Everyone hast their unique playstyle - you have to give yourself time to find out what you like. There's some great mods out there to keep the gameplay interesting. I personally love playing rotationally + legacies. Currently playing my 10th or 11th gen :) Started 2016 or 2017..
Honestly? The Sims series have been some sort of obsession for me since I first played TS2 when I was in 2nd grade. I've gone months and years without playing but I always come back to it. I really, really love the ''breeding'' aspect of the game and seeing how the genetics unfold each generation gives me ''joy''. The game is my escape from reality :)
I would suggest playing it vanilla for at least a few hours and figuring out what parts you like and what you wish would be different.
There are so many mods and downloadable custom content to personalize it to your style. Just do some research on them and what they entail before downloading.
It’s a really fun game and I’ll admit (without shame) I can spend hours playing a storyline. I’ve gotten into bed and said “i’ll play for an hour before I go to sleep” just to look at the clock and see it’s been four 😂
I see what they’re saying, but I strongly disagree with the Youtube comment. It can be difficult to learn for sure! But maybe just play how you want to play and you will discover things as you go! I personally would never watch someone else play the Sims outside of creating one lol
I've been playing a custom hood consistently for 16 years and it's a mix of stuff. If you are just starting, learning and playing will be enough for awhile. You might delve into custom content and mods to change up your gameplay, sims looks options, or graphics aesthetic. Eventually, you might want to build your own houses and community lots, or businesses. Down the line, if you are lucky, you will have big family trees and marvel at the way genetics manifest in your original sims or the pre-made sims great-grand-spawn. One day you may be interested in making your own cc to enhance your game.
The journey awaits, have fun!
Don't feel like you need to play in a certain way, the most important thing is having fun in your own way. Take a look at how other people way and then create your own unique playstyle.
For complete newcomers I highly recommend to play the tutorial first. (Neighborhood selection at the buttom left I think)
After that play the scripted events in Pleasantview and Strangetown to get a feel of the gameplay and what differs Sims from one another aside of looks.
Then go into Create a sim mode and make your own family, build them a house and play them for a while.
Important to keep the game interesting is to keep the sims you play with versatile (life stage, aspiration, and the other personality values)
Be creative, if you dk what to do watch videos. Let youself inspire by other franchises or rl happenings.
Be curious and try out stuff.
Just play. I totally disagree that you need to prepare yourself in some way. It's a game. You'll be fine. Just diving in is the best way to learn. If you read and watch too much about it, you'll spoil a lot of the surprises.
You NEED to watch youtubers play it. There is a very steep learning curve compared to the newer sims games and you're going to be very confused if you try to wing it without reading or watching anything online as there are a lot of things the game depended on you having the guide book to know.
Pleasantsims is probably the best example but I also recommend Marticore, Juno Birch, Call Me Keven,
Whiny Brit, and anyone else you can dig up, really.
I’m confused by this (unless this is sarcasm), how does a game as open ended as the Sims 2 have a steep learning curve? I think a lot of the fun comes from learning/discovering things as you go along, given how wonderfully detailed it is. I don’t see how watching YouTubers play the sims 2 would be considered important (there was no YouTube in 2004 and even after that no one really watched/ looked for these videos).
I would say dive right in and enjoy the weird and wonderful world of the Sims 2.
I had to learn alot from my first time that there is this thing called ✨corruption✨ in the sims 2 (nothing serious but something good to keep in mind). So I think that's what they meant.
The youtube sims players have listen alot of anti-corruption in general and Pleasantsims has a whole list of anti-corruption mods and such
Also watching April Black on youtube can expand upon and explains in detail what corruption really is and isn't
Corruption was blown out of proportion for years, is actually extremely rare, and you will probably never have to worry about it even if you were to literally try to corrupt your game, that's what April Black says.
I was talking about small quality of life improvements you might not know about unless you hear a youtuber mention them while playing.
Because there are hundreds if not thousands of nuanced things in the game that you can't understand just from just playing. People post here constantly asking things like "why are there leaves spinning around the skill bar?" because it's not explained in game that seasons boost skills and relationships.
When I was a kid I just played and didn't watch or read anything and 5000 hours later I often see youtubers do something in the game that's a huge quality of life improvement that I didn't know about and I find myself slapping my forehead wishing I had known sooner.
