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Top Secret Researcher
Original Poster
#1 Old 9th May 2013 at 4:59 PM
Default Really?


I've been with The Sims series since its debut in 2000, since I was 7 years old (since before I should even be technically playing). I've seen the rise, the climax, the downfall, and the utter 'What the fuck is going on?'. I have posted on Mod The Sims and various other websites for years, accumulating mountains of downloads and even creating two myself.

This is the first time I have not been excited about the reveal of a new Sims game, including console and handheld versions. Hell, Sim Social caught my eye more than this. I'm incredibly disillusioned with The Sims staff and development because TS3 feels so undone. Worse, what is of TS3 feels so rushed and borked. Repeatedly they did half-ass job after half-ass job and now they're leaving it behind to announce TS4? In what way am I supposed to be excited or optimistic about the next level of The Sims when the previous level can barely hold water?

I can't be the only person who feels this way.

~* Childish, Eco-Friendly, Snob, Couch Potato, Inappropriate *~
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Alchemist
#2 Old 9th May 2013 at 5:18 PM
I got excited about it when they announced offline single player. Now whether they can put out a product to match my enthusiasm remains to be seen. Personally I don't get the whole "Sims 3 is unfinished" thing. The sims in TS3 basically can do everything we do in real life.
Instructor
#3 Old 9th May 2013 at 10:39 PM
Quote: Originally posted by kennyinbmore
I got excited about it when they announced offline single player.


Well, they only said that you will not have to be persistently online. That word "persistent" is a real weasel word. You could have to log on before eery gaming session, or save your game to their servers online. I somehow don't think EA is going to entirely abandon its efforts to force us to use their servers.

And, yes, I agree with the OP that the Sims 3 has proven to be both half assed and incomplete. It is riddled with bugs. And now it is pretty clear that EA has no intention of fixing it.

I don't see why anyone believes that the Sims 4 will be any different. It is the same model they have used for at least two incarnations: release a plain vanilla base game then dribble out random EPs, most of questionable value, every six months.

So far, this looks like nothing more than a grab for more money.
Alchemist
#4 Old 9th May 2013 at 10:58 PM
Quote: Originally posted by kennyinbmore
I got excited about it when they announced offline single player. Now whether they can put out a product to match my enthusiasm remains to be seen. Personally I don't get the whole "Sims 3 is unfinished" thing. The sims in TS3 basically can do everything we do in real life.


open for business
....cough.

its only recently gotten back up to TS2's apartment life level of possibilities. the only actually-new themed EP was world adventures and very few people enjoyed that one. and now theyre just leaving it after the next EP. after leaving out a ton of items that people have wanted since the base game that were in TS2 but not TS3, cutting off previously indulged detail for the sake of what i can only assume is laziness (burrito babies! a thousand times, burrito babies. and magically pre-stocked fridges), and ultimately bringing is very few new ideas/mechanics to actually play with.

you may be fooled by the cynically recycled animations, but not everyone else is.

"The more you know, the sadder you get."~ Stephen Colbert
"I'm not going to censor myself to comfort your ignorance." ~ Jon Stewart
Versigtig, ek's nog steeds fokken giftig
Instructor
#5 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:05 PM
Well, the great thing about TS4 vs. TS3 is.... TS3 is really leaving lots of room for improvement. So, the potential, at least, is something that I can get excited about. Unfortunately, the actual product will probably be...not that exciting.
Née whiterider
retired moderator
#6 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:12 PM
Quote:
The sims in TS3 basically can do everything we do in real life.

Crime, PhDs, making clothes, soft drugs, getting into debt, using towels, eating and reading at the same time, taking buses, mountaineering, being woken up at 5am by a cat attempting to sit on your face, building a business empire, long-distance relationships, jumping on the bed, camming, shoe shopping, getting to the stage at which you have so many bags that you have to store bags inside bags before taking them to the charity shop, burying a loved one, raising livestock, fixing up cars, origami, covering your monitor in sticky notes, repainting the house yourself, living in a flat and paying rent, safari, abseiling, lining up cutlery really neatly, protesting, going to outer space, flying a kite, trying to find that thing that you're pretty sure is in one of the boxes under the bed, tripping in the attic and putting your foot through the ceiling, being paid for odd jobs, tutoring, spreading rumours about people you don't like, using a wheelchair or a mobility scooter, running a website, going on a cruise.

Just sayin'.

What I lack in decorum, I make up for with an absence of tact.
Inventor
#7 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:18 PM
Whiterider, you couldn't have said it better.
Mad Poster
#8 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:31 PM
What's sad is there's a few things on that list that CAN be done in TS2.
Instructor
#9 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:55 PM
Quote: Originally posted by SuicidiaParasidia
open for business
....cough.

its only recently gotten back up to TS2's apartment life level of possibilities. the only actually-new themed EP was world adventures and very few people enjoyed that one. and now theyre just leaving it after the next EP. after leaving out a ton of items that people have wanted since the base game that were in TS2 but not TS3, cutting off previously indulged detail for the sake of what i can only assume is laziness (burrito babies! a thousand times, burrito babies. and magically pre-stocked fridges), and ultimately bringing is very few new ideas/mechanics to actually play with.

you may be fooled by the cynically recycled animations, but not everyone else is.


