Tidings Triste Tappers!
(Today’s post is sponsored by the letter “T”)
Over the past 12 years, The Simpsons Tapped Out has taken us on an amazing journey. But now that journey is coming to an end.
Or put another way, the game has an imminent death that we just learned about 2 Thursday’s ago. So let’s take time over the coming weeks to process.
Swiss-American psychiatrist Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross introduced the most commonly taught model for understanding the psychological reaction to imminent death in her 1969 book titled On Death and Dying. The book explored the experience of dying through interviews with terminally ill patients and outlined the “Five Stages of Death” (now commonly referred to as the “Five Stages of Grief”): denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance (DABDA).
So let’s continue with the NIH definition of Anger.
Anger is commonly experienced and expressed by patients as they concede the reality of a terminal illness. It may be directed at blaming medical providers for inadequately preventing the illness, family members for contributing to risks or not being sufficiently supportive, or spiritual providers or higher powers for the diagnosis’ injustice. The anger may also be generalized and undirected, manifesting as a shorter temper or a loss of patience. Recognizing anger as a natural response can help health care providers and loved ones tolerate what might otherwise feel like hurtful accusations. However, they must take care not to disregard criticism that may be warranted by attributing them solely to an emotional stage.
In terms of Tapped Out, I experienced anger towards EA for ending the game. In particular, towards EA for the timing of the announcement. “Why are you ending right after you gave us all this land? Why are you ending before Halloween and Christmas? I’m so mad at you (EA)!”
How about you? Are you still experiencing anger that the game is coming to an end? Who was your anger directed towards? If you have moved on past anger, what was the anger phase like for you and how long did your anger phase last? Sound off in the comments below.
And be sure to come back next Thursday for your next therapy session.
Thursday October 10 – Anger
Thursday October 17 – Bargaining
Thursday October 24 – Depression
Thursday October 31 – Acceptance
😏Well, I’ve posted a couple times in previous threads of massive disappointment, blended with befuddlement, astonishment, anger & analysis of any possible creative, optimistic, proactive solutions that might be generated via my 1 mile proximity from EA HQ in Playa Vista , LA, CA.
Many options certainly exist from polls on this very site & the EA Forum to confirm financial solutions of what players would be willing to pay weekly, monthly, quarterly, etc., which certainly seems most logical to present as a primary solution, considering the entire decision is based on a financial foundation. I directly appeal / invite Safi, all TSTO board members, & players to join in immediately organizing any efforts. This sincerely seems quite logical & worthwhile means to spend the remainder of this year rather than simply accepting defeat⚠️
Not to go into politics, but briefly noting in direct relevance, Friggin💩’Fox News’ managed to save themselves via spending $787 million just continue broadcasting their BS so there would certainly seem to be some accepted level of financial means on a far lower level to save this little money machine. There is certainly always options & solutions, particularly in this special instance where so many years have been dedicated to a very special, creative game based on a very impressive decades long beloved show🎬👌
I’m glad to further spearhead things via whatever efforts might be suggested to engage in seeking a solution…
Very Sincerely,
-ZenGlenn☯️
(Zenglenn@yahoo.com)
i could tell you had TDS before i even got to your 3rd paragraph.
bye bye neighbor. be really to accept defeat twice in the next few month (Nov and Jan)
Tell me how you deduced he has TDS before even getting to the third paragraph? Even the third paragraph doesn’t make that deduction a slam dunk, given that Trump himself has attacked Fox News.
And how did your comment even make it through moderation, given that politics is supposed to be off limits here?
(Also, I get your November reference, but what’s the reference to accepting defeat in January? Are you and your little cult friends planning another insurrection if the election doesn’t go as you expect it to?)
I have recently seen a poster advertising the game when it came out 12 years ago. Anyone have anything else “physical” about the game?
Does anyone remember the Holiday Wheel? That thing really made me angry back in the day
I am stuck in anger and not sure I will move past it. Like you Safi, it has much less to do with the game ending (if the licensing thing is true then it can’t be helped) but way WAY more angry about the timing. Right before Halloween and Christmas???? They couldn’t give us these events? Or at the VERY LEAST, turn on fall and winter in our towns before it ends?
Hi! The taps pt.1 disappeared for me, has it happened to anyone else?
