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Scholar
#51 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 1:50 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Goldbear
I agree. Can someone just pull the plug on the life support machine now?

If Seasons is announced tomorrow it won’t change things (and it will be shit, I dread to think how Seasons on a budget would look!) unlike some on officials, I don’t want content for the sake of it. I don’t want them to milk it further. That’s a crazy attitude. They may as well just open their wallets and let EA rob them when they feel like it.

Who are the other long standing veteran devs that were forced to go?


I've actually wondered this myself. I was looking around at SimGuru accounts on Twitter and there are so many who haven't tweeted in a long time. Graham is clearly still around. Lyndsay, I read has been on maternity leave since December and isn't supposed to be back until June. And Ninja's been around too, so not sure.

I hate to say this, but it pains me that Daniel was let go, and Rodiek is probably still on the team. He's the one I've been most curious about (even though he's not actually a SimGuru anymore), because I think if anyone should have went, it should have been him.
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Department of Post-Mortem Communications
#52 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 2:03 AM
He'll soon be promoted to head of studio, mark my words.
Scholar
#53 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 2:12 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Don Babilon
He'll soon be promoted to head of studio, mark my words.


My blood pressure can't handle the thought of that.
Lab Assistant
#54 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 5:07 AM
EA released information recently bragging about the quarterly sales of the Pets expansion. I don't understand why fiscally this would make sense. Sure there is a mobile market to tap into, but the PC game still sells well and has a strong following. Innovation can only get you so far. They have a loyal fan base that most companies would kill to gain, but yet they regularly disregard us.
Theorist
#55 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 5:26 AM
Quote: Originally posted by yungspitta
EA released information recently bragging about the quarterly sales of the Pets expansion. I don't understand why fiscally this would make sense. Sure there is a mobile market to tap into, but the PC game still sells well and has a strong following. Innovation can only get you so far. They have a loyal fan base that most companies would kill to gain, but yet they regularly disregard us.

Just like the democrats in the 2016 election they manage to snatch defeat out of the hands of victory :^)

Everything was going so well for them. Success was practically guaranteed; handed to them on a silver platter acquiring a AAA franchise with an insanely loyal following already established. They still somehow managed to screw it up.
Scholar
#56 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 6:16 AM
PHONES ARE FOR SENDING DICK PICS ON TINDER NOT FOR TRIPLE A VIDEO GAME KNOCK OFFS

I'm writing a TV series, yeah. It's a cross between True Detective and Pretty Little Liars.
Forum Resident
#57 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 6:20 AM
I own a cell phone
it wanted to play with me
now my hand is numb

When an engineer says that something can't be done, it's a code phrase that means it's not fun to do.
Field Researcher
#58 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 6:44 AM
I was hanging out with my neighbor tonight, she was an avid TS2 player but couldn't run TS3 or 4 on the laptops she owned after. She played Sims Freeplay some years back, I remember that. We were out one night and she was fiddling with her phone to check in on her sims. Anyway we got to talking tonight and, she would still like to play the series some day if she purchases a computer that can run them but for now she does her stuff through tablet and phone because that is what she owns, her laptop went kaput. She still loves the Sims and fondly talks about TS2 and even she said she would not be interested in playing sims mobile and that she would prefer to experience the latest version on a computer and not a mobile device. She agreed that it shouldn't be phased out from PC or consoles and that moving it strictly to mobile devices is a bad idea.
Field Researcher
#59 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 6:49 AM
The reddit one I think is fake because he sounded just like another angry fans. He didn't even had any clue to explain what happens inside the studio
Instructor
#60 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 7:22 AM
Nail. Coffin.

It has been sad to see our beloved series gradually decline, but I don't think anyone who has followed the series with a realistic outlook would be at all surprised by this news. It does seem strange that they would change focus when The Sims Mobile seems to be doing so poorly, dropping off the charts, using cross-promotions to inflate registrations, etc, but I suspect there's just enough players and micro-transactions taking place right now to cover the development costs and if they can successfully market the game to the mobile-generation (I have no faith in them doing so though) it might be good for them (but not us).
Department of Post-Mortem Communications
#61 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 8:21 AM
Quote: Originally posted by ShigemiNotoge
(...)
Everything was going so well for them. Success was practically guaranteed; handed to them on a silver platter acquiring a AAA franchise with an insanely loyal following already established. They still somehow managed to screw it up.
Just a minor correction: The Sims has always been an EA game, not a later acquisition. If I remember correctly the Sims wouldn't actually exist if Maxis hadn't been bought by EA because Maxis thought that it wouldn't sell and wanted to abandon it.
Mad Poster
#62 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 10:15 AM
I think I dreamt tonight Seasons being made very well but with very little to no recreational activities added to it. Lol, anyway finally that is cockroach is finally dying. While I understand that's nothing to cheer about, but hey could they have done anything to save it? TS4 is like very few steps away for EA to push the hero of the clip, while the fans (we) are begging for him not to do it. A new hero will emerge (a competitor or same company made), or it may not. Dunno what else to add to this thread that hasn't been already said it by someone. I wouldn't say that all developers love this game. Kind of like employees at mcdonalds, whilst the junk food may taste good that doesn't really correspond with the mood they're working there.
Instructor
#63 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 1:13 PM
Quote: Originally posted by yungspitta
EA released information recently bragging about the quarterly sales of the Pets expansion. I don't understand why fiscally this would make sense. Sure there is a mobile market to tap into, but the PC game still sells well and has a strong following. Innovation can only get you so far. They have a loyal fan base that most companies would kill to gain, but yet they regularly disregard us.


