How to reset your neighbourhoods!

[The Star Hermit]

How to reset your neighbourhoods!

General Information

It is possible in The Sims 2 to replace or reset one or all of your pre-made neighbourhoods to the condition they were in when you installed the game, without re-installing the game or any expansions you may have, and without losing any of your custom content. This means that you can have back all the pre-made lots and families to the same condition as when you first installed The Sims 2 and/or the expansions.

It is also possible to reset your entire game including neighbourhoods, lots and sims to the condition they were in when you installed the game and/or the expansions. Again, you can do this without reinstalling but be sure that this is what you really want to do before you start.

Important Note: Although it is generally safe to perform the procedures outlined below, I strongly recommend that you perform a back up of all your saved game files as a precaution in case of any errors or problems during the procedure. It's always a good idea to make regular back ups anyway and now is as good a time as any for that extra safety margin. See How to back up your game files! for more information on how to back up successfully. Be sure to use the 'Back Up All Files' section.

Contents

• General Information
• Resetting Pleasantview, Strangetown or Veronaville
• Resetting Riverblossom Hills
• Resetting Desiderata Valley
• Resetting Belladonna Cove
• Resetting All Your Game Files

[The Star Hermit]

Resetting Pleasantview, Strangetown or Veronaville

1. Make sure your The Sims 2 game isn't running.
2. Back up your games files. (See General Information section above).
3. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
4. Right-click on the folder you are replacing, (N001 for Pleasantview, N002 for Strangetown and N003 for Veronaville) and choose 'Delete'.
5. Click yes when asked, to confirm deletion.
6. Find the following location on your hard drive: C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\The Sims 2\TSData\Res\UserData\Neighborhoods. (Note: This assumes you have installed the game into the default location. If you have the game installed on a drive with a different letter, then change the C:\ to the letter of the drive your game is installed on).
7. If you look in the folder listed in step 6, you will see at least 4 folders and 1 file. The three folders we are interested in are the ones labeled N001, N002 and N003.
8. Choose the neighbourhood that you want to reset from the three folders mentioned in step 7. The neighbourhoods are as follows:
   • N001 = Pleasantview.
   • N002 = Strangetown.
   • N003 = Veronaville.
9. Right-click on the folder for the neighbourhood you will be resetting and choose the 'copy' option. (i.e. If you will be resetting Pleasantview then the correct folder to right-click on will be N001).
10. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
11. Right-click inside a blank part of the folder listed in step 10 and choose the 'paste' option, wait while the folder and files are copied over.
12. Start your game and go to the pre-made neighbourhood you have just replaced. Verify that everything has indeed been reset.

Note: If your neighbourhood has not been reset, repeat the steps listed above. Make sure when you right-click and copy the neighbourhood you are resetting that you are in the right location, i.e. in the Program Files and not the My Documents folder. Also make sure that you have selected the right neighbourhood number to copy. If in any doubt, you can always restore the backup you made before starting and have everything back as it was.

[The Star Hermit]

Resetting Riverblossom Hills

1. Make sure your The Sims 2 game isn't running.
2. Back up your games files. (See General Information section above).
3. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
4. Right-click on the folder G001 (this is the Riverblossom Hills folder) and choose 'Delete'.
5. Click yes when asked, to confirm deletion.
6. Find the following location on your hard drive: C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\The Sims 2 Seasons\TSData\Res\UserData\Neighborhoods. (Note: This assumes you have installed the game into the default location. If you have the game installed on a drive with a different letter, then change the C:\ to the letter of the drive your game is installed on).
7. If you look in the folder listed in step 6, you will see at least 1 folder and 1 file. We are interested in the folder labeled G001.
8. Right-click on the G001 folder and choose the 'copy' option.
9. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
10. Right-click inside a blank part of the folder listed in step 9 and choose the 'paste' option, wait while the folder and files are copied over.
11. Start your game and go to Riverblossom Hills neighbourhood you have just replaced. Verify that everything has indeed been reset.

Resetting Desiderata Valley

1. Make sure your The Sims 2 game isn't running.
2. Back up your games files. (See General Information section above).
3. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
4. Right-click on the folder F001 (this is the Desiderata Valley folder) and choose 'Delete'.
5. Click yes when asked, to confirm deletion.
6. Find the following location on your hard drive: C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\The Sims 2 FreeTime\TSData\Res\UserData\Neighborhoods. (Note: This assumes you have installed the game into the default location. If you have the game installed on a drive with a different letter or you installed to a different location, then change the C:\ to the letter of the drive/install location your game is installed on).
7. If you look in the folder listed in step 6, you will see at least 1 folder folder labelled F001.
8. Right-click on the F001 folder and choose the 'copy' option.
9. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
10. Right-click inside a blank part of the folder listed in step 9 and choose the 'paste' option, wait while the folder and files are copied over.
11. Start your game and go to the Desiderata Valley neighbourhood you have just replaced. Verify that everything has indeed been reset.

Resetting Belladonna Cove

1. Make sure your The Sims 2 game isn't running.
2. Back up your games files. (See General Information section above).
3. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
4. Right-click on the folder E001 (this is the Belladonna Cove folder) and choose 'Delete'.
5. Click yes when asked, to confirm deletion.
6. Find the following location on your hard drive: C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\The Sims 2 Apartment Life\TSData\Res\UserData\Neighborhoods. (Note: This assumes you have installed the game into the default location. If you have the game installed on a drive with a different letter or you installed to a different location, then change the C:\ to the letter of the drive/install location your game is installed on).
7. If you look in the folder listed in step 6, you will see at least 1 folder folder labelled E001.
8. Right-click on the E001 folder and choose the 'copy' option.
9. Now find the following location on your hard drive: My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Neighborhoods.
10. Right-click inside a blank part of the folder listed in step 9 and choose the 'paste' option, wait while the folder and files are copied over.
11. Start your game and go to the Belladonna Cove neighbourhood you have just replaced. Verify that everything has indeed been reset.

