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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#1 Old 22nd May 2018 at 11:49 PM
Default Which expansions to avoid?
So I have been eyeing the expansions and some stuff pack recent for the Sims 3, however I hear that some of the expansions may cause a lot of issues (like Pets screwing up path finding or World Adventures having travel issues.) With that in mind I figured I could ask here if there's any expansions that causes a lot of issues (or stuff pack) and/or it's fixable by mods.
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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#3 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:02 AM
I have read it around here, people complaining about stuff like that. Personally I have no clue if it's true.
Mad Poster
#4 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:10 AM
I've personally had those issues, and other similar ones, with both those packs. I've had a horse run straight through a house (plus the foundation it was built on), and I've lost two Sims in transit to or from a vacation world. Same goes for ITF, I once left for the future with one Sim and arrived with zero.
One time, one of the vacation worlds corrupted and I could no longer play that save seeing as I was stuck in the world.

But that doesn't mean that these are buggy packs. I've played this game A LOT, I'm talking 6-7000 hours. I can recall most if not all of these occurences. I can count them on one hand, too. They're really not worth your consideration, especially if you're using things like NRaas which get rid of most of these bugs and glitches.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Top Secret Researcher
#5 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:24 AM
The ones your graphics card isn't up to. (In my case, IP and ITF.)
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#7 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:34 AM
I have a Nvidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti graphics card. I was more concerned about troubling bugs but yeah graphics should probably be considered too.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#9 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:43 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
That's weird, I read the post completely different.



I read this as the Pets expansion screwing up sim pathing, which is untrue. Your sims still path normally. Animals have their own pathing and they're not always perfect. But this doesn't affect your original sims pathing and how the game operates.

World adventure having travel issues, yes but without WA you don't even have travel. So it is not like WA ruins your traveling since you never had it to begin with. But likewise, traveling is not perfect and it has its own issues.



With that said, every expansion has some new added elements which none of them are perfect, so they all have issues. When you say things like how an EP would create issues for your game, I assume you mean how it affects your current sim game operation. In that case, neither WA or Pets affects your current operation.

Things that affect your operations would be like...

Island Paradise: Introduces water crossing. This affects your current game play, your current sims, etc... b/c when they would normally route on land, now they would route via water. Some worlds were not created with this in mind, so when all of the sudden sims refuse to go through the preprogrammed land routing, and started taking weird and unexpected water routing, it would create stuck sims, laggin' interations etc...

Ambitions and Generations: These two added a lot of things to your game core, which actually slows down your game performance by quite a lot. Now if you're on a modern operating computer with a lot of headroom to spare, you probably won't feel the difference. But for someone running a slower system such as an i3 on 2GHz, these 2 EPs will definitely slow your FPS, your game operation, b/c it makes the core so much more complex by adding so much more element.

Seasons: One can imagine the performance impact weather adds to your game. Is it bugged? Not really, it just makes the game heavier, more complexed, slower, and at times using more RAM and may push you beyond the error 12 and even crash, depending on your cc/mods and how old your savegame is. If anything, winter time snow of Seasons is the most damaging to my game b/c it almost guarantees error 12 during winter b/c my savegame is so old and huge. But it isn't a glitch or a bug, it is just that it adds so much more to the game.

---

So with that said, the only 2 EP I do not have is Supernatural and Showtime. The reason is not about operations, but simply I'm not interested in the elements they add. And since each EP (regardless of which one) will always introduce new elements, new elements will always make the core larger/more complex (some more than others), I rather not have all these added elements affect the performance of my game when I don't use them. The trade off is, some of they have really awesome items I want such as the golf tee, but I guess I'll just have to live without them.

I have Island Paradise, Ambitions, Generations and Seasons and so far the only trouble I have had is with CC content. I don't play with a lot of mods. I don't have any custom worlds, only the base ones and Hidden Springs. I don't have a very powerful processor though. It's just a i3 at 3.30 GHZ. I can't really change it either cos I'd need a new motherboard for that. I'd get some stuttering when in Create A Sim and during snow and it can take some time to load up a save. But it doesn't affect general gameplay like it did on my old computer where it was laggy all the time. Still I haven't played for long in this new session. I do have 10 GB of RAM tho.
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#10 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:48 AM
I have been considering University, Pets and World Adventure. But mostly University as it sounded like Pets and WA was very glitchy.
Mad Poster
#11 Old 23rd May 2018 at 1:49 AM
Well as far as your specs go, you'll be alright. It's not an easy game to run even on more modern hardware, but you're pretty well equipped.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#13 Old 23rd May 2018 at 2:00 AM
Quote: Originally posted by GrijzePilion
Well as far as your specs go, you'll be alright. It's not an easy game to run even on more modern hardware, but you're pretty well equipped.

