Some interesting info about Sims 3
 

It's not a whole lot, but it gives some interesting info to me about what they're doing for Sims 3.

http://tara.teich.net/blog/archives/...-talks-sims-3/

If it involves SecureROM, i'm not interested.

Thanks for the link, TomP. Unfortunately, SecureROM has pretty much made it a mute point for me as well.

I can't tell from the info given (what there is of it) whether SecureROM is involved or not. I'll be dealing with SecureROM soon enough (I'm determined to install BV) and can't say yet if it's inclusion would be a deal breaker for me or not...though it certainly is not a point in the "win" column!

For what it's worth, here's what I (currently) think, based on the info given:

- I kind of like the idea of Sims being more aware of their current social situation (i.e if they are visitors, on a date, etc.) & not being so quick to do things that "normally" you wouldn't do during whatever situation they're in. (Like running off in the middle of a date to go prank someone or something.)

- The idea of long-term planning (like the example of the starting level Restaurant Track Sim who started doing his own cooking skill advancement & called up his boss for some socializing) sounds intriguing.

- The thing with the Sim who liked TV & the Sim who didn't like TV getting into the "turn TV on, turn TV off" battle makes me shudder. I'm thinking that Maxis hasn't learned just how annoying that kind of stuff is for many of us players! (If the Sims 3 is mod-able, I sense quite a few "stop that" mods!)

It's that last point (& what I think it indicates regarding the potential overall feel of the game) that makes me think that Sims 2 & I will be quite happy for a loooooong time. Anyway, I'm still standing by my list of Sims 3 demands that I posted a while back.

**edited to add**

Oh, & the very idea of trying to compare the Sims to that amazing game Black & White is pretty gutsy...

Sims 3. Hmm, not quite ready get though. Is it?

Bah, by the time Sims 3 comes out, it will need dual stacked boards, with dual quad core 128 bit DDR3 CPU's and dual quad linked SLI dual core GPU's, to run the fully immersive "sensaround" VR suit we step into.

At my age, I'll be lucky to install the last EP for Sims 2.

I'll be interested in The Sims 3 if and only if it has a "not psychotic" personality type.

If turning the tv on and off is a "normal" behavior, then, no, there's not a "not psychotic" personality.

Hmm. There is the prevalence of demanding behaviour in todays younger societal members. The younger generations do have very little self control.
And think nothing of imposing their "space and rights" over all and sundry.

World leading pschycologists are very worried about the overt aggression of the younger generation towards elders and society in general.
There was a Second Life experiment done just recently, that showed just how out of touch with the "need to heed", most kids truly are today.

These programmers are deeply ensconced, out of the way, in a fairly anti-social sort of work. They program their own responses to stimulae, not, what most would consider the norm. Or, do they deliberately program a response that is generally considered rude, just to be obnoxious?
Because, who is going to tell them off. Nobody has the right to tell them what to do. Right?

Me thinks this "brave new, we should have more freedom, world" will need a Saint George before too much longer.
Me thinks, Nero is fiddling again.

What we would have called anti-social and bad mannered, seems to be the norm among the young today.

Nowadays, pschychotic is normal.

That's a seriously big if. The whole TV thing- and the way the designers thought it was funny- makes me think (my heavily modded) Sims 2 & I are quite happy, thanks just the same EA/Maxis.

I wouldn't rule it out! Seriously; how hard would it be to program some slightly more "normal" behavior for a Sim? Okay, I'm the first to admit that "normal" is probably an eye of the beholder thing but even so there are certain things that most people agree (however begrudgingly) you just don't do unless you're a total idiot/jerk/12 year old male. For instance consider the near constant belching/farting that an un-modded "Sloppy" Sim does. Who on this planet that is not experiencing a serious medical crisis does this? The answer is nobody; so why on earth were Sims programed this way?

How about this alternative (assuming a designer is hell bent on keeping the belching/farting thing, but has realized that not everyone will enjoy such a feature) : Since a Toddler needs to be taught basic life skills (Walking, etc) just add a short list of social skills that a Child can learn, one of which could be Table Manners. So a young boy belches at the table once & Mom/Dad/Grandparent/Nanny (who have learned poper Table Manners) scolds the beejeezes outta him. Kid is taught acceptable table behavior. Only one "offense" would be needed as Kids learn faster that Toddlers & a bonus might be that the Child can now teach/encouage other kids proper table manners. Also, since teaching "manners" would be optional, players (12 year old boys) who like the belching thing could simply ignore it & let their Sims belch away. Everyone is happy & nobody needs to add yet another 3rd party mod to their game just to make it playable. (Hmmm...what about a NPC/Townie shaming the Child or his family if the belching occurs on a community lot? Sometimes I think I should have learned game programmings when I had the chance...)


The really annoying thing is how many of the modded behaviors end up becoming part of an Official Patch. Why not just save a step & not program constant stupidity to begin with? Then again, I'm not a programmer....

Okay, the good idea is now released to the void.

One of these days some EA or Maxis drone will pick it up and screw it up.

Then incorporate it into the game, in that inimitable, "oops, must patch that", way of theirs.

Indeed. I don't think there's any hope of successfully arguing that sims' behavior is anything other sociopathic no matter how liberal we are with the definition of "normal."

On the long list of things I abhor about the game is that it teaches kids that only "encouragement" will result in a child learning something. If you scold a child in the game, you lower your relationship and the child learns nothing. In real life, we learn a heck of a lot more from suffering the consequences our failures than we do from enjoying the fruits of our successes.