❤️

All it takes is opening the LiveCamera.txt file in your Documents>Cameras folder with a text editor and changing these two parameters near the bottom to a higher value. Doesn’t matter if you're using a custom camera mod or not. Those parameters should be there. I have set mine like this (remember to save a backup just in case you don't like these changes).

It might seem a bit extreme, but I still think it’s fine.

-The top parameter, floorheightsamplerange, handles how much the floors “extend out”, so the camera object can stand on it mid-air. The higher it is, the further the floor will extend. This will make it so your camera will be able to stick to the floor you’re on, even if you pan away from the building. No more annoying jumps up and down!

-The parameter below that, floorheightsampleinnerrange, handles the transition between sticking to the current floor and dropping to the ground level once it goes past the edge. The higher it is, the smoothest the fall will be.

I’ll note though that the behaviour of these parameters might not be 100% accurate with how the game actually works, but from what I tested I think it’s pretty close as an explanation. If someone knows better how this Live Camera works, please let me know and I’ll try my best to correct any inaccuracies.

Save the .txt file and check how it works in game. It might feel weird at first, but personally I find it so much smoother and easier to handle. If you’re not happy with these values, close the game and edit those parameters until you find your sweet spot. Unfortunately, you will have to close and open the game every time you change it to check how it works.

There’s so many cool Custom Camera mods out there that I thought it’s probably better to just show how to edit those 2 parameters than editing and reuploading all of them.

All it takes is opening the LiveCamera.txt file in your Documents>Cameras folder with a text editor and changing these two parameters near the bottom to a higher value. Doesn’t matter if you're using a custom camera mod or not. Those parameters should be there. I have set mine like this (remember to save a backup just in case you don't like these changes).

It might seem a bit extreme, but I still think it’s fine.

-The top parameter, floorheightsamplerange, handles how much the floors “extend out”, so the camera object can stand on it mid-air. The higher it is, the further the floor will extend. This will make it so your camera will be able to stick to the floor you’re on, even if you pan away from the building. No more annoying jumps up and down!

-The parameter below that, floorheightsampleinnerrange, handles the transition between sticking to the current floor and dropping to the ground level once it goes past the edge. The higher it is, the smoothest the fall will be.

I’ll note though that the behaviour of these parameters might not be 100% accurate with how the game actually works, but from what I tested I think it’s pretty close as an explanation. If someone knows better how this Live Camera works, please let me know and I’ll try my best to correct any inaccuracies.

Save the .txt file and check how it works in game. It might feel weird at first, but personally I find it so much smoother and easier to handle. If you’re not happy with these values, close the game and edit those parameters until you find your sweet spot. Unfortunately, you will have to close and open the game every time you change it to check how it works.

There’s so many cool Custom Camera mods out there that I thought it’s probably better to just show how to edit those 2 parameters than editing and reuploading all of them.

Additionally, I can't decide which one I like more, as every player certainly has their own preferences. I will provide other examples with images labeled code 01-03 :

01. Maxis no ReShade (Settings : Lighting High, Shadow Off) 02. ReShade+Maxis (Settings : Lighting High, Shadow Off) 03. Reshade+Cheat (Settings : Lighting High, Shadow Off)

Take a look at CODE 01, this is the default Maxis lighting without my shader. The terrain paint textures are barely visible, perhaps due to the very smooth color transitions or the game's lighting influence? I'm not entirely sure about the technical details. Additionally, the edges of each object are still somewhat uneven.

Then look at CODE 02, the game's color palette starts to become limited, yet each object still receives in-game lighting. The color transitions show a dithering effect. If you notice, the terrain textures, like the blades of grass start to become visible, and the edges between objects now have distinct borders and visible separation lines.

And finally, CODE 03, the game's natural lighting is completely disabled. All the colors pop out and become flat because I've enabled the "boolprop lightingEnabled false" cheat. Technically, this is similar to Image 02, but by enabling this cheat, the lamps or any other light sources in your game become purely decorative, their glow no longer affects the light or darkness of objects. Even if there's a light effect around the lamp itself, it becomes purely cosmetic or in other words, it's just part of the lamp's image itself (referring back to that sprite-like feel). I will further explain the technical side of the CODE 02&03 setup using another indoor and outdoor example below.

Take a look at the images of Mrs. Crumplebottom below, both indoors and outdoors. All of these are shown without my shaders. only pure, default Maxis lighting.

