My review of TS3. What I liked, don't like.

[jolrei]

I am finding it rather fun to ignore the "mini-games" like collecting stuff, chasing after wants, buying all the lifetime rewards, etc., and just playing it like a story.  That said, there is a lot of new breadth to the game (contiguous neighbourhood, no load screens, story progression), which promises a lot, but delivers less than desirable (rabbit holes being one case in point).

I think the summary line in the review/article is that you can not eat the cakes.  Caek exists, but it is a lie.

[Alex]

The key word in that article is "laziness".  After playing this entire weekend I have to agree.  

I feel like I've been forced to dumb down and fit into my spawn's console world or play one of the RPGs I have.  The sims move like little robot people (what is WITH that stance they have when standing still?), have little to no personality and building stuff is painful.  I think I hate the speed problem more than anything in this POS.

I do like being able to follow them as they move from one lot to the other, color customization and the interactions with the ghosts.  I'm determined to get a ghost baby for which the Son of Perdition's self-sim has graciously agreed to take one for the team to provide.  After that I see myself going back to TS2 to fulfill my goddess complex.

As a Sims player since day 1 I feel like I've been bent over and fucked in the ass with no reach around.

My thought's exactly. All of it.

This game was blantantly rushed, and it's been sloppily and lazily developed. I'm only playing to see everything, and then I too shall return to the clearly superior TS2. There's some nice stuff in there, admittedly, but it's floating around in a sea of crap. The Sims 2 is an eternal sandbox that I can play until my fingers bleed. The Sims 3 is a shallow, generic game I will be sick of by the end of the week not least because of the numerous technical problems and it's tendancy to fuck it self up when I'm not looking.

It's like a PC version of the console games really... In fact, come to think of it, it's more of a horrific second coming of Simsville. One can now see why that game got canned.

[originalhalf]

The only mini game I like is exploring the catacombs in the graveyard.  I've gotten all my gnomes there (which btw is a hilarious addition), some of the rare seeds and some weird rock.  Plus I enjoy seeing my simself come out fried when it's been particularly traumatic.  She's gone in there so many times I think I've gotten all the scenarios multiple times.  

[AllenABQ]

I get the impression he's very well acquainted with TS1 and TS2 I also get the impression he really likes pudding, but the rest of the review makes up for that.

And there is this pearl ...

There is no way for a roleplayer to rationalize this, it is just further incompleteness and more design. Guess the extra 4 months wasn't enough. Solution: Design the interiors and lay out tasks and time limits per day. Performance can vary finely with player cleverness and activity.The tasks required would be very specific to the job.A "Journalism Track" employee might race to town square, chasing down a story about a protest rally. A "chef" could have a very zoomed up view of the kitchen's surfaces, with all the ingredients and utensils laid out for the player. Mouse strokes could cut veggies and meats and then careful attention to cooking temperature would be necessary.

First, he does not get this is a God Game.

Second, he does not get what is a "roleplayer" (lets ignore the fact you are not making a ingame avatar but creating a Sim) and just in case anyone is stupid enough to try to argue with me ... roleplay is exactly that, play a role but if I am playing the role of William Tell it does not mean MY (the actor) skills are the same of William Tell (the character) ... some dumbfucks think "roleplay" is using their (player) skills in some mini game and this lead me to ...

Three, Mini games are not replacement for skill system ... if there is a skill system then DITCH then, I tolerate mini games when they are used for breaking pacing and entirely optional but at least he did not directly mention what is the bane of current video games ... Simon-says mini games.

A lot of the issues with TS3 is because EA tried to appeal to people like him (the so called "gamers", I call then "proof we need eugenics") , its more of a "game" and that is why it fails.

I disagree that he doesn't get its a "God game."

I believe he was just trying to think of something else that might break the MORPG "grind"-like aspect of skilling in TS3.  In that respect, he has a point:

MORPG = set your character to make 150 longswords in the workshop. Execute. Wait.
Sims = set your character to learn cooking skill by reading a book. Execute. Wait.

The difference however is that with a MORPG you go fix yourself a snack, maybe start a load of laundry, or take some time to play with the dog while you wait. In the Sims, you can simply switch to a different active sim and keep playing. So I disagree with him on the point of needing to "fix" skilling with some kind of mini-game. I don't think it would hurt to add mini-games that increase skills purely for the sake of variety, but I wouldn't make them required.