I did request that the computer should be able to play Sims 3 when I bought it. Though that was before IP and ITF.
Mad Poster
#14 Old 23rd May 2018 at 2:02 AM
Yeah the futuristic clothing is particularly nasty because it's all a bit wacky. The "foreign" clothes don't help much either. But they're both good packs and I strongy recommend Late Night as well as University Life and Into the Future.

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Field Researcher
Original Poster
#15 Old 23rd May 2018 at 2:16 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
IMHO, Generation/Ambitions/Seasons are the 3 most "heavy" EPs out there in terms of performance impact and IP's issues already mentioned. Since you already have them, I wouldn't worry as much about performance impact of other EPs. (but keep in mind, I do not have Supernatural and Showtime, so I cannot say about those 2).

So things like... WA, I say is a must have. And any traveling issue (along with University/ITF) are handled by the NRAAS traveling mod. Pets, again if you don't like pets and animals, then don't get it. Get it if you like pets. I got it b/c pets adds to a realism to the game, but I actually do not like pets. Horses can be disabled even without mods, I think it is in the setting, you can disable them. (If you're worried about their pathing)

Nightlife is a great EP, love the elements it adds - clubs, bars, etc... and min impact on the game performance. A lot of cool items...

University/ITF - both are great, gives 2 more traveling destinations... And they add the element of diploma degree and time almanac, but I find them both having very little impact on the performance. Virtually unless I go into the future or university, I don't even notice I have these two expansions. And they add awesome items, furnitures etc.....

The only thing that does bother me on a regular basis is actually the cultural clothing from WA and ITF. The new clothes are added into the "random" pool? So your sims get random clothing from them when they random clothing... such as future clothes, France, china, and Egypt. but this is fixed by either using the CASP editor or NRAAS dresser.

I have had Seasons since the start. But when I bought the Sims 3 my computer staggered through it. Create a Sim barely worked. In world there was stuttering and I think the game froze a few times. SInce upgrading I haven't had issues. I even dared to up the settings a lil bit from low. However Ambitions, IP and Generations are games I didn't buy that long ago. So far they don't seem to impact that much? But I don't know what would happen once I get into big families and careers. I'll keep it in mind tho in case things start to stutter.
I haven't considered WA that much tbh. I do have NRAAS traveller just in case things I buy WA. (Also because wikispaces is closing.) I do believe I have LN. Think I got it with the starting pack. I don't have Showtime. Don't really have an interest in that expansion either. I'm considering Uni however ITF hasn't been on the forefront of my mind tbh. It doesn't really interest me that much. Like I said tho, I have thought about WA and Pets but worried about glitches.
I have NRAAS Dresser too however I have no idea how to alter XML files for tuning.

I also have Supernatural. I actually bought Sims 3 because of Supernatural expansion. Had no interest until it came around and I loved Teen Wolf.
Mad Poster
#16 Old 23rd May 2018 at 3:54 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Craft90
I do have NRAAS traveller just in case things I buy WA. (Also because wikispaces is closing.)

Hi, just popping in here to say that Wikispaces is merely our current landlord. Yes they are shutting down, but NRaas is not. We will have moved to our new site before that happens.

Also to point out that as of an entire version of the mod ago, you can do vacation travel to any world you have installed using Traveler even if you don't have the WA expansion. It's not a requirement anymore.
Mad Poster
#18 Old 23rd May 2018 at 8:35 AM
I have every EP and SP other than K Perry and I have played a lot. Like gp I have had very few issues. I lost one sim on a trip to Egypt and one to the future I think, and also can count the issues like this on one hand. These are the only 2 I can recall at the moment, so any others were pretty minor problems.
Top Secret Researcher
#19 Old 23rd May 2018 at 2:56 PM
I keep them all because of completeness; folks build world with content from all of them and they don't work well if you don't have them all.
I like Pets for the clothes and nothing else. IP I could do without entirely. the 70's Stuff pack... that's just wrong and embarrassing.

