Inactive played sims now skill up when used as NPCs

I've always seen Sims with skills already at a certain level (although 10 might be a bit extreme) even though I was not playing them. If they are working out in the Gym and playing chess, why should they not skill up ? Did Graham also confirm this as a bug ?

The other has it's own thread.

Have you always seen it with your played but inactive sims? Not unplayed sims that you decide to play for the first time? I have a 20 household rotation with 1500 hours in it and before the May 4th patch, the only skills that were ever affected when not playing them was they would get Mischief level 1 from using mean introductions when used by the game as NPCs. If they got any other skill while I was rotated away, it would be in a skill I previously had, and the change would be so small that I wouldn't notice it.

Graham has not confirmed this as a bug. The gurus tell us to report bugs here and not on the Sims forum, and that is what I am doing.

As to why they shouldn't skill up? Because that is "making significant modifications to them during the time when you aren't directly controlling them". If my active sims choose to "work out together" or play chess with an inactive sim, then the action is at least initiated by me, but I have no control over the game using my sims as NPCs to fill venues and do push ups around the neighbourhood. And until the last patch, they didn't skill up from being used like that.

I never had sims skill up in fishing before, which they can do around the neighbourhoods that I have played since the start. They never gained fitness skill either (but the hours spent working out would update in the aspirations list previously as well, so they could have 8 hours spent but 0 fitness skill) although some seem to live at the gym. The children could have gotten motor skill all along, and it just didn't affect me until I started playing households in neighbourhoods with a public jungle gym. But pretty sure I moved into those neighbourhoods quite some time before May 4th.

I know I had NPCs sims (unplayed) with very high athletics but I don't know if they are just given random skill on creation or if they actually skill up.

Guess it's the stuff you don't like that you notice. I would love to have full StoryProgression so I always liked NPCs having skills already but as said, never paid attention if it increases over time or is just there from the beginning.

This isn't a bug.  Sometimes you don't notice the NPC Sims in the community lot or in the open areas around the active lot.

But the OP is saying that they should not skill up even if they do play chess or whatever as that is a significant change to the active family.

According to them, it only started happening after that May 2015 patch.

I don't know what the intention is but I understand where the OP is coming from.

Can you see if you can get an answer from a SimGuru on this issue?

I've already asked about this - unsuccessfully so far.

I do agree with you that it's likely working as intended. I've checked my own game since posting this and yes, they gain skill but it makes sense that they do just as it makes sense that they gain romantic relationships when they flirt with other Sims on community lots - even that is not appreciated by the player. 

I haven't added this to the list and OP has also not come back so I don't really know how important that is. There's also no me toos so, I would just consider this abandoned as I do with all threads where the OP doesn't come back and no one else has reported the issue. 

There so many active issues, why pursue something that one person had didn't come back about ?

It is working like this in my game and I thought it was working as intended that is why I would like you to verify.  My Sims that are on community lots playing chess or fishing do gain skills when I am playing another household.  If they prevent played Sims from gaining skills when they are NPCs but they still do, it is an issue.

Yes, mine do too but there's nothing I can do if I don't get an answer. 

Sims also gain romantic relationships when you're not playing them and that can be explained in a similar way (flirty Sims on community lots). I do believe that's how it works as I don't believe they actively prevent it. A modder might know more though. 

I don't know if it has always been that way or if it got changed along the way.

If you have a twitter account, you can try asking them yourself. I do have channels to forward stuff but those are mostly one way streets. I get most answers through twitter myself.