Games Similar to Sims: An Interesting Selection

2025 was marked by the release of the long-awaited demo of inZOI, an ambitious life simulator developed on the Unreal Engine 5. The release provided users with the opportunity to test the key features of the project before the launch of early access. The full-fledged character editor and house-building module showcased a high level of graphics, flexible interaction, and a focus on creating interesting user content.

Graphics, mechanics, and detail: immersing yourself in the gameplay

The visual performance immediately established itself as a new standard in the genre. Photorealistic skin, smooth animation, high-detail objects, and adaptive lighting showcased the project’s ambitions. The gameplay transitioned into an interactive cinematic experience, allowing for real-time control of emotions and facial expressions. Each scene in the editor allowed for manual customization of facial expressions and eye movements, going beyond just physical appearance. The physics of objects went beyond the ordinary, with hairstyles reacting to wind, clothing adapting to body positions, and shadows forming naturally. The inZOI demo set a new visual standard for life simulators.

Character Editor: ultra-precise customization

The editor’s toolkit competes with a full-fledged appearance designer. The user controls the shape of the face, the distance between the eyes, the curve of the nose, the skin tone, the hair texture, and even the mobility of the joints. The wardrobe includes not only basic clothing but also the ability to combine styles and brands. The character designer allows you to set the gait, facial expressions, voice tone, and favorite actions.

Each option retains contextual dependencies: if you choose a sporty build, the animation of movement will change, the gait will become heavier, and the reactions will become more aggressive. The inZOI demo provided a tool for not just customizing the appearance, but for recreating the character through visuals.

House construction: scale and depth

The construction system has offered an architectural editor. The inZOI demo revealed a whole module where it is possible to manage the layout, design, facades, decoration, furniture arrangement, lighting and landscape. Each room can be customized individually: from the drawing of walls to the choice of floor texture.

Placement of windows, electrical wiring, water supply, ceiling height – everything is included. Realism is achieved through physically correct interaction of materials: wood reflects light differently than concrete, curtains react to the wind from the street. The test format allowed us to create not just an interior, but a full-fledged living space that responds to weather and time conditions.

System requirements and optimization

Despite its visual power, inZOI showed good performance. On a configuration with an RTX 3060 and a Ryzen 5 5600X processor, the system achieved a stable 60 FPS at 2K resolution with high settings. The developers implemented DLSS 3, multi-threading support, and on-demand asset loading. This allowed for smooth gameplay even with high levels of detail and active editing.

Community engagement: Twitch, Steam, and live streaming culture

The release of the inZOI demo was accompanied by a large-scale media launch in the form of live broadcasts and integration into the digital streaming ecosystem. Major gaming channels on Twitch immediately included the project in their broadcast schedules, and the developers organized a demonstration of the game’s features on Steam, revealing key aspects of the character editor and building mechanics.

On the day of the premiere, the number of active viewers exceeded 43,000, with peak activity occurring during the demonstration of flexible facial expression customization. Commentators praised the level of facial detail and the organic animation. The scenes of character creation with individual walking, gestures, and clothing that visually separated the players from each other were particularly striking in the broadcasts.

On the Steam platform, the developers included a block of answers in the live stream. The questions were related to in-game scenarios, possible mod support, the addition of pets, voice acting tools, and future modes. The inZOI demo attracted the attention of not only gamers but also content creators. A streamer with an audience of 200,000 subscribers conducted a marathon stream featuring character editing and the interior of a country house, which garnered 120,000 views in 36 hours. YouTube bloggers began to massively publish videos with gameplay, builds, and scenes of the “life” of their heroes.

A separate community appeared on Reddit for sharing house templates, memes, and bug reports. More than 18,000 people registered in the developers’ Discord channel in the first week. The inZOI demo included powerful viral mechanics through the editor’s spectacle, as well as convenient integration with OBS and Nvidia Broadcast, which allowed authors to live stream without delays and loss of quality.

New Standards in the Genre: A Comparison with The Sims

The comparison of inZOI with The Sims has become inevitable. The gaming industry has long defined The Sims as the standard for life simulators, but the test version of the new game has changed the rules. The demo version of inZOI has abandoned scripted reactions. Characters react to situations in a contextual manner. If a character is in a brightly lit room and hears a loud sound, they will instinctively turn their head and squint. If the temperature drops, the character will shiver, adjust their clothing, and speed up their steps. These details are not present in The Sims, where each emotion is triggered manually by the player.

The emotion expression system in the demo version of inZOI is based on synthesis rather than selection. There is no need to choose between “smile 3” and “angry 2” – characters react to their environment, weather, light, sounds, and other players. The house editor also demonstrates a significant difference. While in The Sims, rooms are designed according to a predefined grid, in inZOI, each object can be freely rotated, scaled, and deformed. Users can create slanted walls, asymmetrical ceilings, and precise lighting fixtures.

