Why the big fuss with SIMS2???????!!!!!!!!!!!

I just borrowed SIMS2 from a friend to install and see why so many people have problems with it (I have absolutely no intension af playing this game at all, I hate the little buggers).

I installed it on both my PC's and my father-in-laws PC and it worked fine on all three PC's, whats the problem, dont people read the README or Minimum specs (thats also in the REAMDE)?.

No. Most people don't read the requirements. From what I've seen, since the Sims 1 ran on their computer they are assuming that the Sims 2 will run on their computer. LOL! That's like thinking Doom 3 will run your computer because Doom 1 does!!!

I was quite disappointed to come home and find out that my sister bought the Sims 2, when 1. Her computer doesn't have a DVD drive, 2. The computer doesn't fit the requirements, 3. The Sims 1 ran like crap on her computer.

Now I know that people cannot be expected to know everything about their computer but you'd expect that if your gonna shell out $50 for a product that you'd at least research it.

Hmmmm, Dosfreak, you have a point there, we tend to forget that we're not that helpless when it comes to a computer, like a couple of weeks ago I had to show a brilliant doctor that lives about 10Km from me how to read and reply to emails.

We specialize in this field, other people specialize in something else, if someone had to ask us to name every bone in our body or every part in an airplane we wont be able to do it, well, not without the help of net of course:).

Also the way PC games are marketed doesnt help.

If I go into my local shop, I scan the shelves and I go:

"hmmm PS2 ... could by something there"
then
"oooo Game Cube ... no i dont have one of those"
then
"ahh-haa PC games lets see what lovely games they have"

This is where the difference begins.

Us lot here go "what are the specs?" or maybe "lets get the best game i dont care i have a amazing graphics card and a trillion Ghz CPU with blah blah and flashing lights and stuff"

Most consumers go "It says PC. I have a PC. Woohoo game sold!"

The way I see it- PS2, GameCube and the others (aka consoles) provide a service. The service is to play games.
PCs are tools- they need to be told to behave in a certain way. No two are the same (all different progs, settings, files etc.) and the user almost has to apply the power of the PC to the application- i.e. the game

All credit to the Sims2 people- they made a lot of "normal consumers" buy it- hence all of the problems!

Maybe the industry should work out a way to brand PCs. Like PS1, PS2 etc. Of course it kinda works with the CPU however a generic/brand all approach would be handy when we look at PCs for the masses.

Maybe a revision system would be good where:

Say I have a "PC 4.05.5.17.2"

4= Pentium 4
05= 512Mb RAM
52 = OS level (XP)
17 = Video level (ATI 9800XT)
2= DVDROM


Level 4 CPU would be a broad benchmark of AMD/Intel CPUs that are roughly the same. RAM counted up like (05,10,15,2) = 512, 1Gb, 1.5Gb, 2Gb, then the next OS is 6 (or XP SP3 is 53 lol), 17 is the GPU (again broad benchmarks of ATI/nVidia etc.), then the CD player (CDROM, DVDROM etc.)

This would at least give some indicator to people of what that sad cream box in the corner actually has in it. People understand numbers easily enough - its all this "you need Directx 9 compatible blah blah"- most ppl just dont know (or need to know) what directx is.

Hmm thats some tangent lol :p

Yeah, thats a great idea, label the PC's, but with only numbers the user will still need a legend or manual to read up what is what. I think they should label the PC's like they do with all the new laptops, like:

AMD/celeron/Intel P4, 3.0
512MB RAM
128MB Graphics
DVD/CD Rom/Writer
Win XP Home build 5.0.blah blah

Then they stick it on the side or top with the XP Serial.

Yeah it would have to be something simple, and don't get me wrong because I do think it is a good idea and all it's just that if they aren't reading the side of the game box to check specs I don't think they will bother to check the side of the PC....

I don't know why this seems to have suddenly become such a big problem. Is it that alot of people have been sitting on PC's for a while (except us Hard Core Gamers that have been updating) or is it that games have suddenly jumped so far ahead that you have no choice but to have the latest gear??
S

Originally posted by thatsteveguy:

They should say on the game box in the front, together with the name that the people should look on the side or top of the PC to see the specs before byung the game, if they had the sticker syste, going with the specs.

Most of the private people I help here with their PC's all have small spec PC's, they dont know of any better, they still think ahhh, my PC is 5 years old and still working, why should I buy a new one.