EA
The Sims 4’s newest game pack, My Wedding Stories, arrives Feb. 23 for PC and Mac via Origin and Steam, PS5, PS4 and Xbox consoles. My Wedding Stories introduces more fun and personal ways to celebrate your Sims saying “I do.” Ahead of the pack’s launch, My Wedding Stories producers held a virtual demo to show off what Simmers can look forward to.
Until now, weddings in the Sims 4 felt a bit flat. After two Sims got engaged, players had the option to plan a wedding event or immediately elope. If you chose to elope, your Sims would immediately exchange vows and rings on the spot. If you planned a wedding event, another screen would pop up and you would choose a location, guests, a caterer and a musician for the big day. Since I’ve gotten more into legacy gameplay and storytelling, this format felt lacking, even when I set my wedding as a goaled event that yields rewards.
“We wanted to be as broad as possible and tell as many stories as possible,” said Sims 4 producer Dave Miotke, aka SimGuruNinja, during the demo.
My Wedding Stories looks like it’ll offer a far more dynamic, detailed and customizable wedding experience for Sims and players. The new pack introduces players to a few premade families living in Tartosa, a new in-game world with picturesque locations to tie the knot.
Now players can plan pre-wedding events like engagement parties, rehearsal dinners and “Bach” parties (a gender-neutral version of bachelor and bachelorette parties). These special events will include new options to give toasts, speeches, dance, cut the cake and toss the bouquet. Players can also build a wedding party — choose an officiant, a Sim of Honor, a ring bearer and flower pals (the game’s gender-neutral version of flower girl).
These new options also work in different worlds, so you’re not limited to extravagant weddings in Tartosa. There’s also an option to get hitched at Tartosa City Hall if your Sims aren’t into all the pomp and circumstance.
Wedding planning includes choosing your special clothes. My Wedding Stories offers more dresses and tuxedos with a range of traditional and modern options. Purchase a bouquet to toss at the reception, taste-test to find the perfect cake and pick out a topper. The new pack finally differentiates a wedding cake from a birthday cake with different colors, styles and sizes.
One of my favorite parts about My Wedding Stories is the crowd control options. Anyone who’s played The Sims knows the frustrations of trying to corral party guests. Creating a group helps, but the new pack offers helpful commands for guests to take their seats for the ceremony, walk down the aisle, gather for the bouquet toss, throw rice, eat and drink. There’s also a new slow dance option so your newlyweds can have a proper first dance.
In true Sims fashion, this pack embraces diversity with wedding options. Instead of a one-size-fits-all event, My Wedding Stories says it’ll have options to host traditional Chinese weddings with customary tea ceremonies with family, for example. The pack also includes red dresses worn in Hindu ceremonies, as well as the option to include henna tattoos. Wedding clothes include stylish pantsuits if your Sim isn’t a fan of dresses. It’s refreshing to see gender-neutral versions of wedding roles and events.
The pack’s reveal trailer told the adorable LGBTQ+ love story of Dominique and Camille: showing off guests actually sitting during the wedding, the couple walking down the aisle and dancing at the reception — and getting the option to renew their vows later in life.
EA had originally opted not to release the wedding pack in Russia, which has a ban on ‘gay propaganda,’ rather than remove the same-sex storyline. On Feb 16. the company announced it was reversing that decision and bringing My Wedding Stories to Russia, “unaltered and unchanged, featuring Dom and Cam.