The popular game The Sims 4 came out in 2017. The Sims is a simulation game where the player can control how they want their character to live. The game is relatively cheap, costing only $10. When creating a Sim, the player can pick their name, personality, aspiration, gender, and outfits. After the Sim is created, it is time to pick a place to live. The base game has three towns to choose from: Oasis Springs, Newcrest, and Willowcreek. When choosing a home, there are basic prebuilt homes or there are empty lots for players to build custom houses on. 

If the player chooses to build their own home, they can create the home however they want. If the player does not like the prebuilt houses or does not want to build their own home, there is a gallery option which will open thousands of fancy, pre-made homes. The only thing needed for gallery homes is an Origin account. Origin is free, but players will need it to download the Sims 4. 

For a more entertaining and overall better game play, expansion packs, game packs, and stuff packs are available. There is a Cats and Dogs pack, Vampire pack, Seasons, and City Living. However, The expansions do cost money to download. These expansion packs are also cheaper because of the holiday season discounts.

The Sims 4 Cats and Dogs pack is the most popular of the packs. It adds pets to the game as well as the necessities for them. The player can create their own pet when first starting the game or they can adopt a pet. The Cats and Dogs pack adds a new skill their sim can learn: dog training. The player can get rewards for training their dog and running courses with them. A new town is also added as well as a new aspiration. The town is called Brindleton Bay and the aspiration is called Friend of the Animals, which makes it easier to become friends with pets. 

“Sometimes when I play I make a girl dog, then a boy dog then I make them have puppies. They sell for good cash and I keep one from every litter,” said Emme Grubbs, 9. 

When playing the Sims it is also common to start a family. Sims can get into relationships, get married, and have kids with other sims.

 When a Sim is pregnant it usually takes three to four days for the baby to come. When it does, it is spawned in a crib for 2 days until it ages into a toddler. When a Sim has a toddler, they require a lot of attention, just like in real life. They have basic needs as well as learning how to talk, walk, think for themselves, and be creative. When it is the toddler’s birthday, they age up into a child and are able to do things on their own as well as go to school. After child years they age up to a teen, then young adult.  

“One time my Sim had triplets. It was the worst thing that could have happened. My poor Sim was running around trying to take care of her awful toddlers,” said Makayla Binkley, 11. 

The main difference between the Sims 4 and the older Sims is the graphics and overall gaming experience. The gameplay now has more interactions and more packs that the player  can use for their game. The Sims 3 is also a great game to play, but it is outdated and not having updates frequently like the Sims 4 does.

There are a lot of things to do in The Sims so I recommend that everyone should give the game a try. It is relaxing to play, but also can get a bit hectic. It is a great game to play for people who like creating life in simulations and escaping from reality for a while.