A Personal (Sims) Challenge: Be Aspirational

I have been a fan of The Sims franchise since before the first game in the series came out. I’d gotten hooked on Simcity in the mid-90s, and was always a bit saddened that you couldn’t just zoom in on a house or a street and do their story. So when I heard about it around the first time I got my own personal computer (instead of the family one that my parents hogged), I was quite happy to splash out on what became a proper addiction. That’s fair to say, I think; I’ve been playing the game in ALL its assorted iterations for the past 14 years, and indeed, have played 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the past few months.

One of the things many fans do to keep the game interesting is to take part in challenges. One of the best known is the Legacy Challenge, as created by Pinstar. I’ve only one it once on since discovering after Sims 3; while a great game, it’s hella buggy and only functions in the long run with heavy modding. The MasterController suite from NRaas is a godsend in that regards, though you still have to be mindful of not giving it too much data. My tendency to try to flood neighborhoods with horses, for example, breaks things pretty badly. One can also find challenges of note on Mod The Sims, Carl’s Sims Guide, The Sims Forums, and any other number of places.

My Lovely Heroine

My Lovely Heroine

Now me, I’ve never created a challenge… before now. And to be fair, I’m probably not unique in thinking this one up, BUT. It’s what I’m doing right now, and I thought I’d share it.

One thing I am absolutely loving about Sims 4 is that there is no limit to how many aspirations one Sim can do. If you don’t like the one you’re on, you can switch to another. With Miss McClain here, I’m on my fourth aspiration. She’d completed the three aspirations under the Creativity heading, and I’d decided to do the one Athletic one to thin her down after several lifetimes of excess. She’s garnered enough points here and there that I’ve purchased her two Potions of Youth atop several other rewards. And then I figured… why don’t I see if I can complete all the aspirations on one Sim? Seeing how I started with the creative ones, she’s made tonnes of simoleons from painting and royalties to enable her to have never held down a job. So all she does all day (and all night) is work on her aspiration.

Pretty cool, right?

So then, let’s scribble out a semblance of rules!

The Rules:

  • No cheats (obviously)
  • Start with one Sim.
  • You can have or adopt children as you see fit.
  • You may only move -a- single Sim in from the world at large (otherwise, it’s a bit of a money cheat).
  • Only one (additional) Sim may have a job, whether it be the spouse/partner/roommate, or an adult child. This is in addition to any job requirements your main Sim needs to fulfill for their aspirations.
  • If you can find it or create it, you can sell it.
  • If your Sim dies, it’s game over (even with the return of ghosts), but — Ambrosia is okay in lieu of Potions of Youth for staying young.

There is no particular scoring to it — just try to complete as many aspirations as you can with one Sim. I figure this challenge is also a great one for those of us out there who get a bit freaked out by having too many Sims in one household. If you can afford to move to a different lot, that’s your call. If you want to build a McMansion with your money, that’s your call as well.

Enjoy!

<3

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