Strange and messy families - I love them!

Do non-premade families count? Because my current family is just straight up weird and all over the place, though they're mostly my own sims with two premades in them (one from OL and another from Twinbrook). I just love playing them because of their weirdness. I used to play more normal, and as you put it, "idyllic" families, but now I really grew to love them and their weirdness much more than any "normal" family I've ever played.

I originally started with the daughter of my founder who went to the future when she grew up, there she created a plumbot she took back home. In Oasis Landing, she also met her boyfriend (who has commitment issues, btw). He just went up to her at the community center and just started flirting with her without any input. It all got weird when they went back to the present. The ghost of my main sim's school bully moved into the household, being hated by everyone because of her constant mean interactions with them. My main sim then created another plumbot who moved into the household. Later, I turned a random sim I saw on the street into a simbot with an elixir, who also moved in. My sim and her bf than went back to Oasis Landing and engineered a baby with dark blue eyes and pink hair. Some time after that, my main sim built a time machine and the ghost traveled to the past, managed to prevent her own death and come back as a normal sim. This didn't last long, however, because the next time she traveled to the future, she died again from time anomaly. Last but not least, I purchased the Philosopher's Stone from the rewards store and moved a second ghost in, and voila, 8 sim household. I resurrected both ghosts and let them move out. Shortly after that, I felt like the household became too normal, so I moved in a witch who would constantly cause chaos by throwing random elixirs at her roommates.

My main sim then became a ghost hunter and collected enough ghosts to put them in the WA display case and I transfigured them into a regular ghost (who moved in from there). Now I just had huge drama because my sim's boyfriend cheated on her with the ghost. My current goal with this family is to get another simbot as a love interest for the one I already have.

All families count, of course!

Yours sounds like a very interesting one indeed. I didn't know transfiguring ghosts was a thing. There is really a lot I haven't tried yet despite having had the game for years. I love it when the Sims turn things around in unexpected directions - I build my household "story" very much around such spontaneous events orchestered by the Sims themselves.

My goal is to try everything eventually. I have all expansions and stuff packs as well as a bunch of store items. Actually, I would like some sort of dynasty thing, but not in the conventional sense. Also, I struggle a bit to come to terms with aging. I can't decide how to go about it. Oh, well.

The Sims Lore is a YouTube channel that I enjoy watching. It sums up all the complicated family situations from Sims 2. In fact, I kind of feel inspired by them. Conspiracies, theories, things not being what they seem to be. Good stuff, that.

Basically, I like reasonable and realistic balance in my little simulations.

I am certain whomever(s) designed the household dynamics for the Sim did so for the sake of keeping drama and unexpected moments happening for the players to encounter; as it keeps the game interesting. However, for a Simmer like me who plays with the logic and learning portion of this game, all I see in these major mismatches are unavoidable potential for disheartening conflicts or just downright cruel situations.

Like you, I enjoy a good challenge. I am not afraid of getting my hands dirty as I untangle and sort these households out. After years of 'sorting Sims out', what I have discovered is: 1) Sims develop better when unshackled from trait pulls and situations which do not reflect their true personality or wants. And, 2) They are more than capable when it comes to creating interesting drama as they straighten out their lives and find their own way ;)!

I am a world player who enjoys seeing Sims 'live, learn, develop and become' who they are. I view households like the Irwins' to be a good example of cruelty to Sims. Whomever designed this household built it on the quiet foundation of Domestic Emotional Abuse. Richard's and Emi's bio are mismatched and misaligned right out of the gate; but then it gets worst.

The Irwin's were created already married, so why does Richard have the 'commitment issue' trait? This trait pushes him to 'carry out or act' in ways which would hurt his spouse and have diminished feelings about it (though that's not how their logic AI actually works). In addition, they made him a flirty schmoozing mooch which means his programming push is to always seek out others (for surface gain) and interact with them in a way which will have negative effects on his household and terrible effects on his wife. This feeds into his 'surface' bio and game purpose.

On to Emi, they made her a family-oriented coward who is prone to a variety of emotional outbreaks or breakdowns via her neurotic, insane and inappropriate traits. Plus, they gave her a career which doesn't match her 'implied' personality type. Richard is unemployed because seeking out all of these Sims to destroy his family with requires time. The unborn baby is a pawn in the scenario.

