Apartment Life: Obligatory Hate/Love Topic

[kiki]

as I was saying in #grah last night, what happens with driveways in apartments shits me right up the wall. IZ BORKD. you can't have just a driveway piece in an apartment, you have to have a driveway piece and a garage with the connecting piece inside it - coz if you try and put a car on the driveway outside the apartment, you can't. you can't even do it with cheats >.< hell, you can't even put an outside light in the garden outside your door...eagerly awaiting a MATY fix for that PoC.

[Kyna]

Things that are bugging me:
-closets only work for "dress for work" (*someone said this has something to do with Squinge's Preg.-wear-anything, and that there's a fix, but I haven't been able to find it.  Could someone please post the link?)

There is no fix for Squinge's mod, however I believe there is another mod that works in a similar fashion (I think it might be by Dizzy).  Why are you running AL with outdated mods?

-the school bus hasn't come! Kit isn't losing any grade points but he also never has a chance to bring his grades up from the C he transitioned into childhood with.  His mom can't drive him to school either.

He can walk to school.  Click on him between 8am and 9am, and select "walk to school".  I haven't had any problems with school buses not coming, it could be a glitched lot, or it could be that you have an outdated mod in your downloads (Since you said you have one, then you probably have others).  Try running the game without your downloads and see if the problem still occurs.

-calling service-NPCs is borked again.  It was broken with FT, then it got fixed, and now it's broken again.

Works for me, maybe it's another outdated mod issue?  Then again, I never use the cellphones to hire a service NPC, I always use the fixed phone.  Are you using a cellphone or a fixed phone to hire service-NPCs?

-none of the neighbors or new townies have phones; everytime my sims go to call any of the AL townies, the message about not being able to call people without phones comes up.  Do my sims really have to go around gifting those shmucks phones?

I haven't had any problems with not being able to call any of the new townies.

[Cappuccino]

-calling service-NPCs is borked again.  It was broken with FT, then it got fixed, and now it's broken again.

Works for me, maybe it's another outdated mod issue?  Then again, I never use the cellphones to hire a service NPC, I always use the fixed phone.  Are you using a cellphone or a fixed phone to hire service-NPCs?

Kyna, I think they mean the bug where NPCs weren't available to call for socialization, not for hiring. Paladin had a fix for FT, no idea if it works for AL.

[sloppyhousewife]

[Butler related stuff]

Should I be able to tell him to do things?  Because I can't.  The only way I can get him to make a meal non-autonomously is to Influence him.

I didn't tell him to prepare meals (obviously, the only thing you can tell him is how to handle visitors). He cooked autonomously when my sim had a certain hunger level (<50%, I think) or when he had guests. Surprisingly, the butler seems to take fresh food into account. Before the first harvest, he always served rather filling meals like filet mignon or nectarine tartlets (I have the restaurant meals unlocked), but as soon as the first tomatoes where in the fridge, he served mac and cheese. And he never touched my stocked fish.

[sarianastar]

Tsarina - Your avatar freaks me out. I swiped at my monitor twice before realizing there's no creepy crawly there. 

Same here. Beat the crap out of my monitor with a flyswatter.

I've been hearing that quite a lot. I guess I could switch my avatar to something less horrifying if it's that bad.
Edit: are you silly, entomophobic people happy now? Are talking muffins less disturbing to you? Huh? HUH?

I liked your buggy avatar! It fit this thread nicely, don't you think? 

No really, now that I know it's not a real bug I don't have a problem with it. A BIG bug, yes, I'd have problems with. DO NOT WANT big bugs. Or spiders. Or snakes. Not even pixelated ones.

I don't mind spiders and snakes, but no cockroaches lol. But Tsarina, I wasn't complaining. I got a huge laugh outta the fact I actually swiped at my monitor a few times to find it's just a moving pixel buggy   you didn't hafta change it.

Things that are bugging me:
-closets only work for "dress for work" (*someone said this has something to do with Squinge's Preg.-wear-anything, and that there's a fix, but I haven't been able to find it.  Could someone please post the link?)

