So EA releases one third of a Sims game at launch, risking the entire franchise. Why? The type of missing content cannot be delivered via paid content. It would never be utilized by future EP's....so they'd have to give it away as a free update, but why take a huge PR hit by shipping a unfinished game instead of just waiting and releasing it when it's finished......hahahahaha, the same reason PS 4, and Xbox one games don't function without a day one patch. It's a trick. Xbox took heat for having to verify games online, so instead developers pull a fast one. They sale you part of the game for $60, and you have to log in for the rest aka update....got ya! Clever bastards. EA is forcing online connection beyond verification, by only giving you a third of the game at launch!

Yeah, the part where they claimed it was an "offline" game was only partially true. Sure, you don't technically have to be online to play the game, but you need to be online to download bug fixes, download more content, utilize the new Gallery feature that they won't stop talking about... This is all intentional.

I actually hope there is a day one patch because I think it would put at ease my thoughts about bugs that could be fixed right away. I think it is better to have a day one patch and fix something or even add something right away on day one.

Out of mild curiosity, how do you obtain custom content and patches for your other offline games? Does it arrive by post on a CD?

I'm totally against DRM, because I think it hurts the honest consumer and does nothing to stop pirating. That being said, this is 2014 and anyone who thinks that games won't require an Internet connection for some things are being naïve. Even back in the early 90s I had to download patches online and it was WAY more difficult. I had to connect to the World Wide Web with my 24k dial-up modem, search something called a BBS (Bulletin Board System) to find the correct fps address. Then I would have to connect to the fps address and sometimes scroll through pages of info to find what I needed, save it on a floppy disk and then install the patch (sometimes on 3 disks). I have no problem with being online and having the game offer to patch itself automatically.

really, who are you to say the game is 'unfinished'? unless you were actually a part of the development team you have no idea and generally a game is 'finished' by at least the producers' standards before it is released.. do you think that "Taking out" toddlers and pools makes it unfinished? that's weird because they never took it out to begin with. they never had toddlers or pools as a part of ts4's production. it's like saying they were in the process of or they already made it and they just 'took it out'.

Actually, there's references in CAS for both pools, and toddlers, which suggests they are both things they worked on and didn't finish.

You are just trolling now. This is just a game company wanting to know about customer count. If you are this worked up about EA, how the hell are you handling Google? Do you belong to Facebook? Both of them are far more interested in prying into your life than EA.

Oi, no accusations of trolling just cos you disagree with someone.

Firstly, I'm always trolling. My name should be tonictroll. Sixthly, I'm not talking about privacy. I'm talking about manipulating the customer**. I wouldn't of even cared if it was an online game. I'm always connected anyways, but they don't need to lie to me. Consumers have made it very clear that we are not interested in these types of games. Games which force online connection despite not having any online features, or forcing online authorization on consoles. The developers and publishers recognized we are not interested in that product and told us they would refrain from this behaviour. However, they're not. They lied. The PS 4, and Xbox One are almost unusable offline, by design. Thats the problem. This isn't accidental. They are orchestrating bugs and missing content that can only be solved by an internet connection....while you're at it check out this add for tampons, browse our add-on content, and listen to this message from our sponsor. The irony is that they rarely actually get the game functioning, the message from their sponsor never stops buffering and I'm a dude and have no need for tampons*. They are focusing more on manipulation than on just making a good game.

(*A while back Microsoft attempted gender specific ad placement. Males got movie trailers, and ads for new games. Women got tampon ads. My wife was crazy pissed off!)
(**EA has consecutively won for worst company in the world. So, I don't think I'm paranoid. Also, Maxis isn't real. Doesn't exist, yet still appears at the beginning of Sims games....what!?)

Also, I might be totally wrong. Maybe the Sims 4 is awesome, I'm just expressing a gut feeling that I have. It's a growing trend I happen to be noticing. thats all.

Or consciously removed them at some point. Either because they didn't work out game design wise or because the publisher wanted them as part of a DLC, either way is possible.

I was taking a look at some news - not on gaming sites, more like this one: http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/ea/news-headlines - and there isn't a major release left for them this year except this one. They postponed Dragon Age, they postponed Battlefield, and they have to keep some promises to their stockholders. The sports section did quite good this year, but everything NFL and Madden etc will also have to wait until 2015. At the same time the expectations have risen a lot. And stockholders are not exactly known for patience or loyality- when it comes to business decisions, they go first.

So the sad truth is: They have to get to certain numbers, and even if Sims 4 tanks (meaning: Gets only decent sales) , it's better than not releasing it. Also this franchise's customers take a lot more shit than others, especially the Battlefield crowd that is already on the edge, and Dragon Age can't take another hit after the sub-par 2nd installment.

I don't think it's naive at all. Maybe I don't want to be nagged about a patch or even have it loaded automatically (honestly, with EA I can't say with all certainty they wouldn't go this route) . A lot of times EA fixes something and breaks something else with their patches so if I've grown comfortable with the old problem or don't even notice it, I'll wait on the patch until something's fixed that I can't live with or can't live without. It's one of the reasons why I had to switch from Pescado's mod to Twallan's in S3 because he forced patch installs, drove me nuts.

And btw, they plan on milking players using their all seeing Origin (user agreement quicksand) for their own financial gain. When do the players get a cut? Doesn't even the lowly lab rat deserve compensation for being poked and prodded? Someone above mentioned Google and Facebook. The difference is those are services that are "free" but you're really paying by losing privacy. This is a game you have to pay for, and not a small, laughable amount either.

um not entirely sure it works like that......while some new features did come via free updates the majority of new features came via paid expansion packs.

I have to agree about the ad issues. I hate being spammed, and the stereotyping is repulsive. Having said all that I do think the negativity is starting to feed off itself. I get the impression that there are some who want the game to suck because they are enjoying bashing it. I don't like the Sims 3 , but I don't hang out on their forums telling them how horrendous I think it is. And EA getting worst company in the face of other companies that commit environmental violations, fraud, and tax shelters simply shows how we have our priorities mixed up. This is why companies such as this get by with these things. We are too busy focusing on something that is trivial in the grand scheme of things. If you don't like a game, you don't have to buy it. If someone poisons the environment we all suffer.

This X 10!!