stage, you are actually building up your Charisma whilst you make those final few friends for the 20 Friend overall requirement, well how about that!
but maybe you do not have the patience or the time, or maybe you want to complete this aspiration for another million and 1 reasons, so here are a few cheats that may just help you out in reaching that goal quicker.
RELATIONSHIP CHEATS HOW?
Open the console/cheat panel in-game by pressing Ctrl, Shift & C together, once opened type in: testingcheats on
The Beloved Reward Trait
This will enable you to now input the cheat code below and add 50 points to your relationship score:
Completing the Friend of the World Aspiration earns you the Beloved Reward Trait which in turn will help you keep all those glorious Sims friends you have made to take complete advantage of this make sure to move your Sims to Aspirations that require friendships and then you can focus on other aspects of the game such as focusing on your Sims skills or even their careers.
modifyrelationship xsimsnameherex osimsnamehereo 50 LTR_Friendship_Main
You could do all of that and have a jolly old time making as many Sims friends as you can,
modifyrelationship xsimsnameherex osimsnamehereo -50 LTR_Friendship_Main
14 | Tips & Tricks
(xsimsnameherex is your selected Sims name and osimsnamehereo is the targeted Sims name) Maybe you want to remove a few points? Use this code:
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Try this cheat code: Relationships.create_friends_for_sim This will then spawn your Sim to another lot that will have a 50% friendship status already with your Sim so making that BFF is going to be a walk in the park!
This code is a gem: Relationships.introduce_sim_to_all_others This cheat code will then make your Sim acquaintances with ALL SIMS including dare I say it, recently deceased Sims too! And lastly not forgetting that Charisma skill that needs topping out try this cheat code: Stats.set_skill_level Major_Charisma ((1-10) add level here 1 lowest - 10 cap it out)
You are now a bonafide Friend of the World, whether you did it by following the rules or not, but then this is The Sims, your rules are The Rules and you can make them up as you go. Play with Life, Play The Sims - until next month
We are looking for a T&T writer for this section, could this be you? Do you have all the tips and tricks already up your sleeve? Then why not join us and share your knowledge with the community. Contact us via our email supinmedia@gmail.com or use the contact us page via the website supinmedia.com
Tips & Tricks | 15
SIM Mag | Issue 23 July 2022
18 | Introducing - Micahs Moon
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM Mag
It's July and here we are with another introduction to our readers. We would like to introduce to you all the amazing world of Michas.Moon on Instagram. Micah has a beautiful Instagram account where you can find posts from builds to CAS and CAS videos. If you are looking for a simmer to follow Micah is one that should be added to your list, from Pixies to nooks this simmer has it all.
Hi Micah and welcome to Sim Magazine, can you tell us a little about yourself? I’m from Michigan, I’m the second oldest out of my mom’s 4 kids, and I like creating, catching the morning light, rainy days, and all kinds of music. I’m an introvert, and a bit of a perfectionist, I enjoy watching plenty of TV shows, playing video games, and reading.
We love to support anyone who is community-focused and we think you deserve recognition for doing just this, as you are a Black simmer and have provided support to the Black community via your profiles as well as attaching links in your Linktree for this and Mental health support links. What is your drive behind
making sure others feel this kind of support? What advice can you give to other young Black simmers starting out in the community to keep their mental health in check? I wanted to create a space for peace because my home life was chaotic. I was taking care of everyone around me, and it left me completely drained in every way. I didn’t want to live, I attempted a few times to end myself. I hated how that made me feel, before and after. I don’t like that I can’t save everyone, I had to come to an understanding that I literally can’t. However, the few that do encounter me I will share that support, and the peace that I now have in my life. Everything isn’t always full of sunshine because, well.. life, but it’s nowhere close to me who almost didn’t make it. Take a break. The internet has been a wonderful place in many ways but quite harsh in others. There’s a lot going on in the media and we’re being bombarded with it on the regular now, even videos on our feed unwarranted and without warning. I also know it’s hard when starting out on your platform(s), especially when you see all these wonderful creators who are successful, but they don’t look like you. Run your race, and don’t let anyone box you in, y’all can do anything, literally anything. So don’t compare
Introducing - Micahs Moon | 19
SIM Mag | Issue 23 July 2022
“I’m u����l� i� �w� a�� s����im�� le� ���d��i�g “N�� ��w �i� t��� d� ��at, an� ��n I �� �ha� �� w���?”
yourselves, I know everyone says this but it’s true, and when you need it and you know it, take that break.
Let's talk about The Sims. How and when did The Sims find you? I was introduced to The Sims at 13 (I’m showing my age) back in 2004. A friend that my family and I were living with, bought it for my older sister and me.
20 | Introducing - Micahs Moon
Where do you get your inspiration for your Sims Builds and is there anyone in the community that inspires you? Pinterest, my dreams, random home magazines that keep coming to my house, TV shows, video games, and Ads. So. Many. Ads. Absolutely, a good portion of the community actually. On Instagram I like to check out the build and CAS hashtags, it’s truly a motivator for me. I’m usually in awe and sometimes left wondering “Now how did they do that, and can I do that as well?” It’s amazing what I come across in this community.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM Mag
What are your favourite themes to use when building in The Sims and do you have a favourite pack to use and why? This makes me laugh because I always tell myself that I’m just going to do a regular home build, and every time it turns into fantasy. So definitely fantasy. I would say Seasons but when I bought Cottage Living it kind of took over, I’ve been using it in most of my builds since.
If you had to pick Sims traits for yourself what would they be and why? Ohhhh, let’s see: Creative, Geek, and Loner
You started your Instagram back in 2021, what inspired you to join Instagram? Micahs.Moon is actually my second account. I use to post sims on my main account but I felt the sims collided with that page. I dreaded having to post on it so I created a space for my sims content to flourish
We can see you like to create pixies with your gorgeous creations posted on June 2nd with your Golden Pixies. How did you come up with this idea? Self-discovery! Ever since my mom has gotten better and back on her feet, she has given me the space to explore who
Introducing - Micahs Moon | 21
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
“It’� �it����l� �he ����� t�i�g� I di��’t �o��c� u���l t�e� w��� �on�, an� I �is� �h�� �� m� �am�.”
22 | Introducing - Micahs Moon
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
I am. I like so many things, and I’ve come to find that I quite enjoy dressing up, so I use my sims to do just that. I get to explore that side of me through my simself
Werewolves would have been released (we hope) by the time this interview is ready to print. Will you be getting the new Werewolf Pack? What did you think of the announcement video? what are you hoping will be included in this game pack? Will we be seeing wolf CAS posts coming up? Yes! I’m excited about it. I knew from the hints it had something to do with werewolves, I’m sure everyone did honestly. I was hoping it wasn’t a trick, excitedly it wasn’t. I thought all the hints leading up to the reveal were fun though. Zodiac Signs! I’m not a huge fan of categorising people by their sun signs in real life, but I use to love it in the sims. It’s definitely a missed feature. Absolutely! I’m already on the build, and I have my CAS idea ready. I’m excited to use the lore to tie in with what I have planned.
Our last question is, if EA were to invite you to create a pack for The Sims 4, what would it include and why? Oh, dear! Here we go. Cars, buses, grocery stores, functional babies etc. I know most of the Sims Community wants this but it really is the small things. I miss seeing my sims kids go out to the bus as I’d literally watch the bus drive all the way to school in Sims 3, or watch it disappear in the first Sims. I miss getting an upgraded ride to and from work when my sim received a promotion. I miss teaching my teens how to drive. It’s literally the little things I didn’t notice until they were gone, and I miss them in my game. If none of that, an Amusement Park pack would suffice for me.
Thank you for being a part of our Friends and Community issue, before we go, can you tell our readers how they can find, follow and subscribe to you. Socials: YouTube: WrittenByMicah Instagram: Micahs.moon
Introducing - Micahs Moon | 23
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
24 | Introducing - Micahs Moon
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Introducing - Micahs Moon | 25
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
MEMBERs only FEATURE FEAT.
SCOOZIE SUE By The Simming Spoonie
26 |MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE
Harper Issue 23 July 2022 | SIMCottage MAG
“
Hi, my name is Susie and I'm a 23-year-old British/Irish student. I've been playing a wide range of the Sims games on DS, Wii, and now PC since around 2008. I only moved onto playing The Sims 4 just over 3 years ago, and I focused mostly on gameplay and a little bit of building just for myself. When the lockdowns in 2020 hit, I discovered Sims Twitter and the vast community of Simmers that existed there. I've met many amazing content creators since, both on YouTube and Twitch, which led to my decision to start sharing bits and pieces of my builds and gameplay online from both The Sims 4 and The Sims 3. Outside of games, I have always loved exploring creative activities such as art, crafts, reading and music. I grew up playing the violin, both as a soloist and in orchestras, and have taught myself the basics of other instruments.
MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE | 27
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
UniVillage
I noticed when looking through your gallery that you do a lot of build challenges, how do you find them all? I love building in The Sims 4, but there are times where I open the game and I'm at a loss at what to build. This is why I find build challenges so useful as I can download a shell or be given a list of requirements the build has to have, which gives me a perfect starting point. Not every build using these shells or prompts will ever see the light of day, but they have occasionally inspired other builds in my game or given me a new idea on what I would like to build next. Any completed shells or builds that I do follow through to completion get uploaded and shared on my gallery. When looking for a shell or build challenge, I will search up "#shellchallenge" or "Sims 4 Shell" on Twitter and, from there, download a few different shells to see which ones can bring out some inspiration. Sometimes, when browsing the Sims community on Twitter, I'll stumble on a few people organising a build/shell competition and if it takes my fancy, then I'll give it a go. Your gallery is also incredibly eclectic in style. What is your favourite style to build and why?
28 | MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE
As I have used a lot of different shell/build challenges, I've ended up building in a variety of styles, but I do have a style that I'm much more comfortable with. My favourite building style tends to be on small lots where the exterior will have a Tudor or cottagey look to them, as these are the styles of houses I’ve grown up around in the Irish countryside. In my standard saves where I'm building a house just for me, then this will be the style that I typically go for. For some of the shell challenges (and even my own builds) that I've made, I have tried to push myself out of my cosy comfort zone and go for more modern looking houses or even a different style altogether. On a rare occasion, I'll ask my friends to provide me with an idea of what to build and naturally they tend to choose styles that I'm not 100% comfortable with, but I'll give it my best shot - practice makes perfect after all. Do you play the game at all, or are you just a builder? If you do play, what is your play style? In previous versions of the Sims, I exclusively did gameplay and this was the case in the early days of the Sims 4 as well. While I now predominantly stick to building, I will still enjoy gameplay sessions when I'm between builds. For the times
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Cottage
I play the actual game, I like having a goal to go after as well as trying something new. A lot of my saves start with a single sim where I then try to max out a career, or skill, or an aspiration, all whilst trying to find a partner and having/ adopting children. I tend to stick to two or three generations of a family before I abandon them to return to building, but I am currently trying to play through a single family for a longer period. Sometimes, I like to add a wee bit of chaos to my Sims’ lives (and my own!) and other times, the game likes to throw some my way. Currently, my Sims gameplay ambition is to have my Simself woohoo with the Grim Reaper, because who doesn't want to flirt with death! If the Sims team could release your perfect pack, what would its style and/or content be and why? I've never really thought too much about my perfect pack, however as a builder and occasional family player, I would love a pack that would allow me the ability to create a lot that had several homes that non-playable Sims could own on top of my own Sims family/person. Ideally, there would be a building tool that would let you draw property lines, as well as allowing for better storytelling when one chooses to play
in an apartment style building. It could even allow generational living so that the grandparents or cousins or other family members of your main sim are out of your household but still live in the immediate area and have specific family interactions. If this close-knit family living were to be a feature in the game, then I would also hope for more family play and activities like we saw in The Sims 3: Generations (the only Sims DLC trailer that has ever made me cry). Having a wider range of gameplay for children and elder Sims would encourage me to play the game as intended like I did with the previous games. This would help me in my attempts to play with my Sims' families for longer periods. The pack would also bring a load of comfy-looking CAS and fashion that would be more stereotypical for each age group. Our focus month is on friendship and community. Is there anyone in the community who has inspired you in your Sims builds? Who are they and why? When I first joined the Sims community, I felt immediately welcomed by, mainly, @ribbityy_, @simplybrits_ and @ludicsims on Twitter, who were all so friendly and encouraging in putting myself out there in the community. Since then,
MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE | 29
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 I’ve met other amazing simmers, creators and friends. While I’m building or in a game (whether it’s Sims 3 or 4), I always find encouragement and conversation from @stardewsimmer and @lizzielilyy who have become wonderful friends to me. I always feel so inspired too when I see builds from @kawaiifoxita and @michaelasimsyt on my Twitter feed, as they too were so welcoming when I joined the Sims community. Michaela creates stunning content regularly while also posting encouraging messages, while Gemma recreates real life in her game that makes me pause as I try to figure out if it’s a real photograph or a Sims screenshot.
Simple Tiny Home
30 | MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE
We have now come to the end of our little and lovely chat with our member ScoozieSue. You can find all of Sue’s amazing and fabulous builds on the gallery, under her Gallery ID ssusie98, and on her Twitter @ScoozieSue. Remember, all you have to do to have a chance of being showcased in our magazine is to share your wonderful creations with us on our website!
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Cricket Cafe
Owens House
MEMBERS ONLY FEATURE | 31
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
32 | Members Only
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Members Only | 33
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
CC SPOTLIGHT presents
By SimSimmerly & Ivana
I
n this issue’s CC Spotlight, we are highlighting one of the talented CC creators in the community, PixelVibes. Known for cute objects with whimsical and outdoor themes, you’re sure to find CC that’s right for your builds and your children and family gameplay. Let’s get to know PixelVibes more in this feature. Hi PixelVibes, and thanks for dropping in for a chat today. Before we talk about your CC creations, we would love to know more about you. Who is PixelVibes? Where are you from, and do you have any hobbies outside of CC creation? If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why? Hi! First of all, I want to thank you for accepting me as a guest in your magazine. It is such an
34 |CC SPOTLIGHT with PixelVibes
honour for me. I am from Turkey. My mom is a veterinarian and I help her in our clinic most of the time other than creating CC. I think my biggest dream is to visit Kenya and have a safari tour. Thank you for letting us get to know more about you. Let's talk about The Sims. When did you first start playing The Sims, and how did you get started in CC creation? I have been playing the game since Sims 2, but started creating custom content with Sims 4. I have been creating 3D models for more than 10 years. About 1 year ago, I started to convert my models to Sims 4. I started as an ''alpha CC creator,'' but nowadays, I create new models for Sims 4 games and turned a bit more Maxis match.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
CC SPOTLIGHT with PixelVibes | 35
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
What would you say your biggest success and worst fail in CC creations are? What did you learn from both these processes?
inspired you and your creations, and if you could collaborate with any other CC creators, who would it be and why?
I think my worst failure was when I first started converting my own models to Sims 4, I didn't notice that detailed 3D models are not suitable for the game. They were high poly and too detailed for the game. Then, I started to educate myself on working with low poly models, which are more game-friendly.
When I opened my Instagram, to be honest, I never expected such an interaction with my page. That really surprised me.
You joined Instagram in February 2021. How have you found The Sims community’s reaction there to your Sims CC over the last year? Is there anyone in particular that has
36 |CC SPOTLIGHT with PixelVibes
I made a collaboration with winner-9, and I love her work so much. Of course, there are so many creators I get inspired by and admire their work. To be honest, I am afraid to give names because I don't want to exclude anyone. The Sims released their two new kits Moonlight Chic and Little Campers in May.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG What did you think of this announcement? Do you think The Sims should collaborate more with content creators like yourself, and what did these two kits inspire within your own CC creations, if they did at all? Actually, I didn't buy the Moonlight Chic Kit, but the Little Campers Kit is so much fun. I love kits which add new gameplay options. As a build /buy CC creator, new animated and functional objects are always big inspirations for new CC. Let's talk werewolves! In June, The Sims also released their Werewolves pack, which The Sims players have been asking for since The Sims 3. What did you think of this
announcement? Has this inspired any CC along the Werewolves genre line, and can you tell us about these or are these a WIP? I am so happy with the new Werewolf pack, I really liked the design. But in my culture, we are not very familiar with werewolves. So, for inspiration of new CC about them, I will need some gameplay first. Again, I appreciate your invitation. Thank you so very much.
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“There are so creators I inspired by admire their
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many get and work.”
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
FOLLOW PIXELVIBES FOR MORE AMAZING CC & UPDATES!
