Adding stuff packs and pets

[speedreader]

I have not purchased or loaded any of the stuff packs, nor the latest Pets EP.  I have all EP's up to and including OFB.  Pets just wasn't that interesting, and as with all EP's there were so many issues...

Anyway, I am thinking about the stuff packs and about how eventually I will have to get Pets because I will want Seasons.  So, my question is this - aside from backing up my game and having to redownload all the MATY hacks for updates, is there anything else I should be prepared for?  I will have obviously installed OFB after the Xmas stuff pack from last year.  Didn't OFB correct some of the errors created by that package?  Do I need to uninstall and reinstall everything in order.  And, is Pets actually working correctly, or is there a patch due that I should wait for?

Thanks for any helpful tips.

[jrd]

Stuff Packs and Expansions can be installed in ANY order.

You always need the hacks for your LAST XP (game version, not install order). At the moment Pets is the highest game version, so if you install Pets you need hacks for that, no matter what else you have installed.

Stuff packs mostly use the code from the XP that they are based on, so if you have GLS or FFS but NOT Pets and/or OFB, you need hacks up to the OFB level.

[syberspunk]

Anyway, I am thinking about the stuff packs and about how eventually I will have to get Pets because I will want Seasons.

You don't have to get anything. You can skip EPs if you wish. If you get later EPs, they typically include many of the engine changes and the object code from previous ones. Some of the main features from the EPs that you don't have will be locked or made inaccessible to you, but it isn't that big of a deal if you didn't really want those EPs.

So, my question is this - aside from backing up my game and having to redownload all the MATY hacks for updates, is there anything else I should be prepared for?

If you do get Pets, then that should be sufficient. Always back up your Neighborhoods and your Downloads folders at least. Back up any other folders that you may have customized data as well: Config, Collections, SavedSims, etc.

I will have obviously installed OFB after the Xmas stuff pack from last year.  Didn't OFB correct some of the errors created by that package?

There were errors from the Xmas pack from last year? Hrm... from what I vaguely recall, any buggy stuff in the Holiday Pack from '04 wasn't really corrected by any patch that I am aware of. And none of that stuff has been included in the object code in any of the EPs that came after it. The Holiday Pack from '04 and '06, afaik, are totally separate packages. I could be wrong tho' so if anyone else knows better, feel free to correct me.

Do I need to uninstall and reinstall everything in order.  And, is Pets actually working correctly, or is there a patch due that I should wait for?

No, as has been experimented with... you don't really have to install everything in order. Even if you do get Pets, why would you have to uninstall everything? I would only resort to uninstalling if something screwy happens when you get install Pets, but I don't see why that should happen. If you have all the other EPs up to OFB, then theoretically you should be fine.

It was reported recently that two pet patches are coming soon. One is supposed to correct Body Shop (which is pretty much useless to me right now) and the other will be actual game fixes that is supposedly due out sometime in January. If you actually do want Pets, then I would recommend looking for it on sale. Do NOT pay for it full price. Best Buy and Circuit City often have sales on the game, and most recently, I have seen it for as low as 12.99!!! Yes, that is a full EP for less than an SP! So keep your eyes open for that. Once you've bought it, you can wait to install it after the patches come out, preferably after all the modders have updated their hacks for the patched version.

However... if you don't really want Pets... then why get it? I'm probably the last person to ask this because I am a sucker, and I actually own all the SPs too. But... if you don't mind... you can probably just acquire it rather than purchase it.

Anyhew. Hope that helps.

Ste

[J. M. Pescado]

Pets adds very little to the game itself other than the Pets, although there *ARE* radical engine changes in it, most of which add bugs, the most glaring of which have been hacked around to some degree.

[speedreader]

Thanks for all the responses. 

So, if I don't care about having pets (Sims1 cured me of that forever, I think)(and please, pets have jobs???), I can skip that EP altogether?  Even though there are "radical engine changes"?  Not having those changes won't affect me when I want to add future EP's?  That might actually be a huge relief cause I haven't even looked into the game enough to know if you have to deal with strays (again). 

Syberspunk, I too was once a sucker for anything Sims, SimCity included.  If Sims was in the name, I had to have it.  Console and PC.  I am slowly recovering and learning how to have a life AND play Sims.  It isn't easy but I am determined!  But Christmas is coming and my kids keep asking what to get me.  I thought the stuff packs might be easy, relatively inexpensive gift ideas.  Otherwise one of the wiseackers will give me another Nancy Drew game.  Yikes!  Or an ancient Rollercoaster/Zoo/Etc. Tycoon. One of those top of the shelves at Walmart games.

[syberspunk]

So, if I don't care about having pets (Sims1 cured me of that forever, I think)(and please, pets have jobs???), I can skip that EP altogether? 

You probably can. But as I said, if you're really concerned, then either buy it dirt cheap and just never use the Pets options, or acquire it somehow. The thing is, if you do install it, then you will have to deal with strays and related pet wants and wolves and LOTPs. Since you don't seem to want any of that, then I recommend not buying/installing it.

