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The Sims 2 Forum (BBS) > Expansion Pack Discussions > Bon Voyage > "Need Advice - Removing NPC Spawn Hack"
 | Need Advice - Removing NPC Spawn Hack Read 406 times (JaceeRay) Sep-27-07 07:01 PM PDT |
 | | Find the hack in your downloads folder and delete it- that's all it takes. (LisaEGillen) Sep-27-07 07:05 PM PDT |
 |  | | Thanks- have a benes (JaceeRay) Sep-27-07 07:06 PM PDT |
| | It is clearly named - antiredundancy.package. Find that exact file and delete it.... (dlgo1012) Sep-27-07 07:08 PM PDT |
| | | Have a benes too-- Excuse me for being over-cautious... I've heard of bad things happ... (JaceeRay) Sep-27-07 07:10 PM PDT |
| | | Please be sure to let us know whether removing the fix improves your gameplay. (chrstal27) Sep-27-07 07:14 PM PDT |
| | | It can't do. The fix simply makes the game check before making a new NPC whether an N... (Zfdutacka) Sep-28-07 06:12 AM PDT |
| | | I know that taking the fix out would not improve gameplay! Thanks for explaining why.... (chrstal27) Sep-28-07 02:27 PM PDT |
| | I would suggest you do not remove the hack yet. Frankly, MaxoidSam doesn't know what... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 06:55 AM PDT |
| | | Frankly, MaxoidSam doesn't know what he's talking about.
and you do? it seems to... (sweetness261978) Sep-28-07 07:17 AM PDT |
| | | In regard to the character files, no he does not. He claims that the spawning issue... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 07:20 AM PDT (updated) |
| | | I think it depends on how much you're playing. If you only play an hour a day and hav... (SnootySims2) Sep-28-07 02:44 PM PDT |
| | | I think this is right. I also think that those of us who play a lot have a lot of oth... (Srikandi715) Sep-28-07 03:05 PM PDT |
| | | Srikandi715,
I gave your a bene for a very well thought out and insightful post.... (Nik24X7) Sep-28-07 03:09 PM PDT |
| | Wow.. did you really capitalize 'very bad things'? That seems a wee bit dramatic to... (geoffjoshtaylor) Sep-28-07 03:08 PM PDT |
|  | | Funny how folks come all unglued about a game and a hack. They attack folks they don'... (skye83644) Sep-28-07 04:11 PM PDT |
| | If by paranoia you mean realizing that just because MaxoidSam said doesn't mean it's... (MonkeeGoddess) Sep-28-07 04:30 PM PDT (updated) |
| | It's a holdover from when I used to post at MATY.
Regardless of perceived melodr... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 05:00 PM PDT |
| | I agree with you laurenke01, but I've decided it isn't worth my time to try and convi... (LisaEGillen) Sep-28-07 04:29 PM PDT |
| | | I'm almost at that point myself.
And that is one of my other points...3000+ char... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 04:55 PM PDT |
| | I have to agree with laurenke01 here.
Maxoids post is contradicting an earlier pos... (IamMamainred) Sep-28-07 04:41 PM PDT |
| | | Umm, hi everyone.
I know of which I speak because I sit right next to the progra... (MaxoidSam) Sep-28-07 05:57 PM PDT |
| | | The issue does not affect me, as I have JM's mod and plan to keep it there until the... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 06:19 PM PDT (updated) |
| |  | No, I don't need you to describe the "problem" to me. I want to know what "problem"... (MaxoidSam) Sep-28-07 06:39 PM PDT |
| | | Hilarious.
Problems associated with bloated Character folders have been well-docum... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 06:50 PM PDT (updated) |
| | | Ditto. I am purchasing no more Sims2 games.
If I hadn't discovered the BBS when... (MaxiBuckle) Sep-28-07 07:15 PM PDT |
| | laurenke01-
I've enjoyed this exchange, as it's clear you have. I've also appreci... (MaxoidSam) Sep-28-07 07:34 PM PDT |
| | | You are not arrogant because you trust your team. You are their leader. Your job is... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 07:47 PM PDT (updated) |
| | | OK, I was just kidding about going to bed. It's only 8:45!
Look...we are not alwa... (MaxoidSam) Sep-28-07 08:46 PM PDT |
| | | You're too kind.
