Simsala Island is my work in very slow progress.

It looks quite nice!
I'm sure this will be appreciated by any simmers (is that what we call ourselves?) looking for a little bit of everything.

One thing that I personally would nod you towards is the dark rock terrain paint. Don't get me wrong, it's fine as it is, but adding a matching terrain paint to blend it with would make the dark rock seem less tiling. I'm pretty sure that can be overlooked by most people, but it'd be more pleasing for the eyes. I'm not sure if you're into using more rather than less terrain paint or if you're already using a lot of terrain painting, but if possible, you should try it.

I was going to say that I'm not entirely sure about the China bridges in the town area and point you towards using the Riverview bridge objects, since they tend to fit in better in urban areas, but that'd make the world require CC, and will also require some rework. The China bridges also does a good job of blending the two differently textured roads together, too, so I don't know, it's just me being detail inclined and eager to experiment. If you're after the arched look of the bridge, I can understand that too; it gives a neat look to the area.

I highly encourage you to aim for finishing the world; it is pretty easy to give up sometimes!

Thank you very much Prismatic!
Yes, the rock texture is dark, and I'm really fond of it, but you are absolutely right, it needs to be mixed up with something in some areas. There is room for more textures so it will be done.
The bridge ... I actually started with Riverview bridge, but abandoned it for the Chinese bridge. It looked older (city center over the bridge is the oldest part of Simsala Island) and it fit so well in size.
Thanks for the encouragement !!

Hello again!
Well, I'm working on. After having gone round all over the map and made a little here and a little there, I'm trying now to work through the map systematically chunk by chunk.
1. Sculpting,
2. Roads (textures and position),
3. Painting,
4. Location of lots,
5. Object,
6. Routing,
7. Effects
Made 4 of 64 chunk ... (will not be ready for Christmas) But I have in any case a clear picture of how everything should look and is half finished almost everywhere ... except in one chunk. I have no idea what to do with this area. The area feels unnecessary.
Would you please look at the pictures below of the area and say if you come to any good idea!

Your volcano thing certainly do look... interesting. Which can be both positive and negative, depending on how it's pulled off. I'll have to admit though, it does have this odd, interesting touch to it. Consider using more rocks (game objects) for the shores and cliffsides, it usually helps shaping the world when in doubt of what to do.

Did you have any plans in mind for the area pictured when you made it? For me, it looks like it's a transition between the supernatural and the more normal part of the world. Could a Simhenge (if you don't feel like it's overused and hasn't been placed somewhere else) fit in? Maybe some other kind of semi-ritualistic place? Or as a last resort kind of thing, try filling it with rocks and trees, although you might want to skip the volcano crater in that case.

Other than that, it looks pretty fine to me. Don't forget to blend the terrain paint properly whenever you make harsh transitions (alternatively using game objects as an excuse, such as rocks and walls), otherwise it could end up looking pretty weird.
Also, don't forget to connect the roads properly (@ screenshot 47), just a heads up if you didn't notice it.

Edit: One thing that popped up in my mind when looking at the area was how it reminded me of the game The Secret World and one of its towns Kingsmouth's shorelines. I'll go see if I can find an image to show you.

Edit2: Had to fire up the game myself, because sadly it is darn hard to find good screenshots of it. Some pictures that might help you out with some ideas right here, here and here.

Thank you so much Prismatic, for advice and pictures.
The pictures show a darker world... maybe l do a little darker and less hospitable part of Simsala Island there. I have some chunk to do before l have to do the vulcano area ... So l have time to think...

Yeah, you don't necessarily have to make it -that- dark, however the terrain features are quite neat. Take your time, and don't be afraid to experiment!

I'm still working on this world and it goes slowly forward.
I had problems with the depth of the sea, it was not enough for diving and the kraken.
Fortunately, I had a little extra room of my 200 above the highest mountain peak and managed using Photoshop to move the entire map up.
Currently I am working with the area described in the previous post. Adding an image on the nearby beach area.

That is some realistical terrain painting there. Pros to you! I'll be very pleased to see the end result.

I agree, nice combination of textures! It looks really good

Thanks so much mixa97sr and Nilxis !!

The first entry in the thread is now updated, text and image.
I will update once a month.
I have now weather, sea and sky !!

Wow, this is looking great! I would love to play it when you're finished. I especially like the 'craftered' area with the houses in it, uber cool. Is that a castle I see up there? I'd love to see a closer pic of it. The pathway on the mountain with the benches is awesome too. Mostly, I like the overall feel. The shape is interesting. You are more than welcome to use any of my homes in your world. Some of my houses have CC windows (and if you wanted to use any with the windows, you can replace the windows if you like), but otherwise I don't use CC. You could use my sims too if you like. I only use face CC, and you can take that off. I wouldn't mind you 'fantasizing' them either. Just an offer. I make modern homes, and it looks like that would fit in at least part of your island if you wanted.

