THE HORROR: The REAL TS3 Scoop As It Unfolds

[mistyk]

Has anyone found and unknown seed? My sim found a seed that was unknown and uncommon, she needed level 5 gardening just to plant it, it is now a sprout but still says unknown.

Look moar, there's also Unknown Rares and Unknown Special seeds.  There's only one Unknown that you'll know immediately after planting what it actually is, and that's the Money tree from a Special seed.  You'll be able to deduce what it is by it's picture.

Thanks.
That was the only seed I had found so far and turned out to be an onion plant.

[Insanity Prelude]

This is probably GLARINGLY obvious to everyone but me, but where the fuck did you guys find gemstones? I couldn't find a single mining community lot, and nothing but meteor rocks near ponds...

The mine's not a community lot, and neither is the Stonehenge thing. They're basically just neighborhood deco. They do show up on the map though.

I found a diamond and a couple chunks of metal in the graveyard, and there's a chance of finding a diamond when exploring the catacombs, so check that out too.

[rufio]

Well, it looks like art (or buy mode art, at any rate) does not appreciate in value like it did in TS2.  Ah, well.

Does anyone know how the "Vacationer" reward is supposed to work?  I had my Vacationer sim skip work, but she still lost performance and didn't get paid.  There doesn't seem to be any option to "call in sick" or anything from the phone, either.  It is a part-time job, but I didn't think that should matter...

[vikitty]

I keep getting 404 errors so hoping this does not doublepost...

Question for those playing the game: Is there any sort of tutorial family similar to the one that came with TS2?

[Crazetex]

rufio, part-time jobs don't really count for much of anything. Try the perk with a full-on career. Also, sim-made paintings actually tell you exactly how much their cost has appreciated!

[rufio]

rufio, part-time jobs don't really count for much of anything. Try the perk with a full-on career.

Does it work there?  That is, can the sim basically never go to work and still get paid?  Basically, I want my sim to be able to write novels all day but still get a smallish inflow of cash on days other than Sunday without having to actually do anything for it.  If she has to go into a full-time job even occasionally, she won't have time to do what she really wants.

Also, sim-made paintings actually tell you exactly how much their cost has appreciated!

Oh, that's cool, I guess.  I'm actually more disappointed because I can't use a strategy I've used with poor sims in TS2 - invest the family funds in some expensive paintings, and then sell the paintings when they are needed.  It improves environment, makes money, and keeps it from burning a hole in my pocket.

[lostsoul]

So I think reading about other people's borks on here last night and feeling quite pleased with myself that I was relatively bug-free was just tempting fate. It was bork mania today. Basically, it was my child sim's birthday, so I made them throw her a party. That's when everything just seemed to go wrong. First off her dad exited the taxi just... completely invisible. You could see his plumbob moving around, and these random party blowers just popping up in midair, but apart from that he entirely invisible. Then I told the girl to blow out the candles on her birthday cake.

Four hours and two cakes later, she's still trying to blow out the fucking candles, all the guests have left, and her mother has a negative moodlet because the party was a flop due to no one aging up. Then every sim in the household (apart from the birthday girl, who was still busy with her candles and whose face had gone all deformed for some reason) just stood around not doing anything, no matter what I told them to do. The dad was STILL invisible. Eventually I just gave up and quit.

In other news, I like how careers work now, with it not being based entirely on skill points and number of friends anymore. I like the opportunity system too. It bugs me though how there's not really a lot of time outside of work for them to do anything else. The game being 'less focused on needs' now is a load of bullshit; it seems I spend most of my time now feeding them because the hunger need just goes down so fast. I'm not a fan of the story progression feature, I always preferred playing prosperity style rather than legacy style, and I just don't trust my sims not to mess everything up when I'm not playing them. I kinda feel a bit disconnected going back to them after playing another family because I just don't know what the hell they've been up to the last couple of sim days.

[Rockermonkey]

^Try deleting the cache file in the documents in your computer for TS3. That should help next time you start up your game. Dang, this game is really buggy. Let's hope alot of the bugs are fixed by the final release. Oh, by the way. The reviewers copy is the same version as this one I heard it from a dude doing a live broadcast at justintv.

[Seolaeria]

Question for those playing the game: Is there any sort of tutorial family similar to the one that came with TS2?