Clearly, you are convinced that your product is virtually flawles... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 08:59 PM PDT (updated) |
| | I would appreciate a description of how you test the games. As Sirkandi715 posted ea... (KtzMwzz) Sep-28-07 08:45 PM PDT |
| | | I am curious to know the answer as well, as this is what I mean by "play-testing." T... (laurenke01) Sep-28-07 08:46 PM PDT (updated) |
| | My advice? Keep the "hack"* in place. It does more to keep your game in shape than ju... (kutto2004) Sep-28-07 07:20 PM PDT |
| | | laurenke - hmm wow I am amazed at MaxoidSam's attitude toward you like you are the on... (lovesimskl) Sep-28-07 07:41 PM PDT |
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Hi Guys
After reading Maxoid Sam's message about the NPC spawn thing, I have decided to remove the hack.
I have noticed
severe lags and stalls since I put it in, and now knowing the truth
behind it, I want to remove the hack and see if this improves my game.
I did a bit of a
search on the forum, and couldn't see anything about removing the hack,
so was wondering if anyone had any advice about it? I don't want to
wreck my game!!
Thanks
I'm the Companion, and this is my doctor!
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Find the hack in your downloads folder and delete it- that's all it takes.
"I think that video games are for adults, but they're very good at triggering
emotions that we used to feel when we were kids." Yannis Mallet CEO Ubisoft Montreal
No benes please- if I help you a simple "thanks" is enough for me!
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Thanks- have a benes
I'm the Companion, and this is my doctor!
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Have a benes too-- Excuse me for being over-cautious... I've heard of
bad things happening by just going in & deleting stuff!
Thanks guys
I'm the Companion, and this is my doctor!
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Please be sure to let us know whether removing the fix improves your gameplay.
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Quoted from original message:
Please be sure to let us know whether removing the fix improves your gameplay.
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It can't do. The fix simply makes the game check before making a new
NPC whether an NPC of the right type is already available. That check
is vastly faster than the process of creating a new NPC.
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Quoted from original message:
It can't do. The fix simply makes the game check before making a new
NPC whether an NPC of the right type is already available. That check
is vastly faster than the process of creating a new NPC.
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I know that taking the fix out would not improve gameplay! Thanks for explaining why.
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I would suggest you do not remove the hack yet. Frankly, MaxoidSam
doesn't know what he's talking about. He claims 3,000+ character files
(50 of which are unnecessary and that number will only get larger with
time) aren't going to severely mess up your game--but how does he know
that?
For a company that
doesn't play test the game enough to actually FIND these bugs before
shipping, I have absolutely NO faith that they are confident these
character files won't mess up games, as it has been documented time and
time again that a mass of character files causes serious errors, such
as memory issues, no inheritance, etc.
Of COURSE they're
not going to pull the Doom And Gloom card--they made the game and are
not going to want to create panic. But, if you remove that mod, you run
the very real risk that Very Bad Things can happen...things that can be
easily avoided until the patch comes out...which, AGAIN, Sam did not
give an exact date for. It could still be weeks out.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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Frankly, MaxoidSam doesn't know what he's talking about.
and you do? it seems
to me nobody knows what will or won't crash your game since no one has
any idea what the magic number is. there's still a lot of variables
where this spawning issue is concerned. to the OP if you want to remove
it, it's as simple as dlg1012 said. i removed it from my game as well
and haven't had any issues since deleting it.
-------------
Frylock: Yeah sure, you're all the things that are in this ad here. You're energetic, hard-working, you love people...
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In regard to the character files, no he does not. He claims that the
spawning issue isn't a big deal. It IS a big deal.
Naturally, if he
admitted it was a huge problem, it would be a PR disaster. But it's
offensive to our intelligence that he would claim this.
And what you
said--if the magic number is not known, wouldn't you rather not test
that number and NOT have a potentially infinite number of unneeded
files?
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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I think it depends on how much you're playing. If you only play an hour
a day and have a fast pc, you are ok. However if you play dozens of
hours a week, you better use the patch or else that bug WILL damage
your game.
Owner of Snooty Sims
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Quoted from original message:
I think it depends on how much you're playing. If you only play an hour
a day and have a fast pc, you are ok. However if you play dozens of
hours a week, you better use the patch or else that bug WILL damage
your game.
