After what felt like an agonizing wait for many Sims 4 players, the Sims developer team finally dropped news of two upcoming kits: Moonlight Chic and Little Campers. The kits will both be available for purchase May 26th, but what can players expect from these kits? After perusing the official images, have eagle-eyed players cracked the code of what is to come in an upcoming game pack?

The Moonlight Chic Kit is a Create-a-Sim kit inspired by effortlessly fashionable Parisian night-life wear. In fact, the packs’s developers worked with French social media fashion influencer and YouTuber Paola Locatelli to develop the crisp digital line of nighttime threads.

Paola, a teenage Influencer of color with over 1.8 million followers on Instagram, has worked with Dior, the Cannes Festival, Gucci, Vanity, and Vogue. She often wears chic silks in jewel tones, dazzling dresses, sharply tailored, head turning suits, and eye-pleasing athletics.

What does this mean for Sims 4? Players can expect such lovely looks from the Moonlight Chic kit. Official screens offer us similar jewel tones, comfortable cuts, loose suits, and form-fitting night wear for which Paola is known.

As many Simmers were quick to point out, some of the official screens featured a large full moon hanging in the night sky:

Simmers quickly speculated that the full moon could indicate the possible theme of the next game pack: werewolves.

By contrast, Little Campers Kit is a Build/Buy kit designed to light up the nighttime lives of Sim Littles every where. The pack boasts s’more cooking clutter, a fancy new fire pit, a cute cat-eared new radio, a fresh swing decorated in fairy lights, makeshift tent decor, a cloth screen projector set-up, more fairy lights, fabric-draped boxes, a light-up Tonka truck, new comfy pillows and rugs, an adorable rocket of blocks, spare wood, and cardboard, a Sasquatch plush, new animal-shaped lawn chairs, and much more.

Devs quickly confirmed the kit as a build/buy kit and not a game play kit as some recently speculated.

Yet again, a large full moon looming in the render’s night sky, the Sims’s full moon thought bubble, and the image on the huge projected screen of a Sims 3 Werewolf animation all seem to suggest an impending werewolf game pack update. The clues have Simmers everywhere howling for more news.

What are you most excited about? Tell us on Twitter or Instagram!

The Sims 4 team dropped the heavily-anticipated trailer for its latest game pack - My Wedding Stories - mid-morning at 11AM EST. The tear-jerking, heartfelt trailer showed off many of the assets and game play features that Simmers, thanks to a leak, had expected from the wedding-themed pack.

Filled with floral finery in build-buy, slews of formal wear in CAS, beachy environs by the boatload, lots hand-built by incredible EA Creators like HeyHarrie, CatherinegYT, Icemunmun, and Simlicy, and robust wedding game play, My Wedding Stories is already pleasing Simmers everywhere.

This is what you can expect based on what we’ve learned from the trailer.

Eagle-eyed Twitter users like @JackofallGames7 quickly confirmed that not only does the game pack come with a new, Mediterranean-inspired world named Tartosa but also that the world seems divided into three distinct neighborhoods: a beachfront neighborhood, a waterfall neighborhood, and a mountainous neighborhood that looks remarkably set upon white Grecian cliffs.

The trailer confirmed a barrage of expected, more robust wedding game play. All of what was leaked earlier last week was observed in the vivid video.

In addition to the sometimes buggily frustrating wedding event in Sims 4, players will now be able to:

• ​Hold engagement dinners
• Recruit the best man and maid of honor
• Select wedding wear at a dress fitting
• Shop for flower decor
• Go cake shopping/cake tasting
• Hold a rehearsal dinner
• Choose the exact desired wedding traditions
• Walk down the aisle/Be walked down the aisle
• Include Flower Girls and Ring Bearers
• Slow dance at the reception with spouse
• Dance at the reception with family and friends, including kids
• Make speeches
• ​Cut the cake
• INVITE GUESTS TO SIT DOWN:

Perhaps even go on honeymoon with nudist joggers.

Some Simmers noted that some of the shopping features - cake tasting, flower purchasing, etc - seem to take place only at stalls , as opposed to brick-and-mortar bridal shops or bakeries.
​
Most notably, perhaps, the Game Pack not only honors Western
wedding traditions but also pays homage to the rich cultures of India and China. The newly engaged can choose from a variety of wonderful wedding wear - from intricate red Sarees to Mandarin collared jackets. It even appears that players will get to mix and match the traditions they want to include! For example, players can choose to hold a “Family Gathering” a Chinese tea ceremony before the wedding ceremony.