No dedicated tutorial family. There is a menu option called "Lessons" where you can read about all the features - but there's no interactive tutorial. Also, during gameplay, messages will pop up in the upper right hand corner pointing you to a lesson related to something your Sim just did. You can turn the feature off if you don't want it bugging you.

[FuzzySham]

I've got a bug, methinks. Someone already mentioned this problem before, but I couldn't find the respective post. (Yes, I did search.)

So perhaps someone already knows a workaround for this one: My children won't get the traits I selected for them on age-up (toddler to children). I'll probably have to point out that I've turned aging and story processing off and am keeping track of time via spread-sheet. As soon as someone in my household is due for birthday, I age him/her up using the birthday cake or by forced age transtition (with testing cheats enabled). So, I get to pick a third trait for my children (because my sims are mostly wuvly parents), but it is never displayed nor are the children showing any appropriate behaviour.
I haven't tested this with teens so far, but it worked as intended on birth. Only toddler to child birthdays seem borked.
Any tips, pretty please?

Fake Edit: There is a tutorial. I remember getting angry about fitting some random couch into a already stuffed house because the tutorial told me to, despite the fact that the family already owned a fuckin' couch!

[vikitty]

Question for those playing the game: Is there any sort of tutorial family similar to the one that came with TS2?

No dedicated tutorial family. There is a menu option called "Lessons" where you can read about all the features - but there's no interactive tutorial. Also, during gameplay, messages will pop up in the upper right hand corner pointing you to a lesson related to something your Sim just did. You can turn the feature off if you don't want it bugging you.

Thank you for answering my question! It does seem like there is a bit of a learning curve; soooo much more to do. Hell, I haven't even done everything there is to do in Apartment Life yet.

[simsdesperado]

The only bug I seem to have come across is that once when I started the game, my saved game seemed to have dissappeared and I had to restore the back up save. And I think the cheap oven has the same thumbnail image as the bathtub,at least this is how it shows up in my game when the sim is using it.  Other than this I'm quite loving it. I removed the sim's toilet from the lot, wanted to see if she will pee on the floor. No such luck of embarrasing moments. She went straight for the bathtub, even though she was clean and had the dirt defy perk. I thought she was going to pee in the tub, but the bladder meter was fully empty and in the red and staid like that until she reached her job. Also, i'm loving the new cute animations they have added. My sim closed the fridge door with her foot and at one time the dresser shelf got stuck so she pulled on it to get it opened and fell on the floor in the process.

For the person wondering where the gems are, I usually find them on the lawn near my house. The beach also seem to have plenty of those.

[nahte]

To be honest I find that some hairstyles from sims 3 look like the hair Peggy makes in
Sims 2. As if a rat ate some hair.

Exactly! I think exactly like you. I hate this.

[jrdseven]

First post, so do your worst!!

I've got my game on epic settings, but I've got a couple of helpful hints and a question in return.

1) Learn to play the guitar as an essential - as soon as you get to level 5 you can play for tips. This is beneficial for two reasons, not only increasing your funds but it also builds your relationships with the NPC's.

2) Parties, to ensure every party is a success just get there early and make sure you're playing the guitar when the first guest arrives and just keep playing for the duration of the party - playing for tips will also earn you shed loads of cash (invite rich sims) at your own party. My record was about 5k for a 2 hour party - good work if you can get it. If you do this in community locations, you will also get other people watching and "donating" to your income.

3) Buy the community businesses as soon as you can afford them - it's a big outlay but you're rewarded with between 1.8 (hogans fryer) and 15k (medicine/science) a week depending on the business.

4) Relationships - host party and invite all people you will want to smash through the headboard (or Woohoo with rose petals in this pleasant-valley-world) and play guitar for them till your relationship bars will be maxed. Once you've reached this point, it's only a skip and a jump away from getting jiggy wid it. I'm just trialling the game and trying out different things at the moment, but inviting over best friends cuts the time down in the courting process.

Invite them over and make sure you use the "invite inside" option and go from there. I've impregnated Agnes Crumplebottom, Claire Ursine and Cornelia Goth each in about 3/4 sim hours using this method.

Question

has anyone had any success with the guitar skill additional challenges? I've completed 2 but I can't clear the party/community venue challenge.

I must have played about 20 parties and performed the same amount of concerts at the stadium and theatre but I can't clear that one for some reason. Help appreciated.

