What are the system requirements for "The Sims 2?"

Question: What are the system requirements for "The Sims 2?"

Answer: Maxis has released information on the system requirements for "The Sims 2." If you have a T&L (info about what T&L is below) capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM (such as nvidia GeForce 2 or better or ATI Radeon 7000 or better) then you need at least:

• 800 MHz processor
• 256 MB RAM if Windows XP
• 128 MB RAM if Windows 98, Windows ME, or Windows 2000
• At least 3.5 gigs of free hard drive space

If you have a non-T&L capable video card (such as TNT2, Intel, or Rage for example) then you need at least:

• 2.0 GHz processor
• 256 MB RAM if Windows XP
• 128 MB RAM if Windows 98, Windows ME, or Windows 2000
• At least 3.5 gigs of free hard drive space

Recommened video cards (and the more video memory the better):

• ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
• Nvidia Geforce 4
• Visit "The Sims 2" official website for a more detailed list.

You can also download the system requirements test from ServoPro to see if your computer is ready for "The Sims 2."

From TheSims.com:

From the nVidia website's glossary Transform & Lighting (T&L) definition: Two separate engines on the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) that provide for a powerful, balanced PC platform and enable extremely high polygon count scenes. Transform performance determines how complex objects can be and how many can appear in a scene without sacrificing frame rate. Lighting techniques add to a scene's realism by changing the appearance of objects based on light sources.

Some other notes about video cards: T&L video cards started shipping around 3 years ago, so if you got your computer in the last couple of years you should check and see if you have a T&L card.

It's always a good idea to make sure you have the most current drivers for your video cards. The manufacturers usually have the video drivers on their sites for you to download. Visit the nVidia site or the ATI for the latest drivers for those video cards.