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Feeling overwhelmed - Help getting back into TS3

I've installed all of my games and Store content/CC this weekend and I was really excited to actually PLAY for the first time in years. But, each time I open up the game I load a world (after debating for ages) and start looking for a house to decorate and after a while I give up and close the game. It just seems a bit overwhelming to go right back into the middle of it when I'm so used to 4 now. I don't know what world to play in, which house to live in, what I want to do and who I want to make. Do you guys have any advice for easing myself back into playing?

Comments

  • SimplyJenSimplyJen Posts: 14,823 Member
    edited May 2017
    Do you have any favorite premades or maybe a sim you created and have backed up somewhere? Do you have a favorite world?

    Sometimes it's better to just jump into the game instead of trying to find the perfect house. Worry about that later if you just want to play the game. I know I used to be really picky about houses and everything had to be perfect. I realized I ended up focusing on that more than actually playing the game. Instead, find a premade house in the world or by another creator, plop down the household, and just start playing! As the sim weeks go on, gradually start changing the interior + exterior of the house.

    If you don't have a favorite world, choose a world that you've never played before or hardly touched. If you don't have a household in mind, start by creating a sim that you wouldn't normally play. Change things up.

    This is my favorite spot to grab lots:
    http://gelinadownloads.tumblr.com/tagged/xlots
    Random legacy challenge if you want to play a legacy. It gives you set goals for each generation.
    http://randomlegacychallenge.blogspot.com/
    You don't have to do the challenge if you just want some randomized options to give you an idea:
    http://randomlegacychallengeapp.weebly.com/
    i7-13700K • 16GB • RTX 4070
    S3 simblr: http://simplysimming.tumblr.com/
    S4 simblr: http://simlogic.tumblr.com/
  • SindocatSindocat Posts: 5,622 Member
    It's easy to get overwhelmed when you have a lot of options, but if you can narrow it down even a little, the rest can just follow. Pick one thing that you'd like your Sim(s) to be about, to start with, and then use that to determine where to go from there.

    Example: "I kinda want to get into Nectar making." Well, one can grow grapes in any Sim town, really... but Monte Vista looks like classic vinyard country for sure. Okay, so we'll go with this country house with space to garden, and a shed for the nectar maker, and put a cellar underneath. Let's see, I'll want Green Thumb for growing good ingredients. And we'll give their partner Natural Cook and put them in the Culinary track... And so on.

    Pick one thing - anything - and then use free association from there. :) Happy Simming!
  • inmyeyeinmyeye Posts: 396 Member
    First of all I wouldn't force it. Maybe it's time for a castaway game? Or a small village? RFLong has a wonderful small world called "Lonely" Island. Get those creative juices flowing. I'm actually enjoying the fact that the world loads in like one minute. I found a creator on the web that converted all the Sims 2 castaway wall and floor textures to Sims 3. I just started a game with two sims. A brother and his younger sister shipwrecked. Who knows where that will go? I'm also thinking about creating a small Japanese village on the Island as a separate game. There is an amazing amount of Japanese cc out there that is still available. Sim on.
    “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform (or pause and reflect).”
    ― Mark Twain
  • MazakeenMazakeen Posts: 440 Member
    @Simanite - Start with 1 sim, in a very small cheap house... ...just get used to the controls first, not primarly start building/decorating.
    First find your inventory. find your diploma, pull it over to a wall. -That's a good start.
    Getting the hang of clicking items and using menues is also a good start before venturing into build-mode. -That can be exasperating for well-travelled simmers as well.
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    Rawwrr...
  • GITTE2001GITTE2001 Posts: 2,638 Member
    What you could do to, is deinstalling some EP's, and only installing the major ones which ad basic stuff: seasons, generations and pets. Or starting with only the base game and then building up. Otherwise, with all EP's, it's obvious it gets overwhelming: there are so many options!
  • CitySimmer16CitySimmer16 Posts: 331 Member
    The camera controls will always wreck me when I go back to TS3 camera controls in TS4
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  • SimaniteSimanite Posts: 4,833 Member
    Thank you for the replies! I'm going to comment more in-depth later. The Sims 4 section has turned toxic lately so I'm going to spend more time here.
  • Jessa_DakkarJessa_Dakkar Posts: 9,737 Member
    Hi @Simanite! Jumping right into a complete Sims 3 is a hugely overwhelming experience, so much to do! I look forward to seeing how your game unfolds, hope you have lots of fun. Just in case you don't, there's probably a mod for that. :D
  • JoAnne65JoAnne65 Posts: 22,959 Member
    edited May 2017
    Like the others say, jumping into all of it is too much, you'll have to make choices. You could base those choices on what you haven't done before? Same with the world you choose.
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  • Uzone27Uzone27 Posts: 2,808 Member
    I tried playing TS3 again a few weeks ago and I can tell you exactly why I only spent about an hour with it.
    It's because I knew in the back of my mind I wouldn't have the time to commit to it.

