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Is the #harpof death still around?

By TSTO Tips
March 25, 2013 //
40

Yes, unfortunately. While the number of harp fix requests has slowed to a trickle, there are still a few every day, which means the harp risk hasn’t completely gone away. Although the level 27 update seems to have fixed the problem for most players, some haven’t been quite so lucky.

You can minimize the risk by not overloading your game as you reach a bonus level. Tap, collect, pause – that kind of thing. And logging in on an iPhone 5 with the autolock off and waiting out the harp is still a fix that works.

And if you do get into difficulty, please let me know and I’ll see what I can do.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Frozen game, Harp sound, Level 27

A #harpofdeath FAQ

By TSTO Tips
March 20, 2013 //
50

I’ve had a number of requests to gather all the harp of death information in one place, so here goes:

1. What’s the harp of death?
It’s a glitch that stops level 26 players from continuing their game. It’s caused by a problem with the bonus levels, which were launched with the Valentine’s day update. If you’re on a lower level, you won’t be affected for now.

2. What causes the harp of death?
There are a number of theories – but it seems to occur when you are doing a lot of building and collecting at the same time as hitting a bonus level. There’s also a suggestion that it’s more likely to occur if you are lucky (or unlucky) enough to win 3 donuts. While I’ve seen a lot of 3-donut wins in the course of the harp fixes I’ve been doing, I’ve also seen 1 and 2 donut wins, so I’m really not sure about this one.

3. How do you fix the harp of death on an Apple device?
The most reliable way to do this is with an iPhone 5 or the latest model iPad. Turn off the auto-lock and plug it in. Then log in as normal. It should take about 15-20 minutes to break the harp. You’ll need to tap the bonus level game at least 3 or 4 times to be sure that the harp is broken, then close the app. Log in again and everything should be fine.

4. Can other Apple devices break the harp?
Older devices find it difficult, although there’s a suggestion that an iPhone 4S can. I haven’t tried using a 4S, so can’t vouch for whether it works or not, but you can read about one person’s experience here. I haven’t seen any reports of anyone breaking the harp on an iPod.

5. Can you get the harp on an Android device?
Yes you can – and I’m sorry, without Origin, I don’t know of any way to break it.

6. Can I get the harp more than once?
Yes, you can. You’re at risk every time you hit a bonus level, which is why you should slow down and tap-collect-pause on individual items when you’re getting close. And if you’re close, avoid constructing buildings that give you lots of XP until you’re safely past the bonus game.

7. Are there different kinds of harps?
Yes, there are. The first time you get it, it’s usually a single strum and quite easy to break. The second and third time, you get a double or triple strum and breaking it is much harder and takes longer – 40-60 minutes on an iPhone 5. It also behaves differently when you break it – the bonus level flashes briefly making you think you’re back into the game. It then goes straight to the Bart screen. The trick then is to “Try again” three or four times and look for the game to synchronize. If it does, close the app completely in the multi-task bar, then open it up and log in. You should be able to play. Keep half an eye on your device, though – if you leave the Bart screen up too long, you’ll need to start all over again.

8. Does the harp ever go away on its own?
It seems that way – this has been reported by a number of people since early February.

9. Will level 27 fix the harp?
Hopefully, EA will solve the problem soon, but level 27 will at least defer the problem. Based on what happened at the level 26 release, players experiencing the harp at the time level 27 is released (whenever that is) should be able to get into the game.

10. What are EA doing about it?
They are working on it, although they’re giving very little information on what they’re doing. There’s clearly some server work a couple of times a week – I know this from the way that harp fixes suddenly get very, very easy at certain times. However, everything they’ve done so far only helps some people who already have the harp (although not those with the most serious kind). It doesn’t seem to stop people from harping out after the server fix has been done – and there are still people in my queue who are experiencing the harp despite the update. A permanent solution has been promised since late February, although we’re all still waiting for it.

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Categories Bonus level, Bugs and glitches, Donuts, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Server issues

The #harpofdeath – an update from EA!

By TSTO Tips
March 16, 2013 //
217

This just came in from Frank, a regular reader of this blog:

I thought maybe your readers would find this interesting I just got the email today.

Greetings Frank,

Thank you for contacting Electronic Arts.

First of all, I sincerely apologize for the delay in response.

I understand that you are experiencing issues loading The Simpsons: Tapped Out application and realize that you’re very upset about this. Our engineers are aware of the issue where-in our customers may get stuck on the loading screen with the Valentine harp music playing endlessly. Please be informed that we are currently investigating these issues and are doing our best to resolve them as soon as possible.

