Thank Grog It’s Firday!
And, thank Grog that one of our readers gave me something to write about. Because I sure as heck had nothing good to write about as far as the “update” that didn’t happen…again.
Wednesday, when the update was SUPPOSED to happen, one of our disgruntled readers posted their displeasure about the lack of an update, including information about what they had invested in the game over the years he had been playing.
It rEAlly made me think…
Joel (or is it Billy? the email and posts don’t match) Mckechnie wrote:
I went through all my receipts for this game and I have invested well over 2000.00 into this game. I have been playing since March 2007, it’s been so amazing. I hope if they were to ever close this down to leave the app operating off the server so I could keep my little slice of heaven.
Well…I’m not going to comment on if EA would leave the server intact, but inoperable for a period of time (they’d have to give us warning, and stop selling donuts first, or get sued).
But, I do have something to say about spending $2K on this game since 2007… (or did he really mean 2017???). Holyfreakinshirt!
What I really meant, when I said in my reply to his comment, was “Better take a screen shot so you can preserve it.” However…I only said, “better take a screen shot.” So he did. And, sent it to me.
And, this is where my curiosity was piqued.
Let me qualify this next part by stating that for the first few months of laying the game, I played almost entirely “Freemium” (almost no real money spent on donuts). The “Almost” part actually got me to coin the phrase, “Cheapium,” as I bought the occasional Premium Item that was a MUST have, but just ignored most of them.
After a while, I started working the Rail Yard, and the “Where’s Maggie?” bit for a few extra Free Donuts. But, unless you count the gift cards that I cashed in during the holidays (probably close to $500 over the years), I simply didn’t spend my own money, hardly at all.
Then…Safi convinced me to do “Casual Donut Farming.” And, from that point on (going on almost two and a half years now), I haven’t spent a dime. Not a penny.
So does a town that has $2,000 in Donuts invested look better/bigger/more amazing than my mostly Free town? I’m not going to answer that…because all of those matrix measurements are subjective…and completely based on personal taste.
What I WILL say, is that if it weren’t for people like Billy/Joel (wait…is it? Could it be? Nah…not the piano man), the game would not have lasted as long. The point being, Why would EA keep spending REAL money/assets/programmers on a game that makes them no money?
They wouldn’t. And most likely…are not going to keep doing so.
Joel/Billy’s Springfield is cool. It is a bit “Duff” heavy (Duff is everywhere), but it is a lot of fun. There are tons of funny/clever/interesting aspects to his Springfield.
I laughed at more than a few features…
So…Joel/Billy likes beer. Or at least it would appear that his Springfield is very much sponsored by Duff. It’s EVERYWHERE.
CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM
Like here…where you can go from “Duff Lagoon” right to heaven. Maybe heaven is the obvious place you’ll end up if you swim in a lake of Duff.
His town is of the “wide open” variety. Lots, and lots of open space…but Duff seems to be in every corner.
Another Duff Municipal Installation makes his parks and water features burble with Duffness…
I laughed a lot at his 3-D creation of the giant Duff bottle…where fans are delivered to the 10-story platform, by way of the escalator to nowhere.
I kind of liked the way he dealt with the land in “Springfield Heights.” Not sure if he reached the Billionaire mark or not…but $2K doesn’t buy everything.
CLICK THE IMAGE BELOW FOR A FULL SIZE VIEW OF HIS TOWN...There are loads and loads of non-Duff features as well…but, as you can see from the first topographic view…it is pretty wide open, with lots of spaces yet to be filled.
Again…I’m not going to comment as to whether he got his $2K’s worth or not. I know that as time goes on, and we seem to get less and less content/attention from EA, I am glad that I didn’t spend loads of money on the game. But, no matter what happens going forward, SEVEN YEARS of FUN has been worth whatever I put into it, and I’m sure that Joel/Billy feels the same way.
ON ANOTHER NOTE…
Holyfreakinshirt…did we ever find Alissa’s “Cranky Button.” I have never seen her this worked up. But, it seems to be that most of you really don’t get her unbridled loyalty to the “men in pinstripes,” her beloved NY Yankees. Poke the bear…she’s gonna bite.