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Os�i�S�m�
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
You will all have heard of OshinSims, not only is she a Sims player, but what you would call a YouTube celebrity. With over 54k subscribers who tune in to watch her videos on everything from her own Sims stories to Oshin talking about other players in the community, what they build, the CC they design and so much more. So in our eyes this makes her a top community contributor. Oshin doesn’t just focus on herself, and that is one of the admirable qualities we have come to love and share within the pages of our magazines. On Twitter you can find Oshin chatting to her followers when she isn’t recording, or lost in her own Sims gameplay, but also not forgetting she is also a mum, and partner to @feudalwarriors who is a Visual Director and creates Cinematic Gaming, so we can say this is one very talented family indeed. Oshin started her YouTube channel back in 2018 and since then her posts have garnered over 6 million views and that is an achievement many of us can only dream of. Don’t think that hitting a target like that is easy, it takes long hours, dedication and being able to say no when needed as burn out is a very real thing, and many of us have hit that wall too, and many simmers have sadly left the community because they just do not understand that this is a very real commitment. We had the opportunity to chat to Oshin and find out how this supermum spends her time and who OshinSims is behind her social profiles.
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Hi Oshin and thank you for joining us in our Community issue of SimmedUp Magazine. We are very excited to speak to you and let our readers get to know you that little bit more. I was quite surprised when trying to research you, that there maybe a lot of social media information, but when it comes to your real self, this information was limited, so I am looking forward to also learning some new things about you at the same time as our readers. To start we would love to get to know more about Marisa the person behind the Oshin or OshinSims persona. How did you come up with your name?
Thank you so much! Oshin is just a unique, Japaneseinspired way of spelling Ocean. Prior to creating my channel Jhene Aiko had released an album called “Trip” which sent me on a huge spiritual journey with myself and I felt like I resonated with an ocean. Shapeless, beautiful but deep.
What is your favourite comfort food and movie/series? Sinigang and rice. It’s a Filipino soup!
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What is your favourite childhood memory? My dad used to have this huge camera and he’d record me and my sisters acting out different skits. We’d take the camera and make our own movies, almost. Being creative was better than watching TV, honestly.
What is your life motto – spoken or unspoken? Spoken. Speak up for yourself, and for those who can’t.
If you wrote a novel about your life, what would be the title? I Was Here
What is the one thing you wished you learned to do but never had the chance? I wish I knew how to play the Piano so bad
What would your perfect day look like? Waking up to a cup of coffee, making a big breakfast for my family, cuddling on the couch together.. then playing Sims as long as I want.
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r o f p u k r a e “Sp lf, and fo ” e t yours who can’ those
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I think learning more about a person helps so many of us to connect better, we can all sometimes be overwhelmed by ‘celebrity status’, but I also think when having an online profile, people will assume they know you without even trying to, ‘know you’, if that makes sense at all. so thank you for sharing a few of those personal details with us.
The Sims has had a huge impact on so many people's lives I would love to know how did your Sims journey begin, what is your favourite first memory of The Sims gameplay, and what is the one thing you did not like about The Sims when you first started playing?
My favourite first memory was when the Sims 2 was announced. I had played Sims 1 for months and fell in love, so to see such a huge change in the game was overwhelmingly awesome. There’s honestly nothing I disliked when first playing.
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You’ve also had a lot of success as a sims content creator. What made you decide to start your YouTube channel?
I ran across xUrbanSimsx and felt like I belonged. I felt like I found my people when I came across Sims YouTubers. I was only on Tumblr at the time. When I realized there were other people who were JUST as obsessed with The Sims as I was, I just wanted to share my stories out loud too.
What was the first video you uploaded, and if you could go back and give your younger self any advice what would it be and why?
I uploaded a create a sim makeover on Dina and Nina Caliente. It’s horrible haha. I would probably tell my younger self to not get too caught up in the addiction of creating. I sacrificed a lot in my first year of YouTube, sometimes I miss it being
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
more relaxed and not worrying about numbers, growth, etc.
We would also love to know what have been some of the best highlights of video creation for you?
My Ramona series was my first let’s play where I delved into real storytelling, it made my channel honestly. My first video I did for EA and their Play With Life campaign. Lastly, a game sounds asmr video where I just played and only had the game audio. It was fun to record and it felt really special to do because at the time I hadn’t seen it done before.
How much time does it really take to create a video for your channel?
It truly depends on the video and the content. A simple mod review could take 30 mins to film and an hour to edit. A let’s play could take 1-3 hours to film and 2 hours to edit. That’s a rough estimate of how I have to work now because I’m super busy in my personal life. I’ve had 6 hour days before haha.
Many of us love to hate The Sims, and as much as we may moan about bugs and kit creations, or the lack of fairies (I could go on but I won’t), we are all still dedicated Sims fans and defend The Game with a passion should anyone outside the community tell us ‘we are not real gamers’ for playing the game we love so much. Being part of the EA creator Network (previously the GameChanger program) how does it affect you when you see the negative side of the community coming out?
It doesn’t affect me anymore. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion for sure. At first, I would get
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defensive because I enjoy the game despite the flaws. I’m naturally an optimistic person. I truly abhor negative energy and overprivileged topics. Gaming is a luxury and where I come from - it seems so very minuscule arguing over it.
Is there anything you have been disappointed in within The Sims and wish they would change?
I wish the order of when the packs came out were prioritized differently. It’s left us out of the loop, confused and disappointed a lot. I see They’re working on communication, which is important for me.
What is the best part of being an EA creator and what do EA Creators do for The Sims?
I enjoy being able to have a voice in my favourite game and having the option to create content that inspires others or gives an honest opinion. It’s a very laid-back program that helps gamers on specific platforms. I’ve been able to experience opportunities I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for the program.
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What is your favourite part about The Sims, and do you ever get those moments where you find it hard to keep on simming? I love seeing my sims grow and watching their families expand. It’s also anxiety-reducing being able to control everything. My motto is just keep simming! But yes, I only find it hard because I’m a creator. Without YouTube, I’d play sims for 2 months straight then take a break for another 2 months. It’s not meant to be played in the way that we’re showcasing it - which is constantly. You’re supposed to take your time and enjoy it as you can.
How do you stay motivated during those times? I just look for ways to make it fun again. I pull from things in real life and try to implement in the game. I look for inspiration from my peers. Or I just simply take a break!
Have there been any Builds or CAS creators that have stood out the most, and why? SimLicy is one of my favourite builders. I hate too much clutter but she makes me love it. Her builds are realistic and so beautiful.
Many of us who play the sims have our go-to and favourite Sims packs to play with, do you have a favourite pack that you just love to use when playing the sims and why? Seasons EP, Cottage Living EP, Eco Lifestyle EP a n d Parenthood GP! Those packs a r e the most family-friendly, to be honest, and give me all the warm, fuzzy vibes I need.
a z � � E � � � a n h o � I � � v “e����e � l��a ” E b � � ha�
With so many amazing The Sims community members across all the social media platforms, what platform do find is best to communicate with your own followers? Twitter and my YouTube comments. I try my best to always respond to the comments.
I would also like to know and I am sure our readers would be curious too, is there any one townie you just love to hate, or just hate? and who is your favourite sims character to date? I hate Eliza because everyone hates Eliza, haha she’s just mean. But I love to love Bella Goth she’s a queen. My favourite Sims townie is Knox Greenburg, he’s hot.
Who in The Sims community do you admire the most and why?
I would love to touch on the Modding and CC creation part of the community, now you created your very first CAS background called Beach Please back in 2019, how long did this take you to create?
I’d express my admiration for UrbanSims aka Jenn - we’re actually friends outside of creating. She’s someone I trust and she gives the best advice.
Not long at all! Roughly 10 minutes to be honest. CAS backgrounds are on the easier scale of cc, anything beyond that seems pretty timeconsuming.
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I know you have collaborated with other well-known CC creators, can you tell us about some of them? I’ve collaborated with UrbanSims, for our basic collection. It’s a small collection full of everyday makeup items like eye shadow, blush, eyeliner, and lip kit. She actually created the cc, but I helped in choosing swatches and all of that background stuff. Jenn is so talented and the cc she’s dropped since this collection is amazing. She keeps getting better and better. So it was an honor to work with a friend on such a cute collection!
As we reach the end of this interview, I do like to do a five-question quick-fire round, so no cheating! 1: What other games do you play when you need a Sims break? Animal Crossing or cooking games on my phone 2: What do you hope to achieve in the world of gaming? Creating a safe space or corner on the internet for people who enjoy games, and just want to chill. As much as I love my viewer's support, I like to encourage people to take care of yourself, take a step back from the internet and place your mental health above everything else. 3: What advice would you give to young simmers who look up to you? Keep storytelling. Keep imagining. Never stop dreaming. Keep a child-like essence, some
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people take life too seriously. It’s important to have fun while you’re doing it. 4: What do you love the most about the sims community? I love that we are wacky. We enjoy playing virtual Barbies and can be ourselves amongst each other. I love how we are all different. You can learn something from each and every person. 5: On a scale of 1 to Big Bang Theory, how geeky are you and what is the geekiest thing you have ever done? I’m super geeky in my own way. I used to write out my Sims stories and act them out in my bedroom when I was little. Geekiest thing has to be SimTube. Talking to myself while playing Sims then sharing it sounds pretty geeky to me.
It has been an absolute pleasure to interview you today, for being such a fantastic supportive and informative community member and for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak to us. Before I go are there any messages you would like to give your followers? Thank you so much for having me! It’s truly been an honor. To my followers… thank you for supporting me. Thank you for showing up, being kind in the comments, showing love and just being genuine. I appreciate you for changing my life and never take it for granted. Just keep simming, always always always stay wavy.
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Caroll Design
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Valerie Song
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ISSUE #23 | SIM MAGAZINE
MACHINIMAX presents
SINCERELY SHON
By SimSimmerly 64 | MACHINIMAX
JULY 2022 | SIM MAGAZINE
Welcome to MachiniMax! This is the section of our magazine dedicated to the multi-talented creators out there, who dedicate their time to bringing both mini movies and full-length features to our screens from the games that we love. How do they do this, you may be asking? Well, it’s via machinima, or as it was previously known, as machinema! Creators of machinima can sometimes be called machinimists, machinimators or producers to creators, and no matter what title they prefer to use, they can surely be rated among the most creative and patient of us all. For this month's MachiniMax feature, we speak to Sincerely Shon, who has reached over 12,000 views on her machinima videos and only started her YouTube channel around a year ago. So, to be hitting so many views in such a short space of time just goes to show just how talented this machinimator really is.
Hi Shon, we are so excited to hear all about you and your machinima. Tell us a little about the person behind SincerelyShonYT, and how and when did you first discover The Sims? First, I want to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to tell my story! I started playing The Sims when I was about 5 years old. I had The Sims 2 on Nintendo DS, I had all of The Sims 2 packs on PC, and I had a few other Sims games on PC and PlayStation. Basically, I’ve been playing The Sims my whole life! What inspired you to create your first machinima? What was this about? And on a scale of 1 - 10, how hard was this? When I first started my YouTube channel, I was doing let's play. I thought it was fun, but my goal was to tell stories and I wanted more creative freedom to do that. I started getting more involved with The Sims community and I discovered the process of machinima making. I
would always watch them as a kid, but I never knew there was a name for them. I created my first machinima in October of 2020, and it’s still going! It’s a coming-of-age story about a college freshman who decides to go to school away from her family and friends. On a scale of 1-10, I would say making it was about a 5. It wasn’t as hard as I expected, but it definitely requires a lot of time and effort. How long does it take to create a machinima, and what process do you have to follow before bringing everything together for your final cut? For me, making a machinima can take about a month. I’m still relatively new to creating, and with me being in college and working, it can sometimes take longer. Before bringing everything together for the final cut, I make sure I double check for spelling errors and look for music that fits the scene.
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When creating your machinima, how do you get your Sims to stay still? Do you use pose mods? How do you decide on a theme/ background or country? Yes, to get my Sims to stay still, I use pose mods. I prefer using idle animations to poses because the Sim still looks like it’s “breathing” instead of being completely still. It gives more of a realistic appearance! When I choose the location for my machinimas, I usually just choose the world based on the type of lot(s) I’m using to film (i.e., urban, suburban, rural, etc). Are there any CC or mods that you use that you couldn’t create machinima without? How do you decide on the music to use to run alongside your scenes? Since I make machinimas with predominantly Black casts, it would be hard to make characters without CC. The most important CC I use to bring my characters to life are the skins and hair. Another piece of CC I think is super important for me are deco sims/a fake audience. It saves a lot of time having fake sims in the background instead of having to keep 15-20 sims still. The mods I can’t record without are MCCC, UI Cheats, Pose Player, Basemental Drugs, and
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Wicked Whims. The music I use is always dependent on the scene. I look at everything from genre to BPM when I pick a song. Unfortunately, YouTube uploads are a little more restricted, but my Patreon videos have more variety. You currently don’t use voice actors for your machinima. Do you have any plans to use VAs in the future? I definitely would like to use VAs in a future project! I think finding a VA whose voice fits the character you create really interests me. As a machinima creator, has anyone else in the machinima community helped to inspire you? Is there anyone you would like to collaborate with if you had the opportunity? One of my biggest inspirations in the machinima community is ‘Trap Goddess Shawty’. Her story telling is amazing and she makes some of the best-looking Sims. I would love to work with her one day. I honestly would be down to collaborating with almost anyone, but some creators I would like to collaborate with are TheeScamily and Queensimmer. TheeScamily is a friend of mine,and she makes super cool sci-fi/
JULY 2022 | SIM MAGAZINE
“Honestly, my biggest success is just my growth. Every time I make a video, I correct something that I didn’t like before or I learn how to do something I previously struggled with, it’s really rewarding.”
magic machinimas, so I would really like to make something different from my usual with her. Queensimmer is someone I’ve recently started watching, but I think she and I have very similar styled machinimas and could come up with something really cool together! What would you say has been your biggest machinima success so far? And what can our readers look forward to coming from you in the future? Honestly, my biggest success is just my growth. Every time I make a video, I correct something that I didn’t like before or I learn how to do something I previously struggled with, it’s really rewarding. In the future, I hope to continue growing. My goal right now is to try to create something a little more cinematic! I am constantly putting out projects big and small, but the thing I am most excited for is my short film that I will be releasing at the end of this year. Lastly, is there anything we have missed you would like to tell our readers? Is there anyone you would like to give a shout out to, and if our readers wanted to find/follow or
subscribe to your content where would they go to do this? Yes, I want to give a shout out to my friends LinaaGames and BigBProd. They are two more talented machinimas makers in the community who I enjoy watching. Also, if you haven’t already, please check out my YouTube channel! I have two series currently running, I create machinima shorts, and I have a short film in the works! I also have early access and exclusive content on my Patreon (18+). My most recent short, “Destiny & Elijah,” is about two people who dated in college and reconnected years later. My YouTube is Sincerely Shon and I am most active on Twitter @SincerelyShonYT. All my links can be found at my Linktree. Thank you all so much for all the love and support thus far! We now have come to the end of our chat with the lovely Sincerely Shon. We thank her for being part of our Friendship and Community issue, and sharing her talent with us, Don’t forget to check her social media pages and hit those Follow and Subscribe buttons! MACHINIMAX with SincerelyShon | 67
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
Coki Creative Titan Architect
When looking through the gallery or browning across social media we always find so many amazing Sims builders which makes us so proud of our wonderful community and their neverending talents. On this occasion, we come across one of those extra special simmers who go the extra mile, whilst making their Builds they do not use cc, enabling the community to download them from the gallery, as well as playtesting each build to make sure you get 100% simming
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pleasure in your game. It simmers like this that we have to count as a true community-supportive Titan Architect. One such simmer is the gorgeous and talented CokiCreative, who you can find on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and Twitch sharing their builds, videos, yoga and pictures of the truly adorable Coki. Confused? Well don’t be all will be revealed below as we introduce you to Alana.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Hey Alana, thank you so much for chatting with me today, we are really looking forward to getting to know you as the person behind CokiCreative and of course more about your The Sims journey. So we can clear up any confusion from my intro, tell us all about you. Where are you from, how old will you be when you next ‘Age Up’, do you have any hobbies outside of The Sims, what is your favourite music genre/and or artist you listen to, and if you could build your own home anywhere in the human world what type of home would it be, where and why?
Hey everyone, as you already know, my name is Alana. I grew up in Michigan, but I’m currently living in the Chicago suburbs. I’ll be turning 30 in November, which I’m pretty excited about actually. Some of my favorite hobbies outside of The Sims are skimboarding, aerial silks, beat saber, photography, and writing. My favorite music genre depends on my mood, but I usually like something with an upbeat tempo that’s fun to sing and dance along to. I also enjoy musicals every now and then. I’ve thought a lot about what my dream home would look like! In my mind, it takes many different shapes and forms since I love so many different styles. But if I were to pick one, I’d say my dream home would be a modern beachfront villa. Not too big, just enough space for our needs and it would be completely self-sustainable. I picture it having large windows that face the water, clean lines, and plenty of comfy furniture you can just sink into. There would be a spot outside for our watersports and for Coki to run and play. If I could choose anywhere in the world to put this on, it would be St. John, USVI. In my
computer “I wish I could bringthermy always everywhere I went, but my lae ptisnop’t though, space. I do always bring just in case”
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opinion, it’s one of the most beautiful islands I’ve ever been to. 75% of the land is national park and there are miles upon miles of unique hiking trails. If you never heard of St. John, definitely look it up! You spend a lot of time building in The Sims and you even took your PC with you whilst travelling in your RV in May, now that is dedication! Your husband also works in the Rope adventure park business, so you get to travel a lot. Do you always take your PC with you on these travels, and what has been the place you have been to that inspired you the most in your Sims builds? Have you ever built an adventure park build and if not, is there one on the horizon?
