Presented by EA GameChangers. This review was made possible by EA GameChangers and does not influence the score or opinions within this review. It’s been a little while since I have delved into the world of reviews, and I am glad to be back with the highly anticipated stuff pack – Nifty Knitting. This stuff pack has been a long time coming and is the second community voted stuff pack that The Sims team has created. What exactly does that mean if it’s “community voted”? The Sims team held a variety of online surveys which anyone in the commuity could complete to vote on pack themes, styles, gameplay, name, icon and more. The end result of this – and of course the imagination of The Sims tea – is this new stuff pack. So, as with all new packs for The Sims, I am here to help you understand if it is worth your money. I have also spoken about this pack in the latest episode of the Llama Drama Podcast, which you can listen to on your favourite podcast app. You can break down the main selling points of this pack into the following areas and these are the main pieces I will focus on in this review. Knitting – I think the name gives thi away, but with a yarn basket, anyone from children to elders can learn this new hobby. You can knit clothing, decorate with knitted plant hangers, rugs and toys. Rocking Chairs – A highly requested feature, there are four variants for your Sims to use. Elderly Sims can even reminisce about “the good old days” Plopsy – Your Sims can sell their creations of Plopsy (Sims Etsy) and make lots of Simoleons if they find the right buyers! Plenty of new ‘stuff’ for your Sims If you’re a fan of Create A Sim then this stuff pack offers a variety of new things for your Sims and – all in all – it’s actually a reasonable amount. There is a new Maker trait as well as new aspirations too, making this stuff pack quite meaty in this department. For feminine Sims, you can find 6 new hairstyles, 5 tops, 1 outfit, 2 new trousers, 1 new pair of shoes and 3 styled looks to choose from. For masculine Sims, you can get 3 hairstyles, 5 new tops, 1 pair of trousers and 1 styled look. Shared between all Sims is 3 pairs new socks and a new hat. For toddlers and children, there is actually quite a limited selection to choose from which is a shame, as I feel like this could have been an opportunity to bundle lots of knit-wear for them. However, you still get some new choices including hairstyles and an outfit. One thing that is quite different here to other packs is that a lot of the items you will find in Create A Sim are locked to begin with and require the knitting skill of a particular level, depending on the item of clothing, or sacred knitting knowledge. For players like me, who prefer to have everything unlocked, you will need to rely on cheat codes. However, the great thing about this is that for those invested in the knitting lifestyle, this will likely provide incentives to upskill your Sims and participate in the new gameplay. Heading into Build and Buy Mode, there is a new stylised room that you can plop down which is a bit like a room you’d expect to be in your grandma’s house. It’s cute, cozy, and has everything you need from this pack to get started with the Knitting skill such as the knitting basket you can place in your inventory and the rocking chair. I love how this room looks and the granny chic style is exactly what I would associated with a pack like this. There are of course plenty of knittables in this pack, from outfits for toddlers, to cute covers for plant hangers, so you will find quite a few variations of similar items in this. You will find lots of cute objects that you are bount to enjoy, such as the ones below! The new Knitting-focused gameplay Of course, as the name suggests, the main feature of this stuff pack is the fact that knitting is now in the game! Your Sims can build up their knitting skill to unlock new items of clothing and other knittables to create in-game. There are lots of variations of the same objects, such as different colours or types of socks for example. As mentioned before, while unlocking things isn’t necessarily my preferred play style, I do like this because it means it makes you explore the new features and upskill your Sims. It’s quite easy and quick to be able to work your way through this skill and quickly increase your Sims’ level. The new rocking chair is a nice addition, and comes in four different variations, including variations with and without arms. This has a very lovely rocking animation, and your Sims can use it to sit and rock and relax. One small bug I have noticed is that when you ask your Sims to rock on the chair, it doesn’t appear in their interaction queue. This left me slightly confused as to whether my Sim would use the object, but also means you can’t cancel the interaction if you have queued it up amongst other things. It’s not a big deal, but something to be aware of. One of the things that I like about this object is that it can be used by any age in the game (excluding babies, since they’re glued to their cribs). Toddlers can rock on the chair which is adorable, and Elders can also do this and reminisce about the past. As they do this, the game show various icons to illustrate they’re thinking about memories. In fact, one of them shows a baby crawling, so could that be a hint for the future? One of the coolest things that I think you can knit in the game is Yarny, from the game Unravel, which requires you to have completed the knitting skill and a particular aspiration. If you’ve played Unravel, you’ll know how adorable this is. A slightly random addition to this pack which is worth noting in the new metal radio station which your Sims can now rock out to – quite literally! If you’re into the world of metal music then this has been designed for you – though I am personally more of a country fan! If your Sims are really getting used to knitting, they can use the new marketplace called Plopsy – which is basically The Sims’ version of Etsy! You can sell craftable objects on there to make some simoleons! People will eventually buy your Sims’ items, and you can then post them out. You can also buy items from this too. I was actually quite surprised at the level of detail this went into and believe it is a fun addition to the stuff pack. And I think that is an important thing to note – this is simply a stuff pack and yet it’s seemily detailed and has been well thought out. Overall Thoughts For a stuff pack, you can say that I am quite impressed. I didn’t have high expectations for this stuff pack as it is a very niche topic that I am not particularly interested in, however from taking a look into the pack, I can see that a lot of thought has been put in and that it is fairly meaty. From new CAS items, to traits and aspirations, to the new knitting skill and unlockables, to selling on plopsy, and the fabulous new rocking chair, this pack is quite impressive and in terms of what you are getting, I think it’s well worth looking at! I do think there were some opportunities to include more ‘stuff’ for children and toddlers, however that is a small thing for a stuff pack that boasts quite a lot of niche gameplay. If you don’t like unlocking items or are less worried around the gameplay, maybe hang in there until it’s on sale. Continue reading...
