Insimenator.org

Hey everyone. I don't think anyone else has caught this yet thought I'd share it. The official Sims 3 site just posted a letter concerning copy protection on The Sims 3! The later basically states that it will use a serial code system like the previous Sims games and will not require online authentication! YAY!

Here's the link if you'd like to take a look :)
http://thesims3.ea.com/view/pages/newsItem.jsp?item=-608201177 (http://thesims3.ea.com/view/pages/newsItem.jsp?item=-608201177)

Makes me affirm my choice to buy the game  ;D

hello everyone here is some good news for those that are worry about securom there will be no securom In the sims3 here is the link

Pierre ;)

Hello everyone I wanted to share news with you regarding our copy protection plans for The Sims 3.

 

We’ll have more information for you as we get closer to launch about everything we’ll have to offer on TheSims3.com and The Sims 3 Store, but we have heard your requests over the past months and here is our plan for The Sims 3.

 

The game will have disc-based copy protection – there is a Serial Code just like The Sims 2. To play the game there will not be any online authentication needed.

 

We feel like this is a good, time-proven solution that makes it easy for you to play the game without DRM methods that feel overly invasive or leave you concerned about authorization server access in the distant future.

 

We’re really excited to bring you the game for the PC and Mac starting June 2, 2009. The extra time we’ve taken to polish the game has resulted in an even better game experience for you to enjoy and we can’t wait for you to see for yourself!

 

Thanks for your passion and your loyalty.
Rod Humble

http://thesims3.ea.com/view/pages/newsItem.jsp?item=-608201177

 2omg

Well, that was unexpected...  That alone almost makes me feel like I could live with the game.  Now I just need to hear that I'll be able to get/create free CC.

Thanks for the info, Good news for the sims 3 I may buy it now it doesn't have internet based copy protection, but I hope it does not turn out like Fallout 3 and gain securom on release...

Edited for spelling

Or they will face more class-action lawsuits all over again to get rid of Securom.

 1rock This is awsome news, now just hoping they don't change the release date again

It does indeed sound a lot better than what we were hearing for the past few months,  However, Humble didn't specifically say that SecuROM wouldn't be on the Sims 3, but generalized about how it's best not to use DRM methods that are overly invasive.  How invasive, is the question, but for now let's give him credit since they are promising to give out more details later, and for promising there will not be internet connections required to play the game.  But, will there be a requirement to go online to install?  I'm not opening my arms wide to EA just like that.

That is indeed good news, that leaves only the questoin of modding the game (not retexturing)

i'm sorry people but for me it's to little to late and there still not getting my money rod humble can take his good news and shove it where the sun don't shine i do not trust him or the rest of ea. :mad: :'(



anyhow Pierre thank you for posting this. ;D

He's probably saying this with his fingers crossed behind his back *snickers* I just HOPE it comes out for PS3!! c'mon EA bring it out for something other than the PC and Mac because you know you greedy %$#@!%^* want the money!! ;D


&& Feisty32 I commend you on your choices not to buy the game because if they do decide to put SecuROM in at the last minute before release and not tell any one, then none of us should have given EA a damn dime :-\

Like all games, I let the frantic and desperate buy the first couple of thousand releases, then catch the complaints on the web or in gaming magazines.
It's obvious that I saved myself money doing this otherwise I would be out there with the many other thousands complaining about the latest GTA
release.

thank you SimGirl20. ;D

Ok, so they're nixing Securom for another format DRM that's less invasive. That's an improvement, but still not enough to make me buy it. My decision will come when they clear up the CC issue on if it will be "open" or subscription only. In a nutshell, I'm still not buying the game. Not until they answer more questions, and the answers are at least close to what I (and many others like me) want to hear. But thanks for the info none the less, Pierre.

Its something though should it be true what rod says.

Im just hoping as others have said that they would allow cc ill be mad if not, the game wont last long with me if ive got to play it their way.lol.

 i don't trust this good news of theirs in fact i'm very strongly suspicious of rod humble and ea if i did'nt think rod humble and ea were full of horse manure i'd actually believe them. >:D



they will never convince me of securom not being on the sims 3 there just full of horse manure plain and simple. 1pickle 1pfft 1swear

And like starting in BV, the same kind of crap? Notice he didn't say "No Securom." Just some sort of copy protection.

Hate to rain on everyone's parade, but EA could be changing the format of the copy protection so that the machine cannot identify it as "Securom" , but the same protection under an alias. (this is pure speculation on my part. Not yet confirmed by any information.)

I'd wait and see how they do this. I'm very suspicious that they would totally drop any kind of copy protection, and let everyone have fun with their game. Not gonna happen in anyone's lifetime.

Remember one thing-EA is going to have the Sims 3 store-and with it, the EADM which does indeed have Securom as a uninvited guest. Always has had it.

You want the custom content from there? You have to register your game and have the EADM install the stuff. That's the way it's done now, and I seriously doubt they're changing that format at all.

So, sure-no copy protection on the disc, but it gets into your computer anyway because they're probably going to lock down the content from their game on their site.

Just fair warning for all of those who are cheering this move by EA. It looks good, but under the surface, it doesn't really add up.

We don't need multiple threads posted about the same topic. In the future, please double check that something hasn't been posted already before hitting that 'new topic' button :). Threads merged.

The game will have disc-based copy protection – there is a Serial Code just like The Sims 2. To play the game there will not be any online authentication needed.

We feel like this is a good, time-proven solution that makes it easy for you to play the game without DRM methods that feel overly invasive or leave you concerned about authorization server access in the distant future.

That seems pretty straight forward to me.   2yay  I'm actually impressed.  I'm still not going to buy it right off, unless I have the money burn.  2rofl 

That being said; if I felt paranoid, I would feel suspicious about some other form of nastiness on the game disk, but I trust that it will be found in short order and can be delt with.

Like Kaoz666 said. When I can download CC as in sims2 for free and all this pay for garbage is that's has been going around hits the road with their drm then I will consider moving up to sims3.
The bottom line is I will not subscribe to a pay site and I will not play a vanilla game.

I've got to say, I don't think I've ever seen so many threads where one person is one of the main contributors and that one person is basing everything he or she says on paranoia and fear.  If it's stated in each post that comments are based on paranoia and fear it wouldn't be so bad, but those fears are stated as fact.  Someone else picks it up and treats it as fact and the rumors and misinformation just spreads from there.

The truth is, we don't know for fact what the powers to be at EA are thinking.  While what we see may be pointing one direction, it could end up being something completely different.

[opinion]Take the CC and Store for example, or CC and TSR.  Whether EA is restricting CC to those two arenas really makes no difference.  The community at large has already shown blatant disrespect for the policies governing paysites and have freely shared CC from them.  If TSR has special programs available to it's creators, how long do you think it would take for those to be freely available?  One day?  Two days?  [/opinion]

Maxoids have come online on the BBS and stated No Securom, and no phone home requirements.  Yes, there is disk based copy protection, a.k.a. a DRM, but it's not Securom. 

[opinion]Again, one or two days to wait for a NoCD/DVD version.  [/opinion]

Pescado has stated that TS3 may not be friendly to user created mods.  With what we know right now, it's almost a guaranteed fact.  Take it to the bank.  After TS3 has been out a while, that may change.  It may not.

Everyone is pretty much in the same position of wait and see.  Some are saying they will buy right away, others are saying not just no but hell no.  But over all it's a wait and see.

ancienthighway i do respect your opinion and you do make some very good valid points the fact is i am scared to death to put any newer ea pc games on my computer i just cannot take that risk i'm just to fearful of their games and this is coming from a big time sims 2 fan which i still am i know when i got bv and installed it when the patch came out one day i was backing up some files pics,music,and my sims 2 cc on some blank purple disks and when i had to reformat and tried putting my files back on my computer the disks were all blank and i was furious i do believe securom rendered my cd burner useless and that very day i threw out my bv ep and since sept. 17, 2007  i have not bought another sims game since.

and believe me i am still to this very day miffed at what that evil securom did to my computer.

anyhow like i said i do respect your opinion just so you know. ;D

I would feel the same way...
Something that I've learned in the past year, though.  Free disk imaging software can be had for backing up your system.  I've used three different ones and they are pretty decent.  They're in my list of free software at my HubPages.  Always make sure that your CDs/DVDs are readable after you burn them...I learned that the hard way about 8 years ago.  I've had really good results using PowerISO.  The way that I use it is to save an ISO image of anything I'm going to burn.  Then I burn the disk.  PowerISO opens the drawer when the burn is done, then closes it again right away.  The autoplay window pops up and I do a little exploring.  If there is a problem, then I just burn another disk.  It's served me pretty well, considering that I have ~500 DVDs burned...  Just an opinion, but I absolutely despise Nero software.    Nero is one of the first things I ever delved into the registry to destroy, just because it annoyed me that much.

Here's what I know.  The only way you will be able to patch Sims 3 is through the EADM.  The EADM will come with the game and most likely install with the game.  http://bbs.thesims2.ea.com/community/bbs/messages.php?threadID=3fa84c056ba3d222452c84eefbc6101c&directoryID=225&startRow=1&openItemID=item.225,item.43,item.61,item.104,item.41,item.127,item.23

Also, while they said the disc version will not have secuRom, the digital download will. http://bbs.thesims2.ea.com/community/bbs/messages.php?threadID=e035262b417737430098736c165c7f1f&directoryID=225&startRow=1&openItemID=item.225,item.43,item.61,item.104,item.41,item.127,item.23

Read the EULA ancienthighway, read it twice.
This site deals in other peoples mods. The so called download manager will ensure that you do not download mods into your game, recolours and re-meshes yes, but mods and hacks no, no zip or rar. it's download manager. (very similar to what TSR has)
Interpret the Infringing on a third parties intellectual property rights please. 

that's the just the thing though every single cdr's i have used has been readable i was at a level of ticked off like i have never been.

From my interpretation of the EULA and TOS, I'm not seeing anything to throw up a red flag to say I can't create and share my creations outside of TheSims3.com.

Section 7 Paragraph A Reservation of Rights.  This paragraph is pretty much boilerplate.  Read any EULA that comes with any software and you find pretty much the same thing.  