The build buy options are what might expect for a wedding pack. It appears to come stuffed with new floral pergolas, soft sphere floor lighting, new buffet tables, new lounge chairs, sheer curtains, stained glass windows, wall decor, wall lighting, functional tea sets, and much more as demonstrated by sharp-eyed Twitter user @SimmerWill:

The new wedding cakes, as demonstrated by Sim Guru Ninja, also come with fresh wedding toppers. LilSimsie must be over the mooooooo-oooon.

​Sorry.

What are you most excited for? Talk to us on Twitter!

When I first heard that the Sims 4 developers planned to release a Carnaval-themed kit, I was overjoyed.  After all, Carnaval is the caliber of world-wide party that encompasses nearly every aspect of my unique Simming style: it celebrates and centers people of color, often highlights the exuberance of queer culture, and embraces all that is over-the-top and breathtakingly indulgent.  The unapologetic debauchery of Carnaval is a luscious luxury-experience of the senses, and I am here for every inch of it.  Dubbed “Carne Vale” or “farewell meat” by the ancient Romans, Carnaval actually originated in ancient Egypt as a ceremony that ushered in the spring season and bid the winter months goodbye.  It is the period of absolute jubilation and feasting that comes before the season of Lent, when many Christians abstain, or fast, from meat, a favored food, or a vice.
 
Sims 4’s Carnaval Streetwear Kit is a Create-a-Sim kit that toes the line between classic Sims ready-to-wear styles and the unapologetic neons, sequins, feathers, and cut-outs of Carnaval.  The kit boasts stunning party pieces in eye-pleasing ice-cream colors and knock-out neons.  It offers tight skirts, glimmering tops, quaint overalls, floral rompers, and feathered accessories all unabashedly inspired by the colors of various queer pride flags.  LGBTQ+ people and their allies will quickly recognize not only the quintessential rainbow flag but also the flags for lesbian pride, demi pride, pansexual pride, and many more. 
 
The kit comes stocked with one new nail set, two new makeups, three accessories, twelve feminine pieces, and six “masculine” pieces.  I aim to review my favorite pieces, but not all of them.  For example, I left off the watermelon shirt because, well, it’s dorky. Deal with it.
 
It should be noted that although I have divided this review into “masculine” and “feminine,” a major selling point of this kit is that each piece is designed to suit all body types.  This is a necessary and highly-requested change that the Sims team appears to whole-heartedly embrace.  By challenging the very idea of “masculinity” with their recent “Modern Menswear Kit” and creating new looks that are designed to fit all body types, the Sims looks to stay on the cutting edge of culture, fashion, and the arc of history that bends toward justice. 

​I’ll be honest. Most of the Sims in my save are masculine. I enjoy making male Sims more than perhaps any other gender, so I am always incredibly excited to get new menswear.  But, perhaps more specifically, I love menswear that retains the hyper-masculine silhouette – broad shoulders, clean lines, narrow waist  – while challenging the hyper-masculine stereotypes with flashy colors and head-turning textures. Before Carnaval Streetwear Kit (and Modern Menswear) I was beginning to grow tired of the scores of boring button-ups and formal suits. Custom content became my saving grace when I dressed my men, though I did also find immense joy in the Fashion Street Kit as well. 
 
I realize, too, that I am perhaps in the minority when it comes to my enjoyment of kits in general, but listen, I’m just that dedicated to my Black masculine Sims.  I am, ahem, perhaps part of the problem.
 
But let’s get to the meat of what I must say about the masculine looks.
 

A close second for me is the colorful mesh top.  This top, available in the many colors of the queer flag rainbow, is exactly what any self-respecting man in a pride parade should strive to wear.  It does also come in plain white and black swatches, which somehow manage to feel even sexier than the other variants, and that is saying something. Alaeryn, my main Sim, with his long and narrow torso and broad chest looks smoking in this top. 
 
There is a sequined top for men as well, and it comes in several cute colors. As much as I live for sequins, this top is just okay for me.  The sequins are certainly shiny, but the texture of the top leaves much to be desired.  Upon closer examination, the sequins appear flat and a little boring, though the shine is almost distracting enough to warrant forgiveness. Almost.
 
