It just feels like a stealth strategy to coax people to stay connected all the time to me. I don't like it, but knowing me I would use the thing anyway. I say nay though, and I say naaaaaay to players selling their content. Maybe it wouldn't be as terrible as some of us fear, but I guess we will find out.

The only outrage I see is the intrusion being introduced and possibility of advertising "Featured" creations will be more obnoxious than when you visit the Sims site or launcher. I do imagine the featured lots from the in game exchange will be in the houses bin, with gold trim and confetti, bleating "download now!". Thank you Srikandi for the explanation about auction house vs. cash box but what makes things look suspicious is EA not confirming whether selling be allowed or not. They could say the exchange will not become commercial and end that speculation.

I used the exchange to upload something that was created by me for another by request but very seldom downloaded unless I trusted the creator. Otherwise, if I was to buy Sims 4, the new exchange would definitely be avoided. If EA tries to code this as the only way to share, I am sure some modder would figure a way to access the export files. Not too worried about it.

I would like this alot better if it were more of a IMVU stylized type of thing. Where your creations are from one (or multiple sims as like in the sims 2 where any sim could run a business) and sold in their own shops and these items are then bought by sims in mini shops with sim money and not regular. Basically u'd really buying the pattern or retexture of a already in game mesh for most items with the new meshes and recolors of those new creator made objects being available in specialty stores or at a higher premium. It would really be killing 2 birds with one stone, a way to sell content in game (on a even playing field for just about any gamer, unless they really like their sims to be dirt poor 24/7) and it puts a highly interactive EP *BUSINESS* in the base game from the start.

I basically don't want any sort of online crap in my game, so obviously I'm going to have to say nay.

I really don't like the way they're trying to drag this game into the current 'online' trend and cash in on it. It just doesn't work for the Sims at all in my opinion, TS3 is bad enough as it is. Simport is a big annoying pile of fail. I can't believe I had to get a mod to unlock content that I'd already paid for because I refused to use simport. Attempting to buy anything from the store in game is a laggy, buggy disaster considering they fucked up the launcher ages ago. And being able to send gifts to your friends just seems like a total waste of time. Online features for me are just a nuisance to be bypassed, and I can't see my attitude changing for TS4.

If I want to go online or talk to my friends or share content, I'll do it outside of my game at my own discretion and not have it rammed down my throat. And if this auction house involves actual money, forget about it. It's starting to feel more like a free game to me, you know the type you might play on facebook or on your phone and because it's free you're bombarded with ads every 10 seconds and any chance they have they'll try to sell you something to enhance your game. With their track record for implementing online features into the game I can see this going badly. I really think it's better to keep them separate, and for them to stop wasting their time developing these stupid online features and focus on the actual game.

My main concern is Piracy. I mean, people will start trading Houses/Lots downloaded from another websites or even from the Auction House to make some cash. This already happens in The Sims Resource.

As soon as I read there would be "optional online components", I knew the enterprise was screwed. Optional online components to EA means making it extremely painful for you to resist the online experience. The SimCity debacle may have slowed the plan and made them revise their strategy, but EA still wants us online all the time-- that has not changed.

You're right but to be fair the comparison with D3 came from that guy from EAxis himself.

My main concern about it (and the idea I find most repulsive) is selling/paying for content made by other fans. I find that a hellish idea.

Worst idea ever. I absolutely hate it and the spamming from sims wanting to be in the Showtime professions, wanting to host a simport became so annoying! I was so happy when I got the "No Simport Wishes" mod from Shimrod, it was sim heaven sent. I didn't want to play the professions from the start and I did try to help people out by hosting their sims for simport and to get the objects, that was a disaster in the making for me. Some went to bed while their sims were in my game, or their computers shut off and the simport failed. I am just waiting...wasted my time. I knew I would hate it anyway, but wanted the objects that came in SHT. So to get away from it, I don't connect and don't care about the freebies I may have missed getting before. I hoped my friends didn't think I was snobbish, but I hated being on line while in the game.

Don't get me started on the chatting, and the millions of notifications of everyone chatting, but it blocks out your game notifications and you miss out on some game play. Or while building, the notifications block out the CASt UI. EA's cruddy servers crash and burn if you tried to shop in the store online and have the chat features going, so guess what...your game crashes. All I wanted was an item that was a Dr. Pepper DLC and I couldn't get it before, wanted to get it in the game's store feature for free. Egads!

Yeah, I did end up getting a mod for the stuff I didn't get unlocked. That seemed the only way to get objects that is in the game but locked because I am anti-social and dislike not being allowed to gain those objects with my own game achievements. I don't have the energy to go through that for Sims 4. Frustrating.

No thank you. I definitely do not want this stupid feature and it is just one more thing to push me away from Sims 4. Nay!

My main concern is that I am afraid that this is another of EA's attempts to stop the free sharing of user-created content. If they can, they want to make it so that all CC must be paid for, and that they will get a cut of each transaction..

As long as we are able to share CC freely (and without cost) without having the game online and without EA snooping, I'll be happy. I'll just ignore the online features that EA is trying to force on us.

