2.3+CC bullshit. I refuse to reinstall AGAIN.

[Cathy]

I have some difficulties installing some houses - not the ones from the exchange...*pouts*

[J. M. Pescado]

If you're even TRYING to install houses from a Sims3pack, you are doing it wrong. Also, is it just my imagination, or is your head fatter than it is on Simscave? Did you catch Fatheadism from BlueSoup?

[snapzit]

Where do you get the framework? And thank you for the walk-through I am installing WA now, so this will be interesting to see if it works.

The framework is on the Awesomemod page. if I weren't in a mellow mood from the holidaze I would have just said SEARCH MOAR! Don't ask dumb questions either.

[friendlyquark]

I talked to my b-i-l,  he informs me that the reason they use regions is related to copyright laws. International copyright law apparently requires the use of regions, if EA doesn't use the region system, then they forfeit any protections under international law as it relates to copyright infringement.

He also commented that the Sims games do not provide sufficient revenue, in comparison to other games, for EA to actually spend any money on it. He works for Activision, so he naturally shares my disdain for EA, but also comments that no other company will make a game like this because the revenue stream is to small.

How I hates them, my precious, I hates them, ... (but I needs my Sims fix, dammit. )

[friendlyquark]

Okay, I have tried downloading the patches from two different places and when I try to run them, I get "invalid file" right near the end of the installation process.I have gone back to the places where I found these files and read through all of their instructions, but I am not finding a solution for this. I have a valid copy of Sims 3, I just do not want Download Manager installing its DRM evils on my computer.

[witch]

He also commented that the Sims games do not provide sufficient revenue, in comparison to other games, for EA to actually spend any money on it. He works for Activision, so he naturally shares my disdain for EA, but also comments that no other company will make a game like this because the revenue stream is to small.

The Sims franchise is supposed to be the top selling game(s) of all time. It certainly was a couple of years ago. Sims 3 may have put the kibosh on that.

[coconnor]

I talked to my b-i-l,  he informs me that the reason they use regions is related to copyright laws. International copyright law apparently requires the use of regions, if EA doesn't use the region system, then they forfeit any protections under international law as it relates to copyright infringement. ou

He also commented that the Sims games do not provide sufficient revenue, in comparison to other games, for EA to actually spend any money on it. He works for Activision, so he naturally shares my disdain for EA, but also comments that no other company will make a game like this because the revenue stream is to small.

How I hates them, my precious, I hates them, ... (but I needs my Sims fix, dammit. )

So, what you're saying, in effect, is that the Sims 3 (and expansions, present & future) is what's  known as a "loss leader" for EA?  Ask your brother-in-law if this is what he means.  I doubt their profits are this low. If they were, we would undoubtedly be hearing about how since they are not generating sufficient revenue off the Sims 3 franchise to sustain it, that there may not be a future.  The "caek is a lie".

[J. M. Pescado]

He also commented that the Sims games do not provide sufficient revenue, in comparison to other games, for EA to actually spend any money on it. He works for Activision, so he naturally shares my disdain for EA, but also comments that no other company will make a game like this because the revenue stream is to small.

That sounds like bollocks to me. If that were true, why is this EA's leading cash cow?

[friendlyquark]

No, he says that they make enough money on it to justify a small staff and minimal effort, but not enough money to make it worthwhile to them to spend the dough necessary to make it a really good game. It turns a profit, but they aren't willing to cut their margin on it by putting on more staff and really working out the bugs.

[friendlyquark]

EA's leading cash cow is NOT the Sims. They make far more money on their sports franchises, like Madden. The Sims has a good profit entirely because they don't spend a lot on making it.

" Electronic Arts announced today record profits in the quarter ending September 30. The company posted net revenues of $453 million, which was up from $240 million from last year. EA's success can be attributed to numerous blockbuster releases including Madden NFL, NCAA Football, The Sims, and Medal of Honor." Quoted from PSXtreme.

[coconnor]

Let me tell you something.  They are not doing this (pick one) a) for "us", b) for shits & giggles; or C) for any number of other reasons.  They ARE making a profit, and one that they are trying to expand upon by 1) the EA store and the new strategy of selling the game and expansions at a higher price by bundling in so called "free" store points.  This is (pure & simple) a marketing strategy.

They might not be making a big enough profit (in their eyes) but, they are, certainly, profiting.  Otherwise, there would not be a Sims 3 game at all.  Period.  End of story.  It's a company, and that's all there is at the end of the day.

[saraswati]

Keep in mind that your brother in law works for Activision/Blizzard. When he thinks profits he's probably thinking WOW, which gets server fees every month and most games aren't like that.