In the meantime, try to update your client as this is most likely going to resolve the issue. To update The Simpsons: Tapped Out, Tap the App Store icon on your device and then tap the “Updates” tab on the bottom bar. Find The Simpsons Tapped Out in that list and click on the “Update” button.

If the issue persists, please wait for the next couple of days as the upcoming fix should permanently resolve this issue, once released. I assure you that once we are ready with a fix, we will not have issues like these bothering our game play experience.

We appreciate your patience and cooperation. Please be assured that your concern is our priority.

Sincerely,
Prabhat
Electronic Arts – World Wide Customer Experience

So as you can tell, my guess is that by Monday, hopefully, there will be a fix along with the new content they plan to add. Thanks Frank

Thanks for sharing this, Frank. We know that updating the app doesn’t work, though. Let’s hope there actually is a permanent fix on Monday, once the St. Patrick’s Day event is over, rather than the temporary patches we’ve seen for the last 6 weeks or so.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound

Slow right down as you’re about to hit the bonus levels to reduce the risk of the harp!

By TSTO Tips
March 14, 2013 //
170

This morning I had my own attack of the harp of death – for the very first time despite hitting the bonus levels countless times since they were released at the end of January. Apparently, I haven’t built up quite enough karma to avoid them completely – but at least I’ve built up enough to make the harp only a brief interruption to my game.

One thing I noticed was this – I was doing rather a lot. I was cleaning graffiti, collecting rent, and collecting from characters at exactly the time the bonus level hit. And it all seemed to be too much for my game (despite getting only I bonus donut!). Instant harp.

Maybe there’s something in it and maybe there’s not – but my advice to anyone approaching a bonus level would be to slow right down and make sure you’re only doing one thing at a time. It may reduce your chances of attracting the harp of death.

P.S. I didn’t score any of those bonus donuts for getting back in, either – not even one!

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Frozen game, Harp sound

Is there any way for anonymous players to fix the #harpofdeath?

By TSTO Tips
March 13, 2013 //
69

Unfortunately, it seems that the harp is still around despite EA’s recent after the recent server fix. there are certainly fixes available for Apple players (just search this site for “harp of death” or use the tag on the bottom of this post to see what I’ve written about it), with the iPhone 5 fix giving the most reliable results.

But the fixes only work if you have an Origin account – if you’ve been playing anonymously, what do you do? I’d thought that there was no way for anonymous players to get past the harp. That is, until this comment came in today from Pat:

“I am writing you about the harp of death for players without an Origin account. As far as I can see, you always replied that there is nothing you can do without login details to help these folks. Well, I suffered the harp of death last Sunday while hitting level 26 and the bonus level… I was playing anonymously and tried to start the game and de-harp it itself as you suggested on my iPad2 – nothing happened.

“But I had an idea: why not create an Origin account and see if my data is stored somewhere? As soon as my Origin account was set, I logged out and logged back in. A box popped up asking me whether the existing Springfield on level 26 on my device was and mine! Hell, yes! I could even visit it, but without the possibility of playing.

“Anyway, there was an option to save my existing Springfield into my Origin account. It took a couple of tries (the game crashed in between), but after a while it was saved. Immediately, I took my iPhone 5, installed the TSTO app, logged in and ta-da: a question popped up asking me if the Springfield level 26 town on my other device was mine and if I wanted to continue! Yes, of course and after a while (approx. 20 min. later), I was back in the game on my iPhone.”

So, for people who’ve been playing anonymously, creating an Origin account will rescue your game and allow you to try one of the other fixes that have been suggested here. At least that’s some good news! Now we just need a way for Android players to resolve the problem – or, even better, a permanent fix.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Frozen game, Harp sound, Origin

Is the #harpofdeath finally dead?

By TSTO Tips
March 12, 2013 //
190

If you have had the harp of death and are waiting in the fix queue (or suffering in silence), could you please log on to your game and tell me what happens. It seems that EA have had another go at fixing the harp. I’d like to know whether or not they’ve been successful.

Keeping my fingers crossed for (mostly) good news …

Update: Lots of positive reports coming in through Twitter. And I managed to get through 20 people in the harp fix queue in just 40 minutes! Things are looking positive – but fingers still firmly crossed though…

Further update: Well, not everyone’s harp was fixed. After going through 30 fix requests very quickly, I’ve just struck my first real harp. It was in one of the requests that came through in the hour after the fix was deployed on the EA servers (about 2am CST in the US). A request came in shortly after that also needed the standard fix. So, unfortunately, the harp is still out there for some players – which means it’s still a risk, although a reduced one, for those hitting the bonus levels.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound

Will level 27 fix the #harpofdeath?

