thesimscurator

[thesimscurator]

News on Updates

Happy day after release, friends!

I hope you're all enjoying playing with the new Sims pack! Full disclosure, I have not bought it yet. There was a death in my family recently and all things Sims are having to take a back burner for a while, including buying new packs and work on my upcoming save file project.

But if you have bought the new pack and would like to keep playing with the Dream Town Makeover save uninterrupted, here are the steps you should follow to bring that save file up-to-date:

Evict all the new townie families from Innisgreen.

Change all public lots in Innisgreen to residential.

That's it! You may optionally bulldoze the lots or delete the new townies from "manage households" if you'd like, but it's not necessary. As long as every lot outside Evergreen Harbor is an unoccupied residential lot, you're good to go!

And of course, I will update the downloadable version of the save myself whenever I get around to buying Enchanted by Nature, which I am sure I will get to eventually. It's just not at the top of my list right now.

Happy simming to all,

The Sims Curator

[thesimscurator]

Sim File Share Hack

Hi, friends!

I'm sure that by now, many of you have heard that Sim File Share, the site where I and many other creators keep our Sims files for download, got hacked. Some people's files have been infested with rider viruses that get downloaded at the same time as the file, so please use caution when downloading anything from SFS and check for riders, especially .exe files.

I went and downloaded all the current versions of my own files to check them, and can confirm that as of now, the two current versions of Career World (Horse Ranch and For Rent) are both virus-free, and so are the career chart and the Dream Town Makeover save file.

I did, however, find a rider on the list of study abroad opportunities, of all things, so I have deleted that file from SFS. For those wanting to know what study abroad opportunities I have baked into Career World, here's the full text of that list:

Career World: List of Study Abroad Opportunities

Selvadorada: there are two study abroad programs based in Selvadorada! Firstly, the Archaeological Base Camp runs a summer archaeology program for large groups of budding historians and those who want to adventure deep into the jungle. The other option is a woofing opportunity for a solo student: working at the llama ranch at the topmost hill overlooking Puerto Llamante, where you’ll learn the traditional arts of llama husbandry and textile making.

Willow Creek/Newcrest/Magnolia Promenade: “rent” MercuCorp Parcel #2 with your study abroad group, then actually stay at the Hotel Barat in Pendula Row South. Enjoy the many local flavors of greater Willow Creek, including soul food, music clubs, gambling, and even dabbling in the occult. Who knows: you may discover talents—or powers—you never even knew you had.

Oasis Springs: Foxbury students interested in tech have a unique opportunity through their alumni network in Oasis Springs, where prestigious gaming entrepreneur Dirk Dreamer runs a summer internship program at FutureSim HQ just for them. Only one student a year bags this coveted internship, and can spend their summer doing a home stay in his guestroom and working in gaming or robotics, as appropriate to their interests. UBrite students would be better off doing a home stay somewhere else, or maybe just doing some desert camping at Bedrock Strait.

Windenburg/Forgotten Hollow: have your group rent out the old Peteran monastery in Olde Platz, then explore the many historical buildings in the area and have fun partying your time abroad away at the many pop-up parties around Windenburg. If archival research is more your thing, consider visiting the Forgotten Archive in Forgotten Hollow—who knows what strange histories you might unearth?

San Myshuno/San Sequoia: in this vibrant city, real estate is at a premium, so if you want to study here you’ll just have to do a home stay with a local family—if any of them can find space to spare. If you’re attending UBrite, our alumni network would be happy to connect you with esteemed lawyer Rebecca Clarke, who is always happy to host UBrite students in her guest bedroom. Foxbury students, you’re on your own. Of course, there is always the just-outside-the-city option of the Hotel San in Anchorpoint Wharf, but it costs a mint.

Brindleton Bay: there are plenty of rooms at the Seaside Bed & Breakfast for college students as well as for the owners of sick pets. Get some rooms for your group, enjoy the views of the lighthouse, and start exploring this quaint seaside community!

Del Sol Valley: get some rooms at the Plumbob motel for you and your fellow study abroad companions and then head downtown to admire the walk of fame on Starlight Boulevard, take in a show at the Starlight Theatre, attend the vintage cinema (or its newer competitor), or head up into the Pinnacles to see the Celebrity Mansion Museum. Movie shoots are, unfortunately, closed-set.

StrangerVille: spend your summer abroad attempting to unravel some of the weirdest mysteries anywhere. Start your summer of scientific field research by setting up camp at the old crash site, then follow your own intuition and sense of curiosity to strange discoveries galore!