The first image shows the default Maxis lighting with in-game settings (Lighting: High, Shadows: Off). Here, you can see Mrs. Crumplebottom outdoors being hit by the game's sunlight, while indoors, she receives reflections from the lamp next to her, visible as a glow on her face and body.

The second image shows what happens when you enable the "boolprop lightingEnabled false" cheat. As I mentioned before, this completely disables all in-game light sources; as a result, Mrs. Crumplebottom looks exactly the same whether she is outdoors or indoors. However the lack of this cheat is, it makes everything look dim and dark. Notice that even though there is a lamp next to her, the light doesn't affect Mrs. Crumplebottom or the toilet she's sitting on. the lamp's glow effect exists in isolation, looking like a fake or "phoney" effect.

The third image shows a side effect or glitch that might occur when enabling this cheat. Don't panic! This will return to normal if you refresh it by reopening the cheat console (Ctrl+Shift+C), selecting the cheat again, and pressing Enter.

Next, here is how the same scenes look with my Reshade applied, bringing out that specific visual style I mentioned.

The first image, If you liked the "Code 02" version from before, This image is an example of the results you will get. My Reshade combined with the default Maxis lighting. With this setup, light sources and the outdoor environment still provide reflections to your objects or Sims. You can see how the colors appear limited yet pop out, the color transitions look sharp, and the edges of objects or Sims are visible and static. Then, if you look closely, there is a dithering effect in the colors (I hope it’s still visible once uploaded; I’m not sure how much Tumblr will compress the image quality, but you can always test it in-game to see the full effect yourself). The textures also look much denser, take a look at the cloud wallpaper and the green grass carpet; everything brings out its maximum texture detail without the blurriness found in the version without Reshade. [NOTE: For those of you who prefer this version, you can adjust the White Point value in Levels.fx from my default of 160 to 230–255.]

The second image, if you prefer the "Code 03" version, this is the result you will get. Personally, I really love using this one in my gameplay. Technically, it’s the same as Code 02, but I feel this version truly delivers that pre-rendered visual. It effectively fixes the dim and overly dark colors that usually occur when you enable the "boolprop lightingEnabled false" cheat. Since all lighting is even, there is no in-game lighting/shading, so any light or dark spots you see are just from the textures or 'baked (is that the right term? idk 😂), Your objects look as if they are standing on their own, with every color and texture popping at their maximum. What I love most about this version is how my Sims skin tones resemble the look of TS1.[NOTE: If you feel this version is a bit too bright, you can adjust the White Point value in Levels.fx from my default of 160 to 170-180.]

Anyway, Mrs. Crumplebottom I’m using is available for download from amazing @bayoubashsims thanks and sorry for putting her in such a weird room setup haha 😆.

Then If you notice a #ffff00 yellow outline with 0.15 thickness on the edges of your objects, that’s actually intentional. I chose this color as a tribute to old TS1 CC creators, whose objects sometimes had a bit of yellow leakage perhaps leftovers from the P-Sprites (is this the right term?). So, this is my love letter to them. Hm, I wish I had been playing the Sims back in their era, haha. [NOTE : Don't worry, this outline isn't always super visible, sometimes it subtly blends in with your floor, walls, or terrain. I actually experimented with black vs this yellow, and it turns out this one looks much better! It makes the edges look more defined and clear]

Bonus for you! I’ve included 3 terrain paints inspired by The Sims 1 (Grass, Dirt, and Sand). I didn’t extract these directly from the original TS1, instead, I found some textures online and edited them myself. While the colors might not perfectly resemble the original TS1. But here's a fun fact, these textures really pop and show their detail much better once you use my Preset.

sheep and tree : Kativip, large bushes : beautifulnerdkitty , small bushes : sim_man123 (TSR) , rocks : tony-veis (4t2 Snowy Escape)

Lastly, this preset is a visual interpretation inspired by TS1, not a 1:1 recreation. These two games use different systems, so the results will never be exactly the same. But even if this doesn't fully feel like TS1 yet, at least this approach can lean towards the visual feel of classic isometric games with pre-rendered sprites. (Also, a huge shoutout to VidTheKid on MTS for the isometric camera mod, it's what makes this whole look possible, You're truly a legend!).

[NOTE : I’ve included a guide inside the RAR file, please make sure to read it! The total file size is about 25 MB because I’ve also included several preview photos, which you can delete anytime. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or send me a message!]