I wish I could bring my computer everywhere I went, but there isn’t always space. I do always bring my laptop though, just in case. I’d like to get a gaming laptop at some point so it’ll be easy to game on the go. Believe it or not, North and South Carolina beach towns have been one of the most inspiring places I’ve been. We go on a trip with my in-laws every year to this beach cottage in North Carolina, and one activity we like to do is just walk up and down the beach and look at the houses. I’ll take pictures of the ones I really or that I feel like I could recreate a part of in The Sims. To paint a picture for you, these homes are usually bright pastels, with lots of decks and viewing windows, and are raised on stilts. I’ve thought about doing an adventure park build so many times in the past! The only reason why I haven’t yet is because I haven’t found a way to make it at least sort of “playable”. I’m thinking about messing around with T.O.O.L to see if I can do
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anything cool with the swings. Either way, you should expect an adventure park from me at some point in the future.
You previously lived in the USVI (United States Virgin Islands) which if anyone doesn't know is a group of Caribbean islands, and you moved back to the states just before the pandemic broke out. For someone who is obviously quite active did you find the pandemic helped you in your build creations or do you think not being able to travel was more stifling?
The pandemic definitely gave me more time to work on my Sims creations and building. It’s hard to stay active with social media and building while travelling. I took a lot of time looking back at photos I took during my travels and got inspiration from them as well. For me, it was a welcomed change of pace.
Let's talk about CokiCreative. Coki is your pet dog, or as I like to call them our FurBabies, tell us about how Coki came into your life and why you decided to name your channel after your Fur Baby?
Coki is my pride and joy! Byron and I got her back in 2014 when we were living on St.
“ I took a lot of time lo o k my travels and got insp ing back at photos I took during iration from them as we ll.”
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Coki Thomas, USVI. It wasn’t uncommon to see stray cats or dogs on the island and at that time, I’d been looking at the shelter’s website for a rescue dog. Byron was the beach manager at this resort and the owner’s mother was involved in animal rescue work. She’d found Coki at the local landfill and it took her days to trap her. The vet guessed she was anywhere from 6 months to a year, that she had puppies at some point in her life, and was heartworm positive. Byron showed me a picture, told me about her, and asked if I wanted to go see her. She looked so scared, and frankly, not very cute, but I already loved her! The woman who found her paid all of the vet bills for us. They also provided us with a ton of food and dog
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supplies. We decided to name her Coconut (that’s her full name), and Coki for short. Coki is a beach on the island, so it all seemed very fitting.
It took her a while to warm up to us or any humans at all. Now, she’s my best friend. She has changed my life in so many ways and helps keep me motivated on my bad days. So when naming my account, I couldn’t think of anything better than naming it after my biggest little motivator!
Another little detail we noticed about you, was that you have a teeny tiny tattoo on your righthand forefinger which is two arrows, is there a story behind this and do you have any more tattoos? And talking about stories, you are also writing your own novel! Can you tell us about this or is it still top secret?
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
I’m glad you noticed my hand tattoos! A little side hobby of mine is doing handpoke tattoos. My hands are now covered in tats, but I try to only give myself tattoos on special occasions. I don’t want to go overboard. I usually just do them on myself, but on the rare occasion, I have done a few on Byron and a few friends. It’s not something I encourage people to do unless they do their research first and get the proper equipment. I have about 20 tattoos though if you count each hand as just one. Sometimes, Byron and I will get a tattoo together while we are on vacation. Kind of like a souvenir! We got matching tattoos on our collarbones when we eloped in Ireland. I’m happy to say I’m in the home stretch of my novel right now. Here’s a teeny tiny synopsis. It’s about a woman who starts to dream and see into another dimension. My goal is to get it done by my 30th birthday, so wish me luck! I will say this though, I will be doing a little Sims series about my book once it’s published. I’m really looking forward to that project.
Before we get into The Sims, I would love to know how you got into Yoga. You stream yourself sometimes via Twitch doing Yoga and post these videos on your YouTube channel. How has the reaction to this been? We also know you have a condition called Crohn's, which can have an extremely toll taking effect on your body as well as your mental health, can you tell our readers a little about this illness to help raise awareness, but also how do you keep your mental health in check when you have a flare-
up? I do believe you are now in remission from this, how are things now? Does Yoga help with this too?
My first experience with yoga was at my mom’s dance studio. Growing up, I spent a lot of my time taking classes there. We’d do a lot of Yoga-like stretching during warm ups and I always took note at the poses I liked the most. Let’s just say, I was not blessed with natural flexibility, so I’d take those poses and stretch at home regularly. Skip ahead a few years to my mid-20s with undiagnosed Crohn's and chronic joint pain. I was going to a physical therapist to see if that could help with my joint pain and they were making me do a lot of yoga stretches and movements. On my way home from PT, I drove past this yoga studio and stopped by and signed up. I worked from home at the time running my social media marketing business, so my schedule was very flexible. I started going to yoga 5-6 days a week. It was really helping my joint pain and I was enjoying it. I’ve had some very mixed reactions to my yoga videos, to be honest! I feel like anytime you do something that isn’t your usual content, some people are going to be turned off by it. I get that, but others have reached out to me privately and thanked me. So in a way, I feel like the trade-off is worth it. The impact that I’ve made on those few people outweighs the slight disappointment I gave those others. It’s been a while since I’ve uploaded any yoga videos and it’s been something I’ve been considering doing again. Spreading awareness is great! Crohn’s is an incurable autoimmune disease that affects
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the lining of the digestive tract. It can cause a whole slew of issues you wouldn’t assume were connected. Thing’s like canker sores, chronic fatigue, joint pain, nausea, sudden weight loss, eye infections, just to name a few. Everyone’s experience is different, so no two Crohn's cases are alike. I’m still in remission, and things are going great. I take a weekly injection and now I’m just working on what foods I can and can’t eat. Even though I’m in remission, I do yoga every morning, even if it’s only for 5 minutes. I still struggle with fatigue and joint pain, even though it’s not as bad as it was. I find
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that moving is the best thing I can do. Even if it’s just going for a nice walk with Coconut. Mental health is so important, especially when your body needs to heal. If you have the means, I highly suggest therapy. I’ve been going to the same woman for 3 years online and it’s been really beneficial to have that resource. I also find that playing video games (and for fun, not just for content) can be really relaxing. I like to fall asleep playing Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley on my switch. I also find doing activities like yoga, taking Coki on a walk, or just sitting outside in the sun is a good way to disconnect from a negative mental space and potentially
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enter a more level-headed level. P.S. One reason why I put off going to the doctor for so long was because I was embarrassed. I was nervous to reach out for professional help. Please don’t be embarrassed. It’s their job and you deserve to be healthy! Now for The Sims! You have been a simmer since the game's first release back in the year 2000. Can you remember how you first discovered The Sims and what was your favourite thing to do in this first generation of the game?
I remember the first time I played The Sims very well! My dad came home with a copy of it for me since he wanted me to get into video games. He said it was like playing with dolls, but on the computer (I should mention he’s a self-proclaimed computer geek-IT guy). We played the Newbie Family. That’s a really fond memory of mine. My favorite thing was to try to do everything there possibly was to do! I wanted to max all the skills, to win the blue ribbon at the dog show, know all the spells, live in the spooky town, be a superstar… not too far from how I still like to play today.
The Sims has come so far since that first release, with Sims 2 and Sims 3 along with the many expansions and packs to enhance our gaming pleasure. Is there anything you miss from those first generations of the game in Sims 4 and do you still play them?
The Sims really has come a long way! I have to say that there are two things that I do miss in particular though. First, the color wheel and customization in Sims 3. I’d customize everything and it was so much easier to get items to match. It made the catalog feel so much larger without having a ton of items. And secondly, fairies. I’m a big fan of playing with a healthy mix of occults and humans. I always enjoyed their aesthetic and feel like they could be such a fun addition. I still play the older sims from time to time. Mostly sims 3. I feel like there are still things in all the games that I still haven’t done/ achieved and I’d like to see that through someday. Let's talk Sims 4. You create gorgeous builds using no CC and after play testing, you upload them to the gallery for other sims players to download and enjoy. How long does a build take you to create? Which build took you the longest to create? And do you ever create builds using CC? Do you use CC at all and if so which creators CC have you used? On average, it takes me about 6-8 hours to make a 2 story build. There’s one build that took me 33 hours though! You want to know the wildest part? It was a collab with MySimsDreamHouse and she built the exterior, so all I had to do was furnish it. The build was an entire university on a 64x64 lot, complete with dorms, basketball court, swimming pool, gym, theatre, classrooms, library, lab, cafeteria, and student lounge. When I finished with it, I felt like I needed to take a vacation, but it was worth it. I do build with CC, but not that often! I occasionally will share them to my social media, but those are usually for my personal
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“The Sims really has come a long way! I have to say that there are two things that I do miss in particular though”
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game. I have a lot of CC from Peacemaker, Sixam, Myshunosun, Felixandre x Harrie, and Ravasheen. Those are just to name a few! But I also am always on the lookout for smaller cc creators also. There are so many incredibly talented people who might not have as big of a following out there. I definitely want their stuff, and maybe even help promote it if I can. I’ve played around with cc recolors and have wanted to make meshes in the past, but wow. It really makes you respect the time and skill these creators have to do what they do. T.O.O.L mod is an amazing mod created by Twisted Mexi who we were lucky to interview for our last issue. You do use this mod yourself and have created some really cool objects in your builds, one being a wine rack. What other things have you created using T.O.O.L? How easy do you find using T.O.O.L and would you recommend this mod to other Sims builders? I’ve used T.O.O.L to create so many things. I love making functional desks, benches, bookshelves, pretty much anything you can think of, with T.O.O.L. I can get bored of using the same items over and over again, so it encourages me to think more 3 dimensional in terms of how I look at the items in the game. If you’re someone who uses Sims in your screenshots like I do, T.O.O.L is a lifesaver! It works on sims, and it makes working with poses so much easier. You can move, rotate, raise or lower your sim to get in that perfect spot (or out of the picture entirely). It’s taken me some playing around to get used to, but trust me, it's worth it. I can’t build without it anymore!
We can also find you joining in on collaborations across social media and getting involved with the community a lot, I believe this is one of the reasons simmers just love to follow you, and has helped you amass a following of over 3k on Twitter and 18.5k on Instagram, that's not including your growing YouTube channel or Twitch, these are huge achievements. How long has it taken you to build this following? Do you find these social media platforms very different in the interaction with your community following, and what advice would you give to simmers who are also trying to build their following but find it quite difficult? I started my account on September 30, 2019, and had no expectations for it. I had been working as a social media manager since 2014 and learned a lot from that experience. I was also doing all the photography and digital/ print marketing for these businesses, and I was ready to do something for myself. At that point, I was following some sims accounts on my personal IG, so that’s where I got the idea to start my own. Soon after, I realized there was a bigger sims community on social media than I had imagined! From the very beginning, I just decided to be myself, use social media strategies that I’ve been doing for years and see what happens. The simplest, most effective thing you can do is post regularly and comment on others' posts. A little comment goes a long way! Spend a little time every day just showing people some support, and chances are, they give you some right back. And if you’re feeling
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bold, you can reach out to someone about doing a collab with them! But whatever you do, don’t try to self-promote on other people’s accounts or in someone’s DM’s. Even though it comes from a good place, it comes off as rude.
now at least, for me to take screenshots and edit them than to come up with an entire design on my own.
Also, each platform is very different, so treat them differently. What caption/photos might be engaging on IG might be a total miss on Twitter. Play around, have fun, and don’t try to just do what everyone else is doing.
In May you created a series of builds designed on different cocktails and sims players/ builders can join in by creating their own favourite d r i n k inspired S i m s build and tagging you in them. What was your inspiration behind this? How many cocktail builds have you created so far?
You got your first Maxis Fave in April for your Lemon Lovers Garden, congratulations from the team as this is another huge achievement. You were also in the Top Ten entries for the mood board competitions with The Sims and Logitech collaboration, how did it feel when you got recognition after playing for so long?
I almost cried, that’s how good it felt. I think I would make my younger self very proud! I think CC has a love-hate relationship with so many simmers, especially as you cannot download CC from the gallery, but you have created a No CC gallery art collection that simmers can download and place in their games. Can you tell us more about this and what was your inspiration behind creating them? I noticed I was downloading a lot of No CC art from the gallery to use in my builds and thought… I could do that! I like that no cc art gives builders more options while building. I feel like art is one of those things you can never have enough of! I’m also very picky when it comes to the art style in my game and I thought it would be fun to do a neighborhood collection. It’s also easier, for
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I had been wanting to do some themed series because I thought it would be a way to keep myself motivated and inspired. Also, I thought maybe I could inspire others with my series. The cocktail series idea just hit me out of nowhere. It was kind of funny actually. My husband was home, and we were watching TV. I sprang up from the beanbag and started jotting down ideas on a scrap piece of paper. I believe I made 22 rooms/ sims and 5 builds, but I’ve only a few so far. My social media calendar is planned until the end of July! Before we come to the end of our interview tell us a little bit about your speed builds on
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Try making realistic goals for you and your time. YouTube, when did you first s t a r t creating these? How easy or difficult did you or do you find making them and what advice can you give to our readers who also would like to do this? I started making YouTube videos in December 2019, and my speed-build journey has been a little bumpy. I was slightly nervous in the first few videos because talking to a camera felt really awkward, but slowly warmed up to it. Also, I haven’t been the most consistent with uploads because finding time to edit can be a challenge. I think I’m finally finding my groove after 2 years. Here’s some advice that I feel like would’ve helped me when I first started. Don’t be too ambitious. At least not from the get-go. Give yourself time to learn what you’re doing and get used to making time in your schedule. I wanted to post videos once a week, and when I couldn’t make that happen, I’d give up and not post for six months and then the cycle would repeat.
Thank you so much Alana for being such a great sport and being a part of our community and friendship issue of SIM Magazine, you most definitely deserve the title of Titan Architect. How can our readers find, follow and subscribe to you? And lastly, is there anyone out there who has helped or inspired you within the Sims community you would like to give a shout-out to? Thank you for having me! It’s been an honor and a pleasure. You can find me at Coki.Creative on Instagram or CokiCreative on Twitter, YouTube and the gallery There are so many people out there who have helped and inspired me in the sims community! I’d like to give a quick shoutout to my very talented friends Palakoslip and SimsieSmith. They are the people I go to when I need help with a build or just want to talk about life. Also, mushildasims is another account I’d love to shout out for giving me so many creative ideas using T.O.O.L and always having the latest details on what’s going on with the sims. Lastly, Taffissimo and rd.ptra as well. Even though Taffissimo and rd.ptra’s styles are very different, their accounts both inspire me to think outside of the box.
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OFF-TOPIC presents
By SimSimmerly
H
aving an Off-Topic section in our magazine gives so many other games out there a chance to be seen by our readers who might not know they existed before. Many of us Simmers are entirely dedicated to The Sims franchise and play nothing else. In our OffTopic section, we want to show you that there are games available to play now, but currently in development and can rival what The Sims has given us. In some circumstances, these games are delivering customisation options that we Simmers can only, at the moment, dream of.
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This month, we spoke to the team behind the Farm Folks, which is currently in development and oh boy, what they have planned is outstanding. They have so many options ingame that it will get your gaming juices flowing, and we can assure you, once you discover what they have in store, this will be the next game you will want to add to your collection.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Welcome, Farm Folks team, and thank you for taking time out from what we know is a busy schedule to speak with us today. We would love to know who the team is behind Farm Folks and how you decided to go with the version you are working on today? Hi! My name is Alex Koshelkov and I’m the Founder and CEO here at Crytivo. We are the developers behind Farm Folks and we also happen to be the devs behind the reimagined god-game, The Universim (which is on Steam with Very Positive reviews). We're a relatively small team with some members continuing to work on The Universim, which will be fully released from Early Access this year. Recently, we’ve expanded our team and shifted resources toward the farming life sim game, Farm Folks. At this moment, we have over 20 people working on the project and are making amazing progress! We're super stoked and excited about the game and can’t wait to show you more as we develop. As a complete gaming development noob, this will be a learning experience for me, but I am sure many of our readers have no idea what it really takes to develop an idea into a playable game. Can you tell us what stages you have had to go through from your original idea to what I believe is your closed testing now, and what development stages will come after this?
