@Valeria - Hello everyone!!
@Valeria - We'll get started here in a couple minutes
@Valeria - Instead of a House of Commons chat tonight, we're going to do something different
@Valeria - Tonight Maxis wants to hear from you, the players
@Valeria - We're going to have an open forum
@Valeria - I'll post a question from Maxis then remove the Moderated status of the room
@Valeria - and you can give them your input
@Valeria - I'll then go +m on the room and ask the next question
@Valeria - Ok, get ready 'cause here comes the first question
@Valeria - *MaxisTigger* We would like your input on where you want to see neighborhoods go next.

wakingBeans - define "where" tigger :)
Thalia - I would like to see category specific type neighborhoods
Falx|THC - Wharf
MattH - neighborhoods only benefit a certain crowd
Falx|THC - Bar
MattH - more thought needs to be put forth
@MaxisTigger - ok, currently in the in dev forums we have about dynamic property pricing
@MaxisTigger - This means that as your neighboring lots (4 adjacent) increase in size and number of roommates, then the value of your lot will increase. If and when you ever sell this lot, you will realize the profit.
Thalia - Further, it would be nice if we could name the neighborhoods
@MaxisTigger - This will open an economic path in real estate speculation and give you an economic stake in the success of your immediate neighbors.
SwampThing - Neighborhoods are supposed to the key grouping of the properties and really the source of much of the activity for the game. Neighborhoods need to be distinguishable visually, so you know where they start and where they end.
NYYankFan287 - I think there should be different neighborhoods like rich neighborhoods and poor ones

@MaxisTigger - how do you see them distinguished?
SwampThing - Something as simple as a border would do.
MattH - right now many properties are not necessarily setup with great business, there’s only a select few who would really benefit from this
Jessica - I would love if you made it so you can control a family... feed em and such... Oh... it exists...
BigErnMac - I want to have vehicles in this game
SwampThing - Outlining the member properties. Colored coded by neighborhood types as Thalia suggested.
Merloth - Business neighborhoods and family places and maybe a neighborhood that is like a dorm for students?
Thalia - I agree with Swamp
Falx|THC - we need some run down area for bums!
Helm - word
Helm - the ghetto
@MaxisTigger - lol falx
Falx|THC - I'm serious :(
Helm - that’s were there could be crime
@MaxisTigger - so more true to real life so to speak
Gruffy - social class based neighborhoods, instead of a rich condo next to a 10k lot, etc. distinguish the neighborhoods somehow~
Falx|THC - yes
Craig_Wall - Perhaps in higher communities you can purchase more expensive items, but the property prices also increase
Helm - yeah I mean make people starve and what not
Falx|THC - I said class based neighborhood about 50 lines up~!
Gruffy - yes
wakingBeans - like sim city heh
Gruffy - and I was expanding on it :)
@Valeria - Let's try to stick to the question posted :)
SwampThing - Another idea for the distant future is to merge neighborhood properties into a single block of developable ground, where all the properties would be loaded at a single time and people could walk from one area to the next.
SwampThing - This way you could get centers of activity such as shopping centers.
MattH - that would be a great idea swamp but I think that along with custom content would kill the 56k users
@MaxisTigger - how so matt?
Gruffy - I like the idea of being able to rent out certain sections of a lot to people
Thalia - That would be cool, Swamp
Helm - who has 56k any more these days?
SwampThing - Aye, it's a bit much for right now, but if they find a way to reduce the amount of information transmitted it could be done.
Gruffy - like someone could open a mall, with a huge capital expenditure, and other people could rent lots in it
MattH - as of right now it takes me a while before the lag slows down at my house
Gruffy - or I could make a 2 story house and rent my basement apartment ~
@MaxisTigger - very good ideas!
BigErnMac - I want vehicles in the cities... so u don’t just pick a place and get teleported their ...u have to either get a way of transportation to where ever you want to go.
SwampThing - It could be similar to UO, where only a portion of it was actually loaded and as you came into range the other info would be sent.
Falx|THC - yes
MattH - ah I see what you mean
@MaxisTigger - hehehe
BigErnMac - Maxis u like my vehicle idea
Craig_Wall - Class-based neighborhoods though, will require that the quality of life of lower-end residents is limited somewhat. That, or make the "perks" of a higher end community only cosmetic, but then you'd eliminate the desire for it
Merloth - or maybe a fog for people with less bandwidth...the distant thing wouldn't be visible for them but for cable people it would be there
SwampThing - The game with the most potential too. :)

@Valeria - Ok, we're going to move on to the next question :)
@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> In regards to Skills: where would they like to see it go? Example: Combo's of skills achieve a new goal.
BigErnMac - My goal is to start a band
Geno - I would like to see more diversity in skills
Falx|THC - you should be able to maybe mix communication and creativity skills to get a lot higher in your perspective job
Geno - Newer skills etc
Thalia - It would be great if certain combinations of skills could provide specific abilities that other combinations would not allow. i.e. Logic & Mechanics the ability to make electronic devices.
