The Sims 1 + The Sims 2 Rereleases: Official Release Notes

The Sims 1 Rerelease Questions

What comes with The Sims Legacy Edition?

The Sims: Legacy Collection includes The Sims, The Sims 4: Throwback Fit Kit, and the following The Sims packs:

• The Sims: Livin’ Large
• The Sims: House Party
• The Sims: Hot Date
• The Sims: Vacation
• The Sims: Unleashed
• The Sims: Superstar
• The Sims: Makin’ Magic.

What’s different about the relaunched version of The Sims?

The Sims was re-released to celebrate 25 years of the franchise. This relaunched version of the first game in the franchise is updated to run on modern computers and operating systems.

The gameplay and graphics are the same, but there are some important updates:

• it can now run on Windows 10 and Windows 11
• it has an updated rendering engine
• updates for more versatile pixel resolution scaling on large monitors.

How to scale pixels for The Sims 1

The Sims 1 will still run at its original resolution, but will now scale pixels to make better use of larger monitors while preserving the look and layout of the game.

1. Press the Alt + Enter keys to cycle through available scale options.
2. Continuing to press Alt + Enter will scale to the next optimal level before eventually starting back at the beginning.
3. Stop once you find the scale that works best for your monitor.
   • At its largest possible smooth scaling size, the game window will black out the parts of the monitor that might be distracting.

Will old The Sims 1 save files work with this version?

Yes, any old save files you still have for The Sims 1 will work with the current version. The save paths for The Sims 1 have changed so you’ll need to copy your save files into the new location.

First, remove current saved files:

1. Go to My Documents.
2. Open the Electronic Arts folder.
3. Click on The Sims folder (this is your save folder) and select Cut.
4. Paste this folder to a different location and rename it so you know it’s your alternate save file.

To import your old save file:

1. Rename your old save file folder The Sims.
2. Go to My Documents.
3. Open the Electronic Arts folder.
4. Copy The Sims folder into the Electronic Arts folder.

Will Mods still work with The Sims 1?

Mods capability for The Sims 1 remains the same. Maxis hasn’t tested Mods, and doesn’t support Mods. It’ll be up to individual Mod creators to ensure Mods work with the new version of The Sims 1.

For more info on Mods and The Sims, check out our Policy on Mods.

Minimum PC requirements for The Sims 1 Rerelease (Legacy Edition)

• Operating system: Windows 10
• Processor (CPU): CPU: i3 3220, Ryzen 3 1200, AMD FX6300
• Memory (RAM): 4GB
• Hard drive (free space): 16GB available space
• Graphics card (video):
  • GPU: NVIDIA: GTX 600 series or later or
  • AMD: Radeon HD 7000 series or later
  • Intel HD Graphics 620 series or later

The Sims 2 Rerelease (Legacy Edition)

What comes with The Sims 2: Legacy Edition?

The Sims 2: Legacy Collection includes The Sims 2 Base Game, The Sims 4: Grunge Revival Kit, and the following The Sims 2 packs:

• The Sims 2: University
• The Sims 2: Nightlife
• The Sims 2: Open for Business
• The Sims 2: Pets
• The Sims 2: Bon Voyage
• The Sims 2: Seasons
• The Sims 2: FreeTime
• The Sims 2: Apartment Life
• The Sims 2: Holiday Party Pack
• The Sims 2: Family Fun Stuff
• The Sims 2: Glamour Life Stuff
• The Sims 2: Happy Holiday Stuff
• The Sims 2: Celebration! Stuff
• The Sims 2: H&M Fashion Stuff
• The Sims 2: Teen Style Stuff
• The Sims 2: Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff
• The Sims 2: Mansion & Garden Stuff.

What’s different about the relaunched version of The Sims 2?

The Sims 2 was re-released to celebrate 25 years of The Sims. This version of The Sims 2 has the same gameplay, but has been updated to run on modern computers and operating systems:

• it can now run on Windows 10 and Windows 11
• it has an updated rendering engine
• it has a more versatile pixel resolution scaling on large monitors
• some legacy and community-reported bugs are fixed.

Will old The Sims 2 save files work with this version?