By TSTO Tips
March 12, 2013 //
24

Going by the number of requests I’m still getting for help and the angry posts on the official Facebook page, EA Answers, and the various forums, there are lots of people still suffering from the harp of death. The good news is that level 27, when it’s released, should get you back into the game.

The harp first appeared when the bonus levels were released with the Valentine’s Day update. It strikes some players when they hit the bonus level for the first time (there’s a suggestion that it hits those who have been “lucky” enough to win 3 donuts on the first go, but there’s no way to know for sure). But when level 26 was released and the XP bar turned blue again for those at the highest level, the harp disappeared – temporarily at least – reappearing for some when they hit the bonus levels again. Others reported no further problems.

So if you’re suffering from the harp, you will almost certainly be able to access your game again when level 27 is released (see here for some thoughts on just when that might be). It might even be that it cures the harp for you, although there are no guarantees of that without a fix from EA (and there’s no news of one yet).

In the meantime, if you have access to an iPhone 5, it’s quite easy to fix in most cases (plug in, turn off auto lock, log in, and let the harp play out for 15-20 minutes). I can still help, but the queue gets extremely long at times. Also, the time available for me to do this is quite limited on weekdays, so you’ll need to be very patient.

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Categories Bonus level, Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound

A possible iPhone 4S harp fix…

By TSTO Tips
March 8, 2013 //
337

This just came in from Matt as a possible harp fix using the iPhone 4S:

“Plug your phone in to your computer and open your iTunes account. Wait for your updates to finish and then open the tapped out app on your phone. Mine worked right away. It took a few tries for my buddy but it worked for him too.”

So this may be in addition to the iPhone 5 fix (leave the autolock off, log in, and let the harp play out for 15-20 minutes.

If you have a 4S, give it a try and let us know here if it works for you. It’s certainly worth a try.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Frozen game, Harp sound

Have EA finally (almost) fixed the #harpofdeath?

By TSTO Tips
March 6, 2013 //
416

Something strange happened at around midnight Central time in the US – the harp fixes I’ve been doing suddenly got much, much easier. And we’re talking easier by a substantial amount – the requests that had been sitting in my box for the last 12 hours or so were each resolved in less than a minute.

Perhaps that’s why there’s no game update yet – EA is working on improving the play experience and removing the bugs and glitches that have been plaguing the game for the last month or so. And if the price of a banishing the harp forever, and getting rid of the other glitches as well, is a delayed update, it’s a price I’m most happy to pay.

While I know that the harp doesn’t seem to have completely disappeared for everyone (there are still 2 fixes I’m working on that are proving to be very stubborn), it seems to have gone away today for lots of people. If that’s happened for you, let us all know through the comments below. And if you’re still having difficulties, please get in touch.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Server issues

The #harpofdeath continues…

By TSTO Tips
March 6, 2013 //
44

Without an update, we still have the harp of death – and that means that only those with access to an iPhone 5 or an iPad 3 or 4 can fix it easily. For both devices, you need to plug in your device, turn off auto-lock, log in and let the harp play out. It takes about 15 minutes on an iPhone 5 and about 20 minutes on an iPad 3. It can be done in an iPhone 4S, apparently, but it takes several hours.

A couple of important points – it may not be a permanent fix and it may happen again the next time you hit the bonus levels. And the second time is harder to fix – it may take several tries and, rather than entering the game, you may get the server error page. It’s important to tap on “try again” rather than closing the game, or you’ll have to start the whole process again.

If you’ve come here looking for help, please be patient. I’ll respond as soon as I’ve fixed it – and I’ll let you know if it’s one of those rare cases where there’s nothing I can do. On many occasions, the queue has been very long. Please remember to ask nicely, too. I’m not an EA employee, and some of the messages I’ve received telling me that I’m not fast enough releasing a permanent fix and what I can do as a result have really missed the point.

Fingers crossed, though, that an update is on the way that kills the harp once and for all.

P.S.: Most of the harp fix requests I’m getting seem even easier to solve than yesterday. There are 2 tough ones sitting in the box right now, though, so if you haven’t heard from me, yours is probably one of them. Leave a comment if you want to check.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Crashing, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Update

A bit more on the #harpofdeath…

By TSTO Tips
February 28, 2013 //
89

Friday, 22 February was the last time we heard anything from EA on the harp of death (apart from the “there’s nothing we can tell you yet” tweets from @AskEASupport). Since then, several in-game updates were rolled out between Sunday and Tuesday – far more than we would usually see in a similar period. And while the harp seems to have disappeared for some, it remains a problem for others – and for still others, it’s made an unwelcome return at the next bonus level.