@MaxisTigger - give examples please of grouping together two skills to = ?
MattH - you could probably group creativity and charisma together for a band object for clubs
BigErnMac - creativity and mechanical to create like a CAR
MattH - those who earn the 2 skills could own the object, that way it encourages people to get those
Gruffy - maybe you could even have certain items only buyable/craftable if you have a specific combination of skills...like MattH's band object idea
Gruffy - That could create a whole market for skill based items, and would provide an incentive to get some of the skills~
SwampThing - If skills are going to be expanded, it might prudent to add additional skills, and then the combinations of skills could be increased.
@Draconius - I think their needs to be more to work for. Skills are way too easy to max out as it is
@MaxisTigger - what’s your view on combining more then one parson’s skills to = something ?
Craig_Wall - I'd like to see a combination of Charisma and Creativity on things like guitars, increase the room Fun and Room scores, as if they were able to really entertain
@MaxisTigger - that’s what I wanted to see craig :)
BigErnMac - Tigger are you guys thinking bout putting other ways of transportation like vehicles
@MaxisTigger - Ern that’s what this is for getting your feedback on where you want to see the game go from here :)
Thalia - Creativity and Body = new dance moves that are not currently available
BigErnMac - not just picking a building and going to it automatically
Gruffy - ya, give a real incentive to get some of the skills, rather than just increasing efficiency of doing mundane tasks
Gruffy - like new actions/objects, etc., that are only available based on having a requisite amount of a certain skill, or combinations of skills
BigErnMac - Well for me...I feel vehicles would be kool.. make the game more interesting
SwampThing - Tigger are you talking about items or actions requiring multiple people of certain skills to use/perform?
@Draconius - For a long term game like this, it has to be more difficult to get maxed skills, or people get bored really fast
Quanta - what would be the point of vehicles?
@MaxisTigger - both swamp :)
MattH - I agree drac
Julya - combining skills for multiple people would go well. Encourage interraction and relationships
Craig_Wall - I would also like to see Logic factored in with Mechanical to improve the repair quality of items
BigErnMac - so u don’t teleport everywhere...making places harder to go
Geno - Draconius: well if you powergame in any MMORPG you can max skills out relatively quick
@Draconius - true
Jennifer - Draconius... I agree partially. What if you were rewarded for long term achievement in a skill?
@Draconius - that’s an idea
Merloth - Creativity + logic = ability to fine tune the guitar to make it sound better
Gruffy - or heck, maybe you could even have a somewhat more general specialization based on skills, or combinations of skills, and be limited to a certain number of specializations, to promote diversity
SwampThing - Hmm....well, these would be similar to the group objects, which are at the heart of the game. However, it would promote social interaction if some group objects were just for social use.
@MaxisTigger - so some kind of status for attaining goals with skills?
@Draconius - I just mean that as it is, you can max a skill out pretty quickly if you work at it
Gruffy - like new sub-skills could be implemented, for the specializations
SwampThing - Objects such as mini-games, like the proposed casino objects, but ones that don't have a monetary pay off.
Jennifer - MaxisTigger, if you have had a skill for a long period of time, some type of reward for that longevity.
BigErnMac - I wanna max out a skill for a reason...not just so people look at me and say...oooo kool your body is up
* @MaxisTigger nods *
SwampThing - You have no idea how much I want to play a game of chess against someone, but the objects just aren't made to do so.
@MaxisTigger - ok since you brought that up swamp
Craig_Wall - I wouldn't worry about making subskills though; keep in mind Maxis needs to work with their current system instead of coding a whole new one ;)
Thalia - What about certain combinations that when used on others could max out a specific need?
@MaxisTigger - how do others feel about other games within the games?
@Valeria - If you max out body, your comfort should not go down as quickly because you are more fit
@MaxisTigger - Meaning like really playing chess, or spades?
A_J - I love the idea of mini games within the game
@Valeria - If you max out Charisma, your social should not go down as fast
MattH - yes mini games would be awesome
Jennifer - That's actually nice I think MaxisTigger.
Craig_Wall - I would personally love the idea of Chess or spades, or even one day pool, as a mini game within the game structure
Tess - I've been playing a lot of chessin UO, so I'd vote for it :)
@Draconius - Yeah I'd like to see mini games too
BigErnMac - I wanna play the video games on the computer while I play tso on my computer...u get me?
Thalia - Well, aren't you already doing something of that sort with the Casino objects?
Jennifer - Allows your characters to actually become more like people. :)
@MaxisTigger - lol yes ern :P
SwampThing - Aye, but the casino objects have a monetary payoff.
@MaxisTigger - hrm
BigErnMac - ok next question
@MaxisTigger - well what about this..
MattH - but with mini games like chess people talk more, with the casino objects your playing a machine not another person
SwampThing - With chess, we could simply play each other to have fun.