Another absolute winner is the half-sleeve tied-off top that comes in twelve stunning swatches.  Although this is far from a traditional masculine silhouette, it pleases me to no end. Alaeryn can’t say no to a gorgeous midriff moment, and he never will, I dare say. The top is, again, floral without being too sickeningly sweet.  Its vivid palm frond patterns and peacock adjacent feather prints are so abundantly lovely that they pair perfectly with island jewelry.  Alaeryn looks ready to sip a colorful beach drink and soak in some sun.
 
​

The last two looks I'll cover – a pair of denim overalls and some floral swimming trunks – are also very cute.  The overalls slip down the SIm’s left shoulder to offer a peek of, again, a variety of queer flag-inspired tanks. The shorts stop just above the knee and would work acceptably, if not a little unremarkably, as swimming trunks.  We got plenty of colorful swimming trunks from Island Living, and there is nothing -outside of the pretty print - that is showstopping about these shorts. These two options are adorable but not Alaeryn’s style. He prefers a swimming outfit that allows him to show off more of his juicy – er– you know what? Let’s just move on. ​

​In true Sims fashion, the women get the lion’s share of the fresh looks in Carnaval Streetwear Kit, and nearly all of them are knockouts.
 
Perhaps the winner of the entire repertoire is a sunny, beaded top, again available in many shades of the queer rainbow. It is a beautiful, skin-baring, jewel-toned work of art that is shiny and colorful and absolutely delicious to behold.
 
But the fun does not even begin to stop there. Another favorite of mine is the pride-flag crop top, a quaint little thing that thrives on bold colors.  Its form-fitting fit and pleasing design is an easy win, though I’m sure many Simmers feel more than inundated with wave upon wave of crop-tops for women.  I am inclined to agree.  It is pretty difficult to dress a more a feminine Sim more conservatively in this game, which can be frustrating, particularly when dressing elder Sims. That being said, this kit is for Carnaval, a world-wide party known for the sexy and indulgent, so I’ll let it slide this time. 

​The tight seductive skirt of the pack comes in ten different swatches.  Hip-hugging and sporting a strappy slit along the sides, the skirt is another gorgeous addition to the Sims 4 catalog, though there is nothing extraordinary about it. It’s a lovely skirt sure to inspire many a woohoo session.
 
The incredible feminine looks continue in this pack with a tutu like rainbow skirt that comes in twelve vivid swatches, a pair of very short denim shorts in ten different colors, a plain pair of shorts with an accompanying fanny pack, a head to toe elegant dress with tempting cut-outs at the waist, a beachwear outfit with vibrant peacock patterns and a long, loose cover up, and a sequined halter-top with an A-line skirt and gold, criss-crossed belts. All of these looks are good, a welcome addition to any feminine closet, and it would be difficult to pick a clear winner if not for the amazing crop-top and suspenders combo. 

​This lovely look continues the tradition of finding inspiration in the many flags of queer culture, but it adds a dreamy, almost celestial star-studded quality to the shorts, which I just love.  It is flirty, with an off-the shoulder lace up top, bright suspenders, and somewhat modest shorts in several appealing colors. 

All right, fine - here is a montage of items also included in the pack which I find - uninspiring at best: 

For me, there is not much to hate when it comes to this pack. It is bold, sexy, and just plain fun.  With its constant nod to queer culture, it is a must-have for any self-respecting, parade-loving, over-the-top Simmer. 
 
That said, I wish the Sims team would have pushed the envelope even further.  I wanted the massive, full-bodied feather costumes that I associate so closely with Carnaval. I wanted the shining beads and body paints of Mardi Gras. I wanted thigh-high strappy boots, impossibly steep heels, body glitter, and just more.
 
This pack gives me glitter and shine, but falls surprisingly short in the texture department.  As many Simmers have already noted, the fanny-pack which comes with the shorts looks flat and painted on, lacking believable dimension. The sequins are shiny but in no way 3-D, and if I’m honest, when putting a feminine Sim in the masculine clothing, the clothes changed her body composition jarringly.  Her torso became longer, her shoulders broader, as if to accommodate the masculine mesh, which, you know, isn’t really the point of unisex clothing, is it?
 
All in all, the pack is a keeper if you’re an extravagant Simmer like me. Grab it now for $4.99 on Origin.
 
Bottom line: Hot or Flop?
 