We know that you can fix the harp on an iPhone 5, an iPad 3, and some models of the iPad Mini and the iPhone 4S. If you want to know how to do that, see here. The best and safest way for you to do this is to find a friend with an iPhone 5. The next best way is to visit an Apple store and “test drive” the new iPhone (a number of people have reported doing this). As a last resort, I can help – although be patient because there will be a wait.

So, why has there been nothing from EA? I think there are a couple of a reasons for this. The first is that I suspect that the game is designed in EA’s studios in Korea, where much of the Simpsons TV series animation is done, which inevitably means working across time zones and communicating across cultures. Both of these factors can make things move very slowly.

The other reason is that EA shows signs of a company still trying to come to terms with the shift from console games played by kids and gamers (who are well used to bugs, glitches and patches) to games played by everyone everywhere on a variety of different devices and platforms. If you consider that, they’ve done very well in producing a game that works for most people most of the time, even if their customer service approach needs a lot more work. As someone who’s made a career, in part, out of training and consulting in customer and client service, I can understand to a degree, the difficulties they face.

Let’s hope that a permanent fix comes soon and that everyone is able to continue to enjoy what’s really a great game.

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Categories Apple, Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Update

An update was just released!

By TSTO Tips
February 26, 2013 //
85

Has EA finally released the complete harp of death fix? A large update was just released a few moments ago and nothing else seems to have changed in the game (apart from removing Gil).

Those of you still having the problem should go on and take a look. And please let us know if anything has changed for you.

Update: To everyone posting that the update has crashed their device – yes, it’s crashed my iPhone 5 game as well. It went through fine on the iPad, but on my iPhone it crashes and forces a close. So far, deleting the app, shutting down the phone and re-downloading hasn’t worked. I’ll keep you updated on this.

Further Update: In after about 10 re-downloads of the game! Not the smoothest of updates – I had to delete the game and shut down my phone for a few minutes each time before downloading the game again.

Note: If you’re playing anonymously, deleting the game app will delete the data. If you have an Origin account, though, you can do this as many times as you need to without running the risk of losing your game. Here’s fingers crossed that Android players never experience this kind of problem!

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Update

The #harpofdeath fix on the iPhone 5 – it works!

By TSTO Tips
February 24, 2013 //
272

So, it seems that it does work – so far, more than 20 people are back in the game by waiting out the harp on an iPhone 5. For those with access to an iPhone 5, you can do this yourself (keep it plugged in with the auto lock off – it seems to take about 15 minutes). I’ll help if I can, but there’s a backlog of a couple of hours!

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Frozen game, Harp sound

One more #harpofdeath option…

By TSTO Tips
February 24, 2013 //
80

I’ve spent a bit of time over the past week looking for harp of death solutions for readers of this blog who are still having the problem. I’d like to offer a last resort ahead of a possible EA fix next week based on what I’ve been reading.

It seems that many of the people who have broken the harp have done so with an iPad 3s or an iPhone 5. So, if you don’t have access to a newer model, borrow someone else’s. And if you don’t have anyone to borrow from, I’d like to offer my help.

If you feel comfortable giving me your origin login and password, I can sign in on my iPhone 5 and try to break it for you. Don’t post it here though, follow me on Twitter send it to me as a pm there – @TSTOTips. Happy to try and get you back in the game – I’ll try to get to as many as I can.

P.S. – let me know through Twitter or through here that you’ve sent me a direct message so I don’t miss it. There’s quite a lot of people in the queue, though.

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Categories Error messages, Frozen game, Harp sound

What causes the #harp of death?

By TSTO Tips
February 23, 2013 //
28

I mentioned this is an earlier post, but given the misunderstanding in the Facebook page (still in a very angry meltdown) and on the official forums, I thought it would be worth a post if it’s own.

It’s not related to whether you have iOs 6.1 or 6.2 and building the Wiggum House or El Chemistri are not the cause. Filling up your level 26 XP bar and hitting the bonus level seems to be the trigger – and this was clearly the case for people who experienced the problem before level 26 was released. Of course, it seems to often be the case that the XP from El Chemistri takes people over the top and into harp hell. But the harp sound seems to come from your game repeatedly hitting the bonus level and not able to get any further.

