A question for PC Simmers...

[Perturbee]

It did do a patchy thing after I posted the above in frustrated anger...and I started a new game which hasn't crashed yet...so it seems to be working a bit better.

But how do you access all the expansion stuff? I installed the island one...the spooky one...the dragon one...but none of it appears on my town map. Do you have to open the game with one of them instead of the Sims 3 shortcut?

When you're at the screen with the saved games and town picker at the right, you'll see that if you pick a town, you'll start a new game. I think there is a trick to move (copy) a household to another town, but I'm not sure. Some of the other things are less visible at first, like the supernatural stuff, but it should all be there.

One of the many resources for information is: http://sims.wikia.com/wiki/The_Sims_Wiki

[ElsieD]

To see some of the new town effects for expansions, begin a new game but check the town. Each expansion comes with a model town. You can always add the new buildings and items in build and buy mode as well if you want to play in a town you've already customized to your liking. Community buildings can be accessed in build mode, there's a tab for that.

Ha! I forgot about the load times since I got the super computer and rid the game of a lot of custom content I'd downloaded for it. I was never able to make dinner while waiting, though; the longets I'd have to wait for loading at the onset was 12 minutes--really long when yo're anxious to play, I know!

Edit: Just saw Perturbee's response. Yes, you can "move" a family to another town by saving a copy tonthe Library. You can save the entire household with the house or just the family without their home. The Library is at the bottom of the screen when you wish to change your town or add a new family or empty building.

[Perturbee]

I haven't touched the Sims 3 in months. The game will be loaded while preparing dinner, saves me waiting time after doing the dishes.

Thank you for reminding about the library, I knew you could copy them upon creation, not sure afterwards.

SFP took me away from Sims 3.

[Nandireya]

I've only got two sims so far...it took ages to install everything yesterday so I had little actual play time...what with the loading times and crashing and all. And I have 12 hour shifts...6 to 6...today and tomorrow, so I won't have any time to play over the weekend either. So they'll be left to their own devices. All my adult freeplay sims are planting hamburgers. Where I'm working today I can't even slip away to send them to work

[ZeeGee]

Nandireya, how are you liking Sims 3? Pros and cons? Thinking of buying...

[enkeli63]

I was a hardcore PC simmer until early last month, when disappointing news about Sims 4 (design decisions I don't feel good about) added on top of disappointment and frustration with the Sims 3 (boring gameplay and an endless stream of bugs), caused me to quit playing the game altogether. I am actually enjoying Sims Freeplay a lot more even though the build options are even more restricted and there's no customization at all. What it comes down to for me is the gameplay. Sims 3 offers lots and lots of things for your sims to do (and plenty of bugs for each and every activity), yet there is no challenge. I don't use cheats, yet my sim families are always millionaires by the time the second generation are teens (and that's with sims having babies in their first week or two of existence.) Money is too easy to get, and even with the ability to own businesses and additional properties, they just cannot spend it all. Freeplay is much better in that regard because you actually have to put in some effort to be wealthy, and there's plenty of pricey things to spend the simoleons on.

Another thing with Sims 3 is there's next to no family interactions. Babies have no legs and are constantly stuck in a blanket. You need to buy DLC from the Sims 3 Store to even bathe them (still in their blankies of course) or get a playpen for them. You need the playpen for toddlers to interact with eachother, and it's not particularly satisfying after the first time you do it. There are hardly any interactions for parents and toddlers--you can forget playing hide and seek or giving them a bath, like in Freeplay!

Community lots are usually empty because sims are running around the open neighborhood doing things like reading a book on the edge of a fountain instead of partying in a nightclub. At least in Freeplay you can send a whole bunch of sims to the nightclub and actually do something.

I think the gameplay is more interesting and actually more challenging (and therefore, more rewarding) in Sims Freeplay, so I wouldn't actually recommend Sims 3 to anyone anymore. Not unless you want to make blog stories and videos--then it is still pretty useful.

[ZeeGee]

Thanks for all the info. Do you mind sharing what it is about the sims 4 design decisions you're not happy with?

Also my main thing is I love to design homes and the decorating choices in SFP are SO limited. That's why I was considering Sims 3. I don't give a rat's butt about challenges or goals, I just want to decorate. How do decorating choices compare in sims 3 to SFP?

[babhiemiao29]

Its a lot expensive since you have to buy all kinds of expansion packs but more rewarding.

I have the sims 3 in my laptop and I always end up playing for hours just personalizing my house and decorating it.

[Perturbee]

Enkeli: if you find things boring, search for some challenges online. The poverty/homeless challenge I adapted to SFP can be hair-pulling difficult.

A quick question for the regular Sims players: would you like a separate subforum here for all things Sims (1/2/3/4)?

[enkeli63]

Thanks for all the info. Do you mind sharing what it is about the sims 4 design decisions you're not happy with?

Also my main thing is I love to design homes and the decorating choices in SFP are SO limited. That's why I was considering Sims 3. I don't give a rat's butt about challenges or goals, I just want to decorate. How do decorating choices compare in sims 3 to SFP?

The main things are not including the Create-A-Style tool. They say they're "considering" putting it in, and perhaps that's why they bumped the target release to next fall. Some other things include lack of basements and pools. There's still so much that is not known about Sims 4, but it does look like absolutely everything is banked on the gameplay--and I hope that pays off. The gameplay of Sims 3 is lacking in so many ways.

I have played many of the challenges (especially Legacy of course), but without true family interactions and lively community lots, Sims 3 is just not fun.

If you want Sims 3 for building and decorating--YES! It's fantastic for that. The Create-A-Style tool is a dream come true for that. That's why I am sad that it might not actually be in Sims 4.