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I think this is right. I also think that those of us who play a lot
have a lot of other factors operating that don't come up in EAxis's
test labs. Large, old neighborhoods, with sims and lots created at
different times under different configurations (in terms of installed
expacks and patches and hacks); lots of CC; and a strong attachment to
our data.
The fact that we all
experience lots of glitches and slowdowns and small and large
"infelicities" in our gameplay... stuff that just doesn't work the way
it should or the way you'd think it would... indicates to me that we're
playing in a different environment than the QA people at EAxis.
Otherwise this stuff would get caught.
Given that there's
just more pressure on the system in our games than in the test labs, it
seems likely to me that a breakdown in playability would come much
faster in one of our real world hoods than it would in a clean, new
test hood.
And we care more.
Probably most of us who play a LOT have experienced the loss of a
family or a whole hood at one time or another, and since many of us
view our families that have evolved over many generations as a product
of our creative energies, it really matters.
So for both of these
reasons... our hoods are already more fragile, and we are more
concerned... we need to be more vigilant to protect ourselves than
EAxis people can readily appreciate. Personally I don't think the
concern has been overblown, and I won't remove the antiredundancy hack.
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Srikandi715,
I gave your a bene for a very well thought out and insightful post. Thanks!
Best Regards,
Nik
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Quoted from original message:
Of COURSE they're not going to pull the Doom And Gloom card--they made
the game and are not going to want to create panic. But, if you remove
that mod, you run the very real risk that Very Bad Things can
happen...things that can be easily avoided until the patch comes
out...which, AGAIN, Sam did not give an exact date for. It could still
be weeks out.
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Wow.. did you really capitalize 'very bad things'? That seems a wee bit
dramatic to me, and it also seems indicative of the very paranoia that
Sam was trying to avoid.
In any case, I don't
have the hack, have no plans to get the hack, and am very amused at how
people are defending it so. I'm prepared to wait a bit longer for the
patch, and will limit my gameplay until that time. 
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Funny how folks come all unglued about a game and a hack. They attack
folks they don't even know, and make life generally heck for the rest
of the "gang" who are supposedly a "community."
It's not that
important to me. I do have the hack, am trying it out. If it doesn't
work then I will get rid of it. No problem. If I love stuff that's no
prob either. It is just a game after all. We have spent many many times
reinstalling, losing the stuff we have downloaded and stored in our
computers. It's a never-ending process
I will be checking further too.
Relax, folks....no insults needed to anyone....it's all a learning process...
winks,
Skye
Fur is more actively protested than leather 'cause its easier to harrass rich women than biker
gangs.
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Quoted from original message:
Wow.. did you really capitalize 'very bad things'? That seems a wee bit
dramatic to me, and it also seems indicative of the very paranoia that
Sam was trying to avoid.
In any case, I
don't have the hack, have no plans to get the hack, and am very amused
at how people are defending it so. I'm prepared to wait a bit longer
for the patch, and will limit my gameplay until that time. ;-)
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If by paranoia you mean realizing that just because MaxoidSam said doesn't mean it's completely right, well then.....
I agree with
Laurenke 100%. I'm not removing that hack. I've watched my neighborhood
meltdown because of too many character files once before and honestly
I'm really not in the mood to lose the stories that I'm working on just
because the Maxoid told me too. They are also the ones that let this
bug slip through in the first place (for a second time, might I add),
so excuse me for having no faith in them whatsoever.
Doesn't matter how hard I try.
Half the words don't mean a thing,
And I know that I won't be satisfied
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Quoted from original message:
Wow.. did you really capitalize 'very bad things'? That seems a wee bit
dramatic to me, and it also seems indicative of the very paranoia that
Sam was trying to avoid.
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It's a holdover from when I used to post at MATY.
Regardless of perceived melodrama, the spawning problem is a much larger problem then Sam claims it to be.
If you choose to believe him, though, so be it. I'm just glad I'm not playing your game.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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Quoted from original message:
I would suggest you do not remove the hack yet. Frankly, MaxoidSam
doesn't know what he's talking about. He claims 3,000+ character files
(50 of which are unnecessary and that number will only get larger with
time) aren't going to severely mess up your game--but how does he know
that?
For a company
that doesn't play test the game enough to actually FIND these bugs
before shipping, I have absolutely NO faith that they are confident
these character files won't mess up games, as it has been documented
time and time again that a mass of character files causes serious
errors, such as memory issues, no inheritance, etc.