Sulani: there are two different study abroad programs running in Sulani! If you are scientifically or ecologically-minded, consider joining the Mua Pel’am Conservation group’s volunteer abroad program. In this program, you and your companions stay on your own tiny island at the Mua Pel’am campground, learn about the volcano, participate in beach cleanups and other ecological restoration work, and hopefully leave the area looking better than you found it. If you are more interested in learning about island culture, Ohan’ali Town elder Keala Hoapili will happily put you up in one of the several tiny houses in the intentional community she runs with her granddaughter as a home stay. She’ll teach you all about the islands: the plants, the celebrations, the community, how to cook using a traditional pit BBQ, and most importantly how to make and share kava!

Evergreen Harbor/Moonwood Mill: explore alternative lifestyles and sims’ relationship to nature in a unique homestay with the Moonwood Collective, a commune whose practices make them very close to the natural world. They have lots to teach about living in harmony and healing the land—lessons that you’ll then put in practice down the mountain in the more developed areas of Evergreen Harbor by constructing found-object art pieces at the Evergreen Arts Center; growing natural, organic, healthy food at the community garden in Sprucewood Square, and learning about eco-friendly architecture among the recycled shipping container tiny homes of Port Promise.

Mt. Komorebi/Glimmerbrook: from the cutting-edge capsule hotel where you and up to two companions will be staying, to the tranquil traditional tea ceremonies you’ll take part in, to the epic slope-shredding you’ll be doing and the heated bathhouses you’ll relax in afterward, a summer abroad in Mt. Komorebi offers incredible variety to the adventurous and respectful student. Emphasis on respectful. Learn to bow and shower before you get in the onsen, or expect to find yourself stuck on the first bullet train back home.

Henford-on-Bagley: if woofing is your thing and you’d rather raise crops, chickens, and cows than llamas, consider a solo gig abroad as a farmhand on the Watson farm. In this unique home stay, you’ll be expected to be up at the crack of dawn every day milking the cow and tending to the crops and chickens. When the farm chores are done, you might have time to explore the village of Finchwick or venture into the Bramblewood. Maybe.

Tartosa: a unique woofing opportunity lies on the breathtaking coast of Tartosa, where you and up to five companions can pitch in for a very special home stay helping the Villareal family revitalize the vineyard and nectary on their rocky hilltop. Learn to raise fruits and make nectars in the extensive underground cellars, where you’ll also be sleeping. In what, you ask? Don’t worry about it. But don’t touch anything you may stumble across in the catacombs, or you may be doing more than sleeping down there.

Chestnut Ridge: if you want to learn all about the riding and tending of horses, horse trader and native elder Tallulah Heiheiwuti would be happy to put you up in one of several guest rooms in her New Appaloosa homestead. With both adult horses and foals to care for and train just steps from the equestrian center, this is a great study abroad opportunity for anyone interested in learning about these beautiful animals and the native community’s connection to them.

Tomarang: study abroad in Tomarang is a real group affair—in this program, you and up to seven other students will stay in a youth hostel at the top of one of Morensong’s most storied buildings: Ro Kaya Rockside in the former red light district. Here, you’ll sleep, shower, party, explore the famous night market, eat street food, sing karaoke, get bubble tea, try out Tomarani fashion, tour temples, and learn about the culture from the locals—and that’s all before you head over to Koh Sahpa to see the tiger sanctuary and explore the fabled cave! This study abroad opportunity, perhaps the purest of its kind, is all about immersing yourself in the local culture.

Stay vigilant, stay safe, and happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

A sneak peek of my forthcoming save file project: an active class building on the revamped Foxbury campus. The stunning Maxis-match exterior of this building is by Pandora-SW; interiors are all me. Thanks to Pandora-SW for sharing their beautiful creations on the gallery!

[thesimscurator]

What I've Been Up To

Hey, friends!

I’m sure at least some of you are wondering what I’ve been up to since I had to abandon updates to Career World. Well, as a matter of fact, even before the For Rent corruption bug caused all that to go pear-shaped, I was already working on my next giant save file project: a save file meant to maximize immersion in The Sims 4 by pairing lots that blend seamlessly into their surroundings with gameplay setups that lean into world identities and pack features already established by the Sims team.

