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The Sims marked a cornerstone in simulation video games back in 2000, taking everyday life and simplifying it into a fun simulation that can be enjoyed by any kind of player. But as most seasoned players know, even with all the expansion and stuff packs, the game can become a little monotonous. Once you’ve spent hundreds of hours nurturing your beloved families and pets, even spoiling them with the motherlode cheat, you may long for a fresh take on the game.

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Updated on July 4th, 2020 by Anastasia Maillot: Although Eco Lifestyle, the latest expansion for The Sims 4, has given players plenty to do and discover, there's still so much within the game that EA hasn't fixed or improved. Even years after the game feels far too repetitive to be played hours upon hours.

It's why the community needs challenges, mods, and custom content to bring in some much needed change into the franchise. As people wait for any more news on the rumored The Sims 5, here's twenty challenges to help Simmers survive at least until the next expansion or game pack.

20 20. Love Thy Neighbor

What better way to scramble the peaceful life of any family than to break a happy marriage? It sounds sadistic at best, and it is, but when it comes to challenges, nobody's judging. For anyone wanting to change things up in a happy family, Love Thy Neighbor is the perfect gameplay challenge for it.

A Sim must basically try and cheat with as many different Sims as possible without their spouse finding out. What makes this even more difficult is that the challenge Sim in question can only WooHoo in their own house.

19 19. Gold Digger Challenge

If the thought of killing spouses as a black widow sounds super old and not realistic enough, there's a slightly tamer version of the challenge called the Gold Digger Challenge. It's very similar in rules to the Black Widow Challenge, which makes it a great alternative.

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Plus, this challenge actually allows and rewards the Sim for going for rich elders in particular. Moreover, it emphasizes naturally getting rid of the spouse, which is surprisingly tricky.

18 18. The Room Challenge

Usually, people either marry rich or go out to work hard at their jobs to reach great wealth. However, there's actually a way to do this without ever leaving the house. The question is, is the Sim in question resilient enough to do it in the first place?

The Room is a challenge that tests just that. A Sim needs to be moved into a house, and the door has to be removed once they're inside. Their job is to earn as much money as possible with skill items, and they can never, ever leave. At least, not until they reach the end of the Mansion Baron aspiration.

17 17. Random Legacy Challenge

Everyone has tried to legacy challenge at least once, more or less successfully. While it's a great challenge that any Simmer should try, it sounds a bit too simple and boring to some. Luckily, there are a hundred ways to spice things up nicely, such as the Random Legacy Challenge.

Instead of imposing linear and fairly open rules as the regular legacy challenge does, this randomized version is dependent on rolls the player must do for each generation which determines their own, unique goals. It's crazy, it's unexpected, and it's a bit hard, so it is essentially everything a Simmer could wish for.

16 16. Apocalypse Challenge

The Apocalypse Challenge is particularly interesting now that EA has introduced various cool game mechanics through Tiny Living and Eco Lifestyle. The end of the world has arrived in the Sim world, and the player needs to navigate an incredibly hostile world one generation at a time.

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Each generation has its own rules and restrictions, which are dictated by the apocalyptic world around them. Moreover, the building restrictions bring in a brand new element of challenge and campiness that just doesn't exist in a regular legacy challenge.

15 15. Breed Out The Ugly

ugly sim breed out the ugly challenge

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? Well, according to this challenge, the starting Sim is better off finding a good-looking partner. The main purpose of this is to simply create the strangest, most unappealing character in CAS mode, and bring them into the world.

From there onward the player needs to find fairly good-looking partners, and with each generation try and mellow down the absurdly weird features of the original founding Sim. Once the first normal Sim is born, that's when the challenge finished. For more information, rules can be found here.

14 14. I'm Surrounded By Idiots

Much of The Sims 4's gameplay is about juggling between the different lives and needs of multiple different Sims. This is what keeps the game sort of fresh at times, but even that can get surprisingly boring. Sometimes, a challenge that restricts gameplay even more is just what the player needs.

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This challenge essentially allows the player to only control one Sim in a household. However, they still need to ensure that everything happens in an orderly fashion, which is pretty challenging when there's a bunch of autonomous Sims running around, wanting to play Blicblock all day. For in-depth rules, check them here.

13 13. The Impregnator

We've all heard of the 100 baby challenge, but there's actually a similar challenge designed to bring to life the ultimate Don Lothario of the game. A single male Sim's purpose is basically to charm as many women as possible and then have at least 10 offsprings before he reaches a certain age, each with different women.

What's interesting about this challenge is that some goals need to be achieved before a certain age, and the founding Sim must also have the non-committal trait. It might not be the 100 babies, but it's still a fun little challenge to try, and it works for other life states as well. Check the rules here.

12 12. Going Broke Challenge

The purpose of most Sims challenges is to start from nothing and actually thrive. However, this challenge is somewhat of an anti-challenge, in the sense that it wants progress to go backwards. Rather than getting rich, Sims must constantly become poorer and worse off.

This includes buying the worst objects and never upgrading them, as well as never putting Sims that were once fired from their jobs back to work. If the pursuit of happiness and wealth in the form of mansions feels boring, this is the ultimate challenge to break a The Sims 4 rut. For detailed rules, check them here.

11 11. The Prison Challenge

There's tons of public lots and business available in The Sims 4, and while there's a police station with a small holding cell, there isn't really a prison, until now. This challenge involves building an actual prison in-game, ran by a warden who must trap in a number of prisoners and rehabilitate them.

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The challenge is very elaborate, and even involves things like managing the prison bills and gaining money depending on the number of prisoners. To rehabilitate a prisoner, they must master one skill. For the complete rules, go here.