    If you go in fully committed to making it your go to game then it will work just fine... Ts3 has a lot to offer.
    If in the back of your mind however you are thinking about Ts4 while you're playing..it's not going to make the adjustment any easier.
  • JoAnne65JoAnne65 Posts: 22,959 Member
    To be quite honest, if the toxicity of the TS4 forums is your main reason to return to Sims 3, I doubt that's a good reason (in terms of enjoying the game).
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  • Faerie197Faerie197 Posts: 1,077 Member
    I donno @JoAnne65, a toxic community seems like a great reason to abandon a game to me. I left Everquest (the original one) after only a week of playing it due to how toxic both the in and out of game communities were. And if the forum community for a game is extremely toxic, I have difficulty staying interested in the game it's self. Even if it's a great game, I find myself less willing to play it.
    Fear not the fae, for they are harmless. Anger not the fae, beware their wraith. Harm not the fae, fear the Faerie Knight.
  • SimaniteSimanite Posts: 4,833 Member
    JoAnne65 wrote: »
    To be quite honest, if the toxicity of the TS4 forums is your main reason to return to Sims 3, I doubt that's a good reason (in terms of enjoying the game).

    Oh no lol, that's definitely not the reason. I've been wanting to plat TS3 again for years and been trying for ages, I just mean I'll be spending more time in this part of the community now.
  • Faerie197Faerie197 Posts: 1,077 Member
    As others mentioned, try starting with fewer EP enabled. Also, try to just create a sim. Make one using the Randomize feature if you want, then look the sim over. Their traits and lifetime wish can guide you in what direction the game should go. Also, as someone else suggested try picking a premade home and using it "as is" until the sim can afford to upgrade it. I love Miskito Cove in sunset valley for this. It's a small wood cabin that looks a bit rundown, but already has a few upgraded utilities such as a Cowpoke stove. It also has a lot of rustic charm even at it's default appearance. Although due to the cost of the place if furnished, you're likely to get it unfurnished and need to buy a bed at least.
    Fear not the fae, for they are harmless. Anger not the fae, beware their wraith. Harm not the fae, fear the Faerie Knight.
  • JoAnne65JoAnne65 Posts: 22,959 Member
    @Simanite Well ever so glad to have you here :smiley:
    Faerie197 wrote: »
    I donno @JoAnne65, a toxic community seems like a great reason to abandon a game to me. I left Everquest (the original one) after only a week of playing it due to how toxic both the in and out of game communities were. And if the forum community for a game is extremely toxic, I have difficulty staying interested in the game it's self. Even if it's a great game, I find myself less willing to play it.
    Really..? I played Sims 3 for 8 months before I even discovered there was such a thing as a community :D
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  • Faerie197Faerie197 Posts: 1,077 Member
    JoAnne65 wrote: »
    @Simanite Well ever so glad to have you here :smiley:
    Faerie197 wrote: »
    I donno @JoAnne65, a toxic community seems like a great reason to abandon a game to me. I left Everquest (the original one) after only a week of playing it due to how toxic both the in and out of game communities were. And if the forum community for a game is extremely toxic, I have difficulty staying interested in the game it's self. Even if it's a great game, I find myself less willing to play it.
    Really..? I played Sims 3 for 8 months before I even discovered there was such a thing as a community :D

    Seriously? I knew about and was browsing the forums from day one. In fact, I believe I started posting a week or two after I bought The Sims 3. In the steam forums I've been actively posting in the Disgaea forums since the day I bought Disgaea 1. And don't get me started on MMOs. I'll quit an MMO in seconds flat if the community is toxic. I play games to have fun, not to get insulted non-stop by strangers.

    Okay, so the occasional flame war is inevitable in any community. But the truly toxic ones are communities and games I'll avoid.
    Fear not the fae, for they are harmless. Anger not the fae, beware their wraith. Harm not the fae, fear the Faerie Knight.
  • bekkasanbekkasan Posts: 10,171 Member
    edited May 2017
    I've never joined a game forum prior to Sims3 and discovered this one when I started seeing a few of the bugs come up and needed help. Googled and found the forums and lovely people that helped and then discovered the sims 3 store..... :D