What I have noticed in the bit I've played is that the Sims seem to lack soul. I've seen very few animations so far that I really like or that have brought a smile to my face. And there is something odd about the way they walk I can't put my finger on.

I also came across another review where someone directly accused of EAxis of making TS3 more MORPG-like. I have to admit I'm getting that feeling myself.  I drifted away from TS2 to play "Lord of the Rings Online" for the past two years because I was getting bored and it was refreshingly different from TS2. LOTRO has now gotten boring, and so I thought maybe TS3 was perfectly timed to take over as my new major video game interest.  However my experience so far has been that it's not different enough from TS2 -- and in some ways very inferior to it -- to hold my interest for very long AND parts of it do remind me of playing LOTRO.

 

[originalhalf]

What I have noticed in the bit I've played is that the Sims seem to lack soul. I've seen very few animations so far that I really like or that have brought a smile to my face. And there is something odd about the way they walk I can't put my finger on.

They stand and walk like they're going to a gunfight at the OK Corral.   It reminds me of Yul Brenner's character in "Futureworld".

[witch]

They stand and walk like they're going to a gunfight at the OK Corral. 

Or they have hemorrhoids.

[moondance]

In some ways, it reminds me of the game "Bully."

They took out 85% of the humor, and (I suspect on purpose) about 95% of the "sexy," and I think that's where at least some of the "soul" of the game went.  I was never "turned on" by the TS2 sims (though apparently some people were,) but I could at least understand why the sims would be turned on by one another. TS3 text messages about so-and-so being alluring or irresistibly-whatever-it-is just can't compare to animations in TS2 for the make out actions, or the romance sims' walk.  I do appreciate the messages about one sim considering another sim's actions to be "extremely awkward," because yes, yes they are. 

I always hated the YA amble in TS2, but I'd love to have it back now, instead of the way sims of all ages charge about like sims-on-a-mission--which causes me to wonder: since it appears that many animations were taken directly out of TS2 and plugged into TS3, is it at all possible that modders might be able to do the same thing, and replace some new animations for actions with the old ones?  I am hating that damn walk more and more with each passing day.

[Alex]

They stand and walk like they're going to a gunfight at the OK Corral. 

Or they have hemorrhoids.

That's what I thought too. Although, when they are cooking it looks like they've got diarrhea and they're about to rush off to the toilet.

[jolrei]

What I have noticed in the bit I've played is that the Sims seem to lack soul. I've seen very few animations so far that I really like or that have brought a smile to my face. And there is something odd about the way they walk I can't put my finger on.

They stand and walk like they're going to a gunfight at the OK Corral.   It reminds me of Yul Brenner's character in "Futureworld".

They are actually doing a speeded up Michael Jackson moonwalk.  Slow the speed down to a really annoyingly slow crawl and you'll see what I mean.  Their feet slide on the ground when they walk.  This is mostly imperceptible at normal speed, but if your computer starts to drag, it becomes ridonkulusly apparent.

[AllenABQ]

I finally realized that the face controls in CAS lack any way to manipulate the forehead and brow aside from changing the position of the eye brows.

This is one thing definitely lacking in making more masculine-looking male sims.  A more prominent brow immediate translates as masculine feature... if you go ALL OUT it'll make a guy look neanderthal-like.

But lacking any way to give brows even gentle enforcement, the foreheads on male sims are more or less fixed and helps contribute to them having that look of "same-ness."

Given this, I seriously doubt you could use TS3 CAS to make good copies of some well-known male celebrities. Like Hugh Jackman, for instance.

[J. M. Pescado]

I finally realized that the face controls in CAS lack any way to manipulate the forehead and brow aside from changing the position of the eye brows.

I pointed that out awhile ago, because there is absolutely no way to replicate my forehead properly, and so all attempts end up as this kind of slopey-foreheaded monkey, rather than my proper tube.

[justerin]

Here are some of my thoughts - okay mostly complaints... cuz 'omg i luvzzz sooo much ea is my favvvv!!1!!11 isn't productive. Also I dont feel much like gushing. 

