Stuck in a Sims Rut

The drifter challenge is what keeps the game fun for me. It's a legacy challenge in which each generation starts with zero money, you start playing with the new generation as soon as the heir turns into a YA. For each generation you have a set of goals. It's fun! I'm not playing generation 13, while before this challenge I could never get past generation 3.

I hope you find a new way to make your game fun again.

Suggestions to keep the game interesting I’d say try things you don’t normally do/ that are out of your comfort zone. That’s how I found my play style (aka found out my preferences. I always tried the family approached in TS2 but never got past second gen because I got so bored, now I know why).

I started by creating a sim with nose, hair colour, clothes, traits etc I rarely used, if at all. Just to explore. I made him a writer at the time because I wasn’t really playing that path before and tried different things with this sim. I’ve played him on and off for three years and although the traits are getting a little old (childish, insane and geek) he is still my favorite sim.

So try something you aren’t doing right now or are not really comfortable with. Don’t like vampires? Play as one. Always have kids and then get bored? Only adopt (if you just can’t help yourself) but focus on a career you usually don't play or only play a romantic sim with commitment issues that you have break up with the current partner as soon as he gets a whim to. Play as a detective if you don’t normally do that. Finish a collection.

Since you said you usually don't complete aspirations, create a save with aging off and do just that. Use your favourite sim (if you have one) or create a new one.

Play aging off in one save if you always play with aging on and vice versa. It gives you a new perspective.

Set “rules” for your sim, like never turn down a social invite or never initiate flirting with anyone (my sims I try that with usually ends up gay, I think it’s because they use the enchanted greeting at random sims when their charisma is high enough).

You could try challenges as well. The only one I have enjoyed and stuck with was the time lord challenge. It’s a doctor who challenge but you don’t have to have watch the show in order to play it, I’ve never seen an episode.

You could also set your starting money to 0 and see how long it takes for you to get enough money to build a house.

Just walk away, and let your mind clear. Sometimes, it'll take awhile, but you'll come back with fresh mind (and ideas) for your game.

In the meantime, pick up a different game, until you're ready to go back to Simming.

As an example, I play my 2005 Sid Meier's Pirates game, when I'm burned out on Sims! I also have my 1996 TITANIC: Adventure Out Of Time (though I have to use "DOSbox" to run it), and Left 4 Dead 2 also.

By the way, I also have Sims2 and Sims3, if I want a totally different Simming experience from Sims4. Though if I'm burnt out on Sims, I don't normally play with a different Sim series. :/