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In the often male-dominated world of creating video game content for YouTube, The Sims franchise stands out for its popularity with women. According to a recent job listing from Electronic Arts, “The Sims 4 has an extremely unique player base, with 60 percent of our audience being women between the ages of 18-24.” Many of the most popular YouTube creators who make Sims videos, build devoted fan bases, and amass millions of views are women. Juno Birch, the self-described “alien diva in Manchester,” is one of these creators.
Birch started creating Sims YouTube videos around a month before the first coronavirus lockdown in England. With live events canceled in the foreseeable future, the transgender artist and drag performer was playing countless hours of The Sims and not feeling incredibly productive. She started uploading humorous videos featuring gameplay from The Sims, with titles like “The Sims 4 Apocalyptic Lifestyle Yes Thats Happening” and “Meet Becky the Most Stunning Cat in the Sims 4,” carving out a unique YouTube niche with a mixture of Sims gameplay, makeup tutorials, and the occasional Jennifer Coolidge impression.
Harnessing an intoxicating charisma on camera, Birch has a knack for coining catchphrases that would make the cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills green with envy. “When I was little, I used to play with my sister’s dolls all the time,” Birch said. While recording for her channel, “I go back to that place where I’m on my own and putting all these crazy voices on.”
As the quintessential simulation game from my childhood, I have a personal appreciation for this franchise from Electronic Arts. (I was woo-hooing in The Sims 2 long before I participated in any sex ed class at school.) While I have regularly played The Sims 4 during the past few months, the repetitive tasks can feel monotonous at times, and I often find myself starting over with a new Sim out of boredom.
I spoke with Juno Birch about The Sims 4 and came up with a handful of tips that will transform your gameplay from dreadfully drab to absolutely iconic.
Even though EA no longer sells copies of The Sims 2, the game can be purchased secondhand from online retailers or possibly dug out of a dusty box of PlayStation 2 games tucked away in your parents’ attic. If you are able to obtain a copy, Birch recommends playing an earlier version of the game. “I feel like The Sims 1, Sims 2, and Sims 3 have loads of charm, and they are very strange games,” she said. The latest Sims installment lacks some of the eccentricities, like the Social Bunny, that attracted gamers to earlier versions, and it can sometimes feel too much like everyday life for Birch’s preference. “I hate The Sims 4, but I love The Sims 2.”
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While she has played The Sims 4, Birch definitely has a penchant for uploading videos of gameplay from The Sims 2; last year, she uploaded 26 videos playing The Sims 2 and only nine videos playing The Sims 4. Her first video uploaded in 2021 is titled “I'm in the Sims 3 - Let the Chaos Begin.”
More interested in building lavish houses and causing neighborhood drama than attending a day job and climbing that corporate ladder? Just cheat. It’s chill. On EA’s website for The Sims 4, there is even a page titled “How to Cheat” that begins with “Cheating is a big part of the game. Not only is it easy to access, but it’s even something we kinda, sorta, actually encourage.”
Especially when playing this fourth installment of The Sims franchise, Birch often uses the cheats to liven up the gameplay pace. “I’ve tried in the past playing as one Sim with no money and trying to work my way up to the top … It’s really fun to do that in Sims 1, 2, and 3, because things move at a much faster pace, whereas in The Sims 4 it’s dragged out really long.”
You can visit EA’s website and learn how to do the basic cheats for PC/Mac and for console versions of the game. For players who want to dive into the deep end, complete collections of specific cheats for this game are easy to find with a quick internet search.
“I think the SimRay is probably one of the best things about The Sims 4,” Birch said. New to this version of the game, the SimRay is, as the name implies, a ray gun and tool created as part of the Get to Work expansion pack and can be invented by Sims on the scientist career path.
Sure, you can use the SimRay to put out fires, but if you’re craving a more chaotic gameplay style, then why not freeze your neighbors and stop them from calling the fire department? In addition, if you are living the kleptomaniac lifestyle, I’ve found that frozen neighbors are quite easy to plunder. The SimRay includes multiple mind-control features as the tool is upgraded.
“The grilled cheese aspiration is hilarious, but it’s a hidden aspiration,” Birch said. “If you eat a certain amount of grilled cheese, you can get that aspiration.” Originally introduced in The Sims 2 and brought over into The Sims 4, the grilled cheese aspiration can be unlocked after consecutively eating three plates of grilled cheese. My current Sim (named Cherry Spritzer) likely had a queasy stomach after so much dairy, but her innermost desire for those gooey, delectable sandwiches was released.
An aspiration is a driving desire that your Sim possesses and can be satisfied by reaching specific goals. For example, if you unlock the grilled cheese aspiration, your Sim will start off wanting to eat 10 grilled cheese sandwiches and chat with their friends about the topic, but eventually, the stakes are raised so high that your Sim will want to speak about grilled cheese with the Grim Reaper.
“When Sims 4 first came out there were no family trees, lore, or previous story lines, so you had to make it up yourself,” Birch said. “I use the cheats a lot to age people, kill the parents, age their parents, kill them, and so on. Then you’ve got a graveyard in the backyard. You’ve got a bit of history.” The custom graveyard was one of my favorite tips to test out, and I might have gone a little overboard when creating the Spritzer’s family plot!
Conceived as existing within an alternate universe, The Sims 4 does not follow the previously created timeline. This updated approach from EA towards the fourth installment of the franchise demonstrates its desire to keep valuable IP perceived as fresh and relevant to a new generation of gamers. Comparing the gameplay of The Sims 4 with previous versions, Birch said, “It’s built for, I think, a younger generation who wants to play as a Kardashian who’s an influencer or whatever, but I want to play as a crazy burglar that goes around robbin’ people’s stuff.”
Looking at all the recent Sims collaborations (like Star Wars, Gucci, and MAC Cosmetics), I’m not sure which feels the most like boardroom executives just spinning a large, SEO-optimized wheel of Things the Youth Like. I’m predicting a TikTok X The Sims moment in 2021. Maybe you will be able to download a premade build of some Los Angeles influencer household? How terrifying.
“Sims 4 is different in that you can change the height of the terrain and foundation after you’ve built it,” Birch said. Whether you want to put your house at the bottom of a pit, at the top of a hill, or somewhere in between, you can terraform as you go without the need to plan ahead. Most of my approach to Sims gameplay feels amorphous, and I appreciate being able to adjust the terrain as my heart desires.
YouTube gamers, like lilsimsie, have created numerous quick-build videos for The Sims 4. Most often the goal of these videos is to see how well they can complete certain building challenges in under 10 minutes. Birch said, “A lot of people want to watch speed builds.” She respects this method but often takes a different approach. “I’ll start decorating a room even though I’ve not built the rest of the house!” With quick-build videos, gamers will often build the entire house and then go back to decorate the rooms.
Birch agreed with WIRED writer Louryn Strampe’s assessment that The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle is a skippable expansion pack, “The only reason I bought it is because I just wanted to make loads of trash and nasty environments, but they push you more towards being a good Sim.” She found this to be a common issue with The Sims 4 expansion packs, “It’s always about being good, and it gets a bit boring I think.” In her review of The Sims 4 expansion packs, Strampe recommended Seasons as the best one to get, since it adds weather and holiday celebrations to your gameplay experience.
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