Invalid shader cache file - possible causes

Pine's post-processing mod called Custom Post Effects, or an edit by DreadPirate (if it's present in Downloads it may cause pink soup, without enabling the features)

Conflicting shader mods

Broken mods

Game crashed when shaders were being compiled

GPU driver-related issues

(It's not relevant for TS2 but I might as well mention that in modern games, a major game update or driver update can make older cache files obsolete and cause some issues until files get refreshed.)

⚠️Shader-specific issues usually summon pink soup faster than 'usual' memory issues, often as soon after you open the game. If you have a shader conflict going on, clearing cache won't do much until you remove culprit mods.

Let's say you removed the problematic mod, and the pink still lingers. You could wait it out. Well, you don't just "wait", you need to actually play for a while, let the driver identify invalid files and re-compile them. But it can be frustrating if you have a small window of time you'd like to spend taking screenshots. You can speed things up, and clear caches manually.

------------------------------------------------------------------

You start by clearing .cache files in /Documents/ The Sims 2 folder, of course.

[ *if you use DXVK: clear dxvk shader cache in your TS2 game exe folder]

Clearing DX / GL shader caches:

Don't do this when the game is running.

Don't do this if you don't experience lingering pink - this is not a cure for random pink flashing

⚠️If you play many games, naturally this will affect them - games take longer to load when shaders are being compiled!

1. First, open NVIDIA Control Panel /Manage 3D Settings, take note of the current Shader Cache Size settings, then set the size to Disabled and restart your system*

*This is a 'proper' way, but sometimes I skip this step if I really don't want to restart PC.

2. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run box.

Type:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\NVIDIA\

..and press Enter.

3. Clean DX cache folders:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\NVIDIA\DXCache

%LOCALAPPDATA%low\NVIDIA\PerDriverVersion\DXCache

4. Clean OpenGL shader cache folder:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\NVIDIA\GLCache

Of course you could try to only clean DX cache (or GL cache, if you play with DXVK), that might work.

*You may wonder, why clean GL /or DX shader cache if TS2 game runs on DX / or Vulcan? Apparently, there could be some "spillovers" in all cache folders. And I did notice files being generated in DX cache folder when I run TS2 via DXVK.

5. Re-enable Shader Cache Size in NVIDIA Control Panel, if you disabled it. Set it to driver default, or whatever you set before (if you play 'AAA games', 10GB is the recommended GPU cache size. By default it's 4GB for most modern GPUs). Restart the system.

Tip: prevent automatic clean-up of shader caches. If you use automatic disc cleaning, exclude DX Cache folder.

6. Optional:

Windows DX shader cache might contain "corrupted" files. You can use windows "Disc Cleanup" feature, it includes windows DX cache folder.

Or you can do it manually, these should be at

%LOCALAPPDATA%\D3DSCache

Windows might also use secondary shader caches. On my system these are always empty though (AppData = a hidden folder):

\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\DirectX\ShaderCache

\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Nvidia\ShaderCache

"CLEAN RUN":

When you run TS2 after clearing caches, play slow. Don't go straight to giant hood / large lots

Step 1: install your game through your respected platform.

Just follow the regular steps and install the game without adding any other stuff yet whatsoever.

(I personally have a legit copy of the Sims 3 on Steam. If you use another app and have any questions, I'll probably not be able to help you.)

Step 2: run the game once through the official launcher. Once you get to the main menu, you can quit again.

It is very important you run your game through the original launcher at least once after installing it. Not doing so can cause problems with programs like CC magic. You only need to do it the first time. After that, we'll be skipping the launcher entirely.

Step 3: Create a short cut of TS3W.exe on your desktop.

You'll be skipping the launcher from now on. This helps with performance and it starts up your game much faster. It is also important to do this because of DXVK.

You can find TS3W.exe in your bin folder. For me (Steam version) it's in this location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\The Sims 3\Game\Bin

Right click TS3W.exe, click 'show more options' and choose 'create a shortcut'. Place this shortcut on your desktop and Run Sims 3 from there from now on.

Step 4: Run the GPU Add-on Support patcher

You can find this patcher here. It is essential to run this because Sims will otherwise not recognize your graphics card unless it's over 10 years old. This patcher helps to get your GPU recognized.

The patcher will create a new Graphicsrules.sgr and new Graphicscards.sgr for you in your bin folder. After installing this, you can move the ones that have _old behind them somewhere else (or delete them).

P.S.: if you pirate your game you'll have to do this manually, there's guides online for it but since I have a legit copy I can't help you here.

Step 5: Install DXVK

Make sure you follow this guide by Nornite and do every single step. Don't skip anything!