This happens because:

1) Money =/= Intelligence. There's a number of different forms of intellect and experience and yes, luck is a thing. I stand to inherit a great sum of cash in the near future, does this mean my IQ is about to spike? Of course not: luck is a thing and it is entirely possible to be great in one form of intellect but fully neglect another to an outrageously damaging degree. The remainder of the staff could be very gifted with marketing, for example, but terrible at budgeting or investing. And as we see, their plans for the Sims seem incredibly short-term and focused solely on squeezing as much money out of Sims 4 as possible, NOT in investing towards a better Sims 4 or an improved Sims 5.

2) There's a great post on the forums where I believe someone quoted Steve Jobs about how a certain company started going under: too much middle management, not enough actual workers. The company became flooded with so many people in marketing and sales, but was actually fundamentally lacking in the people in charge of actually making the product. You cannot create a company off marketing alone. You need something to market or your company just dies. Here we are seeing a 20 year veteran of the franchise that's been with it since the beginning has just been fired. That is absolutely symbolic. This is someone that's been producing content since day one, now he's gone. Now the question is how do we get content in the future, but by God I'll bet EA has their entire marketing and sales team still ready and employed, oblivious to how off the ratio is.

3) Plenty of investors actually gain wealth by buying out failing companies and HELPING them fail by siphoning their debts to it. These companies weren't intended as things to be rebuilt for those investors, they were intended as financial scapegoats to exploit and leech off of. These guys may at times not even review the potential profit in injecting money into those companies to help them build back up, but instead might just see them as something to exploit until they can go no further. In that same sense, EA actively used Sims 3's budget for example to fund other games under their belt. Whether EA sees the value of pouring money back into their cash cow or intends to milk it dry til it's nothing but bones...? Well, we're seeing the strategy they chose. Is it smart? Probably not, but it's what they chose. They apparently seem to see all their franchises as expendable, including a top 10 video game franchise. Thank God these idiots don't hold the rights to Zelda or Super Mario.

In short, yes it's stupid. It's stupid as shit. Unfortunately, people are heavily flawed. I think anyone who's even spent as much as one semester at a university can tell you even total idiots can end up with a degree, so sadly incompetence can come from anywhere.

The only bright side with this is yes, that mobile game is going to be a god damned tire fire and a terrible investment. I stand by what I said other times: EA doesn't know it yet, but this is the beginning of the end for them, too. They'll outlive Sims by a long shot, but they've got an expiration date too as long as the terrible choices they've been making since Mass Effect Andromeda (over a year ago now that they've been bombing out) continue. Their day will come.
Lab Assistant
#64 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 1:25 PM


Wow just wow

EA's "How To" destroy a once successful and beloved franchise.
Mad Poster
#65 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 1:46 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Liza
It's terrible to see how EA maims one of my favorite game series. Sims has always been, basically a game for the PC. With console games, she was unlucky, but I really like Sims 2 on the PSP. But Sims for me has never been tamagochi with funny animations (Sims 4 and mobile games). For me, this Sims is not a computer game in the usual sense. It's a life simulator with the ability to build your own stories, worlds, with deep psychology and very elegant humor which is everywhere - in character animations, in the descriptions of objects ... A life simulator that highlights amazing, important life events of characters. (I think you can guess what game is described here).

That Simsguru from the reddit is right: they really lost the vision of the series. At first it turned into a GOOD "like-rpg" (Sims 3), then it sucks (Sims 4). Now they want to turn it into a stupid mobile games. Yes, the game industry is business, but games are not only a product, but also the creativity and work of developers. Unfortunately, creativity in new games is less and less ...

Perhaps this is already the death of the series, but I think the Sims community will exist and expand. Especially the Sims 2 community. After all, the game has so many unsolved secrets and interactions.
Let this series go away. We have Sims 2. Looking at these events, I think this game will live. The task of the moders is to make sure that the game can work as long as possible. After all, the game is quite old, but it's the only representative of life simulators ...


Well, there was one particular smartphone game on a works that is basically an unofficial fan remake of TS1 Complete Collection (full expansion packs) by FreeSO that had a potential offering a great in-depth game onto mobile port If it weren't for EA asking the creator to shut down the project (for a blatant belief of mine that TSM wouldn't have a chance to defeat it with its money-greedy-blind mentality poured into their carried across platform game). Sure, not better as TS2 or TS3, but it would at least turn out to be way in all forms and from all sides better than EA's mobile crap.
Scholar
#66 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 1:50 PM
Quote: Originally posted by SneakyWingPhoenix
Well, there was one particular smartphone game on a works that is basically an unofficial fan remake of TS1 Complete Collection (full expansion packs) by FreeSO that had a potential offering a great in-depth game onto mobile port If it weren't for EA asking the creator to shut down the project (for a blatant belief of mine that TSM wouldn't have a chance to defeat it with its money-greedy-blind mentality poured into their carried across platform game). Sure, not better as TS2 or TS3, but it would at least turn out to be way in all forms and from all sides better than EA's mobile crap.

