Readme The Sims (TM) Pet Stories Aspyr Media 5/18/07 Version 1.0 (c) 2007 Electronic Arts, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Table of Contents General Game Modes System Requirements Performance Tips Known Issues Video Card Issues Cheats GENERAL ------- For the latest up to date information on The Sims (TM) Pet Stories visit: http://www.thesimsstories.co.uk Installation: If you have a version of The Sims 2 or The Sims 2 Body Shop already installed, please make sure it is closed before installing The Sims (TM) Pet Stories. GAME MODES ---------- In The Sims (TM) Pet Stories there are two different game modes, Story Mode and Free Play Mode. Story Mode is a directed play experience where you get to experience a chapter in the lives of Alice Whitt and her dog Sam. As the story progresses, you will experience the ups and downs of life through Alice's eyes. After playing through Alice's Story through Chapter 3 you will be able to experience Stephen's Story with his newly acquired cat Diva. Free Play Mode is the same kind of experience as other The Sims 2 games, where the player creates their own story within the Arbor Falls neighborhood. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS ------------------- FOR WINDOWS XP * 1.8 Ghz processor * 256 MB RAM Desktop, 512 MB RAM Laptop * At least 2.7 GB of hard drive space * Onboard video card of the following supported cards * DVD-ROM drive * Audio Output ------------------- FOR WINDOWS VISTA HOME BASIC * 1.8 Ghz processor * 1 GB RAM * At least 2.7 GB of hard drive space * 20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space * Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 32 MB of graphics memory * DVD-ROM drive * Audio Output ------------------- FOR WINDOWS VISTA HOME PREMIUM/BUSINESS/ULTIMATE * 1.8 Ghz processor * 1 GB RAM * At least 2.7 GB of hard drive space * 40 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space * Support for DirectX 9 graphics with: * WDDM Driver * 128 MB of graphics memory (minimum) * Pixel Shader 2.0 in hardware * 32 bits per pixel * DVD-ROM drive * Audio Output The Sims (TM) Pet Stories requires 220 Megs of additional save game space for each user that loads the game. Make sure you have at least 220 Megs free on the drive that holds your "My Documents" files before starting The Sims (TM) Pet Stories for the first time. Supported video cards: AMD's ATI Radeon(R) series (7500 or better) and the following mobility cards: VE series (see note below) 7500 8500, All-In-Wonder 8500 9000, 9200, 9500, 9600, 9700, 9800 X300, X600, X800 AMD's ATI Mobility(TM) 7500, Mobility(TM) 9000, 9200, 9600, 9700 Mobility(TM) M7, x200, x300, x600, x700, x1100, x1150 x1400, x1600, x1800 Mobility(TM) Fire GL, GL V5200 NVIDIA(R) Quadro(R) series and the following mobility cards: Quadro(R), Quadro2(R), Quadro4(R) Quadro FX 1500m, 350m, Go 1000, GO 1400 Geforce4 440 GO NVIDIA GeForce (R) series (GeForce2 and better) and the following mobility cards: GeForce(R) 2 GeForce(R) 3, 3 Ti GeForce(R) 4, 4 Ti, MX 420, 440 GeForce(R) FX 5200, 5600, 5700, 5800, 5900, 5950 GeForce(R) 6600, 6800 GeForce(R) Go 6100, 6150, 6200, 6600, 6800 GeForce(R) Go 7300, 7400, 7600, 7800 GeForce(R) FX GO 5200, 5700 Intel(R) Extreme Graphics (see note below) 82845, 82865, 82915, 915, 945, 945 Express, 950 & Intel Extreme Graphics 2 NOTE: If you have a non-T&L capable video card, such as Intel Extreme Graphics or Radeon(R) VE series, then you need at least 512 MB RAM. If your video drivers pre-date 12/2005 and you have less than 512 MB RAM there is a chance you will have graphics-related problems. Any video card driver pre-dating 8/2004 will have a high likelihood of problems. These problems include poor frame rate, texture dropout, special effects not working and other problems. For some of the known problems please review below. Go to the laptop manufacturer's site in order to obtain the latest drivers. NOTE: The Sims(TM) Pet Stories does *NOT* support Widescreen mode. If your computer supports widescreen and you have that feature turned on there will be graphical problems when running The Sims(TM) Pet Stories. It is advised to turn off Widescreen when running The Sims(TM) Pet Stories. PERFORMANCE TIPS ---------------- When you run The Sims (TM) Pet Stories for the first time, the game will automatically configure its graphics options based on your machine's specs. If