I'd say DXVK is pretty essential nowadays, especially if you have a modern graphics card with 6GB of VRAM or higher. It'll greatly help to keep your game stable and can prevent a lot of crashes. The way Dxvk works, is that it loads textures through your VRAM instead of your RAM. Especially when you use a lot of CC or HD textures, this will make a huge difference for your RAM usage. Sims 3 can only use 4GB of RAM at once and will start crashing once you hit the 3GB mark in your task manager. With DXVK, you will use a lot less RAM and it'll take much longer for your game to reach this hard cap.

When not to install DXVK: if you have a shitty GPU (like an integrated graphics card on a laptop, or one with 4GB of VRAM or less).

Step 5: Start up the game

Use your new desktop shortcut that also has 'run as administrator' permissions now if you followed the DXVK guide properly.

Step 6: set up all your settings through the ingame options menu

The best graphics settings for you will highly depend on what computer you're using. But there are some things you should always turn off because they negatively affect performance. I will share my (relevant) settings with you (I use a custom UI so your screen style will look a little different from mine). Click on the images to enlarge them so you can read them:

Things of note about these settings:

I recommend you play in windowed mode, especially if you plan to use ReShade. Playing fullscreen is possible, but it does make Reshade presets behave differently in your game. I will include a step in this guide that you can follow to play windowed borderless. So, when you plan to do this: make sure you set the resolution to your display resolution.

Enable object hiding helps with performance. Advanced rendering is essential because otherwise your game looks like absolute shit.

Set your High Detail Lots to any value between 2 and 4. Don't go lower or higher, because you'll get rendering issues that lag out your game.

All other graphics settings can be set to your heart's desire. I'd say start with the highest settings and only go down if you notice your frames per second are bad.

Disable shop mode and lessons and fully disable memories or use this mod to severly limit them. Disable interactive loading screens as well. These are all performance eaters. Interactive loading screen also causes crashes. Memories also don't do anything for your sim, it's just a scrap book with no in-game effects.

Disable any online mode feature. This also lags out your game. Unless you really want to use these features it's best to just play fully offline.

Save your settings, close the game again.

Step 7: Install Sims 3 Settings Setter

This is the most recent magic genie that Sims 3 was blessed with. Especially combined with DXVK it is a life changer. Installing it is simple. You download the most recent version here and drop the .asi file in your bin. Also grab 'wininet.dll' from here and drop that one in your bin too.

Start up your game and load up a save. Once you're inside your save, you press 'insert' to open up the menu for Sims 3 Settings Setter. Go to the 'patches' tab and enable what you like. These are my enabled patches and they all work really well for me, but feel free to experiment with them to find your own performance sweet spot:

Only enable uncompressed textures if you have a GPU with at least 8gb of VRAM. My game will use over 6gb of VRAM easily with this enabled, so you've been warned.

Once you have everything you desire enabled, press 'file' in the top left corner and click 'save settings'.

Step 7.5: if you're playing windowed mode: go into the Other/QoL tab and enable 'Borderless Window'. Set it to 'Full Screen'.

Save your settings and close your game again. No need to save the game you entered for this unless you want to.

Step 8: Install Nraas Errortrap, MasterController and Overwatch

These 3 mods by Nraas are pretty much essential to keep your game from breaking down in the long run. You can download the mods here. Have you never installed a mod for Sims 3 before? Here's a guide (skip the part about Sims3pack and go straight to the part where it explains how to install .package mods).

That's it! You can now play The Sims 3 and it'll be as smooth and stable as it'll ever be. From here on, you can stock your game with more mods and CC (check out my mods masterlist!), or you can install Reshade (here's a guide).

Some important things to keep in mind while playing:

Clean up your game regularly. You can easily do this by using Regul Save Cleaner.

When you install a new mod or update/change Sims 3 Settings Setter, always restart and clear your caches.

Use CC Magic for installing CC, because it merges your files and this really helps with performance. Here's a handy guide on how to use it. Don't put your script mods in here, just your CC.

If you plan to travel to vacation destinations in the EP World Adventures, Nraas Traveler is a must to prevent most of the bugs and crashes that happen in this expansion.

Always keep in mind: mods and corrupt CC can still break your game, make it laggy or unplayable. Always be mindful of the mods you add, so you can always trace any issues you're having back to the mod causing it. I highly recommend not downloading a ton of mods in one session, but adding them step by step and see what they do to your games performance.

Use 'Reset the entire town' from Nraas MasterController at least every other sim week. It'll help clear up any lag that happens because of NPC sims getting themselves stuck routing or annoying stuff like that.

