MTS2:Creator Guidelines/Sims 3 Worlds

As Create a World is very new, these Guidelines are currently incomplete and a work in progress, but can be used as a general guide on what MTS will be hosting in neighborhood/worlds.

Sims 3 Worlds/Neighborhoods

The Create a World (CAW) tool allows you to create your own unique vision of the perfect neighborhood/world, and share your creation with other Sims 3 players. MTS hosts neighborhood/world uploads that meet our upload criteria, as outlined below:

Quality

Time and Effort

Creating a World is a VERY time consuming process. Creating a fully decorated neighborhood from scratch including all the lots can easily take a month or more of regular hard work. There's a lot of tedious parts to it that aren't very fun, and it can be tempting to skip over the technical parts like routing and layering, but it's important to go ahead and do it right so it will work well in the game, since you are sharing your neighborhood with other people for them to play with. Players don't want to download neighborhoods only to find out that some essential parts of the play experience are missing or done poorly.

Unique and Interesting

Let your imagination run wild when creating your world, but remember that it will take a lot of effort for your vision to come to life. Any concept can be done well, or done poorly, and your result depends on you.

Even the wildest alien world should still look good and make sense - weird for weirdness sake as a gimmick really doesn't work well for something that will be used as much in the game as a neighborhood/world. Use your imagination, but put enough work into the expression of your idea to make it look plausible.

Aesthetically Pleasing

Does your world/neighborhood look nice, with a good flow to it? Is the layout attractive, interesting, and enjoyable to look at? Do you have a cohesive style or theme that works well and shows throughout the neighborhood? This is hard to quantify, so you may want to get several other opinions (from people who aren't your mom).

Playability

The prettiest neighborhood ever made is useless if it's not playable, so it's very important that it's well planned. Consider some of the following:

• Is there enough room for all the rabbit holes, community lots, and plenty of homes?
• Do townies have somewhere to live?
• Is it going to be easy to get around the neighborhood? Are there enough roads and sidewalks, and are they connected up properly?
• Is the routing done right so the sims and player camera don't get stuck?
• Can sims collect bugs and rocks?
• Is your world optimized for good performance?

There's a lot more to it - some covered down below, but put yourself in the player's shoes and imagine what you would want in the perfect downloaded neighborhood and build accordingly.

Basic Map

A basic map is one that does not include fully built lots, but has all the rest of the neighborhood in place. Everything that needs Create a World to do has already been done, and what's left is to build the lots in-game. Some players really just want a blank canvas upon which to build (like SC4 maps for TS2) so this is the most basic type of neighborhood/world map you can upload here to MTS.

But even for a basic map there's still quite a bit that needs doing. This is the absolute minimum you need to do to upload your world to MTS:

Terrain Sculpting

• Natural: Your terrain should look plausible – not just flat and boring, or jagged for no reason.

• Easy to view: Make sure you can view all lots and other points of interest without steep hills or valleys getting in the way – be aware that the camera will move up and down with the surrounding terrain.

Terrain Painting

• Realistic: Terrains should blend in a logical way from one to another - a smooth blend from grass to sand, for example. Mountains should be dark and mountainy, grassy areas green and grassy. If you're building a non-realistic world (like an alien or fantasy environment), plausibility just as important as with a terrestrian one.

• Optimized: You should not use more than 8 different terrain paints per chunk, for improved performance.

• Custom Terrain Textures (Optional): If you make your own terrains, they should be seamless without repeating too much visually, have the right scale, and look good in-game.

Roads and Sidewalks

A good transportation network means sims can get around your world/neighborhood with ease; a poorly done one means routing issues and a lot of stomping and complaining. Even for a rustic neighborhood, you should still have some roads for playability's sake - you can always use custom textures to make them seem like wide dirt paths.

• Intersections: Place intersections where your roads meet, and at the end of any dead end road. Cars/vehicles will not be able to turn around otherwise.

• Smooth Grade: Use the road tools to give your roads and sidewalks a smooth grade (i.e. if you were driving down it, your car wouldn't tilt dramatically but would stay mostly level).

• Not Too Steep: If you have a very steep cliff, you may need to make your roads wind back and forth instead of going up near-vertically.

• Sidewalks: Place additional sidewalks where needed, and connect them to your road system.

• Custom Roads/Sidewalk Textures (Optional): If you make your own textures, they should be seamless without repeating too much visually, have the right scale, and look good in-game.

Lots

Well-thought-out placement of lots is essential to a useful and well-functioning neighborhood.

• Plenty of Lots: Place at least enough lots for several residential homes, all the rabbit holes (make sure they're big enough to fit even the largest rabbit holes!), and some community lots. Add a few extra in various sizes so players can add their own lots. Too many lots is better than not enough.

• Standard Sizes: Lot sizes should be a multiple of 10: 20x20, 30x50, 40x40, 50x60, etc. (the exception being the 64x64 lots the game uses as its largest size) or follow some other logical system, so that players can easily move buildings around. Look at the bottom right corner in CAW when dragging out a lot to see the size - no guesswork. You -can- have other lot sizes for things like community lots to fill in gaps, but try to make your residential lots round numbers whenever possible.