game performance seems sluggish or choppy, there are a few things you can try to improve things: * Make sure your computer meets the game's system requirements (see above). If you do not meet these requirements, the game is unlikely to run acceptably. * The number of Sims you have on your lot is one of the biggest factors in determining performance. Lots with low numbers of Sims (2 or less) will run more smoothly than lots with many Sims (3+). * In the game, go to the Graphics/Performance Options panel. Reducing or turning off options will improve the game's performance. Reflections, Screen Size, and Smooth Edges are the options that will affect your frame rate the most, followed by Shadows and Lighting. * Close all other applications while running the game, including anti-virus software which often runs in the background. * Some large community lots in the game (like Club Z) may be slow when scrolling around. Frame rate should pick up considerably when the camera stops moving and you are interacting with the Sims. * Adding RAM to your system is a very efficient way to improve performance. * Defragment your hard drive regularly for optimal disk performance (Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>Disk Defragmenter). KNOWN ISSUES ------------ Low Hard Drive Space: If you run out of hard drive space while playing The Sims (TM) Pet Stories, the game will be unable to store new data, such as saved games, screenshots, and new neighborhoods. In certain cases, when attempting to save the game with no hard drive space, the game will appear to save, even though data has not been stored. Please make sure you have at least 500 MB of free hard drive space when running the game. Wheel Mouse Camera Rotation: If you’re unable to rotate the camera by using your mouse wheel, please make sure that you set the scroll wheel button function to autoscroll in your mouse settings. Installation/Uninstallation: If you experience any problems installing or uninstalling the game, please temporarily close any virus scanning software you have, and try again. Removing Saved Games on Uninstallation: Choosing to delete saved games when uninstalling will only remove saved games for the current user. Saved games for other users on the computer will remain under their respective folders under C:\Documents and Settings\username\My Documents\Electronic Arts. Due to the large size of saved games, you may wish to remove them manually. Video Card Issues: AMD's ATI RADEON(R) SERIES PROBLEM: Sims and objects sometimes appear too bright or all white. Sometimes Sims have patchy lighting. CARDS: Radeon(R) 9500, 9600, 9700, 9800 This is a known bug in some older drivers. Upgrading to the latest manufacturer's drivers will resolve this. PROBLEM: Special cinematic events (such as first kiss) are too blurry. CARDS: Radeon(R) 9000+ This is a known bug in some older drivers (Catalyst 4.5). Upgrading to the latest manufacturer's drivers will resolve this. PROBLEM: Texture dropout, distorted Sims and objects, strange horizontal lines on Sims and shadows. CARDS: Radeon(R) 9000 This is a known bug in some older drivers. Upgrading to the latest manufacturer's drivers will resolve this. PROBLEM: When running in high resolution (1600x1200), lighting effects are corrupted. CARDS: Radeon(R), Radeon(R) 7200, Radeon(R) 7500, cards with below 64Mb video memory This is a known issue and is caused by choosing a higher resolution than The Sims (TM) Pet Stories can support. Running in a lower resolution should resolve this. PROBLEM: Neighborhood and water have bright flicker. CARDS: Radeon(R), Radeon(R) VE, Radeon(R) 7200, Radeon(R) 7500 This is a known driver bug. However, updating your driver to the latest version may help. PROBLEM: In Create A Family, creating a baby Sim will result in a bad floor texture. CARDS: Radeon(R), Radeon(R) 7500 This is a known bug in some older drivers. Upgrading to the latest manufacturers drivers will resolve this. PROBLEM: Shoreline flickers in neighborhood view. CARDS: Radeon(R) 7000 series This is a known bug in some older drivers (Catalyst 4.3). Upgrading to the latest manufacturer's drivers will resolve this. FORCED ANTI-ALIASING: The Sims TM Pet Stories will have graphical problems if anti-aliasing is forced on in display properties. To fix this: * Right click on your windows desktop and select Properties. * Choose the Settings