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781. The Neighborhood Handler 4.0 RC1 here!

Written on Sunday 3 November 2002 at 22:37 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

Finally it's here. The Neighborhood Handler 4.0 RC1 (Release Candidate) can now be downloaded from this page. This version is only an update version, the DLL files of the older versions (3.x) are required. Note that the manual and proper readme aren't ready yet, it has been delayed due to RSI that I've had. I will be working on that this week, but it could still take up to a month before the final (and fully completed) release of The Neighborhood Handler 4.0 will be out. There's a whole load of new things, including the password-protecting of back-ups, giving regular neighborhoods name and comment details too, and a lot more. It's now also fully compatible with the Unleashed expansion pack. To download it go here. Due to a recent crash of my hard-drive the website has not been updated yet, so the latest files cannot be directly downloaded from there just yet. I will be working on all that as soon as possible. Have fun with it!

782. Sim(City)Day

Written on Thursday 31 October 2002 at 20:35 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

This week there's quite a bit of SimCity news at the site of The Sims. One of those things is the chat transcript of last week's chat. Have a look at this question:

"'Do cars appear and disappear like in SC3, or do they actually go places?'
'One of my favorite things in SC4 is the traffic... it's not one for one with the population, but instead is a represantive model of the traffic patterns in your city you will actually see traffic jams occuring at different times of the day as people commute to and from work of course, if you're a kind and considerate mayor (which all of you are, I'm sure :) you'll help your Sims out by providing alternate means for them to get to work...or shopping...or....'"

To read the whole thing, visit this page. The other thing from SimCity.com is that there's a new fansite section along with a fansite pack. Now I can't find the fansite pack while browsing at the site (is that typical for Maxis?), but the list of fansites is there... it's not a real big list though. It can and should be found on this page.

The most interesting thing though, is the announcement of a patch for Unleashed. Let's hope it doesn't take them as long as the Hot Date patch, especially for 'international' users. The fixes are pretty nice though. You shouldn't be getting any flooding under objects anymore, Sims should keep their bought clothes, they should be able to watch TV sitting again, and they shouldn't be making themselves dizzy by spinning around a lot anymore. Also, some memory leaks are supposed to be fixed. What bugs we get in return isn't mentioned, but the full list of fixes is at this page. That's all for this week, more in one week.

783. GameSpy Unleashed review

Written on Tuesday 29 October 2002 at 00:16 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

This time, GameSpy has reviewed Unleashed. Here's just a small snippet:

"Electronic Arts has been quick to milk the success of the franchise with a seemingly endless parade of expansion packs. Even at $30 a pop, they, too, top the charts. The Sims Unleashed is the latest addition to the Sims family. Despite a couple of snags, it's a worthwhile add-on to anyone who can't get enough of the continually surprising world of those tiny digital people."

The total score is 85. The main pros are the expanded neighborhood, the new pets, but the large number of (small) bugs and the long loading times make the opinion worse than it could've been. Also the clockwork is a con; it takes too long to do some actions and it can be very frustrating according to the reviewer. The bug of water flowing under objects is not mentioned though. The bad pathing problems (e.g. Sims "spinning in place" to sit down - or did they learn that from the dogs?) are mentioned though.

The whole review can be read here. For more reviews, visit our review index where you can now also find a link to this review.

784. Official Dutch site launching soon

Written on Tuesday 29 October 2002 at 00:02 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

From EAGames.nl we (well, everybody who understands Dutch) can read that there will soon be an official site for The Sims in Dutch. This is nice news for the Dutch-speaking fans, as there hasn't been a properly translated official site for the game in Dutch so far. There will be downloads, contests, the latest sims news, and later on it will be expanded with a forum and the ability to run your own diary for your Sims. This website will launch 1 November (next friday), probably (but still unconfirmed) at www.thesims.nl. That shows the official site's homepage now, but who knows that might change later. The Netherlands is following many other countries which got their own translated versions a few months ago. Unfortunately there's no possibility of joining the TSO play test in The Netherlands or Belgium yet, even though the game will be released there. Maybe a special action will be launched at the launch of the website, giving the fans there also the ability to play test TSO.

785. The Neighborhood Handler 4.0 RC1 out

Written on Sunday 27 October 2002 at 23:44 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

Just a couple of minutes ago, I released The Neighborhood Handler 4.0 RC1 (Release Candidate). This version is a version that is close to the final. A few bugs may have to be polished out, but as far as I know everything is working properly. But: only group members can download it yet. For those who haven't registered there yet, it's not too late. Visit the group site and register. You will immediately get an email with the download instructions (in the PS). And why you should download this new version? Here are some of the new functions:

• Zipping and password-protecting back-ups is now possible
• You can now also enter details (name and comments) for regular neighborhoods
• You can now have up to 99 back-ups and 99 regular neighborhoods, a total of 198 neighborhoods
• Support for the latest expansion pack, Unleashed, has been added.

