I hope that they don't cater to just 2010's PCs.

So I take it you don't play with custom content?

I have no idea why you say that? I had CC in 1. I had over 40000 items for 2 and I have never counted 3, but have probably more than that, and I have tons for 4. CC will not change the fact that the Para look like cartoons and the environment is in a totally different more realistic style.

I do see why some ppl might feel it. But if they matched the surrounding background and object tone, they be too cartoony I think.

IMO it is the Para that need to change and not the background. I like the background/ environment from what I have seen. I do not like the Para at all. And so far have zero interest in playing them. I have played all Sims versions as liked the Sims. If I do not like the characters I have no interest in playing a game.

And I do not need/want Paralives just as a building game. There are a zillion apps/programs where we can do that.

Oh sure, everything can be modded... but the artstyle is responsible for the entire feel of the game. If I don't like how it looks, I may as well save my money and buy a game I do like the look of.



I don't think the Paras match the background, and the interiors are okay but the exteriors a little too Sims 4 for me- soft focus and Disney cute.

From what I understand the game will be heavily moddable, so maybe it's possible to mod out the para art style.

Yes, the red nose tumblr style of illustration is off-putting for me.

Bug Alert!
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1y7kDKyoIvQ

Those bugs make me feel right at home as TS3 player. Can't wait for the 'OMG WTF ARE YOU DOING!!' Paralives version

I think the paras look awful. I’m just hoping they improve or simply change completely.

That AI program that transforms photos of sims into real people, didn't do a very good job with the paras... something amorphous came out. That tells me they still have to work on those faces.

LOL I think that is backwards. I do stuff like that also.

IMO get the game out and do some of these extra bells and whistles later. Back burner that. I have said too many times, focus on the basics and not overkill some of the stuff they are doing and just get the game done. They can add things later. If something has to be done to accommodate something do the prep as needed, but forget the gimmicks for while.

???

With all the discussion about the new EA app and possible multiplayer options in TS5, I really hope that with Paralives, no one will be asking me to install some app other than the game. Although I may not be as averse to that when it comes to a small company compared to EA (No, it's just surprise mechanics! Yes, your data is safe with us, trust us! Here is the next survey and your monthly playtime! No we're not monitoring everything you do in the game, what makes you think that?).

I don't mind the art style at all. Regarding customization and CC, it's not like they're literally 2D models thereby making them impossible or difficult to change. In the past, they've stated the stencils/outline and blush on the characters can be easily removed or turned down for example. I dunno how they will look without their stencils, but I imagine they'll look like any other 3D character. I don't think all the shadows are draw on so that shouldn't be an issue either.

I play games not for the visuals, but its features . The paras could look like poo and I'd still love the game. Not only that, they're making the game with modding in mind so if I did want to change them (which I currently don't), that would probably be easy as well.

That said, if the style doesn't appeal to you, you really don't have to force yourself to like it. I'm sure some objects and the paras themselves will be cleaned up and adjusted as time goes on, but this is generally the look they're going for so I don't think it will change drastically by the time it is released. At most, they'll probably strike a better balance with their objects vs their paras while still making sure paras aren't just blending in and disappearing into the backdrop.

I find that rather pathetic if they would worry about their Para blending into the background if they use a consistent style in the game. That does not say much about how interesting the Para would be? EA sure has never had a problem with using a uniform art style in their 4 Sims versions.

And I absolutely would never spend whatever this thing will cost if I thought the Para looked like poo.

Not sure why you need to throw around the word pathetic, but if you feel that way ok? No one is telling you you need to buy the game. Everything you post in this thread is a broken record "I think they look like garbage. I'm not buying it. I think they look like poop, this isn't worth my time. I think they look like trash, I am not interested in this." And yet here you are?

It is a concern for all game devs to strike a balance in making sure their characters don't completely fade into the background. This is usually more of an issue with action oriented games since it would be a problem if your eyes lose track of the character you're playing or if enemies are too invisible, but I can see it being a problem for life sims too. Such problems can usually be solved with an indicator (like the plumbob), fixed camera perspectives (such as 3rd person, which life sims don't usually have), or an indicator on the ground like MMOs might have. I know for sure pixel art games have to be careful about this.

I do think they they were able to strike a better balance with the prototype Maggie. Looking at their earlier character concept/backgrounds vs more recent ones, I think you can point out two major differences, both of which can be changed again at any point.




The two major differences I have seen is #1, they removed (disabled) the stencil on objects and #2, they increased the amount of stencil on characters. It's been a while, but if I can recall correctly, the option to turn stencil on and off does not only apply to the characters, but the environment too. That could have changed from then and now, but I'm pretty sure that's still the case.

