I’ve been pretty busy over the past few days, while most of my free time has been taken up with playing TS3 (of course) as well as mucking around with the .packages using S3PI. Already I’ve made a few basic hacks for personal use: an aging hack to reduce the duration of Toddler- and Elder-hood, a hack to reduce the chance of genetic mutations, and a hack to stop families moving out. I don’t know what effect the last one has on long-term Story Progression though, so I’m currently testing it out.

Anyway, I won’t post my full thoughts on the game here because it would just repeat what others have said over the past two weeks. At first the game didn’t “hook” me like TS2 did, but I’m warming to it. I will make a few comments though:

• EA has BLATANTLY cut content in the base game to pad out future EPs/the Store. Where’s the Education career?!?!
• I still don’t like the whimsical careers, and I plan to do something about them.
• The Live-mode camera sucks; I can’t wait for a camera mod.
• It was trivially easy to make a Self-sim; took about 15 minutes. Luckily my face is already kind of pudding-y.
• Needs more keyboard shortcuts.
• Social interaction is a matter of queueing up actions again and again and it’s a real grind. At least accumulating friends isn’t as integral to the gameplay as it was in TS2.
• Starting with a single Sim is a bit boring.
• Awesomemod, for all your empty-hood needs.
• Romance is thin. There’s no sense of attraction or chemistry; you can flirt with anybody of either sex.

More later.

While it’s a blessing for those of us who hate micro-managing everybody, it doesn’t help players who want to keep records, levy fines and stop money coming from nowhere. If you want the degree of control back, you have to return to the TS2 static model. Well, it’s not clear how aging and story progression will be tied together, but I presume you’d need both on, otherwise you’d end up with families full of kids (no aging) or Sims growing old and dying alone without your input (no SP).

I imagine there will need to be some creative hacking of the game, plus the capabilities to allow it, before there could be a truly integrated ‘autonomous economy’ in TS3. Otherwise, players who wish to ‘integrate’ will need to return to meticulous micromanagement of each Sim. Bit of a bummer really. I really hate the giant promotion bonuses and 20K handouts.

But on the topic of gradual aging, I’m going to use my soapbox here and spell out exactly why gradual aging (GA) sucks.

First reason – gradual aging is more realistic, but realism is overrated. Give us fun gameplay, I say.

The second reason – technological limitations. GA would almost certainly mean a variable height system. Granted, I would love to see a variable height system, but I understand that the graphics engine is limited – Sims of all sizes need to interact with objects. Currently the game manages by having one animation per life stage – if you’ve got short and tall Sim meshes, for every increment of age, how will the engine cope with animation?

Speaking of growth spurting – no convincing way of handling puberty. When can Sims become sexually active? you’re just begging for controversy here. The game needs a way to ‘unlock’ items and interactions to these growing Sims, and the only If they’re ‘locked out’ of sex until 18 (or 14? 16? 21? depending on your part of the world) is that necessarily good or bad?

And as for the life stages, I like the distinctiveness of each generation. I just hope that Elders aren’t as boring to play in TS3, living on for ages and ages. I was so thankful when I discovered the no age discrimination hack (lets Elders keep adult jobs).