With the 20th anniversary of The Sims franchise ongoing, there’s never been more talk about new features and a possible The Sims 5. It will be interesting to see which direction the game takes in the coming year, especially with the recent feedback form that EA sent to all players to ask about wanted features. It’s a great sign that the developers might finally be listening to major complaints.
While waiting for any big, game-changing additions to arrive, it’s a good idea to rely on some of the fantastic custom content that dedicated fans have made. Mods in particular can bring some much-needed spice to a game that might feel stale. For anyone new to modding or for those simply wanting to add something brand new into their game, here are 10 mods that will unexpectedly make The Sims even more addictive.
While fans will still have to wait and see what’s in store next for The Sims 4, the best way to enjoy the game right now is to use some of the incredible custom content available. Mods especially can really change the way the game feels and how it’s played, which is why these five additional mods deserve some love.
15 Mortem
Death in The Sims 4 is pretty bizarre. After an incident takes place or when a Sim reaches old age, they will collapse on the ground and everyone will gather around to mourn them. Meanwhile, the Grim Reaper makes his entrance, and family and friends can try to plead for their loved one.
The Mortem mod by SimRealist removes this whole process and makes it so that the Grim Reaper never even appears. Instead, Sims must report a death to organize a proper funeral for their loved one, which is a unique event of its own.
14 Random Traits And Aspirations
When Sims age up, players are always given the option to pick their aspiration and trait for the next age. It’s nice to have this amount of control, but sometimes it would be better if these things happened in a more natural way, which would reinforce the whole immersion aspect.
The mod Random Traits & Aspirations by graycurse does just that. Players are no longer in charge of the traits of their next generation. Players who are desperate for some realism and randomization will really appreciate this tweak.
13 More CAS Columns
Gameplay aside, some of the changes the game needs have nothing to do with the actual lives of the Sims. In fact, one crucial tweak that Simmers need starts at the very beginning in the CAS screen, where players create their Sim for the very first time.
The More CAS Columns mod is a staple among any dedicated Simmer, as it allows the CAS screen to show more options when browsing for items. Hardcore CAS creators with tons of custom content will find a ton of relief with this organizational mod.
12 Life’s Drama
The worlds of The Sims 4 are sometimes disgustingly peaceful. Nothing ever seems to happen, and the player is almost forced to make something negative take place. There’s just a glaring lack of drama in the world, which makes it feel insanely stale.
Sacrificial Mods changes this in their Life’s Drama mod, which introduces a bunch of brand new random events players can witness in their neighborhoods. From a Sim suddenly giving birth to a toddler being lost, the peace will finally be broken.
11 Explore Mod
Most of the activities available in the game are repetitive and similar. There’s also just a handful of community lots, from gyms to pools to libraries, but nothing too unique or different that would seriously change the game.
KawaiiStacie’s Explore Mod doesn’t drastically change the game, but it does give Sims more rabbit hole activities which will actually bring them back with new nails, new hair, and outfits even, depending on where they decide to go to. It’s the ultimate free time, activity, and hobby mod.
10 Meaningful Stories
Emotions are an excellent feature. It’s unique to The Sims 4, and makes for dynamic gameplay that gives you short-term goals and tasks to accomplish. However, the way emotions actually work is sometimes a bit too predictable and unrealistic. Sims can easily go from one extreme to another within the same day.
The Meaningful Stories Mod fixes that by making the shifting of emotions more stable and gradual. Not to mention, a Sim’s emotions will be more unpredictable, which brings in a nice dose of challenge and excitement. This is a great addition if you feel like it’s way too easy to keep your Sims just “Fine” or “Happy” all the time.
9 Have Some Personality Please!
When walking around the neighborhoods in the game, it might suddenly occur to you that everyone seems very much the same. Despite having different traits, it’s easy for all Sims to just behave in the same polite and happy manner as usual. Romances never change, and toddlers are almost always the same.
The Have Some Personality! Mod introduces a ton of small quality of life tweaks to make Sims’ personalities more drastic. There are more special interactions, and romancing someone is more difficult at lower levels of affection. Even cats and dogs get some attention with this mod, as it gives them a nice personality boost.