I’m really excited about this project and I think it’s great, but there are two problems with it: A) I can’t work on it fast enough to keep pace with all the new content releases, so I fear it will never be done, and B) if it winds up being as big as Career World (which was the intention—I had planned on this being another “all worlds” save file), it is likely to run up against the same save-file-destroying bug. So, despite how awesome the unifying concept was, I’ve decided I’m better off releasing it as a series of several different save files, some single worlds and others world clusters, depending on what best suits the gameplay angle I’m going for. The first of these was the Dream Town Makeover save file, which features seamless Maxis-match lots and maximizes the potential of the pack content from Eco Lifestyle and Dream Home Decorator by pairing them together. If you haven’t played it yet, I strongly suggest you check it out—it will give you a feel for the concept I’m working with for this save file series.

In light of the recent release of the Businesses and Hobbies expansion pack, which allows you to hold live classes for any skill, I think the concept I’m going to focus on next will revolve around education. I’ve already made substantial headway on immersive versions of Copperdale and Britechester, the two education-focused worlds, and I expect I can have them finished with the new content integrated in about 3 to 4 months. But of course, I also have ideas for building playable elementary and preschools using Businesses and Hobbies, plus extension schools, specialty schools (Windenburg Butlering Academy, anyone?), etc., not to mention my penchant for creating study abroad programs—so in the end, I expect this to wind up as a very large world cluster. I think what I’ll do is release this one in stages: the core worlds of Copperdale and Britechester first for version 1.0, and then a new version every time I complete another world that I want to tack onto it.

And of course, if I ever finish this immersive save file series and have every world done, I will at least try to smoosh them all together into the one giant save file I had originally envisioned, because I’m me. Perhaps the corruption bug will even be fixed by then, who knows?

So keep an eye out for something new in about 3 or 4 months, and until then, happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

Dream Town Makeover Updated for Businesses & Hobbies!

Happy day after release, friends!

The Dream Town Makeover save file has now been updated to support players who own the Businesses & Hobbies expansion pack! If you are a new player of this save, you should be able to play as intended without Nordhaven gigs muddying your interior decorator gig list.

However, if you are an existing player of the save file, as always, you should NOT download the new version, as doing so will lose all progress you have already made on the challenge. Instead, update your own version of the save file by doing the following:

Evict the four new townie families in Nordhaven.

Change all public lots in Nordhaven to residential (I think this is just the museum, the lounge, and the small business lot).

That's it! You may optionally bulldoze the lots or delete the new townies from "manage households" if you'd like, but it's not necessary. As long as every lot outside Evergreen Harbor is an unoccupied residential lot, you're good to go!

With this update, I have not incorporated any new game mechanics or stuff from the new pack, because I would like to keep Eco Lifestyle and Dream Home Decorator as the only required packs. However, if you do own Businesses & Hobbies, I think the mechanics of that pack will pair splendidly with the story and challenge of this save file! I highly encourage anyone making over Evergreen Harbor who owns Businesses & Hobbies to go absolutely wild starting small businesses with the various families in this save file, using their decorator gigs to create small business spaces in their clients' homes, converting some of the generic lots into small business lots, etc. Because as you know, E.H.'s revitalization project involves giving small business grants to residents! Feel free to cheat yourself the 750 simoleons you need to register a new business--it's on the city government of Evergreen Harbor!

Happy simming, everyone!

[thesimscurator]

hey i couldnt figure out how to private msg you, sorry if this is out of bounds. i know you havent updated career world since the for rent error fiasco (also something about running up to the amount of data a world could have??). but i have been so greatful for what you did do already. not sure if you are working on a personal save, but would you be opposed to my purchasing for you the new pack? i just thought u would really like it and wanted to thank you for your work

Oh my gosh, thank you so much! I would love that! And you're absolutely right, the features in this next pack are right up my alley--I was just thinking myself what a shame it is that I won't be able to integrate them into Career World; but I am, in fact, working on a new project it would also be perfect for. My Origin ID is rachelwolfe, not sure if you need that in order to buy me the pack.

And yes, the bug in question is the For Rent error fiasco, which is also about hitting the data limit: the problem seems to be that rental residentials seriously explode the amount of data in the game (or maybe the amount of data the game perceives? Not really sure how this works from a programming standpoint), but basically, once the game thinks there's too much stuff in it it goes ballistic and starts corrupting, and having rental residentials contributes toward that a lot. Glad the bug is finally starting to get some serious community attention--maybe it'll get the game designers to prioritize it more.

Anyway, thank you so, so much for this kind offer! Can't wait to play the new pack!

