After 22 years of simulated-life fun, The Sims fans are currently brimming with excitement for a potential The Sims 5 in upcoming years. Despite no official announcement from EA Maxis themselves, news has leaked that the highly anticipated next installment is in development. Despite being very much a solo-experience game franchise where players can make their own world, The Sims 5 may even feature a rare multiplayer option.
Players on Reddit have been debating the best The Sims features added across the 4 games for years. Throughout the franchise, features have been varied with some additions coming and going despite how beloved they may have been.
10 When The Sims Went Customization-Crazy
The Sims 3, released in 2009, is renowned among fans as having the best customization options. This is because it utilizes the infinite possibilities of the color wheel. This was particularly fun when customizing Sims' hair, which allowed players like Redditor TheGryphonQueen to change the roots, main body, highlights, and tips to whatever color they pleased. Fans could also go as far as to edit the textures and colors of their Sims' clothing. This extended all the way to furniture (customizing upholstery on chairs and sofas) to the patterns and fabrics on duvets. Unfortunately, this level of personalization was not included in The Sims 4, much to the disappointment of fans.
9 Sim Wants And Fears Spiced Things Up
Redditor MorganFerdinand misses the wants and fears featured in The Sims 2, released in 2004. Later games still heavily feature a wide array of traits and wishes for players to choose from, which deeply affect their Sims' behaviors and lives, but The Sims 2 fears feature allowed things to go very wrong without players actively orchestrating events.
If a Sim's fear came true, this could cause a major downward spiral. Additionally, while fulfilling wants would gain aspiration points, experiencing fears could cause a loss in said points. Players are granted four want slots and three fear slots, which evolve throughout the Sim's lifetime.
8 Create A Sim Allows For Beauty And Abomination
The Sims fans, whether new or long-term players, will know how important the Create A Sim step is to the game overall. Creating your sims is, to a lot of players, the best part, which inevitably takes up most of their gameplay time. When The Sims 4 was released back in 2014, fans rejoiced at the flexibility of the new interface. Players could grab, pull, and stretch any and all of Sims' features to craft or destroy their characters' appearances. Because of this, the 4th installation to the franchise is likely to have the best CAS feature – an opinion that is shared by Redditor Mary-Sylvia.
7 Sim Selfies You Can Decorate With
The Sims 4 introduced Sim smartphones to the franchise to keep up with real-life modern technology. This meant players could improve photography skills without having to splash out on expensive in-game cameras. A new interaction that came with this feature, and the "Get to Work" expansion pack, was to "Take a Selfie" with friends, which resulted in some up-to-date, newbie photography all fans could relate to. Players can then hang up their favorite selfies around their homes. Beware, with low skill, players could end up with an abomination displayed on their walls.
6 Radio Music Got Fans And Sims Dancing
Fans on Reddit love to relish in the nostalgia of The Sims 2 radio music options. There were 20 stations to choose from with all the available expansion packs. In the base game, players and Sims alike could enjoy Hip Hop, Metal, Pop, R&B, Salsa, and Techno on a purchased stereo. A favorite of Redditor Joelowes was the Salsa radio station, which is an opinion that appears to be almost unanimously shared on the forum. The Sims 3 even featured Simlish versions of real-world music while also allowing players to add in their own favorite tunes through the Custom Station.
5 The Lifetime Relationship Meter Added Realism
In The Sims 2, players could cultivate lifetime relationships. This meant that even if Sims temporarily fell out over a fight or affair, for example, their enduring lifetime relationship meter would mean they'd still view each other somewhat positively.
This would inevitably create drama and relationship complexity, more like real-world conflicts than simulated ones. The forgotten lifetime relationship meter is explored by a Redditor on the Sims subreddit, through some old-fashioned The Sims 2 story-telling.
4 Improved Graphics and Playability, Finally!
The improvement in graphics and smooth gameplay from The Sims 3 to The Sims 4 was huge. Despite Redditor's underlying preference for previous games' features, this is one best feature they can actually agree on. The Sims 3 loading time was slow and the gameplay was often glitchy and sometimes impossible. Moreover, Sims in-game all looked rather similar, losing the individuality players had spent so long crafting in Create a Sim. Regardless of any other feature, the game must run properly and reliably without almost constant hiccups, which The Sims 4 achieves.
3 Drivable (Not Decorative) Cars
Players have the ability to purchase cars in The Sims 4, but they are undrivable and purely decorative. In The Sims 2, with expansion packs like "Nightime" or available with a 2007 update, Sims could drive the cars they purchased to work, improving their mood as opposed to carpooling. Players could choose from service vehicles or 5 different types of Ford vehicles in the miscellaneous section of Buy Mode. According to Redditor Comorant86, this feature improved players' moods too. However, some fans on Reddit have argued that drivable cars on The Sims only make sense with an entirely open-world feature.
2 Open World Caused Chaos
An open-world feature was introduced in The Sims 3, revolutionizing the game forever. This meant that players could explore towns freely with no loading screens, adding to the realism of the franchise. Additionally, this feature allowed players to control Sims even if they weren't on the lot.
On the flipside, town events could also unfold on their own accord. However, players did have the option to turn this feature on and off, to prevent confusion and chaos. Unfortunately, The Sims 3 open-world feature was not carried over into The Sims 4, as developers prioritized playability.
1 The All-Important Build Mode
Build Mode introduces a whole new dimension to The Sims gameplay experience, serving a crucial role in the franchise since the beginning. Fans can play architect and interior designer while building their Sims' their very own home. This has kickstarted a YouTube frenzy of satisfying The Sims speed builds. According to Redditors, The Sims 4 has the best version of Build Mode to date. It prioritizes simplicity and makes building more accessible in comparison to earlier games, so even amateur builds are more likely to be passable.