There is no fix for Squinge's mod, however I believe there is another mod that works in a similar fashion (I think it might be by Dizzy).  Why are you running AL with outdated mods?

http://www.nectere.net/smf/index.php?topic=1140.0


It's the one titled magic-al1d.zip .. if you click on it, and instead of save, click Open, then pull only the global-allow-pregnant-outfits.package .. it replaces Squinge's outdated preg mod.  I put this in, zapped Squinge's and voila, my closets work for something more than woohooing in.  There are other mods in there I found useful, but keep in mind they are Non-Awesome. The preg mod doesn't conflict with anything that I've noticed so far though.


Moderator edit: double posting fixed

[virgali]

I'm not sure if this was mentioned before but the mike isn't compatible with the other instruments. Also it's incredibly boring. The Sim just sings the same thing over and over. Poetry takes a bit longer to loop so that's a little bit less annoying. The comedy option is incredibly annoying since it's even shorter than singing!

AL is the worst pack I they have ever released! Its level of borkiness set up an all time record and the few "features" that do actually work doesn't make up for it in the slightliest bit!

[sarianastar]

Did you really need to double post? Especially about info that is readily available in the Podium.

My apologies. It was two replies on separate areas of the subject, and since it was asked in this thread, I replied in this thread. I hadn't seen it in the Podium, and all I was trying to do was be helpful. Perhaps I should return to lurking mode. Again, sorry for offending anyone.

[spaceface]

I like the new objects, and the busyness of an apartment is fun to play. So far I have just played in Belladonna Cove, and it is certainly interesting, I like the neighbourhood decor very much. Once I am sure that my game is not going to explode, I look forward to seeing what my legacy families do in apartments.

I am ambivalent about the witches, but bad witches on community lots are definitely an annoyance. I hope for a hack to stop them autonomously casting spells on comm lots because hailstorms and cockroaches rather spoil a summer outing to the park. Also, huge lags are irritating when the bad witch arrives, casts a spell, or conjures a familiar.

The butler is another character I am ambivalent about. He is useful now that SShack has been updated, but BUY does not work on him so when he hangs around in the bathroom he effectively prevents any children from using the toilet. Some butlers do not like cleaning and won't make beds. I have seen a butler change a nappy and then carry the baby around for ages before leaving it on the kitchen floor. On the other hand, they are better at autonomously fixing things than landlords are, but having an NPC hanging around the house for 12 hours is annoying, I wish he had a designated chair he could go and sit on quietly when not carrying out an actual task.

What I really wonder about though, is whether Eaxis designers really think that most female inner city dwellers dress like sex workers. The ripped jeans, low necklines and thigh-high boots are really a bit much.

The hamster-dog is pathetic. Some of my sims have rolled wants to get one, but that huge pen takes up way too much space. My apartment dwellers are going to have lots of cats.

[birene]

No love or hate just a thundering meh from me for this expansion pack. Got my expectations up a bit too much in anticipation I think.

Do like:

The new neighborhood is indeed shiny.
Many, many pre-made apartment lots, as I'm more of an interior designer to tell the truth.
The business of playing apartment lots, although the ever elusive neighbors and their fixation on (the highest advertising item in) the community area is a bit annoying.

Do not like:

Borkage galore.

Built restrictions on apartment lots, but then, I never do what Pescado says and will just use the cheat for it in abundance. I dare my neighboorhood to explode for four years now by doing VBTs on purpose, but besides the odd corrupted character file no luck so far. 

Some people complained about their playables serving food in community areas, I have the opposite problem. When I want them to serve food (barbecue) in the community area they do so only to grab the last dish and head three floors up into their apartment insisting on eating on their couch. Canceling and directing them to another dish same thing.

[Architect Manic]

The Good

- Love the Witches; I think that spells and magic are an addition that I have waited far too long for. I think the designs for accessories for them are very good.
- Some of the new furniture is wonderful, especially the socialite and bohemian items.
- Love some of the new outfits, and the wider range of clothing now available for elders.
- I like the new reputation meter, though I haven't figured out all of the benefits available from it yet.
- Love the new spiral staircases.
- Love the fact that you can sell spell ingredients in OFB shops.

The Bad

- I know there are mods now to fix the witchy overlay, but the diseased look of the good witches really bugged me.
- Head witches casting 2 spells as soon as they arrive on any lot is a bit much, and the hail caused by an evil witch can only be stopped by another spell or a use of a weather-machine. My park owner was not happy to say the least.
- Hate some of the clothing, they look like they're filming Star Wars.
- The Witch's castles were pretty poorly designed in my opinion; they could have been made much nicer and more practical.
- I'm not sure what to think of the new secret door. I would have preferred it to be more secretive as the wall paneling is a dead giveaway.

