The Sim Bouncer - a trampoline for fun and body skill

I don't know about your Sims, but most of mine like to stay fit. Problem is, not all of them like to push weights on a bench press, and others think that going jogging or running on a treadmill is mind-numbingly boring. (I've tried to tell them that I used to find running quite meditative, back when I could still run, but they just scoff and say that "if I wanted meditative, I would meditate!" and they may have a point there.) Of course, for Sim kids the options are even more limited. So what's a Sim to do if he wants to increase his body skill without being bored out of his pixel skull?

Why, get a trampoline, of course! Such as...


The Sim Bouncer

With this animated one-tile trampoline, your Sims will gain body skill and have fun at the same time - and of course they'll also get fitter through the experience. If you have Free Time, they'll gain Fitness enthusiasm as well. If that isn't a win-win situation, I don't know what is.

Before they start bouncing, your Sims will automatically change into athletic wear, and when they’re finished, they’ll change back into everyday clothes. Sims with low body skill will just jump up and down, but once a Sim has three body skill points, they'll be also able to do back flips.

And once Sims are skilled enough to do flips, they're also skilled enough to teach other Sims how to do it and can offer lessons to Sims with less body skill! All Sims can teach - even children. Because if the child in the family is the best bouncer, to me it only makes sense that he or she should be able to teach Sims who aren't as good at it.

If your Sims are the kind who like to watch other Sims work but not quite as keen on doing the work themselves, they can instead look on and cheer when another Sim is bouncing. The watching Sim won’t gain any body skill or enthusiasm since they aren’t actually doing anything, but at least they'll have fun and be social.

Sims can and will use the Sim Bouncer autonomously, but not until they are feeling a bit blue (or yellow, rather) and are looking for something fun to do; then they'll be about as prone to use the trampoline as they are to play video games. The trampoline can be used outdoors as well as indoors, and it's also available on community lots in case you want some trampolines in your community gym. (If you are setting up a community gym, I really, really recommend getting the Community Lot Skilling and Enthusiasm mod from MATY if you don't have it already, so your Sims will actually have some body skill to show for all their hard work.)

If you have Seasons, Sims will not get warm when using this trampoline. This is by design; I want kids and adults alike to be able to use it with impunity, and I also don't want your poor Sim parents to risk having their little Simlet get whisked away by the Social Worker just because the kid decided to sneak off and do some bouncing when they weren't looking. (Of course, if your Sims are trampolining outside in the middle of summer and you don't have Mootilda's Constant Temperature for All Sims mod, they can get heatstroke anyway - but then it will be from being too long in the sun, not from excessive trampolining.)

Also, to me, this is primarily a fun activity, that just happens to have fitness as a nice bonus. Therefore, unlike other exercise equipment, it favours playful Sims, so it's playful Sims and not active ones who get the personality bonus of slightly faster skill building.


Known Issues

When children have stopped bouncing and are sitting down, as they prepare to get up from the trampoline their hands will dip into the frame for a second. I can't fix this, but it literally is only for a second; then the child places their hands properly on the frame.

If you place this trampoline next to a wall, the frame clips into the wall a little - but then why would you place a trampoline next to a wall? (Seems dangerous to me...) But if I had made it small enough that the frame didn't clip, it would have looked just plain silly, not to mention too small to be believable, so if you insist on having a wall right next to the trampoline I recommend you use snapobjectstogrid false or the M&G quartertile cheat to move the trampoline a smidgen farther away from the wall if you feel you can't live with the clipping.

Also, this object has just over 1,200 polys, which might be a bit high for some, but it really needs to be a bit high in poly to look good and function well. (As comparison, the Exerto Multipress is more than 1,600 polys/tile and all basegame living chairs except one are 1,280+ polys, so the poly count isn't excessive in any way.) Still, if you're on a slow computer you may want to limit the number of trampolines on your lot.

This object is base-game compatible, unless you have the Kitchen & Bath SP. Then, and only then, Free Time is required.

If you don't have K&B, Free Time is not required.


Polygon Counts:
1216 polys, 1295 vertices

Additional Credits:
This item was made using Blender, Milkshape, UV Mapper Pro and Photoshop 7.0.

Many thanks to my intrepid testers over at leefish.nl - u rock!

You'll find the Sim Bouncer under Hobbies -> Exercise for the price of 95 Simoleons.

Have fun, and happy simming!