[thesimscurator]

hello! i'm excited to try the career world save file for the first time, but i was wondering - how does it work with multiple generations? when townies eventually age up and die, and w/ neighborhood stories turned off, i don't know how all the clubs / study abroad hosts / etc. would work. or is it best played for one generation? sorry if i'm overthinking it haha, it's so detailed and i'd love to play it as intended :)

No problem, and great question! I have aging set to "only active household" by default, so if you leave it on those settings you can play multiple generations of your own household and all the townies will remain at their current ages and in their current clubs. That can obviously be weird if you have significant friendships or romances outside the active household, but I suggest just aging up your sim's friends manually when your own sim ages up and leaving all the other townie households be. If you move worlds and/or change careers with each generation, you can experience old townie households as "new" neighbors and co-workers as you go along. That's my best advice on how to play it, anyway, but of course you're always welcome to change the settings and play however you want! You might just have to make new co-worker clubs as you go along if you restore global ageing and neighborhood stories.

[thesimscurator]

hii so i was trying to download the save file but it says that it will take hours to download even tho my wifi works perfectly,its not the first time some downloads in some links dont work so im asking if its just my problem or a general one

Well, I haven't heard about this problem from anyone else, but that may just mean you're the first person to bring it to my attention. Did you try downloading both versions of the save file? Because if you did and they both had this problem, it's probably an issue with your computer. But if you tried both and one of them worked fine, then it might be an issue with the save file. Could you try downloading both and let me know what happens with which? Thanks!

UPDATE 1/8/25: Another user did contact me, and this appears to have been a temporary server issue with SimFileShare. It's fixed now, though, so please go ahead and re-download if you haven't already!

[thesimscurator]

Dream Town Makeover Updated for Life & Death!

Happy new pack release, friends! The Dream Town Makeover save file has now been updated so new players of the save who own the Life & Death expansion pack won't have their gig list muddled with Ravenwood jobs. As always, if you are an existing player of the Dream Town Makeover challenge, you should NOT--I repeat, NOT--download the new update, as this will lose any progress you have already made on the challenge and set you back to square 1. Instead, if you have bought the Life & Death expansion pack, you should update your own version of the save file using the following steps:

Evict all new Ravenwood townies so they go into the homeless bin and are no longer linked to specific lots.

Change all Ravenwood community lot types to residential.

That's it! You're now set to continue playing the Dream Town Makeover challenge uninterrupted. If you want to, you can also delete the new townie households and/or bulldoze the Ravenwood lots, but neither is strictly necessary.

I hope everyone is enjoying the save file and the new pack, but separately. Happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

I just want to say I LOVE your Evergreen Harbor save.

Thank you so much! It was a lot of fun to create, and I'm really glad you're enjoying playing it, too!

[thesimscurator]

Thank You!

Career World just passed 10,000 downloads! Thank you so much, everyone! I really hope you're enjoying the save file.

[thesimscurator]

Career World: Bad News

Hi, Career World players! I, unfortunately, am here with some bad news. I have officially hit the limit on data that can currently be put into a save file, and even though the Lovestruck update is only about half done, I can no longer change a single thing without triggering the dreaded corruption bug. Unless and until EA fixes this bug, I cannot finish this update or add any new updates to this save file in the future.

I considered releasing the half-done version of the Lovestruck update that I have, but since doing anything--and I mean ANYTHING, even just playing the game--in the save file in its current state will trigger the corruption (and there is some evidence the corruption can transfer to other saves if you play several in the same session), I don't want to risk people's games by making it available. I am so sorry if you were waiting on this update; it was going to be really good.

So consider this your notice that Career World is on indefinite hiatus, or possibly finished entirely if they never fix this. I hope you have enjoyed the save file as it is, and I still think it has plenty to offer even without Lovestruck. Keep simming, keep pressuring EA to fix this @#$%& bug, and I hope you'll enjoy my other/future save file projects as they come out.

Take care,

TheSimsCurator

[thesimscurator]

More Update Delays . . .

Hi, friends!

I know many of you have been waiting patiently for the Lovestruck update to Career World, and I've been working on it--I'm really excited for some of the new clubs and features I've been adding to Ciudad Enamorada!

But unfortunately, for reasons unknown, my computer has just decided to have a major freak-out and stop running the Sims AT ALL if I have any save file larger than the default installed. Suffice to say, I am miffed.

So the upshot is that until I can get my computer fixed (or possibly even replaced), I can't continue working on Career World because I can't even open it. Sigh. So hang in there. It's going to be a while longer.

In the meantime, please go over to this post and vote on whether I should use a better turn-ons mod when I finally can get back to updating the save.

