Archives for category: Scratch cards

The Scratch-R keeps crashing my game!

By TSTO Tips
May 13, 2013 //
40

I really wanted to write a “How many snakes” post today but, honestly, after last week’s extension “incident”, I can’t really bring myself to do another one. All I can suggest as an alternative is to look at the distance between where you are now and your target, divide it by 3, and try to collect that number of snakes every day. Who knows exactly when the event will actually end? – it may be some time on Thursday, it may be on Friday, or it may be sometime around the next Olympics. But it’s best to be prepared.

Instead, here’s something from Keithemill on a problem that I’ve been hearing about a bit – the Scratch-R at the Kwik-E-Mart apparently crashing the app. My apologies to Keith for hanging on to this so long (in my defence, it’s been a busy 7 days). Here’s what he has to say (and note that he’s talking about the Scratch-R here, not the Golden Scratch-R):

Is anyone else having a problem when tapping on the Kwik-E-Mart? When I tap on the Scratch-R, it gives me a box titled “The Store” and it says “Retrieving item…” for several seconds (maybe even nearly a minute). Then it says (also in a box called “The Store”), “D’oh! A connection problem occurred. The requested action failed.” If I tap on “OK”, I get the usual “Kwik-E-Mart” box. But when I tap on the “250″ to purchase a regular “Scratch-R”, the app crashes. Sometimes I’ve gotten the Scratch-R to appear, but mostly it just crashes out to the home screen.

[But, I've] found a way to get my Scratch-R and not have it crash on me. When… [you] see the usual “Kwik-E-Mart” dialog box (with the option to buy the Golden Scratch-R, the regular Scratch-R and the timer for “Marking up Prices”). I don’t tap to buy the Scratch-R yet. Instead, I tap on the left (back) arrow at the top left of the dialog box to exit back to my Springfield. Then tap again on the Kwik-E-Mart and get the “Retrieving items…” message, followed by the “…The requested action failed.”

This time when I tap on “OK”, the Kwik-E-Mart dialog box comes up but without the option of purchasing the Golden Scratch-R. Then, I can click on the “250″ to purchase the regular Scratch-R and it doesn’t crash. Again… if you have this glitch, only click to buy the regular Scratch-R if you don’t see the option of buying a Golden Scratch-R.

I hope this helps people with this problem and thanks Keithemill.

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Categories Bugs and glitches, Crashing, Kwik-E-Mart, Scratch cards, Scratch-R

Repost: Which is better – buying a Golden Scratch-R or buying donuts?

By TSTO Tips
May 5, 2013 //
25

While we’re on the subject of Golden Scratch-R’s, here’s a repost of something from a couple of months ago on when it’s better to buy a Golden Scratch-R and when it’s better to bulk-buy donuts:

When you buy a Golden Scratch-R at the Kwikimart, you win donuts every time. But is it better than buying donuts at the donut store? Well, here’s what Lais has to say (the currency used here is Euros, but it applies for other currencies as well):
You buy the cheapest set of donuts, 12 donuts, you pay €1,79, and that’s double the amount of donuts that you get with the worst result on the Golden Scratch-R, and double the price of it too. So if you can’t afford to buy a truckload of donuts but just need another dozen to reach the amount of donuts you need for that premium building you’re saving to buy, it might make sense to try the Golden Scratch-R and maybe you’ll get some extra donuts for the same price!

And Jayson had this to say (using $US):
I’ve calculated the Golden Scratch-R “Worth” using this site’s info –
http://simpsonswiki.net/wiki/User:Phinbart/Tapped_Out_progress -
to determine scratcher odds. I found the average donut output on the scratcher is 13.57 (or 13.7 per $1). This is slightly better than the $9.99 donut buy (13.2 donuts/$) but not nearly as good as the $19.99 donut buy (15donuts/$).

Here’s a comment from Renosis:
Well, I bought a Golden Scratch-r and won 20 donuts. Could have been better, could have been worse. Looking at the break-out of donut prices, it never makes sense to purchase the dozen donuts for $1.99 (not that it was EVER a good deal). As, for $0.99 you can get a Golden Scratch-R and you are guaranteed at least 6 donuts. So if you are itching to spend $1.99, get two Golden Scratch-R’s instead, as the worst that can happen is you will get 12 donuts but more likely you will get between 12 and 200 donuts.

And finally, one from janibach:
Here’s something from Until today I had never spent any real money on this game but today I bought five golden tickets – my way of paying for the months of fun I have already had with it. My prizes were as follows: Ticket 1: 50 donuts; Ticket 2: 12 donuts; Ticket 3: 100 donuts; Ticket 4: 6 donuts & Ticket 5: 12 donuts. Total # of donuts: 180. Total cost to me: $4.95. Now I have Frink’s lab and the TV satellite.

So, even if you don’t have the occasional bigger win, each time you buy a Golden Scratch-R, you’re doing just as well, and even slightly better, than buying a dozen donuts through the donut store. And you’re making Apu very happy.

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Categories Donuts, EA, Gameplay, Golden Scratch-R, Kwik-E-Mart, Scratch cards

Is it possible to buy a Golden Scratch-R by accident?

