The State of Sims: March 4th-11th

Women's History Month is in full swing as both Maxis and Firemonkeys leap full-bodied into spring with fresh content.  This week, Sims FreePlay inundated their players with a Live Event, an Influence Island event, a hobby event, and a SimChase simultaneously; Sims Mobile developers unleashed a deluge of spring-themed purchasable packs and player-pleasing events; and Sims 4 got down and dirty with their new "Bust the Dust" vacuuming kit, their "Throwback Fit" kit, and their "Country Kitchen" kit, though not without hiccups.  The Sims 4 team also revealed their internal spring cleaning efforts through a published list of bug-correcting efforts, aptly dubbed the "laundry list" in the spirit of transparency. ​

The Sims FreePlay

​The world of Sims FreePlay is a buzz this week with activity.  Busy Simmers engaged their Sims in a series of incredible events -- all within the fresh Art Deco.  Persistent players win a slew of sleek, gilded prizes during Influence Island - an event that encourages players to swindle and cajole NPC Sims into friendship in return for "network tokens."  These tokens purchase such glamorous prizes as Art Deco Archways, Gold pendant lights, Diamond Mirrors, Gold Deco Coffee Tables, Gold Deco showers, bookshelves, baths, corner chairs, bathroom sinks, and a grand prize pack of wardrobes, king-sized suite beds, lavish pianos, Deco wall lights, Fret Deco paint, and Flapper worthy outfits and hairstyles for female Sims.  

Additionally, the current Glam Mansion Live Event offers more gilded gifts for Sims FreePlayers in return for their crafting efforts.  Players craft candles, glassware, pottery, and jewelry to earn jaw-dropping luxury items befitting only the swankiest Sims.  Players are currently working to earn pristine bamboo plants, geometric paintings, geometric showers and sinks, geometric baths and toilets, counters and tinted windows, shiny kitchen essentials, a gleaming breakfast bar, luxury lounge sectionals and coffee tables, and a grand prize of the imposing Glam Mansion, an expertly pre-designed lot for upper class Sims. 

Meanwhile, Kam Ham's current SimChase offerings encourage Sims to compete against a "rival" Sim in return for luxury restroom prizes.  The hobby event lures Sims into the fashion hobby in order to win an array of fresh male hairstyles.  

FreePlay Simmers now look to the horizon for the next update announcement for April and May.  

The Sims Mobile

​This week, Sims Mobile developers unveiled a gamut of spring cleaning events for the gardening gamer.  The Greenest Garden Treasure hunt, which began March 8th, promises such quaint accoutrements as bird houses, bug farms, a functional greenhouse, and large broad-leafed plants and flowers to build a landscaping paradise.  

The rest of Sims Mobile's current spring-themed update features long-anticipated reruns such as the "Dessert for Two" Sweet Treats event, which is due to begin March  22nd.  This event offers the amazing marble lover's tub, a huge outdoor movie screen, a wealth of romantic candles, and the sparkling path any Sim could use to seduce a loved one.  The Wash n' Fold Sweet Treats event, which rewards players with a functional washing machine and other laundry room essentials, will return April 5th.  

Wumples returns in this update alongside some anniversary prize offerings, several pack reruns, and purchasable packs filled with flowers for the gardening guru.  

The Sims 4

​Maxis rolled out their "kit" DLC this week to mixed reviews.  While some players balked at spending more money for bite-sized content, other players leapt at the opportunity to add more game play, fashions, and kitchen-themed build-buy to their games.  According to the developers, these new kit offerings are easily digestible content updates, offered for $4.99 between larger pack releases, to whet the insatiable Simming appetite.  These kits will offer either fashion (for the discerning stylist Simmer), fresh build/buy (for the bold builder), or new gameplay (for the avid storytellers and completionists.) For now, Maxis has released three "kits" - "Throwback Fit", which offers colorful 90's athleisure wear, "Country Kitchen" which offers brand new country-style worn kitchen items, and "Bust the Dust," which offers a set of vacuums, a new dusty gameplay loop system complete with dust bunnies, and two new aspirations.  Not long after release, however, the kits began disappearing from Origin, even for the players who had already purchased the kits.  Maxis is currently looking into the issue. 

Sims Nation Magazine and Simmer's Digest offered three free kits to their followers.  

The winners are: @MaiamakesSims (country kitchen), @cowplant318 (Bust the Dust), and @giawlegend (Throwback Fit.) 

An enormous shoutout to streamer TaylorRynai who helped Sims Nation raise $122 for our Girls Who Code Charity event! Let's keep Simming for Good! 

That's all for now but keep checking the Simmer's Digest website for more giveaways, challenges, and events.  

Stay safe, thank a woman, and happy Simming.