8 SimDa Dating App
Dating in The Sims 4 is pretty generic as well. Usually a Sim will just meet someone at a park, bar or cafe and then grow close to them. However, even then, the controlled Sim will usually have to initiate romance with the other Sim. In the real world, however, there are tons of different ways to meet new people.
That’s why the SimDa Dating App mod is so great. Sims can now use computers and their phone to meet people. Whether they’re looking for a blind date or just a quick hook-up, everything is included in this mod. It’s not a heavy mod at all, which makes it even better to add into any game for a nice little spice.
7 Realistic Reactions
Due to Sims generally being very happy and, even if they aren’t, behaving very politely towards one another, it can sometimes feel like even the slightest attempt at drama gets brushed off by bystanders. And yet, in reality, witnessing a fight in a family or even in a public area should leave an impression or at least coax a reaction.
The Realistic Reactions mod introduces brand new interactions that makes it so that people around are actually affected by what’s going on. This gives the game real consequences to consider, especially when Sims do questionable interactions like cheat on their spouse.
6 Life Decider
The beauty of The Sims 4 is that players decide themselves who they want to play as and what kind of stories they’d like to tell. However, sometimes too much control over things can get extremely boring and repetitive. People like surprises and challenges, which is why previous games in the franchise were so good and popular.
Not to worry, because the Life Decider mod brings in some much-needed randomness into the world of The Sims 4. Now, you can have this mod randomize a Sims’ entire life, by picking their traits, their career and even their skills. There’s no better way to make things more interesting than a mod that chooses for you.
5 Sleepover Mod
While The Sims 4: Seasons did introduce the calendar and a ton of different holidays and events you can plan, there’s still so much more that the game needs to be truly versatile and fun to play. Sky’s the limit when it comes to parties and events, and with such a limited range of things to do, it just gets boring after a while.
For those who have always dreamed of replicating their childhood sleepovers in The Sims 4, there’s good news. The Sleepover Mod introduces a new event type, which allows children to plan a sleepover event with a friend. The event can even be made for toddlers, but an adult Sim will have to plan it.
4 More CAS Traits
It’s a bit of a miracle how few new traits The Sims 4 has received over the years from expansions. Many of the newer ones are specific to careers or certain locations, which is what makes them pretty unrealistic for use. However, reward traits which can be unlocked and bring a bit more excitement into the game.
Because of this, the More CAS Traits mod makes it so that any of the traits can be accessed and added once within the game by clicking on a Sim. This is great because it allows you to create a more personalized Sim right off the bat rather than waiting to unlock rewards.
3 Playable Pets
Pets tend to be a popular addition, and with each game since the very first one, players have always eagerly awaited for the pets expansion to pop up. Unfortunately, pets can’t be controlled, nor can their needs really be seen. While this is more realistic, it can be a bit annoying at times.
The Playable Pets mod makes the pets in the family household fully available for play. They can be controlled just like normal Sims, and even their needs are visible for the player. The Play and Affection meters basically replace Social and Fun, but otherwise it’s very much the same.
2 Online Learning System
Now that Discover University is out and all Sims can finally get educated, one would think that’s all the game really needs in terms of schools and education. Well, some fans are still hoping teens and children will get an expansion that opens up their school life to more play and interactions.
Meanwhile, there’s a really handy mod for those Sims that can’t go to university but really want to learn a new skill and develop themselves. From children to elders, everyone can register for a course online and get a nice skill boost.
1 Slice Of Life
At this point, what the franchise really needs is a burst of realism and a bit challenge. Something new should be on the horizon, too, based on the recent feedback questionnaire that circulated the community’s social media. However, knowing EA, it’ll take a while before we see anything concrete.
In the meantime, a super mod known as Slice Of Life provides tons and tons of changes into the game to make it more playable. From custom traits to new interactions and changes to emotions and buffs, this mod will affect every aspect of a Sim’s life. It’s perfect for those who just want one mod to do all the good things.
