💼 News on Jobs and Schools

I'm glad grades don't depend completely on homework because that's more true to real life!

TriforceSims

hey this is great

mollie

Amei a ideia de você poder transferir as notas conquistadas na escola para competências de trabalho. Ajudará muito na progressão dos empregados. Uma dúvida, é uma possibilidade as universidades?

Estefani Oliveira

Will there be more subjects then what is shown here? Like Science, History and Social Studies? That's what I grew up with, along with Math and Gym/Physical Education, Literature was called English, I believe in my school here in Michigan USA!

Clara M Johnson

As someone from the UK I'd love optional uniform, or private/boarding school with uniform instead. Looks amazing!

Alanya Christie

yeah, having uni be a rabbithole would be a really nice middle ground and wouldn't require heaps of extra coding like it would if it was fully interactable

jamie

This is amazing. No repetitive mini games required, but still provides av satisfying amount of involvement and achievement

Sarah Chandra

this is sooo cool! Maybe in the future add the option for private school 👀

Javian Milton

This is amazing, I'm so excited to try this system. One suggestion is that you please heavily consider a pen and paper/book option for homework, especially math.

Toto

This looks amazing!! 🤩

Nyssa Joseph

i love how you can choose which subjects you wanna delve into more than others. Say a jock-type character who's more into PE and extracurricular activities than history, art or math will have different grades in different subjects.

mygetawayart

That system looks amazing! Can’t wait to play the game! Maybe Uni could work more or less the same as school (that meaning, being a rabbit hole)? And certain jobs could only be acessible if you have a certain degree

Amanda

i love this! Will it be possible to add in a popularity/clique system for schools for some added realism?

Michael Green

OMG SO HYPED

Joanie Boissonneault

I love this!

Super Mommy811

This sounds awesome! So much thought and attention has gone into this system. Normally I never cared much about rabbit hole jobs or school in life sims, but I'm excited now to play around with this one and use it as a tool to mold my para's personality in delightful new ways.

Amy Joscelyn

Love it!

LightDeficient

Hope there will be a school bus!

Derek Warren

Love it ❤️‍🔥

Tereza Restrepo García

One word: PERFECT!! 👍❤️❤️❤️❤️

Nathalie Carluccio

It's really nice to see that the rabbit holes will actually have an impact on a paras development and feel more interactive than in and out! Thank you for the weekly updates ❤️

Donny Miles

That's for the updates! Just wondering if university will be included in school as well or if right after high school they enter the job market?

Christine Harvey

love it❤️❤️❤️❤️

Luiza Alves

Are jobs rabbit holes ?

Annie Laster

Woah ! Everything seem really polished !

Fenite

Very detailed system ! Cery excited for the school system, I like how you can hone in on selective subjects

Luther Duncan

Even just a simple option you get by clicking on the kids themselves would be fine for me, just as long as this action is not tied to a specific object you're "forced" to buy (or maybe you have to buy materials for school after all, but there are cheaper options, like notebooks). Thanks for all your replies!

Chiara

Oh this sounds really cool! Reading it made me have some ideas. In a different comment you said that the schools are separated between elementary and highschool, I think it would be cool to have some "festivals" related to school. I think something like a "first day of school" celebration for small children and their families and maybe a "high school graduation" festival for those teenagers/young adults? That would be really cool! I think it would also be cool if maybe down the line there would be something similar to the private school even from the sims 2. Probably not for the initial release, but this specific event is very popular. I really loves the principal times event, but with this system I think it would be really cool if maybe something similar could also be related to a paras grades and extras? Also I have a question, are these school point systems going over into the points an adult para has for jobs? So a para that studies alot might start of with better background knowledge for "academic" workplaces, whereas a para that was maybe lacking in school but had alot of clubs might have points regarding these field (for example a para in a music club and a social club starts with better people knowledge and music knowledge and might not be able to do a manager job but maybe music teaching or something like that)? I hope this question makes any sense 🙈

lias

I am so loving this! I'm loving how things are evolving & can't wait to see what the other careers are as well as what things you've left for us to discover when the game drops.

rénette

I am so excited about the school options! This sounds like a lot of fun and can be personalized per Para! 😁

Zeevryn

Oooh, this is interesting. I'm loving how things are evolving & can't wait to see what the other careers are as well as what things you've left for us to discover when the game drops. Thanks for sharing 💕

ZLoves

Nice thing with homework! I do think having a way to do homework offline would be nice, since I often play off the grid households. I was also wondering if some paras (gifted or genius maybe..?) could progress through school without doing much homework while some others (difficult learners?) have to put in more work? Since sometimes doing more efforts doesnt always mean better grades

Und3rgr0und -

I love the fact that being a good student is not meaningless !😭 we actually can get a high career thanks to our efforts!!

Yassou 야

I almost never did my homework and my grades were very good. It would be too much to lose a grade because of that. Even in RL homework ist optional I think. ;) But I like the idea of 'complete homework and do bonus assignment'. :)

TyraStar74

Multiple jobs, optional homework, my heart was literally racing reading this post! I love the Paralives approach to school! I do have a question though- when you refer to company buildings could that be things like the cafe from the live action reveal? As in are company lots functional to go inside and also have your para work there (but invisible or something bc rabbit hole)?

