Discouraged with Woodworking Hobby

[blackbrit]

I began the game at about the point the woodworking hobby became an option, and I've created most of my town based on many, many 4 minute sessions of woodworking. As I got more Sims, they became woodworkers, fashion designers, or ghost hunters, in that order, with woodworking always taking precedence.

I've reached the current top level of the game, but my plan was still to focus on woodworking to maximize simoleons and LP. I had built two houses for woodworking, each with 10 woodworking benches. But now, along comes this update. I've barely been able to make myself set the Sim woodworkers to their tasks since I updated.

Once you've filled a good part of the grid there is literally no reward. Or if there is, I don't understand what it is. I know this is how to earn 3 LP, but, for me, it isn't fun. How many times do I want to pop a bubble for the dragon, or whatever, and not earn anything? No fun = no playing.

I'm having to rethink the game. I wondered what the pros and cons of the new bird feeding hobby were, but it's now clear the new hobby is all "con," for me, at least.

I am so disappointed. Sorry to sound so negative, but I'm at a loss. I've played a lot in the past (almost) year, and enjoyed the game and this forum. Now I am worrying FM will take away the rewards of gardening somehow...

I no longer have a strategy for playing the game. I just don't get it. Rant over.

[Desiree]

I began the game at about the point the woodworking hobby became an option, and I've created most of my town based on many, many 4 minute sessions of woodworking. As I got more Sims, they became woodworkers, fashion designers, or ghost hunters, in that order, with woodworking always taking precedence.

I've reached the current top level of the game, but my plan was still to focus on woodworking to maximize simoleons and LP. I had built two houses for woodworking, each with 10 woodworking benches. But now, along comes this update. I've barely been able to make myself set the Sim woodworkers to their tasks since I updated.

Once you've filled a good part of the grid there is literally no reward. Or if there is, I don't understand what it is. I know this is how to earn 3 LP, but, for me, it isn't fun. How many times do I want to pop a bubble for the dragon, or whatever, and not earn anything? No fun = no playing.

I'm having to rethink the game. I wondered what the pros and cons of the new bird feeding hobby were, but it's now clear the new hobby is all "con," for me, at least.

I am so disappointed. Sorry to sound so negative, but I'm at a loss. I've played a lot in the past (almost) year, and enjoyed the game and this forum. Now I am worrying FM will take away the rewards of gardening somehow...

I no longer have a strategy for playing the game. I just don't get it. Rant over.

I completely agree. My town was designed around fashion design , and I set up a big workshop, plus many houses had their own cute little shop. The update is a real let down.

However I did try today to see how much I could make in an hour with their new set up. So for an hour I had 9 sims doing the 4 minute fashion design in one house ( baby at the house so I couldn't have all ten ) and set up 2 other houses with frozen pools with 20 adult, teen and preteens doing 4 minute figure skating. I used the town map to go from house to house so I could collect the house rewards - which frequently have the 600 Simoleon bonus.

In an hour I made 18 LP and about 20,000 Simoleons. Not nearly as much as just doing the fashion design pre-update, but much better than I thought it would be. Obviously it could go much higher or lower depending on luck, but it's at least enough to buy a little furniture and keep decorating.

[boysnberry11]

I started late in the game. The only real way to earn simoleons whenever I needed to was fashion design and woodworking (SPs are another story). Otherwise, I'd only earn a few thousand a day from jobs, school, small daily reward and gardening overnight. I don't play every hour, so I set long tasks for however long I think I might be busy.

Most of my homes are LP homes, LP furniture, etc as it's all I can afford. I said it before, even if I bought the most expensive bundle, I still can't afford another home. Lol I'm just losing interest as everything is so drawn out, quests are getting boring for the reward you get to buy and anything that used to produce any benefit is reduced to as minimal reward as possible. It would take me years to buy anything else outside of an LP home or a small SP home.

Just charge one price upfront for everything would be more realistic at this rate. I find myself either letting my sims wander off by themselves or hibernating more-- something I've never done. We'll see if things improve at all. I don't want to write off the game completely. Just not tied to it as much as I was in the beginning.

[bloodcool]

I'm with you, blackbrit. I stopped and restarted SFP, when the daily reward has been tweaked down. Was able to make use of the CC-firepole selling to earn some healthy simoleons... but have spent quite a large amount to build HFN from scratch (because of that big pool and the 1 million level 2 ), paying 6.5m for 2-storey mansion...