Of COURSE they're
not going to pull the Doom And Gloom card--they made the game and are
not going to want to create panic. But, if you remove that mod, you run
the very real risk that Very Bad Things can happen...things that can be
easily avoided until the patch comes out...which, AGAIN, Sam did not
give an exact date for. It could still be weeks out.
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I agree with you laurenke01, but I've decided it isn't worth my time to
try and convince people to be cautious anymore. I had a hood crash and
burn with less
than 1400 character files in it- lost my favorite story family and my
Legacy- generation 4. As far as I'm concerned 10 extra characters that
aren't needed is too many let alone 50 or more!
I have the MATY hack for NPC spawning as well as a number of other fixes and I'm thankful that Pescado came up with something as quick as he did.
"I think that video games are for adults, but they're very good at triggering
emotions that we used to feel when we were kids." Yannis Mallet CEO Ubisoft Montreal
No benes please- if I help you a simple "thanks" is enough for me!
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Quoted from original message:
I agree with you laurenke01, but I've decided it isn't worth my time to
try and convince people to be cautious anymore. I had a hood crash and
burn with less than 1400 character files in it- lost my favorite story
family and my Legacy- generation 4. As far as I'm concerned 10 extra
characters that aren't needed is too many let alone 50 or more!
I have the MATY
hack for NPC spawning as well as a number of other fixes and I'm
thankful that Pescado came up with something as quick as he did.
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I'm almost at that point myself.
And that is one of
my other points...3000+ character files is not a lot according to whom?
The Maxoids? I'd much rather believe users like yourself who has
experienced this firsthand, and at a much lower file count than they
say.
If people decide to
blindly follow what Maxoid Sam/EAxis says, that is their problem. Just
because they have a little logo next to their names does not make them
the be-all-end-all to all things Sims. I choose to trust fellow Simmers
and personal anecdotes, not some "don't worry, be happy" line from the
very people who created the problems in the first place.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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Quoted from original message:
I would suggest you do not remove the hack yet. Frankly, MaxoidSam
doesn't know what he's talking about. He claims 3,000+ character files
(50 of which are unnecessary and that number will only get larger with
time) aren't going to severely mess up your game--but how does he know
that?
For a company
that doesn't play test the game enough to actually FIND these bugs
before shipping, I have absolutely NO faith that they are confident
these character files won't mess up games, as it has been documented
time and time again that a mass of character files causes serious
errors, such as memory issues, no inheritance, etc.
Of COURSE they're
not going to pull the Doom And Gloom card--they made the game and are
not going to want to create panic. But, if you remove that mod, you run
the very real risk that Very Bad Things can happen...things that can be
easily avoided until the patch comes out...which, AGAIN, Sam did not
give an exact date for. It could still be weeks out.
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I have to agree with laurenke01 here.
Maxoids post is contradicting an earlier post from EA confirming the Spawning NPC's as a programming
error & Recommended MATYS hack as being safe to keep this from happening.
Now all of the sudden its no big deal ?. I seriously disagree with what he says, I know how much
the majority of players play this game for Hrs on end & the files would be huge in no time at all,
especially on a PC that barely meets the min. Specs.
This is making me wonder if they know they messed this EP up & shipped it way to soon.
A patch can not undo damage already done in a game & this is only 1 of the hundreds of bugs
being reported.
Thank God for MATYS hacks, at least some of us can still play the game.
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Umm, hi everyone.
I know of which I
speak because I sit right next to the programmer who wrote the code
that had the bug in it, and then he wrote the code that fixed it. And I
know because we know how the game works, when and why it creates a
character file, and what it does to the game.
Laurenke, can you
tell us what things you are experiencing in your game that you can for
sure attribute to this problem? All I see in your posts is how awful it
supposedly is, not how it has affected you.
Thanks,
Maxoid Sam
a.k.a. Sam Player, Senior Producer, The Sims 2 Game Development Team
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The issue does not affect me, as I have JM's mod and plan to keep it there until the patch is proved to fix the issue.
What, exactly, do
you need me to explain? I do not have any issues relating to a
massively bloated Characters folder, because I take steps to stop the
issues before they start. Again, thank you, JM. Though, if I did not
have protective measures, I bet you my house that Pleasantview would
have been rendered a virtual ground zero quite a while ago.