Cece

Love all of your ideas. ❤️

TyraStar74

@Alex Massé / Anna : fantastic. Is it ok if I share that answer on reddit with someone who asked about this particular point ? @Jennifer : oh that makes more sense than what I was picturing. It's very in-depth as a mechanics, but true to modern life indeed. @BonaparteBardithion : are you refering to the US system ? I only have a passing understanding of it (I know medical insurance is through employment, but not really the rest).

ladyteruki

I seriously can't wait even one more minute to play this game!! I'm so excited X)

Fox

Can we get a graduation ceremony that the kids and their parents can attend, even if its just a rabbithole? 🥺🥺 it would as so much to family gameplay to have this sorta thing. Dressing up your teen paras in their first formalwear etc.

Maxx

Interesting the bit with homework being an optional choice to improve your grades but not only one available

FinFan 83

I'm very excited about the school system, as well as the additions to the work system! I have lots of thoughts and questions, but tried to limit myself... Some questions: - Can we change the grading system to numerical, rather than letters? Perhaps through the modding system if not a choice option in the game settings. - The example shown for the school system is about high school; is primary/elementary school the exact same or would, for example, subjects be different? - At what age do para kids start school? - Will there be a (rabbit hole) preschool? - Are there different types of school and if so, would the mandatory subjects differ between, say, an art school and a science school? - When do paras choose their optional subjects? Is that only through upgrade points or will they start out with x mandatory subjects and y optional they can expand on? - Is there a limit to the number of subjects 1 para can take? In RL scheduling of classes would be an issue, but I suppose that wouldn't necessarily be so in a rabbit hole. (I'm in favor of limiting them, though) - Are there requirements to join these school clubs? For example, one would need x skill points OR y grade to be eligible and once they've joined they can expand on their skills and increase their grade within the club. - Do paras *have* to graduate school or can they also drop out? Perhaps they could opt to repeat their final year and if they fail again, they drop out. Or drop out at any point (perhaps with parents' permission). - If further education will be (eventually) added to the game, could we get different options? Like a 16 yo para could choose to go to trade school rather than finish high school (or maybe have to pass for x number of courses) whereas others could choose to go to college or university? Personally I'd be fine with further education also being a rabbithole and just continuing the system of expanding knowledge and/or skills and specialize for further career. - If paras can get tutoring, does that also mean another para (teen or adult) can become a tutor as a part-time job and/or for extra-curricular points? - Will there be different grades/years in school and are paras progressing through them with their classmates or will it just be “school” from kid through teen and they can basically befriend any school-age para? - Can paras do homework together? Either with a friend or adult (informal tutoring), possibly even set up ‘homework sessions’ at a friends’ house or public location and be ‘study buddies’? - Does personality affect how well/poorly they do in school? Some suggestions: - If there’s a preschool/Kindergarten and/or difference between elementary school and secondary school, it’d be really neat if the little ones could get more realistic homework assignments, like ‘go to the park’, ‘collect x flowers’, ‘take care of school pet over the weekend’, ‘give a presentation about dogs’ and so on. - Have the option for school-age paras to discuss their options for additional subjects and extra-curricular activities with other school-age paras, their parents/adults or the (rabbit hole) guidance counselor. Maybe through together-cards. - Have (grand)parents and older siblings encourage/force school-age paras to ‘do better in school’, ‘take an extra-curricular activity’, ‘join x club’ if they have certain traits and/or took those things themselves and want the younger para to follow in their footsteps. - Could some of the subjects be grouped together for a para to focus their knowledge/skills on career areas, like the sciences, social, cultural, financials and so on – if they pass all those grouped subjects, then it gives them a boost in expertises or extras (or something new) for entering the workplace. Could perhaps fit in with the ‘domain’ thing for jobs? - Allow paras the option to ‘study’ ahead of a test/exam so that even if they haven’t completed (all) the homework they could still pass it with flying colors. Perhaps study could be through a book. - Could the ‘2nd homework’ for ‘more homework’ be changed to ‘2nd assignment’ or something? - Give the school-age paras (and teachers) school vacations, preferably spread out over the year versus the very long American summer vacation - Give working paras maternity *and* paternity leave, with the non-birthing para(s) being able to choose when to take it - Give working paras parental leave to take when they see fit for their toddler-through-child-aged para, they could use it during the school vacation, for a day trip, a school excursion, when the para kid is sick and so on - Allow paras to use the (physical) newspaper, cell phone and computer to find a job in addition to the hiring poster

Zedef

Cool thanks live playing from young too old.

Shota Tsunamura

Thank you for the response!

Lindy Canniff

Electric Callboy, they are from Germany. Can’t stop listening to them. 🤘🏻 Definitely check them out if you’re up for a fun surprise. Check out their music video for Hypa Hypa, that’s how my addiction started with this band. 😂

Marita Svendsen

(from anna) For now there's just elementary and high school but that might change in the future. You will be able to meet Paras at school/work yes!

Anna

(from Anna) Not yet but maybe in future updates!

Anna

(from Anna) Food is a "knowledge", it's the main skill from which multiple subskills come from. So let's say you're progressing in the "Cooking" or the "Baking" skill, your Food knowledge will progress also. A bit like the "Music" knowledge increases if you're playing the guitar or the piano

Anna

There's also the very common scenario of workplaces offering different kinds of insurance. We haven't seen much of the health system yet, but having a workplace (indirectly) cover medical bills is pretty common. Some employers also offer childcare services, gym memberships, or financial literacy classes.

