The Sims 4: Outdoor Retreat, the first game pack in The Sims 4 franchise, unlocks an exclusive and secluded location known as the Deep Woods, accessible only to players who own the pack. This pack allows players to experience outdoor camping and living, departing from their Sims' typical, comfortable homes. As players venture into the wild and explore the world of Granite Falls, which was introduced with this pack, they will discover the stunning natural beauty of the Deep Woods.
Although it remains hidden, players pursuing the Outdoor Enthusiast Aspiration will quickly recognize its existence, as they must befriend the Hermit who resides within its borders. This is why this area is also known as the Hermit's House. This elusive location boasts exceptional fishing, herb-gathering, insect-catching, and the potential for a friendship with the Hermit. The Deep Woods is unquestionably one of the game's most breathtaking settings, showcasing a tranquil landscape and captivating waterfalls that surpass the limitations of mere screenshots to convey their full splendor.
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How To Get To Deep Woods
To access the Deep Woods, players need to follow a similar process as the hidden areas in the base game, such as the Forgotten Grotto or Sylvan Glade. The scenery is similarly impressive, featuring a stunning waterfall. First, players must locate the entrance to the Deep Woods. Then, Sims must visit a rabbit hole and answer chance cards in the correct sequence to gain entry. Similarly to Sylvan Glade, no specific skill is required to enter. However, unlike the base game's hidden areas, the Wellness skill from the Spa Day pack, cannot be used to access the Deep Woods, meaning there is only one way to enter. Additionally, as Granite Falls is a vacation world, players can only access it by taking a vacation. Sims must use their phone or computer to select the "Take a Vacation" option and choose a rental lot for up to seven days, which can be costly and time-consuming. Fortunately, after the first visit, Sims can enter the portal to the Deep Woods directly on future trips to Granite Falls.
The entrance to the hidden area in Granite Falls is not easy to notice since it is a cave covered by shrubs in a forest with dense greenery. Generally speaking, the entrance is located on the furthest side of the forest. The best way to reach the hidden area is to first go to the Granite Forest National Park and use the cabin there to find the right direction. From an angle where players can see the front of the cabin, the cave is behind it on the back right side near a rock formation. Once at the right location, players can also see the waterfall scenery in the distance.
Once the Sim is at the location, they can select "Explore," allowing them to enter the chance card selection screen. As with the other mini-adventures for hidden areas like this one, players can take as many tries as they want, but some options might leave the Sim with a Tense or Uncomfortable moodlet. If that happens, they cannot explore for a few hours until the moodlet is gone. Unlike the other hidden areas, there are a few routes or options that can lead to the Deep Woods, but the most reliable one is to select "Step Forward" followed by "Go Through Web," and either pick "Ignore the Object" or "Sally Forth." While it can be tempting, getting the object will result in a failure, and the Sim will return with a Tense moodlet. After this step, lastly, players should select "Approach the Sim," which will finally take them to the Deep Woods and the Hermit's House, where the hermit will greet them.
Deep Wood Activities
As soon as Sims arrive in the Deep Woods, they'll be struck by the area's tranquil beauty. The terrain surrounding the Hermit's House is rocky and heavily forested, with the hidden lot nestled near a steep cliff overlooking a variety of stunning waterfalls. Collectors will be particularly delighted, as this area is a treasure trove of rare and exclusive collectibles. In addition to the Outdoor Retreat pack's exclusive fish, herbs, and insects, players can find even rarer specimens here. Most notably, the Mountain Lionfish can only be caught in this area and nowhere else in Granite Falls or beyond. While other collectibles such as the will-o'-the-wisp insect or blueberries aren't exclusive to the Deep Woods, they're much more abundant here. The area is also home to a variety of other wild plants, metals, and crystals waiting to be discovered.
Another significant activity in this area is interacting with and befriending the Hermit. This is particularly recommended as it is a required step within the Outdoor Enthusiast aspiration for players who are following it. The lot is also great for completing many other tasks in this aspiration since there are amenities such as a campfire, an entire house where players can fulfill their needs, a woodworking table, and a garden by the house to collect many more rare items that came with this pack. Once players befriend the Hermit and reach at least the Good Friends level, they can also learn an exclusive recipe, the Fungal Infusion Fertilizer Recipe, by selecting the "Learn Herbalism Recipe" interaction. Players should keep in mind that the Hermit is a randomly generated NPC, and their looks and gender will differ in each save file. Furthermore, they may not be available on the lot during other visits if the players happen to travel to Deep Woods in their future visits and want to catch up with this NPC. However, the Hermit can be called back to the lot via the phone and invited to hang out at the current lot, similar to inviting any Sim to a location.
Can Players Build In Deep Woods?
For players that seeking a more secluded vacation spot during their visit to Granite Falls, Hermit's House could be an ideal choice. It's a fully functional house, but some players may wonder if they can customize it to their liking or improve the Hermit's living conditions.
Unfortunately, due to game restrictions, players cannot directly build on the lot. Despite the presence of a house, it's still classified as a hidden lot. However, there are workarounds to this limitation. By using cheats or mods, players can build on the lot and create their own personal vacation spot within the Deep Woods. To activate the cheat, players simply need to open the cheat console and enter "bb.enablefreebuild". This method can also be used to build on other hidden areas throughout the game, however, as this one contains an NPC, it might occasionally result in Hermit not appearing when the lot is modified similarly to aliens in Sixam, which is available via the Get to Work pack.
The Sims 4 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.