HOT
​

On January 25th, thousands of notoriously insatiable Simmers awaited word from Maxis on high.  An earlier teaser image, a splash page of colorful confetti, saturated purple, and enthused Sims, promised the Simming audience not only two new vibrant kits but also a game pack that would enhance "romantic parties."  Eagle-eyed Simmers noted quickly the wedding cakes, entwined rings, elaborate masks, and tiger imprints hidden in the confetti, and the cycle of Simming speculation began anew. 

While many Simmers clamored to uncover what romance game pack could be coming, Maxis whetted the appetites of their salivating Simmer audience with news of a fresh new kit: Carnaval Streetwear Kit. 

This Create-a-Sim kit, which will be available February 3rd, is an homage to all things glitter, sequins, neon, and fabulous. The kit not only offers apparel that one might don for the world's biggest party, but it also fits feminine and masculine frames with equal ease. Maxis collaborated with Pabllo Vittar, fresh-faced, enormously talented musician and Drag superstar, to bring this colorful kit to fruition. Each look is inspired by Pabllo herself; they are skin-baring works of mesh, sequins, and glitter. There are fun watermelon imprinted tops, bejeweled crops, rainbow blouses, gold chain belts, hip-hugging purple skirts, sky-colored lowcut halter tops, and more. In a world when we are all redefining norms and encouraging ourselves to be the most authentic we can muster, it is the right kit at the right time. 

But what even is Carnaval? Why should Simmers care about it? Why did Maxis choose this celebration to represent now and why?

Though Carnaval is most closely associated with Brazil, it is actually a world-wide event celebrated in 50 countries all over the world.  In Brazil, two million people of all shapes and sizes dress in feathers and sequins, glitter and gold, and strut down the Sambadrom alongside enormous floats.  These gigantic block parties are an experience of sound, color, and absolute joy.  In Italy, people attend masked balls and dress in decadent masquerade costumes. Carnaval is known as Mardi Gras in the United States, is celebrated with fierce abandon in Trinidad, and has become one of Quebec's largest festivals of the year too. 

Carnaval began as a pagan festival in ancient Egypt. The Egyptians feasted and made merry in order to usher out winter and celebrate the beginning of spring.  Naturally, Alexander the Great  adopted the festival for the Greeks, who passed it to Rome, who eventually infused the festival with Christian meaning. "Carne Vale" means "farewell meat" in Latin; that is, the festival became the grand party of indulgence, of meat-eating and wine-drinking, before the fastidious austerity of Lent.   This practice spread across Europe and then eventually throughout the world through colonization.  In places like Brazil, Salvador, and Trinidad, these European traditions fused with African ones to become the week-long, Afro-Latinx Carnaval we know now. 

The Carnaval Streetwear kit finds inspiration in the eye-popping fashions of Pabllo Vittar. In fact, the update that prepared players for the incoming kit folded a new radio station into base game, which features Pabllo's hit "Buzina," in Simlish.

But who is Pabllo?

Pabllo is a singing, dancing modeling drag sensation from Brazil. Effortlessly stunning, with chiseled bronzed features, a pouty mouth, and a dancer's curvaceous build, Pabllo is sweeping the world by storm with her heart-pumping Brazilian-infused dance music. Featured by both Vogue and Time Magazine as a future industry leader, Pabllo remains the sort of entertainer one can only call "authentic." Her affect is like that of a comforting sister who, before hitting the clubs for the evening, meticulously applies your concealer for you while singing your gorgeous praises.

"Do you want to show up beautiful, or do you want to be on time?" she often jokes.

This is to say nothing of Pabllo's actual singing ability, which is bursting with full-throated range. Pabllo's music captures the joy and sensuality of being uniquely authentic, a trait she espouses and exudes endlessly. She sometimes recalls growing up in Brazil as an effeminate boy who loved to sing and wear dresses. Pabllo recalls many complicated difficulties that accompanied being so deeply different, describing her experience as hard but transformative. Now, Pabllo performs before enormous crowds, belting out her infectious musical repertoire with undeniable verve.

Why should Simmers care about Carnaval or Pabllo Vittar?

The world is changing. The arc of history is bending toward justice, toward authenticity, toward self-acceptance. People, particularly young people, are questioning the restrictive roles and shame heaped upon them in the past to forge ahead, to live their lives in ways that feel good to them. 