@MaxisTigger - if you played chess the winner would gain say more logic skill?
Jennifer - Ooooh! That's good!
@Draconius - hmm
Helm - meh
@MaxisTigger - just ideas guys don’t get to excited lol
MattH - no skill for a mini game
Thalia - That would be great however, if you are already maxed on Logic, where is the incentive?
Helm - then u could just get someone to lose on purpose
BigErnMac - how bout money
Jennifer - Then Tournaments could be held in neighborhoods.
Gruffy - ya good idea, if you had some sort of incentive to win the mini games
Tess - that would be easily exploited
BigErnMac - MONEY FOR WINNING
Gruffy - like accelerated skill gain if you won
@Valeria - Or maybe have a tournament option for Chess boards?
SwampThing - That's a possibility, but does everything have to have a payoff ?
Craig_Wall - Helm's right, I'd smell potential to exploit with that, but you could be onto something
Gruffy - 2x vs. .5 the rate, or something hehe
@MaxisTigger - no swamp it doesn’t :)
* SwampThing smiles *
@Valeria - The most number of wins on a board could equal a jump in logic
Racius - I’d say the fun of playing chess is reward in itself
@MaxisTigger - so more games within the game that promote socialization
Merloth - Give better comfort to the winner of the game and logic to the looser...he probably learnt more while playing than the expert who won
@Draconius - the problem is, there’s only really 2 rewards for anything: money and skills
SwampThing - Aye, then we could hold tournaments and so forth.
@MaxisTigger - personal rewards?
@MaxisTigger - bragging rights?
Craig_Wall - Exactly, Tigger. Staring at yourself playing chess can't hold a candle to actually playing it :)
@Draconius - hmm
SwampThing - Aye bragging rights.
Sponge - Why not have valuable items as a payoff?
MattH - recognition would be the best reward
Sponge - Like auctions?
A_J - bragging rights are good :)
@MaxisTigger - we are getting to that sponge hehhehhe
@Valeria - What about awards?
Craig_Wall - Bragging rights should be good enough unless you'd like to add in the ability to wager money
SwampThing - Perhaps for Maxis sponsored tournaments for the best of the best, there could be a special statue or something.
@Valeria - Exactly Swampy!
SwampThing - Similar to the Simmy, but specific for whatever event that person won.
MattH - reward special objects
BigErnMac - creativity and mechanical= make clothing\
Thalia - That would be cool
@Draconius - I like that craig, maybe make it to where both people put in money to play, and whoever wins gets it
@Valeria - and when you click it, it would tell the viewer what it was for
Julya - card games be good :)
BigErnMac - POKER
Jennifer - BigMac.. I like that too. Clothing makers.
BigErnMac - yea cloth makers
Craig_Wall - Well yes, that's what I mean -- both would need to bet ;)
* @MaxisTigger is loving this feedback :) *

@Valeria - :) Sorry to cut you off, but time for a new question
@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> property categories: would you like to see them even more defined? Example: if you own a restaurant you can only eat and have fun there. A skill place would be like a job: work on skill and bladder with a quick snack.
@Valeria - Ok, go!
* @MaxisTigger puts her flack jacket on for this *
Craig_Wall - You mean you're asking if you'd rather the properties be further limited than they are now?
* BigErnMac is still reading *
@MaxisTigger - yes
SwampThing - You mean seriously forced diversity?
MattH - I don’t like that idea much, this ties back in with it killing me because I’m on 56k
@MaxisTigger - like real life
SwampThing - It could work, if there were payoffs.
MattH - I have to jump to lot to lot
@MaxisTigger - if I go to a restaurant in real life I know I’m not getting a shower there :)
Sponge - yes more payoffs
SwampThing - With a neighborhood type idea as I suggested Matt, that wouldn't be necessary.
@Draconius - Well.. I'd like it to be more flexible.. I'd like to be able to make a house with no category and therefore no limits
@Draconius - Or a house with lots of limits but gets on the lists
Craig_Wall - If you could ramp up the gains from those areas, I can see it working. Right now, going from a restaurant back to your own house is fairly quick time-wise
@MaxisTigger - well drac that leads us back to walmart style lots
@Draconius - right
Thalia - With that being the case, everyone would just visit a hotel because they would be able to eat, sleep and gain fun there. The incentive to own a restaurant would be diminished.
BigErnMac - Their could be like Schools, Hotels, Restaurants, Clubs, etc...
@MaxisTigger - yes ern exactly
@Draconius - I guess what I'm trying to say is make it more rewarding to have more specifically defined lots
BigErnMac - not just place with totally different stuff
@MaxisTigger - craig it would be like if you went to a restaurant your hunger would raise faster and stay longer
SwampThing - But how do you make someone pay for their food there, when they can go to a house and get it for free?
@Draconius - and would the hunger stay up longer if you went o another lot?
Sponge - Well would you have to buy a car to get to these places?
