Being a good neighbor

sellhigh378 wrote:
Very well thought out post, I agree with allot of what you say. So many issues with the stabilty of the game we all should take the time to think about how we tap.

Thanks. There is a real challenge in having a town that isn't too detailed or big, but is nice to look at. Being held back by the game's stability is a challenge in itself. I can see why some people drop it, especially if they never come to a forum.

jrush2point0 wrote:

3) Tap the slow cycle buildings before you click the fast ones. Tapping resets the timer for generating money, so resetting the Penitentiary is more helpful than tapping the Simpson house. Everybody has different play styles, so it can be hard to figure out what to tap.

...indeed, as I disagree on this point. Sometimes it's nicer to be a bit more unobtrusive in someone else's town. For example, I built a house complex of four white houses which is (unfortunately) right in the center as I'm expanding and the center is changing. Being level 25+ I'm really not in need of virtual money. But I have to admit, it makes me slightly nervous if someone tapped on one or three of these four houses and they now have a difference of six hours. Just think of the defective Detective Mr. Monk and you'll know what I mean...

Also, I guess it can be quite a spoiler if a lower level player is looking forward to tap the first time on a new building or Christmas tree or whatever...

Don't get me wrong: there are really worse things in life and it's wonderful to have friends, but I guess tapping on the Simpsons house or the brown ones can also say: hey, I've been here, thanks for being a neighbor but I don't want to disturb your gaming experience. Like in Japan, the first thing you say when entering someone else's house is "forgive my intrusion".

otherwise nice list,
cheers for sharing
m.

MichiSimpson wrote:
...indeed, as I disagree on this point. Sometimes it's nicer to be a bit more unobtrusive in someone else's town. For example, I built a house complex of four white houses which is (unfortunately) right in the center as I'm expanding and the center is changing. Being level 25+ I'm really not in need of virtual money. But I have to admit, it makes me slightly nervous if someone tapped on one or three of these four houses and they now have a difference of six hours. Just think of the defective Detective Mr. Monk and you'll know what I mean...

Also, I guess it can be quite a spoiler if a lower level player is looking forward to tap the first time on a new building or Christmas tree or whatever...

Don't get me wrong: there are really worse things in life and it's wonderful to have friends, but I guess tapping on the Simpsons house or the brown ones can also say: hey, I've been here, thanks for being a neighbor but I don't want to disturb your gaming experience. Like in Japan, the first thing you say when entering someone else's house is "forgive my intrusion".

otherwise nice list,
cheers for sharing
m.

I can definitely see how out of sync buildings can be disturbing. What you are describing makes my OCD twitch just a tiny bit. Seeing a block of the same house pop at once is a nice feeling.

But that is a really good point. Tapping fast cyclers does make sense if you just want to say, "Hi" as unobtrusively as possible. I would get a tiny bit irritated sometimes when the Simpson or Flanders homes were tapped instead of something that was personally useful to me, but I can say that I won't think that way in the future.

This ties into my personal preference for tapping buildings that cycle somewhere between every 4 to 8 hours, in hope that it will cause the least disruption to what I assume is the average player, while also giving the highest monetary boost.

There really is no such thing as a wasted tap (outside of tapping Kwik E Mart during the Holiday special).

I'm at 25, too, and the income while completing a quest string associated with a new building flat out really makes money a non-issue.

During the holidays, I found my Springfield to be ridiculously stable, but visiting friends was not.

These days, my Springfield is causing me grief - started right after the last update - but visiting friends is far more stable.

Still, because of the threat of a crash, I tend to tap some of the first few buildings I see when visiting friends. If there's a building like Moe's or the school that I can find within a second or two of scanning a town, I will definitely spray it or clean it. But if I have to go hunting for those buildings, then I will simply tap on the first three choices I see. I will opt for a higher price building or home if I can (white house over brown), but again, it all depends on where it is and what's available. In other words, I try to spend as little time as I can in each town when I'm collecting money, coins, treats, etc.

If your game opens to 4 connected white houses and you don't want people tapping 3 of them, then it may be up to you to change the location of those homes, not ask friends not to tap. I love when friends have 2 or 3 spray paint buildings when I open their town. I have one available right away (may rearrange in the future).

doctoru2 wrote:
I love when friends have 2 or 3 spray paint buildings when I open their town. I have one available right away (may rearrange in the future).

Exactly what I did when I redesigned, the onus is on me partially to make it easy on my neighbors.

jrush2point0 wrote:

2) Vandalize anything you can. When a player cleans up vandalism, it boosts their base multiplier. I don't know if cleaning up somebody else's town helps them as much as letting them do it for themselves. Some players consider tagging a building to be their only way of telling somebody that they have a nice town, so make of it what you will.

If you clean up vandalism in your neighbor's town it removes it completely from their town. If you want to be a good neighbor, you will leave the mops for the neighbor to clean up themself.

I think its flawed big time in that you have to pick and choose who you add based on how they affect your game that's not how it should work I agree with you completely OP about wanting to have nice neighbors but its a silly thing when you have to be worried about crashing in a Friends town. Then again I like to complain a lot about crashing lol My biggest pet peeve about this game is the crashing, if you didn't expect players to get that much items and cash to the point where its crashing for a good majority of the players then your alpha and beta testing was flawed and obviously didn't go far enough into the game and I'm just ranting a bit forgive me :P

jrush2point0 wrote:
I think it all starts with your own town. Having a town that doesn't crash your game (not too big or too crowded with decorations and houses) makes it easier to visit without crashing. Having a nice looking town is something I consider important, but not vital. If I see a well designed town, I appreciate it. I think, "Here is a person that is enjoying the game, and isn't just grinding." The nicer the town, the longer I look, and I don't just pop in and tap the first houses I find.

I agree. I love admiring a well designed town. And that was a great post! I'm learning everyday!

Outstanding post, and well written!

Tapping spoiled crops is indeed a nice save, though probably doesn't come up too often for "serious" players.

I agree that, based on comments from several other threads, many (possibly most) advanced players would prefer that you tap short-clock houses like Simpsons, Flanders, or brown so as not to disrupt their collection schedule.

But really, if you want to be a good neighbor, first priority should always be vandalizing, since those properties don't generate any income otherwise. Plus, cleaning up your vandalized properties is one of the few ways to increase your righteousness. Of course, if you'd like visitors to vandalize you (or tap on some other particular building), the best bet is to make it easy for them by setting up your Springfield accordingly. Some posters have reported success in spelling out messages or arrows with shrubs or other decor. ...And don't be disappointed if some of your visitors just tap whatever they want, in spite of your best-laid plans -- every player does his or her own thing, which is part of the charm of the game.

Last, I remain skeptical of most theories about what does or doesn't cause instability or crashing (in this case, rapid-fire popping in and out of a friend's Springfield). Every time someone posts an opinion about what makes their Springfield crash, it seems like a couple of other people respond that they don't have a problem with it (owning all the land, having a lot of fences, etc.). I will say that my own Springfield has been more stable the last few days, so maybe the post-Christmas decrease in visiting has helped. Until EA tells us something or fixes the issues, we're all really just making educated (or in some cases uneducated) guesses.