Many thanks for the feedback everyone, it has been very interesting reading other folks' viewpoints and experiences. Of course there was so much more that I could have said, but I would have had sore fingers by the time I was done, so I had to pick and choose what I saw as the most pressing issues.
As someone rightly pointed out, Origin is an unpleasant problem, and one which has irked me greatly (it is good to discover that I am not alone in this). I too resent having to install it as part of a patch, just to be able to continue fixing my game in the future. No wonder the install figures are so high, because it has essentially been forced on unwilling gamers in order that their games can be bug-fixed.
@DeathQuaker - You make many good points about the expansions and the rabbit holes and I quite agree. I much preferred the expansions in Sims 2, with University and Open For Business representing my favourites. As such, Sims 3: Ambitions felt like a watered down version of OFB, and with no Uni in sight, I'm more than disillusioned with Sims 3's EP roster.
@Lightspeaker - you are quite right... so many great games and, indeed, studios, have sadly been damaged, from C&C and the pending Sim City, back to Bullfrog and the now long gone Westwood Studios. As much as I lust after a sequel to Mirror's Edge, I am also afraid to see what it would end up like. With the recent news that C&C Generals 2 has now been morphed into an online game, my hope has faded immensely for the titles I'm still interested in.
As someone rightly pointed out, Origin is an unpleasant problem, and one which has irked me greatly (it is good to discover that I am not alone in this). I too resent having to install it as part of a patch, just to be able to continue fixing my game in the future. No wonder the install figures are so high, because it has essentially been forced on unwilling gamers in order that their games can be bug-fixed.
@DeathQuaker - You make many good points about the expansions and the rabbit holes and I quite agree. I much preferred the expansions in Sims 2, with University and Open For Business representing my favourites. As such, Sims 3: Ambitions felt like a watered down version of OFB, and with no Uni in sight, I'm more than disillusioned with Sims 3's EP roster.
@Lightspeaker - you are quite right... so many great games and, indeed, studios, have sadly been damaged, from C&C and the pending Sim City, back to Bullfrog and the now long gone Westwood Studios. As much as I lust after a sequel to Mirror's Edge, I am also afraid to see what it would end up like. With the recent news that C&C Generals 2 has now been morphed into an online game, my hope has faded immensely for the titles I'm still interested in.