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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#26 Old 23rd May 2018 at 10:08 PM
I mean avoid as in not risking it to bog down too much... The routing issues I've heard of it definitely one of the reasons I'm not considering Pets. I have Pets in Sims 2... I made like a family or two and then never played them. I don't know how bad IP might be though. I do wonder tho, is IP worse/more glitchy/prone to lag than ITF or WA? Cos I kinda got IP because I wanted a vacation spot. So maybe WA would be less prone to difficulties. (I might get ITF and test it, see if it does lag or not.)

Besides the NRAAS stuff I don't have much mods that fixes performance (I do have some vampire/werewolf tweaks).

Edit. As in disappearing Sims/Travel issues.
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Mad Poster
#27 Old 23rd May 2018 at 10:10 PM
ITF isn't particularly laggy. All it adds to the vanilla game is a rather passive descendant system that (as far as I can tell) only updates every once in a while. If you don't seek it out, you won't even know it's there.

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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#29 Old 24th May 2018 at 12:21 PM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
Again, you're spreading misinformation that has already been corrected. The ONLY routing issue comes from IP. Pets does not create routing issue, never has with the exception of horses which can be disabled (and even without disabled, they only have routing issues in certain hilly worlds). Is IP worse/more glichy to lag than ITF or WA? AGAIN I repeat, ITF and WA have min impact on the game and is not even considered glitchy or prone to lag at all. This goes back to my 1st reply to you, where are you hearing these things? They're absolutely wrong.

Yes, I got IP b/c of vacation spot too and also houseboats, but otherwise I would get rid of this EP. IP is the single WORST EP in terms of performance impact, with Seasons as a close runner up. With IP you get rounting lag from the water travels b/c of the bad routing. However, water travel itself lags the game b/c there are minipauses when sims go from land, to boat, and back to land... now multiply by many sims doing it at the same time. And THIRD lag, when houseboats autonomously move location, especially when more than 1 of them are moving.

You already have the most laggy glitchy EPs - Seasons, IP, ambition, and generation. Nothing else from this point (with the exception of the 2 I do not have) will affect your game performance more than these 4.

And as far as the disappearing sims with traveling issues go. In the almost 10 yrs I've been playing, never happened once. But then again, I use traveler.

I was replying to someone that mentioned having trouble with routing because of pets... but maybe I didn't read it thoroughly enough to know if it was another issue. They did mention that the extra entities put a bit of load onto the game tho. I'm just trying to take into account the whole picture. I guess the experiences depends a lot on circumstances. I don't have any completely unsubjective sources after all. But sure maybe I should be more careful with what I say.

Still, thanks for sharing. I might consider removing IP then. Guess I could take a quick look first tho... if I figure out how to go there. I have noticed some stuttering in Twinbrook though that is getting worse. But according to Overwatch more that 20 thousand cars is being removed (I added in NRaas traffic control after that!) and a sim being unable to grow up. I guess that causes a lot of lag. My CPU isn't getting hotter than 60 degrees C at least. Though a lot of processing and RAM is being used up. (also turned down graphics to mid)
Mad Poster
#30 Old 24th May 2018 at 2:28 PM
I've always thought that for me personally, Supernatural is the first pack I could do without. But now that you mention IP.....as much as I like it, it'd be the first to go. Then Seasons, then Supernatural, then Showtime. If I had to pick 3 to keep, and that isn't east, I'd say World Adventures, Late Night and ITF.

No, actually - University Life, Late Night and ITF. UL is much more useful and I use it a lot more.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Forum Resident
#31 Old 24th May 2018 at 5:35 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Craft90
I have a Nvidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti graphics card. I was more concerned about troubling bugs but yeah graphics should probably be considered too.


When building my own gaming desktop specifically for TS3, I referred to this list of compatible graphic cards which helped out a lot.
http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title...em_Requirements

Your graphic card lists Island Paradise, Into the Future and Movie Stuff as 'Maybe'.

As far as having EP specific issues mostly concerns if you have a compatible and powerful enough computer. Everything else is up to poor game optimization and leftover glitches. I have minimal to no lag and most of my problems are usually mod/cc related. My graphics card is NVidia Geforce GTX 660 with all 'Yes' across EP's/SP's. Of course, graphic cards are just one component of what helps to make the game run its best.

My game options are maxed out except High Detail Lots which I usually leave at 3. However, my graphics card is slightly better so not sure if the difference matter to achieve the same results with minimal to no lagging. And it also depends on your other computer hardware as well.
https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/...&cmp%5B%5D=2815

In-game screenshots (No mods/cc excluding Pose Player/Poses)


In-game screenshots (With mods/cc)


Scenery
Mad Poster
#32 Old 24th May 2018 at 8:28 PM
What's that, high-ish settings? Everything maxed save for one or two of the options? Last shot looks great, very realistic.

