Spooky season begins early this year as The Sims 4 Realm of Magic has arrived. Don’t worry, it’s not that scary. Sims can now enter a whole new dimension to play around as Spellcasters, the new occult, and terrorize the neighborhood with their newfound magic abilities. You could also be a nice Spellcaster of course, but where’s the fun in that?
This review was sponsored by EA Gamechangers, however opinions given are my own honest, unbiased thoughts on the product.
Wicked Wardrobe for Witchy Sims
If you love leather, goth and otherworldly fashion, you’re going to love the Create a Sim of The Sims 4 Realm of Magic. The CAS is on point and it fits the theme perfectly. I have more concerns about things I “missed”, than the things we actually got…but then I might just be a bit greedy when it comes to one of my favorite occults. I’ll discuss my greediness with you further in a bit, but let me first get into the one thing that did bother me about the CAS items that actually were included.
The only detail that bothered me are the color combinations in the braided hairstyle for feminine Sims. To name an example, the black streaks in the pink hair color looked very harsh and I wish there was a way to pick your own color combinations. Custom Content creators actually have made these options for us for previous content, so why isn’t it a thing in the official game by now? My father will hear about this, EA!
Okay, to get back to my greed… Where are items for the little spellcasters amongst us? And then I don’t mean goblins, gnomes or other spell casting creatures. I am talking about kids & toddlers. Sure, they only get their abilities once they hit puberty, but why does that mean they can’t dress like their parents or older siblings? I really miss some proper wizardry outfits for kids and toddlers, and I am actually getting tired of stating this. These age groups are getting left out so often it is getting old, ironically.
And where are the full-blown wizard robes? Or some new witch hats? A cloak? Let’s just say I miss some iconic items that would be perfect in a pack like this. I don’t want to finish talking about Create a Sim in a negative way as I really REALLY like the items that we get. There is a good balance between styles and all of the items still fit the theme of Realm of Magic. I can see some of my more alternative Sims wear the items in their daily lives too.
Watch our complete overview of the Create a Sim items
Temporary CAS Bugs upon Release
Upon release of Realm of Magic there seem to be a few bugs in Create a Sim. The major one would be the eye color options for Spellcasters. They don’t show up properly and when you still pick one of them nonetheless your game crashes. You would think such as Spellcasters are the major feature in this pack, they would at least test their functionality more thorough. So for now, stick with normal eye colors!
Other than that two items for feminine Sims seem to be buggy too. The shiny bodysuit removes leggings. Maybe that’s a stylistic choice of the developers, but if that’s the case why not leave the choice for the player? The last buggy thing in CAS would be the bracelet/ring combo disappearing completely when wearing feminine long-sleeved items. The visual effect still appears, but not the item itself. When wearing masculine items the bracelet works fine… Let’s hope Create a Sim gets a bug fix soon.
Enchanted Designs in Build & Buy
While The Sims 4 Vampires approached a more eerie side of Victorian architecture, Realm of Magic seems to go a friendlier route. The terms that come to mind are organic, earthy and natural. The designs are stunning and often have a nature-based theme to them.
Build Mode has some of the most beautiful pieces I’ve seen in The Sims 4 so far, but also some of the most hideous. Everything matches, which is a huge plus for me. I really love the stained glass options for the doors and windows, but what is up with the huge stone frame on one of the doors? A little more subtle and I would have loved it just as much as the other doors. Sometimes, less is more. This was one of these cases.
Looking through the furniture catalog of Realm of Magic for the first time was such a blast. All in all I think Build Mode is amazing. The items are incredible and suit the magical theme very well. Some are a bit over the top, like the peacock sink, but it adds so much to the pack as it makes the items more unique.
While the beautiful wooden furniture would look great in any house, there are a few items a bit more styled to usage by Spellcasters. There is one “rug” with runes that glow, cauldrons and a magical fireplace that I would probably not use in my normal households. I am not saying that it’s bothersome, but just something to keep in mind if you expect all items to be perfectly normal for your Muggle Sims.
And oh my word, can we pleeeease talk about the kitchen?! I died a little when I saw that we not only get beautiful counters, but appliances as well. The refrigerator and stove are my favorites in the game, so unless I need a more modern look, I’m going to be using this set a lot for sure. EA suddenly seems to be on a roll when it comes to kitchens, so I think S.F.E.R.K. can officially retire from the protest. Victory is ours, kitchen-enthusiasts!
Watch our complete overview of the Build & Buy items
A new Magical Lifestyle for your Sims
The Sims 4 Realm of Magic has one main feature: life as a Spellcaster. The pack adds a big amount of new gameplay for Simmers to play through, but don’t expect much else beside the magical part. But who am I kidding? The magical part is exactly why we are here! So let’s dive into it a bit, shall we?
