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Test Subject
Original Poster
#1 Old 16th Dec 2015 at 3:21 AM
The Sims Online
Been very curious about this for a while..

Does anyone know how it worked? like.. How was the gameplay and why the game was taken down?
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Mad Poster
#2 Old 16th Dec 2015 at 3:52 AM
I can speak about the early experiences of The Sims Online, but I think it changed later. I started playing it when they opened up the beta, not in the first wave of players who were there by invitation.

All in all, there really wasn't much game play to the whole thing. Interacting with other players as a Sim was the name of the game. Mostly people would live together, skill together, and play some mini-games within it to increase their funds. The mini-games were cooperative. Two I remember were a map game and a mechanical object game. Nothing was as cheap or as easy as to acquire as it was in The Sims itself. Skills were hard to gain and would fade over time, so players devoted a lot of time to that. Some would set their avatar/Sim to skill and put a weight on their keyboard to keep it active while they got ready for work or slept. As a result, you would go places where Sims were gathered only to find there was no one to interact with. There were some fun socials and objects. Later, after I left, they added pets and more activities to earn money.

I think they took it down because they didn't have enough players to sustain it.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Top Secret Researcher
#3 Old 18th Dec 2015 at 5:56 PM
There was a story about EA not beeing able to maintain the game world and servers, and players doing illegal things in game (they litterally made brothels). The game was not a success I guess.

But, there is a project that aims to restore, or better said reboot and improve every aspect of the game, and to distribute it for free to everyone. I follow it just to see how did TSO really felt back then. It somehow strucks me with nostalgia even more than TS1, because my older brother and teens in my neighborhood used to play it a lot. I was a kid back then.
Scholar
#4 Old 24th Dec 2015 at 2:09 AM
I've always been curious about TSO as well. Even though I never played it, it was still really saddening when I learned they closed it. Back in the day I was young and didn't know about the financial backing needed to sustain a server, so I thought online games would be there forever. Especially back then, TSO was one of the first (to my knowledge at the time) online games around.


"It is easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled." - Mark Twain
Truth will not fear scrutiny.
Mad Poster
#5 Old 24th Dec 2015 at 10:29 AM Last edited by VerDeTerre : 24th Dec 2015 at 10:40 AM.
There were lots of online games around long before TSO, it's just that they weren't The Sims, so if you were a Sims player mostly, you probably didn't hear about them. I ran into a handful of players in TSO who were checking it out because they typically enjoyed MMOG - Massive Multiplayer Online Games.

As a game, it disappointed, but it did have some fun build and play objects and the opportunity to get to know people around the world was pretty cool. Really, the players made the game, so if you found a bunch that liked to have fun, the game was then fun.

And speaking of illegal activities, maybe it wasn't "illegal" but it wasn't nice, either. The "mafia" came to visit a friend of mine. He had built a residence for a city hall and he called himself the mayor. It was beautiful. I'd often head over there and water his flowers for him when he needed to sleep, but wanted to keep "city hall" open. They got in touch with him and set up a meeting to talk. English wasn't his first language, so he asked me to sit in on it to make certain he didn't misunderstand what they were saying.

They showed up and we sat down in the mayors "office". There were three of them, I think, and they were really put off with the fact that I was there. They started leaning on him and making suggestions about taking over his residence. Asses. They did use subtle language and my friend suspected they were threatening him, but he couldn't be sure. I spoke up for my friend and told them he wasn't interested and gave them counter point for counter point as they presented it. I wish I had saved a transcript because it was one bizarre conversation. The leader asked my friend two or three times why I was there and why I was talking for him and WHO was I. We came back with "I'm a friend" a couple of times and then "She's here to help with the meeting and I trust her". When the jerks weren't getting anywhere with their veiled threats, I ended it by pointed out what they were doing. They left, sort of insinuating it wasn't over, but they never came back.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Scholar
#6 Old 26th Dec 2015 at 3:26 AM
@mixa97sr You mentioned a project that is remaking TSO? Can I get a link to it? Can't seem to find through Google.

Quote: Originally posted by VerDeTerre
And speaking of illegal activities, maybe it wasn't "illegal" but it wasn't nice, either. The "mafia" came to visit a friend of mine. He had built a residence for a city hall and he called himself the mayor. It was beautiful. I'd often head over there and water his flowers for him when he needed to sleep, but wanted to keep "city hall" open. They got in touch with him and set up a meeting to talk. English wasn't his first language, so he asked me to sit in on it to make certain he didn't misunderstand what they were saying.

They showed up and we sat down in the mayors "office". There were three of them, I think, and they were really put off with the fact that I was there. They started leaning on him and making suggestions about taking over his residence. Asses. They did use subtle language and my friend suspected they were threatening him, but he couldn't be sure. I spoke up for my friend and told them he wasn't interested and gave them counter point for counter point as they presented it. I wish I had saved a transcript because it was one bizarre conversation. The leader asked my friend two or three times why I was there and why I was talking for him and WHO was I. We came back with "I'm a friend" a couple of times and then "She's here to help with the meeting and I trust her". When the jerks weren't getting anywhere with their veiled threats, I ended it by pointed out what they were doing. They left, sort of insinuating it wasn't over, but they never came back.