As for their daughter, her traits indicate if left unchanged she will have relationship issues in her future no matter which additional traits she receives through aging up. Slob and Inappropriate carry with it a certain amount of social 'I don't care' behavior, while her artistic trait will most likely be used as a balancing mechanism for the pain which is most likely ahead of her.

This is a household which I would re-align. Re-alignment would require observing them for a bit to see what personality (mannerisms) or likes they displayed on their own which are not trait nor object driven and moving forward from there.

Great analysis of this particular family.

It will take me some time for sure to peg these Sims, these walking contradictions. At this time, Richard is out of the picture living elsewhere. His midlife-crisis wishes straightened that part out. Emi is a single pringle as of now, and has had two additional kids. I'm not sure she is marriage material any more than Richard, to be honest. It's a challenge alright - like an equation that won't be solved. I might start the family over at some point to gain more insight.

The majority of households I have played, I am very comfortable with and feel I know inside out. This is an "outside my comfort zone" experiment. I should try and leave autonomy on, but I have been afraid of that...well, of the chaos that will surely follow.

Thanks for both of your replies :)

I like "fridge horror" type, most of my households are this type, for example

SINISTER SINS, a fledgling metal band from Bridgeport. All of members, no matter if ex, have a least one traits that negative affects social interaction. The drummer with Peter Pan syndrome, even five negative traits(socially awkward, childish, inappropriate, dramatic, diva). The relationship between them is similar to Mayhem band.
Yet. They not just discordant. The ex leader, a rough curmudgeon, was accidentally killed by the present leader, they also had a bad relationship before this. The ex leader's ghost wants to regain his status. But the story develops no bad, the ghost leader fall in love with a old maiden, he no longer wants to regain status and silently watching the present leader has sweet live with the drummer's sister. In TS4 timeline, the relationship between members has improved, the bassist's brother may officially join the band(It depends on whether bands in TS4 can have five people)or become an assistant.

I also have a household from Midnight Hollow is consist of a female human glam rocker, a male fairy black metal rocker, a ghastly female fairy, the two fairies look like two servant, and the human girl fall in love with the fairy guy. It seems not fridge horror, fairies look weird also normal.
Yet. The human girl once a insane scientist. In an experimental accident, the weapons became fairies(it's a reference to the objects/animals/plants gain the magic powers and become fairies/elves/devils in eastern folklores), including her beloved gun-it(he) is the fairy guy. The fairy girl was a C4 bomb, so her full body and clothing is pure white, she has a crush with an incendiary bomb fairy guy from another household. Every time I see the human girl woohoo with the fairy guy, I feel like watching a horror-romantic movie in the fridge.

I also have a household from Moonlight Falls is consist of a Asian male vampire rocker and a white female human fortune teller, and images herself as an occult. They look like many vampire-and-human couples, except for both them look very distinctive.
Yet. The vampire was a human born in Ming Dynasty, he was a cult bomber at the time(cult members are an essential villain in wuxia), he has several associates lives/rests in Midnight Hollow, he's also the most advanced of them, both ancient and modern times(one of them died in ancient times, others are unemployed at beginning, and their outfits are a bit archaic. gunpowder and explosives were relatively advanced at the time). He turned into vampire by a mad outlaw(this outlaw also an "experience" guy, but it's too long to say in there), the cult had to abandoned him. He gradually became a law abiding citizen and modern people, he also became a rocker and met the modern fortune teller in an underground rock concert, then they fall in love. So their real age gap is hundreds of years old, it's even exceed May-December love.

I love Reading about them but every time I play I make my families behave. I try, I really do try and let them free but my control issues take over. So, I don't get anything like these stories. :( :cookie:

"Rflong7;c-17426898" wrote:
I love Reading about them but every time I play I make my families behave. I try, I really do try and let them free but my control issues take over. So, I don't get anything like these stories. :( :cookie:

Same. I always play happy, normal, suburban families. (However, I’ve started playing with Into the Future recently, and that’s a bit less normal.)

"Squiddlies_s;c-17427102" wrote:
Does anyone have any ideas I can use to make a chaotic household in the sims I’ve run out of ideassss

My advice: dysfunctional marriage, two siblings with the same love intrest, and a crazy granny in the attic. Works every time.

@king_of_simcity7 Dudley Racket? Funny thing: he had an alien baby in my game!

@Shadow_Assassin I was wondering when you’d comment on this!