BonaparteBardithion .

(from Anna) Automatic upgrades are being considered yes!

Anna

(from Anna) No you didn't dream that! It's still being considered though, not 100% confirmed yet

Anna

(from anna) Not yet but it could be in a future update!

Anna

(from anna) Those details are not decided yet!

Anna

(From anna) For now there's only one education path possible but in the future there might be more options with more schools to choose from! University is not implemented for now but I like the idea of adults getting back to school!

Anna

(From anna) The details are still being decided so I can't tell if failing all your classes to F will be possible in the time you get to finish your education. Those are definitely points to playtest and to balance!

Anna

(from anna) No need for together cards, your Para will automatically get a notification after work saying "Your Para learned that their colleague X is single!" for instance And yes the plan is that you can meet people at school/work and interact with them also outside of the rabbit hole!

Anna

There's only one school for now but there might be more in the future!

Anna

(from anna) I like the idea of an honor system! And the school events are being considered too :)

Anna

(from Anna) Yes, at graduation you will be able to transform your school subjects into other things! The rest of the system for aging is not final yet so I can't give too much details!

Anna

I can see most clubs having at least a bare minimum grade requirement, like the football team suspends you for X-amount of days if you drop below a C so you can focus on remedial tutoring instead. It would enter an "in danger" mode and if you don't do tutoring/extra homework before the end of that suspension you get kicked out of the club.

BonaparteBardithion .

(from anna) I agree with your ideas! Doing homework only boost grades for now. A performance system is actually being considered!

Anna

which band 👀

Anna

(from Anna) Yes definitely, I like these ideas! It might not be a big challenge to get those perfect grades, but not doing so might result in a different experience outside of school, with interactions or together cards being different. Maybe as you said the parents could have different relationship options towards their children, or maybe as a bad student you could more easily relate with other bad students, thanks to specific together cards. Maybe if you have certain personality traits, your Para will be happy with themselves (or not) depending on their grades too!

Anna

I think it would be an interesting option. I was a homeschooled extrovert, and it was a positive experience for me. Coming from a life sim viewpoint. I enjoy playing with my characters in active careers, and use mods to keep my kids/teens home so I can actively direct their learning/interests. Rabbit holes are fine, but I would prefer to actively play with them. Maybe make a club for a co-op etc. It would be fun to have those options available. And if it’s not included in the game, maybe someone will make a mod!

Lindy Canniff

Ok, I get it. And yeah, there’s nothing more life sim than getting a report card with bad grades and having to explain to your parents why!😅

TeKavia

Your grades will drop automatically at random if you don't work on them, there's a chance every day for a subject to become "in danger" and to decrease. So you can just let that happen if you want to do badly in school!

Anna

For now we only have the computer option because it's just simpler to implement at the state of our game right at this moment (we don't have an inventory system yet) I agree there should be more ways to do them though!

Anna

I think it depends on where you look for achievement. If the only metric for achievement is filling a grade meter it can make the experience stale whereas I think this system will allow one Para to achieve higher grades while another achieves higher skill levels and they both can succeed in life. I do think that there needs to be more chances for regression in one way or another. Make sure there's actually some sacrifice involved in the trade off.

BonaparteBardithion .

(from Anna) Jennifer is right! For now there's no private school or homeschool options, but they might come in future updates.

Anna

(from anna) The details of graduation are still being decided, but I agree there should be in-game events for those milestones! They will be worked on during early access though.

Anna

(from anna) For now there's no university but we're planning on it! Yes I think like their grades in secondary school should definitely count in the university application system! I don't know about adult Paras, maybe there could be options in the PAM to get a head start in some subjects (maybe you could choose like one expertise or one domain your Para is good at so it's not so hard to apply for university and jobs without having played it during the school years?) For now there's no way to skip classes or work since we're still making the core system but we're working on those design questions!

Anna

Would also be neat if when a para is in debt, a percentage of their salary is automatically rerouted to the debt collector and the para only receives what's left over.

Zedef

If remote school becomes an option, it'd be great if personality is taken into account in how well a pupil does. Say, an independent and highly intelligent para might do better than one who is easily distracted, very socialable (and missing RL interaction with peers), more practical and/or juvenile. Would be even neater if schools were to give an 'advice' after x period of time, like para x might do better with home schooling, para y does well in remote school but would flourish more in a public/private school etc. and then the para child/parents have to decide whether the kid changes schools or not.

Zedef

(from Anna) Schools will more likely be separated by life stage and not by specific levels. For now there's no system that ties an age to a grade level and there's not really a way to fail school and have to redo the same subject for the same level. However some of the subjects are the same from one level to another, so if you get a grade in Math in elementary school, it will stay when you graduate to high school. Also if you get an F everywhere during your whole education, you will just not have the bonus associated with good grades (for example, the ability to transform it into a work-related expertise at graduation). Love the idea of report cards!

Anna

OMG Absolute brilliant system, I am so loving this! I love that these points work both for school and the work force, so excited for this. Is there by chance a full list of jobs/career options as of yet?

