I’m technically not new to TS3, but my experience is very limited as I’ve been an almost exclusive Sims 2 player since 2008! I have a few questions before I boot up the game again.

How do SimPoints work on the Exchange? What EP’s could you not play without? Are there any mods I’ll need to get? What’s a great world to play as a beginner?
10.0.0.0.1
Any additional tips greatly appreciated! I’ve never downloaded CC or mods for the game nor have I played any hood besides Sunset Valley. I’m used to rotational gameplay in TS2 but is story profession more fun in TS3?

Thanks!

Use points to purchase items. I think there is a pinned thread about all the EPs so you can read all about them and there may be a mod one also. You can get Riverview now maybe still? 100 people will tell you 100 things as we all play differntly. Just start trying things to see what you like. What you want your game to be. And you can google to get specifics on many things. Like reviews for each EP. Then you can decide which ones to try.

IMO most essential mods are Nraas. Head there to get what you would like to have.

If you have never downloaded CC, you might not have the proper set up. This one includes a few things that many (including me) use. https://sims3modfolder.wixsite.com/download

Check Nraas https://www.nraas.net/community/home Many mods that help the game run better in general. Traveler is necessary if you travel between worlds.

As @daisylee said, there are many threads on MTS, probably older threads, that can answer most "newbie" questions. And, you might stumble across something you didn't even know you were looking for! Happens to me all the time!!!

Right! If you google you can find info.on about anything as 3 has been out so long. And it will include threads from here.

Do you happen to know whose WIX site this is? We never gave permission for NRaas mods to be distributed this way. And that's a great way for the player to get the wrong variant of ErrorTrap if they happen to have a Steam, 32-bit Mac, or all-disc 1.67 install, or other mismatched outdated mods when new versions come out. We have quite a roster of them currently in beta testing mode.

Also, the description of what PortraitPanel does on that page is not correct.

It does take a bit more work, but my recommendation is to get mods that are still currently available and supported by their developers from the trusted sources themselves rather than in pre-loaded mod folders from unknown, unidentified players probably (hopefully) trying to be helpful. That's not counting the pre-made Framework with the two test mods, as that resource remains extremely valuable.

Honestly, no idea who's site that is. That is why I also linked Nraas directly.

I used to say I'll play the devil's advocate but actually when looking up the definition that's not what I meant and I didn't even know the opposite exists. So I'll play the angel's advocate.

A lot of people are quick to recommend mods/cc but it's a lot of hassle, especially if you are going to be constantly wanting to try out this or that new mod/cc. Even with taking precautions, mods/cc can be more trouble than its worth, not to mention it can add more strain and workload on a game engine that's already a 32-bit application. There's also mod/cc conflicts that are invisible meaning any incompatibilities won't show up so you'll never know unless through a process of elimination. And if you have a lot of mods/cc that could take much time to sort through. Then there are mods/cc that don't warn of the consequences of what it can do to your computer and/or game such as mods using the CPU which will dramatically affect the performance of TS3, as TS3 is a mostly CPU intensive game. Or high poly cc which the game has to render among hundreds and thousands of objects in the world whenever your Sim goes out to a lot or you pan your camera around.

The only thing I can think of that TS3 needs help with is to limit the frames per second to whatever is the max of your monitor. Unfortunately, TS3 does not have a built-in fps limiter so a workaround will have to do.

Mods/cc aren't necessarily bad, but it can be a struggle to balance between good and poor game performance should you choose to go the mods/cc route. Otherwise, as long as TS3 has a compatible computer there shouldn't be any performance issues besides the frame rate issue which can be easily fixed. Yes there are leftover glitches and bugs but nothing that should keep you from playing TS3. But because of the complex nature of TS3, it is always important to use "save as" and if you can save your backup saves in case a glitch does happen that can only be fixed through going back to an earlier save without the use of mods.

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As far as what world to play in as for a beginner, I say play any world you want since the world is not based on a difficulty setting.

I have all EP's installed and personally it wouldn't make any sense to uninstall any of them. However if your computer cannot handle all EP's, just pick which is most important to you and what your computer can handle.

Story progression isn't something I play with but from my experience it isn't something I want to incorporate into my game, however, everyone else's opinions and experiences will vary. I suggest try out story progression for yourself to gain your own opinion and come to your own conclusion.

Also if your computer cannot handle TS3 in it's entirety, then I definitely would not recommend any heavy CPU/GPU intensive mods/cc. But that is your decision to make.

I have very few mods in my game now. A few Nraas are essential for me, but otherwise I can do without a boatload of them. And I can put what I have in and out as needed.

If you're just getting started I cannot recommend [ACOTTONSOCK'S TUTORIAL SERIES] enough.

I particularly recommend her [FIX GUIDE], and [NRAS EXPLAINED] video which explains what NRAAS mods are, what they do and how to use them.

She also an in-depth video about NRAAS Story Progression, which I prefer over EA's default story progression, but that's just personal preference.