Section 7 Paragraph B also is pretty much boilerplate for games that allow custom content, to include online MMORPGs, FPS, etc.  It basically is a creator granting authorization, licenses, etc, to the company, EA in this case, to offer the creation for download, to modify the creation, and created derivative works based on the creation.  The creator still maintains ownership.

The EULA pertains only to The Sims 3 and www.TheSims3.com.  It has no bearing at all on this site, Pescado's site, The Sims Resource, or my site.  In fact, you can't download anything from my site if you use the EADM.  Just as the download manager TSR has won't allow you to download anything from my site.

One thing the EULA is saying is that in order to patch the game, you must use the EADM.  But it also say you can remove the EADM and play the game without it.

I see nothing in the EULA or the Terms of Use that would prohibit me from creating and sharing CC or mods.  Currently the only thing that will stop me is the availability of the tools to do so.


Feisty32, based on your experience, I too would be paranoid about anything from EA.  My previous post wasn't to say that everything with TS3 is the embodiment of perfection.  I'm not trying to convince anyone to change their minds.  Truth be told, I don't expect to be picking up TS3 at all.  My previous post was to simply say don't state fears and paranoia as fact.

oh ok ancienthighway sorry if i offended you. ;D

so custom content is a no no.
screw that.
i WILL edit the main files to remove the instances to the eadm. and replace those instances with empty versions. so you wont get the dreaded sims3.exe has caused a problem and needs to close. message. :cool:

and if i cannot remove those instances than ea and rod humble can go eat roasted camel shit and go screw somewhere. :mad:

Good to hear...  1rock  Besides, the patches around here are better than anything you can get "offically".  Now, off to play with AutoCAD 2010 trial on Windows 7 beta.  2rock

 :cool: First post I have made. While reading through the articles here I noticed that Securom seemed to be a big issue with folks well... good news.

            http://compsimgames.about.com/b/2009/03/27/no-securom-in-the-sims-3.htm (http://compsimgames.about.com/b/2009/03/27/no-securom-in-the-sims-3.htm)

What do you think?

Edit^By the way info is a bit old and may have been posted somewhere, however I didn't see it in any of the threads I read  :cool:
Also Here is the Official post:
    http://thesims3.ea.com/view/pages/newsItem.jsp?item=-608201177 (http://thesims3.ea.com/view/pages/newsItem.jsp?item=-608201177)

what i think is that i don't believe them nor do i buy this no securom in ts3 i think it's just a way of luring peeps to buy the game i am just very suspicious of them . :D

No where on the post by the developers did it say that Securom wouldnt be in there in some form , it just says a different form of security will be on there which could be a new version of Suckyrom

Yeah, it doesn't explicitly say that it won't be in the game still ... but I kind of think (or hope) that they won't include it. It is their job after all (at least to some extent) to make the consumers happy, so I would hope they would take our unanimous, burning hatred for SecuROM into account!

But then again, I could be entirely too optimistic.  :rolleyes:

Yes, this has already been posted :). I'll merge the threads.

Electronic Arts actually do something for the benefit of their consumers and not their bottom line? NAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAW!!! [/sarcasm]

EA has gone as far as not releasing particular games (namely the 2009 editions of their Sports games) for PC solely for the purpose of avoiding the pirating of their games. And in all truth, that's the only way ANY company can avoid a game for PC (Or console even now that they are more like PCs now) from being pirated. Much rather then take the small hit, they'd rather hit us with some lame duck DRM that causes more harm to us and our rigs then them and their pockets. TS3 might not have Securom, but it will have some form of security coding. That's pretty much a given.

All this drm. garbage that we have to contend with is now is becomming more and more intrusive and has never and will never prevent piracy.
To stamp out piracy needs a collective effort by world wide law enforcement. For only certain countries to actively police software piracy is a total waste of time. It needs to be done on a global scale, and once under control the inclusion of crap such as securom and all the rest of the drm. garbage should also be a illegal.
How hard is it to locate and shut down those that deal pirated software on a large scale? Never mind the country they operate from, its amazing just what a bit of economic muscle can achieve.

Console versions of the games have been hacked for years just like pc versions. The biggest difference with the hack is you generally have to open up the system and do some rewiring so to speak.

I don't have a problem with them adding copy protection to the game. They are a business and have to be able to make a profit to keep the games coming out. I just have a problem with the way EA went about it by using Securom which can totally hork up your system.

 I'd like to see them go with a third party protection like Byte shield if they must use something. That product is only concerned with protecting the product. It doesn't disable your legally purchased burning software or disable your cdrom drive. Heck, it doesn't even trash your hard drive.
Plus, Byte Shield can set an end of life date on their product so it quits protecting after the initial money making period has passed on the game. For those that don't know that's the time period between release and when a hacked version can be produced.

These days companies take that time period into consideration when they set the release price etc.

Nothing is hack proof. The manufacturer's goal is to be able to keep it un-hacked long enough to make a profit from the game.

ATTENTION K-MART SHOPPERS!

Now that the game has officially been released (http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/smf/index.php/topic,14987.0.html), I hereby inform you that the LACK OF SECUROM IS TOTAL LIECAKE, exactly as predicted.
(http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/horror/liecake.jpg)
That is all.

People should learn to listen to El Presidente. He is in fact the Obama of The Sims Community. :P

All jokes aside, that doesn't surprise me one bit. There was no way in just a year's time EA could have developed some other form of anti-piracy software coding. Securom is the coding they use for all of their major releases. The sad truth is the fact that they only care about their bottom line, not the needs and wants of their consumers. Needless to say...The Sims 2 = Buyer Beware. Add to that what Pescado has up on MATY about the game, I'm pretty much now completely turned off of the prospect of ever adding TS3 to my PC game library. Thank you sir for sticking a dagger in the neck and raking it across the throat of the DRM issue of TS3.

EA Fails. End of discussion...lol.

Woah!! 2omg holy s**t! am I reading this correctly??!! did EA totally just screw us and decide to add SecuROM anyway? wtf I thought Rod Humble announced that TS3 would have a serial code just like TS2? this is a terrible blow to the community if I am not blowing this out of porportion can someone confirm this will there indeed be an online authentication needed to play and or register the game and worse will there be SECUROM? :eek:

Daggers are for wimps. I prefer chainsaws. LAZOR-powered chainsaws.

Thanks for that information-but one question:

Does this really surprise anyone?

We should have expected this. We were gullible and naive to think that EA would drop its' total lack of brains when it comes to DRM.

Sorry, but this sucks.

And I thought Xmas wasn't till December.Celebrate, celebrate, this almost guarantees the games failure, and hopefully EA. will follow the blasted thing down the financial s--t hole.

I need to brush up on this but will SecuROM mess my computer up if I decide to buy the game? or will it only do that if I install and uninstall the game up to 5 times like SPORE I really need to know what I am in for before I go out and blow 50$ on a game that might mess my computer up! which everyone has said that  SecuROM was in all the EP's following Seasons and I never experienced any problems perhaps I was just lucky?

Excuse me, people, but Pescado wasn't the ONLY one telling you that SecuROM was going to be on the stupid thing. As I recall, I was one of the people trying to warn you, but I was blown off. Excuse me, but your lack of faith is disturbing, to say the least. I do thank you, Pescado, for letting us have proof of said DRM. Now maybe people won't be so bloody sheep-like to believe anything that company claims. I doubt it, but where there is life, there is hope.

Duly noted. High powered Lazer Chainsaws it is. :D And Paden, I know your pain. Lord knows I've been catching heat from people in this section from "Stirring up" the fact that there's no way they could have developed some other form of DRM coding in just a year to replace Securom, as well as the shortcomings in Gameplay the game will have, as is also noted in Pescado's link. I completely agree with you on the sheep comment. It's those sheep that EA make their money off of. Problem is there seems to be more of them in the world then people with brains. There's a little saying I made as such that it fits perfectly here...

"Common sense isn't common at all."

So enjoy The Sims 3, and the shoddy gameplay and Malware that comes with it those who still plan on buying it. Hope that works out for ya'. ;)

I'm not that sure about the sheeps. It's mainly the children, who will be the main audience. Not only will there be a fair share of them pestering their parents into buying, but parents will also decide that this is the right game for their kids to play.

I think that's more than enough money to be made by EA. Even more so, since they probably have their first expansion already on the starting grit for Christman sales.

You're absolutely correct. And in them doing that they've completely alienated they "Mature" users of the game. No importing of custom meshes, no open source modding. Just a drab, dull, vanilla game. And I like my games with a lil' more flava' to them. Then you slap on Securom and you have another mistake to be released by EA that will pull big numbers anyway because of the "Sheepish" people as well as the people you pointed out, the parents that will by the game for their pre-teens, only to have it eventually collect dust cuz they'd rather play a console game like Halo 3 or Street Fighter 4. They'll get decent numbers, no bones about it. But in comparison to the releases of TS1 and TS2, TS3 is going to be a marginal failure. Not in the overall stance, but compared to other games that will be released soon, it's not going to even come close to some of their numbers.

Alienating the customers is the big gig these last few years. It's certainly not an EA speciality. Bethesda did it with Oblivion, Molyneux did it with the movies and these are only the most prominent examples. Game producing is more like a hit and run than a serious business nowadays. Half baked products are thrown on the market to make the customers pay for the patches which make the manure playable.

But I think it's not only a business decision to prevent modding. They simply have their pants full. The US market is still the biggest market there is. And one of the big plagues of that market are the influencal parental and religious pressure groups making it their business to stick their noses into each and everything.

hello everyone.

here is something that i just read on another site so i am quoting the info here.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonesi (Blackpearl sims2 site admin)
I'm just reading comments on a site that's its available on and it does seem that it's not the "real" version, as in it's not complete, extremely buggy and crashing and everyone who has downloaded it is saying it doesn't appear to be complete and looks to be a leaked older version, so there is hope yet that the official release won't have SecuROM.

This is EA we're talking about. Do YOU trust them? I sure in the BLEEP don't.

The way I read it, the copy is legit. The game is being shipped to retail outlets at the moment ready for a simultaneous release in early June. Someone jumped the gun.
EA. must be going ballistic at the moment because all the shortcomings of the game are now being revealed before a couple of million copies hit the streets and can in turn be picked apart by the critics.
Somebody please tell me that this will mean the end of EA.