BigErnMac - and hotel would be for comfort
Thalia - Yes but why go to a restaurant if a hotel can provide all the same
@Draconius - Say, if you went to a restaurant, and then went to a job place, would you hunger stay up longer than if you ate at home?
BigErnMac - hotel would focus on comfort
Merloth - What if you decide to close the restaurant and then create a cloth shop? In real life you would save much of the expense by using what you already have but if it's in the property it can only house a restaurant that might be hard
Jennifer - What if you gained only a little fun with a hotel for instance, but a lot with a dance club?
Craig_Wall - Sure, I can see it all working if that were the case. Since someone with their own property can get what they're lacking from someone else without a big time delay, it shouldn't hamper us to actually be social and visit other lots :)
@MaxisTigger - would you though merlot?
BigErnMac - that’s y I want vehicles, making the game more realistic
@MaxisTigger - lol ok ern I got the hint on vehicles :)
Sponge - Would you have to buy a car to get to these places or what?
Jennifer - It wouldn't necessarily LIMIT a place from having something, but it would LIMIT how much something would affect you in certain areas.
BigErnMac - ok sorry I just loved the sims series and downloaded a lot of kool car skins
@MaxisTigger - do you think it would allow more diversity within neighborhoods?
SwampThing - heh TSO has the worlds best public transportation system with curbside pickup.
@MaxisTigger - or hurt the game?
Thalia - BigErn, have you ever been to a hotel that didn't serve food, have a tv/jacuzzi for fun? A hotel should provide all of that. it's in their nature
SwampThing - Well Tigger, it could hurt the game a great deal right now.
MattH - i think it would hurt the game, you wouldn’t have as many players
BigErnMac - HEY Taxi Cabs..that would be(well I think it would)
Craig_Wall - I suppose it depends on how spoiled we've become with the Walmart lots
@MaxisTigger - this is future guys not immediate
Jennifer - Such as a restaurant... don't limit them from providing showers.. just limit how much that shower would affect you. For instance, gaining more with showers at home or a hotel.
SwampThing - heh, I'll need a lot more time to think about this idea.
Thalia - Same here, Swamp
SwampThing - I know there's a way to make it work, but right now it's just not coming to mind.
BigErnMac - no I think places should be realistic and have stuff that would be in there in real life
Jennifer - Thalia.. but food at the hotel might suck... even though it is there. It might not truly satisfy your hunger as home cooked meals would.
@MaxisTigger - or if you eat out to much you may get sick of it
Jennifer - Exactly!
Craig_Wall - Limiting a property could also mean limiting them to the lowest quality objects in a category not in their area -- ex: A restaurant can have the best oven/fridge, but a hotel might have something less satisfying
BigErnMac - ok maxis go make it
@Valeria - But BigErnMac, that's the beauty of The Sims...it isn't real life
@Valeria - Why play a game if it is just going to be like every day life?
BigErnMac - But I want it to be like real life except the way I want it
@Draconius - I like that craig
A_J - because this is the sims :)
Jennifer - But Valeria, isn't the Sims similar to real life?
Thalia - Craig, if you did that, then we would have a lot of ugly hotels
SwampThing - I've been learning about Zoning in my classes recently and a 2 part zoning system could really work to do something similar to this idea.
Craig_Wall - After all, in my house I don't have buffets that can feed a hundred sims in a minute
@Draconius - I like the idea behind it.. not totally cutting stuff off, but only being able to get lower quality
@MaxisKyle - How would you manage zoning, Swamp?
SwampThing - Naturally you'd have your Residential (houses), Commercial (retail, restaurants), Industrial (manufacturing)
Jennifer - Just like SimCity
@Draconius - yeah
@Draconius - lol
@MaxisTigger - ahh
SwampThing - But each major zone type would have subcategories
SwampThing - Which would have their own limitations.
BigErnMac - hotels should have buffets and beds, schools are for books and chalkboards, restaurant is for food and bathroom, club is for fun and dance, churches are for weddings and prayer, ETC....
SwampThing - Instead of limiting items just by their type
@Draconius - so the limitations should come from the zone rather than the lot?
@MaxisKyle - ah, but SimCity has only one player making all the zoning calls -- how do we do it with TSO?
SwampThing - Where group objects can only be placed in money categories
Craig_Wall - What I'm saying though is that I wouldn't want properties defined in a way where it's like "You can or can NOT have this" -- make it so "You can have the BEST in this, a mediocre piece of something else, and none of this"
Jennifer - I don't think you should necessarily limit the items allowed in a certain building, just limit their affect on people/
SwampThing - You would limit by type of objects and the number of allowable objects.
BigErnMac - wasn’t their supposed to be a game called Simsville coming out
SwampThing - Thus a person wanting to make a gnome producing plant, would have to be industrial and thus would be allowed to have as many of those objects as they wanted.
SwampThing - But a commercial or residence would be limited to one or two per property.
@MaxisTigger - so zone the housing areas completely?