A full list of updates is in the included readme file. Please note that this version is yet undocumented - i.e. the manual has not been updated and there's not a real decent readme file. Also, the DLL files of The Neighborhood Handler 3.8 are required. However, I can give support on it and you can email me with any questions you have about it. If you want to download it now, then join the group (for free). If you can wait a week, then you don't have to join as the program will be available to everybody next week, as a free download. For more information about the program, or to download the required DLL files, visit the website. For questions, email me.

786. The Sims column at IGN

Written on Friday 25 October 2002 at 00:30 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

PC.Ign has a 'regular' column about The Sims. Yesterday, part 4 was posted. It's tells a bit about the Unleashed expansion too, and all the problems that come with it. This time, it was up to Rick Halle (SimEnhancer), James Sausville (SimWardrobe) and Chad Authier (7 Deadly Sims) to tell what they think of the expansion packs, the bugs, and more. Here's a quote from Chad:

"'Seems they forgot about us sometimes, and sometimes it's pretty devastating to the community,' he says. 'I mean when Hot Date came out, no user created objects were able to be viewed downtown, until someone from the community not Maxis made a program to fix that problem. But then months later Maxis released a program to do the same thing, but it still isn't up to par with the user-communities version!'"

Sounds like something very typical... They also criticise the way SimCity 4 was addressed to as Sims 4 in an article in the NYTimes (free registration required), to get better sales for The Sims Online. They also mention The Sims 2 in their last bit, which will probably come out next year (a shop assistant told me, ChEeTaH, when I bought Unleashed recently that it'd be May 2003 for The Sims 2). Anyway, for the whole article at IGN, simply click here.

787. SimDay: TV Commercial, chat

Written on Thursday 24 October 2002 at 23:55 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

We already told you in the SimDay last week that there would be a chat with Frank Simon, producer of SimCity 4. That chat is later tonight, at midnight (GMT), 1am in Europe or 3PM PST. Make sure you go there tonight, you can enter right here. The other thing this week is that the Unleashed TV Commercial can be downloaded. There are two files, a big version of 3.23 MB, and a smaller one for 1.08 MB. Have fun downloading and watching it, just in case you haven't seen it already. That's all again for this week, more next week...

788. Poll Results

Written on Thursday 24 October 2002 at 02:12 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

Last week's poll was all about The Sims Online's Play Test. Are you playing this game already, or won't you? Most people told us that they were invited but cannot play because they're in Europe (21 votes, 25.93%) - even though that changed last week for part of Europe. 16 People (19.75%) didn't know about the play test. Third place is "Yes, I was invited nearly right away!". That option got 14.81% (12) of the 82 votes. The other results are as follows:

8 votes, 9.88%: I'm not subscribed to the TSO newsletter, so that's a no

7 votes, 8.64%: I'm waiting to get invited, and I can't wait!

4 votes, 4.94%: Yup, I was invited near the beginning of this month

1 votes, 1.23%: I pre-ordered TSO with play test or will do that soon

In total, it adds up to 20.73% (17 of 82) people who are able to play TSO already. The remaining 79.27% (65 of 82 votes) cannot play the game at the moment... yet.

This week's poll is the last regular Sim Brother eviction poll! Make sure you vote either Dave or Samuel out of the Sim Brother II house. You can vote on the right or at this page.

 

789. Small TSO Play Test Update

Written on Sunday 20 October 2002 at 02:55 by ChEeTaH - 1 comment.

Until recently, it wasn't possible for Europeans to select their country after being invited for the TSO play test. The problem was that you had to select a US state, but couldn't select a country. However, the state list has been updated and now includes Canada (split up in its states), the countries Australia, the UK (split up into England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and other (South-American) countries. For German people there is a different rule, which you can read about here. The other European countries where The Sims has been released (like the Netherlands, Belgium and others), as well as for the Asian countries, cannot be selected. This might change however, if there's news we'll let you know. Note that shipping costs to these countries are $10 and not $5 as told by Maxis before! The $5 only applies to citizens of the USA, not even Canada. The play test will probably run until the end of November (included 2 weeks play time after the release), so that's just a bit more than a month left. If the play test lasts longer for Europeans (where the game is released a month later) is yet unknown.

790. TSO European tests

Written on Friday 18 October 2002 at 00:22 by ChEeTaH - 0 comments.

From SimsZone.de we can read that EA Germany has started to let German people test The Sims Online. There are 30 places in Germany, so there will be 30 people who can test TSO in Germany. All those who are registered at ElectronicArts.de, can take a chance to participate in the test. All you have to do is sign up with your email address - but your mailing address must be set up in your user profile! The end of the sign-in date is 21 October, and you can sign up - if you live in Germany - right here. 30 people will be picked randomly to test TSO. From this news, we can expect other countries to let groups of people test TSO soon. As we've been told earlier, it appears that EA UK has some discs for testers ready. If you can't wait, then you'll have to ask a friend in the US to obtain the game for you, and then forward the discs to you. The time you can test TSO in Europe is unknown, as the release date in Europe is one month after the US. Because the play test in Europe started later, maybe you'll also get until 2 weeks after the European release. However, that's not confirmed. Whenever there's news, we'll report it.