Glimmerbrook and the Magic Realm
There are two new worlds to explore for your Sims, but being a Spellcaster is optional for both of them. Glimmerbrook is a small town, with five new lots for you to mess around with. The town is very similar to Granite Falls, but the Sims have taken permanent residency and made it their home. The town is very pretty, with the little brook leading through it.
Players with The Sims 4 Seasons installed will have a great time here. The weather seems to be very different every season, and can even differ from summer to summer. I’ve seen very rainy summers with thunderstorms, but also one where I had a heatwave for five days straight. Winters become cold so expect a beautiful snowy scenery!
The Magic Realm is an interesting world. It’s a secondary world, so it’s rather small and you can’t live there permanently. You may enter the realm through a portal found in Glimmerbrook, even Sims without magic can enter. What you’ll find there is amazing. While it’s small, there is plenty to see in this void-like dimension. What I loved about this world is that a lot of Sims will show up, outfits randomized to something witchy, ready to learn some magic.
Check out our world overviews for Glimmerbrook and the Magic Realm
Become a Powerful Spellcaster
If you love playing with occult Sims, you’re going to love this pack. The Spellcasters are extremely detailed and very fun to play with. Each Spellcaster is unique in the sense that you can customize them however you like. The perk system is very similar to The Sims 4 Vampires. It’s a very straightforward system, making it easy to use for anybody. If you still need some help with Spellcasters, you can check out our guide.
The animations, the details, the… everything! I just love Spellcasters! I think the developers really nailed the occult and dare I even say they are the best occult in any The Sims game ever made. No matter what a wand/familiar/broom look like, they are all just as strong as the next. This gives the player possibilities for customization for each Spellcaster, making it a lot more fun than previous games. I also really enjoyed the addition of sages, each representing their school of magic.
One of my favorite things about the new Spellcasters are their familiars. They are super cute and I love that you can more than one per Sim. This means you can have your own plethora of familiars! The only downside to the familiars is that you can’t do much with them other than having them follow your Sim around. They will protect your Sim from certain dangers, but it’s not like you can hold conversations with them. Unless you own The Sims 4 Cats & Dogs, because pets can also become familiars! If you want to learn more about these cute little creatures, make sure to read our new “Fantastic Familiars and where to find them”. Yes, that is the sequel to our guide about dolphins from The Sims 4 Island Living.
The Sims 4 Realm of Magic, mystical masterpiece or a cheap curse?
Unless you skipped over the rest of my review, you might have noticed I’m very positive about The Sims 4 Realm of Magic. The Game Pack has instantly become one of my favorites, but I do admit I might be a bit biased as I really like everything involving witches, magic and so on. So let me break it down for you one more time.
Create a Sim is (almost) everything you expect to be in a pack like this. It has a lot of goth-like influences, but you can also go for more “classical” looks. Unfortunately younger Sims have been left out completely, which can be bothersome for family-players. Other than that I really liked CAS.
Build & Buy is amazing, even nearing perfection. I like how you can go for brighter tones with the browns and yellows, but can also go for a darker vibe with blacks and purples. Apart from the disastrous door I enjoy using all of the items and I even wish we could have more. A big plus for me is that all the rooms have been covered in this pack, even the kitchen, so you could build a complete house all in the same style if you want to.
The new worlds are small, but it’s a GP so I did not expect a huge world in the first place. Glimmerbrook is an unique little town, and the scenery is very nice. It’s similar to Granite Falls, but now you can actually permanently live there. The lots are mostly 30×20, which can be a bit small for builders.
The second world is the Magic Realm, a world unlike any other worlds so far. I really enjoyed hanging out here. The custom day/night cycle made it easier for me to stay over longer periods of time. I just chugged one of my Potion of Plentiful Needs and moved on with my magic studying. The scenery alone is enough reason to stay.
The Spellcasters are a fun new occult and I think they are very well done. The customization options are great and I love that you don’t have to do anything specific in order to get powerful in your own way. The magical abilities are animated really well and the curses are hilarious. The only downside might be that young Sims have slumbering powers. Much like the other occults they can’t do much with their powers until they hit their Teen lifestage.
I think it was a good idea to focus purely on one occult per pack. It gives the SimGurus the opportunity to work in-depth rather than to spread their resources. You can see this happening with Mermaids from The Sims 4 Island Living, a fun but shallow occult.
Overall I think The Sims 4 Realm of Magic is a very well done Game Pack. If you love to play around with occult Sims, or if you just enjoy magic content in The Sims, I’m pretty convinced you’re going to love this pack. Keep in mind it is a very themed pack, so if you don’t enjoy anything magical, you could sit this one out. However, you could consider it for the Build & Buy and CAS alone as these items are very versatile.
