DLC for The Sims 4
Explore a unique wilderness landscape in The Sims 4: Jungle Adventure, a game pack for The Sims 4, revealing a temple, jungle obstacles, cursed relics and treasures. Experience the culture and customs of Selvadorada, from devouring local eats to learning spicy new dance moves!
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https://www.backloggd.com/u/HuFe/list/the-sims-4-add-ons-ranked/
Part 1: Representation
The world of Selvadorada (which translates to “golden jungle”) is the only South American representation that The Sims franchise has ever given us, focusing on a fantasy version of the Incan culture, although it’s also partly inspired by Mesoamerican culture, which is a subregion of the North American continent. I would say that South America needs a bit more love, maybe a Rio De Janeiro inspired world, but the entirety of Africa has never gotten any love whatsoever, besides a touristy version of Egypt in The Sims 3. The only things that somewhat relate to my own Uruguayan culture are the new introduction (the sims kiss on the cheek instead of waving, this is pretty common over here), you can also drink yerba mate (it just looks like coffee, it’s pretty lame), and capybaras (as a drawing in a rabbit hole). 99% of the pack feels completely foreign to me, and it will feel foreign for most people in Hispanic America, because representation was not their highest priority. This is a vacation world, you don't have the option to be a native or even to become part of their community, the only thing you can do is be a foreigner that raids their temples and tombs to sell or collect the relics, like Indiana Jones.
Part 2: Gameplay
Besides hanging out at the bar or going fishing just like in any other place, in the town center you can buy things from the local street market. These offer some decorations, and, mainly, supplies to explore the jungle. Some of these supplies are pretty fun to use, like a water bottle that you pour on your sim to clean them, and a ball of cheese to eat that never goes bad. Staying in the town (talking to the locals and tasting their food and drinks) raises your Selvadoradian culture skill. You then travel to the jungle neighborhood and you start your exploration. The most interesting stuff happens in rabbit holes, but it feels justified because there’s also a decent amount of space to explore. The biggest treasure can be found in the temples, which are pretty similar to the Sims 3 World Adventure ones. I wish there was a little more puzzle or danger in them, but, to be honest, my sim almost died by being lit on fire by a trap. You can also dig in some dirt patches and find lesser treasures there by using your archeology skill, something you will need to remove all the dirt from the stuff you find. There’s a good amount of pieces to collect that will make you rich very quickly, so I think this pack should be forbidden in challenges (to compensate for this, you can make it so that the trip to the jungle costs $50.000). The best treasure to find are the relic parts that you can then assemble. These have a variety of supernatural effects, like marking a sim for death or summoning a skeleton maid. Overall, the skills develop at a good pace, and the treasure is found at a good pace, so it doesn’t feel like the game wants you to pointlessly grind, and it’s pretty fun for a bit.
Part 3: what if I don't want to be a tomb raider?
Most of my sims are not going to dedicate their lives to finding gold in a jungle, so that aspect of the pack, which is the selling point, is rather situational. However, Selvadorada can also work as a solid vacation stop for leisure. If you are willing to become an adventurer for a bit (granted, this can be immersion-breaking if it has nothing to do with your current storyline) you can find an ancient swimming pool, and a cliff that gives your Sims a romantic moodlet, so you have a few more places to propose marriage or things like that. The introduction where the Sims kiss on the cheek instead of waving is one of the most useful things to me, but I don't want to send each of my kiss-on-cheek Sims on a vacation to the jungle just so they can learn to do that.
https://imgur.com/8f92un0 (Talking with a street vendor)
https://imgur.com/2WrZ683 (Using a machete to open one of the transition gates)
https://imgur.com/Ydkf4pe (Crossing a bridge)
https://imgur.com/U8giiIf (Inside a temple)
https://imgur.com/J8OuUQK (Using the archeology table)
Part 1: Representation
The world of Selvadorada (which translates to “golden jungle”) is the only South American representation that The Sims franchise has ever given us, focusing on a fantasy version of the Incan culture, although it’s also partly inspired by Mesoamerican culture, which is a subregion of the North American continent. I would say that South America needs a bit more love, maybe a Rio De Janeiro inspired world, but the entirety of Africa has never gotten any love whatsoever, besides a touristy version of Egypt in The Sims 3. The only things that somewhat relate to my own Uruguayan culture are the new introduction (the sims kiss on the cheek instead of waving, this is pretty common over here), you can also drink yerba mate (it just looks like coffee, it’s pretty lame), and capybaras (as a drawing in a rabbit hole). 99% of the pack feels completely foreign to me, and it will feel foreign for most people in Hispanic America, because representation was not their highest priority. This is a vacation world, you don't have the option to be a native or even to become part of their community, the only thing you can do is be a foreigner that raids their temples and tombs to sell or collect the relics, like Indiana Jones.
Part 2: Gameplay
Besides hanging out at the bar or going fishing just like in any other place, in the town center you can buy things from the local street market. These offer some decorations, and, mainly, supplies to explore the jungle. Some of these supplies are pretty fun to use, like a water bottle that you pour on your sim to clean them, and a ball of cheese to eat that never goes bad. Staying in the town (talking to the locals and tasting their food and drinks) raises your Selvadoradian culture skill. You then travel to the jungle neighborhood and you start your exploration. The most interesting stuff happens in rabbit holes, but it feels justified because there’s also a decent amount of space to explore. The biggest treasure can be found in the temples, which are pretty similar to the Sims 3 World Adventure ones. I wish there was a little more puzzle or danger in them, but, to be honest, my sim almost died by being lit on fire by a trap. You can also dig in some dirt patches and find lesser treasures there by using your archeology skill, something you will need to remove all the dirt from the stuff you find. There’s a good amount of pieces to collect that will make you rich very quickly, so I think this pack should be forbidden in challenges (to compensate for this, you can make it so that the trip to the jungle costs $50.000). The best treasure to find are the relic parts that you can then assemble. These have a variety of supernatural effects, like marking a sim for death or summoning a skeleton maid. Overall, the skills develop at a good pace, and the treasure is found at a good pace, so it doesn’t feel like the game wants you to pointlessly grind, and it’s pretty fun for a bit.
Part 3: what if I don't want to be a tomb raider?
Most of my sims are not going to dedicate their lives to finding gold in a jungle, so that aspect of the pack, which is the selling point, is rather situational. However, Selvadorada can also work as a solid vacation stop for leisure. If you are willing to become an adventurer for a bit (granted, this can be immersion-breaking if it has nothing to do with your current storyline) you can find an ancient swimming pool, and a cliff that gives your Sims a romantic moodlet, so you have a few more places to propose marriage or things like that. The introduction where the Sims kiss on the cheek instead of waving is one of the most useful things to me, but I don't want to send each of my kiss-on-cheek Sims on a vacation to the jungle just so they can learn to do that.
https://imgur.com/8f92un0 (Talking with a street vendor)
https://imgur.com/2WrZ683 (Using a machete to open one of the transition gates)
https://imgur.com/Ydkf4pe (Crossing a bridge)
https://imgur.com/U8giiIf (Inside a temple)
https://imgur.com/J8OuUQK (Using the archeology table)