By TSTO Tips
March 20, 2013 //
16

The Golden Scratch-R above the Kwik-E-Mart has been my favorite recent addition to the game – and that’s because, as a donut-buyer, it often gives me a bit more of a “bang for my buck”. Unless you’re buying donuts in large quantities, you often get more donuts through the US$0.99 Golden Scratch-r than you would through the donut store for the same amount of money. But, especially if you’re playing on a smaller device, it can be very easy to tap on the Golden Scratch-R when you really meant to tap on the regular Scratch-R game. Does this mean you’re at risk of spending your money accidentally?

Thankfully, the answer is no – and that’s because it’s not an instant purchase. in fact, the first thing you see when you tap on the Golden Scratch-R is this message:

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I’ve covered what happens if you decide to go ahead with the purchase in a post a couple of weeks back, which you can find here. But what happens if you decide to tap “cancel”? In that case, this is the message you see:

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Well, you may have made Maggie cry, but at least you didn’t accidentally spend your real-world cash. It’s a small price to pay.

Update: As Lucy pointed out in the comments section, you do need to be be very careful once you’ve made your first purchase, though. The Golden Scratch-R stays there until you choose the regular Scratch-R, encouraging you to try again – and a second purchase immediately after the first will be instant.

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Categories Donuts, Golden Scratch-R, Kwikimart, Scratch cards, Scratch-R

How do you buy a Golden Scratch-R?

By TSTO Tips
March 3, 2013 //
3

A few people have commented that the Golden Scratch-R was a smart move by EA as it has tempted them into making their first ever in-game purchase. And it seems to have generated a lot of interest, going by the search terms hitting my blog. So, here are the steps you go through in buying one, including something that surprised me (but probably shouldn’t have).

My apologies upfront to Android players – this post primarily goes through the Apple device process. If anyone would like to add a comment highlighting and similarities or differences for Android users, that would be great!

A Golden Scratch-R costs $US0.99 (or the rough equivalent in your local currency – e.g. £0.69 in the UK, $HK8.00). For that investment you get one chance and one chance only to win donuts – and if you want a second go, you have to pay again. This means that it operates just like a scratch card in the real world. The payment comes from whichever payment method you’ve attached to your iTunes or Google Play account or any account credit you have. Every ticket wins you something, though, and the least you’ll go away with is 6 donuts.

As soon as you hit the blue bar indicating that you want to buy a card, this message comes up:

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But you have a second chance to think about it, because for Apple devices, the following message comes up from iTunes (and I’m assuming a similar message comes up through Google Play):

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Apple players then need to enter their iTunes password for the purchase to go through. Once that’s done, this is what you see:

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And then the game tells you exactly the same thing:

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Now, you’re ready to play, and the game tells you this by taking you straight to the Golden Scratch-R screen (which means you can’t change your mind at this stage and use your purchase for anything but the Golden Scratch-R game).

Now, here’s the bit that surprised me but probably shouldn’t have. Unlike the regular Scratch-R, once you’ve played, the Itchy and Scratchy logo doesn’t seem to go away. It stays until you have decided that you’ve bought enough Golden Scratch-R tickets and buy a regular Scratch-R instead.

For increasing in-game transactions, that’s definitely a smart move, EA.

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Categories Donuts, EA, Golden Scratch-R, Google Play, iTunes, Scratch cards

You win 60 donuts at the Golden Scratch-R. Who or what do you buy?

By TSTO Tips
March 2, 2013 //
14

So, here’s this weekend’s poll and it has a Golden Scratch-R theme. Imagine that you win a prize of 60 donuts (despite what the standard scratch card game says, I know that’s not one of the listed prizes – I’m using that number, though, for the purposes of this poll). So, you now have 60 donuts burning a hole in your pocket – what do you do with them?

In this poll, I’m not giving you the option to save them up (sorry about that). And that’s because I’ve had a lot of questions from people who want to know the best way to spend a limited number of donuts – and particularly which of the cheaper premium characters they should buy. It’s also interesting to see which of the 30-60 donut characters everyone thinks adds the most value to their game.

If you already have all the characters, you can either vote as if you have none of them or choose the decoration-buying option. It’s your choice.

So, take a moment to vote and let’s see what everyone thinks. If you want to give the rationale for your vote, please feel free to make a comment.

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Categories Bumblebee Man, Donuts, Golden Scratch-R, Kearney, Moleman, Premium characters, Premium decorations, Scratch cards, Squeaky Voice Teen

Are the scratch cards trying to make me gamble now?

By TSTO Tips
March 2, 2013 //
14

Yes, they are. And they’re not being very subtle about it. The Kwikimart’s Golden Scratch-R, launched with the Gorgeous Grampa update, is now your top scratch card choice. It’s carefully positioned so your finger hovers right above it (especially on smaller devices) when you tap on Itchy and Scratchy. At least you have a couple of chances to change your mind if you tap it by accident, though.

But the biggest encouragement to gamble your real world money away actually lies in the original Scratch-R game. Now, when you collect, you see what you would have won if you’d chosen the Golden Scratch-R, as you can see here:

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So, don’t let yourself be tempted – only play the Golden Scratch-R if that’s what you really want to do. And if you’re a parent, make sure your kids aren’t spending your hard-earned cash on virtual gambling.