Closed testings are not yet live, but we’re finalizing some fundamental systems before we will let some of our eager fans try things out. I would love to invite everyone who’s interested to participate in our future tests to join our Discord at https://discord.gg/farmfolks. We’re planning to have free limited closed tests in the near future. How long does it take for you, in each stage, to iron out the bugs and get close to a workable game? What was the biggest obstacle you have had to overcome so far? Right now, we’re at the finalization stage of a few systems that are responsible for our modular construction, character controls (things that make your character travel around and not fall through the ground), character animations, and character interactions (i.e. resource mining, object interaction, etc.). In upcoming stages, we’re planning to continue implementing a farming system that will allow you to plant crops and breed animals. Automation systems will let you establish connections between buildings and move farm products efficiently - it’s going to be awesome! A tad later, we will work on a relationship system which will allow you to connect with NPCs on the islands in the Farm Folks.
Well, we started working on Farm Folks in August 2021 and since then, we have had a very strong development process. We had to assemble a new team from scratch and I was not prepared for any sacrifices; my main goal was to get us talented individuals that will enjoy creating amazing stuff for us. We did exactly that. Today, our team consists of super awesome people that are helping us make Farm Folks a gorgeous experience that we hope you’ll never forget. Our software engineers had to start the project from the ground up and chose to develop Farm Folks on the Unity engine. We’ve been using it with our previous project, The Universim, and felt comfortable continuing to develop our new project there. OFF-TOPIC with the Creators of Farm Folks | 87
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 You are currently working with Crytivo, and state on their website that they “specialize in helping indie developers deliver their games to multiple platforms by giving teams the support and space they need to achieve their vision.” Can you tell us how they have helped you in the creation of Farm Folks, and what has been the best part of working with Crytivo so far? We at Crytivo are not only developers, but we’re also a proud indie game publisher. We started working with a development team called Overgrowth back in 2016 with the aim of launching a Kickstarter for a game titled Farm Folks. The Kickstarter was successfully funded and raised close to $70,000 in 30 days. Despite this amazing start, due to some unfortunate complications, the original development team was not able to deliver upon their promises with the project. This meant that Farm Folks had fallen into a sort of limbo with a scary and unknown future. After much deliberation, we decided to purchase the Farm Folks IP and deliver a finished, beautiful, and fun game. As part of our “adoption,” we decided to scale up the project and create a unique experience for fans and supporters - both old and new. We want to mix mechanics from your favorite games, including Sims (of course). In Farm Folks, we’re planning to allow players to build the homes and farms of their dreams; you’ve never experienced creation to this scale from the third or first person view. We would like to change that. When I noticed your Twitter account, it intrigued me. Being a The Sims player, your bio definitely caught my eye: Cultivate the ultimate life sim adventure in an open-world, co-op farming game, Inspired by The Sims & StardewValley, so of course, any new game that mentions The Sims, we generally think, oh OK and move on, because so many have not delivered anything that can compare or even rival what they have created. Looking into your game, I was gobsmacked by the options you are designing and will be implemented in-game. The fact you are listening to the gaming community about what they want in Farm Folks has brought
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG some outstanding additions, and being honest, I know I will now be one of the first in line when your game is out on the open market. Thank you so much. We really admire The Sims community and our goal is to create a unique experience for the fans of the original genre. We want players to look at it from a different perspective - literally. We want you to be a “Sim,” not just controlling characters from above like a god. Immersion is incredibly important to us and we want you to experience the game fully. We also spent a good amount of time and effort to make every bit of Farm Folks customizable (i.e. character, furniture, constructions, etc.) and, of course, we’re working very closely with our community to help us shape the game. We have a pretty active Discord community where we share our development progress on a daily basis and receive really vital input and feedback. It's a lot of fun. Firstly, Farm Folks brings us an open world, which means we can adventure around the main island without those annoying loading screens that will pop up in-between areas. What helped you decide that having an open world was the best course of action to take, and was this influenced by any other games you play or have played yourselves? The decision to make things playable on the island is pretty original (yeah right.. you’ll say). Well to an extent, here is the originality of it: we’re not going to have just one island. We're planning to have at least three islands at launch and - if the game will be popular enough - we’re planning to continue scaling it up by introducing new islands for you and your friends to visit and explore. Farm Folks will also be a multiplayer/co-op game with the option to play alone or with up to 4 other players. I know many Sims players are wavering with this option that may or may not be coming in The Sims 5, with many not wanting this option in-game, but many others who cannot wait to play online with their friends. What made your team decide
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 multiplayer was the best option for Farm Folks and why? It’s always great to build things with friends and there are not many games where you can do that without being attacked by zombies or other players. Usually, customization in games like that are either poorly developed or non-existent. In Farm Folks, you’ll be able to invite your friends to join you and help build amazing structures with complex customization. From the ground up, we’re designing Farm Folks to fully support both experiences - single player or co-op multiplayer. You’ll be able to dedicate areas on your server to your friends where they can build freely or you can enable blueprint-only mode. Blueprint-only mode is where your friends will be able to create schematic structures that you, as an owner, will need to approve or reject. We will do our best to give you full control over permissions in a multiplayer game so that you can create an enjoyable experience for everyone. Let us talk a little about your characters. There are many customisable options – from hair to clothing, backpacks and adorable keychains in various options, from bats to unicorns. A little Discord birdie also told us that it is possible to recreate Jinx from League of Legends (I have seen the pictures and all I can say is bring it on). Tell us what other options have you created for them and what would you say are the top 5 features you have designed for them so far? We know how important character customization is for a proper immersive experience for our fans, and we’re not cutting corners here! We’re developing a customization system that will let you create the characters you want by choosing their outfit, including but not limited to: top body (t-shirts, shirts, jackets), bottoms (pants, shorts, skirts), shoes, and gloves. You will also be able to select your character’s hair, facial hair, etc. We’re also planning to add a full-blown hair constructor which will allow you to create very unique haircuts by merging pieces together. We will talk more about this system in the future - we think it’s going to be awesome!
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG You also have many animals included in the game – from pigs, sheep, horses, turkeys, llamas and cows, and no farming game would be complete without the farm animals. Your animals will have both male and female counterparts so we can get babies, and you also have variations for animals, such as your cows having dairy and hairy options! Can you tell us more about what features we will have for the animals once your game is released? Well, one of the main things we’re excited to share with you is that you’ll be able to ride some of those animals around the island! You’ll be able to tame animals and breed them in the barns you’ll have built for them. Animals will have their needs like food, water, health, hygiene, and of course, happiness. Happy animals will produce a greater amount of products that you can sell or use. We’re planning to talk more about animal welfare systems down the road in our future blogs. I would invite fans that are interested to sign-up to our newsletter here. Many The Sims players do not play the live play option in-game at all, and they are what we call builders only, creating everything from houses and landscaping to hotels, shops and more creative builds with the mods available. From my research, you include many options in the building category, with items such as modular stairs, textures and patterns for furniture, but with details such as customisation of wood trims that will give our creations something a personalised style. But that is not all: one of the many options I think is a fantastic addition is that we will be able to size up and down furniture, as well as bring them together to make alternate versions in items such as planters, which by the way for our readers who may not yet know, we can fill with all the products such as corn, sunflowers, berries and more, but can even make a maze with these planters, so for us familiar with corn mazes, this will be a real treat and a super fun element to include. Can you tell us more about what builders in your game will be able to achieve? How many levels will we be able to build to in height, and will a T.O.O.L option similar to TwistedMexi’s OFF-TOPIC with the Creators of Farm Folks | 91
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG mod for The Sims already be implemented in-game to make customisation much easier for those of us who go crazy for adding details? In Farm Folks, we don’t really have ‘lots,’ or dedicated areas where you can build structures. In our game, you can build almost anywhere you want! If you would like to build your dream home on the beach - sure! How about adding a pier going straight into the water where you’ll park your future water bikes? Maybe you want to build your house in the middle of the forest? Sounds great! Just don’t forget to bring your sharpest axe with you. How about building your house on the peak of the mountain? Do it! We’re developing diverse locations on islands, so you will have to think twice if the spot you wish to build is really the one. Regarding height limitation… What height limitation? We don’t want to create limitations for our players, so we encourage you to build things wherever you want, when you want and how you want them. The main limitation is going to be the performance of your computer or your imagination. We’re doing our best to optimize everything to allow you to have very complex structures with diverse interiors and exteriors and, so far, we’re very optimistic about the future scalability of Farm Folks. We can’t wait to see what our fans will come up with; it’s quite exciting and we hope you’ll love it as well! Planters themselves are going to be awesome! You’ll be able to build interesting structures with them and will have plenty of different materials that will support custom paint. You can plant pretty much everything that you can plant at regular crops in the game, be it a green fence, beautiful white roses, or a potato. Clutter is a must-have for any builder. What if any options for adding clutter to our builds or farms will be available? We’re planning to develop quite a few cosmetic items to help you build a cozy environment and you’ll be able to place things not only inside, but also outside of your structures. We’re also planning to add modding support to allow fans to generate content that they might be missing.
This way, they’ll create the exact design they would like to have. There are so many options available in Farm Folks, and I want to ask so many questions about them all. We have touched on development, farm animals, character features and build options. Let's now talk about the farm products. There are some details you have or are adding to Farm Folks that I thought help bring this game to life. One of these details mentioned by DoctorDDub on YouTube is the seed packets. Each seed packet has details showing the temperature for products contained within each. Now I am curious to know if what DoctorDDub was saying was true. Will produce be affected by climate? I also saw in your Discord channel that there are diseases that your products can catch, along with 3 stages of growth and the options of genetically altering your produce with crossbreeding. Are these correct? What more can we see being developed for the product side of the game? Yes, all of that is true. Our game will have four seasons and crops will be sensitive to weather changes. You’ll need to pay attention and plant them at the right season to avoid weathering. You’ll need to water them regularly and use fertilizer to boost their production or protect them from the pests. You’ll be able to unlock greenhouse construction modules and build structures to help protect your crops from cold winter conditions. Genetic modification is one of the most requested features and, even though we’ve played with the idea of such a complex feature, it’s one of the things that we will need to think through further before providing more details. It’s an exciting possibility, but at this stage, it’s not 100% confirmed. Thank you again for this in-depth and informative interview about Farm Folks and what we can expect when the game is released. Lastly, can you tell us how our readers can join your community and where they can find you? I know it all sounds almost too good to be true right? Well, it’s definitely a high bar for our team OFF-TOPIC with the Creators of Farm Folks | 93
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 to reach, but we feel very optimistic about our plans, and so far, we don’t see any major roadblocks except time. We love our fans and their support, and the appreciation of our work is very motivating. It will take us a while to develop all of that, but the good news is that we’re planning to let people play it as an early access title on our website very soon. We want to develop this game together with the community, and I would like to invite you to join our Discord or email newsletters where we will keep you guys updated about future opportunities to join our closed tests. For now, we will continue working on our promises and deliver a unique and fun experience straight to our fans.
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“We love �r fans and þeir su��t, and þe a�reci@i� of �r w�k is very m�iv@ing.”
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
Friends & Communities
In The Sims
s The Sims is a life simulation game, it makes sense that friendships and community are integral to the gameplay.
A
In real life, having friends gives us companionship and keeps us from feeling lonely and isolated. True, there are people in our world that regard themselves as "loners", enjoying their own company and not needing the companionship of others. However, even loners need friends at some point, maybe friends that are likeminded so that they can talk and discuss their shared interests, likes and dislikes. Friends also give us a sense of belonging, are there for us when times are hard and offer emotional support when needed. All of these things have been built into The Sims gameplay.
The Sims 1 The Sims in the original game were created as very sociable beings. The Sim's social bars would drop dramatically if Sims did not interact with others over just a few Sim hours. In fact, it was quite hard to keep your Sims social bar up to a decent level before they would start crying! Before the "Hot Date" expansion pack was
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released in 2001, Sims who lived alone would have to wait until another Sim walked by their house before they could meet anyone. This made making friends very difficult indeed so in the beginning it was easier to create a couple or a family to start off playing with. Hot Date gave The Sims the ability to leave the house, visit community lots, meet other Sims and make friends more easily and with the addition of other expansion packs, more neighbourhoods were added together with more community lots.
The Sims 2 The Sims 2 gave us community lots right off the bat where Sims would be able to buy food and clothes or visit the local swimming pool. As more expansion packs were released, more towns were added, such as Bluewater with Open for Business and a Downtown area with the Nightlife expansion pack. Bon Voyage saw the addition of three more locations, being Three Lakes (Mountain vacation), Takemizu Village (Far East vacation) and Twikkii Island (Tropical vacation) and more Sims to meet and interact with. Building relationships with other Sims was
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By MinicartTSR extremely important in The Sims 2. For example, as a Sim furthered in his or her career, there was a requirement to make a certain amount of friends before the Sim was able to be promoted. This pushed the player to take their Sims out and about to meet new Sims at the various community lots. Sometimes, your Sim would come home from work with a colleague in tow. If your Sim made friends with their work partner, more often than not, the colleague would state that they would speak to your boss to get you promoted the next time you went to work. Likewise, if your Sim is on a community lot or speaking to a passer-by on their home lot, the new Sim may state that they work for a certain company and they will offer you money off your next build/buy purchase! Sims could also invite others to dinner or to a home party and build a relationship in this way. With the Nightlife expansion pack, Sims could create a group either for an outing or just for fun. Usually, up to 8 Sims could be
added to the group to go to dinner in a restaurant or even bowling or skating. Building relationships in this way was fun and if the outing was a roaring success, the Sim who initiated the outing might even get a gift given to them the next day, delivered on their doorstep! They might even get calls from Sims they haven't met asking them on an outing because they had heard they were a lot of fun to be with! Sims can also telephone other Sims to "just talk" or they can chat online if they have a computer. This does raise the social need but it's a little slower than meeting Sims face to face.
Aspirations The Sims 2 saw the addition of aspirations which the player could assign to their Sim and these included Family, Fortune, Knowledge, Pleasure, Popularity and Romance. Later on, the aspiration of Grilled Cheese was added where a Sim would want to cook, eat and talk about everything grilled cheese! Each aspiration gave Sims different wants with regard to friends and community. For example, a Family aspired Sim would want to get engaged and then married, have a baby,
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teach the toddler to walk, talk and potty train, help the children with their homework and eventually have a grandchild. All of these wants had a need for social interactions and building a family or community. Fortune Sims want to be overachievers, get big bonuses from work, marry a rich Sim, earn lots of Simoleans and get to the top of the athletic or business careers. To enable the Fortune aspired Sim to fulfil all of these wants, they would have to meet Sims and make a certain amount of friends to get promoted in their chosen career. Again, the need for social interaction and building friendships came into play. Although Sims with the Knowledge aspiration have a tendency to want to learn about everything, such as getting to the top of all skills, being abducted by aliens and seeing a ghost, for example, their social needs still have to be met. Being saved from death is a want that will come up every so often with these Sims and so having a good friend around if this should happen would be paramount to fulfilling this want! Getting a job in the Science career is another want for these Sims so making friends is a necessity for getting promotions.
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Sims with the Pleasure aspiration are extremely sociable, wanting to go on dates, dine out, go bowling and play cards with other Sims. All of these wants mean that these Sims will be going out and about on community lots, making friends within groups, meeting new Sims and generally enjoying other Sims' company by way of outings and dates. Sims with the Romance aspiration seem to be more focused on having many partners at once and woohooing all over the place! However, this doesn't make the Romantic Sim any less sociable than other Sims. In fact, quite the opposite as these Sims want to meet many Sims for their purpose of love and romance and can have a large group of lovers! Of course, if they get caught cheating then there is hell to pay! As in real life, friends can be lost and communities broken up, just from one Sim's selfish acts. Getting to the top of the Slacker career is something that Romance Sims want to do and, as stated before, friendships are needed to get promotions. Sims with the Popularity aspiration have a need to gain not just friends but best friends. Best friends are extremely important to the
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Popularity aspired Sim as it builds their reputation, gaining them more Sims who want to get to know them and thereby building a little community. These Sims also want to get to the top of either the Politics or Athletic careers which, of course, can mean more adoration from others and gaining the friendships that are needed for promotions. Although changes have been made to wants,
needs and aspirations in The Sims over the years, having friends and building communities has been, and I am sure always will be, an important feature in The Sims franchise, as it is in real life. MinicartTSR (Jules) A Simmer for over 20 years, you can find me on the following websites:
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108 | SnakyTattoo aka Crys
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Sna������o� Aka C��s By SueSimming
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“I came to the States alone when I was 9 and have been working hard since. I have met so many amazing people along the way” 110 | SnakyTattoo aka Crys
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I don’t have a single tattoo as I’m a coward but my Sims are always covered in them. I’ve never really thought about where the design comes from, I simply assumed the gurus did it. Imagine my surprise when The Sims/EA released a piece on three of the tattoo artists they collaborated with to create new tattoos for The Sims 4. One artist really stood out for me, Crys aka Snayke, a Taiwanese tattoo artist based in Brooklyn and she’s an esport athlete too. She did classic music throughout her youth but once in New York, she decided to follow her passion for tattoos and started working as a shop-girl in a tattoo shop. It’s a very brave move and I just want to know more about this amazing artist.
Sue: Tell us more about who you are?
Sue: Thank you for talking to us, it’s clear from your social media that you are a sought-after and busy artist. How hard is tattooing really on the body?
