Main series The Sims (2000) The Sims was the first game in the series. Developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts, it was released for
Microsoft Windows on February 4, 2000. The game used
dimetric projection and featured open-ended simulation of the daily activities of one or more
virtual people ("Sims") in a suburban area near SimCity. Between 2000 and 2003, seven expansion packs were released.
The Sims was rereleased in numerous different deluxe editions, compilations, and formats. By March 22, 2002,
The Sims had sold more than 6.3 million copies worldwide, surpassing
Myst as the best-selling PC game in history at the time. By February 2005, the game had shipped 16 million copies worldwide.
The Sims received
seven expansion packs:
The Sims was re-released for Windows 10 and 11 on January 31, 2025, as part of
The Sims franchise's twenty-fifth birthday celebration as
The Sims: Legacy Collection.
The Sims: Legacy Collection includes all original seven expansion packs.
The Sims 2 (2004) Electronic Arts released
The Sims 2 on September 14, 2004. The sequel, developed by Maxis, takes place in a full
3D environment as opposed to the
dimetric projection of the original game. Sims age through seven life stages, from infancy to old age and subsequent death. Another major feature is the aspiration system. Each Sim exhibits wants and fears according to their aspiration and personality. Consequently, the level of the aspiration meter determines the effectiveness of a Sim at completing tasks. The fulfillment of wants provides aspiration points, which can be used to purchase aspiration rewards. The game also features clear days of the week, with weekends when children can stay home from school and vacation days when adults can take time off work.
The Sims 2 is set some 25 years after the original game. For instance, the Goth family has aged significantly with
Bella Goth mysteriously vanishing at some point in the 25 years. Because the entire game has progressed from 2D
sprites to
3D models, all content in
The Sims 2 had to be created from the ground up. Due to this,
The Sims 2 was not made backward-compatible with any content from the first generation of the main series; however, some objects and features from the original series were remade for the sequel. Eight expansion packs and nine "stuff packs" were released for
The Sims 2. Over 400 items were also released for the game via
The Sims 2 Store.
The Sims 2 received
eight expansion packs:
The Sims 2 was re-released for Windows 10 and 11 on January 31, 2025, as part of
The Sims franchise's twenty-fifth birthday celebration as
The Sims 2: Legacy Collection. The Sims 3 (2009) Electronic Arts released
The Sims 3 on June 2, 2009. The sequel was announced by EA in November 2006. The game is set some time before the original game and features an open, seamless neighborhood, improved Sim creation tools, enhanced build and buy mode functions, and the introduction of wishes and goals. The game introduced a new form of directed gameplay through small, step-wise goals presented as opportunities for the player to pursue or refuse.
The Sims 3 sold 1.4 million copies in the first week, making it the largest release in PC gaming history at the time.
The Sims 3 is set before
The Sims. For example, the Goth family is much younger, and
Bella Goth, an adult in the first game, is a child and is named Bella Bachelor. Some players speculate that the game takes place 25 years before the original game, the same way
The Sims 2 takes place 25 years after
The Sims. Eleven expansion packs and nine "stuff packs" were released for
The Sims 3. In addition, many items are available online for additional fees at
The Sims 3 Store.
The Sims 3 received
eleven expansion packs:
The Sims 4 (2014) Electronic Arts announced
The Sims 4 on May 6, 2013. The announcement stated that the game was in development by Maxis.
The Sims 4 takes place in an alternative setting/timeline from the game's previous installments. Later in 2014, further details on features and gameplay were announced. The release date of September 2, 2014, was announced at E3 2014. As of February 2026, twenty-one "expansion packs", twelve "game packs", twenty "stuff packs", forty-four "kits", and eleven "creator kits" have been released, and updates have added content that was previously absent, such as basements, ghosts, pools, modular stairs, toddlers, new careers, terrain tools, additional skin tones, bunk beds and infants.
The Sims 4 was made
free-to-play on October 18, 2022.
The Sims 4 has received
twenty-one expansion packs:
The Sims 4 has received
twelve game packs:
Project Rene (TBA) On October 18, 2022, Maxis announced that they are working on the next installment of
The Sims, which is code-named
Project Rene. The game allows solo or collaborative play and cross-play. Room customization works differently compared to
The Sims 4, with more customization options being presented for furniture. In this project, the buy-and-build mode is multiplayer and players can customize the buildings at the same time. As of July 2024,
Project Rene is continuing development, with potential plans for "closed invites to small public playtests or early access options" for interested players. In September 2024, EA vice president Kate Gorman confirmed that
Project Rene will not be a direct replacement or sequel to
The Sims 4 but a separate project within
The Sims franchise, reiterating that
The Sims 4 would continue to receive updates and new content in the years to come.
PC spin-offs The Sims Online In December 2002, Electronic Arts released the Maxis-developed
The Sims Online, later named
EA Land. It recreates
The Sims as a
massively multiplayer online game, where human players can interact with each other. The spin-off did not achieve the same level of success as the original. Reviews for
The Sims Online were lackluster; many likening its experience to an enormous
chat room. On August 1, 2008,
EA Land was shut down.
The Sims Stories The Sims Stories is a series of video games from
The Sims series released in 2007–2008 based on a modified version of
The Sims 2 game engine. The modified engine is optimized for play on systems with weaker specifications, such as
laptops. In addition to a Free Play mode with classic, open-ended gameplay, the games contain a structured, linear story mode where players are required to complete a series of goals to progress in the storyline. Three games were released in the series.
The Sims Carnival The Sims Carnival was a casual game brand of
The Sims. It had two separate product lines; the first was an online community of crowd-sourced web games and the second was a line of packaged game titles sold via retail stores and digital downloads.
