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editor’s note Here we are again, celebrating the launch of yet another issue. We’re fourteen issues into SMag now, and we like to think that we’ve worked out what we’re about by now. We’re about celebrating the community and what we can do. Personally, I enjoy all of the party related content, but this issue is for people that miss family play. This whole issue is centred around families, with holiday homes, estates fit for a legacy and much more.
issue is bound to have something to tickle your fancy. Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to give you a message. I wish you and yours a very happy holiday season, and a happy and prosperous new year. I hope you’ll enjoy reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed putting it together. See you in 2016!
George B Editor-in-chief
Sit back and relax, because this
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SMag is not funded or endorsed by Electronic Arts, or it’s licensors. Under our Creative Commons license, you may not reproduce original or edited copies of this publication. You may also not use this work for commercial gain. Copyrights are property of their respective owners. For more information, email george@smagazineofficial.co.uk.
FULL CONTENTS 04 Traditional Values, Modern Style 12 Quick Faves 20 What’s inside SMag? 28 Everglades Crescent
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38 Ask Dan 44 Skyline Style 50 The Mod Pod 56 Ask Dan 62 Modern Treehouse 72 LumiaLoverSims Interview! 80 Ask Dan
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Welcome to our first home of the issue, which blends traditional family values with modern style. Tall and narrow, it wouldn’t look out of place as a city townhouse!
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BEDROOMS 2
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BEDROOMS 2
LOT SIZE 20x30
BATHROOMS BATHROOMS 1.5 1.5
PRICE (FURNISHED) ยง83,000
KITCHENS 1
LIVING AREAS 3
As with most of the houses we create, this lot isn’t avaliable for download due to the high amount of custom content in it. It would be impossible to track everything in it!
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Upstairs, there is a large open area for creative hobbies - you’ll find an easel, as well as a Mac for design work.
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This beautiful modern townhouse is perfect for a small family. The house, whilst small, has plenty of space for hobbies, with a painting area on the top floor, an office on the middle floor, a large kitchen and a garden just about
big enough for a small allotment. You can always expand downwards if you need more space! The house’s modern design spreads throughout, with every room feeling spacious, clean and contemporary, but fit for a family. 9|s
In this home, we used lightin character to the otherwise co bare walls outside. In Live M can click on any light to sele and intensity (a feature carrie from The Sims 3). We love th
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ng to bring ompletely Mode, you ect it’s colour ed over hese lights
from The Sims 4 Spa Day for this - they give off light from both the top and the bottom, and create some really beautiful light designs outside (or inside!). Try doing this in a swimming pool for some very cool effects.
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More work than you might think goes into every single issue of SMag. We’re going to take you on a start-to-finish tour of what goes on behind the scenes, including everything from designing spreads, sorting out interviews and finally publishing an issue.
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Every spread (two pages) is designed in Photoshop without text on it before it gets the text put onto it. Photoshop allows us to make unique layouts for every page, and allows us to have our spreads in lots of different formats, helpful for when we assemble the iBook!
Each spread is designed at the same size as an A3 piece of paper with a transparent background. The iBook uses different dimensions to the magazine, so the spread designs rarely go straight into the iBook too. The design stage gets repeated when it comes to the iBook.
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We don’t actually work on the issues at a steady pace! Normally, we work in bursts. To stop getting burnt out, we work in batches of about 15 pages in one sitting, instead of steadily working on the issue.
Writing articles is the most important part of a magazine! The proper name for the words is ‘type’, and it is a blanket statement for every word that goes into the magazine. To keep everything in one place, SMag uses Office 365, so we can keep our document with every article for an issue in avaliable whereever we are. Not a sponsor! I’m often seen writing articles whenever I can - on the bus, out and about - that way, when I’m at my computer next, it’s all ready to go into the magazine!
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Sounds easy enough - find content that fits the theme of the magazine and save it for later, so you remember to put it in the magazine. The act of finding content, as silly as it sounds, is quite difficult! Remembering to look for content from all corners of the community, including Tumblr, the Gallery and the forums, can be quite a mammoth task. Once we find a house we like, we have to decide where it is going to go - will it go in Quick Faves? Or does it get it’s own section? Then, we need to find screenshots and write type to go with it. It’s a much bigger task than you might think! Luckily, we get a lot of help from the community when it comes to this. Everyone likes sharing their favourite lots!
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One of the most unique things about SMag in the community is that every issue, we interview a content creator. Luckily, everyone we interview is so nice and helpful, co-operating with us every step of the way. Normally, we get in touch via email or Tumblr. After that it’s pretty easy we send the questions over and they send answers back! Then, as with everything else in the magazine, it’s into Photoshop and InDesign to get the design looking perfect. It always looks ~on fleek~.
