Latest / The Plumbob Report / EA Buyout Backlash, Maker Pack Mania, and Neverway’s Nightmarish Sims Vibes

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EA Buyout Backlash, Maker Pack Mania, and Neverway’s Nightmarish Sims Vibes · The Plumbob Report

• 0:12
  [Becca Hartwell] Okay,
• 0:12
  [Becca Hartwell] okay,
• 0:12
  [Becca Hartwell] okay.
• 0:13
  [Becca Hartwell] Welcome back to the Plumbob Report.
• 0:15
  [Danny Reyes] Hey Simmers,
• 0:16
  [Danny Reyes] grab a snack,
• 0:17
  [Danny Reyes] hide your pool ladders, we've got things to talk about.
• 0:20
  [Becca Hartwell] Here's the thing. Today is chaos in a suit.
• 0:24
  [Becca Hartwell] Lilsimsie and a U.S. Representative teaming up over EA buyout drama.
• 0:28
  [Danny Reyes] Wow. Yeah, we went from build tutorials to congressional energy real fast.
• 0:33
  [Danny Reyes] Plus rumors of Sims 4 going free to play and Kits quietly vanishing on console.
• 0:39
  [Becca Hartwell] If your DLC shelf looks like a glitchy inventory,
• 0:43
  [Becca Hartwell] you are not alone.
• 0:44
  [Becca Hartwell] We're going to walk through what this means and how to protect your saves.
• 0:47
  [Danny Reyes] Right,
• 0:48
  [Danny Reyes] and then we're digging into those new Sims 4 Maker Packs. Are these creative tools or is it just your old DLC in a new tiny box with a bow?
• 0:59
  [Becca Hartwell] Teasing!
• 0:59
  [Becca Hartwell] Meanwhile,
• 1:00
  [Becca Hartwell] CC creators like IllogicalSims and Lofty are over here actually fixing storyteller problems.
• 1:06
  [Becca Hartwell] You know what I mean?
• 1:07
  [Danny Reyes] Totally; and speaking of which,
• 1:09
  [Danny Reyes] we'll jump to the wider life sim world:
• 1:12
  [Danny Reyes] creepy EA Project X,
• 1:14
  [Danny Reyes] Paralives museum chaos,
• 1:16
  [Danny Reyes] and Neverway's horror routines.
• 1:19
  [Becca Hartwell] Curiously,
• 1:20
  [Becca Hartwell] plus a cozy pivot into Tomodachi-style nonsense and what a cozy but cursed future life sim might look like.
• 1:28
  [Danny Reyes] So,
• 1:28
  [Danny Reyes] anyway,
• 1:29
  [Danny Reyes] buckle up,
• 1:29
  [Danny Reyes] save your game twice,
• 1:31
  [Danny Reyes] and maybe back up that mods folder.
• 1:33
  [Becca Hartwell] All right,
• 1:34
  [Becca Hartwell] let's get into it.
• 1:35
  [Becca Hartwell] First up,
• 1:36
  [Becca Hartwell] Lil'
• 1:36
  [Becca Hartwell] Simsie,
• 1:37
  [Becca Hartwell] Congress,
• 1:37
  [Becca Hartwell] and The Sims 4 free to play rumors.
• 1:44
  [Becca Hartwell] All right, don't go anywhere,
• 1:46
  [Becca Hartwell] because when we come back,
• 1:48
  [Becca Hartwell] Danny's sure to have some hot takes on the newest build.
• 1:51
  [Becca Hartwell] You know the one I'm talking about,
• 1:53
  [Becca Hartwell] the house built entirely out of Plumbobs.
• 1:56
  [Becca Hartwell] We'll be right back.
• 2:04
  [Danny Reyes] Okay,
• 2:04
  [Danny Reyes] so I woke up, opened my phone, and saw Lil'
• 2:08
  [Danny Reyes] Simsie and a U.S. Representative launch Sims Petition. I thought I was still in a nightmare loading screen.
• 2:14
  [Becca Hartwell] Right?
• 2:15
  [Becca Hartwell] That headline feels like when your Sim marries the Grim Reaper.
• 2:19
  [Becca Hartwell] Technically possible,
• 2:20
  [Becca Hartwell] but you do a double take.
• 2:21
  [Danny Reyes] No way is this normal.
• 2:23
  [Danny Reyes] A Sims YouTuber and Congress talking about EA over a buyout rumor?
• 2:29
  [Becca Hartwell] Yeah,
• 2:29
  [Becca Hartwell] so quick setup.
• 2:31
  [Becca Hartwell] There are serious talks about a big company buying EA.
• 2:34
  [Becca Hartwell] Nothing locked,
• 2:35
  [Becca Hartwell] but enough smoke that people are nervous about who controls the Sims money faucet.
• 2:39
  [Danny Reyes] And players are mad enough that Lil'
• 2:41
  [Danny Reyes] Simzy is literally on a live stream with a Representative with a petition saying,
• 2:46
  [Danny Reyes] hey regulators,
• 2:47
  [Danny Reyes] please look at this before our DLC libraries get Thanos-snapped.
