AVOIDING COLLAB LIMBO™️: OR, HOW TO ACTUALLY MAKE THAT COLLAB HAPPEN
a strength of Royal Simblr™️ is how common and easy it is to do collaborative projects. our stories and characters can be delightful on their own, but there’s something special about building a plot, a relationship, a character, an event, a whole entire world with someone else. among other things, it’s also a good way to make friends ! however, not everyone approaches the project the same way; this isn’t always a problem, but it can become one when it prevents a collab—especially one between simmers who enjoy each other’s work—from getting off the ground. you might know the feeling. you and another simmer express the desire to do something together. it’s exciting, especially if you admire their story or just think they’re a cool person. this is the beginning of something new and fun, until … the conversation never moves beyond that starting point.
welcome to Collab Limbo™️
why does this happen? how do we avoid it?
gabe (@armoricaroyalty) and i have compiled some best practices in a brand-new guide. yes, yet another Royal Simblr Guide. the components of the guide are simple—so simple it boils down to three words and two phrases:
intentionality
familiarity
reciprocity
“yes, and”
“no, but”
𝒾'𝓋𝑒 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝒻𝑜𝑔 𝓁𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓁𝓎 𝒾'𝓂 𝓈𝑜𝓇𝓇𝓎, 𝒾'𝓂 𝓈𝑜𝓇𝓇𝓎 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒾 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓈𝑜 𝓈𝒾𝓂𝓅𝓁𝓎 𝑔𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓂𝑒 𝓂𝓎𝓈𝑒𝓁𝒻 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀
trans women, i love you.
you were a woman yesterday. you're a woman today. you're a woman tomorrow. you're a woman forever.
trans women have existed long before those stuffy bigots sitting in a court room have. trans women will continue to exist long after they're dead and rotting in the earth.
Thanks for the tag, @fledermausbend! <3
Last Song: Red Wine Supernova by Chappell Roan
Favorite Colors: dark blue-green!! jewel tones in general but also earth tones
Currently Watching: jessicapie's latest Sims speedbuild
Last Movie: Paul (yes, the stoner alien one, family member picked it and it was surprisingly good) or Hercules (Disney), not sure which one was more recent
Currently Reading: ACOTAR! I'm FINALLY just coming out of a multi-year reading slump, so I'm just now getting around to it (and adoring it, frankly). About to start the third book [PLS no spoilers I've made it this far]
Sweet, Spicy, or Savory: sweet, if i had to pick one!
Relationship: Single and Loving It
Current Obsession: Once Upon A Time my deeply beloved and preposterous and messy-as-hell fairytale soap opera
Last Googled: "sims 4 single and loving it lifestyle" bc i wanted to make sure i got the name right fksdlfjs
Currently Working On: making my IRL, long-distance best friend into a Sim so we can hang out as pixels (with her blessing)
I tag: @d4isywhims and @happy-lemon (no pressure!)
March 8th is NOT a day of spring, love, and tenderness! So, to all my female subscribers, I wish you to remain just as gentle, delicate, and lovely to stay true to yourselves!
If you've been on YouTube lately, you've probably seen the wave of players dealing with corrupted saves, forever loading screens, and worlds breaking beyond repair. It’s frustrating, but after months of rebuilding my own save (with over 30,000 mods and CC files—yes, really😕), I’ve found some ways to keep major errors at bay.😁
While no save is completely error-proof, these tips might help you avoid game-breaking issues and keep your Sims’ world running smoother.
Always keep a copy of your save outside the game—on your desktop or an external drive. Do NOT rely on the in-game "Recover Save" feature, because if your save is corrupted, chances are the recovered version is too.
Instead of constantly clicking "Save," use "Save As" and create a fresh save. Overwriting the same file multiple times (7-10 times or more) can bloat the file and slow down your game. Once you've saved a new version, delete the old one (since you have a backup anyway!). This keeps your save cleaner and prevents sluggish performance.
Some worlds are known for stuck items, exclamation mark errors, or disappearing lots—especially San Myshuno, Oasis Springs, Willow Creek, and Evergreen Harbor. If you're having issues, avoid placing residential-Rental lots there.
However, I’ve found Del Sol Valley, Ciudad Enamorada, Tomarang, and Ravenwood to be much more stable for residential and rental lots!
Large homes with tons of clutter and objects can bog down your game. If you don’t love playing super-rich Sims in mansions, consider using large lot spaces (50x40 and up) for community lots instead of oversized residential builds. It helps keep your save lean and functional.
Sims’ in-game photographs and screenshots take up a surprising amount of space. Keep only 10-20 photos per household and delete the rest. Also, regularly empty the "Screenshots" folder in your Sims 4 directory to avoid unnecessary bloating.