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And finally - the issue is done! The work is over! Right? Not so true, I’m afraid. It’s now that we become a mega selfpromo machine. Social media is the only way we promote SMag so we do it to death - that means sharing links, previews and even exact times of release. Once the iBook has been approved by Apple and the magazine is ready on Issuu, we get ready to go. It’s one click to publish it, followed by a barrage of tweets and posts on websites! Then we get to sit back, relax, and see what everyone has to say about the magazine. Getting everyone’s feedback is my favourite part of the whole process of making a magazine.
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You can get involved! Everyone’s help is welcome. You can do it without asking - just tweet a house to us, or write something and email it. Of course, if you’d like a bit more of a permanent job to do, you can get in touch!
After an issue is out, we normally take a week or so away from InDesign, away from the magazine. But, after that, it’s straight back in with another issue, another theme, another set of assignments. Off we go again!
So, was that what you were expecting? A lot of work goes into every single page of the magazine so you can enjoy it. We hope you found this interesting and showed you just a little bit of what goes on behind the scenes!
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Welcome to Reaver’s Everglades Crescent, a beautiful and contemporary family home. Let’s take a look around... 29 | s
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Here, Reaver uses different yet complimentary colours to organise the open-plan kitchen and dining area. The teal and brown kitchen fits nicely with the brown and purple dining area, whilst ‘segregating’ the room into two distinct sections. This creates visual harmony between the two sections, but creates a functional division between them. Open-plan often makes a house seem ‘too’ open, but these colour systems make the one room seem a lot more like two. s | 32
You can download the house on The Gallery, and there is also a house building video from Reaver! (Enable CC in The Gallery
Watch Video
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The bedrooms in the house are designed to fit specific ages, like this room fit for a teenage boy.
You’ll notice that this house is spacious, but also feels cozy when you’re inside, thanks to the harmony between traditional furnishing styles and more contemporary styles.
Finally, this house has plenty of outdoor space, including a small swimming pool and a spacious patio. What more could your family want? 35 | s
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Welcome to Office Hurry, SimValera’s newest city for SimNation and Skyline Style. This glistening metropolis is an economical powerhouse, filled to the brim with modern skyscrapers and businesses. There’s no need to worry about traffic
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from all of these commuters - the city is well connected with cleverly built metro and bus systems. It’s a beautiful city that is very cleverly built! You can watch the video to see how it all works, but unfortunately there’s no download for the city.
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Cities: Skylines has seen it’s first expansion pack, Cities: Skylines After Dark, and it’s something amazing. Whilst lots of the features, including the beautiful day-night cycle came with a free patch, there’s plenty of new stuff.
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The new leisure specialisations really flesh out your city’s commercial district, and the new transport options bring your roads to life a little bit more. It’s definitely an expansion pack that isn’t to be skipped over and it’s a great purchase to make.
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‘Tis the season for some snowfall, fa la la la la la la la la! 51 | s
With one of the most requested game features being “Seasons”, it’s usually around this time you start to notice players really want it. What good is a bright and sunny day when a gorgeous snowfall is lingering outside your window? Well thanks to the hard work and dedication of a talented creator, winterizing your game shall no longer be a mirage. In this issue of the Mod Pod, we’ll be taking a look at a mod that will truly transform your game in ways you never imagined. Need that “picture perfect” proposal? Want to take a snowy stroll with your significant other? Introducing SimCookie’s “First Snow” Mod! Greg of SimCookie really wowed the community when he released his snow mod back in November. The beauty of this mod satisfied not only the yearn to have a “season-esque” environment in the game, but it also added a touch of magic to everyday gameplay. The immense detail of this mod extends to even the smallest of details. Greg worked diligently on this mod, putting in nearly eighteen hours per day for the first three days to retexture the objects and world. Can you say, “totally worth it”? Hard work pays off.
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The true beauty of this mod is that every little detail was thought of… literally. Snowy cars? Check. Deciduous Trees? Check. Getting the feeling that it’s cold just by looking at it? Check! Take a look at how these minor details bring the entire thing together. The Snow Mod can really transform any world you play in, and it can be especially helpful when crafting scenes for storytelling. Using the official Sims 4 Holiday Pack or “Seasonal” Custom Content can really make for an amazing time. My Sims had a blast on Holiday!
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Welcome! Oh, can you make sure to take off your shoes? It’s muddy out there today. Thanks. Whilst strictly speaking it isn’t a family home, we just had to feature this lot. It’s a remarkable home by Simproved. Is it a home? Is it a tree? Why not let it be both? This modern treehouse brings luxury to the forest. The patios look beautiful snaking around the home, and the interior continues the natural design, whilst complimenting it with modern accents. The use of woods and whites make for a beautiful juxtaposition, bringing nature inside, whilst retaining a very clean and modern look. We love this house! Check out the building video on Simproved’s channel.
