Maxis deployed a new update at the beginning of December for The Sims 4 on PC and consoles, identified under the number 1.120 (PC) and 2.25 (consoles). Among the many expected improvements, an unexpected modification immediately raised eyebrows: the icons representing romantic preferences, introduced with the extension Thunderbolthave simply disappeared from the Create a Sim (CAS) menu.
Although choices remain functional in the background, players can no longer visually see which preferences are selected. A detail? Not really. The absence of this visual feedback greatly complicates character customization and harms immersion, especially for players invested in romantic relationships and complex scenarios.
A problem officially recognized by Maxis
Quickly after the first reports on the EA and Discord forums, Maxis spoke via an official moderator. In a message posted on the Sims Discord server, Mindy confirmed the issue, saying: “We are aware of an issue with the ‘Like’ and ‘Dislike’ icons displaying in CAS.”
She then adds that the studio is actively working on a solution: “We are currently working on resolving this issue and will update this thread as soon as we have more information.”
An equivalent message in English was also broadcast: “We’re aware of an issue in CAS showing the correct icons for Turn On/Turns Off. We’re currently investigating a fix and will update this thread when we have more info.”
A bug that affects both PC and console players
According to community feedback, the problem is purely graphical: clicking on the “Like” or “Dislike” boxes still triggers the expected effects in the game. But the icons supposed to appear are no longer rendered correctly on the screen. This bug affects all platforms, regardless of mods or custom content. Even after repairing, clearing the cache or completely reinstalling the game, nothing helps.
For players looking to optimize romantic interactions or take on story challenges, this lack of visual feedback makes the experience confusing, even frustrating.
An update that also fixes old issues
Despite this hiccup, the December update resolved several persistent bugs in the game. Sims no longer wear clothes visible through the censorship tiles, sleep sessions are no longer interrupted by the radio in the background, and teenagers finally retain their aspirations once they become adults.
Corrections have also been made to certain pieces of furniture, notably the “Arrrmed Living Chair”, a duplicate color of which has been replaced by a new variant. This modification resulted in the addition of two new additional colors for the entire furniture pack, made up of nine objects.
Finally, the patch eliminated several critical bugs related to save corruption, including the one responsible for the infamous “Error Code 109”.