TnT_Terry

In my country, literature is focused on, well, literature. And depending on which language courses you take, it covers literature from all those countries/languages. Basically, it meant reading a lot of books/texts (in different languages), discussing literature themes, and developments, but also the history of literature in said language in certain time periods and that could extend to reading older texts and making comparisons to modern literature and so on. IIRC literature became a course from third year of high school (senior / 15+) and up until then you only had to do basic book reports in the different language courses you took. Literature as a course was more expansive.

Zedef

Anything about college or university or

Bhagya Ramesh

Not for now, but there might be in the future!

Anna

(From Anna) Hi there! First of all I understand where you all are coming from, I agree for now there is not a lot of challenge in this system. The thing is that the point of the school and career system is not specifically to provide a big challenge! There might be to some degree (to be a perfect grade student with all courses unlocked for example, or to get into high career positions, things like that) but our main goal with this system is to have a sense of what's happening at work or school while the character is in a rabbit hole. When upgrading your school/career everyday, you make choices (to upgrade or leave certain grades, to get extra classes, to get into a club, etc). Those choices are a part of what makes your Para unique and it's our main goal with this system! However I must say that there's so much tweaking, playtesting and balancing remaining to do. We don't want the whole system to feel boring either or to be completely ignored by players! For now there's only one school path possible but if we make multiple schools in the future, there might be more elements of challenge in one of them for example. Making homework mandatory vs optional is a good idea, it might not be a game settings but rather a property of some schools, so players who want that challenge could make their Paras enroll in those ones. Some players also don't want that extra challenge in the school/career system because they have a lot of Paras to take care at the same time! So we definitely have to think about all of these parameters :)

Anna

I'm not a fan of the idea of after-school activities, except for prom maybe. Feels very American. Let them have a life, friends and sports/activities/hobbies outside of school please.

Zedef

I don't mind computers being necessary to do homework in this day and age. However, it would necessitate kids/teens being able to stay longer in school to use school computers (perhaps by being the one tutored, as tutoring is an option) and/or have libraries available for them do their homework on a computer there.

Zedef

Elen, you state that it's ridiculous that not doing homework won't penalize a para. That's only from *your* perspective and, presumably, experience though. In my country, children in primary school don't get homework and in secondary/high school it's your own responsibility whether you make it or not - if you attend all your classes and pay attention & participate, you won't actually need to do your homework to understand the material and pass your courses. You might get a higher grade if you do your homework though, as they will help you grasp the material even better and sometimes similar questions are in the exams.

Zedef

I love how unique the systems are. Especially wotu school. I love the idea of homework for different classes and the extracurricular. I hope one day we get some active ones. But from what I've read you all have been very thoughtful about the school and work systems. I am on the edge of my seat for EA! 🫶🏾 keep up the amazing work seriously!

SIMplycoya

Yeah I think if there is homeschool than the player is responsible for making sure their Para gains skills and such. But I don't think there should be any other differences, they can do school on the pc to gain upgrade points for things but if they don't maybe they still have skill level goals to reach to graduate. Idk I'm not a game dev I just like having lots of options the families I play. Someone will probably make a homeschool mod if it isn't in the game, they always do

Jax

Maybe some extras can be a "slept through class" type option that fills a need in exchange for academic progress, or "texted [Name]" so you can get social points instead.

BonaparteBardithion .

It does seem pretty limiting both economically and setting wise. I think public libraries would definitely help with the accessibility situation, or maybe if they give each student one but it has limited functions. I second having a backpack, or maybe a notebook/binder, with the homework interaction for players that want to create a period setting.

BonaparteBardithion .

would be cool as well if when you upgrade something and have to choose, theres also an option that tells you what your para would "want" to upgrade (could be random or based on traits).. i feel like it would add a sense of autonomy

Maylina Martin

I think if they offered homeschooling it should exclude some skill point extras. There should maybe be a computer activity to attend class (also doubles for distance learning) for fewer hours than usual and than doing some skill building activities (exercise, music, cooking, coding, ect) during certain hours could apply appropriate school credit.

BonaparteBardithion .

looooove the schedule options!

Danielle Bee

If it’s not done by age then I’d think the next best thing would be time and/or subject progression. Your Para is in a certain grade for X amount of days and moves on (or doesn’t move on due to bad subject progression) to the next grade. I think it would be a really cool addition.

TeKavia

Having so many specific grades might not match with the ages unless the Paras also have a wide range of specific ages. And would progression through grades be tied only to age or to subject progression? If it's the latter would a Para made older have to work harder to catch up? I do like the idea of having a shorter range of grades and if a student doesn't have a high enough academic score they have to repeat that level.

BonaparteBardithion .

yeah I think it would be more realistic if when you got homework for a subject, if you don't complete it you lose a grade. & If you do complete it, your grade stays the same. They could also add an option to 'complete homework and do bonus assignment' that would take longer, but allow your parafolk to boost their grade. It just seems not as immersive to have a child who never does their homework but still has amazing grades in school.

r m

I’m loving the school system, Are they separated? By high school and primary school (I don’t know what Canada calls there lower schools.) or is it just one of those big academies? IE (just school) Second maybe yu could add this latter but it would be fun if the pears randomly of (if possible personally) get in trouble in school, and get detentions making stay late like the tutoring but with a native effect. Or maybe for the high schooler sometime ditch. I know it’s not for most people but I due prefer some consequences in my life sim. Lastly meaning making, and hanging out with friends is a big part of a person’s school life (persona to assist with social links haha) will the kids/teens get to do this as well at school. Or will it only be when yu can control them again to make friends with their pears?