That's the Pollyannas at work. The fact of the matter is that the game is "Gold", meaning complete. The scene releasers typically do not package prerelease items as the real deal. As for buggy and crashing, I can't say I've encountered this, and there are a few issues with the install: At least one of the available rips contains malware, but it is not known whether this was inserted by third-party repackagers, or EAxis.

Thanks so much for the warning Pescado. Now that solidified my resolve not to buy it. I sort of knew Humble was lying, I had to wait and see.  1sw2

Reading through various gaming sites on this subject, a lot of the comments are on the subject of EA. deliberately releasing the thing, 1 as a publicity stunt to generate more interest in the game and ultimately boost sales and 2 to give them an excuse to include even more draconian drm.
Very few of them touched on the obvious. That someone has taken a piccy. of EA. doing something naughty and posted it on the web for the whole world to see.

for some reason I can't shake the feeling that the game that has been leaked is indeed incomplete and could be an older version that EA was previously going to release that DID include SecuROM but I dont know I might just be being really gullible..but I just can't trust a leaked game and if there is SecuROM in this copy then I believe that would be considered a digital download that EA confirmed SecuROM WOULD be included so I just don't know how to feel right now...I want the game realllyy bad and perhaps if this is the version to be released in June that has been leaked couldn't we all pay midfigr a visit over at The P.r.i.s.m. and download his automated SecuROM removal tool and just nuke it if it does include the DRM? :(

If Mr.Pescado says it's the real deal then it's the real deal.

I do not condone illegal pirating of software, so I cannot and will not trust this information until I see it with my own eyes, I am almost certain that the leaked version is one that EA intended on releasing before the March announcement to the community by Rod Humble so I think the ones who are experiencing the said DRM is likely the ones who cracked a beta copy but hey its my word against yours so what does my 2 cents mean to any of you, you'll either get it or you wont

simple as that. :p

In my case its the same for me and in my opinion the version mention must of been a beta copy meant for testing and not the actual version. :confused:

Basically, the moral of the story is don't download it now. DO NOT WANT.

If this is some months old beta EA. would have been the first on the net telling us so. The fact that it has now been doing the rounds for about 24 hours and still no comment from EA. tells me this is the thing that will be for sale next month.
They are obviously formulating some damage control plan at the moment and I'm willing to bet that old humble bumble won't be releasing the next statement.

I'm not trying to be rude or anything because I respect anyones decision not to buy the game because thats there preogative but I must get this off my chest and I'll leave it with that and it is this

I don't think people are grasping the concept of something very major in this whole SecuROM fiasco, I clearly remember seeing somewhere and if I must I will find the link but somewhere, and if I'm not mistaken I believe it was on a youtube video interview with Ben Bell or Grant Rodiek (one of the two) that bluntly stated that TS3 legal copy will not include the DRM but the digital download will meaning if you pirated it you will get the SecuROM on your PC now am I completley off balance or did you all who have the game already not download it? and wouldn't that be classified as a digital download? therefore this is the reason you are seeing the DRM?

Thank you for allowing me to rant :p

Thing is, from what I understand, this is a copy of the game that is headed for your store shelves and comes as an iso file. Now, if this is indeed a copy of what's on the disk, we've been lied to once again by the idiots in control of the company. I never planned on getting it in the first place based on the information of how the game is going to play, but this just clinches the No Sale decision. I do not want it. Had they stuck with something closer to the game we already play, maybe I would have wanted it. Big maybe, though. I don't trust EA Games any farther than I could throw Pierre, and I'm not a physically weak person. Does that tell you much on how badly they've damaged customer loyalty with their shenanigans?

Again I respect your decision not to buy the game Paden and I can accept the fact that this may be a gold edition game but doesn't anyone remember EA stating and that vid I seen kind of confirms it as well that there will be 2 versions going out one that will have the DRM that most will pirate and say is the real deal and the other that will be going out that will not include the DRM that the good, hardworking people will legally buy and not weasle off the internet I think and I will continue to believe this, that the leaked version was purposely screwed around with and the DRM included so that EA could laugh in the pirates faces and basically say "We told you so.." and sorry but it is their (the pirates and pirators) own stupidity that got them where they are right now, I am not kissing EA's ass but I think that they EA has included the DRM in the digital download/pirated version like they warned and this is just a dose of what all pirates and the like deserve because they all should have waited like the rest of the community

I'm no authority on pirating a game(have never done it), but I think you are getting EA's digital download(which will have securom) mixed up with what the torrents sites have up.  What the torrent sites have is a copy of a physical disc, that they ripped the files off of  and then uploaded.  The files haven't been cleaned yet. 

Of course I could be totally wrong on how it works.   ;D

I just checked in MATY and the game they are playing appears to be the genuine article. The problems with it at the moment are mainly video card related, it tends to clash with some cards.
As for the drm. well, one certainly doesn't include that in arrrg software does one?
However the traces are there for all the world to see, check pescados picture.
As for anything believable coming out of EA. I think they have a large picture of Pinocchio at head office.

Pescado is but one of the many voices (like Paden) that have warned about securom.   I don't see this as a rant against EA but caveat emptor.  I find it ironic that there is so much criticism of those trying to inform us since most of us readily acknowledge that we only want to know the truth before we purchase--not so that we know when and where to dl it for free. 

The responses I've seen are more "Nope I'll be saving my money and sticking to TS2" or "I hope it isn't the real game I'll just either wait to see what others say or  buy it & see for myself after its released."    Keypoint is that this is about arming the legitimate purchaser with information.

In my situation I had no clue that my purchase of a Sims game would mean:

1. I needed to always be online to play

2. I would NEVER get assistance from EA on how to correct game issues problems with the software I legitimately paid for

3. I'd be blocked from making a copy of my game as a backup--even though the EA site said you must make a backupfor your own (permissible) use before your activation period runs out.  I'd have never bought a game that says if you have computer issues over the years then you'll lose the permission to play your "paid for & registered" copy of the game.   My last email to  EA customer service back in October asking for more than a cheesy robot response got a cheesy robot response.



These forums: InSim, Maty, PMBD, MTS2, Simbiology, Palladin are where I got my assistance from.   In depth information from people who legitimately bought, invested time and money in and modded the game throughout the years.   Quality reviews, tutorials and fixes/CC that I now can't see myself playing without. 

As a customer I thought WTH?  After months of getting the run around from the company that got my money I got no assistance?  Yet people who get no benefit from the information they give out (i.e. non-paysites) helped me get use out of EA's game?

So yes, I value the opinion of the many players who have played, enjoyed, & massively enhanced TS2 gameplay.  I was headed to pre-order in January from amazon.com (I wanted the free plumbob and the vintage car 1tehe).  Just before paying I clicked a link for more info from the EA Sims3 website and read the same lines I had read when I purchased my first game:  "Online activation needed, limit of 3 installs per registered copy."

Needless to say I cancelled my order.   So I found that the players that warned about DRM issues hit the nail on the head.  Worse EA has changed the game requirements a few times and has since changed many lengthy game descriptions to nothing more than fluff, touting all the asthetics and side-stepping the Securom question.  Why continually change your page and break links to info your own company provided unless it is an attempt to hide the truth and cause counfusion?   My mistrust of EA comes from these types of behaviors.

The way I see it the so-called "pirates" only asked EA to provide accurate info and stay consistent so all of us in the community will know what we are getting.  I'll use this info like I did the other.  Consider and compare reviews of the games from the forums I know to be consistent and accurate &, though I'll miss the cutesy plumbob and car,  see who cries or rejoices after the game is released--before I invest my cash.

Would I love to try out the game?  Yes.   Am I going to buy a $80 game that will nullify itself if my computer needs revamping for any reason?   No.  But I'll sure want to...I can't help it I'm a simmer ;D.

Well, isn't the most important point of seeking out arrg software to avoid DRM? Of course the arrg is fixed that way and it's no means to prove if there's SecuROM on the retail version or not. So yes, I am 99% positive that there's SecurROM on The Sims 3 - but you won't be able to tell that from the leaked version, because that one is cleaned. Simple. As. That.

Maybe EA wants to do the same as Ubisoft: convince pc players that they should not buy their product and afterwards whine that pc players are evil pirates and therefore not even worthy to be allowed to BUY DLC. Sorry, that's the pc vs. console issue... but not really that different at all if one looks closely.The loser is always the paying customer. :(

That's not how it works. The whole purpose of a pirated copy of anything is to make it workable without the limitations the releasing company has introduced. It wouldn't work otherwise, cause Securom or its little siblings would prevent the startup. If Securom was indeed included in that copy, the company has included it, but to no avail, since that pirated thing must have a no cd patch, allowing you to play it without any copy protection.

For the benefit of those who still clap their hands over their ears screaming NO! NO! NO! This is the real thing, this is what you are going to buy early next month, it is not a hoax or some half baked beta.
One thing for those who have already made up their minds to buy the thing can look forward to is that you now have two weeks to preview the crap.
One thing that I'm really looking forward to is EA's explanation on how they have been naughty boys and have in reality been telling us porky pies all along about taking out all the drm.
 

I have to say, that I have a whole lot of Schadenfreude about EA of all companies falling prey to pre release piracy. Maybe that's one way of making them stop and reconsider, since it hurts them in the only place that matters - their accounts.

Like SimGirl20, I respect anyone's reasons to not buy the game, but this just had to be said.

There is no DRM so we should all just stop saying "F--- EAxis" and just move on (http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=The+Sims+3+has+no+DRM&btnG=Google+Search&meta=&aq=f&oq)

Even during the press release about the leak they said that all it had was a security key.

There will be no SecuROM in TS3. 100% Definite

And personally, I'll believe many, many press releases instead of a few modders.

and its the same for me i respect members 's reason not to buy the game and here is a little piece of wisdom before a step out of this thread now that i said what i needed to  say what i had to say please take the time to read all the info.
Thank you
Pierre

Take it from someone who's in the press business since 1990. Advertising budgets do wonders to press releases. As an insider I take everything the press writes with a lot of salt. In the business it's commonly known that ads are usually sold hand in hand with the promise of a friendly article.

Might sound cynical, but knowing the business I take the toilet woman's opinion over anything the special interest magazines publish.

