Package editor

A package editor is a program that is used to access, view, and modify the package files utilized by The Sims 2, The Sims 3 and The Sims 4. Package editors available to the public are third-party programs and unofficial software, thus they are unsupported by Electronic Arts. The most well-known package editors are SimPE, s3pe, and s4pe, for The Sims 2, The Sims 3, and The Sims 4, respectively. Though all three games utilize the same .package extension for files, the files are structured and formatted differently, and only a package editor for the correct game can view or modify the file.

SimPE
SimPE (page is 404 now) is a third-party program which allows players to view (and often work with) the "package" files that The Sims 2 uses. It is compatible with The Sims 2, as well as all of its expansion packs and The Sims Stories series. It can be used for viewing and editing—and occasionally fixing—various things about the Sims themselves, though it can also work with objects, clothes, and meshes. It can be used to edit Sims' names. More advanced features allow players to add memories to Sims, change the family trees, and resurrect Sims that can't normally be resurrected with the Resurrect-O-Nomitron or other ways in-game. It can be used to clone objects and to extract resources from a "package" file, which makes it useful for creators of custom content.

SimPE will associate the .package extension with itself; with SimPE installed, .package files will be tagged as "DBPF Package" files. This allows players to easily open a .package file in SimPE. Players who have The Sims 3 and/or The Sims 4 in addition to The Sims 2 should note that all three games use the .package extension, but use different file formats. As such, SimPE will not be able to work with .package files from any newer games.

SimPE links

 * SimPE
 * SimPE project page at SourceForge
 * Direct download link for latest executable installer, at SourceForge.

s3pe
As SimPE is not compatible with The Sims 3, another version, called s3pe, was developed. It is significantly smaller and more lightweight than SimPE for The Sims 2.

s4pe
Shortly after the release of The Sims 4, a package editor called s4pe was released.