• 2:52
  [Becca Hartwell] That's the part that tells you how fed up people are. When a builder who just wants to place windows
• 2:57
  [Becca Hartwell] knows properly is suddenly in policy mode,
• 3:00
  [Becca Hartwell] you know the vibes are bad.
• 3:01
  [Danny Reyes] Just swatting away flies in the policy swamp.
• 3:04
  [Becca Hartwell] Right?
• 3:05
  [Becca Hartwell] And the ask is pretty simple:
• 3:07
  [Becca Hartwell] If this buyout happens,
• 3:09
  [Becca Hartwell] protect existing purchases and don't let some new overlord lock basic gameplay behind extra paywalls.
• 3:15
  [Danny Reyes] Because we all remember the Marketplace rollout. One week of chaos, vibes in the gutter, and now imagine that energy turned up for a f***ed.
• 3:23
  [Danny Reyes] A full free-to-play shift.
• 3:25
  [Becca Hartwell] Speaking of which,
• 3:26
  [Becca Hartwell] AD HOC did that big piece on EA eyeing a free-to-play revival for The Sims 4.
• 3:31
  [Becca Hartwell] More live service,
• 3:32
  [Becca Hartwell] more microtransactions, more optional stuff that mysteriously feels required.
• 3:37
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 3:38
  [Danny Reyes] my timeline was like,
• 3:39
  [Danny Reyes] so we're getting The Sims Mobile but inside PC now?
• 3:44
  [Becca Hartwell] I mean, the money math is obvious.
• 3:46
  [Becca Hartwell] Base game free,
• 3:48
  [Becca Hartwell] hook new players,
• 3:49
  [Becca Hartwell] sell them endless...
• 3:50
  [Becca Hartwell] Lists small items instead of big packs.
• 3:52
  [Danny Reyes] Here's my fear:
• 3:53
  [Danny Reyes] they look at how players reacted to the Marketplace,
• 3:56
  [Danny Reyes] learn the WRONG lesson,
• 3:58
  [Danny Reyes] and just get sneakier with it.
• 4:00
  [Becca Hartwell] Lists "Here's a whole pack"
• 4:02
  [Becca Hartwell] more "You want that couch?
• 4:03
  [Becca Hartwell] Cool,
• 4:04
  [Becca Hartwell] that's part of a tiny bundle in a rotating shop.
• 4:07
  [Danny Reyes] THE MOBILE COUCH FOMO ARCH
• 4:09
  [Becca Hartwell] And in the middle of all that,
• 4:11
  [Becca Hartwell] consoles are acting weird.
• 4:13
  [Becca Hartwell] Kits vanishing from console stores,
• 4:15
  [Becca Hartwell] error pages.
• 4:16
  [Becca Hartwell] Stuff quietly delisted.
• 4:18
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 4:18
  [Danny Reyes] console players are posting screenshots like, my Kits tab is just gone?
• 4:24
  [Danny Reyes] Some can still re-download owned stuff.
• 4:26
  [Danny Reyes] Some can't even see it listed.
• 4:28
  [Becca Hartwell] That kind of thing usually means licensing or a store back-end change.
• 4:33
  [Becca Hartwell] With buyout talks on the table and a free-to-play pivot in the air,
• 4:37
  [Becca Hartwell] it absolutely looks like they are rearranging the furniture.
• 4:40
  [Danny Reyes] Which, cool,
• 4:41
  [Danny Reyes] except those are people's real money purchases.
• 4:44
  [Danny Reyes] You can't just move the book shelf and then forget the baby in it.
• 4:47
  [Becca Hartwell] Sims 2 closet a b energy.
• 4:50
  [Danny Reyes] Exactly.
• 4:51
  [Becca Hartwell] This is why I keep yelling "Back up your saves,
• 4:54
  [Becca Hartwell] back up your mods; if the business side sneezes,
• 4:57
  [Becca Hartwell] I don't want your ten generation legacy vanishing because some storefront flag flipped.
• 5:02
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 5:02
  [Danny Reyes] my game already takes forever to load—if it's going to suffer,
• 5:06
  [Danny Reyes] it better at least load my cursed families.
• 5:09
  [Becca Hartwell] From EA's side the plan is obvious: turn Sims 4 into a
• 5:12
  [Speaker 3] live service.
• 5:12
  [Becca Hartwell] to a long-tail money machine while the next evolution thing cooks.
• 5:16
  [Becca Hartwell] From the player side,
• 5:17
  [Becca Hartwell] it feels like, cool,
• 5:19
  [Becca Hartwell] but where's the line?
• 5:20
  [Danny Reyes] Like, are we talking free base game fair DLC sales or free base game pay to use the oven more than three times a Sim week?
• 5:29
  [Becca Hartwell] That's why the little Simsie petition matters.
• 5:31
  [Becca Hartwell] Even if you never touch politics,
• 5:33
  [Becca Hartwell] it's one of the few concrete levers players have while regulators are actually paying attention.
