Smaller Worlds, Bigger Stories – What You Taught Me in the Latest Survey!

Hey everyone!! I hope you're doing well. I'm nearly freezing over here with the temperature drop — but not enough to stop me hahaha.

We had amazing engagement with our recent survey, and I want to start by sincerely thanking everyone who took a little time to answer it. 💖 For those who haven’t participated yet but are interested, the survey is still open!

The results are helping me not only to shape the development of Project Etherea, but also to better understand the kind of content you all love to see in The Sims — whether directly or indirectly.

Today, I’d like to share a bit of what I’ve learned from your answers. It’s clearer than ever that what most people look for in a simulation game is mystery, secrets, exploration, drama, and romance! Of course, that’s not everything — but it’s at the heart of it all. And I’m truly happy to see this confirmed, because those are exactly the elements I’ve been advocating for and trying to bring into my mods and content over the years — even with all my limitations.

I was even more thrilled to realize that many of you also crave a more immersive and realistic experience, even if that means giving up access to certain content. For years I’ve been saying: it’s not unrestricted freedom that guides the player, but well-placed limitations. After all, if everything is always possible… what value does anything hold? It's within limitations, challenges, and the absence of certain choices that creativity truly flourishes. Knowing that many of you feel the same way was comforting.

I also noticed how much this community enjoys a good challenge. Be it survival, overcoming obstacles, or earning something through real effort — we long for stories we can be proud of. When I envisioned OldSunset, that was exactly the idea.

One example was the story of a Sim guitarist, heir to a wealthy family, who lost everything after the death of his parents. The player’s goal would be to rebuild that legacy by buying back the family mansion — which would require climbing the music career, earning money, and balancing the Sim’s goals, wishes, and needs.

I imagined a world filled with intertwined stories, diaries, memories, and relationships that would give weight and context to each Sim’s journey.

But, as many of you know, I had to let go of OldSunset after watching a GDC talk where one of The Sims 3 AI developers explained that the more Sims need to be simulated, the shallower their simulation becomes. And OldSunset, by nature, was a massive world. What’s the point of having 500 Sims if they’re not alive, not reacting, not growing?

So I shifted focus: smaller worlds, deeper simulations. Less is more — and in these small universes, Sims finally have the space to truly flourish.

Back to the survey: over 50% of you said you love when objects are limited by era and style, keeping the world coherent. Less than 10% said they want access to everything all the time — and ironically, most games are made for those 10%. Of course, we all want access to as much content as possible, but not always, and definitely not without effort.

That’s why I’m going to keep directing my work toward us — the players who are often overlooked. Maybe we’re more numerous than we think… we just don’t make as much noise.

It was beautiful to see how important it is for most of you to add your own flavor to a world that already existed without you. That’s when a world truly becomes unique.

The ideas you suggested for future worlds are amazing! I could spend years creating new maps and never get tired. But from now on, my goal is to build worlds that go beyond streets and lots: interconnected stories, visible and invisible details, decorations that add meaning, and maps that feel as alive as their inhabitants. That takes time, patience, and confronting my own perfectionism. But I promise to do my best — and to release. Because there’s always something to improve, but also a time to stop and deliver.

As for the extra comments and suggestions… you honestly caught me off guard. Modding The Sims 3 has often been a lonely journey. I rarely get to see how my work impacts players’ games. Every now and then I’d find a mention in one or two YouTube videos, maybe a Reddit post — often filled with old criticisms, usually about issues that were fixed shortly after release, with clear and transparent explanations.

So receiving so much praise, recognition, and kind words truly moved me. It was a wonderful surprise and reminded me why I started doing all this. Thank you — truly. You made my day.

And while I often use negative comments as fuel — that kind of motivation, while useful, also wears me out. Your support, on the other hand, nourishes me. It reminds me that this community is a reflection of the love, passion, and dedication we all share in making the games we love even better.

Thank you, thank you so much for being a part of this. 💛

I’m using the results of this survey to craft a brand-new world, and while I work on it, I’d like to share the first image with you! Keep in mind: this is a very early stage, and much of what you’ll see is still placeholder. Lots will change significantly, textures will be revised and refined, streets and terrain will undergo major transformations — but it already offers a glimpse of what’s to come. (You can watch more here. You can now enable the English Audio Track to watch my content <3)

Once this phase is complete, I plan to dive into a massive mod that will adapt object restrictions based on era and historical setting. There’s still much more to do, and I’ll talk more about it soon.

Let me know what you think of the image and the direction this survey has taken us. I’d love to hear your thoughts. <3