How is the new OFB patch working for everyone?

[Braveheart]

Being a little nervous about installing the Maxis OFB patch, I thought I'd seek some opinions from those of you who have dared to install it. How's it going? Does it address the bugs effectively? Any new glitches with the patch? Sorry if I sound a bit anal about the patch, but I've been around the Sims games long enough to know better. Thanks

[BlueSoup]

I haven't noticed anything, but then I also hadn't gotten any of the bugs listed in the patch either. The one thing I did want fixed (the mailbox not able to be moved without that out of bounds message) wasn't fixed.

It does reset your Sims, so make sure you have them all parked at home before installation.

[Li'l Brudder]

I downloaded it so I wouldn't have to put up with the Stuck on Community lot bug.  I am not going to toss away the crowbar, I still need this just in case.

[MissDoh]

I haven't noticed anything, but then I also hadn't gotten any of the bugs listed in the patch either. The one thing I did want fixed (the mailbox not able to be moved without that out of bounds message) wasn't fixed.

It does reset your Sims, so make sure you have them all parked at home before installation.

Did you leave your hacks in?  I was wondering also if you got any report so far from JM as if any of his hacks needs an update after the patch.

[Ness]

we were held to ransom last night in chat...  random kickings started and we were told they would continue until someone was kind enough to send him a patched objects package.

Andygal came through!

I would imagine that the report regarding necessary and obsolete hacks should be out soon, if it is not already and I just haven't seen it.

Ness

[Pegasys]

I haven't had any problems with the patch, but it didn't fix the one bug that was bugging me (disappearing inventory, described in another post below). I'd recommend it though just to prevent the lot deletion bug that can happen when fiddling with uniforms. That was just plain scary.

[ZiggyDoodle]

Haven't installed it yet because I haven't had any of the problems listed.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it?

[spambi]

I installed the patch and played one lot and noticed two problems --

1) the headmaster didn't come for dinner (he hadn't disappeared on the lot previously, to my knowledge). Using the FFS lot debugger to "Fix AWOL Headmaster" didn't help.

2) My sim who played the piano for 4 hours had an empty fun bar. Replacing the piano seemed to fix it :/

Granted, I installed the patch without removing hacks, so I'll have to try removing them to see if things get fixed, but so far I'm not so happy about the patch.

[MutantBunny]

So Maxis didn't get the patch right either....geez. I am so disappointed in them.

Does anyone know any part of OFB that makes it worthwhile/makes it good?

[Simlover]

There are a lot posting at the BBS saying they have had problems with their games since installing the patch.  Quite frankly I havent encountered any dramas (and I was trying to get the stuck at community lot bug) so I agree with Ziggy if it aint broke dont bother.  Apparently maxis is working on a second patch to fix the things they didnt get with the first.

[TheCheat]

I haven't installed the patch at all, but I guess that's because I haven't had any problems with vanilla OFB.

[Sagana]

I downloaded the patch but haven't installed it yet either. I probably will this weekend, but I also haven't had any major bugs, know what to avoid (I think) not to get them and don't mind doing that, and don't feel like dealing with making sure my sims are all ok to be reset yet again right now, so I'm not in any hurry.

Does anyone know any part of OFB that makes worhtwhile/makes it good?

OFB is buggy. Pretty majorly buggy really - big things and small things. OFB is "light" content-wize (only 1 CD, lots of the items are silly stuff that one would rarely use), not a perfect implementation of the concept (really, it's missing features it should have) and all of that.

Personally I don't care. I love the EP. OFB throws the game wide-open. I believe *almost* any scenario I want to set-up I can do now. Most pretty easily. This makes it worthwhile to me. I'm fascinated and have years worth of gameplay that I can think of just off the top of my head.

There's a few things still missing, sure. It'd require some pretty major work to do a travel agency and make it feel like the sims were really going somewhere (subhoods help). That could be done, however. Transportation still has some issues (the ability to *walk* somewhere, bicycles, roller blades, ice skates and skateboards - we can't really do any of those well). I do have magic carpets and carts and wagons, and toddler riding toys, so I imagine with a little willing suspension of disbelief at least some of these could be done.

Babies and toddlers not being able to leave the house is still an issue, as is not being able to really visit your neighbors. And of course, there's still pets (even tho I hated those in sims1) and animals. I'm disappointed in the Family Fun thing. My idea of family fun would be to have a park - where kids can ride on a merry-go-round, teeter-totter, climb the jungle gym, and slide down a slide. BBQs. Things like that. I have some meshes for these things, but there are no animations for them. Really, there's lots more animations I'd like to have.

And if I'm just dreaming, I know what I'd *really* like to have most. I think what Motoki seems to want (at least as I see it) is really what I'd most like to have myself - a scripting tool. Neverwinter Nights (and other games of this ilk) provide scenario-editor type things so you can set up your own scenarios. With something like that, you could make NPCs that do things - the same way Mortimer Goth shoves you if you peek in on him or whatever scripting it is that causes Mrs. Crumplebottom to go off the deep end, etc. The tools for NPC behavior would be available. That's what I'd really like to have.

So yeah, there are still some places to go. But if I'm willing to squint a bit, I can now get almost anything I want to out of the game. All in all, I'm happy - having a good time. And NL and OFB accomplished that for me. What is it that you like best about playing and what kind of EP (or whatever) would you like to see to have that?