Shota Tsunamura

This is just so… Awesome! I loved the originality you’re bringing to the school system. I was myself someone that had great grades but didn’t really like to be at school or do homework - so I used to use all my breaks at school to do all the homework so as soon as the day ended I could just do nothing at home or play my games or stuff. So the fact we can actually give different “study styles” to our Paras is so personal and wholesome. I can’t wait to play!

Filipe Alves

And if a para fails a course -- will they need to retake that course either via summer school or going an extra semester? :)

Jennifer

I posted similar in another comment, but I hope we'll be able to mod the game to change "home work" to 'extra credit work' or click a toggle to make homework mandatory (e.g., lower marks if not done). And likewise to increase the frequency of 'courses in danger' and lower the frequency of the upgrade cards.

Jennifer

I also hope there will be a school focused on the trades. But I assume we could also mod somewhat easily?

Jennifer

My 15 year old and I prefer M-S, whereas my husband prefers Sat-Sun -- to which we tell him Sat/Sun is the weekEND not the "weekend and weekstart" :D

Jennifer

Or perhaps some activities could impact grades and provide extra opportunities, e.g., "Leave math early to attend Football practice?" Paired with later "Catch up on Math?" And then the actions determining if the math grade starts dropping.

Jennifer

I like the mischievous thinking, e.g., invite Sarah over to do homework together vs copy off of Sarah's work . And likewise how these options could then perhaps develop different skills.

Jennifer

And maybe become even more tense if the parents have certain traits in the themes of perfectionism/ego/insecurities?

Jennifer

I really like the backpack idea as that could also work for people who want to do a game set in the past before computers.

Jennifer

Yes I saw that, I'm wondering if they get skills in school even if they don't sign up for extracurricular.

Jax

I love this!! I think the school and work systems are really great. I disagree with people saying it seems too easy. One thing I disliked about the sims was getting kids to do their homework everyday. It didn’t feel like there was enough time and it was such a chore. Having homework not due immediately the next day is great. And there are kids that don’t do homework and still get good grades, so I like that it can boost your grade but doesn’t hurt you. Also love the work system!! The upgrades points are really cool. I like the small progress each day - it seems like you won’t hit a wall at some point where you can no longer improve. And I like that we can shape the Paras progress and choose which skills to focus on!

Zoie

I think using modding tools to rename 'homework' to 'extra credit work' and then upping the frequency of courses being in danger requiring more work may help address your concerns. That is assuming this will be possible. Or a toggle would be nice, e.g., "Make homework mandatory vs optional" And while I am also concerned that getting upgrade cards everyday will make the game too easy, I also expect there will be gameplay balancing done before/during early access. But best case to me will be if we can toggle/set the frequency ourselves. (And for people who don't want to customize settings, perhaps a general "easy/medium/hard" selector that will tweak many settings at once.)

Jennifer

Perhaps it will be possible to skip school and have grades drop as a result.

Jennifer

this system looks really interesting but I feel like it would also be interesting if different paras would start out with different grades and have slower or faster progress based on their personality and things you did prior to school, like having a parent read to a toddler.

Andrea Digney

According to the post, yes. "Extracurricular activities that makes your Para progress in a skill"

Jennifer

I wouldn't mind if the grades got lower if you didn't do your homework. There could be projects for extra points. The possibility to skip classes would also be great. And could result in Bad grades. Still really like the concept so far :)

Sophie.17

Will we be able to choose different kinds of schools (like public school, private school, performing arts school), similar to how we'd choose different kinds of jobs, or will there be only one school that everyone goes to?

Leaf

I really like the shift system! It will allow for more customisation and more storytelling because now a Teen might pick up weekend shifts and work during weekdays, and not be limited by the number of jobs. I like how the upgrade points can be used neutrally to change the shift pattern, instead of just having to be spent on rewards to make things easier. The school system looks really fun and engaging! I really like how it's split into different subjects, so a Para can excel in something that aligns with their assigned talent, while performing poorly in something else. That allows for more nuance. Instead of black and white "good student vs bad student". I also like how the player won't be penalised for not doing their homework. Because in big households or once your grades are maxed out, it's just tedious and pointless. And I appreciate the "in danger" mechanic for adding greatly needed challenge in game. My one negative feedback is: homework needs to have a non-electronic alternative before Early Access. Having it only be doable on computer excludes historical/retro gameplay, technophobe Paras and poor families (as they need to spend money on a computer to fulfil basic game mechanic, whether the player wants it or not).

Domon0310

I really like this school system! I do wish that homework could be done in more ways, such as on paper, so that if my paras can't afford a computer or if I don't want them to have computers they could still do their homework.

Leaf

Will we be able to adjust the frequency for school/work upgrade points via the modding tools?

Jennifer

I relate to "Having work pay part of your bills" since the org I work for is all work from home and each month we receive money to compensate for our internet/cellular expenses. I assume it will be similar to this in the game.

Jennifer

+1 to this. Not doing homework should definitely have a negative outcome. Someone else mentioned also creating a tense relationship between the kid and their parent(s), maybe causing them to get grounded. Having a random "trouble phase" in a subject doesn't really make sense, especially if that student is at an A in that subject.