I'll believe modders like Pescado over the damn company any day. So, you can take all of your press releases and use them to wipe your dog's hind end. Once the damn thing hits the stores and others have a look at it, I'm pretty sure it's SecuROM. Oh, and ya'll can stop drinking the Kool-Aid that EA passes out to the gullible.


EA GAMES HAS LIED BEFORE AND WILL DO IT AGAIN. DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE DAMAGE CONTROL PEOPLE UNTIL THE GAME HITS THE STORES AND RESULTS CAN BE COMPARED. I will trust the modders that have FIXED the borked crap they gave us in Sims 2 before I will ever trust EA GAMES ever again.


See, I can use big font, too. And no, I believe the man behind the curtain that the dog is pulling open for us all to see is just trying to blow smoke up our butts because their butts are on the line when it comes to profits. We've already seen to what that company will sink to in order to protect the almighty dollar, do you really believe they won't stop sinking? If you do, more fool you. Caveat emptor, people. In other words, let the buyer beware.

I'm with furball on this. I'll happily trust a modder over a damned press release any day. Proof over speculation, m'dears.

...so tell you what, if there are those of you who want to blindly believe everything EA feeds you, then go back to the BBS. You can sip down all the cyanide-laced kool-aid there that you want, and never have to worry your pretty little heads about it.

Since when have those stamp lickers been authorities on computer software? All the information they have on the game comes from EA.
I highly doubt if any of them even know what torrent to go to and download the thing  and then publish an objective view.
Just give it time, they have till next month for the truth to emerge. At the moment all they are doing is paying lip service to EAs PR. department.

It's where they're applying that lip service that's bugging me...

And when they get through getting the game, and playing it-they'll find that they have securom on their computers, and they will come whining at Prism or RYG-"Oh, I borked my game, do you know why? Can I fix it? Can you fix it?"
You better pray we have the fix for it. We don't even know what version of it there is on the game if it is embedded. We hope to be of assistance, but we shall see in 2 weeks time.

CAVEAT EMPTOR!

...and we better hope we don't run out of places to hide the bodies of those too dense not to be able to accept what little help we may have to offer.

We will stand our ground and let the Lemming go over the cliff....

Download it, try it and then decide wether you want to buy it or not.
The torrent files are all over the net, burn the iso on a dvd and see for yourself.
Make sure you got a good firewall installed that prevents the verifying crap.....

I personal think the game is crap but i know why, they prolly want to sell us 10 EP's again...

MaryH, now that all of this is going on, it kind of makes me glad that I did retire from those two sites. I've got enough going on right now without a fresh influx of idiots whining over crap that they'd been warned about. Tell ya what, kids. If you get what we predict, we don't want to hear it, take it somewhere that they may actually give a fart in a high wind. If you don't get it, well and good. Until you find out, caveat emptor and don't bitch if it does come back to bite you in the arse like you were warned that it could!

I can tell you right now, though, Paden, that we're pretty anxious waiting for the actual release of the game, and I think we're waiting to see if EA lied to us again. If they did, and the inevitable happens, I'm sure that we will be swamped with the questions I mentioned, unendingly.
I even had a weak moment of actually wanting the game. Needless to say, it's past me now, thank goodness.
My public post about Sims 3 still stands as my opinion even today-and I will not retract one damn word until someone proves to me that EA is capable of learning from their mistakes.
I hope I'm proved wrong for the sake of millions of ardent Sims fans. I don't hate them, and I don't wish them bad things from the game; but I do want EA to finally come clean for once and all about their shoddy game making, and their suspicious DRM crap. Greed is not good, nor is over-reaching.
In short, I'm tired of being lied to constantly-and if the release does go wrong, millions of other people will unleash the torrents of hell on EA, to the point where they will wish they had never thought of buying Maxis in the first place.

Gee, Mary, I hadn't thought of Walt in ages... until you just said this.

EA have been boasting for a while now no DRM, that is a laugh. What do you call that calling home to verify. Oh wait I think EA just lied again who would have "thunk" it  :rolleyes:

Crappy graphics- Check
Form of DRM- Check

I do think I shall be sticking with Sims2 for a long time- er I mean my wife will  :D

I guess this means that Rod Humble (and his cronies at EA) is a lying piece of crap. Looking forward to a TON of lawsuits!

Or maybe EA wants him to be the fall guy. One never knows about this company... Sigh. :(

There is a little bit of information about this d/l-that it is supposedly the downloadable version of the build; at least on MATY that is what one story is. This was not stated by Pescado, however, and I have my own doubts on that myself.

I rather believe it is the final copy of the game, and someone either swiped it and gave it to the torrents (for an undisclosed sum of money), or something else happened to make the copy "go missing". Either way, it is definitely a hokey piece of crap. Some people are running it fine, others not. Depends on where you got it from and who the "provider" was.

Since I don't frequent those kinds of places, I would not know the difference of quality in the arr copies, but I'm sure that one of them is the real hard disk copy with something 'extra' on it.

It remains to be seen if it is the same one as being released on June 2. If it is, god help us all.

It's the retail, what you see is what is hitting the stores, so yea god help us all. Just goes to show ya that sometimes the older games are still the best and the newer is just shelf space filler.

I was just reading some drivel about all this at Custom sims3. What's with that lot? Are the an offshoot of EA. or just brain dead?? Had to get outta there before I puked.
This Wes Howe, is he a lay preacher or something?

Wes is one of the gurus that spent countless hours decyphering what EA/Maxis put into package files and using that information to make custom content, especially meshing, possible in TS2.

Apparently EA must have lost my (required) registration information because I never got near the amount of wonderful service that induces the zombie-like loyalty chants in those posts.  I'd have settled for an ounce of service.   The crying & stomping seems to stem more from the fact that people got the game before them than any sincere anger at the arrring itself.

Aside from that is has seemed for quite a while that the game was made so that EA could partner with paysite creators and get them to use their "talent" for sims 3; releasing the CC as SPs & Eps through the Sims3 site & maybe later exclusively with permission.  Just seems that way to me.

I do like the views of the landscape and architecture but I think I'd just end up wondering why EA couldn't just apply the updated open neighborhood and other benefits to TS2.  I can't see going back to the blur, losing all my 18+ mods ;), & not having the awesome eyes, skins, hair and clothes I have now.  

Very disappointed with the fugly bloated look all the sims have.  Who did they rely on for feedback?  I can't see anyone cheering those looks.

IF this is the real copy I just want to know one thing please, will I have to be online in-order to actually play the game or does it only require you to register the game online and you say that they changed the system requirements again? wtf I checked SRL last night and it still tells me the same thing cept of course my memory so I am really confused and perhaps leaning toward not getting it :( maybe a little light can be shed on this for me I am going to go off the deep end if I have to be online to play the damned thing so does anyone know that can be honest please? and I'll say this because I don't want people to think I am kissing EA's ass because I despise EA for what they have done to others regarding their games and there shoddy DRMS that have destroyed thousands of simmers computers so yes I DO NOT TRUST EA for a second but I want to believe that this leaked version is the digital download EA confirmed would have SecuROM in it so I really don't know how to feel or what to think when so many are saying that this is the real copy due to release the 2nd and I can say this if it IS then EA has lied to us once again and I can only hope for their speedy and painful demise :mad:

So long story short I am going to really pissed if I bust 50$ on a game that I can't play

My apologies SimGirl, I didn't mean recently so I presume the requirements are whatever you saw last.  I  am registered with EA (as I didn't have a choice really with the last game), supposedly VIP for Sims3--not that that means crap--and was sooo looking forward to the game release.

I meant over the past 7-8 months EA had different information posted at links they'd open then disable or change.  Decide they weren't satisfied with the wording and poof the old info disappears and I found myself in the twilight zone looking for info that had previously been there but was removed or replaced.  So I am wholly skeptical.

 I stopped looking in February after reading the 3 installation limit and cancelling my order. I didn't want to get more hyped up about it if it had those restrictions.  I was going for the $79 pre-release to get my tiny trinkets. *sighs*

I'm still in wait and see mode.

SimsGirl, its my firm belief that you don't need to be on line to play. But you will have to register to play. The catch is if you don't register via windows live you will not be able to save, whatever you do or construct will disappear and the game will return to its default setting once you turn it of. Mr, Humble wasn't lying when he said you didn't have to register to play, he just forgot to tell the full storey.

No apologies needed DaSpecial I was just wondering if EA had buffed up the reqs so that it would be more of a pain to run ;)

Thank you roerzman for confirming that because I think that me and EA would have a problem if that was the case, but on a lighter note I thought I would give the ones of you who plan on getting the game a little hope. I did some digging around and found that this leaked version is indeed a beta version and to boot is the DD (digital download) like I had originally thought thus the reason for the DRM secuROM so before I get hit with rocks here is my proof to back up my theory


first this is from snootysims from a user called anonymouse


 Eureka! I am now 99% certain the leak is only a BETA!
EVIDENCE:

1. Empirical evidence. There are far too many obvious and strange bugs, that just don't make sense. The installation of the game doesn't even have any decent pictures, vids, information, sound, music, anything, no packaging at all.

2. It is unlikely that the gold master DVD's and printing press would not be under watch. It is far more likely that this DVD fell off the wagon to a Sims fan event.

3. The file structure is whacky. There are many things missing. There is no finalized and presentable structure to the core game.

4. There are third party developer software files that shouldn't be there, like graphics, audio and code compiler logs and dependency files.

5. Some of the files are timestamped several months back.

6. File sizes make no sense. Package and cache sizes are too large, obviously meant to run on powerful developers computers (like mine <g>).

7. It has SecuROM. And the wrong version to boot!

8. Several announced fan event features are not present.

9. Graphics have since changed, or do not appear to be working right. For instance smoothing/antialiasing and filtering are not working as intended.

10. The version, while labelled 1.0 in some description and help files which is probably what most people have opened, is in redundant files that should have been removed called Content.Devtest.1397 Changelist:622971.

When games are created many different version are compiled tested. This game appears to have been compiled for the SOLE reason of testing content, that is, the textures, objects, sims etc. everything that goes into the game, and as such, it has to be one of the most stable and available tested builds... in other words it's not strange that people think it's the full game. There are just so many bizarre things and obvious bugs and missing features in it, that have long made me suspicious.