The Sims team, through kits like Modern Menswear and Carnaval Streetwear, reflect the changing sensibilities that is their core audience.  "You make the Sims," they insist, and they mean this literally.  The Sims, almost by definition, strives to reflect what is real, what is inclusive, to represent all people. What can be more inclusive than a world-wide party? What can be more inclusive than a singing session with a drag queen pop-star? The Sims must represent all people, who, collectively, have begun to step more fully into their own authenticity. 

While glitz and glam has always been the currency of drag queens, the rest of the world has only just begun to follow their illustrious lead. 

Check out the kit February 3rd. 

On the afternoon of November 16th, Sims 4 developers revealed what would become their latest kit - Modern Menswear - to the world. The kit, slated to release December 2nd, quickly became a trending topic on Twitter while catching the eyes of such high fashion publication and pop culture staples like Vogue and Vice.

​Why all the to-do about a small, 23-piece fashion kit? By teaming up with fashion icon Stefan Cooke to bring his show-stopping, gender norm-upending knitwear to the Sims, developers are fully engaging with the freshest trend in both gaming, fashion, and beyond - creating the metaverse.

The “metaverse” is a term that easily sounds like parody or even post-apocalyptic, but it loosely refers to the growing blend of what is virtual to what is reality. As the Sims partners with Stefan Cooke, Gucci partners with Xbox, and Balenciaga partners with Fortnite, what is “real” is quickly overlapping into what is “virtual” in our increasingly online and global economy.

Modern Menswear features the iconic knits and playful ready-to-wear fashions that often define Stefan Cooke’s signature style. Through 23 fashion pieces, this pack offers players stylish fashions that defy traditionally masculine silhouettes and gender norms. Players can expect bold printed patterns, knitwear with “skirting,” and blouse-like tops.

Why infuse the feminine with the masculine in a modern menswear pack?

What is cutting edge and modern in fashion loudly reflects changing ideas about gender. As the world grapples with what gender means, as people young and old begin questioning and defying gender as a binary, as many people explore the pronouns that most please them and find comfort in the space between gender expectations, as a growing audience begins to upend and break down the patriarchal expectations that are toxic masculinity, fashion responds by offering clothes that live outside of the binary.

What is gender? Why are any of us committed to binding certain silhouettes to a certain group of people in the first place. Stefan Cooke is one of those many designers that throw out tradition and challenge gender expectations in his designs.

Stefan Cooke is a British fashion designer who is committed to uprooting gender expectations in clothing. Alongside his partner and boyfriend Jake Burt, Cooke creates the high-fashion styles that he was often inspired to make through necessity as a young person. Cooke often waxes about his younger years as a designer. While he longed for luxury looks and textiles, he often had to make do with the looks he found in thrift shops or cobbled from scraps of non-standard materials.

The result was a deconstructed look that often parodied what was deemed “high-fashion” and “masculine.” Cooke created knits entirely from buttons for example. He placed woolen knit patterns on polyester and created boldly printed trousers for men.

When Cooke initially came to the table with The Sims producers, he was, according to Vogue, ready to provide radical high-fashion for the iconic game brand. However, when he realized that Simmers really only want ready-to-wear items, he quickly generated ideas that challenged traditional ideas of “masculinity” while remaining palatable to the larger Sims audience.

Community reaction to this kit was mixed. A growing distaste for kits has boiled in the bellies of dedicated players for many months; the “snackable” downloadable content concept feels dangerously close to the widely-loathed but massively profitable microtransaction of mobile games.

Some Simmers, particularly those who have advocated for more menswear from the Sims team, balked at the idea of marrying what is feminine with what is masculine in a pack for men.

Still others believe that such gender-defying fashions should not be hidden behind a paywall. These Simmers point to some of the most recent packs— Incheon Arrivals and Fashion Street— as evidence that Sims developers are asking their players to pay out for cultural representation. Clothes that allow people outside of the White, cis-gendered crowd to represent themselves better in-game, should be offered to everyone, according to such Simmers like Emma Hart:

What do you think of the next Sims kit? Let us know on Twitter! Happy Simming!

SimGuruDuck, SimGuruSalo, and SimGuruRusskii all took to Twitch on October 26th to not only reveal what lies in Sims 4’s immediate future but also to celebrate the vast, unique contributions of Hispanic people in the Sims community.

During this stream, players learned that Sims developers would add a new piece of wall art - painted by Brazilian collaborative Laño- to the game. The wall art, inspired by the flowing, entangled lines of found in nature, is done in black and white but manages to feel light and airy.