• 5:38
  [Danny Reyes] And even smaller stuff matters.
• 5:41
  [Danny Reyes] Check your console library.
• 5:42
  [Danny Reyes] Make sure content still shows as owned.
• 5:45
  [Danny Reyes] Grab screenshots,
• 5:46
  [Danny Reyes] receipts, whatever,
• 5:47
  [Danny Reyes] before anyone starts quietly sunsetting things.
• 5:50
  [Becca Hartwell] Also,
• 5:51
  [Becca Hartwell] be loud.
• 5:52
  [Becca Hartwell] Forums, social,
• 5:54
  [Becca Hartwell] surveys,
• 5:55
  [Becca Hartwell] companies love to say players told us they wanted more flexible spending options.
• 5:59
  [Becca Hartwell] Cool.
• 6:00
  [Becca Hartwell] Tell them you want security and fair prices too.
• 6:03
  [Danny Reyes] And maybe not turning the Marketplace into a giant Motherlode.
• 6:07
  [Danny Reyes] load button for EA.
• 6:08
  [Becca Hartwell] There it is.
• 6:10
  [Danny Reyes] So big picture,
• 6:11
  [Danny Reyes] we have top-down money stuff feeling sketchy. How are players and creators taking control from the bottom up inside their own games?
• 6:24
  [Becca Hartwell] Shifting gears,
• 6:25
  [Becca Hartwell] imagine we're on a Sims shopping haul, but in spreadsheet form.
• 6:29
  [Danny Reyes] Oh no,
• 6:30
  [Danny Reyes] we're doing math with vibes again.
• 6:32
  [Becca Hartwell] Always.
• 6:32
  [Becca Hartwell] So EA's new Maker Packs on the Marketplace,
• 6:35
  [Becca Hartwell] themed bundles for builders and CAS goblins,
• 6:39
  [Becca Hartwell] they're mixing in older items with new bits.
• 6:41
  [Danny Reyes] Right,
• 6:42
  [Danny Reyes] which is where people are side-eyeing. If you've been buying DLC all along,
• 6:46
  [Danny Reyes] you're paying again just to get one or two fresh things.
• 6:49
  [Becca Hartwell] Exactly.
• 6:50
  [Becca Hartwell] For new players it's nice; for long timers it feels like EA sliced resale leftovers into little charcuterie boards.
• 6:59
  [Danny Reyes] Bless you!
• 7:00
  [Becca Hartwell] Charcuterie board; you get one cheesy want,
• 7:03
  [Becca Hartwell] three crackers you already ate.
• 7:05
  [Danny Reyes] The question is,
• 7:06
  [Danny Reyes] do these feel like actual creative tools or just more ways to charge for the same content categories?
• 7:12
  [Becca Hartwell] I'm torn,
• 7:13
  [Becca Hartwell] having decor,
• 7:14
  [Becca Hartwell] poses,
• 7:15
  [Becca Hartwell] clutter grouped by creator type is smart,
• 7:17
  [Becca Hartwell] but it's like we already organize our Mods folder better than this.
• 7:21
  [Danny Reyes] As a Gallery builder,
• 7:22
  [Danny Reyes] I want tools that change how I build.
• 7:25
  [Danny Reyes] Sliders,
• 7:25
  [Danny Reyes] filters,
• 7:26
  [Danny Reyes] UI fixes.
• 7:27
  [Danny Reyes] Not forty seven more vases.
• 7:29
  [Becca Hartwell] And this is where CC blows it out of the water.
• 7:33
  [Becca Hartwell] IllogicalSims dropped new CC pack add ons that are exactly what I wish Maker meant.
• 7:38
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah!
• 7:39
  [Danny Reyes] Tiny focused sets that patch gaps,
• 7:42
  [Danny Reyes] extra counters for existing
• 7:44
  [Speaker 4] What crime?
• 7:44
  [Danny Reyes] kitchens,
• 7:45
  [Danny Reyes] more clutter for Styles EA half finished.
• 7:47
  [Becca Hartwell] And Lofty CC reviews are basically premium Kit,
• 7:51
  [Becca Hartwell] but actually cohesive.
• 7:53
  [Becca Hartwell] Like a whole aesthetic,
• 7:54
  [Becca Hartwell] tuned swatches no random lime green object ruining your screenshot.
• 7:59
  [Danny Reyes] Plus,
• 7:59
  [Danny Reyes] that big Maxis-match clothing showcase?
• 8:02
  [Danny Reyes] Seventy-ish sets,
• 8:04
  [Danny Reyes] all kid through elder,
• 8:05
  [Danny Reyes] all coordinated.
• 8:07
  [Danny Reyes] Storytellers are eating.
• 8:09
  [Becca Hartwell] Meanwhile our Sims stand in front of the closet and pick the one base game T-shirt with the weird logo.
• 8:15
  [Becca Hartwell] Ugh.
• 8:15
  [Danny Reyes] Mood. My Sims walk past six CC winter outfits.