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Next time you’re building, challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone. Normally build modern houses? Try a traditional home. Build something you wouldn’t normally. Perhaps try using a colour scheme you don’t usually use! Or, you could build a treehouse. They’re always loads of fun to build.
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This house has no custom content and is avaliable for download from The Gallery. s | 68
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We spoke to LumiaLoverSims, a “royal Sims dork” who’s a big deal on Tumblr. Hello there! I’m LumiaLover and I’m a royal Sims dork who makes CC. I enjoy listening to pop music, drawing, and tinkering with tech. I’ve not been playing for a very long time; I’ve been playing it for about 2-3 years now. I didn’t start making CC until Sims 4 came about. 73 | s
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< The Orourke-Godat family!
Lumia, what goes into running a simblr? Simblrs run like any other blog or blog type, except most of the content you put on it is original (unless you’re a reblogger), like Sim legacies, Sim pictures and anything Sims related. Running a successful simblr requires a person to be active, engaging and sweet all around, but these are traits that any good blogger should have too. Introduce us to some of your Sims! This is Mr. Jovan & Roger Orourke-Godat and their little family of 6. They have 3 teenagers, Rovan, Calvin, and Erika, and one little boy named Beau. I’m not the best at storytelling/doing legacies,
but I do like posting mini skits involving them every once in awhile on my blog. In your opinion, what makes the simming comunity such a special one? I think what makes it special is how accepting the community is as a whole. You aren’t outcasted just because of your gender, sexuality, etc, unlike some (cough GTA cough) communities. Everyone is welcome!
What makes it special is how accepting the community is. 75 | s
What is the best and worst parts of being such an active member of the community? The best part of being a member of the community is giving back. Nothing makes me happier knowing that people like and use my CC to enrich their gameplay experience. The worst part probably has to be the fear of judgment, and negativity that can arise based on false claims. Who are some creators you admire/take inspiration from? I admire a lot of cc creators; Peacemaker-IC, KiwiSims4, UntraditionalNerd, Inabadromance… and plenty more. Their passion and dedication continually inspire me to put the most I can into making CC.
What goes into making CC? It depends on what kind of CC you are looking to make. There’s some great S4S (Sims 4 Studio) CAS content tutorials on their website and by LexiconLuthor on YouTube if you’re looking for a video guide to get started. Build mode objects, I have to say, are a little easier since they don’t involve more complicated stuff like bones and weights. Sims 4 Studio is an incredible tool for creating both CAS and Build content, so definitely check that out! What bits of custom content are you proudest of? I think I’m definetly most proud of my OohSmoothish default replacement skin as well as the body hair set I made. It was a ton of work, but the end results were very satisfying!
The best part of being in the community is giving back. Nothing makes me happier than knowing that people like and use my CC to enrich their gameplay. s | 76
OohSmoothish
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Previously, you have been the target of some online bullying from other members of the community. How did you handle it? What would you say to other people in your situation? To be honest, the only way I knew how to handle it (I was never online bullied before this) was by tackling it head-on. Turns out it was the worst possible thing to do because it created a domino effect; you read it, you feel shitty, you reply, you give the bullies the satisfaction they want, and then you annoy other people in the process by clogging their dashboards with replies to hate mail.
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I’ve made it a habit to now not answer any form of personal hate mail and block those anons outright with the new IP block feature on Tumblr. So, my advice to people who are in a similar situation? Block those haters to hell! They don’t deserve you. They took time out of their day just to write a nasty message to you. Who is the “miserable, pathetic loser” (actual message I got recently LOL) now? Have you ever dabbled with building before? I have, but all I can build are either L or box shaped houses, haha! I think I’ll stick to downloading those awesome houses off the Gallery.
And finally, is there anything else you’d like to add? Thank you, SMag, for interviewing me! Remember to brush your drugs, stay in teeth, and don’t ever do school! Trust me! A note from the editor: Thank you Lumia for taking part in this interview, we hope everyone has enjoyed it! Follow LumiaLoverSims on Tumblr here to see his new downloads and see how his stories progress.
Block those haters to hell! They don’t deserve you. Remember to brush your drugs, stay in teeth, and don’t EVER do school! Trust me!
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Thanks for joining us Issue 15 is coming in March 2015
THE TEAM Inside this issue... George Bishop Editor in Chief Martymor - Ask Dan Alex - Contributor SimValera - Skylines Style
LEGAL
SMag is not endorsed or funded by Electronic Arts, or itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s licensors, in any way. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All creations shared inside this magazine were shared in the belief the creator would not object to us doing so. You can find out more by emailing the editor, george@ smagazineofficial.co.uk We will not hesitate to take action against those that plagiarize the content of this magazine. SMag, this issue and the content inside it is protected by a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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