Even though there are "radical engine changes"?  Not having those changes won't affect me when I want to add future EP's?

Even if the "radical engine changes" you speak of will most likely be included in future EPs. These "engine changes" are the kind that done to the executable and are pretty much available in future EPs. For example, Uni introduced LTWs, combining families, and influence (I think?) and those would be available in any later EP, even if you did not purchase Uni at all. NL introduced chemistry, restaurants, the inventory system and cars... and I'm pretty sure that if you did not get NL, you would still have access to those features in OFB or Pets. OFB introduced... uh... I don't even remember now. Probably like roof tool stuff I'm sure there's some stuff that it added which wasn't necessarily Business related. Same goes with Pets. Pets added like some tool tips/dictionary thing, an easier way to add custom pictures used for paintings, and some other roof tools. These changes carry on with each successive EP. So... you can get Seasons or any other future EPs and still benefit from changes to the core game engine.

Syberspunk, I too was once a sucker for anything Sims, SimCity included.  If Sims was in the name, I had to have it.  Console and PC.  I am slowly recovering and learning how to have a life AND play Sims.  It isn't easy but I am determined!  But Christmas is coming and my kids keep asking what to get me.  I thought the stuff packs might be easy, relatively inexpensive gift ideas.  Otherwise one of the wiseackers will give me another Nancy Drew game.  Yikes!  Or an ancient Rollercoaster/Zoo/Etc. Tycoon. One of those top of the shelves at Walmart games.

Heheh Nancy Drew! Yer kids are funny. And ugh Tycoon. X-Play reviewed a slew of Tycoon games which were all pretty much crap. Hehe. I would rather get that Desperate Housewives game than any of those. At least it's somewhat sim like, and the review said it wasn't half bad. It's one of the better looking Sims type clones out there. Plus it's one of my favorite shows.

Unfortunately... I'm still one of those suckers that tend to bend over when it comes to franchises. I just can't help it. I know there are tons of better custom content out there by the community... but my philosophy now is that I'd rather just stick with Maxis EA content (which hopefully doesn't crash the game ) and not have my downloads folder overrun with gigs of stuff that I eventually don't even use.

As far as sims games go... I think the PC games are pretty good. TS2 and its EPs seem to be a lot better than the TS1. And with console games... I've been actually pretty discriminating, so that's a good thing. It helps that I read a ton of game reviews, and I have even learned to resist purchasing games just because they get a good review. I can't tell you how many shooters I've bought just because of great reviews and hard to resist sales. And I don't even like shooters!! Heheh.

Anyways... it seems there are a few peeps out there who haven't gotten every EP under the sun and they seem to be doing ok. It helps to be pretty up to date, but at least MATY is pretty good at maintaining archives for each EP and making things backwards compatible. I really should be more diligent about that with my hacks, but I'm lazy.

Ste

[Karen]

I finally broke down and bought FFS and the Holiday Pack this afternoon.  Already I've had two Christmas tree fires, one of which killed one of my playables.  My hood is really overpopulated at the moment, so anything that helps cut down the population is a plus as far as I'm concerned.

For what it's worth, I added both SP's after Pets, and aside from some initial confusion with getting custom content turned on again, I didn't have any problems.  I didn't even bother backing up anything prior to the installation.  (Risky, I know...)

[speedreader]

Thanks Karen. 

What am I missing if I have no stuff packs?  Family Fun and a 2005 Christmas pack.  Isn't there a Glamour Pack?  What about a 2006 Holiday Pack.  I am so confused.  Maybe I'll just tell the kids to give me gift certs to Circuit City or WallyWorld, but I do like to make them work a little harder than that!

[ZiggyDoodle]

Glamour Pack has to be the biggest rip-off in the history of EA.  You can find better clothing, objects, etc. at places like Parsimonious (free sites)

[Orikes]

I hate to say this, but I find the majority of stuff at custom content sites to really not be up to par with the Maxis stuff. I play with the highest graphic settings, and most custom content - clothes and objects - just don't stand up. They lack detail and look out of place with most of the rest of the items. It's rare that I find items that are comparable to the detail in the Maxis items. Holy Simoly is probably one of the best when it comes to objects. Lots of times I find stuff on websites that looks really good, but I download it and it looks... out of place.

[Sleepycat]

I like Family Fun and Glamour Life and Happy Holiday - the 2006 Happy Holiday stuff pack contains the old holiday one plus new stuff.


 

[flowerchile]

I like all of them too..   I have a thing about continuity, so I would prolly buy them just for the hell of it anyway, regardless of the reviews.  (which I might add, haven't been too favourable)  

[jrd]

Orikes: agreed, that's why I /have/ to get all the official releases.
There are quite a few good content creators, but very few succesfully match the MaxisEA look, and even fewer make good matching sets.
I generally don't want realistic stuff, since the rest of TS2 is so cartoony.