I found this in three seperate descriptors and logs.

description=Version: 0.DL-0.0.11190 Changelist: 624575

Version:1.TCC.dl.1209

Version:1.Content.Devtest.1397
Changelist:622971

TCC is a third party compiler. It shouldn't be there. No coder with any self respect would label a game devtest 1397. Nor would he put a changelist on it unless they needed one to refer to in order to see what was a bug and what wasn't.

CompositorCacheSize = 104857600
SimCompositorCacheSize = 524288000
WorldCompositorCacheSize = 524288000
SimWorldCompositorCacheSize = 524288000

This is just wrong. Why are the caches so large? Why are the packages so large? Why are they encrypted in a non-standard format no modders recognize? It doesn't make sense... unless they're developer versions encrypted/coded in a format that they use for their software.

And if there is not supposed to be custom content, why do we have this?

EnableCustomContent = true
ExportsFolderName = Exports
ImportsFolderName = Downloads
BackupFolderName = DCBackup
PackageThumbnails = false
PackageThumbnailsInSims3Pac = true
DeleteTempExportFolder = true
RemapCollisionsOnly = true

Ladies and gentlemen, hope lives... we may see an even BETTER final version of this game, hopefully void of the problems and bugs, and a vibrant modder community to BOOST!



and this from a user over at MATY

The reloaded iso is the digital download version, as can be seen in the EULA that everybody clicks past without reading:

"ELECTRONIC ARTS
END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT
FOR THE SIMS 3 GAME
(DISTRIBUTED BY DIGITAL DOWNLOAD)"

also

"B.  Technical Protection Measures. When you purchase the Software online via digital download (the “Digital Download Version”), you receive a Digital Download Version of the Software that uses SecuROM digital rights management technology provided by Sony DADC Austria AG.  The SecuROM technology is integrated into the Digital Download Version of the Software and is not a separate installation. For more information about SecuROM, visit www.securom.com and http:/faq.securom.com/.  By installing the Software, you acknowledge and agree to the Software’s use of SecuROM.  An internet connection is required to authenticate the Software and verify your license (“Online Authentication”)."

So that would explain the phoning home, no idea why it's on an iso though.


So I just thought I would post that little tid-bit of information for any of you hopefuls such as myself and also I forgot to mention that someone said over at MATY who downloaded the leaked version said the exe. files were dated as far back as April so that is another good possibility that this copy is indeed a beta

Thank you for the info my friend

Pierre

Because you create items, or I should say styles with the style tool, which you can save. Those files get a star, ergo, they are "custom content". These are the files you can exchange via the "evil launcher" (tm). So no REAL CC here.

There are obviously different versions of the game out there, meaning there are fully functional and surprisingly bug-free versions.
No online registration neccessary.
With a serial key installation.
And of course with SecuROM, it's just very quiet. They did not only lie, they obviously counted on people not noticing the malware, because we might think, if there's a serial, that will be that. Well, wrong. Evil liars. Who even think they can make us believe, star-y items are custom content, when it's just a little color-sliding. Well... *sigh*
Why, did you expect anything different?

There will be CC, the game im running generated a downloads folder.

Thank you very much for the info Bloom

Pierre ;)

Bloom, did you find out where the custom created files go to?
And the files you can share with the evil launcher?

EA has said that CC will be available for purchase on the exchange.   Also what you create in game is considered Cc & I think can be shared (through the launcher) on the exchange..  I believe it was said that you can't add CC outside of those parameters though I don't see why not.

Well, they lied about other obvious things, maybe that's just another example of "we tell 'em they can't, so they don't even try". They still seem to think we are stupid - after they usurped and implemented A LOT OF things that were MODDED for TS2 that was obviously missing...

And now buying custom content, pfff! Most of us shared our stuff for free, now they want to earn extra money not only from the ep's, but from CC as well, they mad?? :eek:

Because you can put everything you like in that download folder. As long as its not in the right format, it wouldn't work. They want to control what's there and make a nice little coin by the way.

So in a nutshell, CC in TS3 is going to be simple recolors of default items that can only be shared via the Installer or The Exchange. And that still doesn't change the fact that only items you'll be able to stylize are default items. You can't create an import and of your own meshes. So that means no new styled shirts. No stylish new boots for you ladies. No new styles of furniture or wicked car models. Not unless EA makes it 1st, and you pay for it. Why are people still not seeing this? If you want a new mesh to work with on TS2, it's as simple as searching for what you want, downloading it, and extracting he file to your download folder. For TS3, you have to find it in The Sims Store, break out your credit card, purchase it, then install it using The Installer. And the most you can do to it as far as editing it is change the color and maybe have a few textures to play with. You can't use your own textures. You can't put your own personal stamp on the fashion. That's crap in ever sense of the word. If you can actually live with that level of limitation, maybe you should be playing TS3, because you obviously don't know how good you have it with TS2.

Oh, and I can surmise that since no one who got the "Advanced Copy" has mentioned it, there's no such thing as a Sims 3 Bodyshop, is there? *Heh Heh*...thanks...but I'll pass. Even if the final build of the game doesn't have Securom (Which I'll believe when I see someone say so AFTER the release date) there's still way to much it's lacking across the board for me to even entertain buying it. 

I would like to believe that all of us on this site shared our stuff free. It is the fools that pay for it. I prefer to think that there no fools on this site.
After all, it is the fools that Ea. is relying on to make the sims 3 a success.

Yes, I was tempted to say we all sharered or stuff freely, but when you count in sites like TSR or Peggy...
I didn't intend to imply that any member of Insimenator earned any money from cc!  :eek:

You are welcome Pierre and I just want to say that I am pretty confident in my findings and I do still believe the leaked version is a beta theres just too much obvious reasons why it is, clearly the game is not finished and was intended to be a test version only but I dunno I don't want to argue :-X

Well Pes. said the files were encrypted and digitally signed, so good luck hacking that.  :-\

Also why would they put in drm when they already said it wasn't going to have it?

Do I have to put this in like bold really BIG letters? please don't make me..so I will say it once more the reason the DRM is included in the leaked copy on the net is because it is the digital download by EA and they EA said that the DD would have the DRM but the copy in stores would not 'supposedly' mkay? :p

Meh... I'll believe it when I see it.

This kinda depresses me, I was hoping for a good sims update, and what we got was nothing what I wanted.  :-[

Probably because its not the final release? :-\

I'd believe that if EA actually confirms if the arr version is the final release or not themselves... :P  Of course, we all know that's never gonna happen.  So with all due respect to everyone insisting that it's a beta, no harm meant when I say that personally, I just don't believe it due to EA's track record of bug trails in their previous installments.  If they weren't arsed enough to actually advertise certain glitches in one of their own promo vids (http://polska.ea.com/mediazone/movies/movies/movies/13688/6788/), I'd give them more credit... (wondering what I'm babbling about? Go to where Rod Humble is talking about simlish in the clip and pay real close attention to the sim example to the right, especially the female sim...) 

After seeing that and experiencing many other odd bugs and annoying stuff in their previous un-patched work, I just don't think the final copy would be as ultra clean as some hope and believe it will be when it hits shelves.  But we'll see... we'll see.  All of us "doubters" may be proven wrong.  ;)

I just thought that I would add that I was browsing the HORROR over at MATY and a user said they were digging around in the Sims3 files and one the files said dev.test so I don't know how one would feel about a file being called devtest? :-\

I reallyyy hope its a beta because some of the stuff as far as bugs and glitches are really starting to piss me off like only one household playable and how curtains bleed through the windows! very little options in buy mode and the biggest thing that pisses me off thus far is how you cannot follow a sim into a community lot such as a resturuant or a theater or any other 'rabbit hole' in the so called 'seamless neighborhood' :mad: all you can hear is the clattering of dishes outside of diners and laughing and chatter outside theaters so those are my irks so far about the 'leak' amoungst other things so yes if this is the retail version then this game is full of FAIL

We don't know if it's not the final release or not... besides, it would be too late to make major changes anyways.

What we do know is modding will be extremely difficult to do, i.e. no more macrotastics, that alone makes it very unfriendly.  :mad:

This is what I'm very concerned about...  Before we could get a fix from Pes, TJ or Squigie, but now they dont' want to play nice.

edit: grammar is your friend  1laugh

Thing is, SimGirl, we already know that the downloader from the Sims 2 store comes complete with SecuROM, so I'm betting that the one for 3 will, as well. They're going to find one way or another to try to slip that crap onto people's computers. I just hope this sucker tanks and leaves them with a vile taste in their mouths. Rather like the one we the customers got from their less-than friendly and ethical practises, you know?

Agreed Paden but EA never really said there would be no SecuROM in the retail version either they just said that they were going to use less invasive DRM methods such as limited installs or having to register online in order to download 'RiverView' :rolleyes: but I guess one can still asume all they want if the leak is a beta or not but no one will really know for sure until the 2nd but like I say I have seen some really crappy looking graphics and sorry but some of the shit on there looks like someone drawn it with a pencil as far as walls and buildings go, it just really looks a bit too cartoony for me but I don't know I guess I am just spoiled with all the CC I have come in contact with through my TS2 games amoungst all the EPs I have purchased to compliment the game, but you know I probably will go ahead and buy it to finish my Sims collection but I will defiantley bitch and rant about it until some decent EPs and CC come out for it, because not everyone wants there whole damn house in leopard print we want new hair and new objects and new interactionS for crying outloud EA! to me right now it just looks like one giant EYE SORE but we all must remember tis only a base game and perhaps it will get better but I'm really extremely bored with my TS2 game and can't think of anything else to do with it because it all seems so redundant and repetitive to me that I am just aching for a change as far as game-play goes and perhaps TS3 will deliver?

SimGirl, there's plenty to do with TS2 to relieve the boredom.  Changing your style of play it the biggest thing you could do.  Just putting new pretty clothes on your sims gets old and boring real fast.  Maybe you have already, but it not start a thread in Sims 2 Discussion to get different ideas you could try.

I have no love of EA, but I do have to correct some misinformation.  The Sims2 EADM software does not contain SecuROM.  This was tested by several people I know.  The EADM is a bear to get uninstalled though.  Updates to existing SecuROM files can come through the EADM, but the EADM itself is clean.  Would I install it, heck no.  It causes other problems for people.

