goldfish, pt. 2: approximating the TS2 personality matrix with TS3

Warning: Nerd alert! Much dorkiness ensues! Proceed at your own risk. :p

Following on from this discussion, part 1, about the particular vacancy of TS3 Sims.

First thing: You need this mod.

You need more than 5 traits per Sim. We were lamenting the reason TS2 Sims felt more developed, and that's because in TS2, you had 5 personality points, 2 aspirations, 1 natural hobby/talent, and several other talents and interests. That's a lot of personality for a little Sim! So it's no wonder having only 5 traits pales in comparison. It's not enough when you've been spoiled on so much personality.

So take more. I like 10, but this mod comes in different flavors, some more, some less. (Note: you will need a mod like Twallan's Master Controller to set all 10 traits.)


—

Note that I don't have ITF installed at the moment. I may update this chart when I do. There are also custom-made traits that modders have done, and I would love to explore those some more too. I have included hidden traits, which if I recall, do not count toward your 10 traits, but I find some of them useful still.

I have divided the traits into four categories, based on how they act in game and how they relate to the TS2 personality matrix: personality (by the TS2 5-point personality system), lifestyle (by TS2 aspiration), hobbies/talents, and afflictions.

(click for bigger)

To create a well-rounded character, I take 5 personality traits, 2-3 lifestyle traits, 2-3 hobbies/talents, and possibly 1 affliction. (Of course, this is all given that I have the choice or that I'm making the character from scratch.)

1.) personality: I try to choose one from each personality dynamic, but for some Sims who might have in TS2 fallen in the middle of the scale, other aspects of their personality are more dominant. Sophia for example: I don't see her as particularly introverted or extroverted, but she has three different traits to describe her spacial/mental organization (neurotic, disciplined, and perfectionist), so that is clearly a dominant area of her personality, and makes her a bit OCD, I suppose. But I don't see her as either shy or exceptionally social, so there’s no point wasting a trait on that dynamic.

These aren't rules. Just a general method for making a well-rounded, multi-faceted, and interesting character. If one or more of the personality dynamics doesn't really relate for your character, toss it out the window and choose 2 from another. Obviously if you choose all 5 from one dynamic, your character could be less interesting for it. Or... maybe not, lol!

On my chart, some traits appear in more than one place, depending on how the game treats it and how that relates to the TS2 personality matrix. Friendly Sims, for example, in game are both social and sort of nice. So that trait can do double duty. After the fact, I might also add "couch potato" to the lifestyle traits for "pleasure" as well.

There are also some traits, like "irresistible", that I didn't really know where to place. In real life, I suppose it's a sort of talent to be irresistible, lol! But in game, it affects the way they can interact with other Sims (that wink thing they can do), so I considered it a personality trait.

2.) lifestyle: these traits would relate to what their aspiration would be in TS2. I find this very useful for character writing, and honestly, I even assign my non-Sim characters aspirations when I’m writing them. It’s very helpful to imagine how a character might approach their life and goals through a certain point of view.

3.) hobbies/talents: self-explanatory? I have loosely grouped these as they might relate to certain aspirations, but in practice, I don't require they match in the least.

4.) afflictions: perhaps I'll give them 1 affliction, though I sometimes forgo this with a Sim if one of their other personality traits is very extreme. Sometimes that can be an affliction too. Or perhaps they’ve been lucky enough to be blessed with an unafflicted life. It happens.

—

personality inheritance: It would have to be manual, but you could do this. In TS2, personality traits could be inherited by children, and in real life, certain personality types often run in families. When I'm not building a character from scratch, I enjoy passing down traits within a family, so I'll choose from a pool of traits I’ve taken from the child's parents and grandparents.

There are other genetic inheritance factors I’d like to do more with (height, weight, male balding, freckles...) but that’s another post for another time! ;)

—

If any of that sounds interesting and you like ROS, you can try out my TS3 as TS2 Personality Roll, all set up and ready to go!