On December 4th, Electronic Arts released two new kits for The Sims 4 players: “SpongeBob Kid’s Room” and “SpongeBob’s House.” While these packs were individually priced at $6.99, a combined pack containing several special bonus items was sold for $9.99. However, this surprise content announcement was met with considerable disappointment and derision from players. The barrage of criticism quickly spread on social media, focusing on a wide range of issues, from the asset quality to the pricing.
Electronic Arts’ new Sims packs face significant backlash
Many The Sims 4 fans argue that the new kits look extremely cheap and sloppy. Comments on social media emphasize that the items are simply plain colors and lazily crafted. The pineapple-shaped roof texture in the “SpongeBob’s House” kit, in particular, was described by one user as “tragic.” Criticism centers on the fact that the content appears to be simple mods or low-quality custom content (CC) rather than paid add-on packs.
Similar complaints have been made about the outfits in the packs. In discussions on Reddit, it’s noted that the outfits appear to have simply been slapped with simple images. One user likened this to the crude mods he created for The Sims 2 years ago. While the game’s distinctive art style is generally consistent with packs released over the years, this new SpongeBob content is noticeable to players. Some users even stated that upon first seeing the images, they thought they were fake fan art created by AI.
Popular content creator “lilsimsie” also harshly criticized these packs in a video. The streamer, who warned his viewers not to purchase the packs, faced some backlash despite purchasing the content solely for the sake of reviewing it. From a commercial perspective, the packs appear to have been unsuccessful. According to Steam data, both kits fell short of the 790th spot on the best-seller list and have very few user reviews overall. This suggests that sales may be significantly low.
These controversial additions to The Sims 4 and the resulting visual inconsistency are likely to be a topic of discussion in the community for a long time. What are your thoughts on these new collaborations and designs? Do you find them in keeping with the overall atmosphere of the game?