Seriously, does anyone download from the Exchange anymore?

Heaven forbid! No, never! I was merely fantasising how this plan could be made to work for them. When the first complaints came that Simport did not only transfer Sims but also the cc that they had on them (including nude outfits) it was suddenly filter time. I'm pretty sure that the reason for this filter was not to do away with all those Peggy hairs that people suddenly got for free through Simport, but IIRC Simport also allowed items from the Store to go through. And that's what I mean with regard to the new system: a filter that ensures that only EA content can be offered, thus boosting the Store. "Want that recolour of that hairstyle? What a pity, because it's a Store hair, but you can buy the recolour together with the hair right now. 2 Magicoins for the recolour 100 Magicoins for the Store item. Out of those 2 Magicoins 1.5 go to the creator and 0.5 are for postage and packaging. And no, sorry, we don't deal in Newsea or Raon, but if you make your voices heard really really hard we might perhaps come up with some exclusive deal!"

Of course, this system will be full of bugs. The biggest embarrassment with Showtime was that it was said to have been throroughly tested by select players ("for the first time ever!" hehe) and the additional filter for Simport was added after several forum members who had admitted to be among those beta-testers were almost burned alive. I doubt that these were EA's main concern but the cc filter was an attempt at damage control on various battlefronts.

There are lots of official forum members who are probably afraid of downloading anything that doesn't come from the "official" exchange.

I am wondering, though, given that ~90% of the crap on the exchange, particularly when it first opened, were just recolors done in CAST of EA objects, that now without CAST, just what are folks supposed to "trade" online? Houses built from Lego rooms provided by EA's blueprint system? 100,000 "custom" sims in the first week who have been yanked around like Gumby to create the most cartoonish sim? Or, are they going to provide a CAW like tool for creating content so the community can create quality custom content to expand game play?

Sims, houses, maybe individual rooms? I don't know. Isn't there also already this gifting system that came with Supernatural? What can you gift there that might then become something to trade with? Paintings, potions, perfect gardening produce, upgraded toilets?

I have never ever downloaded anything from the Exchange and I never will. And I always warn my newbie player friends not to do so, either.

I am guessing...maybe someone's recolors of the game objects. EA haven't stated how that would happen or if they will offer tools. Doubt it.



Some suit looked at the cost of keeping up the exchange and might have speculated how the company can gain something back. When the game and website is released, we will see if that person got a bonus for such a "wondermous" idea.

The whole thing seems weird to me..."Show off your creativity, but your creativity is stifled because 'No CASt'."

All of this makes me think that the online components aren't as "gone" as some believe. They'll add online "features" little by little, and then BAM! out comes the EP where if you want to use it, you NEED to be online.

EA have a method in their madness because it just does not make logical sense to drop the only good feature that came out of TS3 - CaSt

I think they are trying to work around a version of CaSt along with something like bodyshop etc not in the base game but something that will require an on-line component tied in with a cc exchange.

So they will keep their word 'you will not require a consistent on-line present' but hey if you want all that lovely creative content from third party sites well welcome to our big herding scam, where every creative spin made on a Sims product will have to go through EA's drafting gates (where we can clip the ticket on the way through).

They have woken up and realised how so important the cc community is and they will encourage it by having some very exciting creative tools - while also capturing that invasive 'free item' content made by some very talented competitors to their Sims Store.

It will be their 'new stuff pack' version for TS4.

If this comes even close EA better be damn sure they don't burn off said wonderful community creators, because if the carrot is not big enough you might end up with just a shitty looking game and a derelict series.

Edit: Oh forgot - NAY!

I don't think I've hit so many "agrees" in a thread in a long time.

And EA, congrats ... I think we have something that most Sims 2 AND Sims 3 players can agree on ... ditch the Auction house idea. The current approach we've used since Sims 1 works, the players generally like it, and it didn't need to be fixed. And yes, many of us are very suspicious indeed. What are you up to?

Now that Sims 4 HAIR should be fixed ... spend your time and resources on THAT.

I imagine the "Auction" system will look something like this:

1. I bust my ass all day and manage to make quite a nice house despite EA's tools
2. After plopping my first sim in the house an advertisement is shoved up my ass before I can even hit the play button. "Make money *cough* simpoints *cough* off your creation!"
3. Being a typical dumbass I trust EA and upload to their auction house and wait 45 minutes before I can play again because you can't cancel the transaction
4. Sally Susie- The richest ten year old you'll ever meet; already pre-ordered ten copies of The Sims 4 and already had mommy buy her 10 million simpoints
5. Sally Susie sees my house and decides to buy it because she's far too lazy to make her own. Sally Susie clicks "Buy for 1,000 simpoints"
6. A transaction shows up on my screen while my sims are woohooing "Congratulations! The transaction of 10 simpoints is complete"
7. After making about 100 simpoints I go to the EA store and buy 1 recolour of a chair.

I don't get it, why do you think I want this in my game EA? Flashing it self to me when it thinks I want to do something with it.