Pets - Your Thoughts?

Not completely wrong, no. Commercially Pets will be a success. Though to be honest I'll be waiting to see what advantages the EP's other goodies (if any) will bring to my game before I consider buying. I certainly won't be rushing to get Pets just because it is coming out. The pets will need to be a significant improvement over their TS1 predecessors before I'll consider getting it and just being well meshed, textured and animated won't cut it for me. Strays, pests and animals blocking routes are all aspects of play that I would hate far more than any possible pleasure from playing might bring. Unleashed at least had the side-benefit of introducing a whole new neighborhood structure and community lots with horticulture and a whole slew of new objects. It was truly more of a The Sims 1.5 than a mere expansion pack!

Maybe I am just an old cynic but I feel that with Pets, Maxis cannot possibly match the game-play boost that Unleashed brought to TOS. I'd like to be wrong and am content to wait to see what transpires ...

 

hmmm, i don't know abou this. I think there is a very strong desire for the pets expansion pack in the community. Granted i've not been on the BBS for a few months now but the pet-lovers have been around since the release of the original game.

I think Maxis is aware of the problems people had with pets in the original game and will hopefully avoid them in this game.

 

I agree with Mirelly. Personally, I can't see the fun in "pets." Of course I will buy the EP and everything, but only to keep up with custom content--normally, I wouldn't even do that! Like Mirelly said, Unleashed gave us a whole new world, with pets added in as a bonus. Unless the new EP can do that (which would be difficult to accomplish) I don't think it will be able to compare to Unleashed.

Just my humble opinion.

-John

PS. Was it confirmed that the next EP will be about pets? Sorry, I tend not to pay attention sometimes.

 

Pretty much what Mirelly said. I am not that interested in 'Pets' as a game, but I am more interested in the other aspects of gameplay that the new EP will bring. Like Nightlife for example - as well as the obvious things like Attraction etc, the game had some pretty good music, and some great build features such as the half walls and garages and cars and the ability to view other lots from the house you are currently in. I really want more careers as I am bored with the ones we already have. I would like to see some random events too, such as playing the lottery in the newspaper (with a % chance of winning). Oh wait, that's for another thread....

I only liked Unleashed for the extra features - not the pets themselves. Actually, I never had a pet in my game in Unleashed. I hated the 'presents' that the strays would bring, even after I downloaded the Stray Prevention sign thingy. I think that the new Pets EP is very hyped and I hope it's not a disappointment for those who really want it. More importantly, for those who don't really want pets, I hope that the extra features are worth paying the 19.99 for.

 

I am required to buy pets upon pain of pouts from Witch Baby. She's ecstatic that they're doing this EP and honestly I think it's the pet lovers of the world they're aiming at. I love animals, don't get me wrong, but I'm with y'all. It's gotta add more to my game than that.

Of course the downside is I'm going to have to upgrade to keep up with it, so maybe a smaller EP would be better.

And I'm worried about bugs, since the Holiday and Family Fun Pack were such busts. OFB is great but my game does a few funky things now and I've noticed some jerky play like my machine is saying "ENOUGH already."

I have a low-end processor, at least for this game. I'm going to have to get a new one and right now I can't afford it.

So maybe I can hold off on buying it for a bit. We'll see.

I agree about the careers, and I'm afraid to download the ones some people on MTS2 have come up with. I don't want to mess up my game, but I'd really like a few more "normal" jobs. Butcher, baker, candlestick maker. Or hey, just pay a little better for the old jobs. I feel like I'm ripping my sims off if I send them to college and then just have them be a cop. It doesn't pay very well compared to paranormalist, for example. But some sims just say "cop" to me, not "psychic phone friend."

I've got a lot of cops. It might be nice to have a few firemen, or something. School teacher. Entrepeneur as a career. Landscaper. Architect. Hmmm ....

 

The careers thing is a biggie for me. I often make my sims change jobs so they are always doing the lower end jobs, simply because the game is too easy. They reach the top of their career and it's like, ok what next? There are some careers that don't interest me, and I'm just bored with the career chance cards as the sims have been there, done that. I think that Maxis should have like 50 new careers or something, as a new EP. How much code would it take for that? Some new work clothes, some new chance cards, some new career ladders, new carpool times etc. Surely not an impossible feat? After all, the sims don't do anything else when they catch the carpool and then return at hometime?

I think that Maxis could ask the fans to suggest career paths with chance cards etc, and some winners could get their career path in the new EP.