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Forum Resident
#33 Old 25th May 2018 at 4:07 PM
Thanks. Though, just noticed some of those sreenshots aren't from my desktop like the last one is from my gaming laptop which is great but weaker than my desktop. I usually leave high detail lots at 3 because it starts to stutter when traveling around the world and it's trying to load the surrounding lots. At least, that's what it seems like the game is trying to do. Now I see the benefit of RH career buildings though a bistro, diner, movie theater, spa, bookstore, etc shouldn't have been a RH but am glad and happy for professions having open buildings.

I want to do a recent test of every setting maxed out without mods/cc and all EP's/SP's/Store Content this time using Isla Paradiso. In a previous test the game plays quite smooth with no mods/cc for both my desktop and laptop but when I start adding mods/cc there is a noticeable difference in performance and loading times. So since for my main save(s) I choose to use mods/cc the only setting I'm willing to sacrifice is high detail lots. Because honestly I'm too spoiled by TS3 eye candy. And I try not to bog down the game with too much 3rd party content. But you know how that goes. So many talented and amazing cc creators, XD.
Mad Poster
#35 Old 26th May 2018 at 2:13 AM
I would only avoid playing the game Mod-free and play the entire collection with my over 700 files of Mods installed as that makes the game entirely playable for me though I also avoid playing EA's populated worlds for anything other than a short story or building so I can route test the build.I use empty custom worlds and play it Ts2 style rotationally to keep the saves playable and would also avoid playing it without awsome mod and the config file with the automated school assingment override enabled since the schools can cause many issues without those two vital files like becoming overcrowded,students route failing in transit to school,students attending wrong schools and failing to enter the building are a few.Awsome mod fixes all of those school issues by preventing them from showing up in saves.
Lab Assistant
#36 Old 26th May 2018 at 11:11 AM
It doesn't matter if you avoid Pets or not, any EP or patch that is newer than Pets will still make your game run like crap.

The problem is they decided to change how things worked when they made Pets, and made a complete mess of it, and that code and any partial fixes have been added to every EP, SP and patch since Pets.

While it's not as bad as it used to be I can't run a vanilla game (no mods or CC) like I used to before Pets came along, now I need mods just to reduce the lag and freezing.
Alchemist
#37 Old 26th May 2018 at 11:13 AM
- I had travelling issues until I installes Nraas Traveller. God bless him, I owe him money for fixing my game

I think Showtime gets a lot of shit, but it comes with one of the best looking towns, nice clothing and furniture and I think the singing career can be a fun variety from time to time.

I really don’t care for utopian Hunger Games looking stuff so Into The Future is not my cup of tea.

Island Paradise comes with much great stuff, it’s a shame Isla Paradiso is so broken (even with all the fixes in the world).

Pets slow down my game. Anyone else?
Field Researcher
#38 Old 26th May 2018 at 5:25 PM
i have all expansions and i have no issues with pets. if you have a GOOD computer you should be fine. that being said, I've never tried all expansions as a vanilla game - i have lots of mods and whatnot.
Lab Assistant
#39 Old 29th May 2018 at 2:08 AM
Alright, I've decided to give my two cents on this matter.
A lot of determining what EPs to "avoid" does come down to your computer's processing capabilities, but if this is not a concern to you, it comes down to what kind of sims you wish to make.

I use a lot of CC, and loading times often take quite awhile. Therefore, I do not use the content from WA, UL, or ITF very often because these packs involve traveling to new worlds, and I do not want to wait around for very long.

That being said, I enjoy the content said packs have to offer, but I feel like I really have to commit to a certain gameplay style to get into them, which may not always be ideal for certain characters I create (example: exploring tombs with WA may be ideal for my Indiana Jones sim, but not as ideal for my average John Doe sim, as most of my enjoyment from the WA destinations comes from exploring tombs and John Doe isn't the type of sim who would enjoy exploring tombs).

I have all of the EPs, so I will be happy to list my annoyances with each pack. Here we go:

WA: There can sometimes be issues with switching between worlds, but most of these issues can be nullified with NRAAS's Traveler mod.
Tomb exploring is exciting the first time you try it, but then after awhile it starts to feel repetitive as all of your sims have to complete the same starter tomb in most worlds.
Tombs do not reset automatically (although you could replace them with a fresh copy yourself if you want), so only one person/family can explore them and reap the full benefits per world.
The main appeal in traveling seems to be for tomb exploration. There's not really any other benefits from traveling, other than high-value wish fulfillment (I find that my average sim rolls wants to go to destinations rather frequently), opportunity fulfillment (children and teens often seem to roll school-related opportunities relating to items only obtainable by going to WA destinations), and buying some exclusive items from location merchants (such as incense burners, a scooter, martial arts equipment, tents, etc). Oftentimes my sims will roll wishes to "go home early" from their expensive vacations too.