Note: If your neighbourhood has not been reset, repeat the steps listed above. Make sure when you right-click and copy the neighbourhood you are resetting that you are in the right location, i.e. in the Program Files and not the My Documents folder. Also make sure that you have selected the right neighbourhood number to copy. If in any doubt, you can always restore the backup you made before starting and have everything back as it was.

[The Star Hermit]

Resetting All Your Game Files

1. Make sure your The Sims 2 game isn't running.
2. Back up your games files. (See General Information section above).
3. Find and open the My Documents\EA Games folder. If you don't keep this on your desktop you can find it by double-clicking your My Computer icon, then double-clicking the folder with your login name on and finally double-clicking on the EA Games folder. You can also find this by navigating to C:\Documents and Settings\Insert login name here\My Documents\EA Games
   
   Note: If you are using Windows Vista, My Documents is located at C:\users\YOUR USERNAME\Documents.
   
   
4. If you look inside the folder listed in step 3, you will see a folder called The Sims 2.
5. Select The Sims 2 folder and press the Delete key on your keyboard.
6. Click the 'yes' button to confirm the deletion of the folder.
7. Restart The Sims 2. Your game will now recreate a new set of game files for you as it starts up.
8. Verify that all the pre-made neighbourhoods are there and they are all reset.
9. Should you wish to, you can shut down the game again and replace all your downloads from the backup you made before starting.

Note: As your game has to recreate all the files, it will take longer to start up as it has to copy them over from the default backups so please be patient.

If for some reason your game files have not been reset it could be an indication that there is a wider problem with your game. There are several things you can try in order to restore your game.

• Check the recycle bin and look for the folder called The sims 2 that you deleted in step 5/6 above. Select that folder, right-click on it and choose restore. Restart your game again and check that the neighbourhoods have been restored to normal.
• Find the backup you made before starting and move it inside your My Documents/EA Games folder. Restart your game again and check that the neighbourhoods have been restored to normal.
• Reinstall your game. If your game files were not recreated during the procedure outlined above, this may be the best option as it may indicate that there is a wider problem with your game. Although the intention would have been to reset the files without reinstalling, it will still have the desired effect anyway so is a useful last resort.

[The Star Hermit]

This is now updated to include resetting Desiderata Valley.

[Jck11116]

I think I need to print this off

[The Star Hermit]

Originally Posted by Jck11116

I think I need to print this off

Clicky here for a printable version.

[The Star Hermit]

This is now updated to include resetting Belladonna Cove.

[Anthony]

Nice. Ive always been wondering how to restart them.

[Peggy1945ply]

You mention Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills and Belladonna Cove, where do these neighbourhoods come from? Sorry about going off track here but I am interested to know

[EnglandEllie06]

Originally Posted by Peggy1945ply

You mention Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills and Belladonna Cove, where do these neighbourhoods come from? Sorry about going off track here but I am interested to know

Desiderata Valley comes from the FreeTime EP, Riverblossom Hills comes from the Seasons EP and Belladonna Cove comes from the Apartment Life EP

[Clelclan]

Originally Posted by Peggy1945ply

You mention Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills and Belladonna Cove, where do these neighbourhoods come from? Sorry about going off track here but I am interested to know

Riverblossom Hills was the new neighbourhood with Seasons, Desiderata came with Freetime and Belladonna Cove with Apartment Life.

[Beffi]

Originally Posted by Peggy1945ply

You mention Desiderata Valley, Riverblossom Hills and Belladonna Cove, where do these neighbourhoods come from? Sorry about going off track here but I am interested to know

Belladonna Cove comes with the Apartment Life expansion, Riverblossom Hills comes with the Seasons expansion and Desiderata Valley came with Freetime.

Edit: Beaten to it!

[Lucee]

I dont have step three, just ts2

[Anthony]

All those Nhood's come from the EP's

[Beffi]

Originally Posted by smosh-ay

I dont have step three, just ts2

It should be inside that folder.
If there was nothing in that folder then I'd be worried for your game.

[Lucee]

nope, nothing. unless its in one of the eps. the game works fine

[The Star Hermit]

Originally Posted by smosh-ay

nope, nothing. unless its in one of the eps. the game works fine

Which one are you trying to reset? Don't forget that there are two different locations where your files are stored, your sims and neighbourhoods that you are currently playing are stored in My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2. If you are using Windows Vista, My Documents is located at C:\users\YOUR USERNAME\Documents.

The default back ups on the other hand are stored with the installed program files, usually on the C drive if you have installed it to the default location, i.e. C:\Program Files\EA GAMES.

Make sure you are looking in the right location for the right folders.

[Peggy1945ply]

Are there any neighbourhoods for Business EP and Pets?

[The Star Hermit]

Originally Posted by Peggy1945ply

Are there any neighbourhoods for Business EP and Pets?

There wasn't one for pets, Open For Business has a sub-neighbourhood which can be attached to your main neighbourhood in the same manner as the Nightlife Downtown neighbourhood can be. It's called Bluewater Village and has some pre-made families living in it, it's main purpose is for your sims to buy their own businesses and the neighbourhood is mainly set up to support that.

[Lucee]

It works, thanks. I hadnt read properly.

[dundoniandood]

I was going to reset riverblossom hills, but in my data the folder for riverblossom hills is called G002 instead of G001. Should I be worried?

[JLSpellbound]

I did all this.. twice. And it didn't work. :/ I read all the instructions carefully aswell but it seems that the neighbourhood on my hardrive, the one we paste into the neighbourhoods folder... has the same information as the one I deleted.