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Trying to post more often even though I'm still feeling rather disconnected from the world at large :)
Not Sims related: I took a long break from Who pretty much as soon as I heard Eleven was leaving because I was not ready to say goodbye to him yet (did the same thing when I heard the Ponds were going). I wanted my goodbyes to be bittersweet but not resentful, with the edge of excitment that comes from goodbye always meaning 'hello' in the Whoverse. Finally felt ready and marathoned up through The Time Of The Doctor. Cried buckets. Oh Eleventy...you will always be my Doctor in a way I'm not sure can ever be replicated, much as I may love your other selves. I will try to be in a headspace to actually post about it soon, and before I start Twelve (I need a bit to collect myself, though I am indeed ready to say hello).
Sims related: Wow, the various sims forums/boards make the worst of fandom look like a puppy playground, y'all. I wouldn't participate with a ten foot pole, but just skimming them is like drowning in toxic waste. Would not recommend. Was curious in the wake of the epic wars going on with the release of 4, and decided to play 2 and 3 again today after having spent so much time in 4 to form comparison. 2 is still everything, and I immediately got sucked into losing my entire morning and had to make myself stop. I think 4 may overtake it eventually (more on that in a second), but until it does 2 remains the reigning champion, making up for it's limitations and what it lacks on pure WTF charm.
What surprised me is that upon booting up 3, I had...absolutely no desire to play it. None. Surprising because 3 has the most stuff to do and places to go, and I love stuff and things to do with my sims. But I realized that actually I had spent most of my 'playing' time in it building stuff. And rearranging stuff. And setting stuff up. And very little with the actual sims. Because they are cold. I'm all for projecting on to my sims (obviously), and half the fun of the game is what you bring in your imagination to the party. But 3 lacks intimacy in a way I'm not sure I can put my finger on, other than I didn't realize just how much it was a one way street until I was away for a bit. Felt like I was pushing around dolls instead of forming a relationship with them. The world is great. The stuff is great. And...I realized I don't much care if I don't feel like my sims are playing with me, rather than me playing them if that makes any sense at all.
Which is why I will firmly plant my flag in the 'fuck the haters' camp regarding 4. It lacks stuff, yes. It even lacks stuff that isn't excusable even for a base game, and it's a bit buggy in places. I don't care. These sims are so full of life and charm and personality, and the way the world is set up puts me up close and personal with them in the same way they are in 2, only with even better sims themselves. Stuff can be added. Places to go and things to do can be added, and no doubt will be in the billionty expansion packs I'll probably go broke buying. A sim who gets me emotionally invested is priceless. And the mere thought of what it's going to be once it's expanded beyond the base game. I really, honestly, and truly think it could not just reach but surpass the epicness that is 2. And quickly.
Not Sims related: I took a long break from Who pretty much as soon as I heard Eleven was leaving because I was not ready to say goodbye to him yet (did the same thing when I heard the Ponds were going). I wanted my goodbyes to be bittersweet but not resentful, with the edge of excitment that comes from goodbye always meaning 'hello' in the Whoverse. Finally felt ready and marathoned up through The Time Of The Doctor. Cried buckets. Oh Eleventy...you will always be my Doctor in a way I'm not sure can ever be replicated, much as I may love your other selves. I will try to be in a headspace to actually post about it soon, and before I start Twelve (I need a bit to collect myself, though I am indeed ready to say hello).
Sims related: Wow, the various sims forums/boards make the worst of fandom look like a puppy playground, y'all. I wouldn't participate with a ten foot pole, but just skimming them is like drowning in toxic waste. Would not recommend. Was curious in the wake of the epic wars going on with the release of 4, and decided to play 2 and 3 again today after having spent so much time in 4 to form comparison. 2 is still everything, and I immediately got sucked into losing my entire morning and had to make myself stop. I think 4 may overtake it eventually (more on that in a second), but until it does 2 remains the reigning champion, making up for it's limitations and what it lacks on pure WTF charm.
What surprised me is that upon booting up 3, I had...absolutely no desire to play it. None. Surprising because 3 has the most stuff to do and places to go, and I love stuff and things to do with my sims. But I realized that actually I had spent most of my 'playing' time in it building stuff. And rearranging stuff. And setting stuff up. And very little with the actual sims. Because they are cold. I'm all for projecting on to my sims (obviously), and half the fun of the game is what you bring in your imagination to the party. But 3 lacks intimacy in a way I'm not sure I can put my finger on, other than I didn't realize just how much it was a one way street until I was away for a bit. Felt like I was pushing around dolls instead of forming a relationship with them. The world is great. The stuff is great. And...I realized I don't much care if I don't feel like my sims are playing with me, rather than me playing them if that makes any sense at all.
Which is why I will firmly plant my flag in the 'fuck the haters' camp regarding 4. It lacks stuff, yes. It even lacks stuff that isn't excusable even for a base game, and it's a bit buggy in places. I don't care. These sims are so full of life and charm and personality, and the way the world is set up puts me up close and personal with them in the same way they are in 2, only with even better sims themselves. Stuff can be added. Places to go and things to do can be added, and no doubt will be in the billionty expansion packs I'll probably go broke buying. A sim who gets me emotionally invested is priceless. And the mere thought of what it's going to be once it's expanded beyond the base game. I really, honestly, and truly think it could not just reach but surpass the epicness that is 2. And quickly.