It’s only been a few months since the release of the last expansion pack inThe Sims 4, yet there’s already been a leak on multiple retailer sites for another. It’s unusual for expansion packs inThe Sims 4to be released so soon after the last, but it certainly isn’t impossible that the leak is untrue, especially as it’s appeared on more than one retailer site. Even if it’s a game pack rather than a full expansion as the leak promises, it seems Simmers have more content to look forward to sometime this year.
The content pack promises to be centered on horses and, while there are no details as to the specific content of the pack, Simmers can expect certain types of content from game and expansion packs such as worlds, build and buy mode items, CAS additions, and gameplay mechanics. While small content packs like kits only focus on one type of content, such as build and buy mode items, Simmers can expect a mix of all of these if the Horse DLC comes as a game or expansion pack.
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Why Horses are a Controversial Move For The Sims 4
Horses aren’t new toThe Simsand made their first and, so far, only appearance inThe Sims 3: Pets.The Sims 4’s pet-centered expansion,The Sims 4: Cats & Dogsnotably excluded horses from the list of pets on offer. It appears this is another case of EA and Maxis splitting content that once came as one pack across multiple packs, a practice that’s been widely criticized by players, but has also resulted in deeper gameplay for content such as werewolves and vampires. To justify such a move, horses need to have at least as many features and gameplay mechanics as cats and dogs, especially since the entire pack is dedicated to them.
As an expansion pack, the Horse DLC should come with a new world that matches the theme. The aesthetics of the world of Appaloosa Plains fromThe Sims 3: Petswould be aperfect match for horses inThe Sims 4, and is a type of world that hasn’t been explored as much, although stepping outside of North America and embracing something like a grassland steppe or more desert landscape would also be welcome for a change in scenery. Build mode and CAS would need to match the aesthetics of this new world, and so the location would be of utmost importance here.
What to Expect From Horses In The Sims 4
Horses should be like the pets inThe Sims 4: Cats & Dogsrather than thecows and llamas inThe Sims 4: Cottage Living, where the animals are confined to a pen instead of being able to roam freely. That said, a feature to build stables for the horses should also be included, with far more customization than what was included inThe Sims 3.
Any objects and gameplay mechanics involving horse and pack content should havecross-pack compatibility inThe Sims 4. For example, there should be milestones related to horses, relationship dynamics between different horses and their riders, compatibility withThe Sims 4: Nifty Knittingto create new items for horses, and perhaps even the ability to use horses as transport between neighborhoods in the worlds. Players could also expect to create and customize horses in Create-a-Sim using a similar system to the one currently used for cats, dogs, and werewolves.
Features used for horses fromThe Sims 3need to be present in this Horse DLC, and one of the big ones is the Equestrian Center. The Equestrian Center was a rabbit hole inThe Sims 3, but here it could provide the location for anactiveSimscareeralong with other ways to support horse riding, horse care, and developing other skills around horses.
The Sims 4is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