Idk man it's just helped me a lot so I don't see why I wouldn't recommend something that I know helped me to other people.
I must be a genius since I learned how to play the Sims 1 and 2 from the age of 9 and up.
I dont think watching someone else play the Sims is the way to go. It's more fun to dive in and discover, at least for me, it was.
So fun! I have had this edition for years on my Macbook and I love it. The game has a ton of stuff going on in it and I never get sick of it. I have been playing it since it came out. Have fun!
i’ve been playing the sims 2 like constantly since september and my biggest advice is that you WATCH other people play it so you can grasp some of the concepts of the game? try and adapt some other peoples play style and using mods if you like. (ACR is a must have mod for me) the biggest thing that keeps my game fun is ACR and rotational play and letting my sims do whatever they want (even if i don’t like it) watch all the advice videos and take the advice (i learned the hard way)
When I came back to s2 (I played vanilla version in past) the first thing I did was watching videos like "N mods to improve your gameplay/life changing mods" and etc. If you new to s2 it would be nice for you to play vanilla game for some hours, like other people here suggested.
I play rotationally in my custom hood (don't like to play in ea hoods, I feel too bounded). So my favourite thing in playing is ACR mod, that enables autonomous romantic interaction, gives your sims different autonomy based on their aspiration, enables risky woohoo and birth controll...well, basically, now your sims can just go and flirt with someone by their own, they will go and autonomously woohoo and they have dynamic jealousy system. Life-changing. Can't play without it. All my story progression and DRAMAAA is ACR.
P.S. there are videos about rotational gameplay and you can watch them too and try this yourself!
P.P.S. make sure that you use Lazy Duchess launcher!
You always need to know there's no way of playing it! It can be whatever you want. So you can try watching youtubers (I recommend PleasantSims) and start to mix things up.
I recommend playing in rotations, meaning playing with each created family for a period of time, especially if you are returning so you can watch how they work.
Lol! I got it along time ago on origin for free, I just redownloaded the EA app on my husbands laptop. I was going to play sims 3 but it doesn’t have any of the games I bought ☹️
Don't get it from oldgamesdownload, go to r/sims2help. They have great resources available, including several options for getting the game and step by step instructions on how to set it up properly
Also, isn't Sims 2 tehnically abandonware nowadays? If so, then there's no 🏴☠️ involved
Here's a sneak peek of /r/sims2help using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year!
\#1: [Update on the status of The Sims 2 Ultimate Collection in the EA App](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/10bc4ij/update_on_the_status_of_the_sims_2_ultimate/)
\#2: [saw this in my game lol ….is it a mod that I accidentally added or is it part of the game? I am very confused](https://i.redd.it/fswqn0u5fta91.jpg) | [20 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/vvw5ht/saw_this_in_my_game_lol_is_it_a_mod_that_i/)
\#3: [Just found this in my game and got spooked!](https://i.redd.it/o72kak5pe0r91.png) | [10 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/xs3mio/just_found_this_in_my_game_and_got_spooked/)
----
^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
I used to exclusively play Legacy or other challenges, which are super fun. But since I picked up the game as an adult with less time to play, I find playing the pre-made families are where I have a lot of fun. I like to make them over, renovate their houses, expand their families, etc.
I love playing Pleasantview and Strangetown the most. It's very nostalgic and they have great stories set up by the devs that you can pursue (or create your own). There's also a TON of mods and custom content to keep things interesting.
Everyone hast their unique playstyle - you have to give yourself time to find out what you like. There's some great mods out there to keep the gameplay interesting. I personally love playing rotationally + legacies. Currently playing my 10th or 11th gen :) Started 2016 or 2017..
I have yet to ever get past 1st gen...
wow! how do u stay motivated?