He's wrong.. if the Sims wasn't a cash cow it wouldn't still be open. Sims 3 was one of the few things they made money on in the first half of this year apart from Dragon Age Origins. Sims 3 sold something like 3.7 million units of Sims 3 at the beginning of the year.  EA has just finished cutting a massive chunk of it's worforce and cut them in places like Pandemic and the old Maxis studio which produces Spore.. the layoffs didn't happen in the Visceral Studios which makes Sims 3 these days. They would have if they weren't making money from the game. The reason for the lack of quality control is nothing to do with profit or lack of profit. It's to do with the fact that EA has always had crappy quality control and decisions made by marketing guys, and they're getting worse.

[Drakron]

Even if their sports titles do sell keep in mind that they do not sell that well across the world ... Europeans take FIFA and not Madden for the obvious reason.

Also keep in mind EA releases their sports titles to about EVERY SINGLE CONSOLE EVER MADE (slight exaggeration but they still do PS2 versions) and they combine sales as you cannot compare then with The Sims that always been a PC game (despite EA attempts at console spin-off titles).

The Sims is EA cash cow in the sense its about just one platform and the investment-return is of a higher return that of their other titles.

Also you want to know Sims 3 total sales as of 5th August 2009? 3.7 million ... (Saraswati, the game was not even out in the start of the year)

[saraswati]

Apologies Drakron, I was counting it in the first half of the year because it was released in June..

[J. M. Pescado]

You could just do the math: If Drakron says they've sold 3.7M copies, for a price we know is ~$50, that's $185M, considerably more than a third of that listed 450M net revenue. That automatically makes it the leading cash cow because it occupies more than a third of the revenue pie while being only 1 out of the 4 items listed.

[friendlyquark]

Fine. They are making money and the world is full of pretty flowers. I am not going to argue about EA's profits. especially when all my info is second hand. You all probably know more about it than I do anyway.

Has anyone else had problems with the whole Invalid file found, even after doing a clean install and removing all custom content? I cannot patch this monster and it is driving me buggy.

[J. M. Pescado]

I have never produced an "invalid file found" error from a completely clean install from the CD ISOs ONLY. If you alter ANY files by hand, you may corrupt your install and render it unpatchable. If you use the WRONG patch at any point, you can do this also. Do NOT install any of the following:
Old Anticensors
No-CD Cracks
Anything Else That Involves Altering, Deleting, Or Overwriting Any File. If at any point in the install process of something, you overwrote a file, this is BAD.

[friendlyquark]

I think the problem must be that I was patching with international patches and had changed the SKU code to 2 from 1. I am going to try dl-ing US versions and see if that fixes it. Otherwise nothing was modified. This is why I try not to mess around with my computer, I am so not flight checked for this.

[coconnor]

I think the problem must be that I was patching with international patches and had changed the SKU code to 2 from 1. I am going to try dl-ing US versions and see if that fixes it. Otherwise nothing was modified. This is why I try not to mess around with my computer, I am so not flight checked for this.

Those ending with "2" are the international versions.  The U.S. versions are the ones ending in a "1".  Don your flight helmet, and proceed with caution!  May the force be with you!

[J. M. Pescado]

See? You committed a bad: You altered a file. This is a bad thing.

[friendlyquark]

Yes, that part I had figured out by carefully reading the instructions. (LOL) I had intentionally tried to switch over to the International version (2) because I wanted to install an argh'd version of WA that happens to be international. I was hoping that by doing so I could launch the WA installer without the dreaded "region" problem. This worked just fine, by the way. However, I was informed that the game needed to be patched. And herein lies the rub. I cannot seem to get the game to patch either through WA or just straight without using the hated Download manager.

I have now tried patching it every way I could figure to do, still with the Invalid File error. Clean install, no custom content and now neither the US or Worldwide patches will work.

This must be because I am special... like one of Jerry's kids. Sigh.

[friendlyquark]

JM - You are, as always, correct. I go to do over.

[J. M. Pescado]

Yeah, their stupid region crap creates many issues if you try to install expansions, so remember:

[witch]

Just a note about the invalid file bizzo. I got that error message and it was because I was a patch short. (Heh, a patch short of a game.) If you have WA, then to patch to the absolute latest version takes 8 patches.

[J. M. Pescado]

Just a note about the invalid file bizzo. I got that error message and it was because I was a patch short. (Heh, a patch short of a game.) If you have WA, then to patch to the absolute latest version takes 8 patches.

Technically, you can get a direct patch to the latest version by plugging in the correct URL, thus downloading and installing only two patches, one for base, one for WA. There is usually going to be a patch to jump from retail to latest. Jumping from an intermediate patch to the latest, that may or may not be available.