10 Common Sims 4 Myths & Misconceptions, Debunked

The Sims 4 has a plethora of features to try to make the game feel as accurate a life-sim as possible. When combined with the many, many expansion packs, and it’s more than ten-year tenure, there are many mechanics that the casual Sims player would not know about. Even more confusingly, there are a bunch of features that players are convinced are part of the game, but are actually little more than urban myths and misconceptions.

Some of these misconceptions have come up because, in a real-life setting, one would logically expect something to work a certain way that it doesn’t in the Sims. Others occur because of the age of the game, where updates have changed mechanics over time. Strangely, some happen because of the addition of new expansions and a general misunderstanding from the fan base about how the added content actually works.

10 Only Script Mods Can Break The Sims 4

All Custom Content Can Break The Game

The Sims 4 has a healthy and expansive modding community where the game’s custom content is easy to find and implement into the game. For the most part, this custom content tends to be free, although some are locked behind Patreon paywalls or require specific expansions to use. Still, anything from cosmetics to gameplay can be augmented with mods, and they come in two categories: script mods and non-script mods.

Script mods add to or change the pre-existing script of The Sims 4‘s code, so players can be forgiven for thinking that these are the only type of mods that can break the game. Unfortunately, any kind of custom content added to the game could possibly break it, including non-script mods. Mods can conflict, new content could clash with the most recent updates, or the content could be a little behind the times and not have received an update to keep up with the game’s new features.

9 All Mermaids Get Upset When Eating Fish

They Only Get Upset Because Of A Trait

Logically, one could argue that mermaids would get offended by being made to eat fish since they have a fish’s tail. Then again, they are creatures of the ocean, and fish would be a plentiful supply of food. Plenty of fish do eat other fish, yet many playing The Sims 4 believe that mermaids get upset by being fed seafood because of their nature. This isn’t necessarily the issue, even if a decent number of mermaids would rather not be fed seafood.

It isn’t the fact that they are mermaids that makes them offended by being fed fish. This is actually due to a trait that was added in the Island Living expansion called “Child of the Ocean.“ This trait makes Sims upset when eating or mounting fish, and is a trait some mermaids can have. Mermaids without this trait will happily chow down on some seafood or mount a fish, which is handy, considering how many seafood dishes there are in the game.

8 Laundry Detergent Works In Game

It Can If It Is Modded

If something is in a game, one can be forgiven for thinking that it should work as intended. It is logical, after all, yet The Sims 4 seems to disagree with this logic when it comes to its laundry detergent because, for whatever reason, it doesn’t operate as it should in the game. It was added as part of the Laundry Day Stuff Pack as a decor item and is purely aesthetic, although many still claim that it does work in the base game.

This misconception might be because of The Sims 4‘s custom content. Players can mod working laundry detergent into the game and upgrade washing machines so that they can take additives. These additives will allow washing machines to work as they do in real life, as well as the way many believe they do in the base game. Perhaps these mods have led to many thinking that it is a base game feature since it really should be something that was added to the Laundry Day Stuff Pack.

7 Sims Need To Go To The Spawn To Go Home When Traveling

There Are Plenty Of Other Ways To Fast Travel Home

Although players can often spend hours and hours on end constructing the perfect home and crafting their Sims. Many stay in these homes and, because of the instanced nature of The Sims 4‘s world, a travel mechanic was added so that the Sims leaving the household to go to some kind of social event are separated from others. Eventually, these Sims need to return home, and it is easier to do this than many believe, even without an open-world.

When Sims travel, they spawn in a specific place in the new area. There is a misconception that these Sims must return to this spawn to go back to their household since this is where they will run to when told to go home, but there are other ways to return to the household. If players want to return without these Sims, switching to an inactive Sim in the household works, or players can simply press M to bring up the map if they want everyone to go home quickly.

6 Having Twins And Triplets Runs In The Family

The Base Chance Remains The Same

In real life, it is believed those who are twins or related to twins have a higher chance of having twin children. This is something that many have thought would have transferred to the Sims, but this doesn’t seem to be the case. Sims can have twins and even triplets, and the misconception is that this will run in the family. Twins are more likely to have twins, and it is the same with triplets, but this isn’t actually the case.

