If you’ve played the Sims for a while, you may have grown bored of the game’s monotony. Luckily, there are tons of Sims 4 challenges to get the inspiration flowing again.
Most of the challenges on this list involve multiple generations. In contrast, others are once-off and need to be completed in a lifespan. Additionally, we have a few for those Simmers who love building.
So follow these guidelines and get creative with the following Sims 4 challenge ideas.
Rags To Riches
The rags to riches challenge (R2R) is starting off our list strong. As the name suggests, your Sim starts with nothing and rises until they’re filthy rich. And when we say nothing, we mean nothing! Zero Simoleons, no house, and no furniture. Your Sim will start off with no money and an empty lot.
While there are specific rules to follow, the Sims 4 challenge idea is to end the challenge with a house, wealth, and a family.
Start off by using community lots like parks to find food. Then, find collectibles and sell them to earn some cash. But, of course, your Sim will also need a job, so good luck trying to keep them happy while you struggle to find them food and a shower.
Off the Grid Challenge
With the ‘Off the Grid’ lot challenge, your Sim can build a home disconnected from electricity and water. So your fridge won’t work, baths and sinks will have little water, and you can say goodbye to that TV. Thanks to a recent patch, there’s a new build/buy mode category for off-the-grid items. Search these items to see what your Sim can use while they live a more eco-friendly lifestyle.
Ensure your fridge’s ice box is stocked, collect bath water, and dive into a book for fun. These new activities will be part of your Sim’s new lifestyle.
The Sims 4 Eco Living expansion pack adds new items that can help. These include a dew collector for water, solar panels, and wind turbines. However, you don’t need the expansion pack to complete the challenge.
Live The Farm Life
Like the Off the Grid challenge, living the farm life requires your Sim to harvest food and live off the land. Using the Simple Living lot trait, your Sim will no longer be able to cook food without having the ingredients on hand. So instead, grow crops and collect animal produce to cook and sell to make money.
This challenge works best with the Sims 4 Cottage Living, an expansion pack that introduces the Simple Living plot trait. First, buy chicken pens, and animal sheds to keep chickens, cows, and lamas on your farm. Then, sell eggs, milk, and wool at the market in the world of Henford-on-Bagley.
If you manage your resources properly and take care of your animals, you’ll soon have the means to upgrade your farm and succeed in this Sims 4 Challenge.
The History Challenge
The next Sims 4 challenge idea is to take your Sims through the different eras of history. While you may not be able to affect the world around you, you can style your Sims, home, and garden according to the era your Sim is currently in.
Start in the prehistoric ages, living off the land, and with every generation, move forward through time. Worlds like Newcrest offer blank canvases for you to build entire towns based on historical eras.
With this challenge, you can make as many rules as you like, like eating specific foods. Alternatively, you can play it simple and see where history takes you.
Globetrotter
No, this challenge isn’t simply taking a vacation. It’s much more challenging than that. With the Sims 4 Seasons installed, your Sim will need to move worlds as the season changes. Sure, that sounds easy enough, but finding affordable houses and settling in can quickly become challenging.
To spice it up even further, your Sim will need to complete their main aspirations before they return to the world they started in. That’s a lot of moving and hard work, so don’t underestimate this challenging idea.
Runaway Teen
Now that teen sims can live on their own, it’s time for a new in-game story. Start with a happy family before your teen gains a rebellious streak and decides to run away! Then, move your Sim to a low-cost lot and start a new life. No interactions with adults are allowed, which includes teachers.
That means your teen will need to skip school and can’t get a part-time job. That said, teens can chat with other teens and children for social interaction.
Additionally, they’ll need to live off the land by selling collectibles such as fish, plants, and metals.
Once your Sim is a young adult with enough money to buy a house and a job, you can consider the challenge over. There’s something great about building something great from nothing.
Happy Sim Challenge
As the name suggests, this Sims 4 challenge requires that your Sim stays happy. That’s right, they’re not allowed to get sad once during their lifetime. But, of course, it’s easier said than done, especially if they have a loved one pass away or go through a breakup.
The Berry Colourful Challenge
Excuse the pun, but that’s precisely what this Sims 4 challenge is. First, style your Sim to a specific color aesthetic with the customizations available in-game. Then, through ten generations of Sims, dedicate a color to each generation and style accordingly. That said, this challenge isn’t just about personal style.
Everything from home decor to food should be chosen according to the selected color. You can even use custom content and cheats to help you stay on track.
The ‘One Sim’ Challenge
We all know how unreliable Sims can be when they’re left to fend for themselves – Sim autonomy isn’t the best. This challenge is so difficult when trying to control the narrative. In this Sims 4 challenge idea, you can only control one Sim in your family. The aim is to go through 10 generations of Sims by only actively controlling one Sim. Then, when the Sim passes away, you choose their closest descendent, and so on.
Watch as your Sim household descends into chaos or rises to success, all from the influence of one Sim. Luckily, the Sims 4 Parenting makes this a little easier as it allows parents to invite children to cook or join activities with them.
Can you keep your Sims family alive by only controlling one Sim?