Apartment Life was TS2's last EP, so it would make sense that TS3 is just now, at the end of it's run, getting to where TS2 was when it ended. Base TS2 didn't have all the features TS1 has fully expanded either. It's been their business model the entire length of the franchise.

I agree TS3 comes off half-assed. They never fixed a lot of bugs and after reading the forums it feel the started working on TS3's engine a little earlier than they should've and now it's pretty outdated. Babies in TS3 aren't actually considered sims, they're considered objects, which helps explain their limitations and burrito bodies. The two teams should've skype'd more often because the EP feel often disconnected. I have a feeling, since they announced TS4 when they should probably have waited until Island Paradise was released, they might be giving up on TS3 and sweeping it under the rug. Hopefully they'll avoid repeating the plentiful mistakes they made in TS3 in TS4. There have been noticeable improvements in life stages and interactions in Freeplay (toddlers and preteens) which I think is a little hint of what's to come.
Forum Resident
#10 Old 9th May 2013 at 11:59 PM
Im hyped but wont buy on day 1 until i see the reviews.

But for future reference to all you guys, only trust *USER* reviews. *DO NOT* trust media reviews because:
Instructor
#11 Old 10th May 2013 at 12:11 AM Last edited by StardustX : 10th May 2013 at 12:28 AM.
I agree with OP 100% here.
I'm not even close to looking forward to buying TS4. TS3 feels like a half-finished (and yes, half-assed) game when playing and I already know TS4 will be exactly the same, and TS5, and TS6, and however many they have after that will be also. As long as they have their money, they don't give a shit about how much the fanbase enjoys it.

I probably won't be buying it, until it goes down to at least $20. Which yes, will take ages, but it would be worth it to me. I might even get it used, if they don't make that impossible, the less money to EA the better. I won't be buying it, period, if I don't have the option of playing offline 100% of the time. I have high speed internet now, but I still had dial up 3 years ago (and satellite until I moved to my own home in March). So I'm perfectly capable of playing online. It's just a principle thing. Not everyone can afford high speed internet, in our case it wasn't (and still isn't) available where my mom lives.

So yeah I'm not at all excited about TS4. And that upsets me. Though I didn't really get into Sims (other than pre-TS2 console games like Urbz and Bustin Out) until Sims 3 came out, and I wasn't excited about that either. XD
Instructor
#12 Old 10th May 2013 at 12:14 AM
Quote: Originally posted by StardustX
I agree with OP 100% here.
I'm not even close to looking forward to buying TS4. TS3 feels like a half-finished (and yes, half-assed) game when playing and I already know TS4 will be exactly the same, and TS5, and TS6, and however many they have after that will be also. As long as they have their money, they don't give a shit about how much the fanbase enjoys it.

I probably won't be buying it, until it goes down to at least $20. Which yes, will take ages, but it would be worth it to me. I might even get it used, if they don't make that impossible, the less money to EA the better. I won't be buying it, period, if I don't have the option of playing offline 100% of the time. I have high speed internet now, but I still had dial up 3 years ago (and satellite until I moved to my own home in March). So I'm perfectly capable of playing online. It's just a principle thing. Not everyone can afford high speed internet, in our case it wasn't (and still isn't) available where my mom lives.

So yeah I'm not at all excited about TS4. And that upsets me.

I couldn't stop picturing that coming from your avatar.
Site Helper
#13 Old 10th May 2013 at 12:49 AM
I'm not looking forward to Sims 4.

Although EA is trying to convince us that we'll be able to play the way that we want, I too am concerned about that word "persistent" which they insisted on inserting in the phrase "The Sims 4 will not require a persistent online connection". I no longer trust EA, after I saw all of the weasel words that they used to try to fool people into buying SimCity 4.

So, I'll wait and find out whether it says on the box that it requires the internet. If it does, then I won't be buying.
Field Researcher
#14 Old 10th May 2013 at 1:05 AM
As someone who pre ordered SimCity 13 (sad to see the series become a Joke) I would be very wary about doing the same for the Sims 4, unfortunately IMO Maxis are not the same company they were around the time of the Sims, Sims 2 and SimCity 4 and the quality of their games has deteriorated. There seems to be a lack of Quality Assurance. However I have enjoyed Sims 3 (Get frustrated with the bugs) But overall is it a big improvement on Sims 2?