Crys: It’s so odd hearing myself being called that, haha. I didn’t start playing video games or really using electronics until I was 18. I remember when an uncle that let me watch him play WoW when I was in second grade, and when I finally saved up to buy myself a 13-inch mac book that was the first game I downloaded.
Crys: Honestly, tattooing relies a lot on the endurance and physicality of the artist. You’re contorted all day, sitting or standing while having to maintain steady pressure on the canvas while being hyper-focused. I remember one of my good friends and mentors told me that to not blow my back out I would have to continuously work out and strengthen my core. Tattoo artists’ backs can go out after 10 years or less without proper care.
Crys: I graduated Parons School of Design from the illustration program in 2021, but before then I was a classical musician. Bassoon was my passion for 8 years before I decided to pursue art, which was always interlaced with my life. I came to the states alone when I was 9 and have been working hard since. I have met so many amazing people along the way and I am always so appreciative.
Sue: You are an esport athlete too. How did you get into it and what games do you compete in?
I met some peeps and within the year was doing world races. I was actually on a trackpad the entire time and I have screenshots of me raiding and running dungeons on 1 or 0 frames haha. One of my good friends eventually gave me an Acer predator laptop as a birthday gift a year later, which I have now in recent years gifted to my best friend. I also played a bit of collegiate Overwatch but my
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school had very low activity with gaming so it was hard to continue competing without a team, I would try to sneak into other universities to see if I can join their team to no avail. And after my friend’s horror that I was playing shooters with a trackpad, they got me a really cheap wireless Logitech mouse.
Sue: Do you play The Sims and what do you think about the franchise?
Crys: I have memories of playing the Sims when I was a child but I cannot recall from where. I believe it was in Taiwan, on the library’s computers where I would watch kids that could afford computers at home log onto their accounts and gloat about their houses. I used to be so envious because it always seemed like such a fantastical life to be living.
Sue: Have you designed tattoos for other games and if so, which ones?
Crys: I haven’t design tattoos specifically for other games even though I would definitely love to do more. I do avidly participate in drawing art for community streamers and art groups.
Sue: You seem to move effortlessly within two male-dominated worlds, gaming and tattooing. What are some of the challenges you’ve faced and how did you navigate that?
112 | SnakyTattoo aka Crys
hat h t e l p o e pe h t l l a y tim e v m o f l o l l i y t n “I can s t not invest a hing them bu e m ut wis t b r u m h e h into t y g r e n best” e
have me and m the
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Crys: I guess if you can say it looks effortless then I have done a hecking good job haha. When I first started playing at 18, I was actually so inexperienced with the online community. I have received a lot of harassment unknowingly and went through some pretty terrible experiences. And not only from males but also some female figures in the community that have fallen horribly to internalized misogyny. It’s honestly one of the biggest reasons I stopped actively pursuing the competition route. The tattoo industry is very similar as I have worked in a couple of shops that are extremely classist and unfair. However, it is easier to be nasty online and anonymous than in person, so luckily (?) I felt the treatments at shops were easier to deal with. I was also younger and inexperienced so I made a lot of blunders defending myself. However, the experiences made me realize a couple of things I never want to become such a person, perpetuating misery when you know how it feels to experience it is one of the worse feelings I can still love all the people that have hurt me but not invest any of my time and energy into them but wishing them the best Try my best and always just be the best person I can be, you know? Other people’s incapability is not my responsibility. Always be sensible and educate when you have a chance, but never help others at the detrimental expense of yourself Sorry if that was very long!
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Sue: You fell in love with tattoos on the docks of Taiwan as a kid. Did you ever imagine this level of success and what are your goals for the future? Crys: I was actually flipping through my old Facebook posts the other day, thinking to myself “who the heck uses this” when I saw the post I made in…7th grade? It was a goodbye post to my musical friends announcing my career change haha. In the post I wrote, “hopefully I will become a good artist, and come get free tattoos!” I still don’t think I am successful in the terms of incredible fame and fortune, but I am successful in the terms that I am happy. So yes, I would say I have succeeded, but I will also say I have more reason to reach for success now than ever. I was gifted a platform and an amazing group of following to allow me to do so, and I plan on continuously learning and improving. My goal as always is to learn and improve, and most importantly make good friends and eat good food.
Sue: What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Crys: I would say the Sims collaborations was definitely one of them, but also when I first started getting my flash fully booked out was the most exciting moments! There are so many I feel like I can’t recount it all, every day I am grateful and every day has been a highlight with each of my clients. Sue: What inspired the tattoo design you did for The Sims 4?
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Crys: Demon slayer! The original design was actually very similar to a black and grey tattoo I did for a client. It is the wisteria from Demon slayer as well as Nezuko’s ribbon with Tanjiro’s water in the background. When I had a chat with the client, we spoke of how recently there are more and more strong female characters that are not your typical damsel in distress, and, most importantly, accepted by popular society. When Sims reached out to me regarding international women’s month, I thought it the perfect sheet to use. I actually drew an entire sheet but that was the one the team picked!
Sue: How do you find the time to compete in gaming tournaments, play games and tattoo?
Crys: You don’t find time, you TAKE time, away from sleep that is. I’m actually trying really hard to cut back on my time playing because I want to dedicate more time to improving my skills haha. But I’m super competitive and sometimes I play spitefully. But recently I’ve let competitive games take a backseat and now I am just a casual who still very much enjoys watching esports.
Sue: Random Question: What is one thing you wish would come back into style? Crys: Hmm I’m not sure! There are definitely things that I am glad that are NOT in style anymore in terms of tattooing, but at the same time, the stuff that’s been around forever such as traditional tattoos still have a very large
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audience today.
motorcycle shop haha.
In tattoo culture more than others, traditions are passed down for a reason! So I take those principles and continuously augment it towards the future.
And I don’t really have a favourite because I like all of them for different reasons, I do have ones I didn’t really prefer though!
Sue: What advice would you give someone who is considering getting a tattoo?
Crys: Oh, there is so much depending on his or her concern, but I would say the most important thing is RESEARCH! Research about your artists, about styles, and, importantly, tattoo etiquette! And keep in mind, research doesn’t have to be alone, an indication of a good artist is that they will usually walk first-timers through, so don’t be afraid to ask questions! And while you’re at that, please also have mutual respect for your artist and they will to you ☺
Sue: What would you like to see added to The Sims 4?
Crys: Would it be sinful if I said I haven’t personally played yet? So many of my friends were excited when they announced the project, and here I am clueless.
Sue: What is your most memorable/ favourite tattoo you’ve ever done? Crys: My first tattoo, on my first mentor, was a sketch of a mouse in the shape of a light bulb I drew up on a napkin done in his
Sue: Lastly, Some rapid-fire questions: Favourite food, favourite game, are you an early bird or night owl, pet peeves, favourite season, favourite song.
Crys: Hotpot, I have a hotpot illustration I drew for the cover of my stream and I made it into my phone case. I have been going to the same place for 8 years and the manager calls me her daughter haha. Honestly? 2048 (LOL) I play puzzle games and riddle games because it puts me to sleep as I'm solving them And I’m definitely a night owl, although lately, I’ve fixed my sleep schedule so I wake up at 8 AM now. I have so many pet peeves I rather not say them all T_T but the biggest one is when I meet entitled people who are inconsiderate to service workers. My mother worked all her life so if I see anyone being rude to service workers I'm ready to fight them to the death I…I guess I like spring/summer? I overheat and get cold very easily bc of poor circulation, but I like the sun and being able to have a clear mind as an artist My favourite classical piece is Sibelius symphony #2 because It was the first orchestral piece I played and made friends ill never forget. But in terms of pop music, I guess it’s Lost Boy by Ruth B. But I also listen to heavy metal and alternative….I guess it depends on my mood haha.
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Happy ‘Belated’ Birthday SueSimming
Sending you best From now until et wishes SimSimmerly xeorxnity. o
r too birthday! :) It's neve y pp ha ed at el B e! Hey Su e you wonderful friend lik a r fo ge sa es m ay birthd tha e person and I hope om es aw d an te na io pass you c nce of blessings. May da un ab ith w ed er show od thin ishing you all the go w d an s ay hd rt bi e mor ays! ♥ Grace offer. Take care alw
o late to wish a u. Sue you're a at you will be celebrate many ngs in life has to
belated happy birthday sue! I wish for you to manifest all your dreams, including the wildest ones lol so glad I met you in this community, you're one of the few good apples there along with the whole team thanks for always understanding me & listening. have a great birthday Ivana xoxo
So sorry to have missed your birthday Sue, you are such a wonderful person, I hope this goes some way to showing you how much you mean to the entire team! Spoonie xx
Happy bela ted birthda y Sue. I can believe we 't missed it. I a m so glad I ha met you th ve rough this amazing community . I hope we can spend more time a lot together b uilding this amazing m agazine an d franchise . Sulzi x
SueSimming
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
SIMSPIRATION PRESENTS
SAVED MY LIFE! by K8 Simsley
T
he Sims 4 is a wildly popular game. With over 12M gallery uploads, more than a billion hours of play, and millions of objects downloaded from the gallery, love for the game is evident within The Sims community. Each member of The Sims community can undoubtedly give you many reasons for why they started playing the game. Each has a unique story, history, and motivation. Players of The Sims 4 come from all walks of life, with various age ranges, ethnicities, gender identities, or other measures to be found. The Sims community truly is a diverse group and one that is filled with so much love and support.
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Above all, The Sims community is inspiring and enlightening, and I am thankful to be part of it. For this month’s Simspiration section, I wanted to do something a bit different. I thought I would share my personal Sims story with all of you. It is my hope that by telling my personal Sims story, others will be inspired to share theirs as well. Perhaps, with some luck, we can grow closer as a community and forge new friendships.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
Time Travel Many years ago - far too many to mention - I was merely a young girl full of crazy, creative dreams. As a child, I always had my head in the clouds. I often lived in a fantasy world unlike any other. My perfect pretend life could be anything I imagined it to be. It was nice there, and I often miss it dearly. Like many little girls, I played with Barbies. I created fantastical lives for my dolls, conjuring up complex identities and backstories that would evolve and grow. Much like these fantasy lives, I, too, had to grow up. Time had forged on, and the world was rapidly changing. Plastic barbie dolls and sticker collections gave way to computer games and cellphones.
Needless to say, chaos ensued. I’ve played every edition of The Sims at some point in my life (when I said ‘many years ago, I meant many), but it was not until The Sims 4 that I realized the power the game had on my life or how much I loved to play.
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The Turbulent Teenage Years As a teenager, I spent many hours writing everything from stories and poems to blog posts and articles. I stopped picking up Barbie dolls and started picking up books and video games. Being a teen was challenging, Many times during my teenage years, It felt like I was standing outside the world looking in. I understood societal etiquette. I could fake interest in others and nod my head at appropriate times, but life lacked the connection I was craving or luster I thought it should hold. I wandered aimlessly for a long time, and while it was a struggle, I managed to overcome those turbulent times and remain somewhat intact as I emerged on the other side. The world was different then. Back in those days, there was not the openness that exists today. There was not the same understanding, compassion, or empathy.
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Okay, I am not ancient, I swear... The world has changed a great deal in the last decade or so… Trust Me! Mental Health was a topic that was not discussed at all. Your personal struggles were just that, PERSONAL! People did not talk about depression or anxiety. ADHD was something that ‘weird kid’ at school had, and anxiety was not even on the radar. Things were VERY different than they are now. Unlike today, if you struggled, you did it silently, without complaint. Basically, you made due and forged on in a forward facing direction. To be honest, when I was growing up, the world was much smaller - much quieter. In some ways this was better, in other ways it was worse. If someone told me then that my future self would spend her days connecting with people worldwide, I would have thought they were crazy. Yet, here we are… but I digress.
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The Dark Alleys of Adulthood I clawed my way out of the depressing pit that is the plight of the teenager and managed to appear semi-conscious in adulthood. This early period was chaotic, and if I am being honest, I do not remember much of it. Still, when we fastforward through the fog, we find a couple of kids and a life that has little resemblance to that which I once dreamed of as a child. “Adulthood is where it falls apart and simultaneously comes back together.” With adulthood come children. The two go hand in hand. Sure, children are a joy, a blessing, but to tell you the truth, I never wanted them. Even in my wildest fantasies, I did not have kids, and I never play with them in The Sims. However, in real life, I do have children. In fact, I had them when I was pretty young, and in hindsight, I am thankful I did. My kids have taught me many lessons I would not have learned otherwise, and they continue to do so daily, which was an important aspect of my Sims journey.
Falling Into The Dark In 2017, my son Jax was born. His birth quickly turned my world completely upside down. Jax was born with a rare genetic disorder (Trisomy 18 is what the doctors call it, although his presentation does not fit the typical bill). He also developed epilepsy a few months later, struggles with vision impairment, and has been diagnosed with Autism, along with developmental delays. Jax is a complex little man. He requires roundthe-clock supervision and care and it can be exhausting as a single mom. Still, despite his many struggles, he is a true joy to be around. While Jax is currently non-verbal at seven years old, he loves to interact with others in any way possible. He is always happy and smiling and
can always be heard making loud, silly noises while playing in his room. Jax became the light of my life from the minute he entered this world, and I would LITERALLY die for this child in a heartbeat. It was one year after Jax joined my family, that I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and this was a big obstacle. I had been complaining for a week about having a pinched nerve in my shoulder. I even expressed that I thought my car was electrocuting me while driving because I was experiencing shock-like sensations in my body. However, I was a single mom and in University full-time while working and caring for a disabled child, so I didn’t think too much into it. Unfortunately, after taking a nap one afternoon – which was not the norm for me – I woke up with slurred speech, almost unable to walk. In all honesty, despite my young age, my family thought I was having a stroke, so I went to my family doctor, and over to the hospital for a CT Scan. After that initial scan, I went home, but was called to come back to the hospital for “another test.” The hospital did an MRI and proceeded to tell me that I had ‘lesions on my brain.’ I had no idea what this meant. SIMSPIRATION by K8Simsley | 129
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“During these dark moments in my life, I rediscovered The Sims, and it truly saved me.” Naturally, I turned to Google and was quickly convinced I had brain cancer and would die. Thankfully, within a few hours, the doctor told me they believed it was MS and started me on treatment. I was honestly relieved, and my relief seemed to perplexed the doctors. I then had to explain what I found on Google… I know, lesson learned. Needless to say, this moment changed my life as much as Jax did, but it only got worse from there.
During and after my diagnosis and following health crisis were some of the darkest moments in my life.. Everything I had dreamed, everything I had imagined, everything I wanted for my life, everything I planned, and everything I enjoyed was suddenly different. Some things became utterly unattainable in my new state, leaving me with a degree I couldn’t use at all, which was really hard to accept and understand. The truth is, these experiences caused my entire identity to be flipped upside down, and I truly did not know who I was anymore. I had to rethink everything I thought I knew about myself.
Coping with MS was a significant struggle at first. It took me a while to regain mobility, and I still suffer significantly at times but I manage to make due day to day. What was worse than this, however, was that two years later, I would develop another health issue that had me contemplating ending it all at times, but still has yet to be resolved. I suffered with EXTREME sinus pain for 5 years and no one knew why. Each doctor I would see would prescribe nasal sprays, painkillers, and antibiotics and send me on my way. None of these things helped and the cycle would simply repeat. It was 5 years of excruciating pain when I woke up on Christmas to discover a hole in the back of my throat and discovered that there was no longer pain. While this mysterious hole eased my discomfort, it greatly hinders my speech and I have yet to find a doctor that can explain it or fix it.
During these dark moments in my life, I rediscovered The Sims, and it truly saved me.
Needless to say, this also took its toll on my mental health.
The Sims 4 sparked something within me and provided precisely the escape I needed in my life, and still do need at times today.
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That sounds dramatic, but I mean this with all my heart. You see, my daughter came to me one day to ask if I would buy her the game. However, I already owned The Sims 4 (although I had not really played it despite having bought it shortly after it was released), but it never occurred to me that she would be interested. I assumed she was too young to appreciate or understand it. Boy, was I wrong! I did buy her the game, followed by a few packs, but she lost interest quickly, as kids do. For me, however, this moment was life-changing.
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A Simtacular Realization The Sims 4 brought back all my childhood memories of playing with Barbie dolls. It allowed me to recreate the fantasy worlds I desperately craved without ever knowing I needed. It provided relief from the chaos, a connection to an altered reality, and, most importantly, a new community of amazing, understanding people.
that are inconceivable in other spaces around the web.
The Sims 4 rekindled my creative passion, something I thought had left me long ago. It gave me refuge from all the negative aspects of my life and filled me with excitement again.
Yes. The Sims 4 has been my saving grace. My rock, my constant while I have struggled. It has been my refuge when I needed it most.