And I use woodworking to earn back around 60% of the spending, with planting making up the rest and these took me almost of year to do that...

With this update, the ability of earning simoleons at a healthy rate is greatly reduced and there isn't a good way now to advise new players on how to stash up their sims bank without breaking their real life bank...

Anyhow, i'm back to sending my Sims to work/school, whenever possible. And planting overnight to earn... If I really have the time, I will stay on my reindeer farm...

[Ann Sims]

I agree completely with your post Blackbrit. I started the game after the new daily reward was established and get about $8,700 with a town at about 120,000. I can't buy anything with that. I used woodworking and fashion design to make money and LP. Like Boysenberry11 almost every house I built was with LP. Since the last update I tried woodworking and fashion design but they weren't fun anymore. I'm at level 53 so the XP are wasted on my game and it was boring to do those hobbies for so little reward. - Just tiresome - I really had fun with them before. So I've been hibernating sims and planting hamburgers and beans. I have to be extra careful not to accidentally have birthdays. My eyesight isn't the best and it's tedious to play worrying if one of my sims is about to grow old accidentally. I signed the petition to get a confirmation on birthdays - hope they listen. The new birdwatching hobby seems boring and it's dull getting my senior through the goals. I fortunately play another game I really like and have spent most of my time doing it since the last update. SFP is not as much fun for me. I hope something chances for the better soon.

[animagif]

Since they no longer offer reward for built items, when I need LPs via hobby, I resort to figure skating. No clicking required, less space needed (10 sims can skate on a 3x3 pool). When I need §, I just utilise the Riches of Terra monument and plant bell peppers.

[bloodcool]

Since they no longer offer reward for built items, when I need LPs via hobby, I resort to figure skating. No clicking required, less space needed (10 sims can skate on a 3x3 pool). When I need §, I just utilise the Riches of Terra monument and plant bell peppers.

yup... i have converted all, but 1, woodworkers to ice skating. But even with this, i'm seldom make them ice skate too. Now if I need LP, i will go 'camp' at my reindeer farm and would possibly gain 5-10 LPs within 30 min to an hour.

[animagif]

Since they no longer offer reward for built items, when I need LPs via hobby, I resort to figure skating. No clicking required, less space needed (10 sims can skate on a 3x3 pool). When I need §, I just utilise the Riches of Terra monument and plant bell peppers.

yup... i have converted all, but 1, woodworkers to ice skating. But even with this, i'm seldom make them ice skate too. Now if I need LP, i will go 'camp' at my reindeer farm and would possibly gain 5-10 LPs within 30 min to an hour.

sweet

[hiser1974]

I agree with all of the above. I noticed since this update I play less and set my sims to longer tasks.
Before this update I would start my day with having my sims do some hobbies. Now I can be bothered.
Also tried iceskating but nope didn't do it for me.

I think every Freemium game tries to get people to spend real life money by making actions take long. So people will spend real life money on currency to speed things up. Unfortunately that also means that most of the games I tried become unplayable without spending money because progress is so slow it feels like it stalled. And it is boring,waiting for hours or even days for something to complete. I just hope that this game doesn't go that way though sometimes it feels like it already has. I don't know how it is for new players who just start, perhaps I should start a second new game just to see how things are then.

And maybe I just have to rethink my in game strategy and focus on other things in game. I managed to save up some simoleons so I think I will let my sims do long tasks and go redecorating some houses. Still need to build more houses but 1 house takes 3 days, so it will take a while before all houses in my city are build.

[Bagatelle]

I sadly agree with you blackbrit.....

I began playing SFP a year ago...
At this time, I remember how easy it was to build 2nd and 3rd floors (during quest to build floors).... Now, it's really too much expensive !! 1 and 2 million simoleons and in the same time, the daily reward can't go beyond around 8000 simoleons a day.....

Woodworking and hobbies were a good way to have simoleons and they changed it....

I think FM is really changing the game and making it harder to play....
Nothing is free anymore !
I used to start over new games very regularly because I write papers about new quests for french forum, for each new update....
And I can say that with each new update, it's getting harder and harder for new gamers....
Before Christmas, for each quest, we had a FREE gift, but not anymore.... Now, you can just UNLOCK items....

I think it's really sad and I'm wondering how this game will become.....