Chris Teague

I have a question about the last picture. I guess the "application points" box is the points the Para actually has (in the example, they have a total of 9 points so they can't apply for that particular job, that requires 12). What does having "Food" points means? Meaning the Para likes food or...? I don't understand :-D

Chiara

I tend to agree. Negative consequences provide challenges. But I also think that at school, it could become just as micromanage-y as upgrades, depending on how they're introduced. But maybe while at school you get Together Cards that partially solve that ?

ladyteruki

Will you have to choose or get an option for an upgrade everyday? I can see that being cool for the first playthrough, but it might get too easy for your sim to level up and too much and micromanage-y after a while. Is there an option for these upgrades to happen in the background while you play? Also, there should be negative consequences for stuff like not doing your homework. There should be negative consequences or random events (negative or posting) while people play. Personally, I think that makes things more fun and unpredictable.

Jazz

Haha yes! I did not know this. Thanks for the info.

Mason Evans

I really like the scheduling options. The system gets so much deeper for it ! "It’s not only about the challenge of being a good student, it’s also about making choices about what your character likes." I love that. Childhood is a time when you slowly build who you are, define what you like, find things that resonate. I really like the self-discovery aspect of the school gameplay as announced here. It's perfectly cohesive with the progression of personalities (and not just jobs) for adults. Are there plans to differentiate middle school from high school ? "It means this subject starts to get a little hard for your Para and you have to get their attention on it (only if you want to!)" An excellent way of not making school feel repetitive. "Have your work pay a part of your bills" I don't quite understand what that looks like for now. "when applying to a job, all of your experience in a job of the same domain will count" That's pretty cool, and incentivizes lateral moves. Quick unrelated question, if a Paradev sees it : I vaguely remember reading, a while ago, that when creating a new Para (or household), we wouldn't have to move them into a lot if we don't want to, meaning that it could be possible to RP an unhoused Para (or household). Did I dream that ? With so much of the archives having been deleted when Patreon changed the community pages, I can't look it up anymore.

ladyteruki

This isn't related to the post but talking of toddlers made me think it would be useful to be able to hire a babysitter (a NPC that comes to your house and just "stays" there looking at your child): this way your Para parent could have some time "off" from their children to get out/see people/practise skills etc. etc. Although I have no idea hw much absorbing it would be to raise a child in the game. edit: ops, sorry, I meant this as a reply to Jordacious and Lautel above but instead made a new comment.

Chiara

YES!!! Seconding the hope for a proper off-lot preschool for toddlers! And I'd love it if we could eventually mod to build our own schools as well!

Lautel Okhio

This is a very interesting take on the school system and I really do like it! I do hope that there will be a physical homework assignment depending on the class vs always having to use the laptop. ETA: Also I hope this means preschool will also be a thing! I could see toddler paras needing to learn skills throughout their time at preschool or daycare before going to elementary school

Jordacious

I take it you're American? Most of the rest of the world views it this way. :-)

Fran Smith

Homeschooling would be a good idea for me.

Lucie Baha

I'd love an athletics day where kids compete in activities a track meet or something. Maybe a walkathon where they raise money for the school.

BreakingGaia

Homework isn't every day. Perhaps there will be a community library with computers...?

Fran Smith

I hope there will be a school bus!

Derek Warren

Absolutely!!!!!!!

Fran Smith

Yes! I'm hoping for grade year numbers (Kindergarten, Pre-school, grade 1, grade 2...grade 10, grade 11, grade 12)! I'm also hoping that overall average grade scores all add up to an overall grade score at the end of Primary/Elementary School and High/Middle School. I'm also hoping for report cards! Report cards could include perhaps comments as well as grades? " doesn't do their homework", " studies very diligently", " often daydreams and doesn't listen in class", " spends time socialising instead of learning", " is talented at x subject", " is often late for school", " has difficulty concentrating in class because they come to school hungry/tired/etc", " is a polite and eager student", " is often disruptive during class"...etc.

Fran Smith

I am just in love with this system. I can’t wait to play with it, I’m literally in awe!

Kaitlyn Jackson

I like the idea of these systems, but I think getting points everyday is a bit much. It feels like the para will max everything quickly unless I'm misunderstanding. I think there needs to be more negative stuff because all these buffs just means there is no actual game.

BreakingGaia

It is standard in some parts of the world. In my country the weekend is always at the end of the week, so that a week starts on a Monday. Maybe it is a European thing? 🤔

To blå

This system is so detailed and diverse, can't wait to test it ^^

Ellis

I really like where this is heading for the school aspect. I really do like how there are different subjects. Will there be projects with due dates?

Carelle

At this point I wish it was almost time for the release of the game so I can do making videos and streaming

TrePixels

I love the level of uniqueness this game has for each para rather than the same few tasks over and over

Tee W

It's English

Ana Isabel Ribeiro

I think the school system sounds fun! I am wondering if you plan to make a homeschool or remote school option?

Lindy Canniff

Will there be summer holidays or will kids go to school 365 days a year? Similarly for jobs, will you be able to take 1 or more days off (beside your normal week schedule)?

