The Simpsons Tapped out - Events Overview and Analysis
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The Simpsons Tapped Out - Events Overview and Analysis Players such as myself have faithfully enjoyed The Simpsons Tapped Out (TSTO) for several years now. The developers have continued to expand the game and provide updates in response to player feedback. This has been evident in tools such as the IRS Building tap radius, the Introduction Unemployment Office Job Manager and the Cut & Paste feature, all of which are greatly appreciated by players and have extended the playability of TSTO for many of us who would have otherwise found the game too tedius to continue once their Springfields grew so large. More recently, reactive efforts by the designers were positively reflected in the 2017 Winter Event. As evident from the forums, many dedicated and heavily-invested players have grown tired with some of TSTO's stale mechanics and gameplay, as well as the proliferation of uninspired content, much of which has little to no place in Springfield, if even the world of "The Simpsons." This Problem player attitude is often displayed in the later stages of major Events as players begin to sense monotony due to a lack in changes throughout an Event, resulting in a feeling that one is merely grinding through the game to stock up on largely unwanted Items. Content-driven major Events geared toward "The Simpsons" version of Springfield with changes of pace and the addition of new Effects, Solution enabling a variety of looks to our Springfields, injecting a new degree of both familiarity and customization for players. The proposed Events, along with the gameplay changes, are steeped in canonical content rather than original content. With all the creative, and fantastical, additions to TSTO there has long been some neglect toward the many trying to recreate a version of Springfield as a a real- world town, one more like the show they love, i.e. Anytown, USA. The game encourages design creativity and the proposed Effects, features, gameplay and Items help enable players to create these Springfields--a robust, dynamic and seemingly livable town--adding new dimensions Reason and creativity to the game, drawing them closer to their own Springfields, therein increasing investment of emotion, time and money. I believe the lasting value of many of these additions and augmentations have been underestimated by the developers, perhaps because some of it may, at first, seem superficially mundane. Further, TSTO is in need of some gameplay changes and a fresh perspective to the game. The proposed Effects outlined in the Events help satisfy this need without sacrificing appreciated elements. Although it is clear that many players like myself would prefer crafting be abandoned in favor of in-game Money purchases, the Events are consistent with established TSTO format, including the use of three (3) Acts with a common identity. However, to ease the feeling of monotony at the root of player complaints regarding the length of such Events, I implemented slight shifts in each of the Acts without losing sight of the central theme of an Event. (This is identifiable in the frequent changing of tappable Characters.) New and returning Items are carefully selected to contribute to the themes with footnotes, i.e. origins. A basic storyline is provided but as my imagination lay more in the structural, analytical and logical than the creative realm I leave the details of the story, triggers, quests and dialog to more artistic minds. The content is designed to flow in a manner that fits the themes while drawing on the Springfield we all know. Although several Events are high in new Building façades, particularly for the holidays, as well as Costumes, largely as I believe they have been underutilized in the past, the total volume of content is fairly consistent with recent Events--see Appendix I. (By taking advantage of façades, there is more to draw upon without exhausting canon.) Further, keeping with TSTO's pattern, there is a mixture of some frequently requested Items, less desired Items and simply Events complementary Items. Tappables are strategically selected from Characters unlikely to enter TSTO as playable, entirely sourced from episodes-- primarily cameos--and would be quality additions as non-playable Characters (NPC) following the Events. (As has been done in the past, i.e. Santa's Little Helper, if so desired in the future, developers can always convert NPCs to playable Characters.) Effort was made to distribute Prizes evenly by type, i.e. one (1) of each of the following: a playable Character, Costume, NPC, Building and Decoration. Reference images and full sets of Jobs have been provided for the new playable Characters and Costumes, along with an image and Job for most new Buildings and several Decorations. Where appropriate, Jobs are based on actual occurrences in "The Simpsons." The first trilogy of major Events are proposed under the over-arching storyline I entitled "Three Cheers for Springfield"--"Springfield City," "The Night Cometh" and "Red, White & Blue Dawn"--wherein there is an emphasis on rebuilding Springfield as we have come to know it. The second trilogy is more lighthearted and features the seasonal changes, which I entitled simply "Changing of the Seasons"--"Summer Break," "Yesteryears" and "The Krampus Corruption." The six (6) Events are built to work in succession, constituting a hypothetical year, i.e. 2019--see Appendix II. Three Cheers for Springfield, Chapter I: Springfield City Concept Making Springfield more like Springfield: Civic and cultural investment, improvement and involvement Although clearly a town, Springfield has grown larger over the years, like a bustling city. Our own Springfields should have the opportunity to Basis & Purpose reflect this. Emphasis City-building New Effect(s) Item enhancements: Moving on-road Vehicles, use of sidewalks, placement of watercraft on River and optional size alteration of select Items Recognizing that something is a bit off in Springfield--a hangover from the town explosion perhaps--the Event triggers with players given Sanitation Commissioner Homer [8], who begins to take over and put Springfield into action, an effort to make things right, as he sees it. Professor Frink joins in with the announcement of his latest invention, the Debigulator, which permits players to 'right-size' Items by altering scale of certain classes and Items, should they choose, and enabling 'Debigulated' on-road Vehicles placed on Roads to move. Here, I entitled the Event "Springfield City," which begins with Act I: The Public Works, where Sanitation Workers [8] arrive and civic improvements are made. Story & Content Best intentions, however, only expose the town's underbelly as, in Act II: The Mean Streets of Springfield, Homer strikes a deals with Fat Tony as rival Mobsters [52], seeing recent investments as nothing more than criminal opportunity, have become empowered. Nonetheless, the town holds strong and sends them back into the shadows. With the seedy side of Springfield dispatched, the story concludes with the alternative to crime in Act III: A Noble Spirit Embiggens, where Homer is removed from his position with a triumph of higher culture and education, symbolized by the presence of Grad Students [65]. The Event is heavily loaded with Vehicles to help players take advantage of the new moving on-road Vehicle Effect. By use of the Debigulator, Characters and a limited class of Vehicles can, by player option, be down-sized to common Building scale. [31] Certain Items that are vastly undersized can be independently upsized. [32, 47] Additionally, certain Items, i.e. lamps, streetlights and signs, can now be placed on sidewalks and certain Vehicles, i.e. cars, trucks, vans, can be placed on Roads. When placed on Roads, subject on-road Vehicles--not Gameplay Mechanics decorative Vehicles like Perfect Beer Truck, Truckasaurus, Collector's Car, etc.--move like Street Cleaner, including the use of opaque windows, but stop at stop signs/lights, if placed on sidewalks. New Buses also stop at bus shelters/stops placed on sidewalks. Character animations that manifest Vehicles now operate on Roads rather than sidewalks. Items that can be placed in Ocean can now be placed on River. 2 Three Cheers for Springfield, Chapter I: Springfield City Title Act I: The Public Works Act II: The Mean Streets of Springfield Act III: A Noble Spirit Embiggens Theme Civic Engagement Crime & Punishment Knowledge Is Power Prize Track Crafting Prize Track Crafting Prize Track Crafting Currency Safety Vests Citations Handcuffs Citations Diplomas Citations Tappables Sanitation Workers [8, 71] Mobsters [71, 52] Grad Students [65, 71] New Returning New Returning New Returning Mary Bailey [1] Ray Patterson Fernando Vidal [72] Yakuza Boss J. Loren Pryor [5] University Nerds Playable Characters Judge Constance Crusher & Lowblow [2] Don Vittorio* Dean Peterson* [6] Leopold* (PC) Harm* [3] Meathook [70] Hollis Hurlbut* Sanitation Commissioner Homer Fireman Homer El Barto [10] Armin Tamzarian [14] [8] Costumes Sideshow Bob Fireman Apu Officer Simpson* [11] Homie the Clown [13] Roberts* [9] Fireman Skinner Rory B. Bellows* [12] Fireman Moe Phony McRing-Ring Non-Playable Street Cleaner Agent Malone [18] Grindhouse Assassin Sir Oinks-a-lot [6] Characters (NPC) [76] Crying Indian [8] Linguo [66] Springfield Municipal Rancho Relaxo Springfield Mystery One Night Stan's [54] Bail Bonds [73] Fort Sensible Building [20] (w/Vittorio) Spot [29] 3 Three Cheers for Springfield, Chapter I: Springfield City Springfield Springfield Fire First Bank of Springfield Box Factory Springfield Historical Walnut St. Hotel [10] Laundromat [22] Department Springfield [28] Society (w/Hurlbut) Krusty Clown College Enriched Learning Gentrified Buildings Republican Party The Sea Cap'n's Bait 'n' Burns State Prison (w/Homie the Clown) Center [21] Headquarters Baro'n B'n [12] [13] (w/Leopold) Jewish Walk of Fame Office Buildings [21] Seedy Buildings [21] Chinese Restaurant Tar Pits [77] Springfield Hall of Records [9] Olde Springfield Towne 123 Fake St [24] Buildings (w/Sideshow Bob [30] (inc.