The Sims Medieval The Sims Medieval is an action role-playing spin-off game released in 2011. It is set in medieval times, and although it is based on
The Sims 3 engine, it plays very differently.
The Sims Medieval has one expansion pack,
Pirates and Nobles.
The Sims Social Launched in August 2011,
The Sims Social was a
Flash-based game developed by
Playfish for
Facebook. EA announced the game was upgraded from Beta to Live status in a press release issued on August 23, 2011. The game was shut down and removed from Facebook on June 14, 2013.
Console, handheld, and mobile releases {{Timeline of release years
The Sims era The Sims was the game's first console release and shares the same name as the PC game. It was released in 2003 for the
PlayStation 2,
Xbox, and Nintendo
GameCube. The gameplay is similar to the PC version but follows a mission-based storyline in addition to the sandbox mode found in the original game. Objectives are added which allow the player to unlock new furniture and locations. ''The Sims Bustin' Out
is the second title in The Sims
console series. Bustin' Out
was released in the fourth quarter of 2003 for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Nintendo GameCube. Much like its predecessor, the game features two modes: Bust Out Mode, which is mission-based gameplay, and Freeplay Mode which is similar to the original The Sims'' PC game. The PlayStation 2 version featured the option to play online, though EA no longer supports it. Separate handheld versions were developed for the
Game Boy Advance and
N-Gage, which allow the player to directly control the Sim character for the first time.
The Urbz: Sims in the City is a game focused on Sims living in an urban setting within Sim City. The player must earn a reputation and complete tasks for characters. It was released for Xbox, PlayStation 2, and Nintendo GameCube. It features
Black Eyed Peas as NPCs. Like ''The Sims Bustin' Out'', separate handheld versions were developed for the
Nintendo DS and the Game Boy Advance, which serve as a sequel to their predecessors.
The Sims 2 The Sims 2,
The Sims 2: Pets, and
The Sims 2: Castaway were released for various platforms including the
Wii,
PlayStation 2,
PSP,
Xbox, and
Nintendo DS systems.
The Sims 2: Apartment Pets was only released for the Nintendo DS. EA also released several spin-off
The Sims titles for the
iPod Nano (3rd and 4th generation), the
iPod Classic, and the
iPod (5th generation). Some of these titles include:
The Sims Bowling,
The Sims DJ, and
The Sims Pool.
MySims MySims is a series of
console games created by EA for the
Wii and
Nintendo DS (with SkyHeroes being the exception). They feature
Chibi-like characters, similar to the Wii's
Mii avatars. The first game in the series was released in September 2007.
MySims SkyHeroes, the newest addition to the
MySims line of games, was released in September 2010. A mobile spin-off game,
MySims Puzzle Party, was released exclusively in South Korea in January 2010.
The Sims 3 The Sims 3,
The Sims 3: World Adventures, and
The Sims 3: Ambitions were released for
iOS and other mobile devices.
The Sims 3 was also released for
Android,
PlayStation 3,
Xbox 360,
Nintendo DS,
Wii, and
Nintendo 3DS. The 3DS version of the game was a launch title for the console.
The Sims 3: Pets was released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Nintendo 3DS.
The Sims 3: Supernatural and
The Sims 3: Winter Edition were released for
Java.
The Sims 4 Versions for the
PlayStation 4 and
Xbox One consoles were released on November 17, 2017. Unlike previous console ports, the console version of
The Sims 4 has feature parity with the PC/Mac version, and also shares the same "expansion packs", "game packs", "stuff packs", and "kits".
The Sims FreePlay The Sims FreePlay is the first free-to-play version of
The Sims, and was released worldwide on December 15, 2011, for
iOS devices, and on February 15, 2012, for
Android. The game made it to
Kindle Fire in October 2012, to
BlackBerry 10 on July 31, 2013, and
Windows Phone 8 in September 2013. Unlike other
Sims games,
The Sims FreePlay runs in real-time and takes real-time to complete actions. Players can progress through 55 levels and unlock new content, create up to 34 Sims, build town map buildings, and complete goals to earn Lifestyle Points, Simoleons, Social Points, and XP (Experience Points). All of these (except for Social Points) can be obtained by baking, planting, going to school (only for preteens and teens), or working. To get Social Points, players will have to go to neighboring houses or add their Facebook friends.
The Sims Mobile The Sims Mobile is the second
free-to-play version of
The Sims for
Android and
iOS,
The Sims Mobile was announced on May 9, 2017, in a launch trailer with a soft launch for
Brazil, and was released worldwide on March 6, 2018. It features multiplayer and story-mode elements in an attempt to offer a playing experience akin to the main
Sims installments. On October 19, 2025, EA announced that
The Sims Mobile would be shut down on January 20, 2026. The game was delisted from both the
Apple App Store and
Google Play Store on October 21, 2025, however remained playable to those who downloaded the game before it was delisted.
Canceled SimsVille SimsVille was a planned spin-off combining the life-simulation elements of
The Sims with the city-building gameplay of
SimCity. First announced in August 2000, the game was canceled a year later in September 2001 due to quality control issues, with the team citing concerns that the gameplay became “less compelling” once cities were constructed.
The Sims: Town Stories In October 2024, footage of a previously unannounced mobile game titled
The Sims Labs: Town Stories was leaked online from a playtest. The game was set in the town of Plumbrook and featured gameplay similar to other mobile titles such as
Gardenscapes, with players completing quests and match-3 mini-games to collect resources used to build houses. In November 2025, the game was officially soft-launched in the Philippines, Australia, and South Africa. In March 2026, former designer Franci Dimitrovska revealed that the game’s worldwide release was canceled and the development team had been laid off. == Legacy ==