What's FreeSO?
Instructor
#67 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 2:50 PM
Quote: Originally posted by SneakyWingPhoenix
Well, there was one particular smartphone game on a works that is basically an unofficial fan remake of TS1 Complete Collection (full expansion packs) by FreeSO that had a potential offering a great in-depth game onto mobile port If it weren't for EA asking the creator to shut down the project (for a blatant belief of mine that TSM wouldn't have a chance to defeat it with its money-greedy-blind mentality poured into their carried across platform game). Sure, not better as TS2 or TS3, but it would at least turn out to be way in all forms and from all sides better than EA's mobile crap.


Whoa. That startled me for a second. The only TSM I happily acknowledge is The Sims Medieval.

A fool and his money are soon parted. ~ Thomas Tusser
Mad Poster
#68 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 3:37 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Squidconqueror
What's FreeSO?

A restoration project that restored the sims online. It's free (hence the name, FreeSO (Simulation Online) to download and play. Look it up at http://freeso.org/
Mad Poster
#69 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 3:38 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Nic


Wow just wow

EA's "How To" destroy a once successful and beloved franchise.


Fans: “Here’s a winning formula: The Sims 2. Beloved then, and now. Make something similar to this.”

EA: “You said you want us to charge you the cost of a full priced game for an ugly virtual bedroom set in a free-to-play mobile game that you can’t play whenever and however you want?”

Fans: “We will pay you for a game similar to TS2. Make that.”

EA: “You don’t want to wait a real world hour for a sim to eat? Did you know you can speed that up by giving us money!?”

Fans: “Please make a normal game.”

EA employee: “Fans don’t know how hard game development is!”

Fans: “We will pay you for your hard work. Please, make this!”

EA employee: *long 83-post-long twitter rant about how hard it was to make the talking toilet that no one wanted in a pack full of half-baked features people actually wanted, but were executed terribly*

Fans: “You’re over exaggerating. Please use TS2 as a blueprint to make future games.”

EA employee: *triggered by the use of ‘over exaggerating.’*

Fans: *leaves to find a competitor*

SimsVIP: “EA Games announces ‘The Sims 2: Remastred,’ an exact copy of the complete of The Sims 2 collection but with bloom and no additional bug fixes, sold at retail value, even though it can be downloaded for free from Origin if you ask.”

->> Check Out Checkout: Journey To Employee Of The Month! <<-

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Scholar
#70 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 4:36 PM
On a serious note, I'd completely buy a remastered copy of Sims 2 if it was 64 bit. Not even exaggerating a little bit.

So be it. Move. ~Jason Bourne
Simblr
Instructor
#71 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 5:19 PM
Ahahaha and I'm banned again. I didn't even directly address a single user and made a grand total of 4 posts, with only one being longer than a sentence. Saw they'd gone through and quietly removed basically all of them, and now about 2 hours later, here I am and suddenly there's a ban. This one seems permanent too since it's acting different on log in.

This is all just a sad joke at this point. No devs around but by God they have the staff to patrol those forums and purge anything that could even remotely encourage critical thought! EA really is absolutely shameless.
Mad Poster
#73 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 5:34 PM Last edited by SneakyWingPhoenix : 21st Apr 2018 at 5:44 PM.
Quote: Originally posted by DeservedCriticism
Ahahaha and I'm banned again. I didn't even directly address a single user and made a grand total of 4 posts, with only one being longer than a sentence. Saw they'd gone through and quietly removed basically all of them, and now about 2 hours later, here I am and suddenly there's a ban. This one seems permanent too since it's acting different on log in.

This is all just a sad joke at this point. No devs around but by God they have the staff to patrol those forums and purge anything that could even remotely encourage critical thought! EA really is absolutely shameless.

Well, this will be a fun year, will it not?

Were you banned because you argued with that jackjack_k, as far as I recall your last replies being towards to (also, for some reason I can't check your list of threads & comments, so could that mean a perma-ban?). Some people do start getting annoyed over threads they lock that have concerns of fired gurus.

http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/dis...d-thread#latest

I wonder how long will everything last? When will TS4 be considered death after they move to that crappy platform vision ? Only a year?
Department of Post-Mortem Communications
#74 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 5:48 PM
SimGurus were known to also log into MTS from time to time, so it is not even necessary to say something at the officials to get banned if you are a known "trouble-maker".
Theorist
#75 Old 21st Apr 2018 at 6:02 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Don Babilon
Just a minor correction: The Sims has always been an EA game, not a later acquisition. If I remember correctly the Sims wouldn't actually exist if Maxis hadn't been bought by EA because Maxis thought that it wouldn't sell and wanted to abandon it.

Oh right, I guess I was more referring to the time when they started heavily interfering with the franchise rather than letting the studio act mostly as it's own separate entity. My mistake.
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