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I found another way to deal with road tearing. Please listen very Carefully. Important Update
Damienf519
Posts: 7,005 Member
Hey guys I've been having a lot of trouble with Road Tearing In Kellog Island. I thought I fixed the problem, but than when I reentered edit in game, the problem returned, sometimes worse than before. But I thought of something, did an experiment and it worked.
first I conformed the edges of the of the problem lots. I'm not sure if I did it with all of them, but next time I will. Than I saved, than without entering "edit in game," than I exported my map to the actual game and the problem was solved, or at least most of the tearing did not appear when I entered the game. However, I'm not sure if I did all the problem lots, but it was a drastic improvement.
So if all else fails and you don't want to radically redesign your map, you can try the Damienf519 road tearing elimination method, and believe it or not, this just might work.
Step 1
Re-conform all of your lots, that way you are guaranteed to get all the problem ones.
Step 2
Make sure that there is a check mark next to every single lot's icon.
Step 3
Save, now do not enter CAW's "edit in game" mode unless you are willing to repeat the previous steps. It will reset once you enter the "edit in game" mode, and the tearing will return the next time. EDIT: I forgot something very important, don't exit CAW before exporting either, because it causes the same problem.
Step 4
Export your map and, and before you upload it, open it in the normal game, to make sure that all the tearing is gone. Even if it has not gone away entirely, it maybe radically reduced. Than you will have to come up with other way to solve the remaining tearing.
Keep in mind that if you make any more changes in CAW, you will have to repeat all four steps.
Update 10/5/10
Lara_The_Blonde just let me know that confirming edges has caused some problems for her. See to it, that you back up your world, before you try this.
first I conformed the edges of the of the problem lots. I'm not sure if I did it with all of them, but next time I will. Than I saved, than without entering "edit in game," than I exported my map to the actual game and the problem was solved, or at least most of the tearing did not appear when I entered the game. However, I'm not sure if I did all the problem lots, but it was a drastic improvement.
So if all else fails and you don't want to radically redesign your map, you can try the Damienf519 road tearing elimination method, and believe it or not, this just might work.
Step 1
Re-conform all of your lots, that way you are guaranteed to get all the problem ones.
Step 2
Make sure that there is a check mark next to every single lot's icon.
Step 3
Save, now do not enter CAW's "edit in game" mode unless you are willing to repeat the previous steps. It will reset once you enter the "edit in game" mode, and the tearing will return the next time. EDIT: I forgot something very important, don't exit CAW before exporting either, because it causes the same problem.
Step 4
Export your map and, and before you upload it, open it in the normal game, to make sure that all the tearing is gone. Even if it has not gone away entirely, it maybe radically reduced. Than you will have to come up with other way to solve the remaining tearing.
Keep in mind that if you make any more changes in CAW, you will have to repeat all four steps.
Update 10/5/10
Lara_The_Blonde just let me know that confirming edges has caused some problems for her. See to it, that you back up your world, before you try this.
Post edited by EA_Solaire on
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Comments
I was wondering what the check marks by the lots were for. How do they appear? What I mean is I've noticed when placing lots that some of them randomly have a check mark. Is that because they're flush with the road?
I'll be using this in my upcoming world too!
Your welcome. However I'm not sure this actually works perfectly, because I'm not sure I did it with all the problem lots. I was in a hurry and so I tried to just do it with the problem lots. That said, it was a huge improvement after I went through this process, although not perfect. I'll be more thorough the next time I use the method myself, because I'm still working on Kellog Island in CAW, so I will have to repeat the process myself.
I'm glad this was of use to you. Tearing is kind of hard to explain without a picture. Here is an example of road tearing.
Click on the thumb nail to get a better look.
Notice the chunks missing from the road? Those get bigger and more pronounced the closer you get to them. That is what road tearing is. In other games, with other objects when that occurs, its just refereed to as tearing. Its when part of an object appears to be missing and than even more of it, disappears, as you get closer to it, when it is not supposed to do that. If you are far enough away you may not even notice the road tearing at all. That's why you have to get up close and thoroughly explore all your map for road and side walk tears in CAW's "edit In Game," and the actually game. For some reason they never seem to appear in the normal CAW's where you create the lots and place the roads. However they appear in "Edit in Game mode" and the normal game.
