Getting back into the swing of things

OK, I have a confession to make. The Westward Ho! Challenge has already kicked my butt. The size and scope of it is just incredible. I was tantalized by that fact at first, but after spending countless hours creating families and buildings, the thought of proceeding with gameplay is overwhelming.

Also, I’ve figured out a possible way to solve my graphic card problem — buy more memory. When I get my next paycheck I plan on shelling out some bucks for another gigabyte of RAM. If that works, I’ll be able to go back to my Annabel Island folks. And I don’t really want to have two Victorian stories running at the same time. It’s just too much.

So, with apologies to Paige, I will be dropping out of the Westward Ho! Challenge for now. It’s a really cool challenge, and wonderfully creative, but I just wasn’t up to the task. I’m a very rusty storyteller right now. Maybe I can come back to it later on when I’ve greased the wheels a bit.

So what am I going to do? Well. I’m at a bit of a loss. For the past month I’ve been trying to get back into my Sims, but nothing has really clicked. I even tried the Asylum Challenge for awhile. And the Ravelos…as much as I adore them, they’ve become too distant. I’ve played them for a bit but things just aren’t the same anymore. I built this huge mansion for them and had all these plans…but that was a good three months ago. I’ve lost my motivation to play them. Again, maybe I’ll come back to them, but for now, it’s just not working.

I wanted to explain this to you guys so that you’ll understand what’s going on if I suddenly post some weird story out of the blue. I have some more ideas I want to try, because I really do miss my Sims and writing stories about them. But I need to find something that will inspire me. Thanks so much for your patience with me and for continuing to check this site. Stay tuned, loyal readers. I’m not giving up yet.

14 thoughts on “Getting back into the swing of things

  1. hey jen, I understand und appreciate your words, really! better than letting us wait you’re telling what it’s really like and I perfectly know what you’re talking about. I too did not come back to playing or even posting on the Mendoza-family, because I did not realize what a whole lot of work that flight-attendant-training would be – it totally kills all the time that I have! since that course began I have not even once played my sims anymore, time’s just too spare.
    of course I’m a little sad about the Ravelos, but I’m sure whatever you do will be great, you know that! I was also thinking about buying myself the Uni-EP for once, because it seems to me that gameplay in general does bore me a little… but well, no time, no EP, so no stories to tell. I’ll see how I’ll be doing when that training is finished and I’ll be working as a full flight-attendant. I’m really excited ;)
    So Jen, don’t worry, we’ll be there for you ever after!!

  2. Yeah, the Westward Ho! thing is too big for me as well. Daunting, daunting! I think my own maximum is like four families, and that’s assuming they’re not too big families either. The exception would be the Maxis-made families and neighborhoods. I don’t know why I have an easier time with them even though they’re huge. :-)

    Have you considered starting up a plain ol’ Legacy Challenge? There’s an OFB version now, though I haven’t tried it yet.
    Here’s a Challenge that looks interesting:

    http://bbs.thesims2.ea.com/community/bbs/messages.php?&openItemID=&threadID=ab440ca13cec8fddc0bec195bd3f2f81&directoryID=82&startRow=1#31d704964c8fca7740ba3f4fc2cb6fda

  3. I’m sure I speak for all of us when I say we’re not going anywhere. You’re too good! Try making a sim that you can get really attatched to and don’t rush it. I can only be interested in the game when I’m interested in the sims. Good luck! And no worries, we’ll be here when you get you’re groove back.

  4. Are you guys looking forward to the Sims 2 Pets?? It was announced recently and I cannot WAIT to play it! Lol, I think when Pinstar comes up with the legacy rules for Pets it’ll be so much fun and maybe you will have enough inspiration to write about the Ravelos then if they get a pet ^^

    Thanks for telling us what’s going on and hi, I’m Leslie :)

  5. The challenge Kay suggested helped me get my intrest back in my sims. I feel like I just got the game, I get all kinds of crazy ideas that I just can’t wait to try out. :D
    The Westward Ho! challenge really is the biggest challenge I’ve seen but these challenges can be more fun if you change the rules a bit to suit you better so maybe if you choose a few main families to play with, it won’t be so overwhelming.
    And about Sims 2 Pets – I can’t wait! The pics are so adorable! And the ‘play dead’ trick sounds hilarious.

  6. Actually, you’re way right Jen. The Westward Ho! Challenge is massive, and even though I have been doing it for sometime, I still have not gotten around to gameplay, the building of houses and saloons etc. is really daunting…

    Still though, I will persevere. Good luck with your sims, Jen, and I hope to see a story from you soon.

    ~Alex

  7. Im sure we’re all agreed that it doesn’t matter what you decide to write about Jen, we’ll all gladly read anything you post! I know I sure am looking forward to any sort of update from you! Even these kind that just let us know you’re doing okay!

  8. hopefully, when the Pets EP comes out, it’ll spark some new ideas for ya. i know that i’m very excited because i haven’t played The Sims 2 in such a long time. i think i played it once since i got Open for Business… and i never played it after i installed Family Fun Stuff.

  9. As everybody said, it doesn’t matter what you choose to write about, as long as you’re having fun with it! Take your time and we’ll all be here waiting when you decide what you want to do =D

  10. hey!!! i was wondering, do you know where you can download a log or rock, that can be used as a bed. i know it is bizarre. thanks!!:):)

  11. Hey, thanks everyone for the encouraging words. I hope to be updating soon…as in…tonight! Trying something new, we’ll see how it goes (big thanks to Kay for inspiring me!).

    Izzy, have you tried Mod the Sims 2? You could go to their Downloads section and do a search on “rock bed” or “log bed”. You never know what might turn up…a few of the artists over there just created a set based on the Flintstones, so I bet you could find a lot of good stone and rock stuff!

  12. Nice to see you posting again. Missed your story telling but know what ever you have brewing in that mind of yours will be great. I’ve found playing the prosperity challenge fun but have not had to time to play as much as I wanted to. At the moment I’m gearing up to finish my 3rd and probably my last Legacy Family: The Theory family…after awhile it just gets stagnant to play such long challenges 10 generations has become quite a chore for me :o .

    Well I’ll be checking by later on to see what you’ve come up with.

  13. It can be really hard to get back into the swing of things when you can’t find any motivation to play. The Sims 2, as much fun as it is, can become ridiculously redundant. That’s why I went on a “bizarre” challenge frenzy. Hopefully you find/found something that rekindles the good old sim feeling! It sucks when you want to play, but just can’t find any reason to actually play.

    As for my computer situation, my HD was untouched (so far), so all my stuff is intact and hopefully I’ll be able to continue my ISBI challenge. I’d be upset to lose that family, I’ve grown rather attached.