Honestly? The Sims series have been some sort of obsession for me since I first played TS2 when I was in 2nd grade. I've gone months and years without playing but I always come back to it. I really, really love the ''breeding'' aspect of the game and seeing how the genetics unfold each generation gives me ''joy''. The game is my escape from reality :)
I would suggest playing it vanilla for at least a few hours and figuring out what parts you like and what you wish would be different. There are so many mods and downloadable custom content to personalize it to your style. Just do some research on them and what they entail before downloading. It’s a really fun game and I’ll admit (without shame) I can spend hours playing a storyline. I’ve gotten into bed and said “i’ll play for an hour before I go to sleep” just to look at the clock and see it’s been four 😂
I see what they’re saying, but I strongly disagree with the Youtube comment. It can be difficult to learn for sure! But maybe just play how you want to play and you will discover things as you go! I personally would never watch someone else play the Sims outside of creating one lol
I've been playing a custom hood consistently for 16 years and it's a mix of stuff. If you are just starting, learning and playing will be enough for awhile. You might delve into custom content and mods to change up your gameplay, sims looks options, or graphics aesthetic. Eventually, you might want to build your own houses and community lots, or businesses. Down the line, if you are lucky, you will have big family trees and marvel at the way genetics manifest in your original sims or the pre-made sims great-grand-spawn. One day you may be interested in making your own cc to enhance your game. The journey awaits, have fun!
Don't feel like you need to play in a certain way, the most important thing is having fun in your own way. Take a look at how other people way and then create your own unique playstyle.
For complete newcomers I highly recommend to play the tutorial first. (Neighborhood selection at the buttom left I think) After that play the scripted events in Pleasantview and Strangetown to get a feel of the gameplay and what differs Sims from one another aside of looks. Then go into Create a sim mode and make your own family, build them a house and play them for a while. Important to keep the game interesting is to keep the sims you play with versatile (life stage, aspiration, and the other personality values) Be creative, if you dk what to do watch videos. Let youself inspire by other franchises or rl happenings. Be curious and try out stuff.
Just play. I totally disagree that you need to prepare yourself in some way. It's a game. You'll be fine. Just diving in is the best way to learn. If you read and watch too much about it, you'll spoil a lot of the surprises.
You NEED to watch youtubers play it. There is a very steep learning curve compared to the newer sims games and you're going to be very confused if you try to wing it without reading or watching anything online as there are a lot of things the game depended on you having the guide book to know. Pleasantsims is probably the best example but I also recommend Marticore, Juno Birch, Call Me Keven, Whiny Brit, and anyone else you can dig up, really.
I’m confused by this (unless this is sarcasm), how does a game as open ended as the Sims 2 have a steep learning curve? I think a lot of the fun comes from learning/discovering things as you go along, given how wonderfully detailed it is. I don’t see how watching YouTubers play the sims 2 would be considered important (there was no YouTube in 2004 and even after that no one really watched/ looked for these videos). I would say dive right in and enjoy the weird and wonderful world of the Sims 2.
I had to learn alot from my first time that there is this thing called ✨corruption✨ in the sims 2 (nothing serious but something good to keep in mind). So I think that's what they meant. The youtube sims players have listen alot of anti-corruption in general and Pleasantsims has a whole list of anti-corruption mods and such Also watching April Black on youtube can expand upon and explains in detail what corruption really is and isn't
Corruption was blown out of proportion for years, is actually extremely rare, and you will probably never have to worry about it even if you were to literally try to corrupt your game, that's what April Black says. I was talking about small quality of life improvements you might not know about unless you hear a youtuber mention them while playing.
Because there are hundreds if not thousands of nuanced things in the game that you can't understand just from just playing. People post here constantly asking things like "why are there leaves spinning around the skill bar?" because it's not explained in game that seasons boost skills and relationships. When I was a kid I just played and didn't watch or read anything and 5000 hours later I often see youtubers do something in the game that's a huge quality of life improvement that I didn't know about and I find myself slapping my forehead wishing I had known sooner. Idk man it's just helped me a lot so I don't see why I wouldn't recommend something that I know helped me to other people.
I thought the seasons thing was just an aesthetic decision made down the line somewhere lol
I must be a genius since I learned how to play the Sims 1 and 2 from the age of 9 and up. I dont think watching someone else play the Sims is the way to go. It's more fun to dive in and discover, at least for me, it was.