It’s still in the store. Tap on yellow arrow next to picture of Simpsons house.
Thank you! Had no idea that existed
I think I’m going to blow up my town and just fill it with Rude Crowd lol
I wish we could have the angry mob from the movie
No snow = no snow simpsons just a melted heap 😞
A very underrated movie is 1997s The Game with Michael Douglas, Sean Penn. My favorite character was his Dad. Well worth the time …
Hi Safi…this one is for you..just because of that number you reminded me of in a previous post…I hope you restarted the counter,…let me know when I get close…I can create something special….
Anywho…like I said Safi….you can figure this fo sho..
Hopefully the last paragraphs I wrote..you’ve read. I need YOUR honest opinion….do you think those events happened because of my silver tongue, literally and figuratively? Or was it kismet?…i am not disciplined enough to follow the Bhagavad Gita .a lovely read. Siddhartha is a favorite of mine…so is The King and I…I feel unforgivable….yet..
I guess I’ll just say…! treat Francisco San , the Roni A Rice
LOL!
I don’t think it’s your silver tongue. To quote South Park: “Blame Canada”.
I’m still really angry and frustrated. No other game is comparable to TSTO. I have loved its colorfulness, quirky but endearing characters and all funny little details and animations.
I have tried other games couple of times. Compared to TSTO Sims is boring, uninspiring with no humor and its characters are plastic and annoyingly “hollywoodish”. They are just like from some angsty daytime soap opera. I even tested Family Guy but since I have never liked the show I didn’t quite get into it. The town itself is ok but characters are so ugly and unpleasant that it didn’t grow on me at all.
I don’t want to lose my pretty little town. I still have so much more to build. 🙁
Only one game has ever surpassed Tapped Out for me, which is Undertale. If you play a lot, or a little, of video games, then you should try it. Don’t look up ANYTHING online about it until you’ve defeated your first final boss.
Sadness is the emotion I have towards this. Tapped out has been a daily thing for me, at least once a day I’d open tapped out and set my people to work and farmed for donuts, if needed, keeping a 1000 donuts on hand and recently went to 2000 just for fun (by farming). (Now I’ve bought 50K donuts in game and could go way higher) Given al the land I could recently buy I was planning for the holiday season to use a day or two to do my town al over again. That’s not gonna happen anymore. I’ll play till the end and I aim to get all the charachters that can be obtained. I burn through donuts to get tasks done now.
I have been playing for the 12 yrs, but the last few years I only joined in for the holiday events. So I only learned yesterday when I was checking this site for a Halloween update that the game is coming to an end.
It was probably some Mr Burns CEO-type @ the house of mouse who decided to pull the plug 🔌
So I will likely channel my anger by cancelling my Disney+ subscription after it ends… that ‘ll hurt ‘m!
Anyway, I’d like to express my thanks to the folks who maintained this site over the years. It was an unmissable resource for me and especially the calendars that kept me on track with all the quests were great.
Has anyone located where Arnie Pye can be found, I haven’t seem him in the taps so far. He is on my must have list
In the Vault, but the content changes to show 4 items each week so you’ll need to keep checking until that cycles back up
https://tstoaddicts.com/2017/06/02/inside-the-vault/
There’s a pattern to it too … see this image –
https://tstoaddicts.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/vaultList.png
Thank you!
I don’t feel anger, and I don’t blame EA. This was no surprise either. Earlier this year, they laid off a lot of staff and cut a lot of licensing deals because they were so expensive to maintain. Right now, I’m really grateful to EA for all of the old content released each week.
Never went to the “Anger” phase. Maybe because I expected it, maybe because “Anger” is a useless emotion, like “Worry”.
☯️✨️ctually no human emotions are useless… pent up or avoidance in direct reaction / reconciliation is anti-mental health & will only reflect itself in negative outcomes✨️☯️
I think we should be grateful we’ve got 3 months left and access to pretty much whatever we want to complete our towns. It could have been so much worse.
I used to open the app as soon as I got up, especially if we were in the middle of an event. Sad to say now my signing in is kind of lackluster. It’s kind of like, Oh I’d better check the game. I’ve played the game since the very beginning, and if it was a matter of money I’d gladly pay. Kind of cruel that all of a sudden EA gave us all of the land tiles, just in time to shut the game down. Same thing with the box tokens when there’s no longer a box to choose from. I’ll have to find another fun game to replace one I’ve loved for 12 years. Anyone have any suggestions?
