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The Sims (Windows)/Revisional Differences

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This is a sub-page of The Sims (Windows).

Hmmm...
To do:
More;

While expansions for The Sims introduced a wealth of new content and features, some subtle changes were made. Many of them are relatively minor, but some base game elements and features would get lost in the conversion.

Hot Date

VOX Oddity

For some reason, these adult Sim conversation lines were only used in versions of the game up to House Party, whereas Hot Date overhauls the Sim-to-Sim relationship system by adding a new set of interests to talk about and interactions.

That being said, most players these days only acknowledge these specific lines as the voice of Sims from telephone calls, the console port and The Sims 2: Pets for Game Boy Advance, where these lines were repurposed for there, despite being down-sampled and often shortened.

SoundData.FAR
Date Filename Sample
01 September 1999 10ː09 VOX_CONVERSE_MEDF1.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDF2.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDF3.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDF4.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDF5.XA
01 September 1999 10:39 VOX_CONVERSE_MEDM1.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDM2.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDM3.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDM4.XA
VOX_CONVERSE_MEDM5.XA

Obsolete Floor Lamp Animation

10 September 1999 18:39

TS1 a2o-floorlamp1-turnon.gif TS1 c2o-floorlamp1-turnon.gif
a2o-floorlamp1-turnon.cmx a2o-c2o-floorlamp1-turnon.cmx

Installing patches based on Hot Date or newer versions changes the lamp objects behavior: they'll always switch on/off automatically, save for a handful of table lamps (lava, Hula Girl lamps...) . As a consequence, the animations dedicated to the (manual) Sim interactions with the lamps at residential lots — most precisely those purposed for floor lamp items — fell into obsolescence.

The same behavior is carried on over to the console adaptation and Bustin' Out.

Unleashed

Intro Video

Hmmm...
To do:
replace with mp4. uploads. Also. was it actually removed, or did it go unused?

The intro video for the game was rather hastily updated to show features from other expansions up to this one. It would be removed entirely in Superstar.

Base Game up to Vacation Unleashed

Original Female Walk

06 July 1999 09ː53

These were the original walking animations for adult female Sims used up to Vacation.

Base game up to Vacation
TS1 a2o-walking-female-start.gif TS1 a2o-walking-female-loop.gif TS1 a2o-walking-female-stop.gif
a2o-walking-female-start.cmx a2o-walking-female-loop.cmx a2o-walking-female-stop.cmx

Starting from the Unleashed expansion pack, the animations were changed which are very akin to those used by male Sims: they lean forward, as their shoulders hunch up slightly. Many players back in the day, in negative response, compared that to a gorilla using its knuckles to drag itself[1][2][3][4], hence its popular name "Gorilla Walk".

Unleashed onward (a.k.a. "Gorilla Walk")
Ts1 gorillawalk sample2.gif Ts1 gorillawalk sample1.gif Ts1 gorillawalk sample3.gif
a2o-walking-start.cmx a2o-walking-loop.cmx a2o-walking-stop.cmx

The Sims: Complete Collection

A special edition of the game, The Sims: Complete Collection was released on November 1, 2005. Instead of being a repackaging, all expansions are included in a singular disc set.

  • A unique title screen with a 2005 copyright year is made for this expansion, reusing the loading loop music from the base game.

TS1 CC Load EN.png

Hmmm...
To do:
Are the AOL Wicker stuff present?
  • Despite being branded as the Complete Collection, some of the content from previous expansions, Deluxe Edition and Double Deluxe are missing, but can be modded back in;
    • Green Bedroom Set
    • McDonalds Food Kiosk
    • Intel® "The Gila Monster"
    • Pepsi machine
    • Banyan Tree
    • HiveFive Office Desk
    • ViceRoy Leather Chair
    • Reverse sweeping staircase
Hmmm...
To do:
I've compiled the list from the Deluxe edition, where the LL and HP skins are moved to Deluxe folder...
  • Some of the Livin' Large and House Party Skins are not present, but can also be modded back in.
Adult Female
Filename Render Texture Skintone
Clrk_Flgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Clrk_Fmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Clrk_Fdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Cultist_Flgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Cultist_Fmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Cultist_Fdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Hypnotist_Flgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Hypnotist_Fmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Hypnotist_Fdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Infoverlord_Flgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Infoverlord_Fmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Infoverlord_Fdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
LoungeFlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
LoungeFmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
LoungeFdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
RockstarFlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
RockstarFmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
RockstarFdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
SlackerFlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
SlackerFmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
SlackerFdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UFFatlgt_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UFFatmed_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UFFatdrk_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UFFitlgt_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UFFitmed_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UFFitdrk_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UFOinvestFlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UFOinvestFmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UFOinvestFdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Adult Male
Filename Render Texture Skintone
Clrk_Mlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Clrk_Mmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Clrk_Mdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Cultist_Mlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Cultist_Mmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Cultist_Mdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Hypnotist_Mlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Hypnotist_Mmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Hypnotist_Mdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
Infoverlord_Mlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
Infoverlord_Mmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
Infoverlord_Mdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
LoungeMlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
LoungeMmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
LoungeMdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
RockstarMlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
RockstarMmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
RockstarMdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
SlackerMlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
SlackerMmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
SlackerMdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UMFatlgt_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UMFatmed_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UMFatdrk_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UMFitlgt_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UMFitmed_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UMFitdrk_lguard01.BMP xxx xxx Dark
UFOinvestMlgt_01.BMP xxx xxx Light
UFOinvestMmed_01.BMP xxx xxx Medium
UFOinvestMdrk_01.BMP xxx xxx Dark

