Cool Kitchen Stuff Pack Review

Let me preface this review by saying one thing: I don’t actually like ice cream. I’m aware that this is not the norm, but I’m not a huge fan of the way the cold substance feels against my teeth or the texture. Now that I got this off my chest, let’s dig in (pun semi-intended). After all, the proof is in the pudding ice cream (ok, I’ll stop now).

CAS

The CAS items were the main incentive for me to buy this pack. You do get a fair amount of them; 5 female hairstyles, two male hairstyles, 8 tops for men, 7 tops for women (more tops for men than for women? That’s got to be a first!), 3 pairs of bottoms for the ladies and one pair of pants for the gentlemen.

There’s also one full body outfit for each gender, which incorporates an apron – aside from this one, I have no idea what any of the remaining CAS items have to do with cool kitchens, but I’m not complaining. I can actually see myself using a lot of these. While some of the female hairstyles are a bit eccentric and will require a certain type of sim to pull off, I’m very pleasantly surprised with the clothing.

There are no shoes and no CAS items for children – not that I particularly expected any.

Objects

This is where my main beef with this stuff pack is. I understand that the kitchen set comes in 9 different swatches, including a fun red and blue, the classic black and white and woodsy tones. I also appreciate that the counter needs a variety of iterations for corners and such.

But one new kitchen set only just doesn’t seem like enough for a pack that’s called Cool Kitchen. The clue is in the name.

In a similarly disappointing fashion, there is only one table and one chair to correspond with said kitchen set. While I have nothing against the chair or the table, and I’m sure I’ll make use of them in some of my houses, they are not the most interesting of items. The chair, in particular, reminds me of the cheapo kiddie chair from the base game – I included this in the picture above for comparison.

An unexpected favourite of mine is actually the new painting, which comes in 18 different variations. At approximately §300, it’s a handy one for decorating starter homes and seems rather versatile too.

New Gameplay

As you might expect, given my predisposition towards ice cream, this is hardly one to sway me over. That being said, I am impressed that there are 30 different ice cream flavours, 8 toppings and 10 garnishes for your sims to combine. While I’m not a fan of ice-cream, my sims might be.

Actually, I’m not sure they are! As far as I can tell, not much of an indication whether my sims are enjoying them more than a garden salad. Some simmers have reported they have seen their sims getting moodlets from the new treat, but 5 batches of ice cream later, I have yet to witness this in my game – in spite of one of my sims being a foodie!

Overall Verdict

At $10, this is not a purchase to cry about, though I can’t say I’m raving. While the CAS items are my favourite part of the stuff pack, I would actually prefer if this addition came with, you know, more kitchen related items as the name implies.

I feel that the SP would be worth the price tag if it came with 3 kitchen sets instead of one, and I would also like to see more appliances, such as a food processor or a trash compactor. The ice cream maker is probably wasted on me, though I’ll try to treat my sims with the occasional cone or bowl for a bit of a diversion.

I am a compulsive collector, and was fairly aware of what I was getting myself into with getting this pack. However, if your self-control is a bit better, I would suggest that you skip this one or at least wait until it’s on sale.