Ambitions: The ambitions professions are often time-consuming and require your full attention on a particular sim. This can make employment in professions less than ideal if you often play larger households. Two professions often require going into CAS (stylist profession) and Build/Buy Mode (home decorator profession), so if you have large amounts of CC it could be problematic to employ sims in these professions. Other than that there's not a whole lot of negatives for Ambitions.

Generations: The child/teen punishment system can become rather annoying and potentially problematic. If a younger sim misses work or school, the parent will gain an unremoveable action (you can only use resetsim to remove it) to punish the child, which often leaves them grounded--- which means that they get in trouble if they leave the house for ANYTHING, even to go to school or work. There are mods out there that limit punishing or allow you to choose whether a parent punishes a younger sim, so the problems with punishment are avoidable.
Sims with any sort of logic skill will often roll wants to create potions with the chemistry table. However, it often takes the average sim FOREVER to successfully create a potion, and will often result in a Singed sim instead. This is more of an annoyance than anything, as you can use the table to create the powerful Age Freeze potion (with full Logic skill, that is)
The Imaginary Friend mechanics are super annoying, as the chance of one being granted to a newborn sim are rather high. Once retrieved from the mailbox, the toy is automatically given to the child. The freakish toy has magic teleport powers and will ALWAYS teleport back to the child if it isn't in someone's inventory/family inventory, even if its on a completely different end of the house. This makes befriending the Imaginary Friend unavoidable, so if you don't want every child sim of yours to not have an imaginary friend, tough luck. Also those dang things are creepy, but that's just my opinion. When the youngster reaches childhood, the imaginary friend becomes an actual sim, and oftentimes the imaginary friends will become simply a distraction in preventing child sims from doing anything useful. Obviously there's mods that help prevent the more annoying aspects of imaginary friends (as well as flat out limiting/stopping imaginary friends altogether).
Mood Swings (teen only) and Midlife Crises (adult only) can be a little fun, but can sometimes get in the way of your sims being productive for 24 hours to a week.

Supernatural: Sims constantly roll wants to get a rocking chair, or to use said rocking chair. It's a little bit annoying.
Your gardens are effed when the full moon comes. Zombies spawn often on the home lot, and they like to eat your plants, which degrades their quality by a lot, and will occasionally result in the death of the plant. There are mods to prevent zombie bad behavior, or you could just fence off the garden or utilize indoor planter pots, which come with the EP.
You must exhibit caution if it is a full moon. Idle sims outdoors will often become targets for zombie attacks, which could result in them becoming a zombie themselves! Luckily (or unfortunately, depending on your tastes), zombification is a temporary status (unlike TS2) and works like an ordinary negative moodlet. Zombie sims cannot interact with other sims positively for about 2 ingame days (any interaction will often result in a relationship drop or no change), they learn skills slower, and they move slower.
Use of the LLAMA transportation service (Moonlight Falls contains many of them by default) has a chance of a sim gaining the "Tragic Clown Curse" for 24 hours. This gives sims around the Tragic Clown-ified sim a moodlet which influences social interactions, making them not turn out as good. Also your cursed sim is stuck in an ugly clown costume and makeup for 24 hours. This curse can be ended prematurely with any sort of moodlet manager or by using a Cure Elixer.

Island Paradise: Isla Paradiso is a beautiful world, but I and many other players have suffered from horrible lag issues when playing it. The world has some problematic routing issues and some other problems (such as pregnant premade sims not being on maternity leave, making them constantly attempt to go to work despite not being able to change into their uniform), plus the world is huge!
I have had a lot of issues with water routing. Oftentimes sims will end up taking longer to get from point A to B because they will try to route in an awkward way over water.

Seasons: The season cycle can cause major lag issues, especially during winter when it snows.
You get notifications about some sort of weather stone if you also have Supernatural, which can get rather annoying. You may often get popups about the seasonal festival (located at the largest/central park in most premade worlds), and sims will often roll wishes relating to said festival, which can become bothersome if you do not wish to participate.
The growing cycle of garden plants will be interrupted in winter, and will not grow or produce any more harvestables for the duration of winter. If your sims rely on gardening, this could become problematic if you do not have an indoor planter bowl.
Every sim (both young and old) will get work and school off every Thursday ingame by default, as they are a seasonal holiday. This could be annoying if you do not want your sims to have the day off. They also roll wants to have parties a lot on said holidays, which may also become annoying.
Alien abductions occur completely randomly in the early hours of the morning. Your sim doesn't even need to be using a telescope for them to occur (like in TS2), let alone be outside. They will gain an unremoveable interaction with a strange glowing light, and then they are whisked away by aliens for a few ingame hours. This may become annoying if a sim really needs their sleep.