• 8:20
  [Danny Reyes] Just to freeze to death in athletic shorts.
• 8:22
  [Danny Reyes] That wardrobe autonomy is an enemy.
• 8:25
  [Becca Hartwell] So, here's the contrast:
• 8:27
  [Becca Hartwell] Maker Packs bundle content types.
• 8:30
  [Becca Hartwell] CC creators solve problems.
• 8:32
  [Becca Hartwell] They look at what Storytellers need and go,
• 8:34
  [Becca Hartwell] here's a full family wardrobe that actually matches.
• 8:37
  [Danny Reyes] And usually optimized meshes, reasonable file sizes,
• 8:41
  [Danny Reyes] better LODs.
• 8:42
  [Danny Reyes] Meanwhile,
• 8:43
  [Danny Reyes] official DLC couches lag more than my 20 gig Mods folder.
• 8:47
  [Danny Reyes] Builder.
• 8:47
  [Danny Reyes] That's the thing.
• 8:49
  [Danny Reyes] EA is trying to brand creativity with these Bundles, but the community already built a better toolbox.
• 8:55
  [Becca Hartwell] When fan-made Premium Kits feel more reliable than official ones,
• 9:00
  [Becca Hartwell] it kind of flips who's leading the design.
• 9:02
  [Danny Reyes] Okay, quick question.
• 9:03
  [Danny Reyes] For you, Build or CAS time sync?
• 9:06
  [Becca Hartwell] CAS.
• 9:07
  [Becca Hartwell] I'll sculpt the perfect Sim,
• 9:09
  [Becca Hartwell] pick traits,
• 9:10
  [Becca Hartwell] do backstory,
• 9:11
  [Becca Hartwell] then abandon them at the Welcome Wagon.
• 9:13
  [Danny Reyes] Incredible.
• 9:14
  [Danny Reyes] So for Builders like me,
• 9:16
  [Danny Reyes] Maker-
• 9:16
  [Danny Reyes] Maker Packs could work if they were pro-grade tools. For CAS goblins like you,
• 9:21
  [Danny Reyes] they mostly feel like repackaged decor.
• 9:23
  [Becca Hartwell] Yep, and this is where that Maker Pak survey actually matters.
• 9:27
  [Becca Hartwell] EA asking specific questions about this format is rare.
• 9:31
  [Danny Reyes] They're saying,
• 9:32
  [Danny Reyes] what type of creator are you? What would you pay for?
• 9:35
  [Danny Reyes] That's your chance to yell politely in a form.
• 9:38
  [Becca Hartwell] If you want better build tools,
• 9:40
  [Becca Hartwell] tick every box about sliders.
• 9:42
  [Becca Hartwell] There's filters you type in "Don't resell me stuff I own just to get one new object.
• 9:48
  [Danny Reyes] And if you care about pricing,
• 9:50
  [Danny Reyes] use the comments-say you want smaller,
• 9:53
  [Danny Reyes] cheaper packs of only new content,
• 9:55
  [Danny Reyes] or loyalty pricing for big libraries.
• 9:57
  [Becca Hartwell] Also mention performance; ask them to optimise marketplace items,
• 10:02
  [Becca Hartwell] because if my game stutters when I place a chair,
• 10:05
  [Becca Hartwell] I'm going back to CC.
• 10:06
  [Danny Reyes] Emphatically fill that survey like you're writing patch notes for the devs.
• 10:10
  [Danny Reyes] Steps.
• 10:10
  [Becca Hartwell] And honestly,
• 10:11
  [Becca Hartwell] seeing how CC makers experiment with formats kind of proves something.
• 10:15
  [Danny Reyes] That creators are already stretching what life sim content can look like.
• 10:20
  [Becca Hartwell] Which neatly leads into other studios getting weird with life sims in general.
• 10:24
  [Becca Hartwell] If EA is doing Maker Packs,
• 10:27
  [Becca Hartwell] some competitors are like,
• 10:28
  [Becca Hartwell] cool,
• 10:29
  [Becca Hartwell] what if the whole game is a cursed experiment?
• 10:32
  [Danny Reyes] Stick around because people outside the Sims bubble are going...
• 10:36
  [Danny Reyes] going full chaos in this genre.
• 10:43
  [Danny Reyes] Contrast pivot for real.
• 10:45
  [Danny Reyes] We've got to talk about EA's mysterious Project X.
• 10:49
  [Becca Hartwell] The one insider said was taking notes from Hello Neighbor 2.
• 10:52
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 10:53
  [Danny Reyes] imagine a Simsish suburb, but the AI neighbors are kind of watching you instead of just stealing your grilled cheese.
• 11:00
  [Becca Hartwell] So instead of my Sim mopping during a fire,
• 11:03
  [Becca Hartwell] they're mopping while something is staring at them through the window.
• 11:06
  [Danny Reyes] Exactly.
• 11:07
  [Danny Reyes] Classic Sims chaos is you set the fire.
• 11:10
  [Danny Reyes] Project X sounds more like the neighborhood has secrets and you're the new weirdo on the block.