Sorry I forgot about your question. I'm not sure why the check marks appear randomly after you create some lots. I'm assuming the check mark is let you know that the lot is fine. If you redefine the edges of a lot, in the regular create a world, using the redefine edge tool, check mark should appear than to let you know its fine. But if you enter "edit in game or exit, CAW all together, the check marks will not be there when you come back.
You're welcome! I take it you were having some problems with road tearing yourself. By the way, I hope you noticed my little update about the importance in this process of not exiting before you export your map, since the lots will reset, that way as well. I should have mentioned that when I first posted this, but for some reason I forgot, and I'm sorry about that mistake since it could cause you guys some discomfort, and maybe make you think it didn't work when it actually would have. I really don't know why EA, made the software like that, but its really annoying.
That's kind of been an ongoing thing with The Sims, anyway.
And thank you for that extra tid-bit about the check boxes. I am sure the information you've posted here is going to be extremely helpful.
So what you're saying is before I leave EIG, I have to export the world and then I can edit the world without having to worry about extreme road tears?
You're welcome. Come to think of it, I'm kind of surprised they didn't mention what I discovered in the manual. You'd think they'd think it was important enough to at least mention. I wonder what else we will discover that they didn't mention in the Create A World Manual, but should have.
You say, conform and then export?
I do know when you conform one lot another will pop out. Usually right across the street.
Most, I think, are from sculpting and/or then smoothing or adjusting the roads anywhere once the lots are placed.
The checks mean you altered that lot. Let's say you conformed a lot- CAW will check that lot in the layer to let you know which you have and have not adjusted. It will do this if you are adding addresses or whatever.
*It doesn't mean the lot is perfect or fixed.
No, I'm not saying, to do this before you exit "edit in game." If you happen to see tears while in "edit in game," once you are back in the regular create a world, you might want to try this, if all else has failed. You can't export your world, while you are in CAW's "edit in game mode." But if you are finished with your map except for the tearing, or you want to do all the lot editing in the actual game, do this first. It makes no difference if you do this before you enter edit in game except for that one instance. If you saw tearing before in "edit in game" and this seems to get rid of it, most likely based on my experience the next time you enter "edit in game," the road tearing will be back. Do not confuse "edit in game" with the actual game, where you can play with your sims. In fact don't even try this, until your are ready to test your map in the actual game, and not "edit in game" because they are two separate things, although there is a great deal of similarities between the two. You can't enter "edit in game" in the actual game. I know it is confusing, but EA, should have come up with a better name for CAW's "Edit in Game" mode. In fact, if you are going to go back into CAW again, to edit your map some more, be prepared to do this all over again, but don't do it, until you are ready to test out your map in the actual game, with sims in it.