This game inspires me, challenges me, and keeps me connected to the world. I am 100% honest when I say that The Sims 4 has saved my life. While it may sound silly to some, I know there are community members who will understand. The Sims 4 has given my life direction when I was lost in the dark. It has fueled me like nothing else before it has ever done. The Sims 4 is more than ‘a game’. In my eyes, it is a talented and profoundly passionate community that cares about one another and is enveloped in love. It is a community that fiercely supports, protects, and cheers for one another without question. This amazing group is thick with acceptance, equality, and understanding
I genuinely feel that there is no better community in the world. Although I only see a small fraction of it, that small portion fills my heart with joy.
More than any of this, the community that I have discovered within The Sims has given me back the courage and confidence I thought I had lost. The fact that I am sharing this story with you is proof of that. Sure, The Sims 4 was my escape from reality, but it has also become my reality… This is my personal Sims story. I know it is a little dark and twisted. I am aware that it is a bit overwhelming as well, but there is so much light at the end of the tunnel that it will blind you, and for that, I am forever grateful. I would love to hear your #PersonalSimsStory Find me on Social Media and let’s talk! linktr.ee/K8Simsley
Until next time,
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134 | Pack Reviews by SueSimming
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Pack and Kit
Reviews oos o o o o w A
The Sims 4 Werewolves A Howling Good Time or a Slobbering Mess? On June 16th we got the 12th game pack called very simply Werewolves. I’ve learned to manage my expectations of packs because what we get to see in the trailer isn’t always what we get vs actual gameplay and content. Still, finally getting werewolves is brilliant especially after such a long wait. The reaction from the community was varied to say the least and we had calls of ‘wow amazing’ and ‘omg not furries’. Although varied in response the overall majority seemed happy with what they had been delivered by The Sims team. There is plenty on offer inside this all new expansion pack for The Sims 4 with over 100 CAS items and 78 build items to investigate as well as lots of hidden adventures and gameplay for days. We hope this review helps you decide if you are ready to Awoooooo or if you are amongst those still hiding in the dark with the Vampires.
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Let’s start with CAS: I love the new clothes that we got with this pack. Since I’m a big fan of survival challenges, and the ripped clothes fit perfectly into that style. We got some new accessories including creepy wolf nails but I was not impressed that we didn’t get new make-up but I am crazy about the new hair so it takes the sting out of it. But the sting was right back when I saw that we got only ONE new aspiration for werewolves. With vampires we had 3 and I don’t understand why only one and I was about to really fume when I realized that the rest of the aspirations are unlocked ingame so before you rage, do a play through. Lesson learned.And the only reason I want this look is because it’s so much creepier but let’s be honest, it would still not come close to the creepy werewolves of The Sims 2.I will be honest that the continues howling in CAS will drive you up the wall. I have to mute the game when working on a werewolf. It’s more annoying than the hissing vampires and why don’t mermaids blow bubbles all the time like they are underwater? I’m going down the rabbit hole again. I really like the werewolves and how much they can be customized. The only thing I really would have loved to see was a
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Dark b�k art
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And the only reason I want this look is because it’s so much creepier but let’s be honest, it would still not come close to the creepy werewolves of The Sims 2.
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Welcome to Moonwood Mill At first glance it looks disappointing because there are only 5 lots to build on but just like our new lunar-affected Sims, all is not what it seems.
Fun thing I didn’t know about old Moonwood, you can swim in the lake/pond. I don’t know why this made me so happy but I smiled from ear to ear when I saw this.
There is a lot to explore here. Much like the camping grounds at Granite Falls or exploring around Selvadorada and Mt. Komorebi (yeah, we get it, you found a system that works and you’re using it for bloody everything) you’ll find information boards that help you figure out what’s going on, who the different packs are and how to find them.
The detail of this neighbourhood made me want to go to the top of Howling Point and just sit there watching the world.
I don’t want to go into too much detail about the hidden areas of this town simply because this should be something you discover for yourself and I hate spoilers. I will say that this neighbourhood is stunning. The mood here is gloomy, a bit creepy and I absolutely love it.
My top 5:
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A lot of new B&B objects were added that together with other packs, can make any apocalypse player’s dream come true.
The new smaller telescope. Hallelujah praise The Watcher!
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
The new baby crib because it’s so darn stinkin’ cute. The werewolf gnome, as if gnomes aren’t creepy enough The Boss Bus Bar The Woodsy Mailbox
Gameplay:
Five Star, I highly recommend it. Becoming a werewolf has never been this much fun. My first encounter with one was a chap named Greg but as soon as I tried to talk to him, he lay down in the grass and went to sleep. How rude. Sims that are not werewolves will get a purple scared buff and ever since this buff was first added to the game, I always wished your Sims would drop dead from getting a fright. It would have been perfect for this pack because these wolves are creepy. Anyway, you have two werewolf packs to pick from and new aspirations to choose from but
to sum it up: Be a werewolf and embrace (or fight) your animalistic nature. Beyond rocking a fearsome form werewolf Sims will have unique temperaments and abilities, be affected by the phase of the moon, and experience wolfspecific life events OR choose if you want to be an Alpha or Lone Wolf OR be the brainy one and unravel werewolf, vampire, and spellcaster lore as you read books, discover secret tunnels, grow your collection, and interact with denizens of Moonwood Mill. Join either the Moonwood Collective to be a good representative of werewolves or the Wildfangs to expand werewolf territory and be the strongest. This is one of the few packs I feel we got what we asked for and what was advertised, was also delivered. This is a TS4 must-have pack with endless hours of fun and stories to create. I tend to be hard on The Sims 4 but this is one of the packs I couldn’t find a lot wrong with. Even if you are not into occults, just get the pack for all the stuff that comes with it. The Sims 4 Werewolves is a howling good time for sure (but seriously, can we do something about all the howling?)
By SueSimming
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MAKING A SIMMER presents
Melanie Drake By SimSimmerly
T
his month in Making a Simmer, we had the opportunity of speaking to Melanie Drake from Instagram. Melanie had been posting amazing builds on her Instagram account since August 2021 and now has over 2000 followers, which we think is a huge achievement. We managed to speak to Melanie in between creating her gorgeous Sims 4 builds and daily life. Get to know who Melanie Drake is and how she creates such gorgeous builds. Hi Melanie, and thank you for taking the time to speak with us. We would love to let our readers get to know you as a person behind your Sims builds, as well as how you do create your builds. Our first few questions today are,
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who is Melanie? Where are you from? And what do you do when you aren’t building in The Sims? And a question we are dying to ask is all about your gorgeous Shiba dog Kyoshi, which you accepted into your family in September of last year. How have you found having a dog in the house has been, and how has Kyoshis training been going? Hi! Thank you so much for inviting me to this interview. My name is Melanie, I am 25 years old and I live in Germany. I am currently studying economics and will graduate this year. When I'm not playing Sims, I of course spend a lot of time with my dog Kyoshi, my friends and family, especially the training with Kyoshi takes a lot of time and patience. Fortunately, my parents support me and they have taken Kyoshi firmly into their hearts. I am very grateful to them. Besides the training at home, we also go to a
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 dog school and get good advice from our trainer. Furthermore, I frequently meet with my friend Daria, who also has a super cute dog. Our dogs Cody and Kyoshi get along great, which makes me very happy. After all that super cute doggo talk, let’s chat about The Sims. How long have you been playing The Sims? And what would you say is your favourite Expansion/Game/Stuff or kit pack to date and why? I still remember the first time I played The Sims 2 at a friend's house when I was in elementary school. It was so much fun! I was absolutely hooked and begged my parents to buy me the game. The Sims 2 is an extremely important part of my childhood and therefore always has a special place in my heart. However, I have also played all the other Sims games. Unfortunately, I lost interest in Sims during my teenage years and it wasn't rekindled until late 2018 when YouTube suggested a video of Buzzfeed Multiplayer with Kelsey Impicciche and the 100 Baby Challenge. The weekly videos have brought me a lot of joy and helped me get over a rough time. When my friend Rebekka told me in May 2019 that Sims 4 was currently free on Origin, I of course downloaded it. Since then, I've been playing it and have especially discovered my interest in the build mode. It's hard to pick just one expansion pack because they all have something that I like. I love Get Together because of the big world of Windenburg, but Eco Lifestyle has really beautiful furniture that I often use to furnish houses. What inspired you to join Instagram and share your Sims builds with the community? How has the response been to your creations? Since I started playing the Sims 4 in 2019, I have shared my houses in the gallery. The feedback has been very positive and since then, I have had over 500,000 downloads of my creations. There were comments with questions if I had a YouTube channel. So, I decided to take the first step into social media and share my creations 148 | MAKING A SIMMER with Melanie Drake
Eco 100-Baby House
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on Instagram and Twitter. At the beginning, it was a bit difficult because I would first have to learn how to take the best screenshots and edit them. I'm still not 100% satisfied with my editing style and have a lot to learn, but I think I'm on a good path. The positive feedback and the incredible people who warmly welcomed me into the Sims community motivate me to keep going. Do you play live mode or are you just a builder? What is your favourite style to build and why? Definitely a mix of both. My favorite thing to do is build houses that are a perfect fit for my Sims and then play in them. I especially love challenges like the 100 Baby Challenge or Not So Berry. I like all kinds of houses, whether it's classic family homes, cottages, modern houses or mansions. For gameplay, I prefer medium sized houses with lots of bedrooms and a lovely garden. Do you use custom content or mods in your builds, and if so, what are your favourite items to build with?
One of my favorite mods is MC Command Center by Deaderpool. It makes it easier to set the weather for screenshots. I also use mods from Twisted Mexi like Better Build Buy or Buildmode Freecam. Otherwise, I rarely use custom content because it makes it harder for others to download the creations in the gallery. Nevertheless, I love to see the beautiful creations of the talented CC creators. I especially adore the items that HeyHarrie and Felixandre create. The Tiny Twavellers stuff pack is one of my personal favorites. You also have a YouTube channel on which you have yet to share videos. What can our readers expect to see here in the future? It is an absolute dream of mine to upload videos to YouTube. However, I'm not sure yet what kind of content I want to create and in which language I want to do it. In English, more people would be able to understand me, but I'm a bit insecure about my language skill and accent. During my semester break in August, I will definitely think about it and as soon as there is news, I will share it on Instagram. If The Sims could release your ideal pack, what style or content would it have and why? MAKING A SIMMER with Melanie Drake | 149
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 My dream pack would have a large world with many different lot sizes and families that we know from The Sims 2. For example, from Veronaville or Strangetown. Great emphasis should be placed on the lore and relationships. Also, the wants and fears system and memories should be reintroduced. But unfortunately, it is very unrealistic that something like that will happen. That's why I would also be happy if we would get some kind of Generations pack, with the focus on family gameplay. In this month’s magazine, our focus is on friendship and community. Is there anyone in the community who has inspired you in your Sims builds, and who are they? The Sims community is full of talented people who inspire me. Unfortunately, I can't list everyone individually because there are so many and I don't want to forget anyone. But a very special inspiration for me is definitely Kayla Sims (Lilsimsie). With the help of her tutorials, I've learned how to build houses and how to roof them. I watch her videos every day because I love her positive energy. She's also a huge advocate for charity and raises money for St. Jude Children's Hospital to name just one example. Kayla (Lilsimsie) is an absolute blessing to the community and a truly great role model. You create everything from single rooms to sprawling mansions. What has been your favourite build to date? And do you have any WIP at the moment? How long on average does it take you to create a room and a full build? My favorite build is the “Cottage Living Farm.” I built it shortly after the Cottage Living expansion pack came out and it only uses that expansion and the base game. Yes, I am currently working on a build for a collaboration coming out next month. I don't want to give too much away, but many incredible creators are participating. So stay tuned! The duration for a build is quite different, it depends on how inspired and motivated I am, 150 | MAKING A SIMMER with Melanie Drake
Cottage Living Farm
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Barbie Dreamhouse
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“The Sims community is full of talented people who inspire me.”
Converted Factory Gym & Spa
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Jungle Vacation Home
and of course, on the size of the house and the amount of details. I can build simple houses in a few hours. My biggest mansion, the “Barbie Dreamhouse," took me almost 3 days. Rooms, on the other hand, are easier to build and I can complete them in about 1-2 hours.
Thanks again for such a fantastic interview and for allowing us to share a little piece of who you are, and of course, telling us about your The Sims builds and Kyoshi. We really do look forward to seeing more of your gorgeous builds in the future.
As we come to the end of our interview, can you let our readers know how they can find, follow or subscribe to your content?
Thank you so much for this great opportunity and your kind words. It was an absolute honor to participate in this interview. Goodbye and happy Simming!
I share my creations in the Sims 4 gallery and on Instagram and Twitter. Gallery ID: Melanieee_Drake
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
FAN ART & BLENDER presents
PENCILSP SIMS 2 & 3 ART MAESTRO
T
he Sims has inspired so many Simmers that we love to find The Sims 2 and 3 artists as we look through social media, nostalgia always smacks us right in the heart. This is exactly what happened when we found Pencil Spaghetti on Tumblr. Each piece is beautifully constructed and brings back memories of Sims days gone by for many, but also reminds those who still play these genres that good things never go away. Pencil Spaghetti, it is great finally being able to chat with you today. Tell us, how long have you been playing The Sims and what inspires you most about creating your Sims 2 and 3 art? Hello! I am honoured to answer these questions and to be here! Like probably most people, I started playing The Sims when I was quite young. My earliest memory related to The Sims was when I watched my brother play The Sims 2. I distinctly remember how the hands were square, probably because his graphics were low. But, I'm pretty sure the first time I properly played a Sims game was when my brother bought The Sims 3, around the time the game first came out. I also remember playing The Sims 2 when I was a kid. My dad would live overseas and he was the one with a computer.
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PAGHETTI By SimSimmerly So, I would mostly watch let's plays and machinima series in place of actually playing it, since I couldn't haha! But one day, my father actually left his computer around for me! And that is when I could properly play The Sims again. I think I was around 12 to 13 when that happened, and the first game I played on that computer was The Sims 2. I played it for a while, I was too scared to play with the premades since I was scared I would "ruin" their stories. But, I eventually overcame that fear and started playing with them rotationally! I also, of course, played The Sims 3 on that same computer. What inspires me to create Sims art… Well, it first started when I noticed that there was a lack of Sims 3 fan art, but tons for The Sims 2. I have always been a very shy and private person and I was deathly afraid of making any of my accounts public, but I thought to myself, this needs to change! So, I decided I should post something to the public for the first time. I thought of starting with something small to make myself comfortable, like a post on Reddit! I already knew The Sims community was rather pleasant, so I decided I should post a piece of mine on there. I decided to pick The Sims 3 one. Because, like I said earlier, there was a lack of art for it unlike The Sims 2, which I had already seen fan art for. So, my plan was set. I would post a Sims 3 piece on The Sims 3 subreddit. And the reception was
River McIrish, Holly Alto, Bebe Hart and Lisa Bunch from Sunset Valley (The Sims 3)
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Brandi Broke from Pleasantview (The Sims 2)
wonderful! It went quite smoothly haha. So, I continued posting on The Sims 3 subreddit. This was my way of getting comfortable posting online, I soon even made my Instagram public. But one day, some things happened that made me feel rather depressed. That was when I got a new idea for a new piece, at first it was going to be a Sims 3 premade like usual, but then I, for some reason, thought it would suit Brandi Broke. That drawing was a way to vent, a drawing called "just a quiet life." And it was the first Sims 2 art I did, then posted it on my now public Instagram and Reddit. The reception was, again, wonderful! I received many kind words! But one comment stuck out to me, and I almost hoped I would get a comment like this. It said that this drawing of mine brought a new side to Brandi. And that's when I realised something. The Sims is a game where you can create and tell stories however you want, right? And that can also apply to the premade Sims, specifically The Sims 2 ones, since they are one of the most popular ones in the community. I always saw headcanons of these Sims, but even though I would draw them, I frankly didn't really have a set interpretation of them. so I decided I would rack my brain to try and find something – something that would start a conversation. And that is how I came up with my Angela comic! I asked people on Reddit: “here is my interpretation of Angela! How do you guys perceive her?” And honestly, I think this was the post that got the most comments, before my escapism post that is, and it was such a fun time! I loved, loved talking and interacting with everyone! So along with silly drawings I did for fun, I tried to open up my brain to how I could perceive these characters, and hopefully a new way to interpret them! I think my best example of this was my comic on Juliette Capp called "Noise". I'm not exactly sure how I came up with the idea of Juliette hating noise, but it was a cool concept, so I implemented it anyway! A song that really inspired me was "Celestica" by Crystal Castles.
Music is a big inspiration for me, and of course, so is the media I like! It really helps. I usually walk around my house while listening to music or watching videos, trying to come up with a way to draw something. Well, that applies to mostly my comics. Music and shows, anime, even random videos and other artists really help me mold a new project, along with experiences of my own! I try to include a little bit of everything of myself in the art I do. Do you play Sims 4 at all? If not, what would you say has put you off this version of The Sims? And if you do, have you thought about creating Sims 4 art too? I actually never played The Sims 4! And unfortunately, because of all of the complaints I saw towards the game, it actually put me off from playing it at all. And something about The Sims 4 also just does not interest me as much as The Sims 2 and 3. So,
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Probably my favourite anime along with its movie. Just the visuals, the writing, the characters – they all inspire me quite a bit, haha! I just mostly want to evoke something to the viewer, I hope I'm able to do that. I'd say my favourite Sims to draw are Angela and Lilith. I love drawing their hair! I try to make Lilith have a bit more edge to her when drawing her to differentiate her from Angela. I give her eyes a sharper look to them, while I give Angela a softer look. I also really like drawing Sims 3 Agnes Crumplebottom. Her backstory is very depressing, and I like drawing depressing things, so it goes hand in hand! Other Sims I like to draw are Ripp Grunt and Brandi Broke, which I have also drawn some depressing art for them. Yeah, I really like drawing sad art, haha!