For me, the deal breaker is if 3rd party mods/meshes/textures cannot be imported.  A vanilla sims game does not appeal to me.  After all I have 2 different Downloads folder that each have around 7gbs of custom content. 1rock

The only shareable CC I can see will be sims, recolored items made in the game, and the items from the Sims 3 store, which will cost between 14 to 20 dollars for a set.  I got that info from Simprograms (http://www.simprograms.com/the-sims-3-store-prices-of-the-first-items/).  I don't see anyone being able to make custom meshes, which will bore me out my mind. After playing for 2 days, I am through with it. Sims are too funny looking and kinda disturbing. Oh yeah the graphics suck, gameplay don't make sense.

Back to my Sims 2 game. Loving it for life, got it playing just the way I want.

And apparently their digitially marked (sorta like digitially marked drivers for windows).  It'll be much much harder to bypass.

Have you read the comments there? They make me shake my head in amazement. "I may buy...", "not tons, but..."

As long as this is the mainstream it's no wonder EA wanders that path. They're selling items that could have been included in the base game and charge up to an amount that's again half of the game's prize and people say thank you dear company.

I know, 20 dollars for a few items. What is so great about the Sims 3 that would warrant such prices? Nothing I have seen. They should be shot for that idea.

After reading those comments, I guess I see EA's point. If 1% of the consumers buy from the store, they will get their money and a little profit back, Econ 101.

Way to go, sheep.

And the numbers are there, just look at the idiots that still download from tsr and even more idiotically post a thank you.
Now that has to be about as dumb as thanking your attacker after you've been mugged.
Yep! the numbers are there.



Yea sheep, reportedly one of the stupidest animals on earth.

Hey now thats an insult to sheep!!! Their much smarter than the TSRers  ;D

Now that I have been forgiven I go to the BBS occasionally to snoop around and blow them the odd raspberry. The new word there now is 'bene' I think its some Latin endearment.
The numbers that are carrying on about how wonderful and convenient the sims 3 store will be is amazing. The logic appears to be centered on how much cheaper it's going to be getting CC. as apposed to buying an EP. To quote " now I can choose individual sets and not have to take what comes in the EPs and thereby save a lot of money"
Makes you question whether they have been put on this earth just to waste someone else's oxygen.
You're right, it is an insult to sheep.

It's latin and Italian for good.

However, it always amazes me, that people flog to the producer for custom content. It can't be the kids, since they probably know more about the internet than their parents. And it amazes me more if it's indeed adults looking for that kind of stuff. The vanilla sims are a kids game after all. Yes, I played the vanilla TS2 for some weeks and had a good laugh, but looking for custom content was always on my mind. The original game would have bored me pretty soon.

this is just my opinion but i played the sims2 with no cc for a long time and i did not mind so if its the same with the sims3 it won't botter me as well.

So did I Pierre, and enjoyed it. The difference is that I knew that better things were coming, and they sure did. With this thing I have no such illusions, unless the whole thing goes leg up and they have to re-release the thing open source to recoup their losses.

Sims 3 doesn't need anything but a serial number. There is no copy protection on it all. I have it on good authority :) ;)

Thank you very much for the info

Pierre ;)

It will try to connect to the net though, so block it with your firewall.

i jst wanted to point out that you forgot to mention this part in your info play the game there will not be any online authentication needed.Thank you

*Moderation Note:  Please lay off of the red glow/highlighting... it actually makes it harder to read what you're trying to say, especially for people using browsers other than IE.*

You don't need online authentication to play it. The downloads stuff is all a load of rubbish anyway. The same crap they came up with for Spore. It's not needed. 

You know what Thomas Tusser wrote- "A fool and his money are soon parted". So long as gamers support micro transactions like the DLC of fallout3 and oblivion or like the upcoming content for the sims3 store companies will see us as cash cows and keep following that business model.

Ok coming off my soapbox now cause it's darn slippery up here all alone.

I think perhaps when EA see how many sales there ultimately going to loose on this upcoming sequel, that they will all scurry back to their holes and come up with a program that can be utilized to create open source CC. I do believe that once the intial novelty/shinyness wears off for most people that they will dump the game for TS2. Sorry EA but no-one wants to dish out 20$ for your crappy shit! ;)


I'll probably enjoy it for atleast a month before I get tired of it though, so...

That's the problem, SimGirl...they won't. Not for a long time, anyway. Because despite the fact that it's a stupid way of distributing content in general, there are still people out there who will drop buckets of cash in EA's lap. The only way EA renigs on it is if it fails completely. And from numbers alone, it won't. It WILL fail, but EA will still turn some sort of profit. That's the bad part. Because you still have so many fanboys and girls out there that will buy into the crap EA's trying to pull. But I do agree that as a whole, the shelf life of TS3 will be shortlived unless EA reworks well...everything. The DRM, The CC issue, the encrypted close sourced coding, the works. But EA will remain steadfast in what they have set up. Let's face it, folks. We're not the people EA cares about. It's the people on their site they cater to. The mindless flock of sheep they've amassed over the years. The people with brains in there heads they could care less about. In the end, they'll see the folly of their ways. The problem is that end ain't comin' no time soon.

You are right about that. Too much dollars to be made, and they will get it.

Thats a sad, sad outlook on buisness wouldn't you agree? I can't believe EA could be so selfish, I HATE Grant Rodeik he just radiates d--k head when you look at him, and you can just tell that no one on the EA team are passionate about the game. Maxis is whom made the game such a nice fun to play game. The community is what has kept TS2 franchise alive for so long, do you actually think 100 million people would have spent their money on EA's half assed handy work they call custom content if it weren't for Bruno, Enayla, Peggy,Squinge,& Bloom amoungst many many many more?! hell to the no they would not :p

So yes ahem ladies and gentleman this game is going to die a fast death if EA doesn't come up with a better battle plan as far as CC goes, because not having CC made by your favorite creators is NOT going to go over well for most if not all the community when the reality of it all starts sinking in...

You would think that EA would take such things into consideration, but keep this in mind people. EA isn't like say, Blizzard Entertainment, or Rockstar, or Namco. All of which are regarded as elite game developers as well. What those companies have that EA doesn't is a "soul". The CEOs and decision makers for those companies all share one common fiber, they're all gamers. Whereas the people who run EA you'd be surprised if they've ever even picked up a controller. You can tell when a developer is passionate about their release. Like how Cliffy B rants and raves about Gears Of War. The game is his baby. He loves it like it was his child, so he makes damn sure that he and everyone on his staff make it exactly what the people want, because at the end of the day, it's the same thing they want. Not so much the case in EA's case, and that's not just TS3, that's across the board. From TS3, to Spore, To NFS: Undercover...all games that EA said were going to be awesome and godly. Yet Spore tanked, and NFS: Undercover tanked so bad that the development house that made it EA Black Box got dismantled and it's developers absorbed into other development houses. That's bad. Especially when you're supposed to be one of the big 3 game developers in the world along with Konami and Square/Enix. Yet those two companies, namely Square/Enix churn out gaming GOLD MINES year after year. EA's only saving grace is that they have the EA Sports line of games, the only games they actually seem to get right. All of their other releases over the last 4 years outside of TS2 EPs and SPs have bombed worst then the 1st night of Operation Desert Storm. And why is that? Because rather then pay attention to what the gaming public wants, they'd rather make games that they think people will like, so that they can market them to the casual gamer. While the companies that focus on marketing to the hardcore gamer are the ones making the major money. Maybe EA needs to stop trying to the Video Game version of Disney and start making good games again. Yea...that'll be the day.

Toy store, that's the first thing that comes to my head whenever I see sims 3. They should stop bugging us adults with this thing and sell it in toy shops. Give us back the sims please EA.

I agree kaoz666. I actually was telling my boyfriend, today while playing RE5 that CAPCOM never fails me with their games. I loved all of Capcoms games and ALL of the Silent Hills by Konami so yeah EA suck as a company intent on making games and it is clear they don't give a damn about the consumer, if they did then they would actually pay more attention to us instead of just blowing us off! I mean c'mon do you really think EA gave a damn about any of those creators they invited to their ranch during the Creator Camp? umm no! they were only worried about seeing how much those creators could make for them so they could ultimatley sell it at Sims Store :mad: Greeeed! I hate people like that, they make me sick to my stomach. I have never been concerned about money, and I would give you my last bite to eat if you were hungry, and the shirt off my back if you were cold. I can't see how the people at EA can look at themselves in the mirror when they have royally screwed so many people over...ugh

Ahem! have you SEEN the crappy graphics? They are not even worty of custom content. While it's okay to not have to put up with hideous colors, the hideousness of the objects make up for that. But this means something else entirely: it's simply not possible, to have things like the beautiful Enayla skins (one of my favorite mods), because the skins are not graphics files anymore, but simply a color tone you can choose. No details. So not even a point in waiting for a de-censor, because they are barbies and they'll stay barbies. The "details" of the barbies' skins, like hints of muscle and such are so blurry, you rather see them in overalls up to over their heads.
The clothes details are equally bad. Or shall I say nonexistent. Everything you look at closely is blurry and ugly.
No custom meshes possible.
No exchanging of files from one user to another or even to the other computer in the same room.
No exchanging of sims.
It's back to a children's game. The very little ones - no offense intended to those of us who retain their inner child, I'm one of those myself.

I am sorry for the off topic-ness of my post, but I'm responding to posts, mainly those of SimGirl20. Again, no offense, but you still seem to cling on to the belief in some good in EA, but some time this belief is going to be shattered and it's rather before you give them their money (if you'll buy and play for a month and then go back to Sims2, they will still have your money). I really wanted to buy, but after I tested it, I think it is a slap in the face of a lot of brilliant modders with brilliant ideas, which were taken and implemented in the new game, as long as they suited them. And the other kind of mods, the ones they didn't like, they still used to a degree, so they knew how to prevent them from happening again. It's shameful and for me, EA commited their last big sin, I won't ever even consider to buy one of their games now. Everything I tried out in the last years disappointed me and this tops it off. Their games went from bad to worse and the money didn't go into developing, but into stupid DRM (yes, it's expensive!). And if anyone still thinks, this is a beta and the gold version will be completely different as in acceptable graphics and doable cc, wake up.

Sorry again, I'm off now to mourn the end of an era silently. ;)

If the skintones are procedureal maps and/or shaders then yes we're pretty much screwed for skintones. The blurry details are probably because of such a low texture resolution.