The Ugly

- I was extremely disappointed with the Butler; I remember him being far more useful in 'Superstar'. He is too cheap to hire and he does most things on his own accord rather than being ordered to do them. It is possible to influence him, but should we need to?

[Alex]

I am liking this... Self-maintenance toddlers!



They don't cry the wail of doom, they feed themselves and need little adult intervention. You probably don't even need a fence/gate (added for visual effect).

[Solowren]

Are those pet beds?

I've been using the Toddler Floor Blanket from MTS2 for ages. Same thing, really.

[muridae]

Are those pet beds?

Yep, they're pet beds. Very handy for those of us who've never downloaded the toddler blanket. 

[SJActress]

I am liking this... Self-maintenance toddlers!

(image snipped)

They don't cry the wail of doom, they feed themselves and need little adult intervention. You probably don't even need a fence/gate (added for visual effect).

This SO reminds me of the feral children thread. 

[Inge]

My apologies. It was two replies on separate areas of the subject, and since it was asked in this thread, I replied in this thread. I hadn't seen it in the Podium, and all I was trying to do was be helpful. Perhaps I should return to lurking mode. Again, sorry for offending anyone.

I totally agree with you that in this case posting two seperate posts was much more logical than following some illogical forum ettiquette that has only recently started anyway.  In my early internet days double posting meant duplicate posts, or cross posting.  Also on a busy forum like this, if you go back and edit a post after 15mins, many people will have already read your post and will never spot the bit you added.   I have a feeling this is just one more of those rules invented to seperate noobs from old-hands.

Have a cup of tea.

[Insanity Prelude]

I thought witches sounded fun, but I'm guessing ARR'ing the game on school internet would be a Very Bad Idea, and like hell am I giving EA any more of my money.

[MaximilianPS]

you call for emergency they didn't run, but walk.. ! 
so you have the house in flames, the sims can't call for help 'cause the action will be removed from the stupid "fire reaction"
so i hope someone fix it soon 

[skandelouslala]

I rather like the butler... mine seem somewhat intelligent.  It just seems like he should cost a lot more money.  B/c of the surplus of money anyways, even most of my poorer sims can have a butler, which doesn't seem right. 

Having him around seems to really eradicate the need my sims to always have somebody in the kitchen...for the most part, with the butler there is always fresh food prepared.  Yay.

I don't know if I have something in that is conflicting with my game... I think I've really only downloaded stuff from here, but I am getting townies showing up to my sim's homes and then complaining that I invited them to stay over but didn't give them a place to sleep.  I don't know what that is about.

[Alex]

I wish the Butler would answer the phone, and bitchslap trespassers (like in The Sims 1) who steal my paper and knock over my trashcan.

[floopyboo]

Love: Autonomous romantic actions (including woohoo) on the special new bed. Took me a bit by surprise that.

Hate: Stupid not being able to place things outside for apartments. grrrrr. Yes, I know there are hacks, but shit, you'd think they'd realise that sims like things that go outside, like cars & plants & stuff. Stupid EA.

[floopyboo]

It floored the hell out of me. To be honest at this stage it looks less like partial acr & more like a remeshed version of lizzlove's waterbed.

[Tardier]

My teens jump out of the junk car Work on Body action.  I tested it without my downloads folder.  Adults can Work on Body.  Teens can only Work on Engine.

If other people's teens can do body work, I'll assume I dropped an incompatable mod into a different folder and forgot about it. 

[dragonarts]

Has anyone else tried out the helicopter? The take-it-for-a-spin animations are interesting but the second person sitting in vehicle is whacked.

See the amazing helicopter woman! Part blond, part machine.








edited to add the picture. Oops.

[Alex]

I suppose it does take the meaning of "piercing stare" to a whole new level...

[Inge]

I think I k now why you cna't put stuff outside even though you can in dorms.  If apartment lots could only have one playable family you would be able to.  It's because when you open the same lot to play another family, they will have saved it as it was last time *they* were played - and when you save it, the other people's car or whatever would be overwritten with the fact of not having that car in the drive.