    @Simanite I rarely play premades, but did recently play Christopher Steel and Annabelle (ghost with weird last name) in Sunset Valley. I prefer my own sims and making up stories for them and the premades are the background and best friends and neighbors. I've seen some of your Sims4 stuff, so I know you will find a way to play that will make stories come alive. Have fun!!
  • SindocatSindocat Posts: 5,622 Member
    edited May 2017
    My measure of toxicity is probably fairly personal - largely a matter of how many interactions I can have with other players without encountering a blatantly plum-phobic slur. By that measure, the Simming community in general and Sims 3 community in particular ranks as one of the best - I seldom encounter that kind of static and when I do, it is so veiled in coded speech and dogwhistles that it requires advanced semiotics to deduce that shade has been thrown, along with enough plausible deniability to allow the other person the benefit of the doubt, which I generally do by politely asking if they'd care to clarify their position, which, for the most part, they don't. It's a terribly genteel way of managing strongly opposing opinions, and has led me to conclude that the Sims community is in the only ways that really matter to me personally, more civilized than most.

    That said, I haven't dipped a toe into the Sims 4 yet, nor sampled the community, so I couldn't say with any confidence how it stacks up on the Sindocat Scale of trolling to discussion ratios.

    But it does remind me that my Evil Sim, master thief and werewolf Logan Howell, hasn't been Trolling on the Forums himself much of late, which in turn brings me to another recommendation to the OP, by way of bringing us back on topic, although I see it was previously made by @JoAnne65 , above,

    Have you played an Evil Sim before? Just trying something different can be a good hook into seeing the game in a fresh light, and finding a new level of interest. Try something you haven't! See where it takes you! This is a great game for that kind of play, and is pretty much what I love about Sandbox.

    Happy Simming. :)
  • MazakeenMazakeen Posts: 440 Member
    edited May 2017
    @Sindocat - Quote: "I seldom encounter that kind of static and when I do, it is so veiled in coded speech and dogwhistles that it requires advanced semiotics to deduce that shade has been thrown, along with enough plausible deniability to allow the other person the benefit of the doubt, which I generally do by politely asking if they'd care to clarify their position, which, for the most part, they don't. It's a terribly genteel way of managing strongly opposing opinions, and has led me to conclude that the Sims community is in the only ways that really matter to me personally, more civilized than most." -End quote.

    You speaketh the truth, friend. -There are so many forums I have given up on. Here, even 5-years old ones are being easily passed on as 'old mature people', in the way the communication by the written 'speech' is relayed. I can't really remember have seen a proper troll around. -Maybe, and I hope, they just can't stand the sunlight of positivity being emitted. <3

    A good way to ease into the game, btw ( @Simanite ), is erhaps avoiding mixing to many different sims at once. Mixing an evil-sim into a house with only goody-goody-sims, creates 'fun' but messy situations. If You are into chaos, there is nothing wrong with that, but messy relations can quickly turn into a game that creates more work than enjoyment. (-Depending on what you intended with the game, of course).
    ie62Ymx.jpg
    Rawwrr...
  • Faerie197Faerie197 Posts: 1,077 Member
    Another option for diving back in is to first decide a type of story you want to try telling. Be it a mystery, rags to riches tale, or even just the story of one family through the generations. Then create a sim or two and start telling the story in-game. Even if only you ever see it, this can be fun. Especially if you merely guide the story along, and let the sims affect the story with their own choices too.

    On the digression, the Sims 3 forums are one of the friendliest I've ever seen. Even more so then the City of Heroes forums were, and that game had a dang friendly in-game and forum community. When I first delved into the Sims 4 forum, it looked to be mildly toxic. Not enough to chase me off (the game it's self did that), but enough that I didn't want to spend large amounts of time there. Sounds like the sims 4 forum has gotten worse though. :(
    Fear not the fae, for they are harmless. Anger not the fae, beware their wraith. Harm not the fae, fear the Faerie Knight.
  • Bettyboop55Bettyboop55 Posts: 2,646 Member
    After 4 there is so much choice. I have reinstalled my favourite sim and a couple of saved games. I have also reinstalled the world I was building. I am lucky because I kept copies. Surprisingly though I decided on a new sim and sent her to Starlight shores. I decided to watch an old review by Quxxn of Showtime and it inspired me :) So why not pick a favourite youtuber and watch an old Lets Play or review. Good luck in finding something g to inspire you :)
    I no longer use Origin or My Page. You can find me on YouTube or Twitter as Bettyboop711000. You are welcome to contact me as I explore options for a PC sandbox life simulation game.
    Wherever I am friends call me Betty

    Sim enim est vita
  • MazakeenMazakeen Posts: 440 Member
    @Bettyboop55 - Sound advice indeed. -You will always pick up 'new' things you'd never know otherwise.
    ie62Ymx.jpg
    Rawwrr...
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