Procedural generation of behavior is another key difference. A character with an introverted personality and an artistic profile will avoid crowds, preferring solitary activities such as drawing, listening to music, and meditating. On the other hand, a sociable character is more likely to engage in dialogue, make jokes, and express emotions.

Project prospects

A full-fledged release will appear in the middle of 2025 with multiplayer, economy, career mode and quest system.

The inZOI demo took the life simulation genre to a qualitatively new level. A high visual bar, an accurate character editor, a flexible architectural system and advanced interaction mechanics formed a new standard in the genre. The project demonstrated a focus not only on gamers, but also on those who create — designers, visualizers, content makers. The launch was a success, and interest in the full-length release continues to grow.

The world of computer games offers a plethora of amazing projects, and Sims 4 is one of those that managed to capture the hearts of millions. Here, there are no dragons or battles for survival – the universe simulates life itself. It’s not just a game about life, but a true digital sandbox where you can not only control every aspect of the hero’s existence but also create unique scenarios. The simulator allows everyone to become a director and creator of their own reality. This is where its incredible appeal lies – after all, everyone dreams in one way or another of trying on new roles, living alternative destinies, and seeing what comes of it.

Why Sims 4 is the best life simulator

The project offers practically unlimited freedom for creativity. The main feature is detailed customization of characters, the ability to control every trait: from gait to secret desires. Each hero can be customized to the smallest detail, creating living people with their own ambitions.

Customization doesn’t end with appearance: players can choose aspirations and fears, character traits, life goals, profession, and hobbies. Each sim lives, works, entertains, and develops their skills, facing the challenges and joys that Sims 4 offers.

Character customization and development:

1. Emotional states: characters can experience a wide range of emotions – from joy and inspiration to anger and sadness. These states not only affect their behavior but also provide a unique communication experience, making interactions between characters more realistic.
2. Skills and their development: users can develop many skills for sims, such as cooking, playing musical instruments, logic, fitness, and even the skill of “comedy.”
3. Career paths and advancement: here, it’s not just about jobs, but entire career paths with different specializations. For example, a character choosing a career in science can become either an inventor or a space explorer.
4. Social connections: the relationship system allows heroes to make friends, find love, and even encounter enemies. Character and behavior determine how these relationships will develop. Depending on the situation, unique dramas or harmonious relationships can be created.
5. Life goals and aspirations: each sim can be given a global life goal, whether it’s a career, family, or accumulating wealth.
6. Perks and traits: as characters complete life tasks and career achievements, they can gain special abilities that provide additional skills or improvements.

Advantages and opportunities

Sims 4 stands out from other games with its depth and wealth of opportunities. It has been crafted with soul, allowing each participant to experience the joy of managing their own version of a virtual world. Here, you can model complex life situations that touch on personal relationships, career ambitions, love, and loss.

For example, a user can advance a character’s career, build relationships, get married, and even get divorced. The simulator is without embellishments but with an incredible ability to choose and make decisions.

Gameplay and features of the virtual world

The environment in Sims 4 includes not only homes and public places but also parks, cafes, museums where characters can meet, make friends, and enemies. It’s important to note that sim behavior depends not only on their character traits but also on the surrounding environment. Users can manage everyday life and create unique moments.

Character creation: what influences their development

The process of creating characters turns into a true art form. First, the player chooses the appearance: you can control literally every nuance, including the shape of the eyes, nose, mouth, and even gait. Then come the character traits that determine future behavior. They are diverse and include qualities like “romantic,” “career-oriented,” “homebody,” and many others.

Each trait and user choice influences how the sim interacts with others and develops. For example, an “ambitious” hero will actively strive for career growth and experience negative emotions if their work stagnates.

Expansions and cheats for Sims 4

Expansions for Sims 4 make the process even more diverse and profound. Each one adds new scenarios, objects, and opportunities. For example, the “Get to Work!” expansion allows characters to become doctors, detectives, or scientists and manage their work process. This opens up new horizons for users and makes the session more exciting.

Cheats for Sims 4 are an important part of the culture, allowing you to speed up development or simplify construction. By entering special commands, you can instantly add money, boost the mood of characters, or even change their character traits.

Building and design in Sims 4

The project offers an amazingly detailed building system. Gamers can build their dream home, starting from the foundation and ending with interior solutions. The building mechanics are so intuitive that even someone without design skills can easily manage. It’s a creative process that allows you to embody the boldest ideas.

Each room in the house can become unique thanks to the variety of styles, furniture, and accessories. The concept provides the opportunity to choose any color scheme and texture, create a cozy corner or ultra-modern space. Players can experiment with styles, combining classic with modern or minimalism with pop art elements.

Conclusion

Once again, Sims 4 proves to be the best life simulator. The opportunities for creativity, character customization, and creating unique life scenarios make it unique. Here, everyone will find something for themselves – building the perfect home or embarking on a sim’s career journey. Try creating your own virtual fairy tale of life where anything is possible.