Whenever a new Occult is added to The Sims 4, there’s a bit of nervousness about how good they’re going to be and whether they’ll bring something new and worthwhile to the game. Fortunately, The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature Expansion Pack doesn’t disappoint with Fairies. Not only that, but the stunning new world and engaging nature-themed gameplay further enhances what was already looking to be a promising Expansion. This review explains why Enchanted by Nature is a worthy addition to The Sims 4 as the latest Expansion Pack.
The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature Expansion Pack is now available on PC via Steam and EA App, Origin via Mac, PlayStation 4 | 5, Xbox One | Xbox Series X/S, and Epic Games for $39.99. If you buy this Expansion before August 21st, you’ll receive 3 bonus items as part of the limited-time Fairy Garden Digital Content.
Story – Fairies in Innisgreen
Strictly speaking, there’s no actual “story” – but there is a new world to play in, with its own backstory and secrets, as well as a whole host of new Sims to meet and play as.
A Beautiful Whimsical World
Innisgreen is simply gorgeous. It’s probably one of the prettiest worlds in The Sims 4 to date, but that makes sense given the whole theme of Enchanted by Nature.
You really do feel as if you’ve been transported to another ethereal world in Innisgreen. It’s magical, but also very grounded. You just embrace the beauty and whimsy of everything you stumble across.
Innisgreen’s layout is also something to admire. This world feels like it offers a little bit of everything. Everdew, the fairy neighborhood, has everything close together without feeling too claustrophobic; Sprucederry Grove feels more wide open, and Coast of Adhmor is more built up.
Lush Lots Built With Care
The Lots created for Innisgreen have been beautifully built with thought and care. They don’t feel clumsily put together. Although they are just about affordable, the starter homes are probably some of the best seen in any world in The Sims 4.
A Well-Populated World
The residents of Innisgreen truly complete the immersiveness of the world. It’s impressive how many pre-made Sims occupy this world, flooding the place with life and offering a variety of different Sims to interact with.
Innisgreen: lush, large, and magical.
Gameplay – All About Nature
Nature is the core theme of The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature. Living with nature, getting creative with nature, even the magic of nature! The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature offers plenty of new gameplay.
New Occult: Fairies!
Fairies have been something fans of The Sims 4 have been wanting for a long time, and now, they’ve got their wish! Better still, Fairies have been added into an Expansion Pack that is more-or-less focused on them, so they haven’t been neglected – and it shows in what their gameplay has to offer.
Fairies can be created right away in Create-A-Sim. You can even paint their wings! Young Sims can be Fairies, although they won’t get their wings or Fairy Abilities until they age up into Teens. Becoming a Fairy through gameplay is also welcomingly easy. It doesn’t take too much time or effort to make the big transformation – and reversing the process is just as easy should you ever change your mind.
Occults can sometimes be a pain to play as, particularly if they have big downsides gameplay-wise. Fortunately, Fairies are hardly bothersome to play as. The pros of being a Fairy vastly outweigh the negatives. Fairies have a unique Need, Emotional Force, that depletes over time if neglected and can even lead to your Sim dying, but this is fairly easy to manage and much harder to succumb to death with.
Fairies succeed in being a good new Occult to play as in The Sims 4.
New Apothecary and Natural Living Skills
The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature includes two new skills: Apothecary and Natural Living.
Apothecary allows your Sims to create cures, ailments, and lucky charms. You can then use these concoctions on your own Sim or others, or sell them. To make these recipes, you need to gather different ingredients that can either only be found in Innisgreen or in other worlds of The Sims 4. Having to collect the ingredients does make it more challenging, but also more rewarding.
Natural Living lets your Sims live out in the wild. It’s similar to camping in the forest of The Sims 4 Outdoor Retreat Game Pack, but takes it to another level. Your Sims can sleep on the ground outside, wash themselves in bodies of water, relieve themselves in the wild, and even forage for food. Foraging is a new way of finding collectibles in The Sims 4. As well as food, Sims can unearth plants, collectibles, and Apothecary ingredients (some of which can only be found by foraging).