tab and press the "advanced" button. * Select the 3D tab and make sure SmoothVision is set to Application Preference. * If not, press the Custom... button and change the anti-aliasing setting to Application Preference. NVIDIA GEFORCE(R) SERIES PROBLEM: In certain lighting conditions, Sims will have small flashing triangles. CARDS: GeForce(R) FX 5600 This is a known driver bug. Turning lighting options from high to medium will resolve this. Updating your driver to the latest version may also help. PROBLEM: From certain camera angles, Sims may be missing some triangles. CARDS: GeForce(R) FX 5200 This is a known driver bug. However, updating your driver to the latest version may help. PROBLEM: The neighborhood and many screens display all grey. CARDS: GeForce(R) 6800 This is a new video card, and this is a known driver bug with an early version of the driver. Disabling hyperthreading on your machine may help (see below). Updating to the latest driver may help. PROBLEM: Interface panels and buttons may disappear or turn a solid blue color. CARDS: GeForce(R) 4 series This is a known bug in some older drivers (before version 6177). Upgrading to the latest manufacturer's drivers will resolve this. FORCED ANTI-ALIASING: The Sims (TM) Pet Stories will have graphical problems if anti-aliasing is forced on in display properties. To fix this: * From the Start Menu, choose "Control Panel" * In the Control Panel, choose "NVidia Control Panel" * Select "3D settings" * Under "Appearance", select "Adjust Image Settings with preview" * Choose "Let the 3D Application decide" option and Accept PROBLEM: Game crashes soon after starting. Some recent NVIDIA drivers have problems when running when Hyperthreading is enabled on your processor. Try updating your driver first. If this doesn't help, turning off Hyperthreading in your BIOS will workaround this issue. If you have no idea what Hyperthreading or BIOS is, it's probably not worth messing around with this stuff. Contact your video card manufacturer for assistance. UNSUPPORTED VIDEO CARDS If you have an unsupported video card, The Sims (TM) Pet Stories will run in software rendering mode. When software rendering mode is active, rendering performance is slower and graphical quality is reduced. Examples of unsupported video cards are: ATI Rage Fury Matrox Millennium G400 Matrox Millennium G550 NVIDIA Riva TNT2 Matrox Parhelia ST Micro KYRO S3 DeltaChrome S8 SiS 315 Trident Blade XP SiS Xabre 400 XGI Volari * Video Problem tip: If you are seeing graphical problems not described here it is always best to go to your video card or computer manufacturer's website and make sure you have installed the latest drivers for your hardware. CHEATS ------ Warning: Not all cheats are stable and can destroy your current game. If you heavily use cheats eventually your saved game can become corrupted and you will have to delete the saved game. The Sims (TM) Pet Stories is designed for the casual and new player, so try the game without cheats. To enter cheats in The Sims (TM) Pet Stories, first open the command console by simultaneously pressing ctrl-shift-c. Note that cheats are case-sensitive. Some of the cheats that can be used here are as follows: exit: closes the cheat window. expand: expands or contracts the cheat window. kaching - adds one thousand Simoleons to funds motherlode - adds fifty thousand Simoleons to funds aging off - turns aging off aging on - turns aging on LICENSE ISSUES ============== Lua 5.0 license Copyright © 1994-2007 Lua.org, PUC-Rio. Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions: The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software. 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If you include any Windows specific code (or a derivative thereof) from the apps directory (application code) you must include an acknowledgement: "This product includes software written by Tim Hudson (tjh@cryptsoft.com)" THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY ERIC YOUNG ``AS IS'' AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. The license and distribution terms for any publicaly available version or derivative of this code cannot be changed. i.e. this code cannot simply be copied and put under another distribution license [including the GNU Public License.] Thanks for Playing The Sims (TM) Pet Stories! The Sims (TM) Pet Stories Team Aspyr Media