DU or EL -- which one first? «12...Next Go

stilljustme2

So I'm back to playing after a several months absence due to health issues; I had serious vision issues and couldn't see well enough to play. (Got one eye fixed and the second will be done this month.) I just picked up all the current content -- Tiny Living will be good for remodeling houses, but I'm not sure what to try first: either send a Sim to university then move them to Evergreen Harbor to clean up the town, or have my Sim clean up Evergreen Harbor then send them (or their offspring) to University. Are there any skills/benefits to going to university that will help a Sim in Eco Lifestyle? Just curious....

KaeChan2089

DU will keep you more entertained than EL ever will....so yes go with DU first . It is still one of my packs to this day.
But I do not believe there are skills/benefits for EL.

alanmichael1

DU has more gameplay, but both are not the best.

Cabelle1863

I would go for DU first. EL has some frustrating bugs that really mess up saves. I'd wait until the devs fix those bugs first, play DU in the meantime.

I did a quick search and it looks like degrees in Communication or Physics help with the EL careers.

Marduc_Plays

DU until EL is fixed, and then still DU first.

Anmirla

I hope things continue to improve for you.

I only have DU and I would definitely choose that one first. I'm not impressed with either one, but my advice is to hold off on EL even if you are interested because it has some serious issues at the moment.

musteni

I prefer Eco Lifestyle, but it's true that there are bugs so it might be a good idea to wait a bit.

jimbbq

I absolutely dislike DU gameplay. Even with all the bugs I still prefer EL. DU CAS is great though.

MDianaSims

Definitely DU. Even if we ignore the bugs in EL, DU is just more enjoyable if you ask me. And Britechester is much prettier than Evergreen Harbour (even after it's cleaned up).

stilljustme2

I was leaning towards DU first anyway, because it's older and I've been waiting for it pretty much since BG launched (I remember in Sims 2 that University was the first EP which made a lot of sense), so I'll likely go that route. Want to rebuild some of the older worlds first though. Thanks for the input.

Camkat

I'm the unpopular opinion here, but I think DU is a waste of time and a snore to play. By the time your sim has paid for and completed their degree, they could have just earned those skill ups in the world. There's a bit of a career boost, but for me, it just felt more painful than worth it. EL is far more fun and has actual stuff to do besides watching your sim do homework and run to rabbit holes. Although, I do recommend you turn off the NAPS before you start anything so that you have full control over what comes in and out on those things, they can be a mess.

However, for a story sake, I think you should do DU first then EL. Even if the education doesn't help your sim at all, it just seems to make more sense that you would do that first then whatever you want in Evergreen Harbour. It's realistic too in a way because how many people get degrees that they don't use anyways? I haven't actually even got around to trying the new career with EL because I've been so busy with trying other things, but there must be a degree that would give your sim the right skills for that career and would be helpful?

Calico45

Perhaps this is somewhat not what you asked for, but I have a bunch of teens in Evergreen Harbor tight now that I plan to have in university in the same house. So it is possible to do both at the same time, but it would be a lot on your plate. You would also miss dorm life, but it occasionally grated on me anyway so I wanted to "commute from home" for a degree for a change.

Sheepiling

University has always been one of my favorite expansions in 2, 3, and 4. But I just really love and miss school extra-curricular activities, so having it in the Sims is nice nostalgia. (I need to hurry up and have kids so I can be that one parent that's always cooking for tailgating parties, going crazy in the sports stands, and encouraging my kids to bring all their friends home for a bonfire after games).

Other people might prefer the off-the-grid grind and maybe use it for a rags to riches challenge. It's all up to what you prefer to do in-game. Though, if you plan on getting both eventually anyways, I'd suggest going for University first and waiting for the devs to fix all the bugs in Eco Lifestyle before you buy it.

SERVERFRA

The University still doesn't work well. However, the CAS & objects are nice.

Eco toggles & codes work well for green footprint. I don't know about the dirty pollution, I play it clean & green. The CAS & new hobby objects are cool.

texxx78

As your question is what pack to get first, then i'ld say DU first, EL when the major bugs are fixed.

Dianesims

I’d say DU first but then it depends of your play style.

stilljustme2

telmarina wrote: »

As your question is what pack to get first, then i'ld say DU first, EL when the major bugs are fixed.

I've got both (thanks to a very dear friend) so I was wondering which one should be my main focus. I'll probably go with DU since I think I've got a Sim in one of my old saves that would work, unless I decide to start from scratch since it's been several months since I last played her.

Cabelle1863

stilljustme2 wrote: »

telmarina wrote: »

As your question is what pack to get first, then i'ld say DU first, EL when the major bugs are fixed.

I've got both (thanks to a very dear friend) so I was wondering which one should be my main focus. I'll probably go with DU since I think I've got a Sim in one of my old saves that would work, unless I decide to start from scratch since it's been several months since I last played her.

You might already be aware of this, but just in case, before you start playing turn off NPC voting in game settings. Otherwise they'll be enacted while you're playing your university students. I'd lost about 2 days worth of playing before I did this, since the NAP behaviors will get out of control and "infect" all of the neighborhoods. So I went to my previous save from right before installing EL (yay for backups!), turned off NPC voting and haven't had any new problems with crazy NAP behaviors gumming up my game. I've only enacted the NAPs that make Evergreen Harbor look nice, the green initiatives & modern development ones for each neighborhood. I won't allow any of the others to be enacted until they're fixed.

Oh! Almost forgot. Even if you turn off NPC voting you'll get a popup that a random NAP was enacted, but it actually hasn't been. I'm not sure why it does that, but when I check (either through the voting board or the mailbox) no NAPs were enacted.

stilljustme2

@Cabelle1863 I've been reading the EL threads so I was aware of the NAPs (actually a nap sounds good about now... ). Does turning them off just count for that save, or is it a global setting that affects all saves? I might want to play around with them once I do focus on EL.

Cabelle1863

I've only been playing one save over the last 3 weeks so I don't know for sure. I assume since it's in the game settings it would be a global setting and affect all saves. I'll check this afternoon and see.

stilljustme2

Thanks -- probably won't even get around to playing till at least Sunday (family activities on Saturday) but appreciate your testing it out.

texxx78

stilljustme2 wrote: »

@Cabelle1863 I've been reading the EL threads so I was aware of the NAPs (actually a nap sounds good about now... ). Does turning them off just count for that save, or is it a global setting that affects all saves? I might want to play around with them once I do focus on EL.

It will only affect the save you're playing. I enphatise the need to turn off the naps. They are strongly bugged.

TeeSea

I suggest DU because it helps with careers and it has a lot of replay ability.

Wait on EL till they fix the bugs unless it goes on sale.

SimmerGeorge

DU is at least executed somewhat good but to be honest till now I have only send 3 Sims to Uni and I've had it since release.
Yeah EL is poorly executed and lacking depth. It's just a lot of superficial content so if you're into quantity instead of quality then you might want that.

Cabelle1863

I tried starting up a new save, and the NPC voting on NAPs was already disabled. So it looks like it's a global setting.

SeanBobbyG

I find DU a bit boring id go eco lifestyle just for all the nice build mode stuff