Chiara

I loved how the school system worked in TS3! After school activities, special activity events (like a dance recital), prom, working on homework together, going to a friend's house after school, etc. Would love to see something like that in Paralives!

Sarah

I was thinking... What about Paras who don't want to attend highschool after middleschool? Will there be an option to make them graduate from middleschool and go to work afterwards or get an apprenticeship? And if they do, can they go back to school as adults attending an evening school to make their graduation certificate to go to university? 🤩

TyraStar74

Wow, this update has me SO excited! I really appreciate the options you’ve created for storytelling. That I can choose for my para to work more hours without more pay - it might not be a benefit but it allows me to tell a story about an overworked Para! Or maybe my kid goes to a really intense school and they receive homework every day (whether or not they complete that homework haha)! I love the idea of a subject randomly being “in danger.” Because the subject matter learned in a class changes throughout the school year and my Para might have a harder time with trigonometry than geometry, even though they are both “Math.” Reading some comments, I can see why people are afraid there’s not enough of a challenge. Even though Paralives is a cozy game, sometimes challenge is necessary for storytelling. If I want to tell a story where a teen Para fails all their classes, will there be enough “in danger” events before graduation to make that happen? And will there be consequences for such a thing? Overall, I am really looking forward to playing with a whole family in Paralives, coordinating their work and school schedules, and developing their personalities through their choices!!!! Thank you so much for sharing!

Lane Brettschneider

Literature homework? A bit confused as I never had such a subject in school.

Amir Mohanlal

"Chance to get to know your colleagues during work hours and level up the relationship you got with them": this is interesting. Are we talking about something like Together Cards? Questions/proposals/demands/suggestions from your colleagues that you have to react to? Your coworkers will be characters that you can also meet and interact with when you're off the clock? Interesting.

Chiara

Will there be different types of schools to enroll? Like a school focused on arts or sports? I went on an school focused on arts in middleschool and at the gradeschool in our neighbourhood every kid learns an instrument from 3rd grade onwards. That would be fun. :) I'd also like to have classes where you do crafting or sewing. I did have that at school too.^^

TyraStar74

I love how all of this looks! I have never seen the week displayed as MTWTFSS before, though.

Mason Evans

Yes! There should be options for good or bad. Not everything Is perfect all the time. I want my para to absolutely hate her job and her co workers. I want a teenage para who talks off to the teachers and gets detention!!

Kayla M

Woahh this is blowing my mind!! Each para is going to have the opportunity to be so unique!! I love it so much and im going to cry

aza

I love how kids and teens are going to get a more involved school experience. Not just sending them to school and having them do homework for grades, but actually making it specific to each Para. School is such a major part in kid/teen's lives in life simulation games but it always feels lacking and a tad boring, regardless of how much outside-of-school activities and objects you add for them to interact with. These additions are huge in making playing with younger Para's more fun and characterized!!

Emtistic

My first thought about the laptop for homework was the same. What will poor Paras do, if they can't effort a laptop? Will there be ones they can borrow from their schools? Will there be cheaper options? It's very exciting. ^^

TyraStar74

This looks AMAZING!!! I love the school system & that it’s engaging even with a rabbit hole system. So great! I’m wondering if it would be possible for there to be non-rabbit hole events related to school, like a school trip or even just seeing students run track one day, things like that? This looks great guys!!

Erica Cobb

Good point, seems that an alternative way to do homework is needed, otherwise if I don't have a computer in my home what should I do? Could be a simple option that only kids have when you click on a desk, or they could come back from school with a "standard" backpack whose only "function" in the game is for you to click on it and select "do homework"

Chiara

I love how you can pick what to do about school in this way, its not just one block of school and that's it. With this you can have student who has otherwise full run of A+ yet still flunk a class they don't care about. And the possibility of more than core classes is so interesting. Though while I do like the that work system it seems right now little too easy and fast to get better at job with every day point system so personally I might go to every 2 to 3 day for a point, but at the core I really like the idea. Maybe it's the part of me that has RPG as my favorite gaming genre but being able to "lvl" your para to affect them and their life is something Im really looking forward for.

Maryathesecond

I see there are quite a few of us that are "worried" that jobs/schools turn out to be too "easy". I wouldn't like that either. Maybe a suggestion could be an overall setting where you can set the "frequency" of upgrade events (everyday-often-rare-never or something like that).

Chiara

Well, I do. It's ridiculous that not doing homework won't penalize you. I thought this was a life sim game, not Cooking Mama.

Elen Pink

I love how the homework works, and the use of extracurriculars to gain skills and friends. And the flexibility in work hours/days is awesome!

Anna

Wowwwwww love this!

Stephanie Marion

About the "spicing up" that you mention: it could also be interesting if we were offered not only chances for upgrade but also random "chances" for being mischievous, like do pranks or something. You could choose to be a "good" or "bad" kid

Chiara

I’d love to see an honor student system and after school events! I’m absolutely in love with the work schedule system. An honor student would basically work harder than a traditional student. But they’d be rewarded more often for good grades. But if the student couldn’t maintain their grades, they’d revert back to a traditional student. It’d be neat if certain clubs required high grades. Clubs with logic based skills (debate, student council, chess) could require high grades. Clubs with no logic required wouldn’t need a minimum grade requirement, but they could have a minimum level requirement (though it’d negate the purpose of joining to gain skills). For after school events, they could be held after school or on weekends. These could be school competitions, or social activities with club members (basically like prom and field trips in TS3).

