Hi again and welcome all people who yelled at us that Simport will only be installed with the Showtime addon!
I got news for you. In case you updated to 1.31, start your game and wait for the main menu. Now may I attract your attention to the lower right part? There's a text which advertises the benefits of being online. Please read it.
You see it also mentions Simport!
Keep in mind this patch has nothing to do with the Showtime addon. It's preparing the game for using Simport but if Simport would only and exclusively be for the Showtime addon, there would be no need to install it with a patch beforehand.
I explained it over and over but I know we have thousands of Simmers here and chances are big that still many people haven't read it yet. So again:
The only purpose of Simport is to transport data between clients (our computers) and a server at EA. Before you yell at me, read on.
Now what most people are mistaken of is Simport and the Showtime reward system. The reward system kicks off the Showtime performance/hosting and is responsible for putting a stamp in your tour book.
You see there's Simport which transports the data and behind the ends of the communication line (developers call it endpoint) there's the reward system module which takes that data and does something with it. This modularity makes it all so flexible. Just register another module behind the endpoints and the devs can use Simport for something else. What we have here is a standard software design principle called
"separation of concerns".
Now why is it important to install Simport with a patch and not with the Showtime addon? Remember that no addon must rely on another. Simport will also be used with future addons and so if any of that would install it's own Simport module it would result in redundant code. A patch, however, just installs it once and every following addon can refer to that code.
In case someone is interested in even more details about Simport, I have written an article a while back:
http://forum.thesims3.com/jforum/posts/list/491721.page
This space is for rent.
Comments
Probably.
I see the troll BlingJohnny's already here!
My concern is that I want to earn the rewards without bothering other people in the process or going online.
If I can earn the rewards without undergoing at the two conditions above then I rest my case.
If you want the extra sets, clothes, hairstyles, ETC that are 'rewards' for hosting Simport shows, then yes you DO have to use simport... Or wait for a mod.
Wth? go away please.
I made a comment, i'm entitled to. Since whens that trolling? :?
Because every single comment you make is condescending, arrogant or insulting in some fashion.
If you don't want to be treated like a troll, stop behaving like one!
So expansions like university, wether, vacations, or whatever they're planning in the future very well may have ways to transfer sims to another players game to play. Which is only logical in the first place. Players will get bored with such a feature if all they could do with it was the same quest, get the same prizes etc. Once you've finished the quests and got the rewards there still needs to be incentive to play and use it. So it only made sense that they would put it in future expansion so it gets a diverse gameplay with it. Look how quickly memories was utilized with it, so it's a prime expample of how definetly something will be tied to it later down the road.
There is a lot you can do with the feature, just takes a bit of creativity to think of it. For example we haven't had the gardener careers yet. Sending teens to other games for college experiences, vactioning in other players maps, or even open venues that allow players to send their sims shopping to others games etc. Fashion careers, acting, etc. So in honesty it's not suprising, if that makes sense to anyone. I said before exclusive is a very vague term it could have meant exclusive to the series of sims, which means it wasn't done for sims 1 or sims 2. Or whatever way people though it meant. I just don't take that terminology literally.
It does have me worried, as i said incentive to get rewards is one thing, but having a repetitive quest system incorporated in the game and then with the possibilities of the future expansions I really am not liking the sounds of sims 4 from here. I really don't like facebook games and i hope that the team is not seriously considering taking the game to that direction. As i said it creates just very boring repetitive gameplay that i just don't enjoy. It makes the game even more restrictive which i don't think any simmer wants that. I think players really are looking for my freedom to create in their games and freedom to play. I just don't see quest driven features providing that.
You only need to do it once. In 10 years online support for TS3 will have been disabled anyway, probably less.
Actually unless you want all of the rewards you don't 'need' to do it at all... However if you DO want all of the rewards, you'll have to do it a LOT more than once.
About 45 times actually.
This thread was made for the people who didn't believe that Simport is installed outside of Showtime.
BTW, it's 45 shows PLUS 45 hostings we have to do total in order to get all rewards.
And yes, it's a penalty of not accessing hundreds of items if you choose not to play the way EA wants you to play.
Or how about this:
You don't have time to rake the leaves yourself?
Hire one of your friend's Sims to let him do the work for you!
Note: This services earns your friend's Sim 125§ which is taken from your Sim's account.
EDIT: Another idea. How about an online consignment shop? Our Sims could sell everything there and if we need a painting, rainbow gem, etc. we could buy it online for Simoleons.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/44611179/Electronic_Arts_CEO_Social_Gaming_Business_Exploding
The only thing I saw that would effect people without the purchase of showtime were the social features in game (such as sharing memories and achievements to your my page). Can't you opt out of online sharing while playing the game? I thought I saw that option in the game options. :?
Please let me know if this is false, i'm really curious.
I also believe it is very possible if you start a new game you would have to try (Simport) for rewards all over again. This is how it works in TSM. If you have completed an Ambition (played the entire Kingdom and it's goals) and unlocked the rewards, when you start a new game of the same Ambition, then you have to try to unlock the rewards again. (objects, outfits, hair, etc.)
No, I haven't seen anywhere in game to opt out of online features. If you are logged in they are there, even if you click "Hide Notification" you can still do things online thru the game.
As a matter of fact since a few days ago before the patch when I put the cd in the drive and my pc is online I am automatically logged into the Launcher and can see my Avatar/status etc. :roll: without having to log in at all.
We were right though about simport & social features coming in the patch. It wouldn't surprise me if they found more uses for simport with future ep's as well now. :?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kl6pk9Zqtw