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Forum Resident
Original Poster
#1 Old 19th Oct 2018 at 11:39 PM
Default How Would You Fix: SERVOS?
So, 2 weeks I started a series titled: "How Would You Fix", and each week, plan to feature a different one of the TS2 Life-States... The non-human and the sub-human life forms that came with each individual EP. Now, my hope is that each thread will have a life of its own, and just because a new thread is posted, doesn't mean the previous one should be locked. Feel free to keep your thoughts and ideas coming on the "How Would You Fix:" series for ZOMBIES or VAMPIRES threads! This isn't a "request" thread. It's an idea and discussion thread. Should somebody want to take any of these ideas and run with them, try to make them a reality, by all means, do your best! But I hope to hear lots of ideas from anybody who is interested, on how they think each life state could be altered and/or improved.

This week, we're moving on to SERVOS!! TS2 Servos originated in the Open for Business Pack. Have you ever played a TS2 Servo? What were the things you wish could've been done different, or improved? How would you have implemented Servos into the TS2 game? Was there something that bugged you about how they function (OMG!! STOP Cooking!!)? Something that they should've been able to do!? Any furniture or objects they should have? Any special skills or abilities to make them more unique? Any functions, any features, any ideas? Anything missing? Anything at all! Please share them. And don't forget to 'like' your favorite ideas!!

Thanks for sharing and playing along!!


-grinEvilly
>=)
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Mad Poster
#2 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 12:34 AM
As far as Servos go, the only way I could see using them in large numbers would be as part of a cyberpunk-inspired neighborhood (I only ever played two as my mad scientist's robot servants in my actual game).

For my idea it'd probably have to be part of an entire cyberpunk EP, so I'm sure it's a pipe dream, but the crux of it is essentially disassembled Servos. What I mean by that is a system in which you could buy specific Servo parts (arms, eyes, charging cores, what have you), and either use them to construct a Servo from scratch, or use them to replace or upgrade the corresponding parts on regular Sims (hey, cyberpunk is usually pretty dystopian). For that to be interesting to play, components would have to have special features, so maybe a charging core could reduce or eliminate the need for sleep in regular Sims, maybe eyes would allow them to watch TV anywhere, arms could include a molecular disassociator to eliminate the need to take out the trash or clean up litter piles, etc. Sims could "upgrade" themselves however they wanted, and if you bought all the parts for a complete Servo, you could get all of those upgrades in a single character.

This is where I'm stuck though, because there has to be some sort of cost to the character, otherwise Servos are just too overpowered compared to the rest of the game. My initial thought was making them Three Laws compliant (while upgraded Sims could still do whatever), but I don't see how making them unable to fight with anyone other than another Servo is that interesting, and the second law would basically be turning off free will, which just makes things more tedious for the players.

Now I really wish there'd been a cyberpunk EP...

Welcome to the Dark Side...
We lied about having cookies.
Forum Resident
Original Poster
#3 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 1:03 AM
Oh yes! i remember you mentioning a futuristic hood in a previous thread somewhere, and the idea really intrigued me! Like the city from BladeRunner or maybe the Fifth Element, is how i pictured it. I think some of the lots you've already built could've easily featured into this tech-hood.

Very interesting ideas, about being able to "upgrade" your sim, in a cyborg kind of manner! That could be really fun! Maybe ServoSims would have a shorter lifespan, due to internal regulators or something, like in BladeRunner. They obviously would never again be able to play Marco-Polo, or get into a hot tub. But that seems a small price to pay.

Hmmm... I know i'll be thinking about this for some time. Really great contribution to the thread! It's the kind of stuff I was hoping for when I started all this!

Oh, and a PS to everybody who may be reading along... There was a lot of Servo problems that others have already fixed, so if you know of ESSENTIAL fixes, feel free to post those links for others who may not have seen them, as well!

Thanks!


-gE
>=)
Mad Poster
#4 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 6:42 AM
Make them look like the robots from R.U.R.: Rossum's Universal Robots - they would look like human sims and have human faces and such, and a uniform for normal clothing, witchy robes, and formalwear, with a random hair colour.
Mad Poster
#5 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 9:59 AM
Similar to plumbots. CAB and trait chips.

P.S. Sorry for my bad english.
Mad Poster
#6 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 10:12 AM
I don't know how to play a servo without having the problem of keeping them relevant to ordinary life. They have personalities, and that makes them less robot like. The 3 laws would apply only if they were less human-like.
The real problem is that they're too perfect, except in their looks, and that can be changed as well. It is a matter of how to use them-and I haven't gotten to the stage of my game where they're the masters of a dystopia universe. Someday perhaps.

Receptacle Refugee & Resident Polar Bear
"Get out of my way, young'un, I'm a ninja!"
Grave Matters: The funeral podium is available here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/e6tj...albits.zip/file
My other downloads are here: https://app.mediafire.com/myfiles
Mad Poster
#7 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 3:23 PM Last edited by gazania : 20th Oct 2018 at 5:12 PM.
I use them quite a bit, but I make them more like androids. I can't stand their original looks. Maybe I've been reading too much sci-fi, or watching too much anime or something.

I would have loved the option to make them as human or as not in the game. You choose. Also, for them to have more of a wardrobe without using a cheat. Unfortunately, Squinge's mod does not completely work with AL, and while someone posted an update, it was whisked away at Squinge's insistence. Something about it not being thoroughly tested or something. It was years ago and I didn't have AL, so I didn't pay it much attention ... I can't remember exactly. I wish I downloaded it anyway, but at the time, I wasn't too knowledgeable about Securom and what to do about it, so I didn't buy any EPs past Seasons until about five years ago.