Through the Decades
Like the Sims 4 History challenge, the decade challenge requires your Sim family to live through the decades. You can start in the 1900s or the ’80s; the choice is yours. But with every generation of Sims, you must move forward through time. For example, if you start in the ’60s when your Sim’s child becomes a young adult, the decade changes to the ’70s.
The main rule is that you need to keep everything regarding your Sims to that decade. So only style your Sim to the decade, change the house, and even say goodbye to new-age technology, depending on the decade.
This challenge isn’t difficult and adds a fun twist to the game we know and love.
Homeless Challenge
This Sims 4 challenge idea is Rags to Riches with a twist – your Sim is homeless. Starting with no money or home, your Sim will need to rely on public facilities in parks and gyms. Try sneaking a hotdog from Sims, having a picnic, or taking a shower at the gym.
With no jobs allowed, your Sim needs to earn enough money from fishing, collecting, and hobbies, which are included in multiple game packs. The challenge ends when your Sim finally has enough money to build (not buy) their own home.
Hold back from buying furniture one piece at a time to take the challenge even further. Instead, keep living in public facilities until you have enough to build and furnish an entire home.
Disney Princess Challenge
Are you a Disney fan? Then why not blend your favorite Disney princess with the Sims 4? Like the Berry Challenge, you’ll need to play multiple generations of Sims, each based on a Disney Princess.
How well can you portray the Disney story through your Sim’s lives? Will you make Elsa a Spellcaster and freeze those around you? Or perhaps you’ll turn your Moana-inspired Sim into a mermaid. The narrative is yours to control.
Each Room is a Pack
You may have heard of this challenge if you watch any Sims YouTubers who do builds. This building project aims to create a house, but each room is a different pack. For example, one room can only use build/buy items from Tiny Living. In contrast, another can only use Sims 4 Snowy Escape items.
The challenge creates hours of build/buy fun as you can incorporate as much stuff and furniture as possible from the packs. However, don’t just shove items into the rooms; you need to try and make them aesthetically pleasing too.
Wanting an additional challenge? Try to make the entire home feel like one house instead of multiple different rooms stuck together. The best way to do this is by following a color scheme throughout the home.
The Zodiac Challenge
Yet another generation-based challenge is the Zodiac challenge. Through this gameplay idea, you’ll need to base each generation on a zodiac sign. Starting with Aries and moving through the 12 signs in order, ending with Pisces.
The challenge really comes in when you include the personality traits of each Zodiac into your Sim. For example, one Sim will be insanely creative, while the other may follow the villain’s career path. It’s fun to play with the different personalities available and explore careers and hobbies you usually wouldn’t pursue.
Bachelor/Bachelorette Challenge
Romance, drama, and betrayal. These three aspects will be sure to appear during this challenge. It’s a great Sims 4 challenge idea for those looking to use charismatic and flirty traits. Start off by creating a Sim who will be the bachelor/bachelorette. Then, get started with a career and build/buy a home big enough for 8 Sims.
Then, create another 7 Sims who will be your Sim’s suitors. Once all 8 Sims are in the same house, unleash the chaos. You can eliminate a Sim each week and get them to move out of the household. Eventually, there will be one Sim left to marry your primary Sim – if they choose to.
The Bloodline Challenge
The bloodline challenge is the first supernatural Sims 4 challenge idea on this list. Create a Sim who is a Spellcaster or travel to the realm of magic to turn your Sim into one. Then, rise through the ranks until you’ve mastered all spells and potions.
Now that you have a powerful Spellcaster, the challenge is to pass on the knowledge to future generations. Your Sim can only have children with another Spellcaster, ensuring the line of magic continues for ten generations.
The challenge ends when your tenth-generation Sim has mastered everything there is to be a Spellcaster.
Masterchef Challenge
Like the reality TV show, this Sims 4 challenge revolves around cooking and creativity. Starting with creating a household of three, the judges rise through the ranks and reach level 5 or above in cooking skills. Then, introduce five Sims who will play as the contestants.
Have the contestants cook on ‘competition’ days and serve the meals to the judges. Then, depending on the food quality, vote one Sim out of the household.
To spice things up, you can have a Masterchef restaurant awarded to the competition winner.
The House Flipper
Ready for another building challenge? This time, your Sim is a house flipper and dreams of restoring homes. This challenge aims to buy your first house, renovate it and sell it for profit.
Here’s how it works: Buy a wood-crafting table, and each day, craft something new. This will represent the carpentry involved in flipping a house. Then, once that task is finished, you can renovate one thing in the house, such as the kitchen walls. Keep doing this until you’ve renovated the entire home.
Here’s the catch, your Sim isn’t allowed to have any other career. In fact, they should register as a home developer. Then, make money by selling items you’ve crafted or selling existing furniture.