I'm finding I am growing very bored very quickly with TS3, and I played the base games for both sims 1 and 2 way more than is healthy.  I dont remember ever really getting bored with either of them.  I think the biggest reason is I really enjoyed making the sims in both 1 & 2.  I do not enjoy making the sims this time around.  I am also finding that I do not feel like I like these little pixelated people.  Maybe its because they are all such little maggots as babies...  Or maybe its that as toddlers they can't interact with other toddlers or children...  or maybe its that all the children look like little square jawed oompa loompas.  hard to say. 

re: pudding face and general annoyance.
Adding a layer of chub may make the facial animations smoother but thus far I havent been able to make the sims I want.  And its not like the chub has eliminated the chunky accidents of cas where a jaw juts out in a disturbing pixelated mess, and nostrils fail to connect to the face resulting in choppy and unnatural animations.  Some sims turn out alright looking thanks to awsome mod, but never as good as I had hoped. 
I dunno if any of you guys played fallout 3, but the face controls remind me of the character creator from that game.  So many options... but they give only the illusion of control.  youre still stuck with certain parts of the face that cannot be altered.  That was just fine in fallout where you had to go out of your way to see your character's face... but i like watching my sims! i mean, isnt that the whole point?  Why does it seem like they put more effort into decorative outdoor plants than the sims themselves?  No actually, they put more effort into that than any other objects.  (Really?  We're back to octagons pretending to be circles?  The furnature looks like poorly made ts2 cc with low poly counts. just look at the cheapest lamp and you'll know what i mean.)

I guess I expected the graphics to be better.  I didn't expect every sim to have a weird spare tire around their necks.  I didn't expect that nearly ALL the (very limited) hair styles we were given to be horribly ugly.  I didn't expect them to all storm around town looking like theyre hunting for whoever put that stick up their bums.  My boyfriend asked me the other day "why are you still playing sims 2?"  to which i replied "im not, its sims 3." "then why are they all so pug-fugly?"  he laughed uproariously.  He went on to demand to know what happened to a particular cc'd out female sim who he had always heckled with cat calls as i played her or as she came onto a community lot.  'wwooOOooo there she is.  thats what im talking about.  make her date the bigfoot!  do it!!'  Regarding the sims 3 sims, he considered them for a moment before declaring that they looked like playmobile people. 

i really didnt expect to still see route-fail-splosions resulting in all the sims nearby stopping to tap their foot and bob their heads like my awkward older brother at a club.   It takes them over fifteen sim minutes to get back on track.  and its not even when they run into each others squares, it seems like even one sim walking behind another will without even bumping into the back of them stop and do the foot tap, as wil the one in front, until finally they find alternate directions to their target both abandoning the straight route.  I guess my expectations for mobility were too high.  I had hoped after hearing how they climb out of pools to avoid death even without the ladder, that maybe they could climb over the couch to avoid driving me crazy.  (little do they know failure to do so may also result in death for them if i get bored enough.  Tap your foot at me will you?!) 

on the time issue, i really wish the 1x speed would be slower.  it takes them half a sim hour to get from bed to the kitchen in a 2 story house, and im not talking about a mansion here.  Maybe then the 3x speed would feel faster without having to turn all the graphics to the lowest setting.  I thought this would be the sort of thing they would look into since sims are having to travel all over town.  time travelling too fast for the painfully slow sims to catch up with results in them being late for everything and never having time for leisure activities.  I feel like they have just enough time to sleep work and fullfill basic needs then an oppertunity rears its ugly head and their whole day is a write off. 

I dont even want to talk about the way they eat (or dont eat) group meals/birthday cake.  Sit down damnit, enjoy a family meal!  I feel like my freaking mom herding insolent kids to the dinner table. 

I do like the trait system - but the traits are pretty poorly balanced in terms of how they effect game play.  'Extreme sleep?'  WTF?  I guess they think thats funny but that should be a bonus to the actual trait feature.  that - oh i dont know - doesn't suck? 

I was also shocked at the poorly underdesigned genetics system. 

In terms of gameplay, while i love the open neighbourhood i am constantly unable to find the sims im looking for, and with new sims moving in (one more ty for awsome mod keeping them from moving out) and households switching around, its really time consuming and annoying to hunt down the sim you want.  Maybe if they had added a sim by sim run down in the family info screen in edit town, like in ts2.  I want to be able to click on each sim in the house and see their name...  maybe even see the information availiable in their bio card.

on that note, is it me or does alot of stuff seem about half done?  i love that theres a little bio card run down in the relationship menu, and i think its cool that you have to make your sim ferret the info out.  however, if our sims have wishes to 'cook so-and-so's favorite food' shouldnt their favorite food be listed on that card?  how am i supposed to know?  i dont examine every speech bubble and write this stuff down.  Similarly collecting seems pretty lacking.  wtf are we supposed to do with the metals and gems?  theyre not even pretty.  why would i want to display them?  maybe if i had a display case...  same deal with fishing.  i dont want 40 tiny fish bowls.  plus i think its a little cruel to keep a 10lb salmon in a tiny goldfish bowl - even if it is a lazily described extra dimensional whatever-the-hell. 