If you're referring
to the spawning problem, I really don't think I need to explain how I'm
affected by that, so I hope that wasn't what your question was directed
toward. However, because I have ample time on my hands, I will tell
you: Each time a family visits a vacation lot, a new tour guide is
spawned. Sometimes a tour guide and a charlatan. Regular community lots
have the potential to spawn an extra charlatan. These characters are
NEW, not taken from the pool of already created files.
Once the files reach
critical mass (some users have experienced this with 1,500 files--far
less than the 3,500 you claim is safe--weird things start happening.
Inheritances don't work properly. Memories get corrupt. Slowly, the
neighborhood becomes unplayable. Dizzy on MATY said that this is caused
specifically because of number of tokens accumulated. The game can't
take it.
This number used to
be 800, which even you all decided was too low. The new number is
unknown as you haven't told us. That is why this issue is so serious.
We do not know what number is critical. It's like driving with your
eyes closed. Sure, 50 files may not be a lot, but these are 50 EXTRA
files that aren't needed--50 files that could have been put to better
use, like actual, playable Sims.
Again, I have not
experienced these issues for years now because I restarted Pleasantview
once upon a time and have multiple hacks that address these issues.
I really don't know
why I'm telling you this, though, as I HOPE you already know all of
this. You made the game, after all. But perhaps you're too busy making
to actually play. You need to. Play the game with no hacks and add all
possible sub-hoods (as each one adds at least 100 extra files). Bin as
many occupied lots as you can from other neighborhoods and stick them
in the hood you're using. Take families on vacation after vacation
after vacation. Have them go to as many different lots as possible.
Sooner or later you will begin to notice things.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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No, I don't need you to describe the "problem" to me. I want to know
what "problem" you yourself has witnessed that can be attributed to
this bug. What I'm after is why you think you or modders know more
about how the game reads files than we do. You're spamming your views
all over the BBS like you know something awful is happening in the
game, yet as you say, nothing has happened to you because you've
protected yourself with a mod. Protected yourself from what?
I've posted that the
extraneous character files that are created by this bug does not damage
your game, and I stand by that post. I, along with a fantastic team of
people here at EA make the game. If you or anyone else wants to believe
your theories or the theories of modders, that's your perogative. I for
one am going to bet on me.
-sam
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Hilarious.
Problems associated with bloated Character folders have been well-documented for years. Research this.
And because *I* have
not personally experienced character file-related issues since
installing Bon Voyage--due to using third-party modifications that, if
you play-tested your games before release, wouldn't even need to
exist--you are discrediting me and everyone who has ever had issues due
to this malignant problem? You're not even willing to do what I suggest
and *play* the game to see what happens, if for nothing else but to try
to prove the community wrong? Incredible. Denial if I've ever seen it.
You are clearly more
arrogant than I first believed you to be. I am more relieved than ever
that Bon Voyage--as much as I enjoy it now that it works flawlessly due
to my third-party content--is the last TS2 game I will purchase.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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Quoted from original message:
Bon Voyage-- [. . . ]--is the last TS2 game I will purchase.
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Ditto. I am purchasing no more Sims2 games.
If I hadn't
discovered the BBS when I did, I never would have gone beyond the base
game due to the jump bug and the slow down bug. I wouldn't have known
about any patches, and would have stopped playing my lemon game.
Looking back on it,
probably it would have been better to just be out the fifty bucks. For
the money I've spent on EPs, SPs, and computer upgrades, I could have
my own maid and gardener.
The Smarter Family Apocalypse: Pets & Seasons Rules
http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=156543
PetsApoc: http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=145697
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laurenke01-
I've enjoyed this
exchange, as it's clear you have. I've also appreciated the helpful
advice on how to test our games. But since I'm clearly not going to
convince you of anything, so I'll stop trying. I'll leave you with
this: if arrogance is trusting the people I work with every day (and
some nights) more than the theories of anonymous BBS posters, then yep,
arrogant is what I am. Extremely arrogant.
I will go to sleep
now, still wondering just what actual gameplay problems you have
experienced that can be attrbuted to "bloated character files".
I'm very sorry to lose you as a customer.
P.S. I think third
party content is a great thing. Custom content creators, modders,
hackers...whatever you want to call them....they and the players who
support them are what sets The Sims 2 apart as a groundbreaking,
milestone-achieving, industry-leading game. I'm happy you enjoy their
work and that it improves your experience with the game.