I don't really know much about the game… but I did think of trying it once. I heard Create-A-Sim is pretty cool! I don't think I'll ever draw Sims 4 fan art, unless it was a commission or request, since like I said, I don't play the game and know nothing about it. What inspires you the most to pick up your pencils and draw? Do you have a favourite Sims character to draw and why? Sometimes, things just pop into my head, perhaps while listening to music or just laying down on the bed. Sometimes, I even think of a way to vent through my art, draw my emotions out. And create a nice piece along with it. Interacting with people is really nice, just a small comment or a funny tag on a reblog can really brighten my day! So, I think that's also what mainly motivates me to pick up my pencil. I can tell you an anime I like that has actually quite inspired me – Neon Genesis Evangelion.
I also love drawing Holly Alto, usually with Bebe [Hart]. She's just so cute! She always seemed to have very friendly vibes, so I try to draw her really "soft" looking. It's the same for Juliette capp! She just seems so playful, friendly and outgoing! So, she's very fun to draw. I love drawing her hair and eyes! If The Sims asked you to create art pieces for them to go into Sims 5 (when it is finally developed), what would you choose to create for them and why? Or would you refuse? Honestly, I'm not sure if I would refuse or accept. It really depends on what they'd want me to draw. I'm not really interested in working with EA, haha! If you could live in a Sims town, which one would it be and why? I'd say I'd live in Veronaville! It has been my favourite neighbourhood since I was a little kid, it's so aesthetically pleasing to me! And also oddly very nostalgic… it just looks like a town that would be very chill. Well, except for the whole feud thing.... FAN ART & BLENDER | 159
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Agnes Crumplebottom and deceased husband Erik Darling from Sunset Valley (The Sims 3)
“Sometimes, things just pop into my head, perhaps while listening to music or just laying down on the bed. Sometimes, I even think of a way to vent through my art, draw my emotions out.” 160 | FAN ART & BLENDER
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Other neighbourhoods I would choose are Belladonna Cove or Downtown. I'm not sure why, I just like the vibes they give off.
bursts of energy I need to let out. It's a bad habit of mine that I need to stop since it disturbs my parents quite a bit, haha!
We all have that one townie that we just love to hate, who would you say is yours and why? If you had to choose to be a townie, who would it be and why?
I can't exactly say what music I listen to… I guess alternative? I can tell you my favourite band, however! They're called Have a Nice Life! Most of their songs are depressing, so I go to them whenever I'm drawing something sad.
I'm going to be honest. I really don't have a townie I hate, I was never really a person that hates characters. I'm not sure why… I just can't strongly hate a Sim. Probably because I know they're not real, unless they actively annoy me or something… Which Sim would I be? I'd say maybe Brandi Broke? Her description says that she's a bit too nice, which I see as being too nice for her own good, which I can relate to. I see her as a mostly chill mom, but with sudden waves of anxiety and stress – something that I go through a lot. Another Sim I'd be is perhaps Ripp Grunt or Ophelia Nigmos. Ophelia's description says that she worries about everything which, again, is something I can relate too. As for Ripp… well, I just like him, haha! Your name Pencil Spaghetti is so cool! Is there a story behind your name creation, and if so, what is it? The way I came up with my name is quite simple actually – pencil because I draw, and spaghetti because I like spaghetti. Spaghetti bolognaise is one of my favourite foods and I was really into it when I created my name haha! Let's find out more about the person behind the name. Tell us a random fact about yourself that nobody knows. What kind of music do you listen to? And if you could choose to be best friends with anyone alive or dead, who would it be and why? I wouldn't say this is a totally unknown fact about myself, since I told two of my friends and my family knows but, whenever I'm daydreaming and I'm really into it, I get excited and I run around like a wild horse around my house. I just cannot sit down to save my life… unless I'm tired, but even then, I get random
I wouldn't really choose anyone to be my best friend honestly, since I feel like I already found someone that I'm truly compatible with in friendship. But if I had to choose… maybe Kurt Cobain? He seems like a cool and chill dude. I feel like we could have long talks about life or something. I don't know, or maybe Dan from Game Grumps, he seems so nice! Ahh, we love learning about our interviewees, as social media can hide who we really are sometimes, lost in ‘smedia’ translations haha. Is there anything else about you that you would like your followers to know? What I'd like my followers to know? Well, I guess that I'm a sensitive and anxiety-prone person. I'm a lot more outgoing online than I am in real life, but I'm slowly getting better at being social! I really like interacting with people online about my interests. So, if there's anything you want to ask or tell me, then let me know! I don't have many friends I can talk to about The Sims as in depth as I do on Tumblr, so I'm really glad I could join this community! Before we go, we have one last question for you, and we have to admit we say this on your own Tumblr profile, but thought it a great question to ask. What is your coolest Sims memory to date? My coolest Sim memory was when some random dude died at a party my Sim was attending in The Sims 3, and then I saw two old ladies (Erin Kennedy and Molly French) flirt with each other. Also one time, my Sim was water skiing with her best friend and they ended up going through a hidden island, so everything was foggy. Normally, you'd think they'd discover the island, FAN ART & BLENDER | 161
SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 but this is The Sims we're talking about. I don't know why I laughed as hard as I did. I don't think the situation was that funny in retrospect, haha! And honestly, any memory of playing with Goneril Capp's family is a cool memory. I love playing with them! Thank you so much for popping in and letting us and our readers get to know more about you and your art. Can you tell our readers how they can find/follow and subscribe to you?
I don't post on Twitter much, if at all. So, I recommend following me on Tumblr and Instagram, or even Reddit if you want to. My username is the same on all platforms – pencilspaghetti :) Follow PencilSpaghetti on the socials below to see more amazing Sims 2 and 3 art!
Bebe Hart and Holly Alto from Sunset Valley (The Sims 3)
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Marc Coronado
“
STAR MACHINIMIST & CREATOR
Hi, I'm Marc Laurence Coronado, a Sims machinima director from the Philippines. I studied Multimedia Arts, and my main hobby is video and picture editing. I also make traditional drawings and sketches, and my favorite medium to use is colored pencil. I can dance, but not that professional. Sing? Nope. A proud Disney kid, Nike Air Jordan 1 shoes enthusiast and I have an obsession for Funko Pops. I like to take pictures of them and post them on social media. I describe myself as a bit geeky and nerd, I mostly sit on a computer and edit random videos and pictures for fun. I also like to travel, especially when hanging out with friends. I started playing The Sims back when I was in freshman year high school, 2008. I started with Sims 1, then after a year, I switched to Sims 2. In 2014, the Sims 4 was released and I absolutely love the graphics! I played the Sims 4 for two years, then I realized that I wanted to tell stories using The Sims 4. That's when I started to become a machinima director. I've watched tutorials on Youtube on how to control the cameras in the game, and after that, I started making Sims machinimas and haven’t stopped ever since. Right now, I enjoy making Sims content for entertainment and continue to make more in the future. FAN ART & BLENDER | 163
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FOLLOW MARC FOR MORE AMAZING MACHINIMAS!
Funko.Marc
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Marc_ Coronado
Shadycmer
Marccore
Sims 4 machinimas
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022
BLENDER & CC EXTRAORDINAIRE
By SimSimmerly
W
e have totally redesigned our Fan Art section to make sure we include the very talented Blender creators amongst The Sims community. Blender has opened up such a huge avenue for so many – from CAS creations, to room designs to use with your Sims, as well as custom content creation. No matter what kind of Sims artist you are, we have you covered right here in SIM Magazine. Let's celebrate these talented artists together. This month, we got to interview Simsonico who we discovered on Tumblr. Simsonico’s Sims Blender art on Tumblr is primarily marked NSFW, so we must make sure that you are aware of this before you go any further! But do not let this put you off, because not everything they post is NSFW on their social media accounts. You will find SFW here, too.
Hi Simsonico, it is such a pleasure to be able to hold this interview with you. When looking through your social media accounts, we found so much beautiful content – from Blender scenes to custom content, you definitely have a new fan in us, and we will be following you closely, we might also just learn something new. Before we get into all those Sims questions running around our head, we would like to know more about you as a person outside of The Sims. Who are you when you are not 166 | FAN ART & BLENDER
creating in The Sims? What do you do for fun? Do you have any hobbies? Where are you from? Do you own any pets? And what is your favourite movie of all time? First of all, I’m really excited to be able to contribute to SIM magazine. I had honestly never heard of the magazine before, it’s been such a fun discovery! I’ve been reading some of the issues and my mind is blown by the amount of talent in this community. I’m also really glad to be able to contribute.
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Now, a little bit about myself… I’m a 24 -year-old young adult from the Netherlands. Online, I go by the name Nico. I’ve been studying graphic design for a few years now, but even before that, Photoshop has been a big hobby of mine. I also make art, both traditional and digital, mainly pencil drawings of people who have beautiful/ unique faces. Another hobby of mine is ecstatic dancing, as dancing can be quite a spiritual thing for me and I love to dance in a holistic setting. I do not currently own any pets, sadly my building doesn’t allow them, but I definitely love animals. It’s one of the reasons I became vegan about a year ago. My favorite movie of all time would have to be Stardust! I love the fantasy elements, the happy vibes I get from the movie and the special effects. We really enjoy learning about the Simmers in the community, so thank you for letting us have a little insight into who you are. Moving onto The Sims, when did you first start playing The Sims? Do you play Live Mode, and if so, what is your favourite thing to do? Have you purposefully killed any of your Sims? And who would you say is the worst and best townies in Sims 4? I first started playing The Sims when I was a preteen. One of my friends owned The Sims 1. From the very first time we played it on her mom’s computer, I was hooked. It was so much fun and everything was still so new to me then. Not soon after that, The Sims 2 came out and I immediately asked my mom to get it for me. Had tons of fun playing that game both on my own and with friends. I even made some machinima videos as a kid. Of course, I’ve drowned a few Sims in the pool out of morbid curiosity, I think everybody has, but the most fun I’ve had with the game was when me and a friend made a single mom family with twenty babies and stayed up all night watching her life descend into diaper-filled chaos. Hilarious. It’s really the only game that has stuck with me long-time. I’ve never played much with townies, always just made my own Sims and my own stories, though I definitely enjoy the mystery surrounding Bella Goth’s story.
The Sims has released so many add-ons over the years, from packs to kits. What would you say is the best and worst pack they have released so far? And if you could pick your own Sims traits, what would they be and why? Oof, you can say that again! The Sims has so many expansions that I’ve lost count of what each of them are called. However, some that stand out to me the most are definitely The Sims 2: Nightlife, The Sims 2: Apartment Life, and The Sims 2: University. I felt like these were the packs that added so much content and provided the most freedom I’ve ever seen in the Sims. I also love how wacky The Sims 2 was. Though I don’t really play the game anymore, I have a soft spot for that game. If I could pick my own Sims traits, they would be Quick Learner, Ambitious, Business-Savvy and Gregarious. Oh, and if I get to pick a bonus trait? Fast Metabolism! I just believe these traits would be super useful for me in everyday life. You make such beautiful CAS creations, we were so impressed with the amount of detail you put into them. What inspires you most when creating a Sim in CAS? And what is your favourite style to dress your Sims in? Thank you! I’m so glad people enjoy my CAS creations. I have to say, a lot of it comes down to amazing CC. I don’t have a single source of inspiration. I have a few default Sims which I use as templates to create new ones. I usually just mess with their faces until something ‘clicks’ and I’m satisfied with the way they look. I need to feel like they’re somewhat unique. When I look at them, I need to feel like they could have a personality. One of my favorite styles to dress my Sims in is fantasy clothes. I also like kawaii style and Rococo style. Sometimes, I combine a few of them. Not only do you create beautiful Sims, you are also creating custom content (CC) that we can see your Sims regularly wearing, and our readers can find this content on your Tumblr and Patreon. How long have you been creating CC? And what would you say
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SIM MAG | Issue 23 July 2022 was the most difficult part so far in CC creation? I’ve only recently started converting outfits from other games to The Sims 4. The main games I convert from are Shining Nikki and DOA, because I like their outfits the most. It took me a few months to learn how. Converting CC (and also creating CC from scratch, which I am still learning) are very time-consuming and complicated when you first start out. I had to learn about Blender, Zbrush and Marvelous Designer, some of which I had zero experience with. I would spend hours and hours watching tutorials because I was, and still am, very motivated to create/convert the CC that I couldn’t find anywhere else. Throughout the years, I managed to develop my own style, and now I feel like I am finally learning the skills to take it one step further. The most difficult part so far, in my opinion, has been Weight Paint in Blender. It still drives me crazy sometimes, and I’m still looking for ways to make the process easier. Are there any CC creators in the community who have inspired you the most? And if you could collaborate with anyone in particular, who would it be and why? Yes! Kotehoksims is one of my favorite creators. They also convert from Shining Nikki. The difference is that I convert clothes, and they convert hairstyles. I really admire their style and their eye for color matching. I’m happy to say that we’ve even done a collaboration together. Blender has opened up so many different aspects of The Sims creation for the community. How did you get into Blender creating? What was your first blend, and was this a fail or a success? What would you say the most difficult part of Blender creation has been so far? I remember seeing Sim renders for the first time and being very impressed by the shadows. I thought: “How did they get their game to look like that? Is it a reshade preset? Is it something in the settings?” Took me a while to figure out that it was Blender. Once I realized that, I did everything I could to learn how to render my 170 | FAN ART & BLENDER
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WONDERFUL NIGHT OF DOLL KINGDOM
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Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG Sims. The lighting just looks so much better than it does in game, which also means I have to do less editing. My first blend was a simple render of a Sim of mine. It wasn’t particularly groundbreaking, but I was very proud that I learned how to do it! The most difficult part of Blender creation has been how much time it takes. There are so many ways to do things, but some actions do not have shortcuts. For example, building a detailed scene can easily take a few days. You also create videos on your YouTube channel and have a few videos teaching others how to use Blender. What inspired you to help others this way? And what kind of feedback have you received since doing this? I first decided I wanted to make tutorials when I noticed that a lot of the ones on YouTube were quite difficult to understand. I realized I needed to make something that goes step by step, that clearly explains every single step and does not assume that the watcher knows anything about Blender. This is often a problem for me when I’m learning about Blender – when a tutorial has a missing step, it can take a lot of time to find a solution. This is very time consuming, so I tried to make my tutorial as clear as possible. Unfortunately, I realized that creating tutorials is also a very time consuming process. Between school, converting CC for my Patreon and learning more about Blender, I really do not have enough time to make as many tutorials as I would like. I’m happy to say though that my first tutorial has helped a lot of people get started with rendering their Sims in Blender. You also have a relatively new Instagram account. Each time we look through your posts, we are amazed again and again at your beautiful Sims. What can our readers on Instagram expect to see coming up here? Will you be sharing your CC here too, or is this limited to Tumblr and Patreon? Has the Instagram community been as supportive as the community on Tumblr? I initially created my Instagram as sort of a backup, since I was seeing a lot of posts about Simmers randomly having their Tumblr accounts removed. However, I also realize that
Instagram is a whole different platform and some people prefer it! That’s why I decided to upload links to my CC there too. Everything I create is ultimately available on Patreon. I also have a few things uploaded on Simfileshare and Mega, but recently, I decided to keep things limited to Patreon because it’s more organized. My CC is early access, which means that it will eventually be free to download for everyone. You are so supportive of others learning CC that you allow your own CC to be recoloured for personal use along with the meshes, allow them to be re-created for other Sims games and allow your CC to be uploaded to zip files, as long as you are given full credit. This was one of the many reasons we just had to interview you. Community is extremely important to us, and Simmers who support the community are what make the community so special, so we just wanted to say thank you for being such a gem. What is the best part of The Sims community for you? And how do you deal with those very few community members who come across as more toxic than supportive? Absolutely! I love seeing people create stuff, and I don’t mind them including my creations to make something even more beautiful. After all, if it wasn’t for all the amazing CC creators in the community, I never would have learned how to convert stuff in the first place. What I like most about The Sims community is that there are lots of people willing to help each other out when it comes to making things. If you have a question or need advice on creating something, there is a whole forum full of people who will help you for free! How cool is that? Personally, I haven’t had much experience with toxic members of the community, everyone’s been pretty chill. There are those who try to doxx their patrons, but I try to simply avoid those creators altogether. I believe that there are plenty of people who want to support CC creators, but that it has to be voluntary and not forced. If you could go back in time and give your younger self advice on creating Sims, builds, or Blender renders, what would it be?