• Flat Lots: Use the Flatten Terrain tool before placing a lot, so that you are always putting lots on a completely flat patch of ground (unless you have a very good reason to not have a flat lot, like a beach lot or one built into a hillside). This makes it easier to place and share lots.

• Near Roads: Lots should be placed next to a road in most cases, unless you have a very good reason not to do so.

Camera & Sim Routing

• Proper Routing: Routing for both the camera and sims should make sense - areas that look like they'd be off-limits should actually be non-routable, and areas that look accessible should be easy to reach, with no random non-routable spots. You can find more information on routing in the CAW Help Document.

• Smooth Edges: Make sure the edges of your non-routable areas are smooth, not jagged or blotchy, so the camera doesn't bump around.

Layering

Correctly done, layering increases world performance. Don't just dump everything on one layer!

• Grouped: Items you have placed in your world (lots, decorations, effects, etc.) should be layered and grouped in a logical way.

Spawn Points

Beetles, butterflies, fish, gems, ores, and space rocks all appear in the game because the neighborhood/world creator has placed spawn points for them. The CAW Help Document contains a list of all of the Spawners and what they produce.

• Full Set: You don't need to place one of each Spawner, but you probably want to place enough so that sims can collect all of the base game collectibles.

• Logical Placement: Place spawn points in areas that make sense - near landmarks on the map or in an area you've decorated specially for them - not just randomly, or stuck all together in one place.

• Balanced Rarity: Vary the type of spawn points you use so it's not too "cheaty" - use a mixture of common, uncommon, and rare spawns (not just all rare ones).

Decoration

Additional items added such as rocks, landscaping, and effects can really give your neighborhood character and a unique and interesting feel.

• Aesthetically Pleasing: Your decorating should add to the overall beauty and theme of your neighborhood, with good choices and placement of items - neither too many nor too few.

• Thematic: Try to keep your decorations to a particular style - use trees and flowers that make sense for the type of region you're building. Giving your neighborhood a particular unique flavour and style makes it more charming and realistic than just using one of everything, or a random pyramid because it'd look cool.

Full Map

A full map is a complete and decorated map with built-up lots - not just a blank slate but similar to Sunset Valley or Riverview: a complete neighborhood except the sims. Creating a full map is a really, REALLY big job.

The standards for the lots you build in a full map are the same as if you were uploading the lots separately to MTS. Please review our Lots and Houses Upload Guidelines fully!

Rabbit Holes

Rabbit holes provide places for your sims to do important tasks as well as attend school and their jobs.

• Full Set: There are 16 different rabbit holes - make sure you include them all for sims to have a nicely functioning neighborhood and be able to get all jobs. If you choose to omit some of them, it should make sense for the theme of the neighborhood, and you should add some extra lots big enough to fit the rabbit hole objects, so players can place their own.

• Decorated: Rabbit hole lots require decoration to make them look part of their neighborhood - benches, trees, terrain paint, etc. - if you're going to tell people where the rabbit holes should be, you should make an effort to decorate the lot so it's integrated into the rest of the neighborhood's style.

Community Lots

• Full Set: You should build all or most of the various community lots (art gallery, gym, etc.) which are not rabbit holes. If you don't build them all, you should leave empty lots for the player to build or place their own.

Residential Lots

• Enough Lots: You should include several residential lots in a variety of sizes. Make sure they're multiples of 10. Some/all residential lots can be vacant, but all of the lots need to be furnished (see our Lots and Houses Upload Guidelines).

Screenshots

The screenshots you take will show off the world you have made and allow people to see what they're downloading. Make sure you take really good, big, pretty screenshots to entice downloaders into using your lovely new creation.

Screenshot Basics

You need to make sure you have nice big, clear pictures that show off what you've made. They can't be too blurry or pixellated, and you need to know how to use the game's camera controls properly, so make sure you review the information on the links below before continuing.

• Tip:

For instructions on:

• Taking large, clear pictures
• Changing your in-game settings for best graphics quality
• Camera controls

See: Screenshot Basics

Big Enough

Your pics should be large enough to see the detail of what you've made.

• Tips:

• MTS allows images up to 1280x1024 pixels and 195 kilobytes so you should be able to upload nice big pictures.

• Don't take small pics and just make them larger in your graphics program - this just gives you a blurry pic that's bigger in dimensions with no additional detail.

Required Screenshots

The following screenshots are required, and all must be taken in-game! If you do not include some/all of these screenshots, your upload will not be approved. Please do not take the required pictures in Create a World.

World Overview

Include at least ONE picture from high above your world, showing the whole thing. If you can't fit it all in one shot, you can take several different shots as long as it's obvious you've shown everything. You can label the overview pictures with text if you want - just make sure it doesn't cover up too much.

Detail Pictures

Show at least THREE other pictures of some of the views people will see in your world. This should be nice scenic views, taken from a lower angle (a sim's eye view, or a low player's eye view).