Thank you very much Simsgal2227!
The castle is very unfinished, but as soon as I got it so I'm not ashamed of it, I'll post pictures of it.
I'm very happy that you let me use your buildings! I'll look through them more carefully. I have already seen a small wonderful houseboat!

Of course! I own all the EP's, so sometimes there may be something that is from an EP that you aren't including in your world. Feel free to replace items if it's an object from an EP that won't be in your world. I know for the houseboat in particular, I have a plumbot charging station, and obviously that not there isn't a big deal. I think that most things in the boat are from ep's in your world.

Also, I'm not sure how you're doing all lots exactly, but I think it would be cool for you to add lots of empty lots. The more lots the better, even small ones in weird places. I often add as many lots as I can to a world, and I know that not everyone does that, but sometimes it can be difficult to place lots. An area that looks basically smooth may not be smooth enough to place a lot. Even just a small lot if it fits. If someone downloads the world and doesn't want that many lots, they can always delete them.

That's exactly my thought also! It has 44 empty lots. and I have rooms for more! But I thought that it wouldn't have more than 200 lots. But it is so hard to limited!
I have a list of empty lots on my first post in the thread. Too many? What about the size of them? Too many large lots? And they are not completely empty, some trees and plants. Like in the image below in this post.

Simsgal2227,I love this lot island of your "Modern Island Home" I placed it in my world. Looks great ! Thank you!

It looks like your lots aren't being placed aligned with the grid. So they line up nicely against roads/sidewalks, I would suggest turning on the grid and rotating it as needed so you can place lots flush against roads. Also, for better performance, I think the recommended maximum lot amount is around 150 lots.

Thank you for your advice heaven ! I will have to think abot the number of lots.
Most off my pictures shows areas that is not completed (I do use the grid). ... But if you are thinking about the picture in the post ... you are absolutely right! This is how it should look like! :D

I like the update of the empty lot sizes! And so glad you used one of my houses, I think it works great for your world!

Here is some feedback:

-I love that you have 3 64X64 and one 60X60 empty lot! I definitely don't think that is too much. I love adding mansions to worlds. They're quite necessary for rich sims.
-I don't think you need quite as many 50X50 lots though. Maybe one 50X40 lot? (long way on the road)
-Perhaps it would be best to have houses on the odd lot sizes, the ones that are not standard (like 45X40). A lot of people like to place lots, and it's difficult to find a lot that fits that perfectly. Instead you could make houses there, or switch the lot size to a standard one (40X40 or whatever).

-Not sure if you have starter houses yet, but I was using a world a little bit with a starter home area, with a central pool, small garden, and a dozen or so small, 10X10 starter homes. It is great to consolidate starter homes in my opinion, depending on what kind of room you have for that at the moment.
-the only main ep that you don't have required is showtime. Of course that's fine, but I think it would be great if you had some empty lots in the town area (assuming there is a town area) for showtime lots if people have that ep. I could let you know what all the showtime lots are if you don't have it.
-I'd love to see an updated overview of the island so I could see if I could give any other ideas.

Also, I'd love to build a home on one of the non-flat terrain lots. I've not done it much, and I think it would be fun. Perhaps I could get a beta of it to make one?

Much better! Lots not aligned to the grid drive me nuts (EA doesn't always do it either). There's one in IP that is next to the road but back just a smidge from it so there's a patch of grass between the road and where I drew out my driveway.

Sorry that it takes some time before I answer. I really, really appreciate the comments given to me :lovestruc ! ... but it is hell for me to write in English! I am such a bad speller !... even trouble spelling in Swedish, my native language !

I will be releasing a beta (or more of a simple trial version) but it will take a few months before I feel ready to do that. I want to have all the routing, sculpting and texturing done before that. Will be finished by the end of March if nothing else goes wrong. I'll also try to get a map overview. I think there is suitably room for all sorts of lots.

About roads ... I have a couple of roads that are curved, where I will to do the best I can from it. Which is to ensure that a part of the lot is straight next to the road ( preferring the part where the driveway is ) and that they do not overlap ... and color the roadside to match the road.

I think curved roads are okay as long as, like you said, a part of the lot are flush against the road. I've done that with a couple of the lots in Greymont Bay. (PS - I wouldn't worry about your English, I understand you just fine!)

Just want to say that everything goes according to plan.
Amuse myself by building some houses.
It seems that all major issues are resolved ... see what comes up at the first test version April 1.

I absoloutely love the results you are swoing on this world. It is like a great mix of every possible style, and yet it works so well.
It reminds me a lot of "The Witness", a game that recently came out, because it has so many different areas that are very distincted from each other but still integrated well enough for the whole structure to work. And both the areas of the game and your areas are extremely vibrant. I loooove it!

PS: I also love the story of the Island.

Thank you very much for your encouraging words mixa97! It feels good!
I have had the flu and now have piles of work ahead of me. so I'm a little, little behind schedule.
And when I ought to be checking up on routing, texturing and sculpting, I find myself doing new things instead. like this, a small island in the sky...

I also want to add something like this in my world. I didn't know if floating islands would look good in CAW, but yours looks beautiful