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The Sims 4 update breaks the life game on older PCs

An upcoming The Sims 4 update will stop support for the Legacy Edition of the game, which older gaming PCs need if they want to run the EA life game

The Sims 4 update breaks the life game on older PCs

EA has announced that the newest The Sims 4 update will stop supporting a specific version of the life game, requiring you to change the version you play on or update your PC or laptop entirely, depending on your situation.

This refers to a The Sims 4 update for the Legacy Edition of the game, which was introduced part way through the lifecycle of The Sims 4 as EA upgraded the base game and The Sims 4 system requirements for better hardware.

Now that older version of The Sims 4 will disappear, which may not seem like an issue at first, but the casual nature of The Sims means many people with differing levels of technology play it, and some will likely be losing access.

The Legacy Edition of the game was a The Sims 4 update to make sure that PC 32-bit operating systems (like some older Windows software) and Non-Metal mac OS could run the game. All expansions before University work with the Legacy Edition, but any after, online features, and some mods, don’t work with the older version of The Sims 4.

If you use the legacy Edition, this The Sims 4 update is coming into effect on December 12, with EA “saying goodbye to Legacy Edition, so this option is no longer available,” as of that date.

While this is disappointing for players with older hardware, EA has provided some details on what you’ll need to continue playing the regular version of The Sims 4. Mac owners will need Metal mac OS on their computer, which is version 10.11 or above. Windows PC players will need to upgrade from 32 to 64 bit, or install The Sims 4 on a device with 64 bit OS already on it.

You don’t need to worry about your saves here though, as EA has provided an outline for how to transfer your saves ahead of The Sims 4 update.

If you want more from The Sims 4, why not check out our best Sims 4 mods list, or our guide on how to download The Sims 4 for free. Alternatively we have a Sims 5 Project Rene interview, which dives into what EA and Maxis are doing for the future of the life sim.