News

In Preperation for Pets

October 12, 2011 /

In less then a week, most of you will have the new EPs, either available through download or as a physical copy in your hands.

Before installing the EP you should follow the steps described here: What to do before patching. It is important that you backup your user data (including your downloads, installed content and save games.

Backing up your Stuff

Copy the entire user file directory, most importantly the following folders/files:

  • Saves –> these are all your savegames
  • DCCache –> these is all your custom content (including store content), that you installed through the launcher except houses/sims/households
  • Downloads –> These are all the files you downloaded from the Exchange or the Store
  • Exports –> These are all the Sim, Houses, … you have shared from your game
  • Library –> These are all the houses and households you installed through the launcher or put directly into this folder
  • SavedSims –>   These are all the Sims you installed through the launcher or put directly into this folder
  • userPresets.package –> These are all the patterns and styles you created in game (Create-A-Style)
  • InstalledWorlds –> These are all the worlds you installed through the launcher.
  • Mods –> Any package file custom content you installed yourself.

To get more info on the user files, check this: Game Help:TS3 User Folders Explained

The demo taught us that a patch can uninstall all our store content, so, backing up everything makes sure that you do not need to redownload/reinstall everything.

The Demo

The demo gave us some early insight. Read this post: Create-A-Pet Demo (SCRAP) for the problems it had. I would advise everyone to uninstall the Demo from your computer before installing Pets. Use CCleaner (or some other tool) to clean your registry as well. Make sure all traces are gone. Also make sure to delete these files manually:  

  • user files\worldcaches\build\Mode_test_venkat_objects.package
  • user files\worldcaches\build\Mode_test_venkat_sims.package

If you  created some pets you want to use in your game, those can be found in the  documents\electronicarts\thesims3\saved\Sims folder. Copy them to an external disk to make sure you don’t loose them. You can simply put them back in that folder should they get lost during the installation process. You can also export them and upload to your EA account to redownload later. I’m unsure if EA is purging stuff, so make sure, you save the content of the documents\electronicarts\thesims3\Export folder as well.

The Patch

There will be a patch with this EP. Things like the collections we are getting will be in the patch and will be available to people that don’t buy Pets anyways. Judging from previous experience the patch will be available for download on Monday or Tuesday. It will also be included on the Pets DVD, so if you buy the physical copy, you should patch from there. You have to patch in order to install the EP, there’s no way around that.

What we don’t know yet is, if there will be another patch as well. If the version number of the patch we’re getting is 1.27 or higher, chances are that people that buy the DVD will still have to patch. All you need to run the EP is the patch that is on the DVD though.

Don’t expect the patch to fix many bugs. This reason for this patch is to make our games EP ready. If you have tons of problems with your game, don’t buy the EP simply to make your game work. Only buy the EP if you really want it.

Origin & the Launcher

Origin is EA’s new Download Manager and favorite toy. It’s comparable to Steam and EA pushes everyone to start using it. You DON’T need it to play the game, upload stuff or to download Store Content. The only thing you need it for is if you bought the download version and for patching (although that can be done manually as well).

If you decide to use Origin, you will need to make sure it’s ALWAYS up-to-date or it can cause many problems, especially with the Launcher. Before installing the EP, open Origin to see if there’s an update available. If you have problems, uninstall Origin and get the current Version here: Origin.

Known Problem with certain graphic cards

People with certain graphic cards had troubles with the pets demo. Their animals were all distorted and chances are, that’s not going to change for the EP itself. If you have any of these cards, I would advise you to wait with buying the EP until more info is available.
This thread has listed some of the cards that make problems, Intel G33/G31 Express Chipset Family being pretty much confirmed: Possible Incompatibility with the G33/G31 Graphics Card.

Mods

The demo gave modders a head start (at least core & script modders). It’s pretty much already known what is to be expected.

You should remove all mods before installing the EP. Many will be rendered incompatible and will need to be updated. Check the sites where you have downloaded them for updates.

Core Mods

(Awesome Mod, Extended Game Core, BaXim’s Mod, ErrorTrap)

These mods WILL be incompatible. If you get an Unofficial Game Modification message, do NOT continue. It can make your savegame corrupt. Remove ANY Core Mods before continuing.

Scripting Mods

(Twallan, Buzzler, ani_, treeag & others)

Most of these mods will probably also be incompatible. Especially the bigger ones. Twallan has already stated that his will be. Remove them and check for updates. Most of these mods require a special way of uninstalling, so make sure you read this post: How do I uninstall a Mod/Hack ? before ripping them out.

XML/Tuning Mods

These mods aren’t as intrusive as the other two kinds. It always depends if EA alters the XML file they altered or not. Any mods that change anything with social interactions WILL be incompatible for there are many new social interactions. The same goes for the NoMosaic mod. It’s best to remove ALL mods although chances are that the older ones that have worked up to now, will still be working. Check the creators posts if you are unsure and ask them if you find no info.

Clothing & Object CC

As of now, it is unclear if cc clothing can distort animals or not. If you have any weird graphic issues, remove all clothing items to see if that solves your problem.

What to do if you run into problems

There are many solutions for many common problems in this blog. Use the SEARCH or the Table of Content to see if there’s a solution. I will be linking posts here as the problems get known on the forums.

A good way of testing a clean game without having to reinstall everything is this: Resetting the game to factory settings without reinstalling

If you have any problems you can’t solve, please post here: Pets Bug Thread – Please post your issues here. Please read the instructions in the first post and the compiled lists for solutions available. You do not need to read the whole thread.