Yes, any old save files you still have for The Sims 2 will work with this current version. The save paths for The Sims 2 have changed so you’ll need to copy your save files into the new location.

First, remove current saved files:

1. Go to My Documents.
2. Open the Electronic Arts folder.
3. Choose The Sims 2 folder (this is your save folder) and select Cut.
4. Paste this folder to a different location and rename it so you know it’s your alternate save file.

To import your old save file:

1. Rename your old save file folder The Sims 2.
2. Go to My Documents.
3. Open the Electronic Arts folder.
4. Copy The Sims 2 folder into the Electronic Arts folder.

Will Mods still work with The Sims 2?

Mods capabilities for The Sims 2 remain the same. Maxis hasn’t tested Mods, and doesn’t support Mods. It’ll be up to individual Mod creators to ensure Mods work with the new version of The Sims 2.

For more info on Mods and The Sims, check out our Policy on Mods.

Minimum PC requirements for The Sims 2 Rerelease (Legacy Edition)

• Operating system: Windows 10
• Processor (CPU): i3 3220, Ryzen 3 1200, AMD FX6300
• Memory (RAM): 4GB
• Hard drive (free space): 16GB available space
• Graphics card (video):
  • GPU: NVIDIA: GTX 600 series or later or
  • AMD: Radeon HD 7000 series or later
  • Intel HD Graphics 620 series or later

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Official The Sims 1 Release Notes

We hope you’re in the mood to travel back to the year 2000 with us to celebrate the launch of The Sims! To celebrate with you, we’ve brought The Sims and all packs up to date to make it work more easily with Windows 10 and 11! Revisit your favorite packs or finally play that one you haven’t tried yet.

This release does a lot under the hood to make this 25 year-old game work on your new computer. We thought we’d also make it easier to see all those classic pixels on your monitor! To scale the game to make better use of the screen space available, try using the Alt + Enter key combination to cycle through the different scaling options. 

The bulk of the work was to make the first The Sims game compatible with Windows 10/11 from the moment you install it. There are things that you’ll immediately see:

• Game now supports the aspect ratio your monitor is set to (not restricted to 4:3)
  • Different aspect ratios, such as 16:9, gives a wider view of the game
• Crisper rendering and visual fidelity from changing how the game scales textures
• Fixed several crashes
• Improvements and fixes

When The Sims launches it will automatically use the aspect ratio of the main monitor. Unfortunately you can’t change the aspect ratio directly, but you can direct The Sims to launch on a second monitor with a different aspect ratio by using the -monitor:[num] command (“0” is the default monitor).

We hope you’ll enjoy returning to The Sims’ neighborhoods, Vacation Island, Downtown, Studio Town & Magic Town to spend time with all the classic Sims and Sims families as much as we did. Enjoy encountering Bella, Bonehilda, Chip, Miss Crumplebottom and the rest.

Dag dag!

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Official The Sims 2 Release Notes 

Sul Sul Simmers!

Put down that grilled cheese sandwich and get ready for a trip down memory lane to 2004 with us! We’ve revived The Sims 2 and most of its packs (IKEA Home Stuff excluded) to work easily with Windows 10 and 11! Please note that modern licensing restrictions have required the removal of 1 pack and some of the original songs, but we have included as many as possible.

We thought we’d also make it easier to see all those classic pixels on your monitor! To scale the game to make better use of the screen space available, try using the Alt + Enter key combination to enter and leave full-screen mode. Enjoy that glorious widescreen The Sims 2 view!

There are a few more updates as well to look out for:

• GraphicsRules.sgr now supports modern hardware configurations
• Fixed a shadow bug that surrounded Sims with a big black square
• Wide screen and higher game resolutions are now supported
• UI scales better to higher resolutions
• Texture memory corruption and “pink soup” are fixed
• Dragging The Sims 2 window from one monitor to another works more smoothly
• If your computer has a lot of RAM, The Sims 2 is able to use it
• Fixed several crashes
• Improvements and fixes

We hope you’ll enjoy returning to the Belladonna Cove, Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills, Pleasant View, Strangetown, & Veronaville! Spend time with all the classic Sims and Sim families. The Goths, Greenmans, Smiths, Monty/Capps and more are ready to come back to your screen from 21 years ago.

Dag dag!

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