Sims are better than us.
Mad Poster
#20 Old 23rd May 2018 at 3:07 PM
The Decades pack has become essential for me. Not only because I'm doing the '80s-themed world now, but also because much of its Buy Mode content is very useful in a modern or futuristic context.

Funny, by the way, that you call it "the '70s pack". I tend to call it "the '80s pack". Guess it depends on what you look for in that pack. I've never had more fun trying to appropriate a set of clothes and objects. The '70s sectional sofa, the Nagel-style pinups and the '80s floor lamp have become essentials in many of my modern-ish builds. Still trying to find a use for the bell bottoms and the power suit, though.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Mad Poster
#21 Old 23rd May 2018 at 3:25 PM
Quote: Originally posted by GrijzePilion
Still trying to find a use for the bell bottoms and the power suit, though.

Sonny and Cher and Margaret Thatcher Sims.

Because the earth is standing still, and the truth becomes a lie
A choice profound is bittersweet, no one hears Cassandra Goth cry

Mad Poster
#22 Old 23rd May 2018 at 4:14 PM
Well even in the unlikely scenario that I ever need (or want) a Sim modeled after ol' Mags, I hope I'll be able to put her into something more appropriate than that suit.
I've put Amber's mum in it for now, simply because I've been using all the other suits too much lately. I seriously doubt, though, that it's characteristic of her to wear something horribly over the top like that. Amber herself has something considerably more butch for a signature look, but only she can get away with it. Well she and b88 protagonist Laura's future daughter, I guess.

As for dresses, the woman's traditional formalwear, I'm only just getting started with those.

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( Join my dumb Discord server if you're into the whole procrastination thing. But like, maybe tomorrow. )
Scholar
#23 Old 23rd May 2018 at 8:22 PM
I have played all of the EPs except for WA and ITF, so I can't comment on those.
One EP I would suggest to get is Seasons, if you don't have it, mostly because I think the addition of weather can already make a 'big' difference. You don't have to watch your Sims live in a perpetually-sunny world.

It really depends on what you like to do with your sims. Out of the ones listed (WA, Pets or UL), I would probably say UL. It has a lot of clothes for teens and (young) adults that work well if you like 'leisurely' clothes, it ugprades the phone to a smartphone which adds a skill and several new interactions with sims, and the addition of Street Art and various items for skills is quite fun. I can't say much for the University gameplay itself because I don't send my sims to University.

Pets is quite fun, but unless you spend hours interacting with the pets or focus on horses, they lose their novelty aspect very fast. I think it was also listed as THE toughest EP on the computer in terms of graphics and hardware. (IP was another one of those, alongside Seasons and ITF)
Field Researcher
Original Poster
#24 Old 23rd May 2018 at 8:28 PM Last edited by Craft90 : 23rd May 2018 at 8:56 PM.
I do have Seasons. I'm considering UL. I'm not that interested in Pets tbh and if it's as tough as you say, probably a bad idea. Sure my specs are good. But I don't wanna put my computer through the paces. It's stuttering enough as it is (have the issues with TOO MANY CARS and some Sim that can't grow up getting caught by Overwatch.) Seasons works alright. Snowfall does make it stutter a little. Not too interested in Into the Future either. I do have IP but I haven't yet been there.

Edit. Starting to get enough stuttering that it's impacting gameplay now...
Scholar
#25 Old 23rd May 2018 at 9:19 PM
WIthout mods, Pets can seriously turn your TS3 neighbourhood into lagcity. WIth all the extra entities that need to find their way, the crappy routing on EA's default maps just becomes more obvious. Same goes for IP map and those boat taxis.

Then there are two things to consider :
- How much lag or short freezes you can stomach, is very personal. In a certain situation, one person might think it is fine, while the other is pulling their hair out from frustration (that would be me).
- Because of how different each person's save can behave (depending on so many personal gameplay factors), there can also be an objective difference in performance.

So, while I am happy to read that some have no issues with all expansion and stuff packs installed, I find it at the same time useless in trying to determine if I would have issues with everything installed.

Anyway, there are no EP's to avoid. But that is mostly thanks to the modding community that gave us options to optimize the game and turn off or tone down the worst glaring issues. But vanilla TS3 is just shit with everything installed (performance wise).
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