and then theres the whole barely any objects thing.  then there the whole lazily chosen colour schemes for defaults forcing us to redesign every single item thing.  and theres the whole story progression being totally broken thing.

oh man.  ea is lucky there are people like jm out there willing to clean up after their shit.  i guess theyre also lucky its next to impossible to return a game.  lol.  if i had something better to do i would so stop playing this game.  but who am i kidding, it just means playing WoW while i procrastonate instead.  *Sigh*.  Anyway, wow what a ramble.  I apologize, this is time I would normally be playing the game, but i already played for half an hour, so I'm bored.   

[Nailati]

on that note, is it me or does alot of stuff seem about half done?  i love that theres a little bio card run down in the relationship menu, and i think its cool that you have to make your sim ferret the info out.  however, if our sims have wishes to 'cook so-and-so's favorite food' shouldnt their favorite food be listed on that card?  how am i supposed to know?  i dont examine every speech bubble and write this stuff down.  Similarly collecting seems pretty lacking.  wtf are we supposed to do with the metals and gems?  theyre not even pretty.  why would i want to display them?  maybe if i had a display case...  same deal with fishing.  i dont want 40 tiny fish bowls.  plus i think its a little cruel to keep a 10lb salmon in a tiny goldfish bowl - even if it is a lazily described extra dimensional whatever-the-hell.

i hate u

[Marhis]

FREE apostrophes; pick as much as you want.



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[Lorelei]

on that note, is it me or does alot of stuff seem about half done?  i love that theres a little bio card run down in the relationship menu, and i think its cool that you have to make your sim ferret the info out.  however, if our sims have wishes to 'cook so-and-so's favorite food' shouldnt their favorite food be listed on that card?  how am i supposed to know?  i dont examine every speech bubble and write this stuff down.  Similarly collecting seems pretty lacking.  wtf are we supposed to do with the metals and gems?  theyre not even pretty.  why would i want to display them?  maybe if i had a display case...  same deal with fishing.  i dont want 40 tiny fish bowls.  plus i think its a little cruel to keep a 10lb salmon in a tiny goldfish bowl - even if it is a lazily described extra dimensional whatever-the-hell.

i hate u

You've just experienced the Bangelnuts Effect.
http://wikka.moreawesomethanyou.com/Bangelnuts#Bangelnuts_and_the_Grammar_Police

[SendMeLies]

I just haet1! EA's design team. Everybody is left handed? Their mouses are wired differently? Why the heck every single control is on the left? I mean, seriously?!?
The "we read from left to right"  paradigm has to make room to the new one "the mouse is on the right (most of the times), damn it!". Ergonomics.
On the same issue, isn't it adorable when you go to CAS create a sim on low res (1280) and have to guess how the puppet looks like because the huge controls (that control nothing) block the mirror view? Craptastic, EA. Really. I mean, really.
Trait system, editor for all things tacky, etc, all very clever. But why, oh my, Why can't I create my own neighborhood? Or at least build anywhere as on TS2?

[J. M. Pescado]

I just haet1! EA's design team. Everybody is left handed? Their mouses are wired differently? Why the heck every single control is on the left? I mean, seriously?!?

[SendMeLies]

I just haet1! EA's design team. Everybody is left handed? Their mouses are wired differently? Why the heck every single control is on the left? I mean, seriously?!?

Every menu of the game is on the left. Action takes place everywhere, mostly on the right because it's where the mouse rests. On a 24" monitor it gets really tiring to drag the mouse all the way around the screen to change anything.
Also, because every control on the game is on the left they often block the view of the Sim on the mirror. Because design team doesn't test the game before shipping.

[mikevalentino]

I don't like how they went back to the way they used to have lots, like the sims 1.

[wes_h]

On a 24" monitor it gets really tiring to drag the mouse all the way around the screen to change anything.

Weener of the foot-in-mouse award.

[J. M. Pescado]

Every menu of the game is on the left. Action takes place everywhere, mostly on the right because it's where the mouse rests. On a 24" monitor it gets really tiring to drag the mouse all the way around the screen to change anything.

I think you need to turn up your mouse sensitivity. Because the motion of the mouse on the screen is not dependent on the size of the screen. I can flip my mouse across any screen of any size with merely a slight wrist movement.

