One of the most popular content updates forThe Simsseries has consistently been the addition of weather, and this was no different forThe Sims 4. As soon asThe Sims 4launched, fans begged Maxis for a weather expansion, and their wishes were finally answered withThe Sims 4: Seasons. Along with the ambient weather system came the Climate family, a perfectly normal family of four who were used all across its promotional material.
The Climate family are married couple Arthur and Janine, alongside their teenage daughter Summer and toddler son Nicolas. They aren’t naturally found in the game, but instead need to be downloaded from the Maxis account on the Gallery. On the surface, the family seems like a perfectly normal, even boring group. Unlike other pre-made playable families inThe Sims 4like the Landgraabsor the Goths, the Climates have no hint of drama to resolve. However, a little digging reveals a disturbing family secret thatThe Sims 5should explore further.
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The dark secret of the Climate family is revealed by looking at Arthur’s family tree. In an official blog post released by EA during the promotion campaign forThe Sims 4: Seasons, Arthur’s cousin is shown to be Count Vladislaus Straud 4, a vampire fromThe Sims 4: Vampiresand the founder of Forgotten Hollow 200 years ago.
Vladislaus, also known as Vlad, is one of theoldest vampires inThe Sims 4. He has the appearance of an old man in his Sims form, while his Dark Form is a homage to Count Orlok from the 1922 filmNosferatu: A Symphony of Horror. Not only is Arthur’s cousin a vampire, as far as the official blog post indicates, the Climate family is completely unaware of Vlad’s true nature.
The blog post tells the story of the Climates inviting Vlad over for anew holiday introduced inThe Sims 4: Seasons, Harvestfest. Once Vlad arrives, he shows disinterest in eating anything, instead becoming keenly focused on one of the Cimates' friends, Beth, whose blood he drinks on Harvestfest. The family remain unaware of this, yet are all creeped out by Vlad’s odd behavior and resolve to never invite him over again.
Many players don’t know about this connection because of a pervasiveproblem with cross-pack content inThe Sims 4, where connections between Sims across packs doesn’t register in-game. The familial connection between Vlad and Arthur is only revealed in an official blog post, with the various Sims involved having no relationships with each other if they’re checked within the game itself. They’re not the only ones with this issue; another example is Lily Zhu, a werewolf, is cousins with vampires Caleb and Lilith Vatore and speaks of them, yet the cousins don’t know each other in their relationship panels.
Connections like this addlayers of complexity toThe Simsand are essential for immersive gameplay. Many players would rather discover and experience these connections through gameplay rather than being told about them, seeing they only go surface-level.The Sims 5could raise the bar and give players the chance to explore the tension and dynamics between these family members with opposite traits in ways that are organic and exciting, and be rewarded with cross-pack features to create a living, growing game.
The Sims 5is in development.
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