[Mike]

I found no problems and surprisingly, it didnt reset my sims.

[SIMplyLisa]

The one house I check in on after installing everyone had reset. Only problem I saw was one of the toddlers errored 2 or 3 times. I left all my hacks in and am using JM's eye in the sky baby minder thing. I'm going to delete it and add it back to see if that stops the errors.

I have one person in the house that when she juggles coffee cups its really frightening! Her arms distort all over the place and the cups juggle about 5 feet away from her! This happened both before and after the patch so whatever causes it wasn't fixed! Another sim on the lot can juggle cups just fine!

I agree with Sagana, both NL and OFB have added so many possiblities!

[Liss]

I installed it with no drama.  Works great for me.

[Ancient Sim]

The only thing I've noticed so far is that the piano doesn't give fun again, as someone else has mentioned.  That's a major pain in the proverbials for me because lots of my kids go straight to it when they get back from school.  I'm going to try the pianofix again and see if that works.

[sintrinity]

I didn't take any of my hacks out and the only thing I have seen is the sim reset already mentioned.  I also didn't lose piano fun for some reason (must be a hack I have).  I did notice a few times though that kids playing the game for the tv thingy didn't get fun from it.  I haven't really looked into that and didn't notice if it was happening before since I usually have the kids do a skill buiding fun thing anyways after school.

All in all though, I didn't have the problems it said it fixed but it didn't seem to break anything that I ghave noticed yet or that I didn't already have a mod to fix.

[J. M. Pescado]

The only thing I've noticed so far is that the piano doesn't give fun again, as someone else has mentioned.  That's a major pain in the proverbials for me because lots of my kids go straight to it when they get back from school.  I'm going to try the pianofix again and see if that works.

The Piano has, to my knowledge, never been fixed despite claims to the contrary.

Nothing was really changed in the patch hack-wise, the only thing that beeped was the obvious one: No Servo Chores. Which you may or may not want to remove, depending on whether you want Servo doing this sort of thing even in Free Will.

Since I don't use Free Will, I'm just declaring it a discontinued product, but it should still work.

[Ruann]

The only thing I've noticed so far is that the piano doesn't give fun again, as someone else has mentioned.  That's a major pain in the proverbials for me because lots of my kids go straight to it when they get back from school.  I'm going to try the pianofix again and see if that works.

The Piano has, to my knowledge, never been fixed despite claims to the contrary.

Nothing was really changed in the patch hack-wise, the only thing that beeped was the obvious one: No Servo Chores. Which you may or may not want to remove, depending on whether you want Servo doing this sort of thing even in Free Will.

Since I don't use Free Will, I'm just declaring it a discontinued product, but it should still work.

Aaand there's two of two modders.  Dang it.  That means I can install the patch.     I was hoping to mock the patch and laugh at it.

[Nec]

I downloaded it earlier, but I don't think I am going to install it. I am quite pleased with the way my game is running at the moment. And though I do have some of the bugs mentioned in the list, none of them bother me enough or happen often enough to warrant potentially screwing it up [more]. I don't do bakeries or salons, I don't play Maxis neighborhoods, and I don't save at owned businesses. As far as the ReNuYuSenso Orb thing, if I know a lot has one on it and I haven't played it since installing, I just enable testing cheats and delete it when I get the error as the lot loads. The only one I have really noticed is community lots loading at triple speed when you arrive - no biggie, and Besides, I can't handle servo doing chores. Also, I am sucessfully using hacks that are presumably not OFB compatible (my favorite being Dizzy's Daily/Weekly Burgler/Arsonist) and I am not going to risk giving that up for anything. I love watching the burgler torch houses far too much! 

It is easier to patch than unpatch. If it ain't broke (too badly), don't fix it. Yadda yadda yadda.

[RabidAngel]

 
What about the problem Nvidia users are having with crashes....I didn't see that on there anywhere..

[sintrinity]

I have read about that - the Nvidia problems but I have never experienced any graphical errors or crashes and I have a 6600.  Well, I take that back - the default female children's bangs cover their eyes.  Is it related to the terrains or something?  I can only assume that it is something I don't use that is causing problems.  Please, oh please don't let me find it accidentally on a downloading spree  ... 

[laeshanin]

There are a lot posting at the BBS saying they have had problems with their games since installing the patch.  Quite frankly I havent encountered any dramas (and I was trying to get the stuck at community lot bug) so I agree with Ziggy if it aint broke dont bother.  Apparently maxis is working on a second patch to fix the things they didnt get with the first.

Why can't they just get it right the first time? Is it because they a) don't listen, b) don't care cos they know we're gonna fork out lots of gelt anyways or, c) both? And knowing this why do we still suck it up? Sheesh, talk about suckers being born every day. 

[cyperangel]

I have only one issue with the patch.

Before i installed it, i could select multiple members of a houslehold to go to a community lot, and leave some at home. Now, i can either go as 1 single sim, or the whole household.
I liked it that i could bring the father and the eldest teenager to the business, and leave wife and two children at home.
bah!

[laeshanin]

Righto, now I know I ain't gonna install it. Stupid Maxis!