Midnight Hollow or Aurora Skies?

lisahayley

Hey guys! Just out of curiosity, which world do you prefer? Please list as many reasons to support why. I'm considering getting one as a Christmas gift from my family, yet it's a difficult decision for me.
Note: I'm also interested in how the worlds looks with every season, especially fall and winter

Corinini

Personally, neither one of them is my favorite store world to play in (roaring heights!) but I do a lot of poaching from all the worlds for my own CAW creations, so I'm pretty familiar with what they have.

I'd say the "stuff" in Midnight Hollow is much nicer. I love the style of the sims and houses. That being said, there is the "dark" factor. For some people that makes this town unplayable. I didn't really mind it, but the fact that it is so stylized and different from other worlds makes it harder to just drop in a lot from somewhere else and have it match. Also, it makes poaching the lots for other worlds harder because you have to redo all of the landscaping (and maybe lighten up the colors) for it to fit in. But the lots and sims are so nice that for me it's worth going through the trouble. Also, I love having shops (waaay better premium content than the hot air balloon). That and the restaurant are probably the two items of pc that I use the most in my game. So on items alone I'd definitely take Midnight Hollow over Aurora Skies. I also enjoy playing in it, but I understand why some people don't. It's very dark, so you have to like that kind of odd style/thing it's got going. If you don't like it, you're really not going to like the world.

All that being said, I think Aurora skies is probably a more accessible town. The lots are cute and can easily be remade to match other worlds. It does have it's own style, but lots/sims from other sources are less likely to stick out like a sore thumb. I'd say it also has a slight edge on the seasonal question, because many of the trees change color, and it really does look beautiful in winter. Midnight Hollow trees are black and deadish, but it does have a cool spooky vibe on foggy/rainy days and in the winter.

So to sum it up I'd say really it comes down to how you feel about the aesthetic of the two places, because they are very very different. Personally I love Midnight Hollow, and I think Aurora Skies is okay, but I could also see someone else really hating Midnight Hollow. And while the hot air balloon is kind of nice sometimes, the store for me is transformative to the way I build lots. Midnight Hollow also has 92 lots while Aurora Skies has 84 - so you have more space to add lots from EPs and store content, but it will be harder for those things to fit in.

Nofravell

I have both, I love them both. MH is perfect to play supernatural sims in and AS makes an excellent world for adding all your favourite expantions. I realise that this post is not that helpful, but it's all about what you intend to use the world for.

lisahayley

Thank you @Corinini :) Your comment/opinion is very helpful and I appreciate it! And thanks to @Nofravell as well! It's such a touch decision still lol! But that narrowed things down a bit.

moonandsixpens

In case you want both worlds but have a budget constrain:
If you are incredibly patient you can view the sponsor ads everyday until you get enough simpoints then you can go to make me an offer to get the discounted world. One view gives you 5 simpoints (I wouldn't have the patient myself but you are welcome to try!) and you probably have to wait for days until you can get the world you want from the offer. I think AS is easier to get from the offer than MH, but I could be wrong.
I used the make me an offer method and got the sunlit tides standard version with the price cheaper than simply purchasing it, and the offer came with other stuff sets. Not a bad deal.

lisahayley

Thank you @moonandsixpens it's just that I am from Canada and so I don't have this opportunity as apparently this is something only for the US

moonandsixpens

> @lisahayley said:
> Thank you moonandsixpens it's just that I am from Canada and so I don't have this opportunity as apparently this is something only for the US :(

Oh, my site is US by default. It seems that I can switch locations though. Have you tried to switch your location by clicking the little flag on the top left corner of the store page? Maybe that will work?

lisahayley

Okay I will try that Thanks again! @moonandsixpens

YoSimmer

I haven't tried Aurora Skies, but I have Midnight Hollow and I hate it. It's too dark for me--it makes me feel claustrophobic. When I play it, I miss the wider-open expanse of the brighter worlds.

SemaviLady

I played Midnight Hollow on an old laptop, which had a medium low level graphics card and the world was indeed rather too dark. Adjusting the brightness of the system graphics did not help, for example, anything white would then glow with a halo.

However my new gaming laptop gives a much more playable world that is in fact quite beautiful. I think graphics settings can make a difference in how much a person finds the world playable.

Curious, I changed the settings on my newer laptop to configure it to Windows XP 3 compatibility mode, and then played the game, it was once again far too dark that way, so I removed compatibility mode and when I played, the world was much nicer.

Perhaps it is possible when people get system upgrades, they might find Midnight Hollow more playable.

lisahayley

Oh ok thank you @SemaviLady

despina53

@lisahayley - the Simpoint ads are now available internationally. You should be able to find them on the TS3 store pages; just keep checking the pages a few times a day and you should find them

ellsbeth_whimsy

I saved up my simpoints earned from viewing adds to purchase Midnight Hollow. It took me about a month. I'd have days with no videos available and then days I could earn 50-100 simpoints. It does take patience. It was hard not spending those points!

The main reason I chose MH was that I wanted the Savvy Sellers Collection... I moved my current family to MH right away. But I still haven't bothered to buy or create them a store. And I couldn't wait to do it while I was earning the points! Lol. I am so fickle. I've been a little disappointed with how dark the world is. I'm glad to hear it is a graphics card issue rather than a MH issue. Right now, I play on an older laptop. But I have a new desktop that should play the game better -- I just need to get a monitor for it. I'll be interested to see the difference!

SemaviLady

The CPU does matter as well but a great card can make a difference--they work together so results may vary on different systems. I'm glad you've made progress with the sim point thing. At current time, there is something that is messing up the store website so until identify it and they repair it, advertisements for free sim points are offline. It's been about a week, so far I think. Very frustrating.

Also if you haven't seen it already, Origin is currently having a Sim Sale
https://www.origin.com/en-us/store/

All the best to you!

ellsbeth_whimsy

Thank you for that information, SemaviLady. The lack of advertisements for the simpoints is driving me a little crazy. I noticed the sale at Origin this afternoon. I still have 4 eps to purchase. I'm thinking of nabbing at least one during the sale. I'm torn between Seasons and Into the Future.

SemaviLady

I'm no good at guessing which expansions anyone would like most, I gave up long time ago!
However, Carl's site might give you more information on what might strike your fancy in priorities.
http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/expansionpacks.php

Have fun!

Bleubell

I love the items that come with Aurora Skies; the hot air balloon and the toddler objects. I use these more than the toy machine that came with Midnight Hollow in game. Plus, the auroras in the sky are beautiful! But it really depends on which playing style you have. If you like brighter worlds and the family aspect of the game, go Aurora skies but if you enjoy the dark and edgy/steampunk, maybe supernatural side of the game, I'd go with Midnight Hollow. Hope this helps, even if it's a little after Christmas!