[Blech]

I agree with everyone who said the puddings lack the ability to make you give a shit about them. Don't get me wrong, I've never really given a shit about any of them since TS1, but at least in TS2, most of them escaped random death just because I got bored and instead had to piss me off first by refusing to stop doing stupid stuff. Some even got a pass to die peacefully of old age for doing something endearing. Like, I'll never forget the first toddler I ever saw cuddle with a puppy. That earned her the privilege of fulfilling her LTW and dying as an elder. There's nothing the puddings do that even comes close to this level of cuteness, which is probably why I have yet to have any controllables die of old age, they haven't earned it.

The lack of proper romance and weddings is another thing that makes puddings inferior. In TS2, my sims were destined for each other from birth. They'd play together as toddlers and children, have their first kiss with each other as teens, live together in Uni, and then marry and live happily ever after with their soul mate as adults. Each milestone worthy of many pics taken by proud parents. It actually seemed like they gave a shit about each other, which in turn, made me give a shit about them. I still have pictures on my desktop from my first TS2 wedding. My first pudding wedding was the first of many disappointments. I went into it thinking, "OMG, this is going to be so awesome, a destination wedding at the pretty little park behind their house! I'll get a buffet table and some flowers and balloons. I'll set up the cake right in the center, on display. Ohhh, I gotta take lots of pictures!" But the caek was a lie. I got so fucking bored, the sims getting married were the first to leave, long before the party was over.

Also, families just aren't worth the trouble anymore. I prefer to micromanage, so I'm not going to waste valuable skilling time raising boring larvae who don't even have the decency to be cute to make up for being a drain on resources. And I cannot believe that EA has forced the 1950's on me by making my sim mothers stay home until their spawn goes to school. WTF is this? This isn't even realistic. IRL, if you're kicking ass in your career as a doctor, you don't take years off to raise some kids while you're husband is a level one musician. No, you make his slacker ass stay home, while you bring home the bacon. This is why ALL of my controllabe families have been one-child homes. My sim females are go-getters who take the world by the balls, so they just can't afford to spend the best years of their lives raising children. This is another contributing factor to the early deaths in my game. In TS2, elders had their usefullness as free baby-sitters while the adults worked. Now, since mothers can't work, elders are just another drain on resources.

Another thing that's already been complained about is the lack of group socials. Most of my sims have NO friends because it's not necessary for a lot of jobs anymore and it's such a fucking hassle. The only sims who can make friends while doing something relevant to their lives are logic sims and musical sims. Everyone else is a loner because they don't have time to waste in front of the boob tube when they could be improving themselves.

Although this post is already quite long, in an effort to not be Ms. Negativity, here's some stuff I do like:
1. The openness. I like that my sims can wander around town for hours. Especially when I set them to exploring places with no roads, on foot.
2. Being able to let my male sims procreate without the hassle of actually living with the brat or it's mother. Although, forcing him to pay for this in the form of child support would be even more awesome.
3. The ability to learn how to do things by actually doing them. My sims hardly ever read skill books. If they wanna be good at cooking, they cook. Makes sense.
4. The fact that if I stop paying attention to a sim in the controllable family in favor of a more interesting sim, they won't starve themselves and scream, "Look at me, NAO!!!"

[Doc Doofus]

I'm actually starting to enjoy the game, more.  I suppose part of it is because I, perhaps foolishly, have begun to hope that there will be some CC and tools before long and I'll get to be one of the first guys in there, modding things. 

But the story progression is GREAT.  I can understand why people that are still trying to play it TS2 style are disappointed.  I'm disappointed in a number of things.  But the story progression feature of TS3 is the core of the game.  TS1 was about humorous Ozzie and Harriet kitsch  (I still miss that Leroy Anderson type music), TS2 was about genetics and mods.  TS3 is about story progression.  I actually wonder what is going on with my fellow neighbors.  The fact that EA didn't make it easier to switch between families baffles me, and I can't help wonder if it was a result of unresolved bugs in play-testing that they just wanted to sluff off for a future EP.

I always got bored with my families in TS2 after a while.  It got the point where I just abandoned one and started a new one.  The old family still showed up at the park and the restaurant, just the way I left them, making me feel guilty for dumping them.  I kind of like it that they can move on with their lives and that I can peek in on them, once in a while, to see if anything interesting happens. 

