The Sims 4: 12 beginner tips for the perfect start

In our beginner tips for The Sims 4 you will learn among other things

• how to get your Sims on a solid footing
• why you should save often
• why alarms in your house are important

With The Sims 4, publisher Electronic Arts has created one of the most popular games, which is well received by young and old and is provided with regular add-ons. No wonder, after all, the simulation has not only been released for the PC, but also for the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One in the meantime. However, getting started with the life simulation can be a bit tricky.

From character creation to the daily needs of your characters to professional life and family planning, The Sims 4 constantly demands your attention. So that you don't lose the overview at the beginning and know what you should pay attention to, we have put together some basic tips for you. With these, you'll make the right decisions right from the start. And if the game doesn't offer you enough challenges, you can change it to your own taste with fanmade mods. Resourceful players have created their own sex mod s and expansions with other adult themes!

When creating your Sim, you determine not only its appearance, but also its character traits and goals.

1. Create Sim: Aspirations and Characteristics

When you start The Sims 4, the first thing you do is start creating your Sim. In addition to the general appearance of your character, you can also define the aspirations and character traits of your protégé.

The aspiration is, so to speak, the overriding goal that your Sim will pursue in his life. Here you can choose what you like best, because the aspiration can change during the course of the game. Once you've set the aspiration, you'll be given a character trait to go with it.

You'll be able to choose three more of these traits completely freely, which can include emotional characteristics, but also those that concern hobbies, lifestyle or social interactions. Choose more specifically here, because with them you'll determine your Sim's behavior and desires. In addition, these characteristics also influence how your Sim gets along with other Sims.

A tidy Sim will have a hard time living with a messy Sim. At the same time, the former will be unhappy if everything is not tidy, while the latter will quickly turn his apartment into a garbage dump, which in turn means more time for tidying.

It's best to start the game with a single sim at first. Later you can always create a family.

2. From a single household to a family

In The Sims 4, you can basically not only control a single Sim, but start directly with a whole family. However, especially when starting out in the life simulation, it is advisable to create a single household first.

The Sims have a lot of needs that you have to keep in mind all the time, and the more characters you manage, the more complex this becomes. And even if you start with a loner, there's nothing to stop you from planning a family later on.

Keeping an eye on your Sim's needs is the most important factor, so that your character doesn't starve or pee his pants.

3. Pay attention to your starting capital

When you have finally finished designing your Sim, The Sims 4 will present you with the choice of where your protégé should live. Here you have a few prefabricated houses to choose from, or you can buy a plot of land and design your own place.

Pay attention to your budget, though. You start the game with 20,000 Simoleans, so you should buy a prefabricated hut as cheap as possible, because you can always upgrade it later. Also, when buying a plot of land, first take a cheap one and build a base house on it.

This is important because you can make sure that your Sim can pay his bills at the beginning of the game, because it takes a while until the first income rains down on the account.

A computer is a good basic equipment for the apartment at the beginning of the game. With it your Sim can play games, learn programming or go job hunting.

4. Make sure you have the most necessary equipment

Once you finally acquire a place to live in The Sims 4, you should make sure that the most important furnishings are there, especially if you are building it yourself.

This includes a refrigerator, a stove, at least two shelves in the kitchen, a toilet, a bed and a shower or a bathtub. The storage surfaces are important mainly because when cooking, Sims need one surface to cook on themselves and one to put the dishes on.

Also, it's helpful to buy an inexpensive TV set so that your Sim has entertainment, and a computer is also handy. While playing games, your virtual likeness will relieve stress and you can also look for jobs.

5. Pay attention to your Sim's needs

The aforementioned furnishings are also important in The Sims 4 to satisfy your Sim's needs.

There are six values here, which show you if your Sim is hungry, needs to go to the bathroom, how much energy he or she has, how his or her social life and fun is going, and hygiene.

However, once you get the basic setup, you can keep these values in the green quite easily.

An important part of the Sims' life is social interaction. However, a lot can go wrong here.

6. Be careful when choosing a job

After you have created your Sim at the beginning and have chosen and furnished a suitable apartment, the most important thing is to look for a job first. This is the only way to pay the bills permanently.

