Strategy Guide

[PhilipTarbuck]

I see that there is a Prima Strategy Guide and I understand from something on the net that it is about twice the size of the usual strategy guide.
No-one seems to review strategy guides. Has anyone got this particular one? If so perhaps they could give me an idea of its quality.
German games very rarely have strategy guides, at least not in English. American and English games generally do have them and, as a rule, they are quite good. I cannot understand how a few authors seem to write dozens of strategy guides (an exaggeration, of course). It takes me ages to get used to a game and then I discover the snags and it gathers dust on the shelf. Sim City 4 is a very long way off that point, if it ever arrives.

[sam_lawrence]

Anyone care to answer? I myself am in the same position as Philip.

[Helén]

What strategy guides??? I have'nt encountered anything anytime in any game that is remotedly a strategy guide. Or even any hints or tips with one exception. There are a few tips in Settlers IV.
If there are. Is there any for SC3000 then? And where can you find them?? I would be happy to tell you if a guide is good or not if I knew where to get it at all.
After all I'm a woman, and we need clear stuff that makes sence. :classic:

[alapokeygirl]

I have the strategy guide for SimCity4 and it is big. It has a total of 358 pages including the index in the back. So far, I have used only a small part of it, trying to absorb it is going to take a while. It does have charts listing all the differnt buildings, what the ordinces are, the utilities, the roads and railways, and it is full of good tips and how to's. I need to start playing the game more, and see how helpful the guide is. If you have played other simcity games, it is a bit easier to understand. I think for someone completly new to the game may have to read some areas a couple of times to get what it is trying to say.

[sam_lawrence]

Thank you very much Ala :)

[PhilipTarbuck]

Nina: Almost all English and American games have strategy guides associated with them printed by Prima and Brady and some other publishers, the names of which escape me at present.
They are naturally printed in English, but that would be no trouble to you. Your English is very good. I know nothing about Swedish guides.
Generally they are good but there are exceptions. It looks as though the guide for Sim City is good and worth the money (about £12.99 English pounds. About 1.5 euros for one pound?)
I haven't come across a single strategy guide in English for a German or Austrian game.
Thank you, Ala. I appreciate your understanding. It was good of you to say what you feel about the guide.

[ManagerJosh]

This is most likely Prima's Strategy guide..

Click Here (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0761540016/worldsims-20)

[alapokeygirl]

Yes Josh, that is the one I have. If someone needs something specific they need me to look up, just ask. :classic: I'll be happy to help where I can.

[PhilipTarbuck]

I have the Guide now. It is well worth the money.

[alapokeygirl]

Great Philip. I am still reading through it and looking things up for friends. It has a lot of info in it.

[sam_lawrence]

Yeah im thinking of getting it too. I've even heard some people say its more interesting than the game itself, but i doubt that :)

[Helén]

Thanks Philip. :)
But I've never heard about any guide for any game at all here. I will check with the gamestore closest to me, but I doubt they have it at all or any such guide. I would be very very surprised if they even knew what it was.

[lewdini]

I got the prima guide for the sims till unleashed, tso and sc4...
feel free to ask me anything

[[ S a g e o n ]]

Wow, 358 pages. I might actually get it.

[Helén]

Originally posted by lewdini
I got the prima guide for the sims till unleashed, tso and sc4...
feel free to ask me anything

Thanks a LOT Lew. :classic:

*Gives Lew a huge hug*

Interesting enough. I've talked with my gamestore a lot about the Sims and they never mentioned there is guides at all. I don't think they take them in here as they're not translated into swedish. I'm gonna check it up alright. :classic:

[lewdini]

I recommend the simcity and tso guides...but not really for the sims...the sims guides dont help very much

[PhilipTarbuck]

Nina: The English guide can be obtained from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk if you are prepared to put up with it in English. Is the game itself translated into Swedish? I have a neighbour who speaks Swedish and his wife is Finnish and also speaks Swedish. Its all Greek to me.

[lewdini]

Well....I wonder if sims can speak english in the first place

[PhilipTarbuck]

I haven't got the Sims but I understand that they talk gobblegook.
Would those who have the Guide please be kind enough to look at page 175. There is a chart there showing base criminality. Along the base axis it has the expression "base criminality". Underneath the graph it mentions the EQ as 100 or 200 at a maximum. Does 'base criminality' really refer to the horizontal axis of the graph? Should it be Educational Quotient?

