I recently got a new monitor and I can't find the right aspect ratio to play the sims with. My monitor is set to 1920 x 1200 and the sims is set at 1600 x 1200 (the highest it goes and seemed to be the least distorted when I went through them all) which is almost ok but you can tell by a couple screen shots that it's not quite right and it's really bugging me. Everything is a stretched a bit taller and skinnier.




Is there a way to add a custom monitor size to the Sims or another way to get the aspect ratio right?

Screens usually have a "native resolution" which is the resolution they were intended to run at. That's usually the resolution you should use. What is your monitors exact model number? I can probably find the native resolution online, and once you set it in the sims everything should look okay.

EDIT: This is what my resolution options are:

Thanks! Although, I'm pretty sure 1920 x 1200 is my native resolution (which I didn't see as an option) so just went through and tried each setting to see how they looked.

Dell UltraSharp U2412M 24" LED LCD Monitor - 16:10 - 8 ms

ETA:
This is what my options look like for the Sims 2.

1440x900 doesn't look good?

Do you play in windowed mode? When I got my new monitor none of the resolutions looked good in full-screen mode. So I switched to windowed mode. Honesty? There's not much difference in the screen size, it's the same height and just a little bit narrower. After getting used to how you have to move around in game in windowed mode, I love it now.

Right click the desktop and choose Screen Resolution (w7). Windows will recommend a resolution based on your monitor and video card. For sims you want to choose an aspect ratio that matches this.

To get additional choices to show up for sims you need to edit the GraphicsRules.sgr for your latest EP. For me it is C:\Program Files (x86)\EA GAMES\The Sims 2 Mansion and Garden Stuff\TSData\Res\Config. Search for option ScreenModeResolution, then change to allow your native resolution to show. My native resolution is 1680x1050, so see below for what I changed mine to. The maxRes* is the monitor size, and the defaultRes* is what I play my game at (high).



Of course I also play in windowed mode (1280x800). This aspect ratio matches my video card/monitor and allows me to take upload pics without having to crop or resize.

Awesome info! I think someone should sticky this!

I haven't had a chance to edit my graphicsrules.sgr file yet but this is exactly what I was looking for, Lunie. Thank you so much! :lovestruc