What Snowy Escape adds
Snowy Escape is the tenth expansion pack for The Sims 4, released on 13 November 2020. It introduces Mt. Komorebi, a Japanese-inspired mountain world where Sims can take on winter sports, soak in natural hot springs, and explore bamboo forests. The pack also brings Lifestyles and Sentiments, two gameplay systems that change how Sims develop habits and form emotional memories with each other. On the creative side, it includes 134 Create a Sim items and 188 build/buy objects, many drawing on Japanese design with shoji doors, tatami mats, genkan entryways, and paper lanterns.
Mt. Komorebi
Mt. Komorebi draws from the Japanese islands of Honshū and Hokkaido and is divided into three neighborhoods. Wakaba is a modern, up-and-coming area with contemporary homes and a town center featuring the local mascot Yamachan. Senbamachi is the oldest part of the region, surrounded by bamboo forests and home to a mountain temple. Yukimatsu sits on the snowy mountain slopes with vacation rental lots, the Sutefani Onsen Bathhouse, and access to ski slopes and hiking trails.
Each neighborhood hosts its own festival. The Festival of Youth in Wakaba lets children join Yamachan on a Voidcritter Hunt. The Festival of Lights in Senbamachi honors the dead with lanterns and wishes for the living. The Festival of Snow in Yukimatsu features snow sculptures and snowpal competitions.
Winter sports and activities
Sims can build three new skills in Snowy Escape: skiing, snowboarding, and rock climbing. Skiing and snowboarding take place on the mountain slopes, where Sims learn tricks and race downhill. Rock climbing starts at climbing walls and can lead all the way to the summit of Mt. Komorebi. Sledding is also available and can be shared with another Sim. For quieter moments, Sims can relax in the natural hot springs, share hot pot around a kotatsu table, or take mindful walks through the bamboo forest.
Lifestyles and sentiments
Lifestyles are dynamic traits that develop based on a Sim's repeated actions and habits. A Sim who regularly seeks thrills may gain the Adrenaline Seeker lifestyle, while one who avoids technology could become a Technophobe. Each Sim can hold up to three active Lifestyles at once, with 16 available in total. Sentiments are emotional memories tied to shared experiences between two Sims, adding lasting effects to how they interact. Sentiments were also integrated into the base game, making them available to all players regardless of pack ownership.