Merloth - MaxisKyle make is so that land value decrease and maybe health and so if you put a residential space to close to industrial...that would create natural zones and they would group with other zones that increase them somehow
BigErnMac - and people solving things on chalkboards should have their logic up...not have people with logic low sell genius stuff....
Jennifer - I think if you choose to be a restaurant, your item list should be limited (having things not normally found in a restaurant be poor quality items)
A_J - whoa Merloth that would lead to things like town meetings and people asking permission to build in your neighborhood

@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> We have seen many complaints about AFK people in the game. How do you feel we can change this?
BigErnMac - I don’t think u should kick afk people off
SwampThing - It's bound to happen in the game. People macro to keep their properties online.
Craig_Wall - People are complaining about having guests go afk?
@Valeria - Macroing should be a bannable offense
@Draconius - I agree
Dreze - People are paying to play
Dreze - Can’t kick them off
@MaxisTigger - It is :)
@Valeria - Good :)
@MaxisTigger - but lets get to the question
BigErnMac - macroing?
@MaxisTigger - how do you feel we can change this?
@Draconius - well, what about the AFK timers?
SwampThing - The problem is that the only way to make the real money is to have lots of people using your property, which in turn causes people to macro to keep them open for so long.
@MaxisTigger - make it so there isn’t afk and more socialization
@Valeria - The question on the table is - We have seen many complaints about AFK people in the game. How do you feel we can change this?
R2TinCan - Every MMORPG that has fought macroing has lost in the long run.
R2TinCan - It's useless to fight it.
Craig_Wall - Tigger, the mini-game idea from before would be a huge help in this
Jennifer - I agree with Macroing being a bannable offense... it needs to at the very least be a SERIOUS issue.
BigErnMac - for the people that own the property...let them decide how long someone can stay afk...they can kick them off their property with no worries
R2TinCan - Go the way of Turbine and embrace it.
Sponge - Make an idle type deal
@Valeria - The question is AFK timer
A_J - I agree with Craig
Geno - leave properties open 24/7
Sponge - Where you can select idle and it won't kick you off
@Draconius - Seems like the AFK timer would stop that
Craig_Wall - The Mini-game idea we discussed before would keep people too occupied to go afk -- which is the whole idea
BigErnMac - yea leave properties open all day.....its not like some1 who don’t live their can mess it up
@Valeria - Yes, but then the servers could become clogged with AFK players and then live players wouldn't be able to log in
SwampThing - Perhaps allowing business owners (commercial and industrial) to allow "employees" to open shop (bring property online) would help with AFKing.
A_J - if we're painting a picture to sell let us draw our own pictures with a paint program
Jennifer - Good suggestion SwampThing, I like that.
@Draconius - I like that, maybe a list of people which can open the lot?
BigErnMac - Should I go play TSO now
@Draconius - but no other privileges besides that
* BigErnMac hears crickets *
@MaxisKyle - Swamp, I don't understand how that prevents AFKing on the part of the guests
SwampThing - Why would guests afk?
@Draconius - Well if the guests are afk'ing, why not kick them? lol
@MaxisKyle - yes, it gets the lot open, but how to address the "room of silent skillers" effect?
Craig_Wall - People are going AFK while skill gaining only because otherwise they're staring at themselves in a third person view doing something :)
@Draconius - ohh I see
SwampThing - Oh that. Well, we don't know who is there and who isn't.
@MaxisTigger - so more in game things to do
Jennifer - I think that accts should be monitored for it and if they are found doing it, they should lose skills
Craig_Wall - Skill gaining may need to be a bit more interactive to keep people from going AFK
@Draconius - Maybe if every job object has some kind of easy mini-game associated with it that you had to do to do the job
@MaxisTigger - i.e. mini games, employees
Merloth - Have something in game the players need to do to keep the house open. Start some fires the servers notice players are AFK or using Macro
@Draconius - kinda like the code and pizza games, but more simple
@MaxisTigger - lol mer!
* @MaxisTigger burns down your house because your afk :) *
Craig_Wall - Tigger, the mini-game idea from before, i.e. playing chess on the chessboards, will help this too if you gain Logic while you play
BigErnMac - ok here’s my opinion....Let the property owners decide how long players can go AFK, like if they only want people to be afk for 2 minutes then they automatically get kicked off the property
BigErnMac - in 2 minutes
@Draconius - I like that
* @MaxisTigger nods *
@MaxisTigger - so allow homeowners to set it
Merloth - Cause I would never IRL start dreaming away while making food, and when you do that in game (AFK) a fire starts =)
Craig_Wall - Ern might be onto something too ;)
@MaxisTigger - what about homeowners/roommates that are doing it?
SwampThing - Aye. Most skill places will probably have it set to the max.