• 11:15
  [Becca Hartwell] And that Hello Neighbor vibe means stealthy sneaking,
• 11:18
  [Becca Hartwell] right?
• 11:19
  [Becca Hartwell] Checking mail you shouldn't, creeping into the neighbor's basement?
• 11:22
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah, more systems about suspicion and routines.
• 11:25
  [Danny Reyes] Like when does Mrs Crumple... well,
• 11:27
  [Danny Reyes] not Crumplebottom,
• 11:28
  [Danny Reyes] but,
• 11:28
  [Danny Reyes] you know,
• 11:29
  [Danny Reyes] leave the house?
• 11:30
  [Danny Reyes] What lights flip on at night?
• 11:31
  [Becca Hartwell] So you're not just decorating a cute house,
• 11:34
  [Becca Hartwell] you're mapping patrol routes like it's a
• 11:35
  [Becca Hartwell] It's a heist sim.
• 11:36
  [Danny Reyes] Right,
• 11:37
  [Danny Reyes] and I kind of love that as a weird cousin to life sims. Less perfect family,
• 11:42
  [Danny Reyes] more please don't get caught going through the trash.
• 11:45
  [Becca Hartwell] That is a perfect family.
• 11:48
  [Danny Reyes] Fair.
• 11:48
  [Becca Hartwell] Speaking of weird cousins,
• 11:50
  [Becca Hartwell] Paralives dropped that museum venue preview and builders lost their minds.
• 11:56
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 11:56
  [Danny Reyes] that video was like a love letter to systems kids.
• 12:00
  [Danny Reyes] Beneficial features basically means
• 12:02
  [Danny Reyes] It means if you add a museum it plugs into town life instead of dead set dressing.
• 12:06
  [Becca Hartwell] So buffs,
• 12:07
  [Becca Hartwell] routines,
• 12:08
  [Becca Hartwell] maybe events tied to specific rooms,
• 12:11
  [Becca Hartwell] your art Sim actually gets something from working there beyond sad mood lit and low pay?
• 12:16
  [Danny Reyes] And the way you can define areas-galleries,
• 12:19
  [Danny Reyes] archives,
• 12:20
  [Danny Reyes] kid zones.
• 12:21
  [Danny Reyes] That screams
• 12:21
  [Becca Hartwell] Yes.
• 12:21
  [Danny Reyes] Storyteller tools to me.
• 12:23
  [Danny Reyes] You can visually signal this is the forbidden wing without a fake loading screen.
• 12:28
  [Becca Hartwell] Compared to The Sims 4,
• 12:29
  [Becca Hartwell] it feels closer to how we wish venues worked.
• 12:32
  [Becca Hartwell] Less generic museum lot type,
• 12:34
  [Becca Hartwell] more this exact building has rules.
• 12:37
  [Danny Reyes] Also, builders are drooling over the modular walls and displays.
• 12:41
  [Danny Reyes] It is very Gallery challenge friendly.
• 12:43
  [Danny Reyes] You can actually show off collections instead of shoving six identical posters on a wall.
• 12:48
  [Becca Hartwell] And the pathing looked solid.
• 12:50
  [Becca Hartwell] No twelve Sim conga line to the same painting,
• 12:53
  [Becca Hartwell] which,
• 12:53
  [Becca Hartwell] low bar,
• 12:54
  [Becca Hartwell] but here we are.
• 12:55
  [Becca Hartwell] Okay.
• 12:55
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 12:55
  [Danny Reyes] my Sims still queue in front of the same sink while three others are free.
• 13:00
  [Danny Reyes] So yeah,
• 13:01
  [Danny Reyes] I notice.
• 13:02
  [Becca Hartwell] Okay.
• 13:02
  [Becca Hartwell] Museum is the chill version.
• 13:04
  [Becca Hartwell] Then there is Neverway,
• 13:06
  [Becca Hartwell] which said,
• 13:07
  [Becca Hartwell] what if life sim,
• 13:08
  [Becca Hartwell] but your town hates you and the fog is sentient?
• 13:11
  [Danny Reyes] The previews for that are wild.
• 13:13
  [Danny Reyes] People are calling it a nightmarish life sim,
• 13:16
  [Danny Reyes] which is exactly my jam.
• 13:19
  [Becca Hartwell] Same.
• 13:19
  [Becca Hartwell] You still have routines,
• 13:21
  [Becca Hartwell] jobs,
• 13:22
  [Becca Hartwell] relationships.
• 13:22
  [Becca Hartwell] But layered with cosmic horror,
• 13:25
  [Becca Hartwell] weird rituals in the sense that every NPC knows something you do not.
• 13:29
  [Speaker 5] I love
• 13:30
  [Danny Reyes] But it's not just jump scares,
• 13:32
  [Danny Reyes] it's more psychological:
• 13:33
  [Danny Reyes] the clock always a little wrong,
• 13:35
  [Danny Reyes] your bedroom rearranged when you wake up,
• 13:37
  [Danny Reyes] neighbors speaking in code.