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You are not arrogant because you trust your team. You are their leader.
Your job is to trust them. But you should definitely question them,
especially when the vast majority of the community is reporting the
same problems due to the same reasons. These "theories" as you put are
from your CUSTOMERS. Your job is to serve them. You have singlehandedly
alienated an untold number of the people who pay your salary and have
made The Sims as popular as it is. Congratulations.
The reason you are
arrogant because you are insisting that you are correct based on
nothing more than you are EAxis and you are always right. I have given
you a detailed explanation of the problem, why it's caused, and what
needs to be done to solve it. You have produced nothing, not even a
solid date of a preliminary patch to fix nothing but the redundancy
issue.
I will go to
sleep now, still wondering just what actual gameplay problems you have
experienced that can be attrbuted to "bloated character files".
I told you already.
Corrupt Sims memories. Messed up inheritances after Sims die. Et
cetera. There are more; I cannot think of them all off the top of my
head. I suggested that you research what they are--obviously you did
not. I also suggested a way for you and your team to reproduce these
issues so that you could fix them and make the game better. Guess you
don't want to do that.
Also, you have not
lost me as a customer. I said that I will not be purchasing any more
Sims 2 games. Granted, there are not many left. But I simply cannot
take this again, as more issues will inevitably arise with the new EP.
P.S. I think
third party content is a great thing. Custom content creators, modders,
hackers...whatever you want to call them....they and the players who
support them are what sets The Sims 2 apart as a groundbreaking,
milestone-achieving, industry-leading game. I'm happy you enjoy their
work and that it improves your experience with the game.
Yes, but there is a difference between making my experience more enjoyable and needing
hacks to fix problems you've caused. The Primp self-interaction? MIA,
as of installing BV. MIA as of installing Seasons, too. I need a hack to make this option appear. I should not need these mods to make the game work the way it should.
I've enjoyed this exchange, as it's clear you have.
You're the one who
asked that I explain myself. I suppose I didn't have adequate time to
tell you that I do not take things at face value, nor do I bend to
figures of authority.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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OK, I was just kidding about going to bed. It's only 8:45!
Look...we are not
always right. We make mistakes. We admit them. I have admitted them on
this BBS...and in my blog...a lot. We are human. We screw up. Making
games is hard. Bugs happen in every game that is ever made. Visit other
BBS's and you'll find as many people yelling about bugs as you do here.
That's not an
excuse, though. We try to strive to make the perfect game every time
out. Who doesn't try to do the best they can at their job? I'm sure you
do as well. And when we make mistakes, we try to do right by our
customers who are paying to ensure that we can keep doing our jobs.
But I have to take
issue with what you are saying about this NPC spawing thing, and how
you are saying it. You are posting your theories about what creating
extraneous characters can do to the game as if they were fact. Your
words, which I'm up here to say are incorrect, are creating unnecessary
concern with our players.
Of course I
question my team when things go wrong. When we learned of this bug, the
first thing I did was question what the effects of the bug could be. We
assigned testers to the problem immediately to play with game data with
thousands of character files (which I posted in another thread is not
atypical...if you have The Sims 2 and all 6 EP's installed, you're
going have to close to 1000 before even starting to play).
Who do you think
questioned our team about some players claiming they were having
crashes with their nVidia cards that we'd never seen before? Who do you
think insisted that we keep searching to find out what could be
happening, even though it affected so few of our players? So it turns
out my team was right--it did turn out that nVidia had to fix a bug in
their driver to make the game work--but that wouldn't have happened
without me questioning them and then working with nVidia to get them to
fix it. And with that problem, unfortunately we're back at it again, as
as even smaller group are now having trouble with nVidia cards again
with Bon Voyage (and Bioshock, apparently...ouch).
After our engineers
looked at the code with this NPC spawn bug, and the testers did their
testing, we know for sure that the extra character files will not
damage your Sims, their memories, your neighborhoods, or whatever
things you're referring to (but apparently not experiencing yourself).
What code are you looking at to base your theories on? How many
different PC configurations are you testing the game on? How many
different combations of EPs and SPs are you testing with? How many of
these tests are the people that you know that are having "problems" and
"very bad things" (your words) happen with their games doing?