If Paralives were to release today, I would probably turn down the stencils on the characters and turn on the stencil for the environment to even it out a bit. If we look at a picture of old Maggie and more recent Maggie, I definitely think the outline on characters and objects is what creates maybe the clashing some people feel is there.

https://preview.redd.it/vxaedr0v1t5...o=webp&418636a2

Old Maggie did blend into her surroundings a bit more, muted colors and blurry lack of definition and all. The new Maggie APPEARS to be more defined and sticks out from her surroundings because it is not harshly outlined like she is, creating the "cartoony" affect. Or maybe just making it appear cartoony.

I haven't checked any Paralives updates for a while, is that latter how it looks like now? I get that the weird body proportions are just to show customizing possibilities but the faces, what on earth did they do to them? D: The older style looked so much better and if this is the art direction they're going now they're going in the wrong direction. I wasn't fan of the old style either but it was still a lot better than *gestures at the new pictures* that.

I also wish that Paras do not have that weird black outline, but I am okay with the characters themselves. They can look a bit better and a bit less drawn, but I would still play this game. I worry more about the genetic system and how the Paras will look like as they grow up (I am looking at you, TS3). Toddlers in TS3 always have these extreme facial features, but they look better as teens, young adults and adults. This is a problem with TS2 aswell, but it is very subtle in that game or atleast that is what I thought.

I have been playing TS2 recently and one of the toddlers in my game grew up into a child (I have forgotten his name sadly) and he had these cheeks that were just beneath his eyes. It was really weird and I cannot describe it properly, but you could see this low-poly line beneath his eyes. When he grew up into a teen, he looked just fine. I do not know why this happens. Is it corruption?

Maybe you have not noticed that half the people agree with me? And I know you are so PRO this game you have been asked in the past if you work for them? My opinion and that of the roughly half the people here that agree with me is as valid as your one.

The short time I actually played ts4 I had a mod that removed the white outline that appeared when hovering the mouse over sims or objects. Maybe that could be an option here too.

Personally, I would prefer that they look a bit more realistic and customizable. But above all I prefer a good game, good free will, good management... It is better that they focus on trying to make the paras feel alive. We already had something pretty but dead with sims 4.

Way too cartoony for me personally.

I don't really need an army behind me to make me feel justified with my own opinions... Was I asked if I worked for them? If so, the answer is no. Lmao. I'm just a random web developer/gamer, not a game developer. Other than Sims 3, Kingdom Hearts, and Final Fantasy 14, pretty much the only games I play are indie games. Omori which I recently got into, Undertale, Cities Skylines (hardly indie anymore), Parkitect, Terraria, Crea, Minecraft (when it was small), Stardew Valley, Starbound (which sorta failed), Towns (which failed), Gnomoria (which failed), etc etc etc.

I wish I were smart enough to develop a game like those, but no. I'm just a fan of indie games. It's no surprise that I'm interested and invested in this project, I've been waiting for a project like this for a decade. I've been through this rodeo before with the same discourse (ESPECIALLY centering around how a game might look in the earlier stages)

I never said your opinion is not valid. I just think it's silly to call some developers pathetic because you don't like their art style. I pretty much hate the style of "adult cartoons" that air on Adult Swim but I'm not gonna call the artists pathetic because of it? I just don't like it, that's all. Your opinion is so valid that the devs will have options to toggle lines and stencils on and off. They also mention the ability to mod the game, if you want to, to achieve the look you're going for. You don't have to like it in its current state or in its final state. And if you don't feel like changing it, that's valid too. You don't have to play it should it come to fruition.

The indie game I've been obsessed with most recently is Rimworld. I didn't play it for the longest time because the characters are quite ugly (in my opinion). Now that I've played it, it's really fun and I've learned to live with it. BUT, there are people who dislike the art style so much they have created entire mods to make the characters look better and animate better if the player so desires (I got one that adds more animations and another to add more hair styles). With Steam games, you can mod the game at the click of a button via the Steam Workshop. Rimworld has nearly 30,000 mods of all different flavors. Rimworld is a Steam game just like Paralives plans to be. That is the vision they have for their own game, it's on their public roadmap.

So just to clarify, I'm not tell everyone to embrace the stencil. LOVE the stencil. Marry the stencil and have children with the stencil. I'm saying, "I get your point, but you can turn it off or mod it out with custom skins, which I'm pretty sure very single non-console simmer does already." As for their overall shape in general, dunno about that. From what we've seen so far and what has been on the patreon, their character creator is very flexible. You can probably create anything you want in there. Can't know for sure until we get our hangs on it though.

I did not call the creators pathetic but was responding to your comment that they might need to make the the Para different from the background to stand out. That is saying if that has to be done, IMO there is a problem with how the Para are being done, and not that the people working on this game are pathetic at all. They clearly are very talented and capable people. And you made the comment that they could look like poo and you would play the game. How they are done matters to many of us here, and if not done to our liking, as said, we will not get the game. But I have not heard anyone, including myself, slam the creators of this game themselves.