TUTORIAL "How to replace Sims in a pre-made neighborhood?"
I apologize if the title isn't clear enough : this is a technique that allows you to change a Sim's appearance, genetics, and wardrobe without playing with their family. It's very useful, for example, when you want to revamp a pre-made Maxis neighborhood/sub-neighborhood and save it as is for multiple playthroughs. This method also preserves the game's pre-established scenarios, as they only trigger when a family is loaded. This is how I created my "REMADE" neighborhoods.
- The Sims 2 (dah, of course…)
- simPE software (version 0.72 and above)
- Your choice of content, custom or not
For our tutorial, I chose to modify a family consisting of only one sim, for example: Tara Kat.
To begin, you go to the neighborhood you chose to modify. (In my case, I need to make sure I've correctly installed Tara's house.)
👭 The entire method relies on creating "clone" Sims in Create-a-Sim. For each Sim you want to modify, you must create a "clone" that will serve as the model for the transformation. This can be a slow process, especially if you want to replace all the Sims in a Maxis neighborhood, for example. This operation can also be performed on deceased Sims if their files are not corrupted and they are "resurrectable." Otherwise, these deceased Sims will not appear in the SimPE menu we're interested in 💀
👩🦰 So, once I'm in my neighborhood, I'm going to "create a family" to create Tara's new clone. I'm taking great care to style her exactly how I want her in the end : hairstyle, skin, eyes, makeup, jewelry, and ALL the outfits, etc. This modification only affects her physical appearance, so don't pay attention to her personality or preferences, these won't change in your original Sim.
⚠️WARNING: This manipulation MUST ONLY BE DONE with a clone that is the same GENDER and AGE as the modified Sim. Surgery alters the body files ! once, due to a mistake, I cloned Tech Poll #9's body onto his daughter's and ended up with a little girl Sim INSIDE the BODY of an elderly alien… Very Freaky Friday… So if you want to replace a toddler, you must create a toddler clone, etc.
You'll see this later, but for practical reasons, I'm giving my clone the same first name as my model Sim. To differentiate them, I'm giving it the last name "MODEL"
✅ Once you have finished, you confirm your family, and you exit the game once you're back in the neighborhood.
To begin my magic trick, I launch my simPE and open my neighborhood (mine is Pleasantview) in Tools > Neighborhood > Neighborhood Browser.
After patiently waiting for all the files to load, I launch the "Surgery" tool in Tools > Neighborhood > Sims Surgery.
That's why I give my clone my Sim's first name : because this menu is organized alphabetically by first name. So, if you have a lot of Sims to modify, they'll all be grouped together, making them much easier to find!
I then select my two Taras. I put the REAL Tara Kat in the "patient" Sim slot and the CLONE in the "archetype" slot.
I'm VERY careful not to select ANY BOX in the menu and just confirm by clicking on "Surgery."
🔎 A closer look at the Surgery menu:
❌ If I check the face box, only the model's facial structure will be copied to your Sim. This doesn't modify their DNA and acts solely as cosmetic surgery.
❌ If I check the eyes box, it won't really do anything since this doesn't work well. Indeed, the new color will only appear once on your Sim, then their DNA will revert, and they will keep their original eyes.
❌ If I check the makeup box, only the makeup is copied.
❌ If I check the skin box, only the skin is copied (this will cause an error message if only the skin is copied, but the process is still completed).
→ 🧬 except for the skin, none of these modifications alone alters the Sim's DNA, so if your Sim has children, they will inherit their genes and facial features from your Sim BEFORE any manipulation.
🛠️ That's why you shouldn't check any of these boxes to make significant changes to your Sim. If no box is checked, the tool will copy the DNA, wardrobe, and accessories of your model or "clone" Sim. Therefore, the new eye color and face shape will be genetic, not cosmetic, and can be passed down to future generations 🧬
If everything was done correctly, then Tara's portrait instantly changed into her clone’s one.
🗑️ But now, what do I do with the clone? We delete it properly. The game's "delete family" function doesn't work completely : it leaves Sim remnants in your neighborhood files. To keep your game clean, you need to completely remove the clone(s) from your neighborhood.
🏘️ To do this, you need to understand that in your neighborhood, a Sim exists in two files : its own file in the neighborhood's Character folder, and also in the main neighborhood file. Therefore, you must delete the Sim's individual file and also delete its entry in the global neighborhood file within simPE.
There are several ways to do this, but I'll give you with the quickest method, for a small number of "cloned" Sims.
📊 First, I need to find the character's number (the name of the Sim file located in the neighborhood folder). Since my neighborhood is already open in simPE, I go to the Sim Description menu on the Resource Tree (on the left panel), then locate and open my "clone" Sim on the Resource List (on the right panel).
♾️ In the Sim Description Editor (down), I find and click on the "More..." menu and look for the "Open Sim File" option, which displays the name of the file we need to delete : in this case, it's called "N001_User00026". I note it down and save it for later.
🚫 Next, I'll delete Tara's clone from the neighborhood file. Since I'm already in the Sim Description menu, I'll delete "Tara MODEL" from it.
🚫 Then I'll go to the Family Information menu to delete my clone's household. I'll save, and the references to Tara's clone will have disappeared.
♾️ Now, I'll take the reference we noted and delete its individual file in (neighborhood folder...) / Characters / (Sim file).
🧼 At this point, I advise you to lunch the HoodChecker program by Mootilda, to delete any trace of your sim in the neighborhood.. and because it's a good way to avoid corruption.
🎮 Now, you can play with your remade sim. The family picture will change AFTER loading the lot. If there is a scenario attached to the lot/family, it won’t be touch by the modifications, since we haven’t played with it yet.
✍️ Tell me if you have some questions or if this tutorial needs some corrections. I wish you a lot of fun !
☕ All the content on this simblr is FREE but if you are VERY grateful for these great creations, you can also support me on KO-FI
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