Hi there! You are currently browsing as a guest. Why not create an account? Then you get less ads, can thank creators, post feedback, keep a list of your favourites, and more!
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#1 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 4:33 PM
Default What Aspiration Rewards do you use?
I tend to forget that AR exist, but when I happen to remember, I scroll through them and then decide that I'm not actually interested in using any of them.

When I first started playing TS2 again I was using the thinking cap, the smart milk, and the money tree all very often, but the more used to the game I got the less I found myself using Aspiration Rewards. I didn't feel like I needed them anymore and they wound up being phased out of my gameplay.

What are your favorite AR? Do your Sims have to meet additional requirements to use them? Do only certain Sims get to have them?
Advertisement
Mad Poster
#2 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 4:41 PM
I still have a few money trees hanging around in Drama Acres. I sometimes use Smart Milk if there's a story reason parents might have it/know how to make it. I use Elixir to give people the life lengths I think they should have. If I want a family without $6500 simoleons to spare to have a hot tub, I use the love tub.

The others I have never used; or have used only experimentally.

Ugly is in the heart of the beholder.
(My simblr isSim Media Res . Widespot,Widespot RFD: The Subhood, and Land Grant University are all available here. In case you care.)
Instructor
#3 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 4:48 PM
The one I use more often is definitely the Thinking Cap, I get at least one per household, followed by the Smart Milk (I hate toddlers!).
Apart from that, I barely use the others, with the exception of the Love Tube (just because it's cute) and in some 'emergencies' the Energizer and the Weathet Machine when it won't stop snowing.
All the others are almost absent in my game, although I enjoy quite a lot the Carrer rewards.
Mad Poster
#4 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 6:11 PM
In my game, only aliens can attain and thus they only able to use those gizmos (like with the money tree, I feel those rewards are there to blend in with the civilized society on sim earth). Though I have yet to see any of these extraterrestrial take a visit to the planet.

P.S. Sorry for my bad english.
Undead Molten Llama
#5 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 6:27 PM
None of them. Ever. Too cheaty, IMO.

(Although if a kid is designated as a "genius" in my game -- all kids have a small random chance of being one, alien babies have a high chance of being one, and kids born of genius parents and/or who have alien ancenstry have a higher chance of being one; I keep track of the "genes" on my spreadsheet -- I'll use the Batbox to apply the "stuck SmartMilk" effect to them when they become a toddler. But I don't use the SmartMilk itself.)

I'm mostly found on (and mostly upload to) Tumblr these days because, alas, there are only 24 hours in a day.
Muh Simblr! | An index of my downloads on Tumblr.
Link Ninja
#6 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 6:32 PM
I tend to use career rewards more than aspiration rewards these days. Anything I need to enhance I could use with ARs I just use mods. The Career rewards I really like are the camera for portraits and the speaker stand for Lawyers that gives them like 5 simoleons every second they speak.

Uh oh! My social bar is low - that's why I posted today.

Mad Poster
#7 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 6:58 PM
The only one I really abuse to death is that darn pinball machine. For parents who have children who must go to college, it's a way of making money in addition to their careers. Plus the visitors enjoy it.

Receptacle Refugee & Resident Polar Bear
"Get out of my way, young'un, I'm a ninja!"
Grave Matters: The funeral podium is available here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/e6tj...albits.zip/file
My other downloads are here: https://app.mediafire.com/myfiles
Scholar
#8 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 7:48 PM
Way back in the day I used to regularly use the oney tree, it's very existence was amusing enough that I'd just have it for having it. Once I used the resurrect phone thing but that was really efforty and it was kind of meh. Another time I used the simvac. That was 11/10 fun, cos my sim was evil and I made them go about the town luring sims into friendships inviting them over and bam! Skills-be-gone!
Mad Poster
#9 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 8:45 PM
I only use elixir of life for my elders - no reason why they should not use theirs before kicking the bucket


I should use the money tree more - I just don't think of it. As for he counterfeit machine, my sim was visited by a police officer and fined, so I am ignoring that one.

The career rewards are handy at times - I have the obstacle course in a park; the boxing bag in the community gym, the charisma podium in the city hall - but the rest - when a sim deserves it, a sim gets it. Since all family members can use it, it is useful at times.
Top Secret Researcher
#10 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 9:21 PM
I rarely use them. I've had those in petty crime use the money tree and later the counterfeiting machine (which you can only use for a short time anyway). In the past I've used the thinking cap and smart milk. Now just alien babies get smart milk (if I remember). I've had an 'evil' sim use the SimVac, but other than that only the love tub. The career rewards are more useful, I think.
Test Subject
#11 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 10:14 PM
I occasionally use Smart Milk and the Thinking Cap. That's pretty much it. I've used the Money Tree and Elixir of Life before, but I don't like using them because it feels too cheaty.
Mad Poster
#12 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 10:37 PM
Elders can use the elixir if they have the points. They can't buy it and allow others to use it. Some Sims don't get to live long enough in my opinion so usually If they reach perma-platinum they use the elixir to get a little longer with their family (although I give them extra wrinkles and they have to retire)

~Your friendly neighborhood ginge
Mad Poster
#13 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 10:46 PM
Quote: Originally posted by SneakyWingPhoenix
In my game, only aliens can attain and thus they only able to use those gizmos (like with the money tree, I feel those rewards are there to blend in with the civilized society on sim earth). Though I have yet to see any of these extraterrestrial take a visit to the planet.