For a moment I had a hard time knowing whether your story was real or in game, but I'm sure you meant in game? I didn't even know mafia roleplay existed to be honest, but are you saying they took it further than just roleplay?


"It is easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled." - Mark Twain
Truth will not fear scrutiny.
Mad Poster
#7 Old 26th Dec 2015 at 3:45 AM
Sorry for the confusion, it was all in game. This wasn't the real "mafia", but people who decided to become hooligans and wreck other players experiences. This was the first I had heard of them in the online game. There were enough mechanics within the game that they could make another player miserable if that player did not cave to their demands.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Top Secret Researcher
#8 Old 26th Dec 2015 at 12:47 PM
The most known rumor (which probably wasn't rumor but fact back then) is that players would create brothels in order to earn money.

And also, @Snufflepaws, It's "Project Dollhouse" but after finishing the half of the project and porting it online it has been renamed to "Free SO". Still, it's easier to find it by "Project Dollhouse".
Mad Poster
#9 Old 26th Dec 2015 at 5:03 PM
People would also buy and sell Simoleans illegally different places. Not surprised to hear about the brothels.

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Scholar
#10 Old 27th Dec 2015 at 1:28 AM
I hope the project hasn't gone dead. The last update was a year ago.


"It is easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled." - Mark Twain
Truth will not fear scrutiny.
Top Secret Researcher
#11 Old 28th Dec 2015 at 9:44 PM
@Snufflepaws

It's actually in its peak right now, as the fourum is full of talented people that are ready to help with the project. It's also updated daily (progress on the project, not the project itself).

Here's the forum
http://forum.freeso.org/
Field Researcher
#12 Old 16th Jun 2016 at 2:32 PM
Some screenshots!




lemonade
Mad Poster
#13 Old 17th Jun 2016 at 6:30 AM Last edited by frankie : 27th Jun 2016 at 6:59 PM.
FreeSO
For those still wondering, yes, the project is now FreeSO, spelled exactly like that, and it's updated quite frequently with bug fixes and things added from the original TSO. Rhys is the developer, and you can also join the FreeSO server on Discord to be even more in-the-know, since he's always on there and can communicate more instantly. Discord is rapidly gaining popularity, and some people are leaving Skype for it, so it's worth getting an account there.

I've played FreeSO quite a bit, and it's fun. It's still far from being finished, but it's very playable, and you can ask around to be a roommate to have an apartment. You can also run your own server. As of now, each lot is a separate server, and freeso.ml is the most popular one as shown above in Euan's screenshots. The global release won't be until either later this year or next year, or possibly later. There really isn't a specific date at the moment. Make sure you read the instructions at the forum to install the game properly.

And please spread the word! We need more players! Well, it'd be nice, anyway. The most I've seen at freeso.ml at a single session was 16 players during afternoon EST zone.

Official Site:

http://freeso.org

Official Forum:

http://forum.freeso.org

Official Discord Server:

https://discord.gg/0mBWHZFWOo8vJVt6

TSO Info:

http://www.tsomania.net
Scholar
#14 Old 22nd Jun 2016 at 3:51 PM
Quote: Originally posted by frankie
For those still wondering, yes, the project is now FreeSO, spelled exactly like that, and it's updated quite frequently with bug fixes and things added from the original TSO. Rhys is the developer, and you can also join the FreeSO server on Discord to be even more in-the-know, since he's always on there and can communicate more instantly. Discord is rapidly gaining popularity, and some people are leaving Skype for it, so it's worth getting an account there.

I've played FreeSO quite a bit, and it's fun. It's still far from being finished, but it's very playable, and you can ask around to be a roommate to have an apartment. You can also run your own server. As of now, each lot is a separate server, and freeso.ml is the most popular one as shown above in Euan's screenshots. The global release won't be until either later this year or next year, or possibly later. There really isn't a specific date at the moment. Make sure you read the instructions at the forum to install the game properly.

And please spread the word! We need more players! Well, it'd be nice, anyway. The most I've seen at freeso.ml at a single session was 16 players during afternoon EST zone.

Official Site:

http://freeso.org

Official Forum:

http://forum.freeso.org

Official Discord Server:

https://discord.gg/0mBWHZFWOo8vJVt6

TSO Info:

http://www.tsomania.net


I'm very tempted to try this. I never did play TSO back in the day but I do always regret not trying it. This gives me a second chance.