Players will find this particular selection of art in game after the next Sims patch, which will hit PC and consoles next week. Folded into this patch is also a textured toddler hairstyle, one previously available via a purchasable DLC. This move is an effort to uncouple many essential representative features from their previous paywalls.

Additionally, the newest Sims update will enable what developers have deemed “Sims Delivery Express,” or hotfixes within game. That is, developers will be able to push out build/buy assets, fresh hairs, or decor in bite-sized updates. Because these updates are so small, they will not require the same content-breaking patches with which Simmers have grown increasingly familiar.

​

The talk of the town, without a doubt, is Sims 4’s newest feature dubbed “Scenarios.”

Essentially, Scenarios are a codification of existing community challenges such as “100 Baby Challenge” and “Rags to Riches.” That is, Sims 4 will now provide in-game structures for completing these challenges to everyone. Players will be able to choose a scenario and complete its objective by whatever means they see fit.

After the update and upon opening a new game, players will be prompted to choose a “new scenario.”

Initially, only two scenarios will be available for players to complete: “moneymaking” and “finding love after a break up.” Each scenario will require the target Sim to achieve a specific goal or set of goals to complete. For “MoneyMaking” the Sim must work (or cheat/lie/steal) their way from zero to one million simoleons within their lifetimes. Some members of the Sims community will recognize this gameplay as “Rags to Riches.”

Players will need to meet the requirements for each new challenge before exiting Create—a-Sim before they can embark on a scenario journey. Some may ask for a certain number of adults or children in the household. Some may require certain aspirations or traits.

While “moneymaking” and “Love after a Breakup” will be the initial scenarios available, Maxis also plans to introduce “well-rounded,” “too many toddlers,” and some limited time only scenarios in the future.

Players who successfully complete challenges earn a lump sum of satisfaction points for their trouble.

What are you excited for?

​

Hallyu, or Korean pop culture, has officially seized the world into its inspiringly catchy and fashionable grip.

Sims 4 is no exception. With salivating fans across the globe consuming gargantuan amounts of K-Pop music like BTS and raving about such Korean dramas as Squid Game, it is no wonder that Sims 4 developers would get around to capturing these trends in their life simulator.

Incheon Arrivals Kit is slated to release October 5th. Included in this pack are the current — think 2021 Seoul Fall Fashion week current— threads often touted by the biggest of international pop-stars on what has become one of the world’s biggest international fashion runways: the Incheon Airport.

The Incheon Arrivals kit comes fitted with the ready-to-wear apparel currently popular amongst Korean youth. Players can expect loose-fitting knits, chunky shoes (affectionately called “turbo trainers”, ankle pants, trenchcoats, plaid button ups, military boots, and sleek head-to-toe black looks.

Korean trends show young people gravitating to simple neutrals and cozy, oversized items, particularly knits. Players can expect a lot of this trend in the newest kit.

Koreans are also cozying up to large trenchcoats as fashion pieces, a look Sims 4 seems to have embraced in spades:

The Incheon Arrivals kit will appeal to players who adore comfortable fashions in muted neutrals. As some Korean youth move away from what may be considered traditional wear, they seem to edge closer to what may be recognized as “90s grunge,” and we here at Simmer’s Digest are more than happy with this.

​What are you most excited for in this brand new kit?

In efforts to expand the Sims 4 repertoire of fresh fashion, Sims 4 developers have announced a new Create-a-Sim kit, one inspired by the trendy threads of Mumbai, India: Fashion Street Kit.

The incoming kit, slated to release October 5th, is filled with the bold prints, silk tops, and gold accessories that often characterize the well-dressed youth of India.

Priced at 4.99 USD, the Fashion Street Kit offers 26 new clothing items for the stylist Simmer. A quick glance at the fashionable selection reveals carefully crafted items that reflect both new and old worlds, a marriage between what is modern and what is traditional, a dichotomy that is incredibly common on the streets of Mumbai.

Young professionals in India often celebrate their ancient heritage by wearing traditional pieces with more updated ones. Someone might pair a simple white dress or suit with a dupatta, a finely embroidered shawl, for a pop of color. While traditional dupattas were often worn over the shoulders and head, more modern wearers might wear it just over the arms, around the torso like a cape, or slung over one shoulder.

The result is modest and regal, but flowing— almost bohemian— and chic.