A_J - I hate that idea... people will remember that they are forced to watch themselves play chess at certain properties and then won't go there anymore anyway
A_J - it's kinda like the free food thing
Sponge - But what if they have to go to the bathroom, and have a little trouble? I think they should be able to turn something on so that they can go idle for like 30 minutes instead of 2
BigErnMac - depends on what home owner wants
@Draconius - Again, make the job objects less "automatic" make the user do something, like the code and pizza objects
@MaxisKyle - that was almost too specific an example Sponge
Merloth - a hibernation status....someway of reducing their speed to server but still keeping them online and the house open?
SwampThing - For skill gain such as the reading, a simple page turn could be effective.
Sponge - I know it happens to me a lot X_X

@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> What are your feelings on neighborhood officers? and what roles would they fulfill?
Sponge - Pointless
A_J - how would a neighborhood officer be elected first of all?
@Draconius - could have to do with the zoning thing
BigErnMac - if a person uses all his money on building a property for him or herself and for other people then they should be able to decide what people in their house can do and how long they can stay
@Valeria - If you incorporated that with the zoning, you might be able to have unions
@Draconius - maybe when a bunch of people move nearby each other, they get the option to select one of them to be the leader
@Valeria - in the industry areas
SwampThing - Neighborhood officers should be like a community council that approves changes which would affect the neighborhood as a whole.
@MaxisTigger - ok say for example a mayor?
@MaxisTigger - town council
Craig_Wall - I don't see how having formal neighborhood officers would help us more than us just PMing property owners in-game ourselves. Is there a need for them at all?
MattH - lol unions, what do we have to strike for?
SwampThing - Aye town council.
@MaxisTigger - elected officials so to speak
@MaxisKyle - Drac - so have an elected role, like a mayor or alderman, that could set certain city-level rules (such as zoning)?
@Draconius - Something like that
BigErnMac - ok now we are getting into jobs
SwampThing - They ensure that their property values don't drop due to zoning issues.
@Draconius - probably not a mayor, cuz that would affect the whole city
@Draconius - but like neighborhood leaders
@MaxisTigger - it also allows for competition against neighborhoods no? :)
SwampThing - It needs to be a council in which there is a voting system.
@Draconius - yeah
SwampThing - All the power can't rest in a single person.
Merloth - Elected people should try to make commercial for their area and get new people to join in on the fun in that area
BigErnMac - I for one thought when I got this game I could be like a cop or join the army but u cant and that made me very disappointed :(
@MaxisTigger - well drac wouldn’t you want people to join your city then another?
@Draconius - I'm thinking like as soon as 4 or 5 or however many people build near each other, they all have the option of forming a "neighborhood" and can elect one person as the leader
Craig_Wall - I wonder what benefit neighborhoods stand to gain through competition though
BigErnMac - numerous neighborhoods in the cities
BigErnMac - have a mayor of city
@Draconius - well one city is the whole server
BigErnMac - I know
@Draconius - isn't it?
SwampThing - Well. Neighborhoods would try to raise their property value. Which would have some sort of recurring payoff.
BigErnMac - ok next q
@Draconius - I’m not sure I like the idea of having one person with that much control over the whole server
@MaxisTigger - it can be taken on different levels
@Draconius - hmm
@MaxisTigger - mayor, councilmen, homeowners associations
SwampThing - Local control, but I still feel a council is more appropriate.
Craig_Wall - The only benefit I can think of is a neighborhood body set a dominant neighborhood category that could grant bonuses in an area -- there would need to be a way to distinguish neighborhoods to promote competition
@Draconius - well, like my idea of the neighborhoods, then maybe the leaders of the neighborhoods can elect a council person or something
@Draconius - and then the council people pick the mayor.. or something
Merloth - Would a council be able to see each other? The player base is spread around the world and it's hard to make decisions as a council if you can't have meetings together
@Valeria - This next one is a big one :)
* @MaxisTigger is so glad irc logs this stuff *

@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> Dynamic pricing means that the price of catalog objects will change from week to week. The price of an object will vary depending on how many were actually purchased by players. So if everyone buys a pizza machine one week, next week they will cost much more. If nobody buys the ugly chair, it will get cheaper and cheaper until someone does.
@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> This will help new players that have no sense of style as well as ensure that each lot you visit doesn't have the same aquarium and red couch. This should also open a large economic niche for players that want to speculate in the object market (buy low, sell high), and players that run shops.
@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> Views, Ideas, flames? <send bullets Kyles way> :P
* @Valeria waits for everyone to finish reading then..... *
* @MaxisTigger giggles *
@Valeria - Go!!
BigErnMac - I think there should be a job where you can customize your furniture and clothing, but you need a certain amount of skills to make the stuff
SwampThing - It's a very good idea, but certain items shouldn't be effected.
Sponge - Pointless!
Craig_Wall - release the hounds...!
@Draconius - Well, for one thing, there should be more variety with the objects. Like, 4 chairs with the same stats, but different appearance. Then they could all be worth different prices according to this dynamic pricing
* BigErnMac Screams STAMPEED *
@Draconius - I like the dynamic pricing though
SwampThing - High end objects, such as suits of armor and so forth, should be effected very little so that they remain high end items.