Cruel? How dare they take away “my precious “ “our precious”…it’s MINE.!! it’s OURS..how dare they…they’re evil…they don’t care at all about us. Why do they hurt us like this?
The game has shifted now from a quick 5 minute catch-up every 4 hours to an evening event of resource creation and world building. Much more relaxed.
Shame it has to end.
AMEN brother! am I allowed to say Amen?
You are
Anger at EA for being money hunger leaches. They rather pour money in th Sims then improving on Springfield. For 12 year the tapped out has been there for me in long lines at concert, movies or any time I had to wait for something. Like an old friend would do. The Sims is a game about life and the choices you make. I do that every day in my real life, choice ether good or bad I have live with that. Tapped was watching an episode of Simpsons. Hear the voices of long lost characters, reminded me of happier time, when life was not LIfe. I understand EA bottom line, it is all about what profitable. For most of lifers of tapped, who had more money and doughnut than what we knew to do with it was not turning a profit. By the sheer force of the fan base the game last 12 years. If I was at EA I would have look at. A fan base so strong it has it own sister site of helping, information walk through and many other thing to help new and old player for tapped out. Omg that is free tech help! That loyalty! I can almost assure no other game has such a ride or die fanbase. But what Ea dose not know it hurt them. I myself and my family will not support EA any longer. Yes it matter nothing to a moster like Ea, it just principles of it. That is my anger!
Ah! The awful progress of capitalism!
The funniest line was …and of course I’m paraphrasing here…but thankfully the game was there for you when you had nothing to do…or were standing in line for something better….like an old friend would do..lol. I’m glad I’m not an old friend of yours…there for when you have “to wait in line for something “…I’ll be a little dramatic here, but…”OH! THE HUMANITY!
Damn….where’s my old friends?…I’m in line for a movie and am bored! I’m starting to hope this is a simulation….Hit RESET…please…Hit RESET as soon as possible….the humans are starting to regress at an alarming rate!
Do you know something we don’t about the reason for the game ending? What makes you think it’s because EA is “money hungry”? I was under the impression that the leading theory is that it’s a licensing issue. But, but all means, punish EA for not keeping a 12 year old game alive indefinitely, possibly for readings beyond their control…
While I don’t know for sure, and they won’t ever tell us, a couple of things I’ve picked up on over the years –
The game was a surprise financial success, making more than expected.
In 2005 they took out a 20 year license, so that would’ve been due for renewal about now.
That may mean money was at least partly a factor, with them considering the cost of renewal along with what they could do to continue to support and update the game, and perhaps they didn’t feel they could make it work for another decade or two.
I think it’s as simple as Chaucer saying..”all good things must come to an end”.
Exactly. I guess I get denial, depression, bargaining, and acceptance (as well as, of course, disappointment), but not anger when it comes to this. I mean, they gave us four months to wrap things up with, essentially, unlimited IGC and donuts and just about, if not all, of the previous items being made available. I think that’s way more than most games give when they end, although I don’t have a ton of experience with that, so I could be mistaken. But different people handle disappointment differently, so I guess everyone has to be allowed to vent how they need to, even if it’s not “reasonable.” (Oth, I forgot that today, myself, when I responded to one comment that I should have just let go by….I was just feeling grumpy at that moment.)
Life’s circumstances often cause even the most pleasant, personable people, to have moments of “grumpiness”.
I’ve never been a gamer my entire life, so I don’t know how a game “ending” affects people. Back in the the day, …that phrase shows my age, ..eh Safi?I enjoyed watching friends game..from Bump and Jump Arcade at Zayres..in the 80s, through Mario, until about…Doom or Silent Hill?…that was about it for me. Although
When I was in my late teens, a local bar let kids in until around 9pm. That was when they still had cigarette machines where you’d put your change in and pull the lever, and the soft pack would fall…..oh I miss you ciggy…you still call to me every day! I’m sorry. Now where was I ?.. being allowed to hang out at the bar at 16 availed me to become proficient at both foosball and pool, allowing me to earn a little money playing the more inebriated. Now…this is Northern Maine..this bar had 2 pool tables, a foosball table….yes…even a jukebox where you could actually put a dime in and hear the great Joan Jett…along with the J Giles Band, Styx, even Kenny Rogers with Dolly Parton. They also had 2 pinball machines which I fell in love with. One was Terminator …which was the new crazy led technology…lol…and the other was a Vintage “Mousin’ Around” pinball. Terminator?…eh..loved the movies..1, 2…but this Mousin Around game hooked me. I’m sure I spent hundreds of dollars in quarters on that game. Loved it…I can still here the cat say….”So..you wanna Mouse Around?” Ah…the good ole’ days…before the internet, cell phones, and all the other crap that’s ruined this great Nation….who remembers “Hands Across America”? Or…”We Are The World”….?