You yourself admit
to being a user of third party content. How do you know that your
content is not responsible for these issues (or the content of other
Simmers have, I assume, since again, you yourself are not experiencing
any issues)? I'm not here throwing custom content under the bus,
because lots of custom content and mods are perfectly safe to use. But
we know that not all of it is. It's "well documented" and reported by
the players that these mods can cause issues with the game. How do you know?
Look, if I'm wrong,
I'll come up here again and say I'm wrong. If my boss decides that he
doesn't like it so much that I'm wrong, maybe he'll suggest I not come
to work anymore, if you catch my drift. The patch is coming. It's being
tested. We're not going to release it until we're as sure as we can be
that it works as it should.
I really can't say much more about this. The last word is yours if you want it.
-sam
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Quoted from original message:
The last word is yours if you want it.
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You're too kind.
Clearly, you are
convinced that your product is virtually flawless. Be it known that you
and your team are the only ones that think this.
Again, I have not
experienced these issues with BV, but does that matter? I research
things very well, let me assure you, and when I read hundreds of
accounts by well-respected, smart, affluent people, I believe
them--especially when they give the technical information to back it
up. I am not a modder. I do not go through code. Does that mean I know
nothing? Do you not believe the man who does not build houses tell you
that you have dry rot, for no other reason that he does not work with
the product? What would you say if I could procure every person who has
experienced this and have them post? I bet you would still not believe
them.
Clearly, though, I
am wrong, as are the thousands of other people who have experienced
this first hand. You recognize a problem, yet you do not care how it is
caused. Oh, that's right, that's because there is no problem......so
then why are you even making the effort to fix a problem that doesn't
exist?
I know why. You need
to convince people that nothing will happen so that you will continue
to sell product. I know this. And it's too bad. All the community wants
is complete honesty--not excuses, and certainly not "We're not perfect"
speeches. I certainly don't expect a perfect product. But I do expect
you treat your customers with more respect than you've shown tonight.
UPDATE: I have
asked that people post here with firsthand accounts of bloated
character folders. If they agree, you will soon have proof.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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I would appreciate a description of how you test the games. As
Sirkandi715 posted earlier there are many simmers who have a favorite
neighborhood we've been playing since the beginning. We've installed
the expansions and patches, created the relevant sub-neighborhoods,
perhaps we've moved in a family or two from another neighborhood before
we knew the consequences, gone through a phase or two of killing off
townies and then the game generated more to replace them, we have
multiple families and generations in one neighborhood, and some of our
favorite sims are still alive after three real years of game play. Do
you test the game with neighborhoods like that? Or are they generally
tested with a fresh install?
Everybody's cute! Even me! But in purple...I'm stunning!
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I am curious to know the answer as well, as this is what I mean by "play-testing." Thank you for asking it.
But I already know the answer.
http://www.thesporum.net/
Spore, The Sims 2, Heroes, Lost, and random silliness | Loads of custom content For Share
Put your helmets on, we'll be reaching speeds of three!
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My advice? Keep the "hack"* in place. It does more to keep your game in shape than just stopping the tour guides.
*Hack is an awful
word to describe what this or anything else made by Pescado is. A
better term is mod. At least call it CC. It's not a hack.
Will Wright is my hero.
Read more at http://www.videogamevoters.org/willwright/
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laurenke - hmm wow I am amazed at MaxoidSam's attitude toward you like
you are the only one saying these things....yet he cannot give us a
number or say you are completely off base. Seems as if they screwed up
and are doing clean up here because they look foolish. I won't take out
the hack either with that kind of info..again all fluff no facts. No
numbers no reason nothing but attitude....maybe Eaxis is crashing and
burning who knows. Maybe that attitude is why they put out an EP like
this.....I have done nothing but defended them before this issue and
look what happens. It's really sad.
I'm appalled that
the "expert" would come accross that way. They couldn't care less how
frustrated we are....they got paid. No facts = speculation
MaxoidSam....stop the fluff and give us the information you have suck
it up already you guys made a mistake no need to continue this blunder
with an attitude!
I am due Dec.15 and it's a boy! (future sim player?)
I love Sims 2
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The Sims 2 Forum (BBS) > Expansion Pack Discussions > Bon Voyage > "Need Advice - Removing NPC Spawn Hack" |
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MaxoidSam