@Draconius - true
MattH - wouldn’t work as a business or anything, by the time you buy it and sell it back to try and make profit the wear would have taken 20%
@Draconius - there should be a maximum low and high for each object
@Draconius - good point Matt
@MaxisKyle - One thing we didn't mention is that this goes hand-in-hand with the ability to buy, sell and trade objects among players
Craig_Wall - I like it, though I also would like it if people could use this sort of thing to run a form of commerce, where they can purchase cheaper in Buy Mode and sell it to players.
@Draconius - Ahh buy a bunch of stuff when it’s cheap then sell it to players when it gets high
BigErnMac - do you mean that if people keep buying the same TV over and over again that that certain TV will get higher in price? no I don’t like that at all...it’s not fair
@MaxisKyle - sofa speculators
@MaxisKyle - ;)
@Draconius - Bigern, I know what you mean, because everyone has to buy these objects, because there is so little variety
BigErnMac - their should be a best buy in tso
BigErnMac - yea
@MaxisTigger - lol
Craig_Wall - Sort of, Ern
SwampThing - Well the high catalog price would force places to visit their local shops.
Merloth - How about an item that is bought often get improved...if Ford sells more cars than Toyota then Ford will get more money and create better cars
MattH - well good idea for a chat :) good night all
@MaxisTigger - you want those deals on the computers :P
@Draconius - but if there were different models of the same objects
@MaxisTigger - great idea merl
BigErnMac - night matt
Craig_Wall - I would like for people to be able to run commercial properties where they're able to buy cheaper than normal players would, and sell them back to player’s cheaper
SwampThing - It'll have to be a huge number Merloth.
@MaxisKyle - that's one of our plans, Craig
@Draconius - like 3 TVs that all had the same fun rating, but much different appearances
BigErnMac - yea make a best buy and negotiate the price to make the cost lower
SwampThing - I can see people trying to take advantage of the system by purchasing tons and tons of a single object just to raise its quality and thus its value.
Merloth - SwampThing just a bad example =)
@Draconius - I think that’s something most everyone wants, is more variety in items
BigErnMac - negotiation for price of different things
SwampThing - Aye, variety is a good thing.
@Draconius - Swamp, maybe there could be a limit on how much one person can affect the price?
BigErnMac - try to make cost cheaper
Craig_Wall - Maxis folk, do you track how much of that item was SOLD BACK as well as purchased?
SwampThing - That could work Drac. :)
@Draconius - :)
@MaxisKyle - Craig, it would be based on how many are out in the world
@MaxisKyle - which we can tell at any time
Craig_Wall - Alright, that's what I was hoping
SwampThing - What's to prevent the prices from rising infinitely?
@MaxisTigger - yes I would imagine it would be tracked
* Craig_Wall points to that for anyone that thinks people will buy to ramp prices *
@MaxisTigger - What about auctions for those high priced items?
Merloth - SwampThing peoples mind....neither the game or people would buy anything if it's heavily overpriced
SwampThing - If there's only one type of that object, such as a hot tub, and someone wants one, they'll buy it.
@Draconius - I like that.. maybe make some "rare" objects, like a different colored suit of armor or something
BigErnMac - negotiation skill
BigErnMac - o yea when’s the knight armor costume coming out
Craig_Wall - negotiations on price shouldn't be a skill in-game -- it's a skill in your brain ;)
BigErnMac - I wanna wear those hehe
Craig_Wall - Official auctions may help if you can find a way to mix rare items in
@Draconius - right
Merloth - Craig_Wall just like decoration is...but I can't get my pink elephants carpets at the moment =)
SwampThing - Aye, Maxis sponsored auctions for rare pieces of art or whatever, would be great.
@Draconius - maybe when you buy something you have a 1 in 10000 chance of it being a rare object? but then people would just buy and resell I guess
BigErnMac - will there ever be like a hair cut place...change appearance of hair
SwampThing - It would give people who have achieved all their goals something to strive for.
@Draconius - or yeah, maxis sponsored one's would work
@MaxisTigger - yes ern :)
SwampThing - Everyone wants an antique or some sort of rare collection.
@MaxisTigger - so you want more involvement from us?
@MaxisTigger - for unique items
SwampThing - Yes, that would be great.
@Draconius - ph@7 l3w7 ;-)
@MaxisTigger - ok so lets all say it you guys want RARES!
Craig_Wall - You could always do a sort of Limited Edition thing too, where you offer certain items and then discontinue them at intervals, increasing their value as the game ages
SwampThing - Okay, we want rares!
Merloth - We want RARES
@MaxisTigger - lol
@Draconius - we want rares!
@MaxisTigger - I was waiting for that :P
SwampThing - But something Sim-genre based.
Craig_Wall - lol, yeah a +2 Charisma Chair of Power ;)
@Valeria - What about holiday events that have special items?