• 13:39
  [Becca Hartwell] October release window is perfect for it.
• 13:42
  [Becca Hartwell] Cozy season,
• 13:43
  [Becca Hartwell] but make it cursed.
• 13:44
  [Danny Reyes] And the key thing: the horror is baked into the systems.
• 13:48
  [Danny Reyes] Gossip matters,
• 13:49
  [Danny Reyes] curfews matter.
• 13:50
  [Danny Reyes] You're min-maxing your sanity bar instead of your promotion ladder.
• 13:54
  [Becca Hartwell] My brain immediately went-
• 13:55
  [Speaker 6] What if my Sim's terrible autonomy existed there,
• 13:59
  [Speaker 6] like the sky toilet?
• 14:00
  [Becca Hartwell] It turns red,
• 14:01
  [Becca Hartwell] the cult bells ring,
• 14:02
  [Becca Hartwell] and they just start mopping the sidewalk.
• 14:05
  [Danny Reyes] Or autonomously grab spoiled leftovers while an ancient god phases through the fridge.
• 14:12
  [Becca Hartwell] I know the void is screaming,
• 14:14
  [Becca Hartwell] but this grilled cheese won't eat itself.
• 14:16
  [Danny Reyes] That's nightmare fuel in a very different way.
• 14:20
  [Becca Hartwell] So you've got Project X nudging into stealthy paranoia,
• 14:24
  [Becca Hartwell] Paralives going hard on systems and creativity....
• 14:26
  [Becca Hartwell] and in Neverway leaning into dread.
• 14:29
  [Danny Reyes] And The Sims kind of sits in the middle right now-more cartoon chaos,
• 14:34
  [Danny Reyes] less intentional horror-though some bugs qualify.
• 14:38
  [Becca Hartwell] I'm curious where folks land:
• 14:40
  [Becca Hartwell] do you want your life sim cozy,
• 14:42
  [Becca Hartwell] spooky,
• 14:43
  [Becca Hartwell] or just deeply bizarre?
• 14:45
  [Danny Reyes] And how much scripting is too much?
• 14:48
  [Danny Reyes] Do you prefer a sandbox like Sims or something like Neverway plotting against you?
• 14:52
  [Danny Reyes] you
• 14:53
  [Becca Hartwell] Because-okay,
• 14:54
  [Becca Hartwell] we've been hanging out in the dark corner of the genre.
• 14:57
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 14:57
  [Danny Reyes] that got creepy fast,
• 14:59
  [Danny Reyes] so let's talk cozy chaos instead.
• 15:02
  [Becca Hartwell] Next up is that long running Tomodachi-style project devblog and the whole soap opera made of me's vibe.
• 15:09
  [Danny Reyes] Basically,
• 15:10
  [Danny Reyes] if Neverway is your cursed nightmare,
• 15:12
  [Danny Reyes] Tomodachi is the aggressively silly dream cousin.
• 15:16
  [Danny Reyes] We'll connect that back to what we actually want from future Sims.
• 15:19
  [Danny Reyes] Miis and like Sims.
• 15:20
  [Becca Hartwell] And I'm pitching at least one feature that mixes cute with cursed,
• 15:24
  [Becca Hartwell] so stay for that.
• 15:30
  [Danny Reyes] Shifting gears real fast,
• 15:32
  [Danny Reyes] I want to talk Tomodachi Life dreams.
• 15:34
  [Becca Hartwell] Oh yes,
• 15:35
  [Becca Hartwell] the cozy fever dream of the 3DS.
• 15:38
  [Danny Reyes] So the new Living the Dream dev blog,
• 15:41
  [Danny Reyes] that nine-year thing,
• 15:42
  [Danny Reyes] right?
• 15:42
  [Danny Reyes] It reads like, we made a weird Mii sandbox,
• 15:46
  [Danny Reyes] then just kept saying yes to chaos.
• 15:48
  [Becca Hartwell] Yeah, like it started as a tiny Mii apartment toy and slowly mutated into your friends form a band,
• 15:55
  [Becca Hartwell] confess to each other,
• 15:56
  [Becca Hartwell] and fight over a frying pan.
• 15:57
  [Becca Hartwell] Pan.
• 15:58
  [Danny Reyes] Exactly; and fans are losing it because that slow burn is what gives it charm.
• 16:03
  [Danny Reyes] Jokes have time to stew.
• 16:04
  [Becca Hartwell] Mm-hmm. And the devs sound proud of the random stuff.
• 16:07
  [Becca Hartwell] They're like,
• 16:08
  [Becca Hartwell] "We built systems,
• 16:09
  [Becca Hartwell] then watched Grandpa Mii steal your crush and thought,
• 16:11
  [Becca Hartwell] 'Sure,
• 16:12
  [Becca Hartwell] ship it.'
• 16:13
  [Danny Reyes] It's very weirder's better energy.
• 16:16
  [Danny Reyes] No focus group said,
• 16:18
  [Danny Reyes] please make my Mii eat a whole lobster in one bite and stare at the camera.
