I'm worried about the initial plan to be online.

This game was originally planned to be online, but EA scrapped the idea in the middle of production because of the SimCity outcry. They obviously have already done some work on the online features already before pulling them out, as you can see on the menu bar on top of this old picture:



I'm worried about whether this will affect gameplay and performance.The Sims 4 would feel like an online game, just without the online. Online games tend to have a different feel to them than offline ones. I played the Mass Effect trilogy, and the third game, which is online, felt more linear, episodic, and repetitive than the first two, which were offline.

This might also be why some old features are absent, like the color wheel and 4+ story buildings - so that the game would run more smoothly across the internet.

I also hope they were able to delete the code for the online aspects of the game. Most devs just hide the code instead of cleaning it up, as deleting code is very tricky because it could damage other parts of the program. This tucked-away code might be consuming CPU power, storage memory, and RAM, which would make performance suffer, especially for gamers like me with relatively weak PCs. I really hope I'm wrong about all this. What are your thoughts?

I actually hadn't given that any thought at all. But now I do. I agree with you, if it's gonna be offline, let it be OFFLINE. GTA 5 (yeahyea I'm mentioning GTA 5 again) was offline but Rockstar releases GTA online. Then you have both, like, great. Sims 4 should be offline, and EA should make a new online game later. :lol:

It's not the playing-over-the-internet aspect that bothers me. EA has already confirmed that the game will be offline. What I'm worried about is the fact that although it's an offline game, it was built as an online game. It's designed to be played with people across the world and to be filled with online app purchases. Online games also tend to have less features than offline games, probably to make the game run smoother across the internet. Playing the Sims 4 might feel like playing Counter-Strike offline - it feels like there's something missing and that it's not meant to be played this way, you know?

I'm also starting to see why Create-A-Style was removed. It would greatly drag the internet connection down.

Oh, I think I get what you're saying. Kind of like how the Sims FreePlay is , but mixed with the Sims Online?

Right, but without the online. More like what happens when you make Team Fortress an offline game. The fun is designed to be in the online, so playing offline would feel empty.

The Sims 4 is an online game, but EA decided to scrap the online features in the middle of production because of the bad reception they got from SimCity. Sims 4 would then feel like a hollowed out game, because it's supposed to be played online, but now you can't play it online.

But they could have CAS as an offline program for free download off the site like CAP and CAW.

I never thought about that. I would hate that it had less features because it was made to be an online game, but the way that they have carried out some of the features of the game may not exhibit this type of demeanor, but that's just what I think. This is making me think twice about my future pre-order.

I'm happy with it being offline, because then it would be ever soooooooo slower.. even slower than usual! But I really would like to see some extra multiplayer/online features to interact with other simmers!!

That's exactly how I feel. It's probably the biggest thing that keeps me from wanting to buy this. I don't mind if EA pushes back the release so they could totally rework the game.

Of course, I'll still wait for news and maybe EA was able to polish it into an excellent offline game. Until then, however, I'm wary.

Edited to add: Sorry, I didn't know how to quote properly at this time.

I haven't thought about that. Yes, it sounds doable.

I'm happy about it being offline as well, but the fact that the Sims 4 is an online game that was repurposed into an offline game turns me off.

I thought it was both online and offline, that the online was optional.

No, EA says the game will be completely offline, save for when starting up the game, you have to log in to Origin.