[J. M. Pescado]

Also, families just aren't worth the trouble anymore. I prefer to micromanage, so I'm not going to waste valuable skilling time raising boring larvae who don't even have the decency to be cute to make up for being a drain on resources. And I cannot believe that EA has forced the 1950's on me by making my sim mothers stay home until their spawn goes to school.

It's okay. AwesomeMod has a command for that. No more mandatory time off.

WTF is this? This isn't even realistic. IRL, if you're kicking ass in your career as a doctor, you don't take years off to raise some kids while you're husband is a level one musician.

Oh, it's not even the SIM choosing to take that. It's MANDATORY, they aren't given a choice at all!

Another thing that's already been complained about is the lack of group socials. Most of my sims have NO friends because it's not necessary for a lot of jobs anymore and it's such a fucking hassle. The only sims who can make friends while doing something relevant to their lives are logic sims and musical sims. Everyone else is a loner because they don't have time to waste in front of the boob tube when they could be improving themselves.

Well, that's a certain level of culture shock from TS1/2. In TS1 and 2, you were basically forced and encouraged to befriend everyone. In TS3, sims are more predisposed to keeping a realistic number of friends. How many friends do YOU really have?

Although this post is already quite long, in an effort to not be Ms. Negativity, here's some stuff I do like:

Negativity? This is MATY!

1. The openness. I like that my sims can wander around town for hours. Especially when I set them to exploring places with no roads, on foot.
2. Being able to let my male sims procreate without the hassle of actually living with the brat or it's mother. Although, forcing him to pay for this in the form of child support would be even more awesome.

I don't believe in child support. Not paying child support is a privilege you earn by not getting your head eaten.

3. The ability to learn how to do things by actually doing them. My sims hardly ever read skill books. If they wanna be good at cooking, they cook. Makes sense.

That's not NEW. TS2 had that.

4. The fact that if I stop paying attention to a sim in the controllable family in favor of a more interesting sim, they won't starve themselves and scream, "Look at me, NAO!!!"

Oh, they still do that. You need Less Whiny to make it stop. They're not quite as inclined to starve themselves, but the screaming continues.

But the story progression is GREAT.  I can understand why people that are still trying to play it TS2 style are disappointed.  I'm disappointed in a number of things.  But the story progression feature of TS3 is the core of the game.

My view is that the CONCEPT of story progression is good. The implementation, however, is terrible: It has no respect for the rules of common sense, logic, or the player's wishes. A version that FIXES these issues would be perfect. But a version that doesn't is worse than nothing at all!

TS1 was about humorous Ozzie and Harriet kitsch  (I still miss that Leroy Anderson type music), TS2 was about genetics and mods.  TS3 is about story progression.  I actually wonder what is going on with my fellow neighbors.  The fact that EA didn't make it easier to switch between families baffles me, and I can't help wonder if it was a result of unresolved bugs in play-testing that they just wanted to sluff off for a future EP.

Well, it's not easier to switch between them because you're NOT SUPPOSED TO. The game basically destroys your progress if you do.

[caterpillar]

But the story progression is GREAT.  I can understand why people that are still trying to play it TS2 style are disappointed.  I'm disappointed in a number of things.  But the story progression feature of TS3 is the core of the game.  TS1 was about humorous Ozzie and Harriet kitsch  (I still miss that Leroy Anderson type music), TS2 was about genetics and mods.  TS3 is about story progression.  I actually wonder what is going on with my fellow neighbors.  The fact that EA didn't make it easier to switch between families baffles me, and I can't help wonder if it was a result of unresolved bugs in play-testing that they just wanted to sluff off for a future EP.

I always got bored with my families in TS2 after a while.  It got the point where I just abandoned one and started a new one.  The old family still showed up at the park and the restaurant, just the way I left them, making me feel guilty for dumping them.  I kind of like it that they can move on with their lives and that I can peek in on them, once in a while, to see if anything interesting happens. 

I would love story progression if the neighbors actually did anything with their lives. Married couples will produce spawn, but their spawn (with parthenogenesis disabled) will most likely not get a job, never marry or breed, and die single and childless in the house they were born in. The parthenogenesis was a lame fix for the inherent problems with the way they handled story progression. I feel like I'm being forced back into the TS2 model, having to go into each house and manage their lives for them if I want them to have jobs, marriages and kids. My problem is that I also got bored with TS2 families because I didn't want to micromanage the whole neighborhood, and I hate having to play TS3 like it was TS2, creating the story progression myself.