PS: Yes, my graphics details are on highest settings.

And though the graphics are blurry, without detail and overall bad (I often read cartoonish, that describes it well), it pushes my gpu to get very hot instantly. No idea why, probably bad programming, not that that would be anything new for the Sims. That's why we need modders. :D

And the game increases brightness of the overlay when it starts (that's probably why people have trouble with dark screenshots). Haven't found a way to prohibit that yet. That might be a minor issue that might be fixed in the final release, but I bet the general issues with the game will be the same.

Mhhh... an evil thought just crossend my mind when I thought about modders... do you suppose they'll offer bugfixes and useful gameplay tweaks for money in their lovely shop, too? >:D

Excuse me, Wednesday17 but I like everyone else on this forum have a right to their opinion. Do not tell me how and what to believe because you will likely loose the battle. If I want to believe the leaked version out on the net is a beta then that is my preogative correct? If I want to bahh like all the other flock of sheep EA is herding toward the game then I will. I don't think I will be wasting my money, come the 2nd because I planned on buying the game ANYWAY to complete my Sims collection, so thank you for telling me how to not spend my money ;)

In my opinion i also belive that the leek version is a beta version and anyway my mind was made up since november 2008 to buy the sims3 collector 's edition.

Pierre ;) :-X

Thanks Pierre, I think everyone shouldn't be so judgemental about the game when the real one hasn't even released yet. I do believe the game can be a nice experience if EA allow open source CC like they did in TS2. Do they not see that CC is what has kept the franchise alive for so long? Are they really that stupid to not allow the community to be creative and create their own content for their game, that they shelled out 50-70$ for? I also think the game will get better as time goes on and more EP and Sp's come out for it to fill it out. If you don't want to buy the game right now and continue with your TS2 game, then thats your choice but I don't think you who will not ever get it should feel the need to bash others who have high hopes for it :p

i agree with you my friend and there is 2 things that distinguish a beta version from a complete version

Beta version equals an incomplete version of the game and made and package for testing

and a complete version go through packaging and final shipping as well as printing the manuals for the game.

and the choice to buy the game or not is a personal choice as well :p

Enough please. Beta not beta, beta not beta. Let's wait until the 2nd. Then we will see who is right. Yes you have your opinion, but I keep seeing the same thing over and over on different threads. It's a no win situation. Torrent it, buy it, curse it, Love it. Who cares. Enough about  the BETA! Now that's my opinion.

i tend to agree with you ;) and lets not judge a book by its cover until we actual see it ;)

A lot of these stupidities shouldn't have even gotten through the alpha build.

For the love of mike Pierre. If it is a beta, EA. would have fallen over themselves to bombard the media with that information. instead they are choosing to remain silent about the whole affair in the hope that it will all blow over by the time it's released.
Can any of the doubters out there please offer a plausible explanation for EAs choosing to remain mum on the whole affair even as what little reputation they still have is being dragged further into the mud.
Let's cut this, it could be, it looks like, and I just found this crap.
They have been caught out. UNDERSTAND? They have been caught attempting to pass on some half baked  shonky game as a blockbuster, something that we were supposed to discover ONLY after we handed over our cash.
Being able to actually play the game and draw a true conclusion instead of carefully dressed up video previews, has snookered them.
As for the origin of the release, no doubt a disgruntled employee.

This is from Yahoo News

Read (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090522/ap_on_en_ot/us_games_the_sims3;_ylt=Arx_gewO0HPtrxyk373kWT2s0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTFoZDM4MHYzBHBvcwMxMzcEc2VjA2FjY29yZGlvbl90ZWNobm9sb2d5BHNsawN0aGVzaW1zcmV0dXI-)

Towards the bottom

Mr. Pescado has already commented on that.  Tripe.

I didn't know that........

ooops!

If this some half baked game then why statement about 4 million in lost revenue to date = 180000 copies and growing.

You don't have to be so rude to everyone who is under the assumption that it MIGHT be a beta, I mean how do you know it isn't a final copy? You don't know, and you won't know until you buy the damn thing. Oh and stop sucking up to Pescado like that, he might be a great modder but he's not God so...

I'm sorry.It's juat some half baked beta that EA. has released to give people a taste of what's to come, And old Pescado is nothing but an ill-informed, rude, obnoxious old ba-----. Happy?

I'm phrasing this very carefully so as not to step on anybody's toes. That's not my intention. I only want to give you some insights in what my business life is all about and what it has to do with incidents as that leaked copy:

I'm working in the press and PR business for about 20 years. So personal experience tells me, that if that copy wasn't the real deal, there would be headlines flashing and press releases raiding the websites and mags. To keep quiet as they do is either extremely stupid or in the hope of the storm blowing over and being able to cover up.

I'm aware, that there's a lot of excitement and hope for TS 3. So here's my carefully phrased advise: If you don't like what you already see in screenshots and reviews, don't go for it. Even if it was a Beta. They couldn't possibly have changed the animations and modells in such a short span of time.

Whoa there! Slow down a bit, will ya. I said, no offense. That means I don't want to argue with you and sureley don't want to fight any battle. I don't know why you overreact that way, when I tell the truth as observed by myself about the game. I didn't attack you, I attacked EA. Unless you own EA, there's no reason for you to go to war with me. Now, English is not my native language and I might be making mistakes, but I really didn't intend to battle any Sims player, you might've misunderstood me there.

And to clear that up once more: believe all you want about a beta. Maybe they have yet fixed some things like spinning guitars and sims jumping through walls. BUT. That doesn't change the game itself. Or did you think they made two totally different concepts and leaked one out and the other will be fine? This is what they advertised, with the create a style feature (the one good thing) and the CAS without the possibility to make a realistic looking sim. It looks exactely like the videos. Look at my avatar, that's a Sims2 sim - you won't be seeing such beauty and detail in Sims3.


And again, I don't dictate how you spend your money, I had hope you maybe weren't a sheep, but you want to be, so go and give them your money. But as long as they earn money from crap, they won't ever change the poor quality of their games. But you can't say you haven't been warned.


Yes, they are. And that is my whole point. They created The Sims3 in a manner, that makes it illegal, even to make any custom content for your private use, let alone share it with the community. Because they saw, how big this is, how players jump on the custom content and they saw another business opportunity. They can make their own "custom content" now and sell it, yay! And they cannibalized not only the previous Sims incarnation, but also lots of custom mods from people who had made that in their own time and without money. When you buy it an play it you will know what I mean (don't beat me up again for telling you the facts, unpleasant as they may be, for I didn't make them). What I can tell you, is that I thought about a guy named Numenor a lot (from MTS2). I see a lot of his game modifications in this game (this already started with some of the later Sims2 EP's). So I'm sorry if you sympathize with the EA company that much and feel pain when I bash them, but don't cry and say I bashed you. See it for yourself and then we can talk again.

Alright folks, keep the topic from getting personal, it gets slightly off-track.  It's gone okay until now, so there's no need to flare up over stuff.  :P

As for the Yahoo article link... I thought the second neighborhood was supposed to be downloaded from the Sims 3 Store?  Who the heck are they trying to kid there?  EA needs better PR reps.  ;D

Not even the best PR department can make an elephant fly. That's the whole point of what I was trying to say. They're out of words. Maybe the had a so called special edition at the ready containing that second neighbourhood. And chances are, they will sell that as the standard edition to minimize damage.

At least that's what I would do in their shoes.

The statement issued by EAxis is utter PR tripe, obviously. This is no surprise: EAxis can no longer simply deny that the version exists, and they CERTAINLY cannot actually admit it is the REAL thing, so they HAVE to say that.

A review of the actual information available to us paints an interesting picture, though.

The build date reported on the executable is 2009-04-22. The date the game was announced "Gold" is 2009-05-08, meaning the actual event occurred an indeterminate amount of time prior. This means that the build date of that executable was a scant 2 weeks before the game was permanently imprinted to DVD. Now, ask yourself: If the game was only built 2 weeks before the date they booted it out the door, how much could they REALLY have changed? More importantly, in software development, every new build must be subjected to testing, especially the final build. Two weeks is not a lot of testing time, and if this is NOT the final build, that means the REAL final build has even *LESS* testing. Regardless, there is no way they could have done very much at this stage in 2 weeks or less. In software development, software is declared "Feature Complete", meaning no new features will be added, far in advance of ship dates.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter. Any gripes we have about the game are based in its design, not in the minutiae. If the game's DESIGN is flawed, two weeks of additional work cannot save it.

Thank you!
That was exactely what I meant but didn't find the right words for, apparently.

 I have heard of "Feature Complete" couldn't remember where, having a hard time finding it for a link. Wanted to say about the same, cause I know they couldn't work out all those bugs in 2 wks. The amount of time passing before responding definitely proved that they had a PR lockdown on the situation. The one sentence is the new move of minimizing situations and they know that their fanbase will believe them. I am sure they have read the reviews at MATY and any other site with the balls to do it.

I could see the execs now *pulling their combover hair out* that damn pirate site again! Grrr!!!

Some financial groups are already quoting a 9 million loss for EA. over this. That's a lot of money for an incomplete beta.
The more straight laced game forums are coming out with weird s--t like "those who have the pirate copy will never be able to take advantage of all the other features that EA. will provide, store,patches,add ons."

The "9 million dollar loss" figure is really spurious. If people are pirating the game at this point, they are doing so because they simply do not have any other choice: No option exists for actually purchasing the game. Those who intended to do so will ultimately do so, because as it turns out, this does appear to be a special review-edition build.

Special review edition build? Going on it's age this about as close to the actual thing as it gets?

Well, I didn't mean to ruffle your feathers there Wednesday17. I am just going to say this beta or not, complete or uncomplete I was going to buy the game to begin with so its no skin off my tail. The Sims 2 had some definite flaws and glitches when it was released and was somewhat remedied with a patch or several. So I am hoping TS3 will come with a patch, to help fix some of the more extreme glitches. I'm sorry Pescado, but I read on MATY that a user had reportedly seen an exe. file dated back to april. The year was unknown. I also apologize roerzman, I didn't mean to be crude but I am just sick of the debate on whether the leak is a beta or the retail version, so I am going to not post on this thread again in hopes of it not becoming locked by one of the mods. :p


P.S. It's childish to bitch about it anyway, when were all going to see the truth in what 9 moar days?

