From middle school up until the trend faded out, I watched Sims 2 series on YouTube more than I watched actual TV shows. Here are 23 that I hold to a high nostalgic value.
Unfortunately, some series have been taken down over the years, so I can't include them (i.e. Unlucky Lola, The Lost Memory, Hooked, etc.) And some I just couldn't find no matter how hard I searched for them. Most of these are from the 2006-12 era, but some are still updated presently, and I wanted to include what I think is the best of the few that are still around. I saved it for last.
1. Getting By
This was the first series I ever discovered. The quality is admittedly not great compared to most of the others on this list, but because it was the first one I ever watched, I'll always love it for what it was.
2. The Unknown Truth
YouTube creator Alittlemid shaped a lot of my Friday nights in seventh grade. From "The Unknown Truth" to "The Way I Am", the quality of videos improved drastically over the years. I don't really keep up with her stuff nowadays, but the quality is definitely better than it was ten years ago. That being said, as much as I made fun of TUT's quality in later years, it will always hold a special place in my heart.
3. Just One
Who could ever forget Just One? This is the teenage pregnancy series that inspired literally every teenage pregnancy series ever made. If your teen pregnancy series wasn't a rip-off of Just One, did you even make one? Kitsparrow27's filming quality was pretty revolutionary for 2006 when the series began. This was my favorite series for years, though admittedly her second series, "Arranged to Be", had a more interesting plot. Teen pregnancy used to be a less-commonly-explored subject back in the day, but after everyone made their copies of "Just One", it got overdone real quick. Either way, I love Kit's work and wish she'd come back, at least to update us on how she's doing in life.
4. Teenaged
What can I say about "Teenaged"? I discovered it in summer 2009, the best summer of my life, while I was on vacation in New York, my favorite place in the world. It was the first teenage pregnancy series I came across that wasn't a complete ripoff of "Just One", and also one of the few series I watched where the "preppy" teens were the antagonists, and the teens with a more "emo" style were protagonists.
This is one of the few series that still gets updates every once in a while, but I'm not that big a fan of the direction it's been going in. I'll always love that first season, though.
5. Wasteland
Vintage's series were a big part of my junior year of high school. This was the first one I discovered, and was probably the most well-known of the 2010-12 era. It set off a whole 'nother set of copycat series; truly the "Just One" of its time, but it explored many different plots and was certainly original.
I hear Vintage is still making series, but due to a conflict between her and one of my close friends, I haven't really been keeping up with her.
6. Pleasentview High (& spinoffs)
Kat was one of the best filmmakers of the early days of Sims 2. Without much content available at the time to work with, she still produced amazing work rivaled only by Kitsparrow27. Both styles are unique and amazing for their time, however. Being able to produce such a high-quality series in 2006 wasn't easy, that's for sure. Kat also had the first LGBT storylines I ever watched, which wasn't very common back in the day. I'm still a hardcore Kait & Sam shipper.
7. Pleasentview
Pleasentview was the premade town that everyone and their mother loved to make a series about. We had "A Pleasent Strange Ville", which explored all 3 premade towns, we had "A Pleasent View", and its spinoffs, but most memorable in my opinion was doons99p's version: "Pleasentview". Her unique approach, high quality, and amazing storylines are unrivaled in the vast amount of Pleasentview-themed series available.
This is one of the few series I still keep up with, when we get our few and far between updates.
8. Saturday Nights
Okay, so this series is now vastly different from when it first came out. I don't keep up with it anymore; I completely fell behind years ago and haven't had the chance to catch up, but I know it's still consistently updated and is on season 13, I believe.
The "hacked kids" were a unique concept in the Sims community, and however you felt about the actual content of the series (for me it was an "edgy" thing to watch as a 13/14 year old girl) it was truly unforgettable.
9. Life in Simsville (& Neon East)
The series' original trait of minimal custom content was a hard one to pull off in the Sims community, but this is one of the few series that made it work, in my opinion. I liked the way the custom content was slowly introduced as the series progressed, and think it gives the Sims a more unique look that allows us to focus more on the storyline itself. It was certainly an interesting plot to follow.
10. The L List
This series had one of the most frustrating plots to watch, because let's be real, nobody likes Tiffany and her friends deserve better. That being said, looking back on it, I realized how realistically it portrayed the abusive relationship between Tiffany and Cory. As frustrating as it was to watch, and no matter how badly we wanted them both to get out of it, there's just something real about how Tiffany always went back, and I think if the series continued, it would have had the opportunity to raise an important discussion.
11. Cahuna Beach High
This is the series my parents caught me watching when I was in seventh grade and almost put an internet filter on my computer, because "Sims is inappropriate", even though this is one of the most tame series out there at the time. Even its one "sex scene" was incredibly tame, and the characters were way more clothed than other series of its time, and especially series that came out later down the line.
Tori still makes content once in a while, and we're friends on Twitter. She's really nice, and her newer stuff is really good!
12. My Life
I'm pretty sure this series still gets updated, but I fell behind somewhere around last summer and haven't had the chance to catch up. From the long first season to the more recent drama, the 'hacked kids' in later seasons, and who could forget the hacker incident-- "My Life" isn't going to fade from our memories anytime soon.
13. Runaway
This series took us on a journey, and I'm still not over how it ended.
14. Riverblossom High
This series went from fun to dark, and I still need to know how it ends.
15. All We Are (Kiki's Life)
The unclosure of this series finale still hurts. Also, the quality improved so much over the 4 seasons.
16. Call It Karma
Another series that drastically improved over the course of its run, but at least this one provided us with closure.
17. It's Just High School
I've definitely fallen behind on this one, but to my knowledge it still gets updated. So much happens in this series, honestly.
18. Fat Girl
I haven't watched this series in years, so I'm not sure how well it aged, but I remember it having an overall message of body positivity. It was also kind of a thriller, towards the end.
19. Unexpected
A lot happened in this series. The ending still trips me up when I think about it. But overall, a more original series of its genre and ultimately pretty good.
20. Smooth Criminal
This was kind of a weird concept, and a lot happened in this series, but I guess that's what makes it so memorable.
21. Rain
This series got pretty dark at times, but was definitely memorable, and the quality definitely improved over its run.
22. Advocated
This is honestly one of the best Sims series ever made. The plot, the quality, the way everything comes together... 10/10 recommend. I used to watch this in class on my iPad junior year when we had free time.
23. Openness
This. Everything about this. If any series can make you forget you're watching a Sims series and trick you into thinking it's a real TV show, it's Openness. It's definitely more of a time commitment than the others on this list, but it's so worth it. The quality, the filming style, the details, the representation, the plot... just let it speak for itself. And I happen to know the creator is a fantastic human being! Truly a gift to the Sims community.
Now time for a nostalgic bingewatch! Enjoy!