Individual Lot Pictures (Full Map)

If you have built on the included lots, you need to show at least ONE picture of each individual lot. Because you have a limit of 8 screenshots on a single post, you will probably want to compose your upload in sections on different posts (one per lot or one per several lots) in Creator Issues as advised below in the section on Uploading Your World.

• For rabbit holes and park-type community lots: At least one picture, showing a general overview of the lot from a low player's eye view or a sim's eye view.
• For other community lots and residential lots: At least two pictures per lot - one picture from the front of the lot, taken from a sim's eye view, and at least one overhead floor plan type picture of each floor/level of the lot. If you have multiple levels, you will need a picture of each level.

For examples of the types of pictures required, and for much more information on taking good pictures, please see our our Lots and Houses Upload Guidelines.

Additional Screenshots

You may wish to take optional extra pictures to show off your world. Additional pictures are good! Show people all kinds of interesting stuff, all the little details you've put in. Even if you're making a Basic Map, you may wish to compose your upload in Creator Issues as is advised for Full Maps - you can add additional pictures attached to subsequent posts in the thread, which will show up on the Comments tab.

Uploading Your World

When you have the required screenshots and you are about ready to upload your world, you'll be ready to do the following last steps:

Title

You probably already have a name for your world - it makes a good title for your upload.

• Good world titles: "Oceanside Bay: Small Tropical World" or "Garland Falls" - your name for the world, plus maybe some short descriptive text.

• Bad world titles: "My first world!" or "My first upload!!!!1"

Description

You need to write a decent description for your upload. You don't have to write a novel here, just at least a few sentences about world's theme, history, landscape, people, whatever. Let people know you've put some careful thought into your creation. If your English is not good, you can ask for help writing a description in Creator Feedback.

• Good description: "Oceanside Bay is a cozy seaside community, with windswept cliffs falling into crystal blue water, studded with wide sandy beaches. As a fishing and seafaring society, Oceanside Bay's residents reflect their love for the sea in their homes' styles and furnishings. Living in such a small town, everyone is close knit, but they like it that way - and your sims will too!"

• Bad description: "Plz download and thank!!!" or "Just look at the pictures and download!!!"

Information to Include

It's important that you include certain information so that players know what to expect when they use your creation! Part of this is also so the MTS moderation staff knows your world has been made right.

You may want to copy-paste the headings here to use as a template. This information should be in the text description for your upload. If you do not include all of the required information, your upload will not be approved.

General

• Map Size: Tiny / Small / Medium / Large

• Spawn Points: What spawn points are there? Are EP spawn points or relic dig sites included?

Performance

• Routing Info: Where can sims not go? Where can the camera not go?

• Layering: How many layers do you have?

• Textures: How many textures have you used total? Do you have more than 8 textures per chunk anywhere in the world?

Lots

• Number: Total number of lots, and lot sizes and quantity of each (example: 50 total lots - 25 of 20x20, 15 of 40x40, 10 60x60)

• Rabbitholes: None / All / Some (list)

• Community Lots: None / All / Some (list)

• Residential: Number of residential lots, and lot sizes and quantity of each (as above).

• (Full Map Only): You will need to include the standard required information and descriptions for all the lots you have built up - you will likely want to put this information with the individual lot pictures on extra posts on your thread which will show up on the Comments tab. To do this, you will need to compose your upload in the Creator Issues forum. Make sure you review the Lots and Houses Upload Guidelines.

Full Maps

Because worlds are so complex, it may be easier for you to compose your upload in MTS's Creator Issues Forum rather than going through the regular upload wizard. Create a new thread - the first post will show as the main post on the upload once complete -; make sure to attach at least one picture to the first post and at least one zip or rar attachment. You can use subsequent posts (which will show up as comments on the upload) to attach files and pictures and organize showing off different parts of your world. Once you're done putting together your upload in Creator Issues, private message a staff member to ask if they can move it to the Moderation Queue.

For an example of a full neighborhood done like this, see Plasticbox's Elsewhere Neighborhood. Obviously it's a bit different being a Sims 2 neighborhood rather than Sims 3, but you can see how the general information and description is on the Overview tab, with the main screenshots attached to the first post to show up in Screenshots. Then click on the Comments tab and see how she has a description and pictures for each included house as well as the required sizing and pricing information. Again, the details included would be a bit different, but the concept is the same for both TS2 and TS3.

Split RARs

For a complex neighborhood, it's likely that your upload will be over the 10 mb file limit that we have at MTS. You will need to upload your creation in parts. To do this, you will need an archive program like WinRAR that can compress a file but split it into multiple pieces.

To create a split RAR/ZIP:

1. Find the sims3pack file for the world you have created.
2. Right-click on the sims3pack file and choose "Add to archive" from the menu.
3. On the box that comes up, give your file a name where it says Archive name.
4. Select ZIP or RAR (RAR is preferred).
5. Change "Compression Method" to Best.
4. Under where it says "Split to volumes, bytes" type 9 mb. Leave the other settings alone.
5. Click OK to create your file(s). This may take a few minutes.

When it's done, you will have one or more RAR files, ready to upload.