The Sims 4 patch makes it so your public lot gatherings won't be interrupted by rogue Sims

The Sims 4 will soon get a new update to resolve a number of issues, some of which have long caused headaches for players. The latest update will arrive March 17 on PC and Mac, followed by PlayStation and Xbox at an unspecified time later.

Outside of the fixes themselves, the patch also makes good on the recent re-commitment to continue improving quality of life for players, so there’s plenty here longtime players will appreciate.

In the latest episode of The Sims 4’s Laundry List blog series, where the developer goes through the most reported problems with the game and how it plans to solve them, we got a rundown of what to expect from next week’s patch.

You can look forward to five major fixes in this one, but arguably the most important is a change to how Sims determine who they speak with on a lot. This is especially relevant for public lots, where Sims would sometimes interrupt ongoing conversations by barging in and starting a conversation with your Sim.

Going forward, Sims will prioritise familiar Sims with whom they already have rapport, and be less likely to latch onto strangers. If you’ve witnessed a date your Sim was on get interrupted because of that, you’ll certainly appreciate the change.

Image credit: Maxis, EA.

Speaking of budding romance, Prom is coming back to in-game Calendars, and Sims can once again attend. Maxis said this will work with new and existing saves, and that you should also expect Prom goals to be completable once again.

Pets and animals get some love in this patch, too. First, pets and horses will no longer get lost in Premade Households. The fix prevents that from happening in new saves, but if you already had that happen to you in your current save, it’ll still be there.

You may now also assign animals to an Animal Shed after moving your house to a new lot, so you hopefully won’t be confused as to why they’re stuck in your inventory. This fix applies to existing saves as well as new ones.

Image credit: Maxis / Electronic Arts

Lower down the list of urgent fixes is an update that makes it so Sims’ eye blinking will show fully closed eyes for most interactions. The upcoming patch also comes with a host of Sims autonomy fixes, including one that prevents them from excessively flirting with each other.

Catch up on the full list at the link near the top of the page. And, in case you missed it, Maxis recently announced that The Sims 4 will soon get paid mods, something that many in the community are skeptical about.