I didn't say this would work all the time. But I found out that this can work sometimes. I found out this way. I was having a lot of tearing problems with my roads. I tried a lot of things, such as moving the lots, and than rebuilding the routing data. But there were some problem lots that, that didn't seem to work with. Next I tried the redefine edges tool, on the problem lots. I went into CAW's "edit in game mode," which is not the same thing as the actual game. I wish EA had come up with a better name for it. However this seemed to work, so at first I thought the problem was solved. However, even after saving, the next time played with CAW and I entered its "edit in game mode" I noticed that the problem had returned sometimes worse than before. So I tried the same thing again. It appeared to work again when I reentered "Edit In Game" mode. But than the next time I reentered edit in game mode, no matter what I did, unless I used the redefine edges tool on those same lots again, the problem return. Eventually as an experiment, I decided to see what would happen if I exported my map to the actual game, after using the redefine edges tool on the problem lots, without entering the "edit in game mode," I saved my Kellog Island map. Then I exported it to the game, and the problem lots that I knew I used the redefine edges tool on didn't have the problem any more. I've been exporting my map many times before, without uploading it, and in the past versions, the problem lots in the actual game, while I was play testing had the visible tearing. But now at least all the lots that I knew I redefined the edges for, do not it the game. I'm afraid that when I go back to edit my map in CAW, and I reenter edit in game, unless I redefine the edges of the problem lots again, the problem will return. I will than have to use the redefine edge tool on the problem lots again, and than save before I export again. I'm not saying that this works perfectly or that it will work for everyone, all the time. But so far it seems to be working for me working. When I start second game, with my latest version of Kellog Island. The lots where the problem had been fixed were still fixed, the tearing did not reappear on those lots. However, I have a feeling I'm going to have to redo the same process the next time I export a new version of my map. I'm just suggesting this is something people could try, and it might work for them. But you must keep in mind that this is something you only do, when you are ready to test, or work on your map in the actual game, and not Create A World, and I'm not sure it always works, in fact I can't be sure but it doesn't seem to work perfectly so far, but it does help tremendously, at least in my case. What I'm saying is, if all else fails and you don't want to drastically redesign your map, and you've finished everything that you will work on, in CAW, except, you are having a problem with tearing, try this, before you give up, or if you are really determined, ask for help again.
Actually I practically know that I'm going to have to use my "tearing elimination method" again, because I'm still not finished working on Kellog Island in CAW. But it still hasn't eliminated all the tearing this time, so next time, which will hopefully be the last time, I will be more thorough and make sure I use the redefine edges tool on every lot. Than after I save with a check mark next to every lot's icon, and test it out in the actual game, not CAW's misnamed "edit in game," if there is still some tearing on the map, in the actual game, then I'll try something else, in addition.
You do understand the Checks now, yes?
It isn't to say the lot is fixed or perfect. It is just letting you know you have altered that lot.
Another way to help remove rips- use the move world objects tool and click on a lot. Once it is chosen, press the Delete key. Say yes to the are you sure pop up. Then click undo on the panel. I have only used this on empty.
Try it.
I do think I kind of understand the check marks on the lot icon's now. Also thanks for the tip. I think I just might try it, maybe tomorrow. Come to think of it, that might work better than anything, I've been trying. Thanks on both accounts.
I wouldn't say it works all the time, since I'm not even sure it works perfectly. However it seems to work pretty well for me. However, if it does work for you, and you decided you still need to do some more editing in Create a World, be prepared to repeat the process all over again with the same map. To tell the truth, I don't even know why it works, but it seems to work, from my experience.
Also, I began by using the terrain smoothing tool. I eventually ended up using the smooth road tool. I always hit the smooth road button once and that was it. On the last 2 installs I actually saw those tears starting to change. I clicked "smooth road" on the same segment about 100 times quickly!
Also I tried this with the smooth road tool. First go around I set it to affect 3 squares. (save install...) Next go round I set the tool to only affect 1 tile. (save install) 3rd go around I smoothed it down just a tick. So it was basically like there were 2 different levels of terrain around my road. (I wish I could draw a picture of it.)
Of 6, 4 are completely gone and 2 are just the tiniest things, I can't let myself worry about that. Could you believe the minute I got my major ones fixed, I was like "yeah", and I went over to the ones I fixed earlier...They're back! I did one more uninstall, fixed them and I am not going back in CAW. They will come back if I do! I would say leave this until the last thing to do! Sorry so long winded again tonight, I just wanted to share this with you, because I know you had been working on roads. I hope I was clear. There was a lot of info and I hope I got it all down in an understandable way.
Thanks for the information. I know for a fact that many of my lots are hilly terrain. It was part of my maps design. I knew it was going to be that way from the beginning. However, It can't be the cause of the problem since many of the lots on the map, that are on hilly terrain, have no problems at all. Only some of them do, while the rest don't and some of the problem lots are on flat ground, and there are no hills under them. Also not all of the lots adjacent to a road on hilly terrain have problems.
Thanks for letting us know that, its good to know.