Comparison between The Sims and The Sims 2
This article is a Comparison between The Sims and The Sims 2, with regard to the most major differences between the two. It should be noted that unless otherwise indicated, these comparisons are between the base games without any Expansion packs and some of these factors can also change when cheats are used.
| The Sims | The Sims 2 |
| Released 2000 | Released 2004 |
| Isometric perspective | Fully 3D |
| Neighborhood is pre-designed | 3 pre-designed neighborhoods (Pleasantview, Strangetown and Veronaville) which may be (to some extent) tweaked by the player, and terrains may be imported from SimCity 4. Additional neighborhoods built from scratch may be created and added to the menu screen. |
| 3 age groups (baby, child, adult) | 6 (7) life stages (baby, toddler, child, teen, adult, elder, Young adult if your Sim goes to university) |
| Only babies age, other lifespans are indefinite. | All Sims age and eventually die. |
| 6 skills | 7 skills |
| Only Adults gain skills | Any age group except babies can gain skill points. |
| No aspirations | Teens and older have one of 5 aspirations. Toddlers and children aspire to Grow Up. |
| No wants or fears | All Sims except babies have 4 wants (extra for college graduates) and 3 fears |
| No days of the week, weekend, or days off work or school (Sims would not be fired for skipping work provided they did attend the following day) | 7-day week with different days off depending on job. Children and Teens have the weekend off from school. Able to call in sick to work or quit. |
| Sims do not collect memories | Sims collect memories |
| Bills delivered once every 3 days | Bills delivered on Tuesdays and Thursdays |
| PlumbBob colour reflects precise mood: optimum is green, worst is red | PlumbBob colour represents approximate mood: optimum is platinum |
| No pregnancy, babies can simply appear after user says yes to random "Should we have a baby?" prompt after romantic interaction, no genetics passed down | Try for baby may lead to 3 day pregnancy for female sim, genetic traits passed down from both parents |
| Household accounts screen can be accessed, showing income and expenditure over past 3 days and current day | No such screen |
| Buildings limited to 2 floors. Basements, foundations and lofts not possible. Variable roof pitches. | Buildings limited to 5 floors, or 4 with foundation. Buildings with foundation can have basements incorporated into them. Lofts theoretically possible. Fixed roof pitch. |
| Children with failing grades are banished to Military School and never return. | When a child in the family has failing grades, all children are taken away by a social worker, and other families may adopt them. |
| Random phone calls pranking or giving out money. | No random phone calls. |
| Chance cards forcing career change for top level of career | Chance cards at all levels of career, causing gain or loss of rank, skill points, etc. |
| Many NPCs not interactive | All but a few NPCs (drivers, Rod Humble, social workers, etc.) interactive |