The pack also includes several versions of a kurta, or a long, tunic-like shirt often worn with pleated, loose fitting pants that cuff at the bottom called shalwar. These garments are often worn in the name of comfort, but modern youth often update these styles with more wearable fabrics and more chic prints. Pairing these traditional silhouettes with clean, modern sandals complete this modest look.

Outfittrends.com

Fashion Street offers Simmers a new gold nose piercing to accompany its Indian-inspired fashions. Why nose piercings? Traditionally, Indian women pierced their noses to indicate their marital status. A single stud, or “nath,” in the left nostril often meant a young woman was married. But Indian people also enjoy chunky gold jewelry as a fashion accessory, a symbol of wealth, and to honor religious traditions.

Indian people often paint their hands, arms, legs, or feet at important celebrations like weddings, birthdays, and baby showers with a special, ink-like mixture called Henna. The intricate designs henna artists paint onto their clients are complex, beautiful, and instantly recognizable.

This tradition is also practiced in other south Asian countries and in parts of the Middle East. After crushing the Henna plant, a plant known for its cooling properties, into a stain paste, henna masters paint eye-popping patterns onto their clients with the paste. The henna emits a cooling sensation as it dries, a phenomenon enormously helpful for hot Indian summers. The result is a tattoo-like stain on the skin to be treasured.

The Fashion Street pack is for the stylist Simmer looking to add a bit of old-world elegance into their bohemian chic wardrobe. Filled with gold fittings and updated traditional-wear, this pack is sure to please.

What are you most excited about in this upcoming pack?

The Sims 4: Spa Day will receive a well-earned facelift on September 7th, 2021.

The Sims 4 team recently made and announced this unprecedented decision - to refine player experience of existing downloadable content, just last Thursday. Though content in question is the game pack “Spa Day,” and it is a choice that not only brings new aspirations, fashionable fingernails, plush reimaginings of existing Spa Day build buy, and fresh Sim traits to the game, but it also seems to preface a series of future pack improvements.

That is, for years many Sims 4 players have bemoaned the lack of depth and realism in both the popular franchise’s base game and its plethora of purchasable packs. Simmers have pointed out the dearth of activities available for children and elders, the superficial gloss of each new pack, and the noticeable vacuum of sustainable gameplay.

Sims 4 developers have taken these criticisms to heart and appear to be slowly updating the quality of Sim hairs and available gameplay in its base game. With the announcement of a Spa Day refresh, developers seem to have embarked upon a journey to drastically improve in-game content.

What exactly can Simmers expect in the renewed pack?

Most notably, Create-a-Sim will gain a new category for both fingernails and toenails!

Simmers will be able to outfit their pixel people with an array of stunning nails- designed by Ebonix herself- in a variety of rounded, stilleto, almond-shaped, short clipped, and unapologetically clawed styles.

In fact, not only will Simmers gain the ability to browse different nail lengths, but they will also be able to choose from several shades of nail colors. The colors come in both high-gloss and matte finishes. Simmers can even choose “curated” styles from Ebonix Sims!

Shiny polishes will display in the in-game menu as glossy nail polish bottles.

.Meanwhile, matte colors will appear as matte- without the signature “shine” - in the menu.

Of course, Sims who want to really express themselves have a variety of fun designs to choose from too.

And they exist alongside Ebonix’s signature nail designs.

When applied in Create-a-Sim, Sim nails will never degrade or need up-keep. They will remain glossy and perfectly maintained for all time.

However, when Sims receive a manicure in-game, those nails will eventually fade and chip, requiring another visit to the spa. This adds a new layer of realistic gameplay in the Sims 4 which is sure to delight fans.

In the past, face masks were only available to Sims while in a bath. The masks helped them relieve tension and gain some temporary moodlets.

The Spa Day refresh allows Sims to purchase face masks at any time from refrigerators. Each face mask offers different, longer lasting moodlet properties.

Kids can even join in the fun this time around. With fun, randomized animal masks, child Sims will get to take part in spa days alongside their self-care savvy parents.

Leaving a face mask on for too long, however, can yield various, unpleasant results from “Weird Sensations” to unfortunate rash. (Occult Sims will also experience interesting side-effects that have yet to be revealed.)

Refrigerators will also boast delicious cucumber slices and cucumber fizzy power sips for Sims to enjoy. These refreshing snacks will also offer some hilariously overboard focus moodlets.

