They are some of the best-loved titles from one of gaming’s most popular franchises.
Now, fans can finally re-live their childhood memories as The Sims is re-released a quarter of a century after it first launched.
To celebrate the game’s 25th anniversary, EA has unveiled two new versions of the classic games, dubbed The Sims: Legacy Collection and The Sims 2: Legacy Collection.
This is the first time that these early Sims games have been readily available to gamers in over a decade.
The Sims and Sims 2 Legacy Collection are available for £17.99 ($19.99 US price) and £24.99 ($29.99) respectively or together as part of the 25th Birthday Bundle for £34.99 ($39.99).
Many fans have excitedly greeted the return of these fan favourites.
On X, formerly Twitter, one excited commenter wrote: ‘MY CHILDHOOD IS BACK!!!!! Ahhhhh I need this in my life to feel happiness again!’
If you want to reminisce, here’s how you can play The Sims.
25 years after it was first launched, EA is now re-releasing The Sims and The Sims 2 with a special anniversary edition
To celebrate the game’s 25th anniversary, EA has unveiled two new versions of the classic games, dubbed The Sims: Legacy Collection and The Sims 2: Legacy Collection.
The Sims allowed players to create a neighbourhood of virtual characters, and was first released for Microsoft Windows on February 4, 2000.
The game and its then-novel concept proved wildly popular and was followed by a sequel, The Sims 2, on September 14, 2004.
Over the next 20 years, The Sims grew into a massive franchise with four main games, countless expansions, and a connected series of popular city-building games called SimCity.
However, the first two games in the series have been extremely difficult for new players to get their hands on.
The Sims was only released on disk and was never made available digitally, leaving interested players to trawl the internet for a physical copy.
Likewise, the Sims 2 was briefly re-released as part of an Ultimate Collection on EA’s Origin in 2014 but was taken down shortly afterwards.
For the first time, EA is making both games available for digital purchase almost exactly as they were 25 years ago.
In a statement, EA said: ‘You’ve been asking for it, and we’re thrilled to finally return to the days when we first reimagined the ways people play with life.
The Sims (left), was first released for Microsoft Windows on February 4, 2000. The game proved wildly popular and was followed by a sequel, The Sims 2 (right), on September 14, 2004
The Sims allowed players to create the residents of a virtual neighbourhood, with sequels expanding on this concept to add more options for customisation and even more content
‘To celebrate our legacy and honor the incredible fans that have been with us along the way, we’re re-releasing two fan-favorite titles that contain familiar neighborhoods and beloved characters – such as the sneaky burglar, unpredictable genie, and Sunny the Tragic Clown – that started it all.’
On social media, news of the release was met with an ecstatic response from nostalgic fans of the franchise.
On X, one commenter wrote: ‘My childhood is officially back! Now I just need to ruin every family in town again.’
Another added: ‘This is amazing! My childhood memories,’
One wrote: ‘Remember playing the first one on CD rom decades ago! Loved it!’
If you want to play the games yourself, they are available for purchase through Steam, the Epic Games store, or through the EA app for Windows.
You’ll need to have a Windows computer running Windows 10 or 11 in order to install them and EA recommends that your device have at least 4GB of RAM.
If your computer meets the requirement all you need to do is log into Steam, purchase the game as normal and then select install to get started.
On X, some fans were excited to welcome back the classic series saying ‘my childhood is officially back’
One commenter recalled their fond memories of playing the first game when it released as a physical disk over 20 years ago
For many gamers, The Sims holds a treasured place in their childhood memories and the news of the series’ return was widely welcomed
Each of the games comes with all the required expansions and additional downloadable content which was released for the original versions.
The Sims: Legacy Collection includes the expansions Livin’ Large, House Party, Hot Date, On Holiday, Unleashed, Superstar, Makin’ Magic and The Sims 4 Throwback Fit Kit.
Meanwhile, The Sims 2: Legacy Collection includes: University, Nightlife, Open for Business, Pets, Seasons, Bon Voyage, FreeTime, Apartment Life, Holiday Party Pack, Family Fun Stuff, Glamour Life Stuff, Happy Holiday Stuff, Celebration! Stuff, H&M Fashion Stuff, Teen Style Stuff, Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff, Mansion & Garden Stuff and The Sims 4 Grunge Revival Kit.
All of this extra content is included with the Legacy Collection games and will automatically be installed when you download the game.
However, many fans have been disappointed to see that the Legacy Collection editions were only available for Windows, leaving out console and Mac gamers.
As many fans pointed out, this was especially frustrating for Mac users given that The Sims 4, the most recent title in the series, is available for Apple computers.
Likewise, both The Sims and Sims 2 had originally been released for the Xbox and PlayStation 2.
On X, one comment wrote: ‘I want The Sims 1 so bad but it’s not available on mac @TheSims PLEASE RELEASE ON MAC I BEG OF YOU.’
To play the games (pictured), you will need a Windows computer running either Windows 10 or 11 and at least 4 GB or RAM
However, some gaming fans were upset to learn that the Legacy Edition would only only release for Windows. Leaving out Mac and console players
One commenter asked why the re-released games weren’t available on console
One fan of the series complained that consoled players had been ‘forgotten’
‘Cannot believe @EA and @TheSims have re-released the Sims and the Sims 2 and ignored Mac users,’ wrote another.
One fan asked: ‘Why isn’t this offered on console?’
Meanwhile, a frustrated console gamer added: ‘And console players are forgotten again.’
But even gamers who have been able to install the game have reported issues playing it.
On Steam, the largest online game store, both re-released titles currently have ‘mixed’ reviews.
Among the complaints, a number of customers point out that the game appears to have almost all the bugs from the original, including an error causing the game to repeatedly crash without warning.
Reviewers also point out that the games have not been optimised or improved to run on modern computers and monitors.
That means the game doesn’t scale up for 1080p quality displays, leaving some icons to appear in small low-resolution windows which can be hard to read.
Since their re-release the games have recieved ‘mixed’ reviews, with many fans reporting a number of serious bugs
One reviewer on Steam jokingly wrote that the game crashing after hours with no warning was just like it was 20 years ago
Likewise, some customers complain that EA hasn’t added some modern quality of life features which are now considered standard practice – such as allowing players to save their progress to the Steam Cloud.
Just a day after the games’ release, EA was forced to publish an ‘important announcement’ to the Sims Game Info Hub acknowledging the problems.
EA wrote: ‘We recognize some fans are currently experiencing various issues with The Sims: Legacy Collection and The Sims 2: Legacy Collection. We are currently investigating these issues and hope to have more information on fixes soon.’
However, for some die-hard enthusiasts grappling with the 25-year-old interface and wildly outdated features is all part of the nostalgic experience.
As one reviewer jokingly put it: ‘Game crashed after hours of playing (I hadn’t saved in a long time) – 10/10 just like old times.’