Chromatic Elegy

Ooh. Cool addition that you can change work hours. 😲

Marita Svendsen

Another question is: if aging is turned on, when the kid becomes an adult, do their passions/skills/expertises they learned in school transfer to and shape their adult personality?

Chiara

I am excited for further development. But I do not love this system for school, or for work really. I love the ideas around it but this system lacks a certain sense of achievement. I don't necessarily think this needs to change, as I think this is meant to be a cozy game. So that does fit. I just prefer a different experience. But this doesn't take away my excitement for the game!

Danielle Ellis

Interesting

Brony Time

Awesome post!! This looks really cool! Some things I thought of ~ -Will there be another option besides ‘do homework’, the same option can get boring quickly , perhaps some options like “Write English Report,” “Finish History Presentation,” “Research Mathematical Strategies,” might be fun to spice it up! -Will doing homework only boost grades, can it also boost skill? (doing math homework boots logic) -Are we in complete control of upgrades and points? Might be interesting to spice it up and add a bit more spontaneity! Doing the same action everyday while garnering points may get boring easily. Maybe some fun events can happen? Like your para is at work and a rude customer comes in - how they handle it impacts their performance!

Kayla M

Love it!

Vivian Finborud

Metalhead, edm/dupstep, art, movie geek here. 🤓 🤘🏻 Oh I would love it we got metal music in the game too. 👀 recently found a band that matches those vibes too. 😆

Marita Svendsen

Very interesting, thank you. I like that your approach to school is "low pressure", I personally don't like playing with kids too much so if I'd had to do homework and such every day I'd have likely never tried that. At the same time, and perhaps a bit contradictory, I'm very interested in (optional) aspects and settings that can make the game more challenging and difficult, choices that can have "negative" consequences (always relatively speaking in the context of a quiet, comfortable game) for the player. So for example my suggestion is: if the kid constantly gets bad grades for some time (lower than C), maybe their relationship with their parents can become more "tense"? I don't want to put it too harshly, nothing dramatic, but maybe they're less likely to get something from them when they ask? Maybe they start getting Together Cards about it?

Chiara

I'm loving this plan for how jobs and school work

Nathan Carpenter

I like the concept of how the school grades work!❤️ but if I understand correctly, is the only option of doing badly in school to instead choose to do well at extracurricular activities?

Lisa Hedlund

200Hertz

I really really love they system you've come up with for jobs and schools! One of my big pet peeves with other life simulation games is that school seems a little pointless, your kids don't actually gain skill points. Will Para children/teens be able to use points to gain skill levels as well as grades? Also will there be any private school or homeschool options? Honestly even if the answer to all that is no I still think the current iteration is better than what we've seen elsewhere so good job to the whole team!

Jax

Kudos for making Monday the first day of the week. 😇

SimMattically

Will graduation be something we can attend? Better yet, will there be events for certain milestones (such as graduation) that we can celebrate with our Paras, and will these big life events be something that other Paras around us will be conscious of? Like, can other Paras engage with us in a new way during these milestones, and can these milestones also be reflected upon? I love everything here, I'm just curious how deep, or how surface level, major life events are.

Xo.Noe

I'm loving the deck-builder vibes I'm getting from the school and work upgrade systems. It's so simple, but it adds a lot of flavor to what would otherwise be pretty boring stretches without interacting with your paras. I'm excited to see what other extra perks are possible!

Jean

this looks really promising to me so far! i really like that both school and work can be used for storytelling and character development purposes rather than just feeling like a waste of time where my character disappears for hours. i'm super curious about what extras there will be to choose from! if i remember correctly you mentioned universities in the past too or am i mistaken? if there will be higher education, will any para get into any major or would their grades from school make it so it's more or less likely they get accepted? (and how would that work with a para that "spawned" as an adult? would it default to having had Cs in all classes or would it go based on skills or something different?) also is there a way to skip classes or do paras just automatically go to school and it's out of the players' control?

Melina W

So for the schooling, will there be grade levels? You know like preschool, kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade all the way up to college?

TeKavia

This sounds so fun

Savvaaaaaassss

That’s so cool!

Laura Cacique

I don’t have much to complain about with the upgrade system, I mostly just don’t understand it yet and probably won’t until I play the game. I just hope it’s not super easy to learn skills but doesn’t take forever. Upgrading a skill everyday seems kinda fast. I hope that if you can change the life span that skills progress at different rates or maybe just half fill the bar for an upgrade everyday and little things can boost it, you know?

Matthew

Me (a historically homework procrastinating person currently working their cyber security job listening to Bodysnatcher) - “they see me” I love the way y’all approach school. Making it about more than just grinding out the grades. I think it will let a lot of people feel seen and included.

Zak the Sloth

This update makes me wish for a university update or dlc.

Julio Saliba

Love the concept of favorite subjects and the different homework topics!

Pameler

Wii their be a option to enrol in different schools

Bhagya Ramesh

I absolutely do not like the upgrade system. I am having a hard time understanding the challenge behind going up on the ladder in your career and getting good grades in school. There is no challenge if all I have to do is press a button.

Elen Pink

I can’t help but do a mini screech for every update 🥹

Alysia Fleming