• 16:22
  [Becca Hartwell] But that's why cozy folks love it; it feels hand-crafted weird,
• 16:26
  [Becca Hartwell] not algorithmic chaos.
• 16:28
  [Danny Reyes] Right.
• 16:29
  [Danny Reyes] And now everybody's reading that blog and going,
• 16:32
  [Danny Reyes] okay,
• 16:32
  [Danny Reyes] so Tomodachi Life Seasons on Switch when?
• 16:36
  [Becca Hartwell] Seasons is such a funny rumored name too.
• 16:39
  [Becca Hartwell] Like, yes.
• 16:39
  [Becca Hartwell] A spring,
• 16:40
  [Becca Hartwell] summer,
• 16:40
  [Becca Hartwell] and the season where all your Miis form a ska band.
• 16:45
  [Danny Reyes] The cursed ska era!
• 16:47
  [Becca Hartwell] Kotaku had that angle of,
• 16:49
  [Becca Hartwell] if this hits Switch,
• 16:50
  [Becca Hartwell] it might be the next comfort game; you open it just for ten minutes,
• 16:54
  [Becca Hartwell] then suddenly your Miis are in a love triangle musical.
• 16:57
  [Danny Reyes] It's that same storytelling itch Sims hits,
• 17:00
  [Danny Reyes] but on rails.
• 17:01
  [Danny Reyes] You don't build a house,
• 17:02
  [Danny Reyes] you just watch drama like a tiny soap opera.
• 17:05
  [Becca Hartwell] Yeah,
• 17:06
  [Becca Hartwell] Sims is I set it up, then hope the chaos happens.
• 17:09
  [Becca Hartwell] Tomodachi is
• 17:10
  [Becca Hartwell] Is "We already wrote the chaos" just react?
• 17:13
  [Danny Reyes] And then Neverway is like the chaos is hungry and lives under your bed.
• 17:18
  [Becca Hartwell] Very different vibe.
• 17:20
  [Danny Reyes] So,
• 17:20
  [Danny Reyes] question:
• 17:21
  [Danny Reyes] what do people actually want next from life sims-more scripted weird like Tomodachi,
• 17:27
  [Danny Reyes] true sandbox like Sims,
• 17:29
  [Danny Reyes] or horror breakfast routine like Neverway?
• 17:32
  [Becca Hartwell] I think folks want a mix-they want safety with teeth.
• 17:36
  [Becca Hartwell] Cozy art style,
• 17:37
  [Becca Hartwell] but then the game hits you with "Your Miis formed a breakup band about you.
• 17:42
  [Danny Reyes] Yeah,
• 17:43
  [Danny Reyes] like comfort visuals surprising systems.
• 17:46
  [Becca Hartwell] For Sims specifically,
• 17:48
  [Becca Hartwell] I'd love Tomodachi style events baked into neighborhoods-little episodes that trigger if you place certain Sims together.
• 17:55
  [Danny Reyes] Oh,
• 17:56
  [Danny Reyes] like if three exes live on the same street,
• 17:58
  [Danny Reyes] you get a special festival:
• 18:00
  [Danny Reyes] ExFest.
• 18:01
  [Danny Reyes] Funfair items,
• 18:03
  [Danny Reyes] awkward moodlets,
• 18:04
  [Danny Reyes] optional karaoke.
• 18:05
  [Danny Reyes] Aoki battle?
• 18:05
  [Becca Hartwell] Yes, and the game leans into it confessional pop ups,
• 18:10
  [Becca Hartwell] Sim A is thinking about texting Sim B at two a.m. You pick yes or no,
• 18:14
  [Becca Hartwell] then watch the fallout and
• 18:16
  [Danny Reyes] You're basically voting on your own telenovela.
• 18:19
  [Becca Hartwell] then steal from Neverway a tiny bit, not full apocalypse,
• 18:23
  [Becca Hartwell] but low key cursed events like once a year there's a glitch day where everyone gets one wild autonomous action.
• 18:30
  [Danny Reyes] Oh,
• 18:31
  [Danny Reyes] that's good.
• 18:31
  [Danny Reyes] One day where the AI ignores you.
• 18:33
  [Danny Reyes] bores you,
• 18:34
  [Danny Reyes] but only for fun stuff:
• 18:36
  [Danny Reyes] marry the neighbor,
• 18:37
  [Danny Reyes] quit your job,
• 18:38
  [Danny Reyes] adopt six cats.
• 18:40
  [Becca Hartwell] The patch from hell,
• 18:41
  [Becca Hartwell] but intentional.
• 18:42
  [Danny Reyes] My cozy but cursed dream list would be:
• 18:46
  [Danny Reyes] Tamagotchi-style dream sequences,
• 18:48
  [Danny Reyes] more surreal stuff.
• 18:50
  [Danny Reyes] Sims wake up like,
• 18:51
  [Danny Reyes] I dreamed about becoming a tomato.
• 18:53
  [Danny Reyes] Boom,
• 18:54
  [Danny Reyes] new weird whim chain.
