• 01-16-24: Added Russian translation, thank you Sonya Kas!
Have you ever wanted to have a world set in the 1950s but the modern TV channels ruin the immersion? Well, no more! In December 2022 I started working on a personal project which was to create my own TV channels and put them in Sims 3, and it's finally done!
I've created all the videos in The Sims 2 to keep the spirit of the default channels, and also because it's much easier for me to create stories in Sims 2. All videos are based on real footage I watched from the era to make them as accurate as I could. Though even with custom content I was limited when it came to hairstyles and clothes. Hopefully it still looks great!
Mod description:
This is a mod that replaces ALL default channels with my 50s versions of them. Since shopping channels didn't exist in the 50s, I took the liberty to turn it into a game show channel instead.
All channels function the same as their default counterparts EXCEPT for the Weather channel. You can watch it but you won't get the pop-up where it shows you the forecast... I haven't figured out how to make it work and it was the best I could do. Luckily, sims can still check the newspaper for the weather forecast, which isn't unrealistic for the 50s anyway.
Note: There is a grain effect on the videos but YouTube just eats it. No, seriously. You can't see it and it makes my videos look lower quality than they actually are. It looks better in-game, I promise. XD
Description: "Rose Rane from the Daily World has found a secret artifact and asks her friend and coworker, Calvin Owens, to cover for her while she leaves to investigate further, in which time she gets kidnapped. As Llamar Lent (Superllama) arrives to work late and learns of Miss Rane's disappearance, he has a feeling his archenemy Cowman may have something to do with it. Without hesitation, Superllama flies to the rescue."
Note: It's actually one video I split into two parts to avoid it being too long (in sim time), and so sometimes your sims will catch the middle/end of the episode when they turn on this channel. It's realistic and I like it. Also, there is so much more lore attached to Adventures of Superllama because I got really invested in the story and particularly in Calvin who is secretly Cowman. It's the only channel where I really had to create a storyline so to speak, and it truly has a special place in my heart.
Description: "Miss Stephen, a thief on the run, and Mr. Roberts, the hotel's bellman, are having quite the conversation when an old lady finds them amidst the partygoers. Before going back to her hotel room, Stephen kisses Roberts goodnight."
Description: "Fanny Crodack is one of the best chefs around SimNation, and she's very passionate about her craft. In this segment, she'll show you some of her recipes that you can cook for your family!"
Description: "It's a somber night when Mina ponders about recent events and scary rumors of a certain Count Vlad forcing other sims to join his vampire cult in his castle. It was only seconds later that she would come face to face with her biggest fear. After her husband and his old friend find her unconscious, they decide to put an end to Vlad's terror once and for all."
Note: Just like my Action channel, it's one video that I split into two parts so your sims will sometimes catch the middle/end of the episode.
Description: "A young couple recently moved into their first house together and are eager to start their very first garden. While their neighbor tries to sabotage them with poor advice, the couple continues to work on their garden and will soon be pleased to see all their efforts have paid off!"
Description: "Champs Les Sims historian François Lambert tells the tale of Admiral Landgraab's life and death in this immersive documentary. Though rumors circulated after the airing of the documentary that François had been pressured not to reveal all that really happened in the Admiral's life, the historian was, at the time, bound to a contract with The Landgraab Corporation, and the Landgraabs wanted to keep those bothersome details buried. Maybe the truth still resides somewhere in Champs Les Sims?"
Note: I added a lot of lore in that one because I can. It ties in directly with the World Adventures pack so your sims can go in Champs Les Sims and eventually find out how inaccurate that documentary actually is. I like to think the Landgraabs would purposely hide this information from the public to preserve their image, especially in the 50s!
Description: "James Thomas, TV host and retired fishing guide instructor, shows you the proper way of fishing as well as giving you all the tips you need to catch your rarest fish yet!"
Description: "In this episode of What's My Job?, we meet again with our panelists - famous actors and actresses seen on other channels - to try and guess the job of a most peculiar guest named Theo Klein, who also happens to be a close friend of our host, Mr. Chris. Each wrong answer from the panelists wins our guest an additional five simoleons. But will they realize Mr. Klein's a Snake Charmer before he reaches the maximum amount of money (§50)? Watch to find out!"
Note: Since this was the last video I made, I wanted to end it with a bang by reuniting a few sims from the Action, Romance and Horror channels. The guest and the host are my close friend and I's sims, respectively. He was so supportive while I was working on this project and it was so fun to include him in it, and I also loved including sims that I've grown attached to through all the scripting, recording and editing of the other channels!
Description: "Armed with his chalk, David Gorraway excitedly gives you the weather forecast. He speaks so fast that you might miss what he said and decide to just read the newspaper to get the forecast instead. It's okay, we don't blame you."
Installation:
Extract the .zip file and place the package into your Overrides folder.
When adding or removing my mod, you should delete your cache in Documents/Electronic Arts/The Sims 3, to make sure the channels show up properly:
If any TV was turned on in-game when you added or removed the mod, the TV won't be selectable anymore. You can just clone the TV and sell the old one if that happens. Another option is to turn off the TV, save, then relaunch the game.
Known Issues:
The videos have a lower framerate in-game than they do originally. I haven't figured out a solution to this, but if I ever do, I'll update my mod accordingly.
Depending on which TV you watch the channels on, the videos will be stretched, particularly on big TVs. It's unavoidable so I decided to prioritize small TVs since it is, after all, the 1950s.
The Weather channel doesn't give you a pop-up window with the forecast. I haven't found a way to replace the Weather channel in a way that's functional. My only two options were to keep my own Weather channel, or put back the default one which, while functional, feels jarring in the midst of all the 50s channels. So I chose the first option since you can still check the weather forecast by using the newspaper anyway.
Conflicts:
This mod will conflict with any other mod that changes the TV.xml file as well as any mod that adds/replaces TV channels.
Compatibility:
This mod is base game compatible and should work with any game version.
You can download the STBL files and translate the TV channels' names in your language if you wish and then send the file back to me so I can update the mod and credit you.
Happy Simming!
Additional Credits:
NileBlue for their tutorial!
Made using s3pe, VirtualDub, Generic Stream Creator, VP6 Converter, and Easy STBL Manager.
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1950s TV Channels (Default Replacement)
1950s TV Channels (Default Replacement)