The Naturopath Career makes use of the new Apothecary and Natural Living Skills.
New Naturopath Career
The new Apothecary Skill also inspires a new Career in The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature, in which your Sim can become a Naturopath. This is a full-time career, where you have the option of going into work (off screen in a rabbit hole), completing tasks working from home, or once you reach Level 2, inviting clients home to treat their Ailments.
The latter option works similar to the Doctor Career in The Sims 4 Get to Work Expansion, where your Sim has to assess clients to discover what Ailment they’re suffering from and help treat them. Although you’ll need to do a lot of assessments to reach a final diagnosis, one advantage over being a Doctor is you are guaranteed a diagnosis and don’t have to deal with inconclusive tests or failing equipment, and you only need to treat one client per shift. Another bonus is the client coming to your Sim’s home, instead of being stuck at a workplace for the duration of the shift.
The Naturopath Career has plenty of upsides, being that it’s very flexible, allowing you to choose how to spend your workday. If you want a more active role, you can opt to have a client visit or work from home, or if you want to send your Sim away for a few hours, you can do that too.
Nature lovers should love Enchanted by Nature.
New Traits and Aspirations
The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature includes 3 new Traits: Plant Lover, Mystical, and Disruptive. Plant Lover is an excellent addition to The Sims 4, especially for those who enjoy gardening. Mystical Sims love anything with nature or the supernatural, naturally making them more adept at Gardening and Apothecary, as well as befriending Occult Sims. Disruptive Sims like to create havoc, gaining the Mischief Skill faster than others.
Enchanted by Nature also includes a generous helping of new Aspirations to play with in which to complete tasks and gain unique Reward Traits. Three of these Aspirations focus on Fairy gameplay, ranking up and growing Abilities. The fourth Aspiration is centered around the Apothecary Skill and Naturopath Career.
Fairies can be Harmonious or Disruptive.
Completing Fables on the Side
A side activity that can be completed in The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature is Fables. These work just like Errands and Favors from The Sims 4 Cottage Living and Life & Death Expansions. These are optional tasks your Sim can complete in order to earn extra money and gain special rewards, as well as learning more about Innisgreen and completing unique activities. They are easy to complete on the whole, but most of these quests can also be done multiple times for extra rewards and money.
Fables can be completed as an extra activity for more world lore, money, and unique items.
Nature Pressing
Nature Pressing is a new creative activity in Enchanted by Nature that doesn’t require any skills, just ingredients from the garden. With the new Nature Press object, Sims can create homemade candles and pictures with natural ingredients. These can then adorn their homes, be given as gifts, or sold for good money. It’s a fun and creative side activity ideal for gardeners with leftover stock for making extra money or decorating their homes with beautiful handcrafted items.
Nature Pressing is a pleasant and enjoyable side activity for creative Sims.
Graphics & Audio – Just Gorgeous
The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature Expansion features probably some of the most gorgeous imagery seen so far in The Sims 4. As a whole, it’s aesthetically a very attractive game, including the new Create-A-Sim content, new objects, the world, and all the activities available.
Fairies have also been very well done visually. Their wings are beautifully designed and animated, as well as the Fairy Dust they possess. Watching Fairies can be very awe-inspiring, especially moments like watching a Sim transform into a Fairy, or a Fairy using one of their Abilities.
There’s not too much to say about the audio side of The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature, although the main theme was heard while loading the game on one occasion. It was probably one of the best iterations of The Sims 4 main theme, matching the theme of Enchanted by Nature perfectly.
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- There are plenty of new items in Create-A-Sim, as well as Build Mode.
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- Not only are there lots of wing styles and designs to choose from, but you can also custom paint them!
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- In Innisgreen, you can meet special NPCs such as Mother Nature.
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- You get 3 bonus items if you buy Enchanted by Nature before August 21st.
The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature Expansion Pack was reviewed on PC.
