The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies Expansion Adds Tattoo Artist Career And Ceramic Incense Burners

As part of The Sims' 25th anniversary celebrations, Maxis has announced the next expansion pack coming to The Sims 4, Businesses & Hobbies. After subtly teasing the upcoming release throughout its 25-hour livestream, the studio finally revealed an official trailer and release date earlier this morning. The expansion is currently set to release on March 6.

In a move that has been somewhat contentious with Sims fans--just check the video's comments--Businesses & Hobbies seems to vastly expand and improve 2015's Get to Work expansion, as well as incorporate elements of The Sims 2's beloved Open for Business expansion into it. The expansion pack adds two new hobbies, tattooing and pottery-making, as well as the ability to completely own and manage various businesses and services. Though the trailer highlighted two businesses in particular--Branche Tattoo studio and a one-man pottery business--it looks as though there will be numerous goods and services sims can offer for a profit.

While the pottery-making skill seems relatively straightforward and similar to skills such as painting, baking, and knitting, the tattooing skill allows players a great deal of artistic freedom thanks to its new Paint Mode. Once in Paint Mode, players can draw, place stencils, and fine-tune colors and patterns as they imbue their sims with some sick ink.

In addition to running a tattoo parlor and pottery studio, the trailer confirmed that sims will be able to manage their own gym, own a candy shop, and operate an art gallery. The video also highlighted sims' ability to teach classes for profit, turning high-skill levels into cold, hard cash. Though a comprehensive list of businesses sims can run has yet to be announced, the variety of small business icons located in the Edit Small Business Menu seem to indicate they will be able to manage arcades, casinos, waterparks, animal shelters, bakeries, laundromats, beauty parlors, and more.

One of the most exciting aspects of Businesses & Hobbies take on running a business is that your sims will be able to do so from home. Rather than having to own a separate community lot, players will now get the option to designate certain areas of their home as residential, public, or employee-only. The trailer also makes it seem as though sims will be able to pass on both their knowledge and businesses to their offspring, creating a family trade.

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Businesses & Hobbies marks the 18th full-size expansion for the game, which is poised to remain the series' core title for the foreseeable future. Though Maxis is currently working on a new iteration of The Sims, Project Rene, the game is being pitched as an online, multiplayer experience--a statement that sounds eerily familiar and has us skeptical.

In other Sims news, Maxis made news last month when it finally released Legacy Collections of both The Sims 1 and The Sims 2, the former of which, pardon my language, kicked my ass. However, players have reported a slew of frustrating bugs that has made playing the nostalgia-inducing titles a bit frustrating.