10 10. 100 Baby Challenge

Sims 4 Baby
via: EA

Trying for a baby, being pregnant, and having a child is a fun part of Sims 4, but how many times can you really do this? In the 100 Baby Challenge, your objective is--you guessed it--to give birth to 100 children in as fewer generations possible. Sounds easy right? Remember, you have to simultaneously raise all these children, whilst continuously popping out babies like a queen bee.

There are rules, for example, you must play with the aging on and normal lifespan. To read the full details of this challenge read the official 100 Baby Challenge thread here.

9 9. Cult or Commune Challenge

Sims 4 Commune
via: EA

Cults and communes--who isn't fascinated by them? Everyone has had that little thought in the back of their mind, ‘what is it really like?’ It's no wonder there are so many shows and movies that delve into these strange and private societies.

Well, now you can experience life in a cult or commune yourself (or rather through your Sim)! In the Cult or Commune challenge, you take a group of Sims and create either a cult or commune. You can live off the land and banish all modern-day technology, or spread wildly archaic views through generations of Sims. Regardless, there’s an opportunity for all types of cults and communes. Read the full details on the Cult or Commune challenge thread here.

8 8. Asylum Challenge

Sims 4 House
via: EA

Based on the Sims 3 Asylum challenge, the Sims 4 challenge of the same name lets you create an unofficial ‘asylum’ with 8 Sims all having the ‘insane’ trait. These Sims cannot be self-assured and the other two traits should be randomized.

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The main goal of this challenge is to take control of one Sim and complete their lifetime aspiration, proving they’ve gained control of their life allowing them to leave the ‘asylum’. With limited household utilities, this challenge will live up to its namesake for any Sims 4 player. To read the full details of the challenge visit the Asylum Challenge thread here.

7 7. Black Widow Challenge

Sims 4 Widow
via: EA

The black widow challenge is a pretty messed up undertaking, but hey, it’s just a video game! Killing off your husband in exchange for a new one seems a bit crazy, but in the world of The Sims, not much isn’t crazy.

In this challenge, the aim is to get a husband/wife, cheat on them, get caught, kill off the husband/wife, and marry the new partner. Repeat this until you have ten deceased spouses and you’re a black widow! Read more on the rules here.

6 6. Serial Killer Challenge

Sims 4 Ghosts
via: EA

Three weeks, one serial killer Sim, how many bodies? This challenge requires you to kill as many passer-by Sims in three weeks, with lifespan set on long. That’s right, you have to be a serial killer. In this challenge, you will wait outside your house until somebody walks past.

Using your high level of social cunning, you will invite said Sim unknowingly to their demise. Once invited in, lock the Sim away by deleting the door and starve them. Alternatively, you can drown the Sim. This rather sadistic challenge has a set of rules and an even more disturbing additional objective you can read in the challenge thread here.

5 5. Ghost Prison Challenge

Sims 4 Ghosts
via: EA

Unlike the previous challenge, in this one, you want to make your victim suffer. With the lifespan set to normal, and prison cell of 3x3 or more, you must doom ten Sims to ten specific ends. After getting a Sim to move in, you will need to imprison them in a cell, decorated with tools for their demise.

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The deaths include by cowplant, fire, electrocution, old age, embarrassment, overexertion, drowning, hunger, anger, and hysteria. Once they have passed, you need to enshrine their urn inside their prison, forever condemning their poor souls. To read more on the rules and specifics of this challenge follow this link here.

4 4. The Truman Show Challenge

Sims 4 Party
via: EA

This one is based off the fantastic movie The Truman Show starring Jim Carey. In this challenge, you must create a Sim who is unknowingly trapped in a reality show, where their entire world is fake and orchestrated. This Sim is living in a giant movie studio, without them knowing.

Now, this kind of seems a bit like Sims 4 itself. A fake world, orchestrated by an all-powerful idol (you!), be it the player or a reality TV show director. However, the catch here is that you cannot control the Sim being subjected to the challenge. Instead, you influence this Sim through other Sims and try to make them lead an entirely normal life. A very interesting challenge inspired by a classic. Read the rules and specifics in the challenge thread here.

3 3. Mooch Off Your Neighbor Challenge

Sims 4 Kitchen
via: EA

Ever wanted to know what it’s like to be Homer Simpson and mooch off your overly kind neighbor your entire life? Well, now you no longer need to just wonder. This Sims 4 challenge lets you live your life at other people’s homes. In this challenge, you must use your neighbors’ home and utilities to live your life, enjoy your hobbies and earn your money.

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From making money on other people’s computers to going to the museum to paint, read the rules and specifics in the challenge thread here.

2 2. Alien Takeover Challenge

via Sims Expressie

From planet Sixam, you must infiltrate this Sim race and populate their world with your own kind! This challenge puts you in the shoes, or boots, or whatever aliens wear, of an alien. You must create an alien Sim who, around others, wears a disguise.

This Sim must not be found out to be alien and must reproduce to infiltrate the unknowing Sim population. Ultimately, you will want every household to house at least three aliens to complete the challenge. Read the rules and specifics in the challenge thread here.

1 1. 100 Heartbreak Challenge

Sims 4 Date
via: EA

Taking heartbreak to the extreme, you have to break the hearts of 100 Sims in your chosen Sim's lifespan in order to complete this challenge. Taking your icy cold heart, you must make 100 Sims fall head over heels for you, and then bring their world crumbling down around them.

Picking traits like ‘Hopeless Romantic' and using the aspiration ‘Serial Romantic’ can very much help you in the game as well as using the long lifespan. Read the rules and specifics in the challenge thread here.

NEXT: 15 Of The Most Unique Gameplay Challenges In The Sims 4