You can start the job search in The Sims 4 either on the phone or on the computer. Then you'll get a few suggestions from which you can choose.

Basically, it's recommended to take the job that brings the most money, because with every promotion your salary will increase later on. Once you reach level 10 in your career, you won't be promoted anymore, but you will still get salary increases.

The only exception to the "take the highest paying job" rule is related to your Sim's aspirations. Certain aspirations require you to have certain professions in order to fulfill them.

If you have your Sim cook, it's best to stock up on it and keep it in the fridge.

7. Educate your Sim

As you progress through The Sims 4, you can gradually upgrade your Sim by having her or him learn new skills. These can be things like fishing, but also fitness, programming or writing.

On the one hand, these skills will help your Sim get ahead in his or her profession, if they fit the bill. On the other hand, they also unlock new interaction possibilities, be it with other Sims or objects.

Therefore, it is advisable not to just park your Sim in front of the TV in his free time, but to let him or her program on the PC, cook or whatever. By doing this, you will not only expand your Sim's skill set, but also your gaming fun.

8. Tips for cooking and supplies

Speaking of cooking. Your Sim will get hungry on a regular basis and will therefore have to prepare meals for himself again and again. Here it is advisable not to always just stir together individual portions, but larger quantities.

What is left over can be stored in the fridge and your Sim will have a supply of food if it should be critical.

If you build your own house or cultivate it later, pay attention to some basic tricks, so that your Sim feels comfortable. For example, enough space for hobbies or sufficient toilets and trash cans.

9. Do not start flirting too fast

If you start out with a single Sim in The Sims 4, you can of course try to hook up with other Sims later on. This way, you might be able to start a family at some point, if you master the game well enough.

Of course, just like in real life, you'll have to find a partner first and start flirting with Sims you like. Here, however, it is advisable not to jump right in.

If you make eyes at the other Sims too early, it can often happen that your protégé's flirting attempts seem rather awkward and lead to rejection. This in turn affects your relationship with the AI Sim.

First of all, take advantage of the dialog system, because there are always enough topics that the Sims can talk about - unless your counterpart doesn't like you. If the sympathy is then high enough, then you can test out the flirting attempts sooner.

By the way, in The Sims 4 it doesn't matter who you want to flirt with, since both heterosexual and homosexual relationships are possible.

10. Build with brains

If you want to build a house for your Sim in The Sims 4 or expand your prefabricated one later on in the game, there are a few things to keep in mind so that you don't make your character's life unnecessarily difficult.

For example, Sims will only share a bed if they are in love. So a WG with a double bed will not work.

Likewise, of course, only one Sim can use the toilet at a time, and it will remain completely untouched if another Sim is taking an extensive bath. Therefore, it may make sense to place the toilet outside the bathroom if you are planning a multi-person household.

Also, think carefully about what the Sim can or should do in rooms, because some activities require a lot of space. Smaller details, on the other hand, are that you distribute enough trash cans in the apartment or enough windows and lamps, because the light raises the mood of the Sims.

Basically, you can flirt with every other Sim in The Sims 4. However, it is advisable to first establish a basic relationship with the characters.

11. Equip your house with alarms

Although The Sims 4 is a comparatively accurate life simulation, there is still no fire department in the game. Therefore, it is important that you install enough fire alarms in your apartment or house.

Only then can you and your Sim react quickly enough to extinguish a fire before it destroys all your belongings.

12. Save often

The Sims 4 has one big problem: you like to play here for hours on end without really realizing it. In other games you shimmy from mission to mission, typical points where the game itself saves or that you can take as a reference point yourself to ensure progress.

You can train your Sim in various skills. This helps when interacting with others or even on the job.

Since The Sims 4 doesn't offer this structure directly, you should find a rule for yourself when to save the game so that you don't lose hours of progress in case of a crash.

If, despite our tips, it still takes you too long to earn enough money or learn new skills, then take a look at our guide to the best cheats in The Sims 4. You'll be a millionaire in no time and master all the skills without time-consuming training.

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