If you happen to’re searching for dragons in The Sims, you’ll need to look previous the meager choice in The Sims 4 and head again into The Sims 3. Launched in 2013, Dragon Valley provides a brand new fantasy world to the life simulation sport. It’s a medieval-inspired neighborhood with lore and legacy, the place dragons abound. There have been dragons in most Sims video games besides The Sims 2, however The Sims 3’s Dragon Valley world constructed off the parable of the creatures in a means that previous and current video games haven’t.
Dragon Valley has a backstory: Although the dragons are actually little pets you possibly can put on in your arm, their bigger counterparts had been as soon as a menace to the land. The city remains to be recovering from the bloodbath, however grownup dragons haven’t been seen in years. Because of a scientific discovery by a brand new household, the O’Connells, the dragons of Dragon Valley keep small — and are actually simply mildly mischievous as a substitute of outright harmful. The elven households that decision Dragon Valley house are cautious of the dragons, inflicting a dispute between new and outdated: “Don’t allow them to pull the wool over your eyes,” the elven character Mithrilen says in a chunk of lore revealed on the Dragon Valley retailer web page. “Simply have a look at the dragons. They’re purported to be ‘infants’ however each does one thing extra dastardly than the final.”
There’s a stark distinction between The Sims 3’s dragon world and The Sims 4’s Realm of Magic enlargement, which lets gamers have somewhat purple dragon as their companion. Even The Sims and its Makin’ Magic enlargement had iconic dragons you can look after as in the event that they had been infants. The dragons hatch from eggs that, too, have to be cared for and soothed by speaking to them via the shell. And from that, they change into candy infants who can begin fires and torch Sims to ashes.
To that, I say: Convey Dragon Valley to The Sims 4. The right dragon enlargement for The Sims 4 could be a mix of the pet dragons from The Sims: Makin’ Magic and the world-building of The Sims 3’s Dragon Valley.
Although Dragon Valley added deep lore, its dragons didn’t really do a lot; after caring for an egg, they hatched and simply hung round. The dragons didn’t have to be cared for, like in The Sims: Makin’ Magic. However they had been useful: If you happen to had a pink dragon, you didn’t have to sleep. With a inexperienced dragon, there was no have to eat. Every of the dragons had talents to foster (by speaking to them about topics), like setting folks on fireplace or giving their proprietor charisma. The dragons in Makin’ Magic had must be met and would depart in case you didn’t deal with them, making it a extra fascinating system. In The Sims 4, the dragons do primarily nothing besides add some visible aptitude.
Digital Arts, although, has solely dipped its metaphorical toe into fantasy: There are solely seven small packs in comparison with the handfuls constructed round household, buddies, careers, design, and vogue. The Sims 4’s fantasy choices give gamers ghosts, aliens, magic, and werewolves — however not strong, significant dragons, because the franchise has prior to now.
The Sims 4’s Cottage Residing enlargement felt like a turning level for the sport, not less than from a storytelling perspective; it gave me a cause to tug my Sims out of their homes and into the world to do small favors and storylines constructed into the sport. I see the return of dragons in The Sims 4 as a approach to construct on that progress — a means for developer Maxis to flex its narrative instruments whereas offering a wildly completely different fantasy playground for folks to iterate on. Till then, you’ll discover me again in The Sims: Makin’ Magic speaking to my dragon eggs.