Please see below for a list of the career levels (the first three levels are matched for Teen/Elder) and also links if you need information such as job descriptions, wages, work days and skill requirements:

Animal Care (https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Animal_care)

SimFileShare or MediaFire

Level 1: Dog Walker Level 2: Obedience Trainer Level 3: Sheep Custodian Level 4: Aquarium Technician Level 5: Zoo Keeper Level 6: Dolphin TRainer Level 7: Animal Acting Coach Level 8: Alligator Relocator Level 9: Veterinarian Level 10: Pet Stylist

Circus (https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Circus)

SimFileShare or MediaFire Level 1: Popcorn Vendor Level 2: Ticket Taker Level 3: Midway Carnier Level 4: Sideshow Barker Level 5: Clown Level 6: Human Cannonball Level 7: Acrobat Level 8: Trapeze Artist Level 9: Lion Tamer Level 10: Ringmaster

Fashion (https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Fashion)

SimFileShare or MediaFire Level 1: Department Store Clerk Level 2: Tailor Level 3: Makeup Artist Level 4: Painter's Model Level 5: Fashion Photographer Level 6: Tradeshow Model Level 7: Runway Model Level 8: Supermodel Level 9: Fashion Columnist Level 10: Fashion Designer

Hacker (https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Hacker)

SimFileShare or MediaFire Level 1: Beta Tester Level 2: Support Tech Level 3: Web Master Level 4: Hacker Level 5: Security Consultant Level 6: Software Designer Level 7: Internet Entrepreneur Level 8: Software CEO Level 9: Venture Capitalist Level 10: Information Overlord

Xtreme (https://sims.fandom.com/wiki/Xtreme)

SimFileShare or MediaFire Level 1: Daredevil Level 2: Bungee Jumper Instructor Level 3: Whitewater Rafting Guide Level 4: Extreme Circuit Recruit Level 5: Bush Pilot Level 6: Mountain Climber Level 7: Photo Journalist Level 8: Treasure Hunter Level 9: Grand Prix Driver Level 10: World Surfing Champion

There are four files per career (eg. AdultCareer_AnimalCare, AdultCareer_AnimalCare_Conditions, AdultCareer_AnimalCare_LTW and TeenElderCareer_AnimalCare).

All four files are required and can just be put straight into your downloads folder.

You will notice some of the above career levels do not match the original careers. Some of the levels are already represented in other careers in the game, so I decided to swap some around and include some new jobs.

These files have new GUID numbers, so they should not conflict with other downloads, even the original versions of these careers.

The Lifetime Wants are also compatible with @lamare-sims 50 New Lifetime Wants for Sims 2: https://modthesims.info/download.php?t=669675

I'd like to thank the following members of our community for their assistance in these updates:

@sims2idea-lientebollemeis2i for creating the converted careers to begin with and providing their permission to share my amendments. Their original careers can be found here: https://s2idownloads.blogspot.com/search/label/SFS%20-%201t2%20Maxis%27%20Careers

@lamare-sims for creating the 50 New Lifetime Wants for Sims 2 mod and providing me assistance in making the Lifetime Wants compatible with their mod.

@sharlasims for her assistance and support with creating the chance cards.

@teaaddictyt For her Photoshop skills and support with converting the career icons.

@episims for their assistance troubleshooting the career outfits.

@rio-sims & @palominocorn for creating a tutorial on how to create Lifetime Wants.

I hope you enjoy my version of these careers and please do not hesitate to contact me if you run into any trouble. 06/07/2023 - EDIT: Thank you to @lamare-sims who found some errors in the files. I have fixed the LTW and Conditions files to reflect some correct instance numbers and I have reuploaded the zip files to include up the amended files. Please replace these two files for each career if you have already downloaded it. 05/08/2023 - UPDATE: @bothersomecryptid has touched up the icons and been kind enough to share them! They made them with to work better with the Clean UI. You just need to replace the images in the career file through SimPE. You can download at this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1q5j3AniepLh_lE_kgWgOYOkZkq9EzHNJ/view 03/09/2023 - EDIT: Thank you to @equinoxts2 and @lamare-sims for their further edits to the conditions files. I have reuploaded all files as new links, so feel free to replace the ones in your game. Children should no longer roll LTW's and you shouldn't get any errors when choosing these LTW's. 06/09/2023 - @venomander has been kind enough to create alternative icons for the careers. You can download them at these links: MediaFile 1