• 18:56
  [Becca Hartwell] And moodlets have actually start stories,
• 18:58
  [Becca Hartwell] not just sad from rain,
• 19:00
  [Becca Hartwell] more
• 19:00
  [Becca Hartwell] Uneasy because the fridge hummed your name.
• 19:04
  [Becca Hartwell] Tiny hint of Neverway there.
• 19:06
  [Danny Reyes] Exactly!
• 19:07
  [Danny Reyes] Plus low stakes disasters—soup explodes; everyone gets silly outfits for a day; the drama level of a bad haircut,
• 19:15
  [Danny Reyes] not a meteor.
• 19:16
  [Becca Hartwell] Give me that plus better memory system so all this nonsense sticks,
• 19:21
  [Becca Hartwell] your Sims should absolutely remember the time their Mii-inspired roommate sang a breakup song at you.
• 19:26
  [Becca Hartwell] at GeekCon.
• 19:27
  [Danny Reyes] Okay,
• 19:28
  [Danny Reyes] you've just pitched Tomodachi Apartment Expansion, and I want it!
• 19:33
  [Becca Hartwell] Same!
• 19:34
  [Danny Reyes] So, uh,
• 19:35
  [Danny Reyes] homework for listeners?
• 19:36
  [Danny Reyes] I want your cozy but cursed feature combos.
• 19:39
  [Becca Hartwell] Yeah,
• 19:40
  [Becca Hartwell] send us your mashups, like I want Sims build tools,
• 19:43
  [Becca Hartwell] Tomodachi confession scenes,
• 19:45
  [Becca Hartwell] and one Neverway style holiday where the town gets spooky.
• 19:49
  [Becca Hartwell] Stuff like that.
• 19:49
  [Danny Reyes] Drop them in DMs, email,
• 19:52
  [Danny Reyes] comments,
• 19:52
  [Danny Reyes] carrier pigeon.
• 19:54
  [Danny Reyes] Whatever.
• 19:54
  [Becca Hartwell] We'll pull our favorites for a future mailbag and maybe rank them from wholesome cottage to absolutely haunted save file.
• 20:02
  [Danny Reyes] Grinning, and if anyone at EA or Nintendo is lurking,
• 20:06
  [Danny Reyes] hey,
• 20:06
  [Danny Reyes] free ideas!
• 20:07
  [Becca Hartwell] Always.
• 20:08
  [Danny Reyes] Alright,
• 20:09
  [Danny Reyes] stick around,
• 20:10
  [Danny Reyes] we're going to pivot into some quick listener notes and community bits next.
• 20:14
  [Becca Hartwell] Yeah, don't go anywhere,
• 20:15
  [Becca Hartwell] the chaos continues but in a very cozy way.
• 20:24
  [Danny Reyes] Okay,
• 20:24
  [Danny Reyes] so if your morning started with Lilsimsie and a U.S. Representative walk into a buyout petition,
• 20:31
  [Danny Reyes] same.
• 20:32
  [Danny Reyes] That headline was chaos,
• 20:34
  [Danny Reyes] right?
• 20:34
  [Becca Hartwell] I still feel like I dreamed that.
• 20:36
  [Becca Hartwell] My loading screen nightmares are less cursed.
• 20:40
  [Danny Reyes] But the point is,
• 20:42
  [Danny Reyes] if EA shifts strategies,
• 20:44
  [Danny Reyes] your saves and DLC are your power.
• 20:47
  [Danny Reyes] Back them up, keep receipts,
• 20:49
  [Danny Reyes] protect your little pixel people.
• 20:51
  [Becca Hartwell] Exactly.
• 20:52
  [Becca Hartwell] One sentence take away?
• 20:54
  [Becca Hartwell] Treat your game like a legacy challenge,
• 20:56
  [Becca Hartwell] not a throwaway save.
• 20:57
  [Danny Reyes] Mhm.
• 20:58
  [Danny Reyes] And, um...
• 21:00
  [Becca Hartwell] While you're being responsible adults,
• 21:02
  [Becca Hartwell] tap Follow or Subscribe,
• 21:04
  [Becca Hartwell] drop a quick review,
• 21:05
  [Becca Hartwell] and send us your wildest Sims or Tomodachi-style stories at Plumbob Report.
• 21:11
  [Danny Reyes] Especially if your Sims made smarter choices than mine eating spoiled food during fires.
• 21:16
  [Becca Hartwell] Low bar,
• 21:17
  [Becca Hartwell] but yeah.
• 21:18
  [Danny Reyes] So,
• 21:18
  [Danny Reyes] basically,
• 21:19
  [Danny Reyes] Hey Simmers,
• 21:20
  [Danny Reyes] thanks for hanging out.
• 21:22
  [Becca Hartwell] We'll be back with more cozy,
• 21:24
  [Becca Hartwell] cursed chaos next time.
• 21:25
  [Danny Reyes] Bye everyone.
• 21:26
  [Speaker 4] MUSIC