Thanks to ALL free-site creators, admins and mods.

RIP Sunni ... truly a ray of light.
Forum Resident
Original Poster
#8 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 4:38 PM Last edited by grinevilly : 20th Oct 2018 at 6:32 PM. Reason: to avoid double-posting
@zarathustra - I was thinking... If their "parts" broke down as frequently as the other bots in the game, that would definitely be a significant cost. Eyeballs or limbs going haywire every 10 minutes. What a pain! haha.

I have ONE Servo in my game. His name is Jeeves1000. He was invented as a butler. He is overly emotional! Goodness! He learned how to craft toy robots, and built himself a son, JR-v1.01. He takes him out and plays with him from time to time. It's actually kinda pathetic, when you think about it... hahah... Maybe someday, he'll learn to create himself a mate. Muffy1138 or something. I've pre-determined, all my Servos are required to have butler /maid names. I'd like to see a French Maid outfit available for Servos.

I think it might be a good fix to Servos if they could be assigned specific tasks, perhaps similarly to the way that OFB employees are. The owner would have to assign the Servo to "clean" or to "garden" or to be the chef or nanny. Program them to be Emergency Servos... be on alert for fire, burglars and death. If a Sim died, an emergency programmed Servo would spring to life and race to the decedent, to beg the Grim Reaper for their life. Perhaps if there was a fire, he'd usher sims away from danger, so nobody went and did the fire dance til they immolated. [Edited to add:] Perhaps they could be assigned to be a companion... a "Buddy-Bot", if you will, where their objective was to play with and entertain household sims. Somebody to play cards with, tell jokes to, jog with, play catch or soccer or pool... billiards, not swimming, obv. haha. I'm sure a lot of different options could be dreamed up for coding your servos!

Perhaps they would only be able to be programmed for one task at a time, and the owner would have to reprogram them to alter their tasks. Or maybe there would be a permanent list of, say three tasks that they'd be capable of doing, which were unchangeable. I guess I always pictured Servos being more service oriented, like the TS1 servos, and less autonomous.


-gE
>=)
Mad Poster
#9 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 6:58 PM
The immortality is a problem for me. Maybe they could have worn out, broken down, over time, and eventually become unrepairable and be collected by Grim. Also, the taking on the personality of the activator is annoying: the sims who most need servos to help them are the sims who are least likely to have a useful personality for the purpose they need the servo for. (The slob needs someone to straighten the house. The playful sim needs someone to do the boring tasks. And so on.)

Pics from my game: Sunbee's Simblr Sunbee's Livejournal
"English is a marvelous edged weapon if you know how to wield it." C.J. Cherryh
Field Researcher
#10 Old 20th Oct 2018 at 11:47 PM
Make it so you can wipe their memories and deactivate them completely, for one! At a certain point having a servo in the family gets old and the accumulated memories from generations ago makes the servo's memory panel ridiculously huge. It would be nice if the same servo unit could be "wiped" and then passed to another household.
Mad Poster
#11 Old 21st Oct 2018 at 5:14 AM
I once watched "Bicentennial Man" starring Robin Williams-in which he played an android that learned human emotions in order to become more human. It'd be nice to craft a robot like that because it'd be more relatable, even when immortal. I wish someone would come up with a default skin for an android like Data. Make them close to human without having to play games with SimPE and sim surgery. I've done it before but it is a pain in the butt.

Receptacle Refugee & Resident Polar Bear
"Get out of my way, young'un, I'm a ninja!"
Grave Matters: The funeral podium is available here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/e6tj...albits.zip/file
My other downloads are here: https://app.mediafire.com/myfiles
Mad Poster
#12 Old 21st Oct 2018 at 8:52 AM
A mod that would give the female servos the default female voice. I mean, male servos can do the college cheer even if they never really went to college soooo...
Mad Poster
#13 Old 21st Oct 2018 at 10:15 AM
Quote: Originally posted by FranH
I once watched "Bicentennial Man" starring Robin Williams-in which he played an android that learned human emotions in order to become more human. It'd be nice to craft a robot like that because it'd be more relatable, even when immortal. I wish someone would come up with a default skin for an android like Data. Make them close to human without having to play games with SimPE and sim surgery. I've done it before but it is a pain in the butt.


I like to make mine very similar to humans, but use contacts in unnatural colors or doll eyes to make them just a little less human. I would think various face makeups and masks could work as well.

Oh, and I have the mod that gets rid of the green thingie in the middle.

Thanks to ALL free-site creators, admins and mods.

RIP Sunni ... truly a ray of light.
Test Subject
#14 Old 21st Oct 2018 at 6:10 PM
I played servos lots of times, i have defaults for them to look like wood (which i entirely love how they look like in my game), i find servos enjoyable alot, just like the previous life states, but i hate the fact that they are immortal which, imo, they coud had made them wore out and then grim would come and take them, but i find them cute alot.
Mad Poster
#15 Old 21st Oct 2018 at 7:39 PM
Also, after their death, a way to recycle their scraps to build another servo for a lower cost.

P.S. Sorry for my bad english.
Alchemist
#16 Old 22nd Oct 2018 at 7:33 PM
other age equivalents of the outfits.
Scholar
#17 Old 23rd Oct 2018 at 10:07 AM
Does anyone know of any fixes so servos don't run amok all the time? It gets really old, and makes me not want to have them in the game at all.

Paladins/SimWardrobes downloads: https://simfileshare.net/folder/87849/
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