The Spa Day refresh comes complete with three new, sorely needed aspirations: Self-Care Specialist, Zen Guru, and Inner Peace.

Sims with the “Self-Care Specialist” aspiration will have an easier time monetizing their guru abilities- that is, whenever they hold a yoga or meditation class, clients will pay more money for a little slice of that heavenly zen expertise.

By contrast “Zen Guru” Sims will radiate peace and tranquility. They will gain an uncanny ability to empathize with other Sims and soothe them when experiencing unpleasant emotions.

The Sim who desires “inner peace” will turn their zen journey inward, working to master the turmoils of negative emotions.

All three aspirations, naturally, come with new reward traits: Self-care expertise, Calming Aura, and Clear Perspective, respectively.

But the meatiest portion of this refresh is the ability to place the newly updated massage chairs, yoga mats, meditation poufs, and massage tables into inventory. An aspiring Zen Instructor can then place these glorious guru items anywhere in the world to run an impromptu meditation class, yoga class, or impromptu nail salon.

For yoga classes, the instructor must purchase an instructor’s yoga mat- indicated by the Spa Day logo imprinted in one corner- and can also purchase Sim mats for their students, but they don’t have to. Eager yoga students will bring their own mats to class.

The instructor can set their class up as “public,” meaning any Sim in the vicinity may join, or “private,” meaning the instructor must invite attendees.

Instructors can even boost class attendance by advertising on Simstagram!

Even children can join as yoga class attendees or even lead sessions as instructors.

Participating in yoga and meditation classes increase mental and motor skills for kids. If the player has parenthood installed, meditation also increases “emotional control.”

Naturally, the Spa Day refresh features a massive spread of new and updated build/buy items.

Players will enjoy a slew of new robe and towel swatches, fun meditation poufs in a variety incredible colors, new plush massage chairs, a wide array of yoga mats, and much more.

CAS enthusiasts will also find a new sweatsuit for kids, adults, and even toddlers!

​What are you most excited for?

In a huge pre-Cottage Living release patch, Sims 4 developers delivered several player-pleasing in-game updates that have thrilled the larger Sims community.

This patch, standing at 9.62 GB, injects a plethora of family fun into base game alongside extensive glitch course correcting. Base game players can now engage in “Group Cooking,” garden alongside their children, order restaurant-recipes and grocery delivery through an Uber Eats-like app called Zoomers.

If that were not all, Simmers will now be able to build natural water features like lakes and ponds with a new pond tool! Developers have also improved the notebook tool and transitioned the calendar, an organizational widget once native to only Seasons, to base game. Pairing all these fresh features with bug fixes for smoother gameplay with less simulation lag and correctly functioning mirrors, this patch is one that offers intensive quality-of-life changes for the average Simmer.

In this stunning update, Sims gain the ability to cook alongside their family members. Up to five relatives can prepare a meal
at the same time, building social points, increasing any involved child’s mental skill, and resulting in higher quality, larger servings.

Of course, sometimes a busy Sim has no time to cook. This update allows Sims to order delicious restaurant dishes or order quick groceries from the Zoomer delivery service,

The handy Sim notebook now has its own button! It is no longer attached to the phone.

To help Simmers keep track of fairs, weather, birthdays, and social events, developers included the calendar in this base game update.

Gleeful builders will be pleased to know that ponds and other natural bodies of water can now be created in-game without visual tricks. The player need only create a hole and then fill it with water! Developers also fine-tuned landscape tools, offering a better build experience.

Simmers can also fill their ponds with alligators, swans, dragonflies, and more!

Children can now garden alongside their older family members. This action helps children develop their “mental” skill!

This incredible update also offers two new textures hairs and two stunning works of art that represent the tenderness of chosen family and the vulnerability inherent in every fight for freedom. Simmers can find these powerful masterpieces, created by Ashley Lukashepsky and Muhammad Iman Fayaz, under wall art.

Players who pre-ordered Cottage Living also received their free functional bicycle, gnome, and lantern-lit tree today.

Developers address and continue to course correct simulation lag, an issue that has plagued some Simmers for several months. In addition, developers have corrected malfunctioning mirrors, which were reflecting outdoor scenery even when walls were completely up. There are a plethora of other squashed bugs that Simmers can read about on the Sims 4 website here: https://www.ea.com/games/the-sims/the-sims-4/news/update-7-20-2021

Keep it locked right here, on Simmer’s Digest, for more comprehensive Sims news!
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