I used to be a Yankees fan when I was very young (in the early 1960s). Yogi Berra was my favorite player, and I watched games almost every Saturday during the “game of the week.” On rainy days, when my Little League games were rained out, I would often don my catcher’s equipment, and “catch” the games…emulating every move Yogi made. Yes. I was a weird kid.
But as I have aged, and baseball was pretty much ruined by “Free Agency,” to the point where rooting for a single player, meant changing team allegiances, perhaps several times in a decade, I stopped watching. I still watch the World Series. But, that’s about it.
I pretty much feel the same way about Pro Football. And, I almost never watch the NBA. I may watch a bit of March Madness in NCAA basketball…but that’s it. I never really ascribed to the “religion” of watching sports. Oh. Except for our hometown Oregon Ducks…where it is more of a culture than an actual fan base. If you live in Eugene more than 10 years (we’ve been here since 1983), a committee comes to visit you, with a requirement to wear the appropriate Duck Clothing on game day, or when traveling. Beaver fans are allowed…but, come one…Orange and Black all year? Nahhh… And the benefit of “Uncle Phil” making Eugene “Track Town USA” and donating heavily to U of O Football (and the University) is that we have loads and loads of the latest Nike gear, clothes and swag to choose from.
However, in short…I love PLAYING sports…I’m not a huge fan of watching sports. I played football and baseball from my youth through college. I played Rugby until I was in my mid-30s. But, I just don’t enjoy the “fans.”
There. There I’ve said it. I don’t like sitting with people who most likely have not played the sport, for which they have become arm chair experts. And especially when their opinions are shouted, with beer-spittle infused venom, for everyone within 50 feet to hear. It drives me nuts.
Perhaps that is exactly the Good and Bad of being a “fanatic” about anything. If you have allowed your love/obsession for anything to actually dictate your emotions, you really need to rethink your intentions, and the true value of NOT belonging to a clan/club/religion/fanbase/political party or any other group that would divide us from one another with an “our team” attitude.
So. Yes. This week in politics has given me pause as to “how in the hell did we get here???” This has been amplified by some of the emotional craziness I have seen in social media, as well as this very online community. So many “teams/tribes/clubs” and not enough “Us/We” to include everyone inclusively.
In a couple of months…the baseball season will be over, and none of this insanity will matter….because it will be time to gnash our teeth over football…and then basketball…and during all of it…the elections…and politics and…AAAARGH!
It’s all just a social construct. None of it is real. None of it really matters. Our ability to hate or love one another, based on completely made-up culture/rules/religions/political affiliations, is the one thing that actually allowed us to organize and become the current dominate species in the history of the world. It is also the key reason that we are doomed to become a “blip” in the overall history of the earth. Again, read the amazing book, “Sapiens” if you need more proof of this.
Take a chill pill. We will get an update…or not. The Yankees/Nats/Astros will win, or lose…and then we will start the same cycle next year. We will endure this election cycle, and then will start earlier and earlier next time, because politics have become a sport/religion/fantasy league.
No matter how any of it turns out…We. Will. Survive (until we don’t).
So…to recap…
$2K on a Mobile Game? Sure. Why not? If it gives you pleasure. But, it can’t/won’t last. But then again, neither do $5 lattes at Starbucks. One of those a day for 5 Years….comes to more than $9,000…and you have nothing to show for it.
When it comes to the Yankees…just go along with it. Alissa does so much for everyone here, it’s the least we can do. Stop Poking The Bear.
Step away from the screen. Nothing of real lasting value can be found on your cell phone…unless it is used to call someone you haven’t talked to in a while…and connect.
In the end…it’s not your team, your tribe, your cohort…but, the love you give one another, and get back, that matters.
Will they give us a new update soon? Not sure. But, I am thankful for what we have already been given. Let’s just leave it with that.
OH…………………. And the only thing the REALLY matters, is my BET WITH SAFI over whose shirt is the most popular!
BUY MINE HERE. These days…there’s only one thing you can say…
HOLYFREAKINSHIRT!! (and a portion of every sale goes to our work in Uganda…so get a shirt…do something good!)
