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Remember the Initials of Previous Packs and Games, Please
Cinebar
Posts: 33,618 Member
I know you don't have any control over marketing, Maxis, and most of them probably haven't been around for twenty years like some developers have been around this game that long, however, it would be nice if Marketing knew a little about the game and how Simmers speak and refer to packs or newer games etc. and the entire series.
Such as when we type or speak about packs and or other Maxis games, we all use initials since it is shorter to type and or to say. Therefore, in the future before Maxis and Marketing names a game and or a DLC they should consider if the newer DLC or game has the same initials as a previous pack or game. Or get someone who can remember to let them know it's already initials of a previous game or pack.
Just a few off the top of my head that most people sooner or later will have to ask what exact pack or game is the topic of a subject.
City Living/Life- Cottage Life/Living=CL (please consider the confusion for anyone who doesn't know or just gets annoyed by the same initials)
The Sims Medieval- The Sims Mobile=TSM (this one is really annoying)
Things like this matter to fandom, but probably not to marketing.
Such as when we type or speak about packs and or other Maxis games, we all use initials since it is shorter to type and or to say. Therefore, in the future before Maxis and Marketing names a game and or a DLC they should consider if the newer DLC or game has the same initials as a previous pack or game. Or get someone who can remember to let them know it's already initials of a previous game or pack.
Just a few off the top of my head that most people sooner or later will have to ask what exact pack or game is the topic of a subject.
City Living/Life- Cottage Life/Living=CL (please consider the confusion for anyone who doesn't know or just gets annoyed by the same initials)
The Sims Medieval- The Sims Mobile=TSM (this one is really annoying)
Things like this matter to fandom, but probably not to marketing.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
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Comments
I always abbreviate The Sims Medieval as TSM - but only after naming it in full the first time, as it was a niche title and I understand even long-time simmers might not know what I am referring to otherwise.
I have seen Cottage Living distinguished as CoL, to avoid confusion. Better would simply to be to take the time and name the particular game or expansion content in full.
Or perhaps Maxis should also know there are other actual game companies who have other games out there (but old ones) such as their City Living EP also has the same initials as a game by a different company and a very close name of that game called City Life. And now we have a DLC pack with the same initials CL. Since we all speak with net speak these days (which didn't used to be allowed on older forums aka initials instead of words) it would help since now there are three games with the same initials. City Living, City Life, and Country Living. And then there is the Cottage Life TV show etc. And also a mag called Country Living. lol
Especially, since some of us don't have all packs yet, and the pack discussions are combined and sometimes it's not clear what the topic is about if it doesn't include a full name on the header of the post. But maybe just something about a pack and I don't know if it's about CL or CL.
To be honest I find the numbers even more confusing. There are so many EP, GP and SP to keep them apart by number. I don't think all simmers know the release order of all packs by heart. With the letters it is easier because the link with the title is still there.
City and Cottage Living having the same initials is a minor annoyance that could have been avoided, but demanding that other companies' games, TV shows, etc. should be taken into account as well when deciding on a pack name is simply ridiculous. After all, we're the ones coming up with the abbreviations, not the developers, and technically we're not even doing it right. The correct abbreviation for Cottage Living would be something like TS4:CL, and that certainly wouldn't get confused with some magazine or TV show. But we're not usually talking about those magazines or shows on here, and they're probably not the only other things in existence with those same initials, so why should we care?
Something wicked this way comes!
I don't use MCCC.
> I find both initials and numbers confusing and don't think Maxis or EA are to blame for that. We always have the option to just call the packs by their names, which is what I prefer to do. Even before we had Cottage Living, when CL always meant City Living, I didn't always catch that in discussions, and numbers are arguably even worse. Right now I can remember that we have 11 EPs and Cottage Living was the last, but a few EPs from now, I won't, just like I don't remember off the top of my head what exactly EP6 or EP7 was.
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> City and Cottage Living having the same initials is a minor annoyance that could have been avoided, but demanding that other companies' games, TV shows, etc. should be taken into account as well when deciding on a pack name is simply ridiculous. After all, we're the ones coming up with the abbreviations, not the developers, and technically we're not even doing it right. The correct abbreviation for Cottage Living would be something like TS4:CL, and that certainly wouldn't get confused with some magazine or TV show. But we're not usually talking about those magazines or shows on here, and they're probably not the only other things in existence with those same initials, so why should we care?
I totally agree! They need to name it what they need to name it, to consider every other piece of popular culture when naming something is too big of an ask I think! Sticking to calling packs by their names, and then abbreviating (as another member also mentioned) may be the easiest way to avoid confusion :)
I don't think the devs should be limited in naming a pack by thinking of all the previous pack names as well as other companies. They should name it as they see fit 😄 this whole game thing at the end of the day is all about having fun anyway. So I think it's equally important for the Devs to have fun making it and go crazy with names if they want to
Problem solved because 10 out of 10 someone is going to respond. It would be ideal if everyone wrote everything out all the time but we can't control the entire net lol. And since a lot of people write on their phones (me) it's easier just to abbreviate.
I just don't think the team should have their creative freedom in naming limited for the sake of "net talk" and most simmers are quite familiar.
Though I do understand your concern for new simmers. They will learn eventually.
Plus I never even heard anyone (nearly ever) talk about the sims mobile🤣🤣
Oh, I thought TSM was referring to the sims medieval, not the sims mobile? So easy to get confused. Lol. Well apparently CL isn't the only abbreviation with two meanings.