Anyway I have made a pact to myself never to pre order an EA product again. Have to agree with other people seems a cash cow now with EA Games release a vanilla game every six months add an expansion pack. I also believe Some Sims 3 expansions have not been near the quality of Sims 2 packs.
Scholar
#15 Old 10th May 2013 at 1:33 AM
I think many of us know that The Sims franchise is EA's cash-cow. It's a game that revolutionized PC gaming back then, and continues to provide open-ended game-play. Did we really think when Sims 2 was released that there wouldn't be several expansion packs afterwards? We probably expected that. It should be the same expectation we had for The Sims 3, & we'll definitely have to expect that for The Sims 4 franchise as well.

I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what EA has in store for Sims 4...doesn't mean I'll be buying it right away, though. Especially if it doesn't work.

What I hope they do is test their game often! The dream...to get some folks to test their game, especially from the Sims modding community. Those who have lots of experience with the game's nuances, to test critical features, like deleting Sims, lots, families. To test memories, relationships, etc. It'll definitely help bring trust to EA if they let a few outsiders give advice and feedback about any of the game's betas. And of course, take your time EA. You can very well delay the deadline and make bug fixes in the meantime for The Sims 3. Or, continue with expansion packs while The Sims 4 is delayed. Whatever, as long as this new franchise isn't shipped out the door without thought to sturdy coding. It is a complex game, and should be treated as such.

Check out my latest version of Superman's Classic Uniform for The Sims 2.
See what images I have posted on DeviantArt as well related to The Sims 2 and designs.
Also check out My Website to see my superhero uniform creations for The Sims 2. THANKS!!!
Mad Poster
#16 Old 10th May 2013 at 3:59 AM
I plan on waiting until TS4 has the EP's that I want to see in the game before I buy it. But, I'm still excited about the release of TS4. Mostly because I want to see how they develop the franchise + I hope there will be lots of TS4 to TS3 conversions. Who knows, maybe it will be possible to convert even animations so we could get more new functional objects we don't have currently in TS3. Also, I'm very happy to finally have a finished and static game that doesn't require updating old mods but give us the possibility to concentrate on creating new mods and improving the ones we already have.

An OFB would have made the game complete for me, and a farm animal EP would have blown my mind from happiness but, life is not always fare.
Forum Resident
#17 Old 10th May 2013 at 5:04 AM
Ditto.

Ever since Monday, I've just been feeling meh about the entire Sims franchise. The remainder of TS3? Who cares? What can they give us in the remaining two EPs which would make me want and need to keep on playing the game? As most everyone else has said: it was half-finished and half-assed. Two more half-fleshed-out EPs won't change that.

It's funny, because with TS2, I went on playing it for another year plus after TS3 launched before I finally upgraded to the new game. Will I be playing TS3 a year after TS4 launches? Doubtful... highly doubtful.

As for TS4... well... EA's screwed the pooch and shit the bed. I don't trust them anymore. I could get on the other threads and type about all the features I want or expect, but it won't mean diddly squat. The game will be what EA's penny pinchers allow it to be -- a stripped down ghost of what it ought to be, all designed to monetize the hell out of it. And bleed us dry.

I have news for EA: the world has already bled me dry. I don't have the $40 or $50 bucks to plunk down on some half-assed piece of EA crap every couple of months in order to buy the Must-Have-EPs! and Must-Have-Store-Content! Nothing EA makes is must-have for me anymore.

Who wants to go through another cycle where it takes three years just to get weather and university play? I sure don't.

I won't say I'll never get it... it may turn out that I'm pleasantly surprised by early reviews. But I'm not holding my breath.
Instructor
#18 Old 10th May 2013 at 5:25 AM
I, too, totally agree on TS3 is half-finished.
And if EA can release TS4 as scheduled, plus there's something new in game play, TS3 will be marked forever as "A BIG DISAPPOINTMENT" in the series.
Instructor
#19 Old 10th May 2013 at 9:00 AM
I went through some of the threads a the official forums and it seems too that many people have woken up about the Sims 3 and problems it has. Sure there is still lots of sheeple that will blindly buy no matter what but I think EA needs to really nail Sims 4 in order to win back it's reputation with most players now.

I for one will not be buying it as soon as it comes out. If they follow Sims 3 route again I doubt it will be a smart business choice.

Love does not consist of two people looking at each other, but of looking together in the right direction. - Antoine de Exupery
Lab Assistant
#20 Old 10th May 2013 at 9:30 AM
One of the things that irks me most is all the people saying "Oh, they said they won't force you to play online! They have won me over already!!"

That's like walking into a restaurant and praising the staff because the maitre told you nobody would spit on your food. I mean, technically it's a good thing, but restaurants aren't supposed to do that in the first place.
Field Researcher
#21 Old 10th May 2013 at 10:24 AM
I understand where you're coming from and I completely agree that TS3 is not complete but I feel my TS3 game can't handle another EPs so it's fine with me. It is very tiring and laggy so I can imagine an OFB EP with all the stupid routing what a nightmare will be.
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