This problem doesn’t affect everyone, though. I was able to pass through on an iPad 2 with no problems (although some friends of mine weren’t so lucky).

There is a fix that has helped some people and rewarded them with donuts that you can find here. EA have also finally acknowledged the problem and you can see what they’re saying here.

Gil is due to leave at the end of the weekend, which means there is likely to be another update by then. Let’s hope the harp and Gil leave at the same time.

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Categories Apple, Bonus level, Bugs and glitches, EA, El Chemistri, Frozen game, Harp sound, Update, Wiggum House, XP

More on the #harpofdeath

By TSTO Tips
February 23, 2013 //
10

To everyone still suffering through the harp of death, there’s very little more to say today. Still no update and no fix (for the people who haven’t been able to get the fix suggested here to work for them).

Through Twitter, @AskEASupport only has this to say:

@AskEASupport: We are still waiting on word from the #TSTO Studio. When we have more info, we’ll update everyone with the information. Thanks.^EX

One step in the right direction, though, is that there is finally recognition of the problem on the EA Answers site, here, where a sticky was posted today addressing the issue. While it says very little more than we already know, it’s the first time that the problem has been officially addressed on EA’s problem-solving site. Here it is:

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So, no solution yet – just more recognition from EA that a problem exists. And, hopefully that means a solution really is on the way.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound

What’s the latest on the harp of death?

By TSTO Tips
February 22, 2013 //
17

Finally, in the last few hours there’s been some public acknowledgement from EA through Twitter on the so-called “harp of death” – in fact, they even used the term! (For those who don’t know, this a bug affecting the ability of many players, mostly at level 26, to access the game.)

This came from @AskEASupport in the last few hours:

@AskEASupport: Attention Springfield citizens! The #TSTO team are aware/investigating a resolution for ‘harpofdeath’ issue. Thanks for your patience.

Now all we need is an actual fix!

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound

Yet another harp of death update!

By TSTO Tips
February 21, 2013 //
21

Today really should be known as Harp of Death Day. The official Facebook page is in meltdown and complaints are pouring in on Twitter. But today, for the first time, we’ve seen some kind of response from people at EA and from Origin.

First, there was Kristian Segerstrale, who has spent the day apologizing for this on Twitter as I wrote here. Lots of credit to him as he heads up EA Digital, rather than EA Mobile (so please don’t tweet him anymore about this as he seems to be on top of it).

Now there’s finally a response on Twitter through @OriginInsider. In answer to a harp of death question, they have this to say:

@OriginInsider: This is being investigated and the Simpsons Tapped Out team is working as quickly as possible to resolve it.

So, while there’s no fix for those still locked out of their games, at least there’s some hope. And finally, some kind of acknowledgement that there’s a problem for many loyal, Tapped-out loving players.

P.S. For those of you who haven’t experienced the problem, “the harp of death” refers to when the game freezes just before opening up, leaving the donut spinning and a harp/chime sound playing continuously. The problem only appears on iOs devices.

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Categories Apple, Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound, Origin

The game just updated – was that the harp fix?

By TSTO Tips
February 21, 2013 //
9

Sorry to say that it wasn’t.

It could be an update to unlock Gil again (it was, as it turns out!) or to prepare for the end of the Valentine’s Day event. There’s also been a glitch with XP points and bonus percentages generally, as well as with certain buildings, so it may have fixed his. However, the harp seems to remain for people with that problem.

By the way, the harp of death seems to relate to leveling up and hitting the bonus level, rather than building the Wiggum House or El Chemistri.

P.S.: As you can see right above, the update gave us the Heart Grinder.

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Categories Bonus level, Bugs and glitches, EA, El Chemistri, Frozen game, Harp sound, Update, Wiggum House, XP, XP bar glitch

The Harp of Death update – #helpisontheway!

By TSTO Tips
February 21, 2013 //
9

Yesterday, I and a few others tweeted Kristian Segerstrale, EA’s EVP of Digital – one of the only EA twitter users we could track down – to alert him to the harp of death issue. As you may know, while some users have found a solution, others remain resolutely locked out of the game they love.

His response came quickly and here it is:

” …got it. The team is working hard on fixing the issue – stand by – apologies!”

Even though mobile games are not within his area of responsibility, he was on to it right away. So, while there’s no ETA for a fix, at least someone at EA is aware. And it’s Kristian Segerstrale, who is a bit of a deity in this space. Google him – you’ll see why.

I’ll give you an update as soon as I hear anything.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, EA, Frozen game, Harp sound
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