10 Casual Simulation & Life-Oriented Games To Play!
The Sims is a notorious classic among the comfy gaming crowd. It allows people to live the life of their dreams but reminds them of the steps needed to maintain a life like that. Whether it’s partying with other citizens or starting a beautiful family, The Sims contain multiple activities for players to seek their teeth into.
If you’ve finished playing The Sims and are looking for alternatives – fret not! We’ve combed through the archives and saved you the hassle with our top 10 picks.
Of course, for all the games we’ve reviewed, we’ve also added a handy link, so you can check out our full thoughts on that and see if it’s something you want to invest your time in.
So without further ado, we present 10 games to check out if you’re looking for a game like The Sims.
Two Point Hospital
Two Point Hospital is a fabulous hospital simulation game that tasks players with creating a hospital and building its reputation up from zero. Like The Sims, it allows players to dive into different aspects of managing and building their own virtual worlds. Though The Sims delve into the lives of virtual citizens and Two Point Hospital has players manage a hospital, both games share several similarities.
Firstly, both games emphasize customization and creativity. In The Sims, players have the ability to design and construct their dream homes, characters, and lives. As for Two Point Hospital, it offers a wide range of customization options regarding their respective hospitals. Both games encourage creative expression and provide players with enough tools to design their own spaces.
Additionally, both games feature a blend of strategic and management gameplay. In The Sims, players need to balance their virtual characters’ needs and desires while managing their careers, relationships, and everyday activities. In Two Point Hospital, you’re required to manage your healthcare facility by hiring staff, balancing budgets, and optimizing the flow of patients.
On top of delivering a fabulous social experience with its gameplay, Two Point Hospital is a great game to play after The Sims.
Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is a great farming simulation game that gives players the chance to immerse themselves in a lively virtual setting. In it, players must help the game’s female protagonist transform her grandfather’s plot into something amazing. This will not only bring honor to his name but will help reignite Stardew Valley’s residents’ passion.
Like The Sims, Stardew Valley offers great character customization options, a strong community, and incorporated elements of time management and routine. Although you have to go through some hurdles to customize your avatar in Stardew Valley, fans will appreciate the game for giving them the option to do so.
Stardew Valley’s community and interactive features are just as incredible. Players will adore building relationships and forming friendships with other virtual citizens in the game.
On top of having other splendid activities from tending to crops and caring for livestock, Stardew Valley is a great game to play for those looking for something peaceful and creative to play.
My Time At Portia
Another fun-filled simulation title that’ll provide you with immense joy is My Time At Portia. In it, we follow a boy who inherits his father’s decaying workshop. With his father’s handbook and workbench, players must work toward having the best workshop in the town of Portia. However, players shouldn’t rush their way toward completing this mission. It’s one of those titles, like The Sims, that’s best enjoyed in short bursts because there are many things to do in it.
From exploring minds to interacting with the town’s citizens, My Time At Portia gives players enough things to complete to hold them over. Not only that but as they spend time interacting with the game’s common folk and complete tasks, they’ll build connections with their communities.
Therefore, if you’re interested in another title that’ll let you generate meaningful bonds with virtual inhabitants, check out My Time At Portia.
Cities: Skylines
If you ever wanted to manage an entire city, then Cities: Skylines might be the game for you. In it, players have the opportunity to craft the metropolis of their dreams.
Like The Sims, this game delivers solid customization features. You’ll design your cities from scratch, customizing everything from road layouts and zoning to working on your environment’s infrastructure. It gives similar vibes to The Sims’ home-editing features but takes it to a wider scale.
Furthermore, this game emphasizes great resource management and strategic decision-making like The Sims. While you’ll be managing your characters’ needs and finances in The Sims, Cities: Skylines asks players to make strategic decisions regarding city planning, budget allocation, and infrastructure development. In that sense, these games challenge players to think critically, manage resources effectively, and analyze the consequences of their decisions.
Also, Cities: Skylines provides players with a sense of progression and growth like in The Sims. In Cities Skylines, players can observe the growth and development of their cities as they expand and attract more residents to make their economies better and more efficient.
If you’re looking for another simulation title that’ll make you feel like an overlord, check this out.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a fun title that allows you to create the island of your dreams. Although you’ll have to pay the game’s notorious creature Tom Nook for renovations, it’ll be worth it in the end.