That is correct. We have confirmed that this is indeed not the "release" build, which is 1.0.631, but with only two weeks seperating it from the reported Gold date, it's as good as it gets.''

The year is known. The executable was build on 2009-04-22, two weeks before Gold. While it is known that it is not the FINAL version, it is practically certain that it represents a "Feature Complete" executable, meaning that no actual features will be added. Think of the final release as simply a patch...which it essentially is, since there's already a patch for THAT out.

Thank you for that. That confirms my argument.

EA themselves said in the press release this past week that what thing the (early) game is missing is one neighborhood; that is their argument for the leaked one not being a complete version.  All of us who were set up to pre-order should recognize that Eaxis always said you would only get "Riverview" when you registered your game online, so it never was included in the final release anyway.  But I agree with Simgirl--it's not worth arguing over.

Ditto for the CC argument.  EA has plainly said what will not be allowed and where you'll have to get your CC from.  All you really have to do is read EA's comments thoroughly for yourself to see what the facts are.  No one is putting words in their mouths.   I hope along with the rest of you that they have more to offer in the "complete" version, but I doubt it.

I'll be looking forward to 10 days from now.
Glitches? Hell, we would miss them if they weren't there! But you can't patch bad game design.
You may want to read the EULA (http://www.simprograms.com/the-sims-3-eula-for-retail-game/) and specifically section 2.A.
They won't "patch" that...

Exactly the point everyone has been trying to make Wednesday.   It was always what EA said vs the truth that we have been discussing here, though is hasn't always been viewed that way.  The tone has been defensive for EA but this has always been about us providing information to each other in the face of deceit.   

That is by far the silliest I've ever read. The moment the "final" game hits the stores it will be on the internet, the moment it's patched it will be on the internet. And the moment they release addons, they will be on the internet. And same goes for the store-BS.

I don't know who's gonna believe that kind of argument. A 7 year old with a PC probably knows more about the www than they obviously do or claim to know.

That rings true on the BBS. They think starting threads degrading "Pirates" will show loyalty to the game. Usually it some newbies that want attention. The first thing they say is " Pirates will never get this or that..." and someone have to remind them those who have the torrent gonna buy the game anyway. WTF are talking about?

Hey nOobs, EA don't care about your loyalty, just your monies. Wake up!

I think they have already confirmed my doubts about their collective IQ. by responding to every idiotic post with "bene"
As I said. Go there to read their drivel and tease them. Waste of time, a forum consisting of morons. Beam me up Scotty.

That's what always amazes me. The moment you say something negative about "their" company they jump you like a pack of wolves. It always makes me wonder if they do the same for their phone company or their supermarket. The ideal customers. Lull the into believing you're giving a rats and they scramble to defend your honor, whilst you can pick their pockets at your leisure.

Thing is, most of them are kids that whined at Mommy or Daddy to buy the game for them. It's not like their own money has been spent to get it for them, not like how it is for those of us that have had to earn the bucks to spend on EA's crap over the years. When they actually spend their own hard-earned cash, then they can jump all over people about it. Until then, they need to shut their gobs and sit in a corner quietly twiddling their thumbs or trying to get out of a Chinese finger puzzle.

Should we spank their parents for breeding such idiots then? I'd happily do.

*hands over the frat paddle she stole from her half-brother* Knock yerself out. Seriously, though, how stupid do people have to be in order to not recognize that they're getting screwed over without even being kissed first?

You've got about as much a chance finding someone with a poignant, objective and informed opinion on BBS as you finding an Arena Football fan in Moscow. I don't even bother paying attention to what they have to say because THEY are the fanboys to end all fanboys. As much as we know they might be friends of EA employees, or EA employees themselves with how up at arms they get when you point out the fact that the game has more holes in it the fishnet stockings. Is it a decent game? In some areas, yes...but in most major areas, not a chance. Will it ever be as good as TS2 is? There ain't that many patches or EPs that EA will ever be able to cook up to make it even close. Not unless they blow the whole thing up, make it open source and let the modding community have at it. Lord knows we'd make it 10 times better then what it is now.

I heartily second that!
There are some nice ideas for new gameplay, but the novelty will wear off too quickly and then we'll mourn the possibility to have a mature game for adults and loads of new stuff and hacks for better gameplay (and all the little fixes for the little bugs that get overlooked by EA). Sigh.

You've all got your fingers on the button now. That's the whole point of it. It's a kids game, I don't want a bloody kids game, I'm am an adult, not some prepubescent brat who wants to play dolls.
I want the option to be able to turn a college frat. into a sims animal house for example. I have no interest in a xxx porn game but I want the option to have some realism.
Now I wish EA will stop insulting me with their assumption that as an adult I'm going to get heaps of satisfaction and enjoyment from this kids dumb game.
BTW.does anyone know of a hack/mod where you can drink yourself under the table.

lol
That would be something!
Once a nanny drank so much in my TS2 game that ended up sleeping on the floor

I second that question. That's one thing sorely missing. Along with the possibility to have chainsmoker sims. Hell, like roerzman said. I don't want to play an xxx game, but I want my sims acting as ugly as real life people.

Yea! real toga parties, drunks everywhere, someone making the beast with two backs on the back porch, only way to play the university part of the game.

I believe there's a TS2 (mod) beer keg on MTS2 that does something like this.  I saw it ages ago but didn't try it out.

Yeah, the beer keg is rather good.

Thanks big heaps.I'll go there and track it down. Once again.,thanks.

You find them at every game developers board. Thing is, they're extremely gullible and have yet to understand the business world. They still believe, the company cares for them, since they have delivered such a shiny toy, only to please their little selves. Given time they will learn, that every business holds their customers in the same esteem as the dirt under the fingernails of the CEO.

Hi, im totally new here, and still want to thank all Custom makers for their creations..

i dont know if this is any good that i got from ea or if this is true for custom creations for the sims 3 but as i read it it sounds like its possible..

this was posted on the ea uk (http://forums.electronicarts.co.uk/blogs/374436-noretus/947-custom-content-info-sims-3.html)

Hmmmm.......I was just thinking an XXX game with pudgy faced playdough creatures. Are you all talking about Spore?  ;D

http://reclaimyourgame.com/

A member of RYG has received confirmation that Sims 3 does indeed have Securom in another version.

Posted on June 3, 2009

Well, duh!
I can't fathom why there's still no laws that obligate publishers to inform customers about DRM on the box. There are for music cd's. And the lack of these laws are global. They miss in Europe just as well as in the US. It's a big conspiracy. ;)

And I can't believe this guy confessing that they chose to deceive the customers until release day, so the pre-orders wouldn't get cancelled. Well, the ones that didn't already fell victim to the accidental demo (yes, here you have the reason why a game like that has no demo, it would provoke the exact opposite reaction any other demo would aim for. This version of The Sims sells on reputation alone, or should I say on the reasonable expectations of the customers?).

Because publishers treat us all, with no exception, as pirates, or potential pirates. But they seem to forget one of the basic principles in Psychology field: when you treat one as a pirate, idiot, useless, whatever, you increase the chances of this person behaving in this manner and actually becoming one.

Exactly, Nalia.
Just like Ubisoft did with The Prince of Persia for pc: we give you no DRM to prove you are pirates by making the game as unattractive as possible for pc players (DLC for consoles only, release date pushed behind console release and unexcusable condescention and indifference towards the customers who made this game successful in the first place on the official site).

I say, gaming companies that treat customers as pirates (DRM only burdens customers, not pirates) just pretend and blow the piracy issue out of proportion to deflect the focus from the bad products they offer. And heck, they offer really bad games by the dozens, who wants to buy that, really? I looked at the greatly extolled Mirror's Edge for five minutes and was amazed at how they get away with such baaaad graphics and gameplay and still make it a best seller! :eek: And I think I don't need to say anything about the harsh disappointment about the long awaited Spore...

People are getting suspicious and don't want to waste more money on a company that couldn't care less and are accused to be pirates for that. :confused:

On a side note. The last expansion of neverwinter nights 2 was actually delayed because they didn't have their DRM at the ready. The result as is published on the official site, is a massive loss in sales.

They just don't get it or just don't care that DRM is only a tool to harrass the honest customer. I've yet to find any DRM that hasn't been cracked within hours after the products release. That way they really shouldn't surprise that more and more people tell them to kiss their hindparts and opt for the less honorable solution.

Oh, this is just too good. If, indeed, they are using SecuROM in any form after telling people that they were not, I think that could be basis for yet another lawsuit if it begins to interfere with the normal workings of your machine that turns it into a nice heavy paperweight.

lol I'm still contemplating whether or not to let you get away with this one! Graphics were far beyond Sims 3 graphics, that's for sure. Anything else is opinion.


Most hardcore gamers love games like ME!!!

Well, then I'll have to apologize for not being a hardcore gamer, but someone who actually likes to see what they're doing. Then I'll do that for 8 hours straight (or more). I'm not hardcore, I'm critical of the bad quality of games since consoles took over the market.

But that is totally besides the topic - unless you count in that Mirror's -Edge has SuckaROM... :-X

They did succeed in one thing, though. The fact of that the game was utterly crap meant I didn't pirate it at all, despite the lack of DRM. Not that DRM has ever stopped Pirate Cat. Of course, I didn't buy it, either, because it was CRAP. The lesson: Crappy games have nothing to fear from pirates.

Okay, you DO get a point for that. ME does have SecuROM and it is very upsetting.

EA needs to stop using faulty DRM software.

And yeah, most "traditional gamers" like first-person action games. So I can see your point as well.

Happy Simming!

I have a question. The digital download is supposed to have securom or something similar and no doubt the future EPs will also be thus protected. If I have a major issue and I need to reinstall the game or even the entire operating system will I be able to get the downloads as a free replacement? Or will EA just say that's sad, we've heard it all before, let's see the colour of your money first.
Obviously because the download contains drm. then burning a backup copy may be out of the question.

Huh. I played that game compulsively four times in a row *scratches head*.
Modded it to be a bit more adult (sexy), though...
But then I spent some time in a hospital and haven't played it since. ;D
Went back to playing the witcher for, like the fourth time and have no trouble with the TAGES DRM. :p