Hang tight and happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

Obsessed with your Career World save file! I have a Sim living in the Spice Market in San Myshuno though and I noticed the festivals are not spawning. Could this be an issue with the save file? This is the first time I've noticed it.

Thanks for your kind words, sashay17! And thanks for the question. I went and did some playtesting trying to answer it, and found the festivals all spawning for me--at least when I was playing a household that lived outside of the neighborhood. I have noticed some problems with festivals not spawning when my sims are in the neighborhood at the moment the festival is supposed to spawn, though, so I suspect if your sim lives in the area you're just running into this bug on a regular basis. There are a couple of Answers HQ threads that indicate there's a known bug where festivals will sometimes not spawn if you've replaced the default lots in the home neighborhood, which obviously I have, so that might be why you're running into this. Sorry! Hopefully, the sims team will fix this one soon. But in the meantime, if there's a festival in your home neighborhood you want to go to, I recommend traveling outside the neighborhood just before it's supposed to start, and hopefully that workaround will let you play more fully. Good luck and happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

Attention, Career World players! I need your input!

Hey, friends!

I am back from my roadtrip, and I've been playing around with the Lovestruck expansion pack as I get ready to start updating Career World. And part of that has involved trying out this fabulous mod by Down in Simsland, which vastly improves the lackluster system of physical turn-ons and turn-offs that shipped with the pack.

I was considering making this a supported mod, as I think lots of people will be using it with this new pack, but a little testing revealed that there isn't really a close enough correspondence between Down in Simsland's system and the default system for me to do that. Meaning: if I set everyone's turn-ons and turn-offs using this mod, and then you play the save file without the mod installed, the chemistry system will be all screwed up. Spouses who I set up to find each other attractive no longer will, nearly everyone will have random clothing color turn-ons and turn-offs, etc. etc. You would have chaos instead of order, and making things make sense is one of the guiding principles of this save file.

So basically what I need is for my existing Career World players to vote on whether you'd like me to use the default system or Down in Simsland's system to set turn-ons and turn-offs, because I have to choose one or the other. In my opinion, the version WITH Down in Simsland's mod is vastly superior, but adopting it does mean adding another required mod to the save file, and I've tried to keep it as lean as I can on that front. So if you play the save file, please check out the mod and then comment below telling me whether you'd like me to use it or the default system.

I'll go with whatever the majority opinion is by the time I run out of other updates to do to Career World. Thanks for your input!

[thesimscurator]

Dream Town Makeover Has Been Updated!

My Dream Town Makeover Mini-Save File and Challenge has been updated! New players of the challenge who own the Lovestruck expansion pack will now be able to download the save file and play the challenge as intended.

if you are an existing Dream Town Makeover player who bought the new pack, however, you should NOT download the new version of the save file, as it will lose all your progress and set you back to square one. Instead, you should update your own version of the save file yourself using the following steps:

Evict the three new townie families from Ciudad Enamorada to the homeless bin. You may delete them or not as you choose; the important thing is that they not be living in a world.

Change all community lots in Ciudad Enamorada into residential lots.

That's it! The new pack will no no longer interfere with your gig list or your progress through the challenge.

Happy simming!

[thesimscurator]

Updates are Coming! . . . But Not Soon.

Happy release day, friends! I am so excited for The Sims 4: Lovestruck, and can't wait to get my hands on it! But alas, wait I must. I am currently in the middle of a big cross-country road trip, and will not have access to my home computer or my sims game for another two weeks.

Once I do get back, I expect the update for Career World to take quite a while. Like with the update for Growing Together, updating for this pack will require me to go back through every single family and update every single sim teen and older to implement the new pack features--and those kinds of updates take far longer than just making over a world. So if you're a Career World player, hang tight. It's going to be a few months.

The update for the Dream Town Makeover save file, on the other hand, should be quick and easy, as it mostly just involves deleting the new builds and families. But, if you're already playing the Dream Town Makeover challenge, you should NOT download my new version of the save file, as that will set you right back to square one and lose all your progress so far. Instead, if you are playing that challenge, you should update your own version of the save file yourself using the following steps:

Evict the three new townie families from Ciudad Enamorada to the homeless bin. You may delete them or not as you choose; the important thing is that they not be living in a world.

Change all community lots in Ciudad Enamorada into residential lots.

That's it! The new pack should no no longer interfere with your gig list or your progress through the challenge.

So that's the latest! Enjoy playing with the new pack, and I'll see you all for updates in a few weeks/months.