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“I love seeing people create stuff, and I don’t mind them including my creations to make something even more beautiful.” Take it slow, don’t get too frustrated with yourself if it doesn’t go perfectly right away. Stick with it and try to enjoy the learning process, instead of worrying about the results. Try not to be too critical of your work and be proud of every new thing you learn. How long does it take you to create your Sims creations? And do you have any top tips you can share with our readers?
Shoutout to Kotehoksims! They’re the first person I ever did a collaboration with, and they taught me a LOT about CC conversion. They even inspired me to create a Patreon. Also, they’re just a really nice person. Lastly and before we go, how can our readers find/follow and subscribe to keep updated on your Sims and Blender creations but also download your beautiful CC creations too?
It can take hours! Sometimes days, depending on what I’m making. A render can range from simple to very complex, depending on the background, amount of Sims and whether I give them custom poses or not. My tip for readers would be to start with something small, like a render of a single Sim, and just play with the lighting. It’s the most fun learning when you’re playing.
You can find me on Tumblr, Instagram, Youtube and Patreon as Simsonico. No one is obligated to subscribe, but know that I deeply appreciate the support!
The same question again, but this time for Blender?
It’s been so fun! Thanks for interviewing me and I hope the magazine continues for a long time. I really enjoy reading about other Simmers.
Same answer really, try to experiment with it. The result does not have to be perfect, it doesn’t even have to turn out exactly like what you had in mind. A lot of the time, I just open Blender, import a Sim and start posing them randomly until I find a pose that I like. As we come to the end of this interview, is there anything we have asked you that you would like to share, or is there anyone you would like to give a shout out to?
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We just want to say thank you so much for taking time out to speak with us today, and we look forward to seeing more of your creations across social media.
-
FOLLOW SIMSONICO FOR MORE BEAUTIFUL SIMS CC & RENDERS!
BLUE ELFIN
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S�����e�i�.c�� Where fashion meets Gaming
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Adult Themes
Disclaimer: This interview, while not violating our policies, does deal with adult themes that may be disturbing or upsetting for certain readers. If you do not wish to read further please click this link and it will take you to the next section of the magazine. Whilst we predominantly showcase a lot of material suitable for all ages, we do at times have the privileged to speak to creators who do cater to the adult side of The Sims, and as such we have decided that everyone in The Sims community should be able to share their creations be they simple Sims and Builds for everyone or Major mods for adults only. We will of course place warnings on these pages via the contents page and the opening pages of those articles. Here at SIM we want to show just how beautiful and creative The Sims players and creators are and even if you do not agree with the content or the creator, everybody deserves to have a voice and you as a reader has the option to not read what is placed in front of you if you know it will offend you. We do not take responsibility for readers being offended by the content we may share, as ultimately is it always your choice to read the content presented to you or not.
On that note please let us introduce you to one of the most amazing mod creators for The Sims. Mod creator Basemental started out downloading The Sims to help design a kitchen renovation and from there a line of Sim cocaine from a downloaded mod and the man who is Basemental began to
develop. Moving forward to 2022 and there are not many simmers who haven’t at least heard of Basemental Mods, but what do we really know about them if we haven’t downloaded them? It comes back to that old adage of ‘Try Before You Buy’, and if you really are unsure about what this
mod entails then look no further as we delve deep into the world of Basemental Drugs and give you the insight into what really goes on behind the scenes. Sue Simming seized the perfect moment and grabbed the chance to hit Basemental with the questions we are all dying to know.
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Sue: Drugs is a controversial subject all around the world, but yet many of our lives depend on them. Why did you decide to create a mod about drugs and gangs? Base: Mind-altering substances has always been something that intrigues and fascinates me. I think a life simulator based around characters' moods and emotions is the perfect setting for the implementation on how various substances actually affect people in terms of use, misuse or abuse of those substances. I strive to stay neutral in terms of showing what the various drugs do, from their potential benefits to their potential harms without glorifying nor demonising any of it. I also like that it can make the game grittier and darker in a sense, which for me makes for more interesting stories that have the potential to hit home for an adult audience. Sue: Who is Basemental or do you prefer to be a mysterious faceless modder? Base: I am comfortable being mysterious and faceless... well at least metaphorically. It does sound quite uncomfortable being truly faceless. Sue: Truly faceless is a scary thought, Why did you choose the name Basemental? Base: It's really nothing more to it than me liking puns and wordplay. That's the disappointing and anticlimactic story of the name. Sue: I have always wanted to know was there any backlash in the beginning when you released this mod and how do you
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handle negative feedback you may come across today? Base: There's not been a huge amount of backlash, really. But of course there will always be someone not agreeing with you no matter what you create. Which is fine, really. I think people should be entitled to their opinions. All in all the vast majority seem to be positive about what the mod is about and enjoy the added adult-themed gameplay value and possibilities for realistic stories. I generally ignore the negative feedback unless it points towards technical aspects of the mod that could be handled better. That kind of negative feedback I appreciate and try to take to heart. Sue: As controversial as drugs may be, they do bring realism into the gameplay of those who want it, and makes for great Machinima stories to. Did you ever think your mod would be this popular? Base: Not at all. In the beginning, I just started working on it as a combination of trying to create something I personally think would be interesting and for my own enjoyment of learning new things. Once I released it I had no idea how it would be received. I am ridiculously grateful that so many people enjoy it and view it as an integral part of their gameplay now, though. Like.. beyond grateful. Sue: I think the dream for everyone is to have unlimited money so we can do and create the things we want to. If you had enough time, resources and/or skill what mod would you create? Base: I have a bunch of ideas that I am not willing to share, in case I do find the time to
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make them, but I could mention one that I am pretty sure I won't have time to create... A proper tattoo artist mod with custom venues, objects, skills, animations which is linked to the tattoos you can apply in-game so your Sims could go to the tattoo artist, choose one of the CAS tattoos available by talking to the tattoo artist, actually sit down in the chair and watch the tattoo artist create the tattoos. I think that would be a cool addition to the game. Sue: I think a tattoo studio we could visit and watch our Sims get tattoos would be a brilliant idea for a mod, we even feature the amazing Tattoo Artist Crys in this months edition to! Have you created mods for any games other than The Sims? Base: I have not. It is just a really strange one-in-a-million type coincidence that I stumbled over TS4 and mods and decided to try my hand at it without any actual prior programming or modding experience. It really changed my life for the better in so many ways though, which sounds a bit cheesy. But it's true. Sue: It is always great to hear when creators tell us how The Sims have improved their lives be it from playing or modding, and one of the reasons I love this community so
much, there is always more to discover with The Sims and on that note what future plans do you have for this mod, can we get any sneak peeks? Base: There's so much I want to add to the mod that the to-do list is never getting any shorter. The ideas just pile on. I really enjoy adding stuff that brings more gameplay value and makes everything seem a bit more realistic. One of the things that I am hoping to add this year, as it's been on the to-do list for a long time, is like an AA / NA type of feature for recovering addicts. That could open up for a bunch of additional gameplay and stories. Sue: We are dying to know what kind of Sims player are you? Base: The kind of player that never has time to play the game but rather opens it up briefly about 50 times a day to try out new features I'm working on. Sue: You must have a million things going on at once all the time. How difficult is it really to create a mod for The Sims 4? Base: It all boils down to experience and how accustomed you are to creating TS4 mods. When starting out
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it can be a bit overwhelming if you have no prior experience with any type of markup or programming language. But as soon as you get accustomed to the programs, syntax and whatnot it is not really that hard. The question is hard to answer, though, as it really depends on the size of the mod and various other factors. Creating a small tuning mod that just overwrites and alters some buffs or interactions is not hard to do at all without any prior experience, whereas larger more complicated mods obviously require way more experience and more time invested. Sue: Patch Day is doomsday in the mod community most of the time, how much time goes into updating and fixing mods? Base: Like, if we put patch day aside for a moment and briefly touch in on updating and fixing mods without them being broken by patches - That is a subject that varies greatly from creator to creator. Some creators unfortunately just churn out new features on top of bug-ridden old features constantly. It may look more impressive in the change logs that they constantly add new features, but eventually, those large mods turn into somewhat of a chaotic mess. Personally, I try to balance that out by collecting bug reports through my Discord server so I can fix minor bugs while releasing new features, and every once in a while I release a version containing nothing but bug fixes and improvements to old functionality. Now, for those dreaded patch days... It is honestly not that bad I think. I know a lot of players hate it and don't really understand why the devs are doing it. The
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fact that they change syntax is generally not a bad thing as it means they are improving or adding more functionality to the game. And from the years I've been working on this it has never taken me more than a maximum of a couple of days (usually it is more like a few hours) to adapt to the patches and repair what broke. And that is with two quite large mods. My only wish is that the player base would be more careful around patch days and not open their games with all mods in and overwrite their saves if they see something that is obviously wrong in their game. Sue: What is the funniest thing that ever happened while testing this mod? Base: It's really hard to think of a specific scenario that was so unexpected that it made me chuckle as you test things while developing and almost constantly expect the unexpected. I always crack up when testing out the ridiculous features of the April fools pranks though, but mostly because they are so stupid in terms of mod ideas. Sue: With The Sims constantly updating as well as trying to keep up with everything you do behind the scenes, you must have help to keep on top of things? As our team know its good to have people you can bounce off of. How big is the Basemental team and do you see it growing in the future? Base: In terms of the actual mod it's just me at the core of it. I come up with the ideas, work on the tuning and scripts, do my own graphics for icons, and other
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
BASEMENTAL ALCOHOL Released: Feb 23 2022
Turns juice into functional alcohol
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various 2D imagery, plus the design and handling of the website and various platforms. I know my limitations and shortcomings, however -which in terms of modding is 3D modelling and animations. That is why I've always tried to outsource those specific aspects so I can get the standards for animations and 3D models on par with my vision for the mod. Mike24 has done more or less all the animations for the mod whereas I've worked on the postprocessing on them, like for instance adding in cigarettes with smoke FX and making sure that it all works in-game. For 3D models, there's been a number of people helping out with objects since the early days of the mod, the last year or so Ravasheen has been my go-to gal for 3D models as she has really perfected that Maxis Match style. Other people worth mentioning that have helped out with 3D models are Luumia, niceypooh, ebonixsims and a3ru. Now as for the Discord server there is definitely more of a team, where I am allowed to take the backseat due to the truly amazing and awesome people helping me out over there. They do a fantastic job providing support for my mods and moderating the server which enables me to focus more on actual work than spend all day helping people out with installation problems. Kuttoe, Shino Nox, Keke and Ukui has been with me for years and every decision made on the server is only implemented if the five of us agree on it. There are 7 more people on the support team and they are all amazing. So a huge shoutout and an infinite amount of love to Leroi, mangoninja, smokey quartz, Cidira, TSVigne, 0xTrace and SCarverOrne. I should also probably mention that the Discord server is the go-to place for whatever support issues you have with my mods. It is
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also a fun place to hang out with some sporadic contests and whatnot. Sue: What are some of your favorite features in this mod? Base: Basically everything that adds additional gameplay value and provides players with more stories. I am quite pleased with the new Reactions system I recently implemented where you can decide how specific Sims reacts towards friends and family's relation to various drugs. The dealing aspect of the mod is also something I am happy with as there is a lot to it in terms of gameplay, and worst-case scenario you can get busted and get life in prison, which translates to Game Over for that Sim. I really love the tension that underlying risk provides. And the prison system as a whole with stories unfolding off-screen while the Sim is incarcerated. Sue: Is there another modder that you admire and what is the one mod you can’t play without? Base: There are so many modders I do admire. The first that springs to mind is the late Scumbumbo. That guy was what everyone should aspire to be in my opinion. He had a wealth of knowledge, but always had time to help out. Just a great guy all around that is sorely missed. Other than that I have great admiration for TURBODRIVER and Nisa K, they are fantastic programmers, and lovely people. There's a lot of other talented people I admire on some level that needs mentioning as well, whether for their mods or creating programs contributing to the community. Andrew from S4S,
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Deaderpool, Twisted Mexi, frankk, lot51, thepancake, Ravasheen, PandaSama... there's a boatload of talented people that deserves some recognition and I am 100% certain that this list would be way too long if I kept on namedropping people. Sue: What advice to do you have for anyone who’d like to try their hand at modding? Base: Stop procrastinating, just start doing it. Don't go into it with a way too ambitious plan to begin with, just play around and try your hand at it and learn as you go along. You will meet an obstacle sooner rather than later. Overcome that obstacle and work your way towards the next obstacle. Keep on doing it and the time between obstacles will eventually be farther and farther apart.
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Just for fun
Guess The CAS This months CAS was originally created by Crislyred Re-Created by 0089xx Find them on the gallery.
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Learn Simlish Paba/Pain Ah, Docka Morpher/Hey, I know what you mean Ah, Gwanda Blitz/Hey, great idea Burbin Nerbss Gerbit/Llama Nicloske Ga Gloope/I would like a taxi to come pick me up Ravasheen!/Ooh, I look smoking hottie in this! GeelFrob/See you soon, Dustin Aey Ball/Bend and stretch now Neeshga! Neeshga!/No, No! Depwa Spanewash Depla Blah, Depla Blah/You! yes you! Go away
Ahhh Molombia/This one I don't know Find a list of Simlish/English words on our website Just for Fun | 191
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June Issue 22 Answers
Did you find all ten last month?
Did you Guess The CAS? Answer:
Morgan Freeman EA ID:
Kanelos7221 Just for Fun | 193
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196 | CC Finds
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Cancer Celebs
Forest Whitaker July 15th 1961
June 21-July 22 It’s all about zoning in on the things that keep you going to help bring focus, as concentration has been a little off the mark of late. A kaleidoscope of colour and imagery as well as reading between the lines, helps to put your own spin on the way you see things.
LOVE Liv Tyler July 1st 1977
Love has not been as strong
200 | SimScopes with Rev Sandie Woolford
or your focal point of call but if you peruse your dreams with love in mind a smoother road ahead will open up to you. Remember to speak your truth.
LUCK Luck, as seen or heard is at times what you make it but, 13, 21 and 23 will show progression , strength and help you to keep looking forward.
Issue 23 July 2022 | SIM MAG
May 21 - June 20
July 23 - August 22
August 23 - September 22
It is not good to be frazzled yet the electricity you feel toward another grows, step forward into a new light and don’t overcompensate with your ego as the stars are watching and shining your path to a focal point.
Now is the time to make your mind up as an explosion of emotion takes you on a new journey that only you can make a decision on. Support is vital from a trusted friend now to help clarify your feelings.
Do you feel overstretched? You wanted a challenge but pull back the reins and tread carefully as now is the time to take care of your health so look after yourself.
September 23 - October 22
October 23 - November 21
November 22 - December 21
It never rains when it pours, fresh air, trees and nature are needed to find your balance and bring your spiritual into balance, get those feet in the sea of life as now is the time to be grounded and accumulate your strength for wellbeing.
Find your strength and leave your weakness behind, there is no negative tale to tell, listen to your heart and bring the love of music into your soul as balance is now ready to open a new door to success
Whether you are into flowers or are feeling flamboyant about life the sweet smell of change is knocking at the door so go with your gut feelings and don’t let your heart overrule your head and all will be clear
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December 22 - January 19
January 20 - February 18
February 19 - March 20
Wear your badge of excellence with pride purple is your colour this time round a positive attitude and a positive mind rubber stamps your next move as the key to change is definitely being heard.
You may be the water sign but it doesn’t mean you have to drown your sorrows, learn from this mistake and you will be stronger than ever with your next move and decision that needs to be made, it’s a Groovy Kind of Love bringing you satisfaction
Go with the flow as the mesmerisation of another catches your eye. Both feet on the ground and dig your heels in with caution time to meet another half way as sharing is caring for the better and for peace of mind.
March 21 - April 19
April 20 - May 20
Time is now on your side as the alignment of planets brings serenity to a troubled mind. The fog has cleared and the sun is shining to open new doors on a progressive work front. Be kind to yourself and peace will prevail.
The all-seeing eye of movement and change is strong this month, look at how you have grown as vivid dreams at times feel like reality, now is the time for action as you turn a new corner.
Sandie Woolford We are pleased to announce the Rev Sandie Woolford with many years experience in the spiritual world, she will be bringing your predictions each month right here in our EXCLUSIVE
SimScopes.
Welcome to the team Sandie.
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Congratulations to Dawn15m whose PopUp Wedding Venue was not only stunning, but kept to all our rules for the SUPShellJune22 challenge. Dawn15m is the Third winner to achieve a spot on our leaderboard which you can find on our website along with the winning entries details. All leaderboard winners have the chance to win a cash prize at the end of the year. The next SUPShell challenge is
#SUPShellJuly22 Now open for all to enter and closes on the 25th July. GoodLuck
Supinmedia.com
204 | and the winner is
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and the winner is | 205
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Behind Th
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This Could Be You!
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he Scenes
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w you could of our Team rs too? a our website nmedia.com
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