The next major Sims 4 DLC has been revealed, and this expansion pack is giving me serious whiplash. The For Rent expansion brings the long-requested ability to build true multi-family lots in The Sims 4, which I am absolutely psyched for—though the grim realities of deadly mold and housing anxiety are also along for the ride. For Rent is out on December 7 for you to begin fulfilling your dark dreams of landlordship.
In the official For Rent blog post, Maxis explains the expansion’s Southeast Asian inspirations, which all sound quite nice. The new game world Tomarang is a tropical setting with “a unique blend of tradition and modernity” that includes botanical gardens, a night market, and new foods like Tofu Pad Thai and Burmese Samosa Soup.
But then the closer look at apartment living is nothing short of cursed. Even the upbeat trailer is pretty dire with broken water heaters, neighbors playing loud music, break and enter theft, and uh, death by malicious uncontrolled mold. I think the pot-luck and pool parties were supposed to be the enjoyable part of apartment living but, having experienced both, I can confirm they are also a headache.
In the reveal post, Maxis says that property owner Sims can “maintain separate residences while generating income from multiple property investments” but will also “face a tenant revolt if you allow your ratings to slip too low.”
Tenants, meanwhile, are subjected to a new source of anxiety: eviction. “Sims can gain four new Aspirations, five Traits and a new Fear that help create unexpected and exciting stories,” Maxis says. “Tenants can experience evictions, and as a result, Fears now include a tenant being afraid of being evicted due to misbehavior.”
This is a very exciting and not at all stressful new layer to the great simulation of life.
If you can put the part of your brain to sleep that has any thoughts or feelings about the commodification of housing or fraught morality of landlordship, hey: We finally get multi-family lots in The Sims and that’s rad! That snooping neighbor trait will be great for the folks doing elaborate Live Mode stories. I, for one, have several non-functional townhouses I’ve built over the years that I’m psyched to see actually lived in.
Please don’t bully me for making them Millennial Grey. I’ll build something with more color soon.
The Sims 4 For Rent expansion launches on December 7, and as is now typical, the early adopters who buy before January 18 will get bonus items: a grill cart, street umbrella and a fruit basket.