Legacy Collection

After nearly 20 years without an official rerelease, The Sims was released on Steam, Epic Games, and the EA App on January 31, 2025. The new release is based on the Complete Collection, but has a number of technical changes under the hood.

Miscellaneous
  • This release doesn't create or use most of the Windows registry entries that are used in the original game.
  • User save data is now stored in %HOME%Saved Games\Electronic Arts\The Sims 25. If the directory does not exist, the UserData folders will be copied from the installation directory to this folder when launching the game.
  • A new intro video simply featuring the generic 2005 EA logo has been added, and cannot be skipped like the original intro video.
  • The text "Complete Collection" was removed from the loading screen logo, with a slightly modified gradient and the copyright year was updated to 2025.
Complete Collection Legacy Collection
TS1 CC Load EN.png TS1 LC Load EN.png
Graphics
  • Vulkan is used for rendering graphics, instead of DirectX. This has resulted in increased system requirements compared to the original game.
    • The game runs using 24-bit color depth and GPU acceleration, and sprites are now loaded as uncompressed RGBA8 textures.
    • Lighting appears smoother and without banding. Light falloff now appears on diagonal walls.
    • The game uses more aggressive view culling, resulting in larger objects near the edge of the screen visibly disappearing when panning the camera around.
  • The game now properly supports 16:9 widescreen resolutions:
    • When launching, the game will automatically attempt to match the system's default display resolution. It will then select a target resolution scale.
    • At resolutions higher than 1080p, the UI and in-game graphics are scaled to prevent elements from appearing too small. 3D elements render at native resolution, resulting in a much smoother appearance than in the original game. Objects are always rendered using the near view sprites, regardless of zoom level.
  • Alt + Enter can be pressed to cycle through different display modes:
    • Windowed mode (1x scale) — available at all resolutions.
    • Windows mode (2x scale) — only available at 1440p and 4K.
    • Windowed mode (3x scale) — only available at 4K.
    • Fullscreen mode — fills the screen with the highest possible scaling mode for the display.
(Source: riperiperi)
Interface
  • The picture-in-picture window now has a fade animation.
  • Sim thumbnails are rendered from a different angle to the original game, resulting in a somewhat different appearance. This more visibly apparent with some heads than others.
  • Family Friends counter has a different coloration.
Gameplay
  • All of the pre-made Sims prior to being introduced in Hot Date now have interests, which will now be randomized. They lack them entirely prior to that expansion in the original game, making them difficult for other Sims to befriend as they effectively disliked every discussion topic.
New bugs
  • The UI panel background texture is stretched in widescreen. This results in graphical errors with a number of overlaid UI elements, due to the gradient being stretched across a section that should be solid dark blue.
  • The picture-in-picture window has a misaligned close button. It will also mistakenly draw a squished version of a Sim's head within the window, if the Sim is selected and the pie menu is open.
  • Sim thumbnails no longer show icons to indicate when they are at work or school.
  • The Friends panel is still limited to only showing 5 Sims at a time, even in widescreen, and the buttons to scroll left and right are missing.
  • Some elements do not appear correctly in 2x and 3x scaling modes:
    • Grass blades and the object placement grid shrink.
    • Pools appear pixelated at far zoom, unless the pool tool is actively selected.

Patch

A patch was released for The Sims: Legacy Collection on February 4, 2025.

Fixed Issues
  • Alt+Tab or Alt+Enter can sometimes cause a crash.
  • Alt+Enter can sometimes cause the Windows title bar to be hidden.
  • Alt+Enter can sometimes not toggle between full screen and windowed modes.
  • On some systems, The Sims can appear to launch and then immediately exit (no splash screen displayed).
  • The Sims should now launch in most situations.
  • In some cases where there is an underlying graphics issue, The Sims will display a message.
  • Some players are unable to click on various parts of the neighborhood map.
  • The travel screen, when traveling between neighborhoods/worlds, can sometimes appear garbled or glitched.
  • The Sims might crash if you are not on the default neighborhood, interact with another Sim, and then save.
  • When using Alt+Enter to cycle window and zoom sizes, the HUD could be clipped. At this zoom level, The Sims will now instead clip from the top of the screen.
  • In some situations in windowed mode the title bar might not be visible.
  • The Family friends counter could sometimes not be visible.
(Source: Official patch notes)

References