Like The Sims, Animal Crossing: New Horizons prioritizes player creativity and customization. From customizing your character’s clothing to recreating things for your island’s residents, this game provides players with many activities that’ll leave them content. Although Animal Crossing: New Horizon’s online features could be better, the game allows you to visit other players’ islands to meet their residents and visit their shops for supplies.
On top of having real-time gameplay features like seasonal changes and daily events, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a laid-back and entertaining title that’s worth your time.
Terraria
Terraria is a sandbox-style game that provides players with a great deal of freedom and creativity. It differs from The Sims regarding its gameplay’s mechanics and focus. However, both games have player-driven experiences and vast customization options, and give players the chance to build and shape their own world.
Terraria has you exploring and interacting with a procedurally generated world. In this world, you’ll gather resources, fight enemies, and construct your own structures. Similarly, The Sims has you control virtual characters and guide them in their daily lives. Both games allow players to customize their environments and engage in various activities that center around crafting a universe that fits your taste.
Customization is key in both titles. Terraria’s building mechanics are incredible to the point where you can create an entire underground civilization. Like The Sims, you’ll also have access to a bunch of materials that’ll help you spice up your universes, allowing them to stand out.
If you’re okay with pixelated graphics, then Terraria should satisfy you.
Dinkum
Although it’s still in early access, Dinkum is a fun life simulation title with charming graphics and fun gameplay. It gives players incredible agency to do as they please. In it, you take on the role of a caretaker for a group of virtual characters called “Dinkums.”
Like The Sims, players are responsible for meeting the needs and desires of their characters. You must ensure that each Dinkum’s needs, such as hunger, energy, and socializing, are met in order for them to thrive. Just like in The Sims, players need to balance these needs, along with other factors like mood and personality traits, to ensure the Dinkums are happy and thriving.
Both games have nice customization options. You can decorate various locations, from homes to shops to attractions. With the promise of additional content down the road, Dinkum is a great life simulation title with enough potential to be great.
Fantasy Life
Fantasy Life is an incredible RPG game with great customization and life simulation aspects. Like The Sims, Fantasy Life gives players the freedom to shape the customize their game world. Two ways it accomplishes this goal is by letting players assume different roles and engage in countless activities.
Firstly, Fantasy Life offers many professions akin to a fantasy setting like blacksmiths and wizards. Each role comes with its own unique gameplay mechanics and quests.
Fantasy Life and The Sims give players opportunities to customize their homes and decorate them to suit their tastes. This gives players incentive to continue playing the title to unlock more items for their characters and household to set it apart from others’ avatars and homes.
On top of having lively worlds filled with quest-giving NPCs, Fantasy Life is a great RPG life-simulation game that will keep you occupied.
Minecraft
Minecraft is one of the best-selling video games of all time. It skyrocketed in popularity during the early 2010s and maintains a strong hold on specific gamers today. Like The Sims, this game offers players the agency to create a universe that’ll suit their desires. From crafting homes to building communities with the game’s villager NPCs, the possibilities are endless with Minecraft.
Although some gamers will be put off by the game’s blocky graphics, there are a few community mods fans can check out that’ll make their Minecraft worlds pop more. Furthermore, this game delivers fabulous action-oriented gameplay that The Sims doesn’t have.
From fighting the game’s numerous mobs to mining for incredible resources, Minecraft has everything you’d want out of a life simulation game. Give it a shot if you’re curious.
Graveyard Keeper
Graveyard Keeper is an RPG title with fabulous simulation gameplay mechanics and a world that allows you to manage virtual characters. In Graveyard Keeper, you’re tasked with managing a medieval graveyard and fulfilling the needs of the game’s various NPC characters. Just like in The Sims, you must ensure that they’re well-fed, rested, and socially satisfied.
Over time, you’ll find yourself building strong relationships with these virtual figures. Furthermore, Graveyard Keeper delivers fabulous customization options like The Sims. In it, you can renovate and expand the graveyard, adding decorative elements and structures to improve its appearance and functionality. You can engage in enjoyable activities like farming, mining, and crafting too.
While these games differ in art style and themes, Graveyard Keeper has enough in common with The Sims to satisfy diehard Sims fans.
So there we have it, our 10 video game picks to keep you busy after playing The Sims.
What do you think of our picks? Do you agree? Are there any notable omissions? Let us know in the comments below!
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