I'll be brief as I've read the system requirements and most of the other help documents on here. I'd love to be able to say that I have a new computer, however I don't. It's one of those that was bought from someone that rebuilds computers in their garage, and several people need to be able to use this computer so we can't afford me melting the motherboard.

Desktop
Windows 7 Pro OS, SP1. (Clean install as well, no adware/trial programs.) (Edit: will be changed)
Intel Pentium Dual Core 3.2 GHz
4 GB RAM
Achilles heel: Intel G41 Express graphics. (Edit: will be upgraded)

Last edited by jaytee95 : 4th Aug 2017 at 3:35 AM. Reason: Update

I'm pretty sure G41 is the chipset, not the graphics processor. It looks like the G41 chipset came with a GMA X4500 graphics processor as default, is that correct for this computer?

Been a long week and just checking now: yes that's close, specifically it says "Intel(R) GMA 4500". I guess I overlooked that there's different chipset model numbers as well as adapter model numbers.

Edit: I answered my own question by re-reading the Simswiki article. Decided it isn't going to be worth it as the version I have is Double Deluxe, where Nightlife and the stuff pack are installed automatically.

As far as downloading a copy, this isn't my own internet connection and my question was about avoiding damaging the hardware, not being desperate to play a computer game.

Last edited by jaytee95 : 5th Mar 2017 at 7:49 AM.

for what it's worth, you won't damage your hardware by trying to run a game that the computer can't run.

@ajaxsirius But he could damage the OS and his non-sims files if he accidentally got malware in the process of downloading that illegal copy, whether it be attached to the game itself or through ads on the piracy site or what.

oops, forgot about that!

Sorry to bump my old thread however I wanted to reply with two "final verdicts" regarding two different computers.

Regarding the computer I asked about, we thought it had a clean Windows install on it, however a family member discovered a rogue program that claimed it was a security program. So we disconnected the internal hard drive and are using a version of Linux that doesn't require a hard drive. So no worthwhile games at all for me for a while.

Turns out that's exactly what I did to the laptop I used to play Sims 2 on, specifically the fan ran too much and it overheated. I didn't realize that was what the problem was until it was too late. (I was also lectured that I wasn't given the computer to play video games in the first place, even though I'm an adult and should be able to use my free time and resources as I see fit, but that was a losing argument.)

That's a totally different issue. As you said, your computer overheated. That could be due to a whole variety of factors. You could get the same issue by running many small programs at once. A computer doesn't overheat because it's attempting to run a game that it doesn't have the specs for, it overheats because it's cooling solution can't dissipate the heat it's generating.

But it should.

Computer hardware is, or at least should be, designed to successfully dissipate the maximum heat it can generate. This is especially true with laptops where manufacturers have control over both the cooling solution and the processing unit used in the laptop. If the hardware is in working order, and the surrounding air flow is good, then the laptop should be able to run at 100% without frying.

If you attempted to run say, The Witcher 3, it would simply fail to launch (assuming the laptop doesn't have the specs for it). Little heat would generated since the program wouldn't even run.

You could have a $2000 laptop with a top of the line GPU which DOES have the specs for the sims 2 and still encounter the same overheating if there is a problem.

You don't damage your hardware by trying to run a game that the computer can't run, you damage your hardware by allowing it to overheat or through power fluctuations etc.

Alas, manufacturers are rarely that diligent. Installing a game and running it to see how the performance is and what impact it has on temps won't damage a computer, but there are still plenty of laptops in the world that will be damaged by prolonged play - although nowadays that's mostly going to be an issue with second-hand machines.

Hi, I'm back after figuring out that with some new components, the computer I have should work with TS2. And I now have the money to do something about it. :D

In the time I've been away from TS2 (as well as this site), I came across the Optiplex 380 Technical Guidebook on Dell.com, which helped me understand what the computer was originally designed with (and yes the computer has the same motherboard as described in the book). Also found out it has a PCI Express x16 expansion slot and plugging in an external video card should disable the onboard graphics.

First of all, the discussion in another thread about SATA III being backwards compatible with earlier versions of SATA was very helpful since we plan to get a new hard drive (not going to take any chances with the one this came with).

So, I'm sure that any compatible hard drive will do, and the OS will be self-explanatory (buy a known-good copy of Windows and make sure anything I get has drivers for it), so it's going to come down to the video card. I've received private messages here before that 'TS2 is an old game and newer components shouldn't have a problem with it,' but specifically will something on Amazon in the $50-100-ish range work if TS2 is the most demanding program we have?

Should do, yeah. Feel free to post a model number here if you want to check. Do make sure that you take into consideration the power requirements of the card, though - you may need to upgrade the computer's power supply unit in order to support the new card.

I've been unable to buy anything so far, but it looks like this is what I'm going to have to do. Every indication is that the power supply is probably only 255 watts, and even the low-end cards available these days recommend at least 300 watts.

Since I last posted in this thread, thanks to a sale at a retail store that was too good to pass up I now have a new 1TB hard drive (way more than enough for what I use but also as low as it seems to go for desktops these days), and a new 2GB PCI Express x16 video card. (When I read iCad's post in another thread that it's very similar to the one they use, I felt reassured.) I should also add that the Optiplex 380 in question is the midtower-size model, not a desktop or small form-factor model, and a youtube video explained that it can accept a standard ATX power supply. Still need to buy a new power supply though.

The video card documentation itself recommends at least a 300 watt power supply and 20 amps of 12-volt current. And I already know to look for a supply that has enough of the right power connectors for the equipment. What I've read has suggested buying something with at least 20-67 times more wattage with those recommendations citing something like "efficiency," "over-rating," '12-volts is the most demanding drain of the power supply,' etc.

I know the least about power supplies and I figure I never quite know if someone leaving a comment on a website has a secret motive behind doing so, and this has been the most helpful site I can ask questions on without being told if I'm asking any questions at all I should instead try another google search.

Right now, Amazon has some rather flat pricing; a 400 watt supply for $30, and two different 500 watt brands for $40:
https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-Warrant...03355546&sr=1-9
https://www.amazon.com/EVGA-WHITE-W...03355546&sr=1-1
https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-VS50...3355546&sr=1-18
Does anyone here have any personal experience/preference with EVGA or Corsair, or is there something else I should be considering?

Typically what I recommend is people read reviews on their card and look up it's typical power draw under 100% usage in Watts. Then add that to the listed TDP of their CPU and use that number as their power draw on the +12V rail. Then add 25% for room for error and then divide by 12 to get the number of Amps your PSU should be rated for. Not sure what that "20 - 67 times" thing is. As far as efficiency goes, it just means that your PSU will have to draw more electricity from the wall socket as it gets older to achieve the same output.

I've used both EVGA and Corsair PSUs and they're both usually okay. Corsair is more consistent, EVGA has some bad models, depending on the particular product line. I recommend also only going for those rated 80+. So in three links you provided, only the last two, and they both provide 40A max.