Quick Update (Patreon)
Content
I'm SO sorry I didn't get to uploading today. The new computer is all setup and holy crap is it fast! It makes the process of opening and closing the game a million times a day (for testing stuff) is much more tolerable now lol.
I've set aside most of the day tomorrow to work on Sims stuff and omg let me tell you, I got carried away again. That little thing I was working on and didn't want to talk about until I knew it was going to work has turned into a beast of a harvestable addon.
So here's how it works:
Some harvestable garden plants will have special attributes
Those plants will usually have at least one positive and negative attribute
These attributes will be adjustments to their main stats to make them more realistic
Some of these attributes will make them more suitable for certain worlds and their climates, meaning less work for your sim
Ex. Lavender likes an arid and hot environment so it's needs less watering and can hold up in a heat wave much better than other garden plants. The downside is they're a little more susceptible to bug infestations.
Another thing I added:
Some harvestable garden plants will have 'Special Garden Effects'
These are controlled by the type of wildlife they attract
At points throughout the day your harvestable plant will be visited by critters that can affect it and the plants surrounding it
Other plants will naturally have their own effects that can influence the plants around them.
Ex. Blueberries attract birds who like to eat bugs and weeds from in and around your plants as well as your beebox.
Another Ex. Beans are 'Nutrient Fixers' and impart nutrients in the soil that any surrounding plants will use to evolve and grow. Unfortunately, because they're busy feeding their neighbors it takes them longer to evolve to better quality plants.
I won't be adding these to every harvestable because I don't want it to be overkill. I'd rather this be a nice little addition to keep your garden lively along with small layer of additional gameplay for your Sims. Also, the 'Special Garden Effects' will be optional and require a separate tuning file for the effects to work so if you don't like the idea of it you don't have to use it :)
I've thrown together a bunch of ideas and created loots for them so it'll be about testing them as I add them to the harvestables, starting with the Blueberry, Lavender, and Sweet Mint. Once you all get a chance to play around with them please be sure to leave some feedback so I can fix/adjust them as needed. I spend more time creating than playing so I want to make sure they work well for you all!
Anyway, the video above is a quick look at the Blueberry that attracts birds and you can see how it gets rid of all the bugs around the area.