[phyllis_p]

Having analysed that a large part of my reluctance to start up Sims 2 to play comes from the complexity of managing all the families and remembering what they should be doing, I am tentatively welcoming legacy style play

This.  I'm enjoying the one family very much.  I'm just getting ready to split the family by marrying off two of the kids and sending them to live elsewhere.  We'll see how that works out.

Something I like:  When teens are going steady and one ages before the other, the relationship is preserved.  They are still going steady, still boyfriend/girlfriend.  They don't have any romantic interations, unfortunately -- can't kiss or flirt -- but at least they still are "attached."

Re:  birthday parties at remote locations.  Be sure to go to the location first and set down a kitchen counter to put the cake on.  You'll have to bring the cake in personal inventory, but can then set it on the counter and blow out the candles and eat.  Setting on tables won't work, or didn't for me, at least.  When you arrange for the party, you don't get the option for "birthday party."  Just choose "destination party."

Oh, and I thought this was funny:  I had a birthday party at the beach for my teen twins.  After they'd both blown out the candles, their father and another party guest died.  One little girl was so frightened, she fainted.  She later got up and got a piece of birthday cake.  While eating, Grimmy came over with a drink and sat down with her!  Scared her so badly, she got up and fainted again.  The party was raited "epic" :-)

I've got a bug, methinks. Someone already mentioned this problem before, but I couldn't find the respective post. (Yes, I did search.)

So perhaps someone already knows a workaround for this one: My children won't get the traits I selected for them on age-up (toddler to children).

When you click on the trait, are you then clicking on the "up" button to move it into the box with the traits?  At fiirst I thought all one had to do was highlight the trait, but that wasn't the case.

[coltraz]

Regarding Fat Genes...I've seen some people say it breeds.

If you create a fat Sim or one is born chunky, does working out not put the Sim back into shape/thin? Or once a Sim is fat, is he fat forever? If so that's really stupid.

[FuzzySham]

I've got a bug, methinks. Someone already mentioned this problem before, but I couldn't find the respective post. (Yes, I did search.)

So perhaps someone already knows a workaround for this one: My children won't get the traits I selected for them on age-up (toddler to children).

When you click on the trait, are you then clicking on the "up" button to move it into the box with the traits?  At fiirst I thought all one had to do was highlight the trait, but that wasn't the case.

Yes, I made sure the third trait was on the list, using the arrows. It bugs me A LOT that it isn't working.

[rufio]

Someone said earlier that there was a bug with assigning traits caused by having the Simology panel open when giving kids traits.  I don't know personally, though, since I haven't gotten to the point of spawning yet.  Does going to a different panel fix it?

[J. M. Pescado]

Fake Edit: There is a tutorial. I remember getting angry about fitting some random couch into a already stuffed house because the tutorial told me to, despite the fact that the family already owned a fuckin' couch!

People still DO tutorials? Every tutorial in every game I have seen post 1990 has simply insulted my intelligence at every turn. I never bother with them anymore if they can be avoided.

[Zazazu]

It's also a bit cheap that so many objects seem to be slightly higher res versions of TS2 models.  I suppose it could take a long time to make new objects for them (although I have built some myself for TS2, so I understand the length it can take) but it smells a bit of taking a cheap option by using meshes built by the designers of the last game and slapping them into this.

Thing is, they did the same thing from TS1 to TS2. Took the same objects and just made them 3-D. That the same objects are available in TS3 does not surprise me.

I hate that there are no half walls. Most of my buildings involve lots of half walls.

- This "enforced legacy play" kerfluffle is getting blown waaaaayyy out of proportion, IMO.  Wishes aren't wants.  Promising isn't locking. TS3 isn't TS2.  Don't promise something you don't have time to finish.  Granted I don't see much point to not saving them but that's a far cry from "amg they're forcing me to play legacy style".

Try playing prosperity style and see what happens. Your sims will be having mystery children and/or moving out of the neighborhood without your consent, as others have had issues with. That's the real problem with not being able to play anything but ultra-traditional legacy style. Not the wishes. Not even the opportunity loss. Control loss.

Possible bug: I have a teen, about 12 days to YA, who has rolled the wish to move in with his girlfriend. Not really possible as a teen.

