One Sims 4 player created themselves and their significant other and played them for seven whole months, and when the Sims’ time had come, actual tears were shed.
Most Sims players have created themselves (simselves) in the game, but not all players play a single household for so long. Normally, when I play the Sims, I tend to max out all their skills, get them their dream job, and then it all reaches a natural end for me. For me, even a regular sim lifespan is a bit too long. However, some players take things to the next level and enable the long life span setting for their sims, allowing for different kinds of stories.
Player Ang3lF00dCak3 created their ‘simselves’ with their girlfriend and recreated their entire lives, from the moment they met to the moment of their Sims’ afterlife, with the long lifespan setting enabled. This way, going from young adult to elder in Sims 4 can take around 300 or more sim days. As a result, they played the same household for more than half a year. When it came time to say goodbye to their simulated household, both Ang3lF00dCak3 and their girlfriend wept for their sims.
They also included several pictures of their game, showing images of how they and their partner met, how they fell in love, and how they imagined they would retire and pass away together. There is a picture of two ghost sims kissing on a pond, showing how even in (Sim) afterlife, the two are still together. The pictures make it look like someone’s life journal, which I found adorable.
The Reddit community showed a lot of sympathy in the comment section. Many have shared their stories about how they like to play The Sims and how they include people from their real lives in the game. “I pretty much only make sims the people I know, or myself,” wrote one of the comments.
Others have said they never make anyone resembling people from their lives because it would be too sad to say goodbye to them, even in a video game. “That’s why I never play a simself or anyone else that I personally know. Too depressing/uncomfortable,” one of the commenters wrote.
Some users also use the game to remember their loved ones who are long gone. While I personally never did this, I do have to admit that it is a sweet way to honor a real person’s memory.
While The Sims may be just a video game to most, for others, it is a way to deal with grief, keep fading memories alive, or maybe recreate or reimagine an entire life. Despite being virtual people, many enjoy reading and sharing stories like this since they can be quite relatable.