[[ S a g e o n ]]

I did get the strategy guide yesterday. It was definately worth the money!

[Helén]

Lew. The sims only speak simmish in that game.
Philip. I still don't have a credit card and can't order anything from amazone.com or any other online store from overseas. So unless the swedish stores doesn't have it - I can't get it at all. :(

[PhilipTarbuck]

You used to be able to send cheques, once? Probably you still can. Maybe you could have the American version? It may be that you would prefer a Swedish version. I know I prefer a U.K. version to a U.S.A. version because it suits the way I speak rather better - and no doubt an American would say the same thing.

[PhilipTarbuck]

Nina: My disc does have a Swedish (and a Norwegian) version on the disc. I seem to remember you asking, so I checked. I have never looked at it.

[Helén]

Philip. As I thought. Thanks for checking.

Cheques. A real good suggestion, thanks, but cheques requires bankaccounts and cheques are almost extinct today here. I don't use a regular bankaccount anyway they charge way to much for bad services anyway. Believe me. I have a special account in the swedish postbank (interest the same), which allows me to take ut and put in money for free plus I can do all my other economical stuff over either the phone or internet or special drafts and a postagefree envelope for a very low sum each year. A regular bankaccount would cost me that much more and it isn't worth it today. A cheque account is even more expensive I think and I don't think they are valid overseas either. They just have way too many restrictions on money here. They are paranoid about money skipping the country and that hits the "little guy" and not those that have the big money. :(

I'm actually thinking about, when that day comes send someone overseas the money needed and let them get and post the guide for me. Dunno how yet to avoid HUGE sum's as transfer fees but I think it could be a solution. There's a risk by sending money in a regular mail, but it's way cheaper. Well somehow I'll solve it when it's time. ;)

Unfortunately I don't know when my cousins boat are going to foreign countries or which countries, but he might be bale to get it for me.

Also I doubt I can use the US version of any game because of the keyboard layout. I think the european version of the game has files to match that and I guess it's different for each country. But I can play the english versions though. I've never tried any other language since I don't know them fully :D

*MUST get money for her comp somehow.* :D

[PhilipTarbuck]

The difficulty is knowing who to trust to send the money to them in the hope that you will get what you are asking for. I understand (maybe I am wrong!) that you can put money into someone elses account simply by doing so no matter which country you happen to be in.
I find it hard to understand why there are no game shops in Sweden. Perhaps Swedish people are interested in real things and not the fantasy toys gamers play with all day.

[Helén]

There are gameshops here. I have one pretty close, but i've never seen or heard about any strategy guides there or in any other store selling PC Games like the bigger warehouses. I haven't had a chance to go there yet, hope to get away soon and I will ask them about these guides. There are special toystores and evertything here as well and Sweden is one of the top countries in the world when it comes to PC's per capita, so to get games isn't a problem. The problem is that not all games comes here. Why? Probably stranded negotiations and/or that some games aren't available in swedish which isn't so surprisingly after all. There are fairly good and popular PC Games made by swedes as well. If they are available outside Sweden I have no idea.
Anyway. When the day comes I will solve it - somehow. And actually there is a few persons I know online I would risk send money to. Who they are - it's my little secret. ;) ;) :classic:
I think they would be available if they were translated into swedish. For now I don't think we will come much further with this topic. Thanks all for your suggestions and advices. You've been most patient and I appreciate it very much. :classic:

*Gives everyone a big hug*

[lewdini]

Get thru amazon?

[Helén]

Still. No credit card. Otherwise I would for sure. I bet that would be cheaper. :classic:

[Helén]

Update on strategy guides for Sweden.

1) I've checked with most of the very biggest retailers and stores here in Stockholm. After all it's the capitol city and if you don't find it here, the chance to find it in any other part of the country is VERY slim. None has it and answers I got is:

- No we don't have it and we will probably not get it either.
- No we only keep guides for PS2.
- No but try this link for tips and hints: ......
- Buy it online.
- It's not in swedish so we don't take those in.

*Sighes* Seems I have to get the dollars and send it by snailmail to someone somewhere else and get it that way.

[lewdini]

Is that a hint Nina?
but I think its cheaper to go thru amazon and pay them by moneyorder or (a credit card which i guess u dont have)

[Helén]

They don't send overseas so you can pay at your postoffice, upon arrival, at home and transfers is way to expensive. but I think it's solved already. ;)