I really would have liked those donuts, though…

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Categories Donuts, Golden Scratch-R, Kwikimart, Scratch cards

What’s the Golden Scratch-R?

By TSTO Tips
March 1, 2013 //
19

The latest update kept the Scratch cards at the Kwikimart, but introduced a new twist – the Golden Scratch-R. But beware – this game costs you real world cash.

The Golden Scratch-R gives you the chance to win donuts. But, it’s your real world money that pays for it, not game dollars. Clicking on the Golden Scratch-R is a micro-transaction in the same way that a donut transaction is (and luckily you get a chance or two to change your mind). And if you decide to go ahead, this is what you see:

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Scratch away and you stand the chance to win big – or win just a little. A bit disappointingly, I won just a little:

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And your regular scratch game now tells you that you the donut equivalent you could have won with a Golden Scratch!

Remember, though, it’s a gamble – and like real world scratch cards, it’s a gamble with real world cash.

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Categories Cash, Donuts, Gameplay, Golden Scratch-R, Kwikimart, Scratch cards, Update

If I build more than one Kwikimart do I get more chances at the scratch cards?

By TSTO Tips
February 6, 2013 //
2

This is one of those times when the answer you would like to hear is going to be different from the one you would like to get.

And that answer is, regretfully, “no”. You only get one chance at he scratch cards every 6 hours, no matter how many Kwikimarts you have.

While having more than one Kwikimart is a good idea if you want your consumerism rating to hit 5 stars, and Itchy and Scratchy initially appear over all of them, as soon as you’ve played the scratch game at one if your Kwikimarts, they disappear from them all.

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Categories Kwikimart, Scratch cards, Update, Valentine's Day

How does the Valentine’s Day event work? (Updated)

By TSTO Tips
February 4, 2013 //
1

To make it easy for people on mobile devices to find the posts so far on the Valentine’s Day event, I’ve linked them all here:

Getting the update – http://tstotips.com/2013/01/31/i-opened-my-game-but-there-was-no-valentines-update/

What’s in the update – http://tstotips.com/2013/01/31/whats-in-the-valelentines-day-update/

Getting the buildings – http://tstotips.com/2013/01/31/can-i-get-any-of-those-valentines-buildings-before-the-quest-comes-up/

Collecting hearts from friends – http://tstotips.com/2013/01/31/how-does-collecting-hearts-from-friends-work/

Why your friends sometimes have no hearts – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/01/i-visited-a-friends-springfield-but-there-no-valentine-cards-only-dollar-signs/

What to do about those disappearing “Be Mine” cards – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/03/is-there-any-way-to-get-those-disappearing-cards-i-see-when-i-go-to-a-friends-town/

Why you don’t get a heart for every “Be Mine” card you click in a friends’ town – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/01/how-come-i-dont-get-a-heart-every-time-i-click-on-a-valentine-card/

Getting Valentines from friends – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/02/how-do-i-get-valentines-from-friends/

How to be a good neighbor during the Valentine’s event – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/04/how-can-i-be-a-good-neighbor-during-the-valentines-event/

A walkthrough of the main Valentine’s Day quest – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/03/what-happens-in-the-main-valentines-day-quest/

What’s in the Mystery Love Boxes – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/01/whats-in-the-mystery-love-boxes/

The Kwikimart scratch cards – http://tstotips.com/2013/01/31/how-do-i-scratch-the-cards-from-the-kwikimart/

Who Shauna is and some reasons to buy her – http://tstotips.com/2013/02/03/who-is-shauna-and-should-i-spent-90-donuts-on-her/

There is one more Valentine’s post to come on the Chasing Shauna quest, so keep checking back.

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Categories Characters, Decorations, Friends, Hearts, Limited time, Mystery Love Box, Quests, Scratch cards, Themes, Update, Valentine's Day, Valentines, Walkthrough

My game crashes when I try to scratch the Kwikimart cards!

By TSTO Tips
February 1, 2013 //
1

A couple of people have reported this. Try deleting the app and downloading the update again. It may be that an unstable connection on your initial download has resulted in some of your update files becoming corrupted.

Make sure that you have a stable connection when you do this – high speed broadband wifi is best as 3G/4G can tend to drop in and out. A good test is to see how fast a web page loads in Safari. If it’s consistently really fast, then it should be okay.

You can find some other solutions for crashing at: http://tstotips.com/2013/01/30/my-game-constantly-crashes-after-a-few-minutes-of-play-what-can-i-do/

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Categories Crashing, Kwikimart, Scratch cards, Updates, Valentine's Day

How do I scratch the cards from the Kwikimart?

By TSTO Tips
January 31, 2013 //
9

It’s very simple. You just rub your finger over each section until the image appears. You know you’ve scratched enough when the image flashes. Then, you automatically collect your prize.

The scratch cards appear every 6 hours and cost 250 game dollars. You’re guaranteed to make a profit very time.

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Categories Gameplay, Kwikimart, Scratch cards, Themes, Updates, Valentine's Day, Valentines