@Draconius - rofl
SwampThing - Like the great MonaLlama painting or something.
@Valeria - The hat from New Years was great, but we didn't get to keep it
Skinny08 - Yes.. like Ultima where you get gifts for the holidays
@Draconius - +3 cheese hat of fun
@MaxisTigger - jeeze darn uo players :P
@Valeria - lol
Skinny08 - lol
@Valeria - Yeah well, we're everywhere :P
* @MaxisTigger pk's val *
Skinny08 - I quit no more pking =(
SwampThing - Indestructible Supremely Accurate Silver Wooden Gnome of Landscape Vanquishing or something.
Merloth - don't talk about gifts...I couldn't get the Santa mask off that I got in Project Entropia
* @Valeria runs to the healer and puts a bounty on Tigger's head *
@MaxisTigger - LOL
BigErnMac - ahhh cheeshats.. nooo.get the jets hats
beans - like she never heard that before, val ;)
@MaxisTigger - psst ern Giants :)
@Valeria - lol
@MaxisTigger - yes really beans

@Valeria - <MaxisTigger> Lets hear your ideas about the chat features that are in place currently (Chat bubbles & Instant Message). Do you like them, hate them? What could we improve on that?
* @MaxisTigger ducks *
BigErnMac - hahah giants got screwed
Skinny08 - Love Them
BigErnMac - sorry off topic
Craig_Wall - My only comment: Put in the chat history idea you had as soon as you can ;)
SwampThing - Chat log!
@Draconius - I speak for pretty much everyone I know who plays TSO when I say.. we need a journal-type thing. It's waaay tooo easy to miss what someone says
@Valeria - Chat logs!!
Skinny08 - Right On Craig
@Draconius - Yes1
@MaxisTigger - lol
@Valeria - Must have some type of chat log
@Draconius - Logs!
Merloth - Chat log accessible as a txt file in TSO folder
* Craig_Wall wonders if Maxis got the hint ;) *
@Valeria - or a journal you can access
@Draconius - no chat log in game
@MaxisTigger - jeeze you guys don’t want chat history?
Merloth - So you can put all fun on the net
BigErnMac - yea a journal
Skinny08 - so like if your answering IMs you can see what you missed
@Draconius - or an IRC plugin, maybe ;-)
BigErnMac - in E&B they had a journal
SwampThing - The ability to change your font color would be nice.
Craig_Wall - Tigger, that's not funny! :P
@MaxisTigger - hehehhe
@Valeria - Good one SwampThing
A_J - chat log and font/color changes :)
@Valeria - I want to be able to change my text color
@Valeria - I don't like yellow and green :(
BigErnMac - yea I just want green font
BigErnMac - or orange
SwampThing - It's kinda hard to be a mean vicious bear when your text color is pink.
@Draconius - I would like a more traditional chat box, like in most other online games
@MaxisTigger - picky jeeze
Craig_Wall - Just as long as you don't make us able to type in 48 point font I'm happy, lol
Skinny08 - how bout Emotes
@MaxisTigger - drac explain please
@Draconius - Instead of the bubbles above the head
@Valeria - That is what the actions are for Skinny08
@MaxisTigger - skinny you have emotes by clicking on people :P
A_J - I love the bubbles
@Valeria - they take the place of emotes
Craig_Wall - He wants the EverQuest way of chatting, Tigger
@Draconius - just a chat-room like box
@Draconius - right
@Draconius - but make it an option
Styxx - Bubbles are fun
Cr0d-Away - oooh
BigErnMac - aren’t there emotes kind of in their, like stretch arms
@Draconius - cuz some people like the bubbles
* @MaxisTigger doesn’t know EQ chat *
@MaxisTigger - I fell out of a tree to many times and gave up :)
BigErnMac - I like the bubbles
@Draconius - like, IRC chatting lol
@Valeria - The one bad thing about the bubbles is that if there are more than 4 one the screen at once, they jump all over the place :(
Merloth - combining emotes and chat...like I say a joke and end with :-) then my sim laughs
Craig_Wall - A chat box that lists all of the chat lines, instead of bubbles on everyone's head
Cr0d-Away - ok, what did I miss??
SwampThing - It's a text box where all text is located in an IRC type window at the bottom of a screen.
Angrath - mmm
Skinny08 - I love the Bubbles
BigErnMac - the bubbles tickle my nose
@Draconius - exactly
* Styxx knows that atitd also got "kinda" bubbles above their head *
Craig_Wall - Like a mini IRC window on screen
@Draconius - right
Craig_Wall - only without a name list ;)
@MaxisTigger - so have both? a chat window and bubbles
@Draconius - but optional
* Cr0d-Away has a question *
@Draconius - yes
@Valeria - Other than that, I love the bubbles
@MaxisTigger - let the person decide which to read?
@Draconius - with the ability to turn either off
Craig_Wall - An option to go back and forth I'd love, Tigger
@Draconius - or neither
Skinny08 - naw that’s retarded