Once the house is finished, here’s how you calculate how much the house sells for: (Cost of house + money spent + profit). Each time you sell a house, you’ll earn more profit, increasing in §5,000 increments. For example:
- House 1: §10,000
- House 2: §15,000
- House 3: §20,000
- House 4: §25,000
Asylum Challenge
Another narrative-based challenge is the Asylum challenge. Your Sim will start in a mental hospital, wrongfully accused of being insane. The prove that your Sim is sane, you’ll need to take care of the other patients in the Asylum. There are 10 Sims to start with, but you can add more as new patients come in.
Once all the Sims in the Asylum are happy, have jobs, and have at least three skills, you can consider the challenge over.
Celebrity Genes
This challenge uses the Get Famous expansion pack and takes it to a new level. Start with one Sim and max their fame level. You can do this through acting, singing, social media, or even as an author.
Then, keep playing for another five generations, ensuring fame through each generation. However, each generation needs to be famous for something different.
The Supernatural Household
Depending on how many expansion packs or mods you have installed, create a household with the same amount of occult life-states in your game. For example, you’ll have one Sim for Aliens, one for Werewolves, one for Mermaids, and so on. Keep in mind that all Sims need to be regular Sims at the beginning.
Then, through gameplay only, turn each Sim into their occult counterpart. Lastly, try and keep the household happy and continue to do so for five generations, with each generation attempting to keep at least one of the occult states in the family.
The Collectors Museum Challenge
If you have a knack for finding things, this challenge is for you. This Sims 4 challenge revolves around the idea of collectibles, intending to build your own museum. Every time you find an item in the world, keep one and sell the rest.
Once you’ve gone through the expansive list of collectibles, including fish, bugs, frogs, and metals, your house will be a museum where visiting Sims can marvel.
The Black Widow Killer
Here’s a classic challenge that isn’t generational. In fact, you only have one lifespan to complete the challenge. You’ll need to marry at least 10 wealthy spouses without using cheats. After each marriage, kill your spouse and inherit their wealth.
Without being allowed to work, you’ll need to rely on romance, charm, and chaotic evil to get through this challenge. Try not to let your Sim get attached; otherwise, the mourning period after each spouse can set you back.
The Random Legacy Challenge
Here’s a basic challenge that’s more for fun than anything else. Have you wondered how wild your Sim’s family can get if you don’t guide them? Well, this challenge does just that. Unlike the ‘one Sim’ challenge, you can control as many Sims as you like; however, you have no control. Everything from traits, aspirations, and love interests needs to be random.
Without mods or cheats, ensure that the family gets through ten generations without Sim dying from any death other than old age.
100 Baby Challenge
Anyone searching for the Sims 4 challenge ideas would have heard of the 100-baby challenge idea. Having 100 babies is enough of a challenge, but if only raising 100 children was it. Instead, to make matters worse, there are a few additional twists.
First and foremost, your parent Sim isn’t allowed to have children with the same father twice. Yep, that means 100 different partners.
The worst twist is that your Sim needs to be a full-time parent. They’re not allowed to have a part-time or full-time job other than raising children. They’re allowed to have hobbies and make money that way, but good luck finding the time. There’s also no rule that teen Sims can’t get jobs, so get those kids to help; otherwise, there’s no income but 100 mouths to feed.
Sims 4 Vampire Legacy
Like the bloodline challenge, the Vampire Legacy requires your Sim to turn into a vampire and sire as many Sims as possible. So start simple and grow your Vampire legacy by turning as many Sims into vampires as possible. To make things worse, you can always give your Sim the squeamish trait and make them only drink plasma fruit.
In addition, you can try to have as many Vampire children as you desire, but keep in mind that Vampires are immortal.
Dumpster Challenge
It’s simple, really, yet more complicated than the homeless challenge. Have your Sim buy a dumpster on an empty lot and set your funds to zero using the money cheat. Your Sim needs to survive off everything from that dumpster or other dumpsters on community lots.
That means your Sim may only eat food and collect furniture from the dumpster. It’s pretty disgusting but also challenging to keep your Sim happy.
Breed Out The Ugly Challenge
While this challenge may seem harsh, it’s recently become popular among YouTubers. The idea of the challenge is to create an ugly Sim in CAS. But you need to go wild! Choose crazy hair, weird eyes, and emphasized facial features.
Then, through generations, try to eliminate all the ugly by choosing ordinary partners. It may take a while but the challenge is over when the ‘ugly’ genes are gone and the child Sim finally looks normal.
Big Sibling Challenge
Like the runaway teen challenge, this requires a teen Sim to be the household leader. The difference is that your teen Sim needs to look after their younger sibling. The goal is for the older sibling to raise the younger one and create a home for the only family they have left.
The older sibling also needs to have the Big Happy Family aspiration, starting a new family from nothing.
Tiny House Challenge
The last Sims 4 challenge on this list is the Tiny House challenge. Create a new lot with the tiny home residential trait and watch the tile count change on the top of the screen. There are three sizes in this challenge: 100 tiles, 64 tiles, and 32 tiles. Start with 100 and create two lots moving towards the smallest tile size.
The tricky part is trying to make a liveable and functional home. Additionally, the internal tiles count for different floors as well. If a roof isn’t placed, you can count those tiles as external tiles – meaning you can build on the roof, creating a roof garden or patio.
