Of all the sizes of DLC offered for The Sims 4, Kits are by far the most hated, but content creators could help turn public opinion around. Currently, The Sims 4 offers four different types of DLC that players can purchase: Expansion Packs, Game Packs, Stuff Packs, and Kits, with each decreasing in the amount of content it offers. Even though most players would prefer EA focused on larger releases for the game, Kits are by far the most common release since they were introduced in early 2021, with over a dozen Kits coming to the game since - in contrast, only two Expansion Packs have been released in that time frame.
One of the two most recently announced Kits, Pastel Pop, has been revealed to be a collaboration with popular Sims 4 YouTuber Plumbella. This is the first Kit release that a respected content creator has contributed to, although it's not the first time The Sims 4 has tapped designers that are well-known in the game's community to be part of a project. However, until now their duties have been relegated to lot design - for example, the homes of the Sims 4 Snowy Escape Expansion Pack and most of the lots in the Werewolves Game Pack were created by Simmers lil_simsie and James Turner respectively, and they were of much higher quality than what had been built by developers in the past. It seems The Sims 4 is expanding how it uses content creators, which could be a brilliant move for Kits if done correctly.
Content Creators Can Reliably Make Quality Sims 4 Kits
It's common knowledge that past Sims 4 Kits have disappointed players. More often than not, they come off as low-effort cash grabs due to their lack of quality, missing features like interactive objects, and often only containing a few truly unique items. The point of Kits is that they focus on a hyper-specific theme, so when releases end up feeling generic, it defeats the entire purpose of the DLC. However, just as builds from Sims 4 creators have had a higher quality, it looks likely that the same can be said for Plumbella's new Pastel Pop Kit.
In an interview about the Kit on EA's website, Plumbella details how their experience building in The Sims 4 and their familiarity with the series contributed to how they approached the Kit's design, which points out one of the biggest advantages content creators have: they play The Sims 4 much more than developers. While many players believe Sims 4 Kits aren't worth buying in their current state, having creators on board who are more in tune with the community - as they interact with them frequently - may help shift that opinion. Kits that are made in collaboration with those actively playing the game and listening to fan opinions mean that they're much more likely to deliver a quality product that players actually want to buy - or at least one that they don't actively resent.
There are no doubt many other popular content creators besides Plumbella that would gladly help produce future Kits for The Sims 4, and EA continuing to include them on projects of all kinds would be incredibly helpful to the overall Sims brand. Now that the Sims 4 base game has become free for new players, the community for the game is going to grow even larger than it is now, and if EA isn't going to listen to what they want, they should hire creators who will. There are obviously no plans to stop selling Kits any time soon, and continued involvement from content creators is an absolute necessity for them to stand a chance of becoming a Sims 4 DLC that isn't widely hated by fans.
Source: EA