"It is easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled." - Mark Twain
Truth will not fear scrutiny.
Mad Poster
#15 Old 23rd Jun 2016 at 6:09 AM
Snufflepaws: I bet! Even though I played it off and on from 2003 to 2008, I never had the chance to try everything out, so now I can. Rhys has really been hard at work with this, and new screenshots and video have been exposed with the latest progress. I like that he's planning to add things to the game, as well as making some changes that could be better, but nothing that would change the original gameplay.
Field Researcher
#16 Old 3rd Jul 2016 at 7:52 PM
If you haven't signed up yet, you definitely should! Getting the game started is fairly simple thanks to the new installer.






lemonade
Scholar
#17 Old 8th Jul 2016 at 9:34 AM
Omg, those McDonalds stands. Nostalgia.

So, excuse my ignorance but can somebody take me through installing this? It seems a little complicated.


"It is easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled." - Mark Twain
Truth will not fear scrutiny.
Mad Poster
#18 Old 8th Jul 2016 at 4:18 PM
Bubblebeam: JDRocks450 on Discord is putting together a setup tool to make everything easily installable like an .exe. I'm not sure when it'll be done, though.
Lab Assistant
#19 Old 27th Jul 2016 at 2:33 PM
Quote: Originally posted by frankie
For those still wondering, yes, the project is now FreeSO, spelled exactly like that, and it's updated quite frequently with bug fixes and things added from the original TSO. Rhys is the developer, and you can also join the FreeSO server on Discord to be even more in-the-know, since he's always on there and can communicate more instantly. Discord is rapidly gaining popularity, and some people are leaving Skype for it, so it's worth getting an account there.

I've played FreeSO quite a bit, and it's fun. It's still far from being finished, but it's very playable, and you can ask around to be a roommate to have an apartment. You can also run your own server. As of now, each lot is a separate server, and freeso.ml is the most popular one as shown above in Euan's screenshots. The global release won't be until either later this year or next year, or possibly later. There really isn't a specific date at the moment. Make sure you read the instructions at the forum to install the game properly.

And please spread the word! We need more players! Well, it'd be nice, anyway. The most I've seen at freeso.ml at a single session was 16 players during afternoon EST zone.


Thank you so, so much! I was wondering when FreeSO would finally be coming out. The last time I saw the websites of Project Dollhouse and FreeSO were years ago, when they were still very much in development and not ready for Alpha. I'll be making an account right away.

And yeah, as I remember it, TSO was a pretty fun game. You had different cities you could live in, each with a challenge or drawback of its own. The thing with the game was that everyone spent their time skilling, instead of doing other things like throwing massive house parties or whatnot. It mainly became just one big social area where people could hang out with friends, and not much else. You shouldn't expect gameplay similar to the Sims in it.
Instructor
#20 Old 5th Aug 2016 at 5:07 PM
I bought TSO back in the day. I had some strange idea that it could be played offline if one chose. When I discovered that wasn't the case, I took it back to the store and bought The Sims Vacation instead.

I LOVE the thought of more content for TS1, but online games and I are simply not compatible.

A fool and his money are soon parted. ~ Thomas Tusser
Mad Poster
#21 Old 16th Aug 2016 at 4:58 AM Last edited by gazania : 16th Aug 2016 at 3:24 PM.
There is Tirnua, too. It was created by some of the people behind Sims Online. It's a FB game.

The blog on the main site: http://tirnua.catroo.com/blog/?m=200812 (The rest of it doesn't show you too much.) Oh, and https://www.facebook.com/TirNua/ (It doesn't seem to be very active, unfortunately.)

I tried Tirnua at two different intervals between 2010 and 2011. I thought it was OK, but I wasn't crazy about it, and had trouble playing it. And yes ... it's a FB game. Take that as you will.

But I feel it should be mentioned in this discussion because of its ties to The Sims Online.

Thanks to ALL free-site creators, admins and mods.

RIP Sunni ... truly a ray of light.
Top Secret Researcher
#22 Old 14th Jan 2017 at 11:24 AM
So, FreeSO is going beta in few weeks, and I suppose it's going to be fully released this summer. Creators tried to bring beta release on 6th January, but the DDoS attack and server overload crashed the servers, so they need to be fixed, or even redone entirely. Also, now that it has been announced even on gaming press sites, I wonder what will EA do about it...
Theorist
#23 Old 14th Jan 2017 at 1:53 PM
Quote: Originally posted by mixa97sr
I wonder what will EA do about it...


Cursing to themselves that they didn't release Olympus as "Sims Online 2", instead of upsetting their consumer base by hastily turning it into an offline game?
Top Secret Researcher
#24 Old 15th Feb 2017 at 12:21 AM
It's working right now... I'm plaing and having fun... just started out, no money, no house. Basically from the bare bottom. But I'll work it out. It is a bit time consuming though.
Inventor
#25 Old 17th Feb 2017 at 1:31 AM
Back to TSO! Old memories...

Try to Wish.
http://mypage.thesims3.com/mypage/Enric277
My Origin ID Enriquebell
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