A new update arrived in The Sims 4 on 22nd October, the same day that Week 5 of the Reaper’s Rewards Event began. This update has been specifically released in line with the latest Expansion Pack for The Sims 4, Life and Death, which comes out on October 31st. This update brings a bunch of new additions to the base game, which we will go into more detail. Plus, there’s the usual bug fixes. Hopefully a problem you’ve been having in the game will be fixed in this patch.
Let’s break down what’s new in this update.
Sims Reacting to Deaths Differently
Sims will now react differently to a Sim’s death depending on their traits and relationship towards the deceased Sim. Sims will still weep and wail at a loved one’s demise, but now, Sims may retch at the sight of a stranger dying.
Ghosts and Occults in Create-A-Sim
You can now create ghost Sims in Create-A-Sim thanks to the latest The Sims 4 update. Sims aged child up to elder can be a ghost. You can also pick what type of death the Sim experienced. What’s available depends on the packs you have installed. Also, ghost pets can be set, but only with elder dogs, cats, and horses. Additionally, in Live Mode, ghosts will less frequently cause havoc in Sims’ households, for example, creating less puddles and not breaking stuff as much.
When creating ghosts in CAS, you can choose how they died.
New Unique Ghost Needs
Ghost Sims now have their own unique Needs in the afterlife. Instead of Hunger, Energy, Social, Hygiene, Bladder, and Fun, ghosts have Goo Waste, Ethereal Sustenance, Otherworldly Slumber, Spooky Diversions, Ethereal Bonding, and Apparition Cleansing.
Choosing Type of Ghost at Death
When a Sim dies, they will be given two options: either become a playable ghost, or be a freeroaming ghost. Basically, you can choose to continue to control your Sim after death, or leave them to be uncontrollable.
Married Ghosts
Typically in The Sims 4, when a married Sim dies, they are no longer married to their partner. However, this update brings a change that can reverse this. The couple can now use the interaction Ask to Stay Married so they can remain married even if one of them is a ghost.
New Outdoor Category
Build Mode has a brand-new category that can be found in the Outdoor section. This is called Life Event Activities. This has been created to accommodate the upcoming funeral content, but for the base game and any packs you have installed, you can find stuff in here to throw parties and weddings, making it easier to find everything you need when putting events together in The Sims 4.
Everything you need to set up a wedding, funeral, or other special occasion can be found in the new Life Event Activities category.
Young Sims Taken Away by Social Worker
There’s nothing worse than the social worker coming to take away any newborns, infants, toddlers, and children. What was even worse was that originally, they got deleted. Now though, instead of this, they’ll appear in the Household Menu in Manage Worlds.
New Objects and CAS Update
There are one or two free additions to Build Mode and Create-A-Sim. In Build Mode, there’s a new firepit available. In Create-A-Sim, several base game shoes have been updated to include new black swatches, ideal for occasions such as funerals.
Several base game shoes have a new black swatch added, giving your Sims something suitable to wear to funerals.
Update to Gravestones and Urns
With Life and Death coming soon, it makes sense to update the gravestones and urns in The Sims 4 base game. There are a few changes. For one, originally when moving a deceased Sim’s marker indoors and out, it would swap between an urn and a gravestone, respectively. Now though, you can choose for yourself whether you want a Sim’s marker to be a gravestone or urn, regardless of whether it’s outside or inside.
If you have certain packs installed, you can now swap out the style of gravestone or urn usually reserved for deceased occult Sims. For example, you can change a non-occult Sim’s gravestone or urn to that of a Vampire (Vampires Game Pack). Additionally, there is a brand-new type of urn/gravestone for Merfolk from The Sims 4 Island Living Expansion Pack.
Bug Fixes
That’s all the new stuff. Now for the all-important bug fixes. One thing that has been added to this update for The Sims 4 is that Sims can now WooHoo with the Grim Reaper again. Alongside that, there are plenty of fixes in the base game, as well as across the packs and console version of The Sims 4. You can see the list of bug fixes in the official patch notes.
That just about covers everything in this update for The Sims 4! Don’t forget that The Sims 4 Life and Death Expansion Pack will be coming out on October 31st for all platforms, including PC via Steam and EA App, Mac via Origin, PlayStation 4 | 5, Xbox One | Xbox Series X / S, and Epic Games Store. You can watch the gameplay trailer that came out on October 17th to get a good look at the Expansion.
If you really want to get into the spirit of Halloween in The Sims 4, there’s a new Halloween Bundle now available. This comes packaged with The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack, The Sims 4 Werewolves Game Pack, and The Sims 4 Spooky Stuff Pack. It’s currently on sale at 40% off, usually retailing at $39.99. The sale ends November 6th. There’s also a sale on for the other packs for The Sims 4, which lasts until October 29th.
Also, look out for the two new Kits arriving on November 14th, titled Cozy Kitsch and Sweet Slumber Party. These are the first Creator Kits in The Sims 4, made by Myshunosun and Trillyke. We’ll share more information about these Kits soon. In the meantime, you can read the official blog about how these Kits were put together.