While your Sims sleep, take a quick scan of the neighborhood and delete random objects left lying around (plates, trash, random items). This helps prevent save file bloat and keeps the world from lagging.
Check Manage Households and delete unneeded NPCs. The game constantly generates new townies, and over time, they clog up your save. You don’t have to delete all of them, but clearing out a chunk can help performance.
When your save file becomes bloated with unnecessary things, it becomes unstable! That means it will start to break down and cause issues—just like the errors many players are experiencing right now.
Keeping your save clean and optimized is the best way to prevent crashes, long load times, and corruption before they happen.
Final Thoughts
😕Is my game completely error-free? Nope. Right now, I’m dealing with rain and snow falling inside my Sims’ apartments and houses (because of course, EA). And I still get the occasional MCCC Last Exception (but they’re minor).
However, I’m NOT experiencing the major game-breaking errors that are all over YouTube. A few months ago, my save was nearly unplayable, but these changes made a huge difference.
I hope this helps! If you have any other tips that have worked for you, feel free to share.
Vlad doesn’t waste a moment before tackling Akira to the ground.
“Is this how you greet every visitor?”
“We don’t have visitors.” His eyes are wild as he wraps a hand around Akira’s neck. “We have enemies.”
That was a fucking understatement.
The Strauds greeted the mailman with a hatchet if the mood moved them, and they had a virtual graveyard hidden in these hills. Sims (it was always sims) seemed determined to fuck around and find out.
“Do I look like an enemy?” Akira teases. He's hoping to rile Vlad enough to throw him off his game, but the man is focused. Growling, he plunges his knife into Akira’s side. It’s unpleasant but also invigorating.
No fae ever died from anything so small as a knife wound. Healing it is almost as easy as breathing.
“Hold still!” Vlad hisses, as he pulls the knife out and lifts his arm to bring it down again. He tightens his hold on Akira’s neck, veins popping as he squeezes harder.
Lust and lightheadedness war as Akira snaps his arm up to block the knife’s descent. “I want you to know my devotion, but you get one.”
“I get as many as I need.” Vlad’s nostrils flare as he bares his teeth. “You have been haunting me!” He tries to thrust the knife in again. “You made me think I was crazy! I couldn’t sleep! I couldn’t eat. I thought you were a figment of my imagination!”
There’s a broken note in his voice that stops Akira cold. “Time out. You didn’t imagine me.” He pushes the knife away and sits up slightly, rubbing the bruises on his neck. “And I was never trying to make you feel crazy. That wasn’t my intent. You should not have seen me but I guess that was my bad.”
Gently, as if he hadn't just been trying to slit Akira's throat, Vlad reaches down and strokes the tips of Akira’s ears. “You are far prettier up close than I imagined,” he murmurs.
Akira shifts, suppressing a groan. This isn’t a great location for sex, but Vlad is literally sitting on his dick and looking at him like—
“Can I behead you?”
“What the fuck? No! Get off me!”
Vlad rolls to his feet and pockets the knife in one smooth movement. “I wasn’t asking permission. I just wanted to know if it was a viable method for killing you.”
The fucking ego on this guy.
“I am not telling you how to kill me,” Akira bites out. “In what universe would I pop into your yard to give you a crash course on how to eliminate me?”
“In the same universe where you’ve been hiding in the bushes like a rockstar cosplaying an assassin.”
“Excuse me?”
Vlad tilts his head, his eyes glinting silver in the moonlight. He really is gorgeous. “You’re wearing leather pants.”
Akira feels a blush rising at his blatant stare. “There is nothing wrong with leather pants. I don’t know why you would bring that up.”
Vlad doesn’t agree or disagree, he simply lunges. And that’s how Akira learns the sim is fast.
Preternaturally so.
His momentum works against him, though. As he twists, Vlad’s knees hit the pallet of construction bags behind him and he falls backward.
Akira dives after him, taking one blow to the jaw before dodging a second. “Are you finished?” he grounds out.
“No. I am just getting started. I could do this all night.”
The combination of conviction and breathlessness sends Akira’s pulse racing. “Yeah, I could too, but I think we’ve got better ways to pass the time.”
“Do you want a weapon?” Vlad purrs, but Akira has learned his lesson. The man could go from seduction to murder in under 60 seconds. He doesn’t relinquish his position, gripping Vlad’s thigh before he can kick out.
"Nope. And you’re not gonna kill me because you’re gonna date me."
“Date you?” Vlad goes still. “I’m flattered, but I couldn’t possibly. I’m already seeing someone.”
Leaning down until his lips are nearly by Vlad's ear, Akira whispers, “I know. She’s gonna date me too.”
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(Part 2 of 3)