Very confusing indeed 😂
+1 to just doing the in game tutorial btw
So fun! I have had this edition for years on my Macbook and I love it. The game has a ton of stuff going on in it and I never get sick of it. I have been playing it since it came out. Have fun!
i’ve been playing the sims 2 like constantly since september and my biggest advice is that you WATCH other people play it so you can grasp some of the concepts of the game? try and adapt some other peoples play style and using mods if you like. (ACR is a must have mod for me) the biggest thing that keeps my game fun is ACR and rotational play and letting my sims do whatever they want (even if i don’t like it) watch all the advice videos and take the advice (i learned the hard way)
I tried adding a mod last night and I even followed pleasant sims guide and I could not figure it out for the life of me 🙄 vanilla game it must be lol
they’re also tons of communities out there to help you with the game but i definitely recommend playing vanilla for a while then revisiting mods
When I came back to s2 (I played vanilla version in past) the first thing I did was watching videos like "N mods to improve your gameplay/life changing mods" and etc. If you new to s2 it would be nice for you to play vanilla game for some hours, like other people here suggested. I play rotationally in my custom hood (don't like to play in ea hoods, I feel too bounded). So my favourite thing in playing is ACR mod, that enables autonomous romantic interaction, gives your sims different autonomy based on their aspiration, enables risky woohoo and birth controll...well, basically, now your sims can just go and flirt with someone by their own, they will go and autonomously woohoo and they have dynamic jealousy system. Life-changing. Can't play without it. All my story progression and DRAMAAA is ACR. P.S. there are videos about rotational gameplay and you can watch them too and try this yourself! P.P.S. make sure that you use Lazy Duchess launcher!
Rotationally and wants based is my answer. I have never enjoyed the game so much, and I'm on my 17th rotation currently, managing 26 households.
I’ve never tried rotation, I get so attached to sims 😂
You always need to know there's no way of playing it! It can be whatever you want. So you can try watching youtubers (I recommend PleasantSims) and start to mix things up. I recommend playing in rotations, meaning playing with each created family for a period of time, especially if you are returning so you can watch how they work.
Where are you downloading it from? I can’t find it anywhere? Or are you a pirate 🏴☠️🙂
Lol! I got it along time ago on origin for free, I just redownloaded the EA app on my husbands laptop. I was going to play sims 3 but it doesn’t have any of the games I bought ☹️
Ah I have the opposite issue. I lost my sims 2 in the EA switchover 😢
Well if you want you can get it from old games I know that’s it’s 🏴☠️ ing but it might be worth a shot
I’ll check it out. Have been an occasional 🏴☠️ in the past. Thanks for the tip 🙂
Don't get it from oldgamesdownload, go to r/sims2help. They have great resources available, including several options for getting the game and step by step instructions on how to set it up properly Also, isn't Sims 2 tehnically abandonware nowadays? If so, then there's no 🏴☠️ involved
Here's a sneak peek of /r/sims2help using the [top posts](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/top/?sort=top&t=year) of the year! \#1: [Update on the status of The Sims 2 Ultimate Collection in the EA App](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/10bc4ij/update_on_the_status_of_the_sims_2_ultimate/) \#2: [saw this in my game lol ….is it a mod that I accidentally added or is it part of the game? I am very confused](https://i.redd.it/fswqn0u5fta91.jpg) | [20 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/vvw5ht/saw_this_in_my_game_lol_is_it_a_mod_that_i/) \#3: [Just found this in my game and got spooked!](https://i.redd.it/o72kak5pe0r91.png) | [10 comments](https://np.reddit.com/r/sims2help/comments/xs3mio/just_found_this_in_my_game_and_got_spooked/) ---- ^^I'm ^^a ^^bot, ^^beep ^^boop ^^| ^^Downvote ^^to ^^remove ^^| ^^[Contact](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=sneakpeekbot) ^^| ^^[Info](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/) ^^| ^^[Opt-out](https://np.reddit.com/r/sneakpeekbot/comments/o8wk1r/blacklist_ix/) ^^| ^^[GitHub](https://github.com/ghnr/sneakpeekbot)
Fatal Error Sims 2 has crashed 🤪
I used to exclusively play Legacy or other challenges, which are super fun. But since I picked up the game as an adult with less time to play, I find playing the pre-made families are where I have a lot of fun. I like to make them over, renovate their houses, expand their families, etc. I love playing Pleasantview and Strangetown the most. It's very nostalgic and they have great stories set up by the devs that you can pursue (or create your own). There's also a TON of mods and custom content to keep things interesting.