The wonderful avatar game that brought your computer to life, and gave each of us a taste of playing god. From puppeteering social situations to designing a Sim, to your exact specification, right down to the nose width; our childhoods were shaped by the PC game. And although it certainly questioned our moral fibre and tested our tolerance (please go away Mortimer family, I don’t have time for you) it was epic. Whether you started on the poorly computerised original or built your way up with bonus packs in newer additions, you’ll find this lest particularly familiar. 17 years on and it’s comforting to know that it’s not just you doing fucked up things to our poor little avatars. Um hello, Westworld.
Use Motherlode relentlessly
If only CTRL+SHIFT+C brought this much fortune into real life. Finding this cheat and using it non stop, to fund your lavish lifestyle and fund your dreams. Keeping that environment bar in a healthy range was not cheap.
Or r0sebud for just a little extra cash
You know those days where you tried to do it budget, without splashing out on motherlode. You tried to play the game sans cheat and live modestly, for a day or so at least. But then your crying, exasperated, stinky Sim made you type that cheat code so fast your head would spin.
Drowned your Sim
If you didn’t drown your Sim did you even really play the game? Tapping into your sadistic tendencies saw you build a pool, pop your Sim in there for a swim, then remove the ladder to leave them helplessly paddling. Wrong? Oh yeah. Strangely entertaining? More than reading an entire bookcase or watching your Sim browse the internet for hours on end.
Made a Sims family that mirrors your own family
Down to the hair style and star signs, making your own family on the game was a right of passage. Were you really programmed to hate your sibling? Who was going to be the most successful? And along with solving those mysteries real quick, anyone who pissed you off in real life were punished swiftly.
Making your crush and you live happily ever after
To that end crafting your own happily ever after with your high school crush was a must. You got to test out compatibility and live on the edge, without risking saying anything too embarrassing on MSN in real life.
Make an awful Sim just to watch him suffer
Compared to drowning your Sim with murderous intent, this was not so bad. Well not really, at least the other way was quick. Perhaps it was unrelieved anger or just curiosity, but making them go insane, destroying their relationships or chatting up the grim reaper non stop. Their mental state was our play thing.
Actively sought out the Grim Reaper
Acting as the guard at the gates of death, toying with our Sim and pushing them to the brink of death was raucously entertaining. The Grim Reaper was a wonderful chat and even if you played your cards right, a great date. Save you had the willingness to stave him off from stealing your Sim to the depths of the afterlife.
Watching your Sim talk to the mirror for charisma points, non stop
The irony of chatting themselves up for hours on end will never be lost. Gussy up was one of those moves that seemed a pointless but easy way to up your in game pursuits. On the fast track to becoming a politician thanks to a little mirror time.
Fast forwarding through your Sim’s life, to get to the good part
If only real life had such an option. The different modes made achieving our goals or breezing through high school in a matter of moments that much easier.
Using Sims as your first point of sex education
WooHoo was the PG way to talk about sexy time and for most kids playing the game a giggle or two. It seemed so simple, chat your potential lover up, make a joke or two, whisper sweet nothings then kiss and then right to business. Oh and splurging on that love heart bed with the spinning feature made it that much more entertaining.
Image source: The Sims 2.