"Pools are coming in the next [Sims 4] update," longtime franchise producer Ryan Vaughan tells me as I settle into a comfortable seat in the swanky hotel where EA is holding their annual NYC event, "And yes, you can make your Sim drown in them."
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The statement was a bit surprising and seemed to come out of nowhere. I hadn't fostered any ill feelings towards the Sim on screen- had barely gotten to know him at all, really. In fact, I had just been admiring his stylish look, Darth Vader wearing sandals, costume provided by the new free Star Wars content added to the game.
But he had to die.
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Pools are new to The Sims 4, and they're coming next month as a free update. The game didn't launch with pools and there was a bit of an outcry over it, although the official explanation was that they were trying to get the game fully working before adding additional features. They're nearly here.
During the event they demoed a new build of the game with the pool update installed. We were shown the easy new customization system, which allows you to create characters just by tugging at various body parts of theirs, as well as the new Star Wars outfits. They're quite proud of these, which allowed the three characters to don Darth Vader, Leia and Yoda outfits, the kid looking pretty cute with her little Yoda mask and giant green feet.
We were shown a nice house on a beautiful sunny day, a happy day without a hint of murder in the air. They were about to get a new addition to their home, however.
The pools are just as easy to create as the buildings. You pick a shape and drop it into the world, and you can expand it to whatever design you want, even changing the depth of the pool from “pretty deep” to “I hope there aren't any sea creatures living in here” as you please.
Vaughan started us out with a rectangular pool and added an octagonal piece to the end to spice up the look. He sent his Sims family into the pool, where they waded and splashed happily in their new swimsuits, a new (and, as with everything else, completely customizable) addition to the game. We were shown how the Sims could sit on the edge of the pool- a series first- and even pee into the pool if they so chose. All signs pointed to a wonderful time, but nefarious plans were afoot.
Vaughan carved out a little square pool a little bit away and put our Vader cosplayer in there before building four walls around him. He was trapped. Now- the wait. He would take a while to get exhausted and drown but thankfully a quick tweak of the developer’s mode and our poor hapless Sim was struggling to stay above the water, and soon he was no more. A little urn with ashes appeared near the walled-off pool, and his family members were sent to cry and grieve over it and lament hiring H.H. Holmes as their designer.
When I mentioned how nice it was to add the possibility of drowning to appeal to the more sadistic gamers, Vaughan laughed. It’s not their intention to tell gamers how to play, just to provide options for every single way you could ever want to. Even if that includes wet, cold-blooded murder.
That also includes the supernatural, something that’s always been a part of the series. Playable ghosts are new to Sims 4, however. You can summon them and they’ll appear and be able to interact with the characters and environment, letting you reenact all your favorite Poltergeist moments. Sims that die in a fire will return burnt to a crisp and can set fires in the house when they get angry, and Sims that are electrocuted can jump into electrical appliances, much like the Electric Gremlin. Our poor Darth Vader wannabe dripped water all over the place and made a puddle on the floor as he talked to his own widow.
But all of this is just the beginning. The Sims 4 will get pools next month but there's much more content on the way, including a free update that will give you more career options for your characters in December.
Just remember to practice pool safety, kids.
