The Sims™ 2 Legacy Collection
- January 31, 2025
- MAXIS
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"The Sims 2 Legacy Collection for Windows 10/11 allows you to control sims' lives, guiding their characteristics and setting goals in various areas such as family, career, and relationships. This collection includes the base game, The Sims 2, along with multiple expansion packs like University, Nightlife, Open for Business, and more, offering a wide range of content and experiences. The Grunge Revival Kit for The Sims 4 is also included, providing even more customization options."
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game runs smoothly and brings back a lot of nostalgia for longtime fans.
- It includes all major expansion packs, providing a comprehensive experience.
- The UI scaling for higher resolutions has improved, making it more accessible on modern displays.
- The game frequently crashes, especially after creating a family or during gameplay.
- There are numerous bugs, including disappearing Sims and issues with food preparation.
- The absence of the IKEA Stuff Pack and some licensed songs has disappointed many players.
- graphics90 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with some players praising the nostalgic aesthetic and improved resolution options when settings are adjusted, while others have reported persistent graphical bugs and performance issues. Many users noted that the game defaults to low settings, requiring manual adjustments for optimal performance, and some experienced crashes related to graphics changes. Overall, while the game can look good at higher settings, technical issues remain a concern for a portion of the player base.
“After 15.4 hours of playing, I can safely say that the game is stable, or at least it was, for me running at 4K with all graphics settings maxed out on a modern PC with Windows 11.”
“No lagging, no 'pink soup' or graphical errors.”
“All I have to say is the game is very polished and it runs great, and the graphics look really good for being a 2004 game.”
“The first thing I noticed was the terrible game graphics: worse than they were 20 years ago.”
“I don’t want to deal with constant crashes or graphical issues.”
“Crashing when I exited create-a-sim, crashing and error codes when I tried to change the graphics quality; I played for nearly 3 hours and the game crashed 12 times.”
- stability82 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 88 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent crashes, bugs, and glitches that significantly hinder gameplay. While some users have experienced smooth performance without issues, the overall consensus highlights a troubling number of game-breaking problems, including freezing during launch and lost progress. Many players express disappointment, suggesting that the game feels unpolished and in need of urgent patches to address these longstanding issues.
“So far it runs great on my Windows 11 machine with zero crashes in 6 hours.”
“I don't know why people are acting like nothing was really done; it runs great on modern hardware.”
“All I have to say is the game is very polished, it runs great, and the graphics look really good for being a 2004 game.”
“The game is broken and just freezes in the loading screen, forcing you to kill the process and lose all of your progress.”
“Do not buy this in its current state; game crashes are frequent and I lost all my progress in a save, taking me back to when I first started. Extremely buggy.”
“Unfortunately, the game can hardly behave itself for more than two hours; very buggy.”
- gameplay62 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
Gameplay in the re-released Sims 2 has received mixed reviews, with many praising its nostalgic value and depth compared to newer titles like Sims 4. However, players have reported a range of technical issues, including frequent crashes and bugs, particularly when using mods or transitioning between different gameplay modes. Despite these problems, some users have enjoyed smooth experiences and highlighted the game's engaging mechanics and storytelling elements.
“10/10 Sims experience when it comes to gameplay.”
“Sims 2, out of all the Sims games, has the best gameplay!”
“There are many hours of fun gameplay to be had.”
“The gameplay is full of bugs.”
“Crashes when swapping from decorating to live gameplay.”
“Just lost hours of gameplay with a sudden crash.”
- optimization48 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising improvements like smoother performance and native 4K support, particularly on older hardware. However, many users report ongoing issues such as crashes, graphical bugs, and a lack of proper optimization for newer systems, leading to frustration and disappointment. Overall, while there are some enhancements, significant optimization problems remain, especially for Windows 10/11 users.
“First and foremost, I would like to sincerely thank EA for re-releasing The Sims 2 with significant improvements, including native 4K support, smoother performance, and overall enhanced fluidity.”
“Positives: lots of neat quality of life improvements and noticeable performance gains on my older (6-8 year) laptop.”
“Game's very well optimized, running flawlessly and effortlessly.”
“EA has shown that they cannot even make a 20+ year old game optimized and working properly when other companies have no issue doing the same thing.”
“The game is not optimized, and basic things like pets are not working correctly.”
“If you're looking for a well-optimized game for Windows 10/11, you're unfortunately in the wrong place...”
- monetization34 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been widely criticized as a blatant cash grab by EA, with many reviewers expressing disappointment over the lack of meaningful updates or improvements to legacy titles. Players feel that the re-releases are merely attempts to capitalize on nostalgia without delivering a polished experience, leading to frustration over bugs and unfulfilled expectations. Overall, the sentiment reflects a strong discontent with EA's approach, which is perceived as prioritizing profit over player satisfaction.
“This is just a lazy cash grab using the 25th anniversary as a nostalgia pull to grab past players to play the best Sims game (The Sims 2) and its origin game without actually doing anything to make the legacy games play well today so everyone can enjoy a better time in the Sims lifespan when it wasn't just an endless cash cow that has become this Sims 4!”
“Disappointed but not surprised that this was a buggy cash grab from EA.”
“This was a blatant cash grab.”
- music26 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players expressing disappointment over the absence of several original tracks from "Sims 2 Deluxe," which they feel detracts from the overall experience. While some enjoy the remixed versions and find the background music engaging, others lament the lower quality of certain audio elements and the missing licensed songs due to licensing issues. Overall, nostalgia for the original soundtrack remains a strong sentiment among fans.
“🌸 Banger background music.”
“The music also goes so hard in this game haha.”
“Starting it up, hearing that music and seeing that loading screen took me back.”
“My major gripe is that not all the music from the original game is back :(”
“Honestly, the game is so poorly updated; voices sound very low quality, missing content (IKEA stuff pack), missing some songs on the radio, and the sim can turn infamous pink soup any time.”
“- As per EA, there are some songs missing which they couldn't renew the license for, not sure which ones.”
- story8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The game's storylines are praised for their diversity and depth, enhancing the overall experience despite some technical issues, such as disappearing characters. Players appreciate the visual improvements and express a desire for more content from console versions to be available on PC. Overall, the engaging narratives and customization options contribute to a rich gameplay experience.
“I'm making a custom neighborhood currently, filled with different storylines, but twice now I've had Sims straight up disappear!”
“Much prettier than the first, but EA, please, port the story mode content from the consoles to PC; they'd work so beautifully on deck.”
“Even if I can't make Sims, the game makes up for that with its diverse storylines in each world.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users find the humor in the game's ironic situations, particularly the timing of updates and patches that follow the release of a flawed product. The comedic element stems from the frustration of experiencing a lack of polish before launch, which is highlighted in a sarcastic manner.
“The timing was funny, I'm not gonna lie.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users express that the game evokes strong emotional responses, leaving them feeling like "an emotional wreck," indicating a profound impact on their feelings and engagement with the narrative.
“And oooh, I'm an emotional wreck right now.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The reviews indicate that "The Sims 4" is perceived as more playable than "The Sims 2," suggesting that players find it easier to engage with and revisit the game. However, the mention of bugs in both games implies that technical issues can impact overall replayability.