One other “arcade game” i loved was Gauntlet…with the 4 controllers…what a fun game that was. The funny story with that game was that my friends and I had only 2 Summers to play. That was when the carnival came to town…no joke..the carnival. With the sketchy rides, and the sketchier people running them. The disgusting food vendors back then, and the people that ran the crooked games, that would constantly spew derogatory comments. The mobile “arcade” at that time consisted of maybe 50-75 games…punch out, techmo bowl, that hockey like foosball game, galaga, space invaders, pac-man, centipede,…etc. what my friends and I especially loved was the dart game where you could win those 6×6 inch..or so…mirrors. They had the logos of our bands back then…Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Motley Crew, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin!…all the greats! It was only about 2 years until I learned that the people we looked up to then considered those, “coke mirrors”….
Now….why did I start this message? I hope it caused a few people out there to reminisce and remember when things were……um better?…Friendlier?….Easier?….etc….
( fixed the typo on your name, unless you wanted to post as Mije ?!! )
I saw that, Graham, just as the comment was posting….I was …”ah f it”..if you didn’t post the comment, no big deal…I was mostly posting it just to pretend to talk with someone…lol…really though. But thanks Graham for posting my opines….they’ll be long forgotten soon..such as life.
I do have a story..both beautiful and true…and upsetting and sad. Yes..it is all these things….
The truth is…I began a new job..it was In retail. One of the many I have tried…you know.. man of the people….
Hired as an assistant manager..at a small retail store…in a town amongst many..in a large county…you guessed it…the Graat Northern Maine.
Being from small towns like these…we tend to encounter previous classmates…teachers, friends of friends….people we passed a J to at one of the many, “pit” parties during summer months. Well.. when I began this new job…I was the assistant manager to my older brothers fellow graduate. He was a senior when I was a sophomore. Keep in mind…these were graduating classes of 75-100. Unfortunately…these numbers are presently at 25-30. Anywho….my new manager was a familiar face, but not an acquaintance…although I had purchased Mary Jane from her then boyfriend…while in high school.
Now…things get complicated and wonderful and scary and sad…all the typical adjectives used in these situations.
Approx…25 years later…This familiar face…a beautiful blond, slightly crooked nose, the friendliest person…was my new Manager. We talked about the past and how we all knew each other a little because of the small town. She and her husband of 17 years had remained in the town after graduation and had settled into a life of routine. However….it didn’t take too long for manager and assistant to become very friendly and spend all day at work together, breakfast, lunch, dinner….closing the store..together. Her husband..the same guy that I used to sorta know because of the herb…was a truck driver…and was gone all the time. No joke…not kidding….a soap opera erupted…in every detail they normally contain…including the worst.
I’ll skip the details, but approximately 16 months later, her eldest daughter had graduated high school, her younger daughter was a sophomore. It was a few weeks before Christmas when a few hours after I brought my manager, now best friend, lover, soulmate to her Mothers…after seeing a movie….almost midnight…phone rings….”Mike”…I replied…”Hi Babe…everything ok?”….of course they were not….it was easy to tell by the yelling/crying I heard in the background. “He did it Mike…he’s gone…he hung himself”! I choked…I couldn’t think straight, it was just awful.
A couple months passed and we continued our romance, but neither of us had much will anymore. My guilt was/is unbearable at times. Her 2 daughters have hopefully forgiven her…I don’t deserve their forgiveness….but I do pray the Higher Powers forgiveness every day.
Have a good night everyone.
Yikes, Mike! Sad all around. But his decision to do that was not your fault…I hope you know that.
😠 😡 👿 😤 🤬 😾 😠 lots of anger about