I don't know if this is a bug, but my sims don't seem to age at the same rate!  I made two sims in CAST, in one "family."  They started out as housemates, then got married and lived together for a while.  The other day they had a kid, then a few minutes later it said "Male sim is about to have a birthday!" and when I looked at the sims' age bars, he was 2 days away from his birthday, while the female sim had 8 days.  I'm playing on the default speed, and they were both young adults.  It's pissing me off; I don't want to have him be that much older.  

It's not that they aren't aging at the same right. CAS sims start at a random point in their age group. I've had ones start at the very beginning, and some at 7 days to age-up.

You are aware that in some countries they actually drive on the right-hand side?

Difficult not to be aware really, the better question might be to ask whether people are aware that in many countries people drive on the left hand side of the road.

Yes, it freaks me out. Especially when you are being driven around by a Jamaican cabbie who appears to be a wee bit drunk and likes to speed. Game is made in the US. USians drive on the right side of the road.

Major annoyance- why is my female toddler dressed in only a pair of cut off pants? I'm not shipwrecked. If I have to put up with the darn thing
I at least want it her to look half decent.  Seriously she's going to be a toddler for 7 days?  DNW!

So, I was in a wedding yesterday and while we were waiting in the limo bus for the bride to get her butt moving so we could, you know, make it to the church on time, her neighbors were sitting on their porch. The mom of the family was holding her toddler girl, who was waving happily...pantsless. Mom kept pulling her shirt down, as if her waist-length top was going to do anything. Nothing could hide that vag. Talk about DNW. With sim toddlers, you can actually click on a wardrobe with the toddler active to plan wardrobe. Your simmy toddlers can go shirtless or shirt-on, but luckily their vag will keep covered.

[phyllis_p]

Regarding Fat Genes...I've seen some people say it breeds.

If you create a fat Sim or one is born chunky, does working out not put the Sim back into shape/thin? Or once a Sim is fat, is he fat forever? If so that's really stupid.

I read something, somewhere by an EA bod that they will always natural tend to revert to their created 'default' size. So if you create them fat, they will always tend to slowly revert back to being fat.

Kind of like real life.  Or mine and Oprah's and Kirstie Alley's, anyway.

One of the lifetime reward thingies is a fast metabolism that'll help keep that from happening.

Re: assigning traits, I haven't had any problems with my 3 spawn.  Don't know if I'm just lucky, or doing something differently than some other folks.

[BlueSoup]

What effect does the class have? Gain one skillpoint automatically? I imagine this is more useful when you are already high in the skill and skillpoints are harder to come by.

The classes can't be taken when you're already up there in the skill level.  I figured it'd be a faster way to learn it that way too, but nope.

[Jorganza]

Does anyone know if the favorites are supposed to do something? I had a sim eat his favorite food and listen to his favorite
station, but I didn't see any moodlets pop up or anything special.

[daisywenham]

- This "enforced legacy play" kerfluffle is getting blown waaaaayyy out of proportion, IMO.  Wishes aren't wants.  Promising isn't locking. TS3 isn't TS2.  Don't promise something you don't have time to finish.  Granted I don't see much point to not saving them but that's a far cry from "amg they're forcing me to play legacy style".

Try playing prosperity style and see what happens. Your sims will be having mystery children and/or moving out of the neighborhood without your consent, as others have had issues with. That's the real problem with not being able to play anything but ultra-traditional legacy style. Not the wishes. Not even the opportunity loss. Control loss.

Yup, I've since taken that comment back.  I made it while I was playing only one sim and not really noticing what the rest of the hood was doing.  I've been playing prosperity style in TS2 recently, but only because it's the only way to get my hood to evolve fairly realistically.  I like the idea that sims you're not playing will age.  I love the idea of my sim kids knowing their cousins or growing up and still being friends with someone they've known since childhood and so on.  But after a few generations in TS2 that gets reaaaallllllly cumbersome to do.

I am opposed to the mystery children though.  My first generation 2 adult sim is now trying to get married and one of her love interests has 2 children whose only relations are their father and each other.  No mother.  I just really hope it works as intended in the official release.  

[vagabondher]

What effect does the class have? Gain one skillpoint automatically? I imagine this is more useful when you are already high in the skill and skillpoints are harder to come by.

The classes can't be taken when you're already up there in the skill level.  I figured it'd be a faster way to learn it that way too, but nope.

This makes sense! I was wondering why I suddenly couldn't go to City Hall to up my charisma level to become President/Leader of the Free World! Sarah Palin kept getting antsy standing in front of the mirror all the time...