How to use Reshade with The Sims 4?

Hello everyone! Once is not usual, it is a small tutorial that we will propose you in this section! A tutorial that will allow you to modify the appearance of your game more or less as you like, this Sunday we will present you Reshade!

Reshade is a small program that brings graphical modifications to your games. We're going to take a look at its application in The Sims 4! A word of warning: these graphic enhancements require a computer that's up to the job. So before you start, make sure you have at least the configuration recommended by the game, and more if you like!

Good! Now that everyone is sitting down and focused, let's see how it works. First, what does this software do? Nothing better than a few examples in pictures of the result before and after activation:

You've got it, Reshade will play on everything that is blurred, brightness and colors to bring effects to your images. Very useful for those who like to take pictures in game.
Start by downloading it from its site. As we speak, the latest version is 4.5.4. Please note that, as with all mods, it's important to keep reshade up to date, as with the configuration files we'll talk about later.

Once downloaded, it will ask you to select a game. In all likelihood, the list that opens will not include The Sims 4. Click on "Browse", then go to the game's installation location. By default: C:/Program Files (x86)/Origin Games/The Sims 4/Game/Bin and choose the TS4_x64.exe file. If you have an older computer and have installed the Classic Edition, go to C:/Program Files (x86)/Origin Games/The Sims 4/Game/Bin_LE and select TS4.exe.

In the next screen, Reshade will ask you which version of directx to use. Choose "Direct3D 9".

A whole set of default effects will be displayed. Select them all to download them. Once this is done, you can close Reshade.

Well now it's up to you to define how your game will look with what are called configuration files. You can find quite a few of them on the web, created by players from the community. You can use only one at a time, but it will probably be more than enough. You can find some examples on Katverse or Lana CC Finds. Download one of the .ini files and place it in the folder you just came across: C:/Program Files (x86)/Origin Games/The Sims 4/Game/Bin.

I don't know if you've noticed but there are usually some instructions for use on the download site of the configuration. Be sure to follow the rules if there are any, and make a note in the corner of any keys.

Before starting the game, here's a quick step to avoid any problems. Open Origin, right-click on the Sims 4 cover and go to Properties. There should be a box to disable the "Origin in-game" function.

Now that everything is ready, launch the game! You will notice a small bar at the top of the screen offering you to follow a tutorial by pressing the Shift+F2 keys. I strongly advise you to do it to learn more about how Reshade works. It is in English but it will teach you how to activate or deactivate the different filters. You can play around with it to test the look you prefer. Remember that some modes require more power from your computer than others. You can disable them once your picture is done to limit the power consumption.

Once your filters are activated, check the "Performance Mode" button at the bottom and press Reload. You can close the reshade window and enjoy the view!

Small point screen captures! If you want to take pictures in game, note that pressing the C key will not take into account the effects you have activated. Use the Print Screen key which is the default key for reshading. You can change this choice by going to the Settings tab and then Screenshots. You will also see where the screenshots are stored, by default in the Game/bin folder.