Showtime: The acrobat, magician, and singer professions require a lot of your time for your sims to succeed in them. Like Ambitions professions, playing with more than 1 sim in a household may become problematic, as professions require a lot of player attention. Since these careers are a core mechanic of the expansion, I do not recommend this pack if you are not a fan of professions.
You get annoying notifications for a SimFest starting at random parks every couple of ingame days, even if you are nowhere near the vicinity of said park.

Into the Future: With the first family you play in a world, a time portal will spawn without fail on their lot, and will emit a steam/smoke effect until the portal is examined. If you delete the portal, the next new family you play in the same world will have a time portal spawn AGAIN.
When the time portal is activated, it emits annoying static-y sound effects. This is obviously negated if you deactivate the portal or mute sound effects.
Traveling into the future requires your sim to go to a different world, which obviously results in a loading screen. This may be problematic if you do not like waiting around.
Sims who travel to the future are not exempt from work or school and still have to attend their jobs/school even while still in the future. The passage of time is still halted in the future, however, so sims cannot become pregnant there, and pregnant sims cannot travel there.
Sims constantly roll wants to learn the Bot Building skill, and wishes relating to said bot building skill. If you don't want futuristic robots in your regular world, tough luck.
You have to complete an annoying fetch quest before you are allowed to use the time portal for the first time in any world.

University Life: The social group system can become rather annoying, as your sim gains reputation in social groups even by simply performing regular actions. Gaining a level in a social group results in a notification, and losing a level results in a notification (and losing levels happens quite a lot if your sim doesn't actively perform actions to keep social reputation up). These notifications may be annoying.
Sims often roll wants to learn the new skills added in this expansion (Street Art and Science). This can become bothersome, as pretty much EVERY sim wants to learn these skills.
An annoying mascot delivers a "school spirit" package to every family, which results in a camera zoom and an annoyingly sparkly gift package dropped on your porch. The mascot also doesn't immediately leave after dropping off said package.
Going to university requires traveling to another world, which results in a loading screen. This may be annoying if you do not like to wait.
I have found that university requires a lot more focus than TS2 university did, but it may just be me.

Late Night: Many world do not contain premade bars, which may make wants relating to visiting bars (which sims often roll after work) unobtainable. Obviously this can be fixed by placing a bar lot in your world, but this may not be possible if you do not have space to put it.
You are not opted out of the celebrity system by default. As you may guess, being a celebrity has its perks, but it also results in paparazzi who are constantly visiting your lot and trying to interact with your sims (especially if they are idling outdoors).
I had a lot of issues with the shaming/accusation system, as many of my sims would be falsely accused of doing something scandalous. Being accused of something results in a negative moodlet for 3 days, and a relationship drop with everyone the sim knows (even if you have the "long-distance friend" reward), which often results in terminated friendships.

Pets: I find pets to be more of an annoyance than anything. Strays are constantly visiting your lot, and your sims are constantly running into deer and raccoons, which results in an annoying memory. I can't really speak positively about pets, as I probably utilize the features of the pack the least out of any of my other EPs.

So there you go. I hope this wasn't too wordy, but those are my thoughts on the packs. A lot of annoyances, but there are features worth liking and exploring in every pack if your computer is up for it.
Top Secret Researcher
#40 Old 29th May 2018 at 3:45 AM
I agree the Imaginary Friend is extremely annoying, which is why I nuke it with NRASS.

I use garden fences to protect my plants.

There's a mod that gets rid of "Tragic Clown" syndrome, and indeed all its nasty side-effects. (I believe I found that one here at MTS.)

That Weather Stone needs to die. As does the Mascot. And the Celebrity system. (I use Late Night mostly for its bars and musical instruments, actually.)

I only let teens and university students bother with social groups; my adults are far too busy.
Mad Poster
#41 Old 29th May 2018 at 2:12 PM
I've never even seen one of those, an Imaginary Friend.
I've managed to nuke the Weather Stone and the Time Portal, and in most worlds I'm not getting the insufferable and creepy ice cream van anymore, either.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Mad Poster
#42 Old 29th May 2018 at 2:51 PM
I liked the imaginary friend for a while, but then did not want it for every sim so then got the mod to give them away I think it was? Or maybe nuke them? I think one of my sims actually married an IF when they were both grown?
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#43 Old 29th May 2018 at 2:56 PM
How do you nuke stuff with NRAAS?
Mad Poster
#44 Old 29th May 2018 at 2:57 PM
I wish I knew.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Top Secret Researcher
#45 Old 29th May 2018 at 5:30 PM
To prevent the delivery in the first place (or to change the % chance to something lower):

Retuner>settings>general>by tunable XML>Sims3.Gameplay.ActorSystems>OccultImaginaryFriend>KChance to get Imaginary Doll on Childbirth (first option on list). To remove from game, set to 0. (I know someone here who loves them and sets this to 100.) The default setting is 75.

To nuke unwanted dolls already in game you use Master Controller. To change the odds of getting one, use Retuner.
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