Although players have documented that their twin Sims have had twins of their own, this is more so due to immense luck than something that runs in the family. The base rate for having twin and triplet children remains the same (10% for twins), irrespective of whether the parent is a twin. This myth is an old one, having been around ever since The Sims 2‘s tenure, but it has never been true. Perhaps Project Rene could change this, but in The Sims 4, it firmly remains a myth.

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5 You Can Buy Items In Stacks Of 10 With A Right Click

This Is Because Of A Popular Mod

When players are buying items for their Sims, it can be a little inconvenient. For instance, if players want to buy seeds from a planter box or upgrade parts from a computer, they will have to do it in increments of one. There is a misconception that the vanilla game will allow players to buy these items in increments of 10 instead by right-clicking on the item, but this is not a feature of the base game.

Interestingly, it seems that this misconception is actually the product of a popular mod. Mods can be a reoccurring source of misconceptions if they are viewed as essential or at least widely popular, and this is the case with the UI Cheats Extension mod. This allows for easier cheating and is also the source of some UI improvements, such as buying items in larger increments for greater convenience.

4 Homework Needs To Be Done At 100%

Sometimes, 50% Is Enough

Although The Sims 4 isn’t always the most realistic, one place where it is realistic is its homework system. Many players believe that homework needs to be completed at 100%, which will eat into a child’s free time dramatically. This leaves very little time for them to be more social with other Sims, since it will have to be done almost every day. However, a student doesn’t have to complete their homework, they only need to do enough to not get in trouble.

Homework can be handed in at 50% completion without a child getting in trouble at school. This will not improve their grades, and if players want their child to be a high-flying, A grade student, then homework needs to be done at a higher completion percentage. If players don’t mind if students remain at the same C grade, which is still a passing grade, so that they can have a social life, then handing in partially done homework is the way to go.

3 Sims Can’t Get Through University Without Constant Study

It Is Possible To Have A Social Life

Just like with the Sims, there are also many misconceptions around university life. Some think that it’s nothing but three years of partying, while others think it’s three years of hard and arduous study. Ultimately, it depends on the course and the truth is likely somewhere in the middle of the two. Many think that The Sims 4 has taken the arduous study route through universities, since many Sims struggle with time management at university.

Although a lot of work needs to be done by a Sim to pass their university course, there are ways to ensure that they don’t spend every waking moment studying. Increasing Research and Debate skills, as well as taking notes in class, will ensure that Sims will manage through their course and have enough time for some social interaction. That being said, those wanting the best grades may have to give up their free time for study.

2 Testingcheats True Needs To Be Typed In the Console

Some Cheats Don’t Need It

The Sims series is perhaps one of the few gaming series where players almost universally use its cheats. Some use cheats to make money a problem of the past, give themselves more freedom when it comes to building, or make life more convenient when editing their Sims. For those that more extensively use cheats, the line ‘testingcheats true’ is likely something that they have typed into the console constantly, but it isn’t as necessary as many believe.

There is a misconception that the ‘testingcheats true’ is required to activate every single cheat that is typed into the console. This isn’t true. Various cheats can be used without testing cheats needing to be activated. The obvious examples include money-adding cheats, like motherlode, which increases a household’s wealth by 50,000 Simoleons. Some examples are less obvious and more game-changing, such as the bb.moveobejects and cas.fulleditmode commands.

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1 Eating Strawberries Will Give Sims A Girl

It Does Increase The Chances, Though

There is a misconception that there is a way to guarantee what gender a Sim‘s baby will be, since The Sims is enough like real life to still leave this up to chance. If players want to guarantee what gender their Sim’s child will be, cheats are the better option. The myth of eating strawberries to ensure a baby will be a girl is just that, a myth. It does increase the chances of having a girl, however, so the myth isn’t too far-fetched.

There are other ways to increase the likelihood of a Sim giving birth to a girl. For instance, a pregnant mother can spend their days listening to pop music too, for some reason, to increase the chances of having a daughter. Despite this, The Sims 4‘s RNG system could simply decide that this Sim is having a son, and no amount of strawberry feasting or Simlish covers of pop hits will change that.

The Sims 4

Released

September 2, 2014

Developer(s)

Maxis

Publisher(s)

Electronic Arts

Genre(s)

Simulation

ESRB

T for Teen: Crude Humor, Sexual Themes, Violence

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