Oh and I'll probably use respective rewards for alies that have corresponding aspiration to the item (cool shades for popularity, love tub for romance, etc)

P.S. Sorry for my bad english.
Mad Poster
#14 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 11:51 PM
The only Aspiration Rewards I really use are the Money Tree and the Love Tub. I first used the Money Trees when I started to have teens living on their own, since they can't get decent-paying adult jobs. (Teen jobs pay a pittance and, when you add on homework and school, leave them with no time to live.) The same applied to Elders if they were created in CAS and therefore didn't have a pension. (A Pescado hack now lets my Elders get adult jobs.) A few Fortune Sims have Money Trees too.

Nearly every family gets a Love Tub sooner or later. Yes they look a bit tacky, but hardly any of my Sims have got §6,500 to spend on a hot tub, but they've all got 20,000 (and more) Aspiration Points. And there's no shame in it looking tacky when every house in town has one.

These are also the only two Aspiration Rewards that come with no real negative side effects. (The worst that can happen with a Money Tree is that you only get one Simoleon -- but I reckon that's still money for nothing.)

All Sims are beautiful -- even the ugly ones.
My Simblr ~~ My LJ
Sims' lives matter!
The Veronaville kids are alright.
Mad Poster
#15 Old 29th Jul 2018 at 11:55 PM
I wouldn't mind some of the rewards so much if they weren't so damn enormous.

I'm secretly a Bulbasaur. | Formerly known as ihatemandatoryregister

Looking for SimWardrobe's mods? | Or Dizzy's? | Faiuwle/rufio's too! | smorbie1's Chris Hatch archives
Mad Poster
#16 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 12:08 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Bulbizarre
I wouldn't mind some of the rewards so much if they weren't so damn enormous.

That's why you should leave space to build a vault for keeping prisoners in and to store those ginormous items.

P.S. Sorry for my bad english.
Field Researcher
#17 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 12:10 AM
Smart Milk is used by everyone in my game, so toddlers can actually play instead of just learning to walk or talk. Knowledge sims can get the Thinking Cap, especially of they need those last points and especially if they want to max all skills. For the same reason really - I respect their wishes but want to see them do more than just study.
The Money Tree I sometimes give to Wealth teenagers, so they can at least fulfill that 'Earn some money' want and the Love Tub is primarily for Romance and Pleasure sims. That Need Maximalizer thingie goes to sims owning businesses, with the low profit margins that Maxis thought was a good idea some business owners need every boost they can get. Obviously, someone who sells expensive antiques needs it less than someone running a restaurant or hair salon.
The Elixir of Life I use to change up the ages of CAS sims, especially the first batch to populate a neighbourhood, but I also use it on CAS sims because they have a much harder time achieving stuff than sims born in-game. Kibble of Life gets used sometimes too. Plus, my sims get way too much Aspiration Points from dates, they need to use them for something!
Test Subject
#18 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 1:04 AM
I never use any of them. I feel like they would make things too easy.
e3 d3 Ne2 Nd2 Nb3 Ng3
retired moderator
#19 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 1:06 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Bulbizarre
I wouldn't mind some of the rewards so much if they weren't so damn enormous.

Just wait until you try Sims 4!
Field Researcher
#20 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 1:53 AM
Elixir of Life can be useful if I want to keep a Sim alive or young for whatever reason. Otherwise, I typically don't bother.

I'm thinking all through the night
I could be yours just like before
Rewrite another try
'Cause we've had the loneliest time
Needs Coffee
retired moderator
#21 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 3:10 AM
I don't think I use any of them anymore.

Smart milk is the same as setting smart on the bat box, so for sims who are smart I would rather do that. it often unsets and needs resetting through a sims lifetime anyway and only toddlers can drink smart milk.

Elixer is just 3 more days added, the sim blender does that easily.

Money tree-from what I can remember never gave out much. If I have a money grabbing sim I could see me using that for story purposes.

Since I removed harder skilling I don't use the thinking cap sicne that would make skilling too fast.

What else is there?

"I dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives." - Unknown
~Call me Jo~
Mad Poster
#22 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 5:54 AM
Smart milk, always, though you only need one bottle per toddler. Aside from that, I mainly use CC aspiration rewards: wolf attraction sign, ghostbuster, and automatic NPC scheduler. I also buy 5 love tubs (100k aspiration points exactly) every time someone hits 200k, so I can keep track of how successful different sims/families have been and the banked aspiration points don't cap out at 327,670 due to it being stored as a signed short integer. When sims are about to die, I have them give all of their love tubs to the sim I consider their heir, so I can keep track of score over generations. So far my main branch in my current hood has something like 90-100 love tubs.
Instructor
#23 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 5:44 PM
I always forget they exist, until I read about them on MTS.
Theorist
#24 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 6:11 PM
Of the aspiration rewards I only really use that weird machine that boost the needs of the Sim on occasion. Like if they did something stupid without me noticing and now it's 6 AM and their energy bar is red. Screw that. Resetting a sleep rhythm is bad enough in reality, don't need it with my Sims.

The career rewards I use in households where it makes sense (like the science and medical rewards in houses with a mad scientist or some such)

Avatar by MasterRed
Taking an extended break from Sims stuff. Might be around, might not.
Alchemist
#25 Old 30th Jul 2018 at 9:26 PM
in past times playing, Smart Milk and Elixir were the most frequently used aspiration rewards in my game.

this time playing; Smart Milk would probably again be frequently used.
Back to top