I would like to see: Gardener/landscaper, firefighter, mechanic (and for skill training they could fix cars that 'break' as the tv does lol), dentist, fashion designer, hairstylist/beauty therapist, computer programmer, teacher/education consultant, farmer, accountant, care worker, construction/builder, airline pilot/ stewardess, cosmetic surgeon, supermarket giant, musician/ songwriter, actor, banker/financial consultant, cleaner, bodyguard, jeweller.........

 

Accountant is good, Hugz. I like that one .

How about funeral director. I just made up that career for one of my characters.

 

I want a funeral director for my game...

but I also want funerals.... its like my sims forget the dearly departed in a few days, until they show up to make them pee themselves.

 

i think it would be nice to have pets in the game ... i didn't even know that maxis was comming out with a EP with pets in it ?? it is isn't it?

 

Well, i think pets is a good idea, although instead of jsut telling them where to go [like in the old sims game"sims unleashed"] players could actually be them, like tell them to eat, go on the couch [i don't know i'm just nameing off things], and the sims could take them for walks intown or somthing.. well just some ideas to add on to "Maxis??" idea. But Yea, Good idea for the pets.!!

 

Ooh new careers would be nice ....

With Pets there should be an animal-based career

Pet shop clerk
Dog Shampooer
Veterinary Nurse
Veterinary Anaesthesiologist
Vet
TV vet
Wildlife expert
... yadayada

Also some more boring career paths like civil servants (dog catcher to presidential aide ?? )

Or how about a espionage path (secret shopper to 007 )

 

LOL, Kimblee. I've often thought funerals were needed in the game. I'd like my sims to mourn a little, or dance on the coffin, whichever is appropriate. When my sim Lola died there would have been a little of both.

 

It's not so much that I don't want pets in TS2 - it's just that they've done these expansions already with TS1. I feel as though they're just re-doing what they made several years ago with Unleashed and expect us to pay top-dollar yet again for something that's only different graphically - or maybe a few recolored objects.

Not only that but how many more glitches are going to be in this upcoming expansion?
Is it just me or do other people think Maxis should really do some quality-control and slow the "spitting-out" of expansions and take the time to fix the majority of bugs instead of making us have to download patches later on. (?)

 

Yes I would imagine that every design has to be carefully scrutinised to make sure it doesn't rip-off (or appear to do) the registered design of another company.

I'm decidedly NOT being cynical here ... a large company is more devotedly duty-bound to worry about expensive (in money and loss of coprorate rep) litigation over intellectual property rights than it is to concern itself with minor QA issues. A sad but true reflection on the market-place distortions created by a business world inhabited by a relative few inhumanly massive corporations.

 

Hear, hear. I totally agree. I never played sims 1 so I don't mind that they're "rehashing" stuff because from what I understand, Sims 2 is generally better. But the bugs are worrisome. I'm quite attached to my sims.

Snake, would you mind changing the color of your posts? My eyes are at least ten years older than I am, it seems, and I can barely read what you write.

And I do enjoy your posts.

And I'm with you, Mirelly. I was a big Pink Floyd fan once upon a time.

 

I feel like I'm going entirely against the grain here, but I'm actually really, really excited for a Pets EP. For me the animals were always such an integral part of my sims, but maybe that's because of my own love of animals. I feel like some sims just really call out for pets. Especially old people and stereotypically happy and well balanced families. Personally, I never had a problem with strays because they rarely came on my lots and when they did, they stayed outside or I could easily shoo them away. And I also don't seem to have all the bugs that other people do. Except for minor, minor slip-ups from time to time, my game runs pretty smoothly. Although after I installed OFB, I had some weirdness with a wardrobe and a pillow pulsating blue. But I'm just too lazy to back up my game files and install the patches, so I can live with that. Oh well, I'm not that excited about this rumored Glamour Pack, but I am thrilled that they're doing Pets. And for some of the things they're bringing back from TOS, I think that, for me at least, they were pretty integral parts of my game, and stuff like Pets seems classic to me. Although, I really hate the whole booster/stuff packs. Why would I pay $20 for 60 new items? Why? I'm waiting 'til either a friend can lend me their disc, or I can find it cheap enough used on Amazon or eBay. Anyways, I'm practically giddy about Pets and really, really unenthused about these stupid stuff packs. Although, I would love some new careers. Especially in education and whatnot like they released in TOS, I don't remember which EP. Okay, I'm done.

 

Oooooh what a super Idea.... are you listening Maxis?

 

Is this color better by any chance, SBW?

Couldn't agree with you more, Mirelly. I'd love to have those kind of career options on an expansion.