Community AdminThe Sims FreePlay General FAQ
Learn the basics about The Sims FreePlay, from how to add/change/remove/command your Sims to tips on completing Quests and Goals. These are the answers to your truly most frequently asked questions!
| Glossary and general info | FAQ |
The Sims FreePlay requires an Internet connection to play. Please note that certain Wi-Fi security settings will allow you to connect but will not use the application's network features.
Have a look at our troubleshooting information if you have difficulties.
Camera/Viewpoint
- Pan: Use one finger to pan the camera.
- Rotate: Use two fingers to rotate the camera.
- Zoom: Pinch the screen with two fingers to zoom. Alternatively, press the magnifying glass icon to zoom all the way in or out.
Needs & Actions
Your Sims have six needs: social, fun, hunger, hygiene, bladder, and energy. Tap on furniture, objects, pets, and other Sims, then choose actions to fulfill your Sims' needs. Each action corresponds to a particular need, signified by icons on the action buttons and needs bars. Keeping all a Sim's needs met keeps them happy, healthy, and ready to do what you want!
All actions take time. You can turn off the game anytime you like and your Sims will keep doing whatever it is you've assigned them. The game will send you notifications when important actions have finished.
Plumbob
The green diamond floating over a Sim's head is called a Plumbob. The Plumbob indicates which Sim you are in direct control of at any one time; this is your Active Sim.
Inspiration
When most of your Sim's needs are fulfilled, they become 'Inspired'! 'Inspired' Sims earn a lot more XP and Simoleons for completing actions.
Pets
You will start the game with one treasure-hunting pooch, but build the Pet Shop and you can get one for all your Sims! Some dogs and cats bought from the Pet Shop have elite treasure-hunting training that helps them sniff out even more valuable goodies.
Experience Points (XP)
Your Sims earn XP for completing actions. As your Sims earn XP, you will Level Up. Each time you Level Up you unlock new furniture, fun stuff, garden patches, baking recipes, and the ability to add more Sims, workplaces, and businesses to the Town Map.
Simoleons
Simoleons are the Sims' form of currency. Sims can earn Simoleons by gardening, baking, working at a job or having a pet dog dig for treasure. You'll need Simoleons to buy your Sims furniture, fun stuff, garden patches, baking recipes, pets, cars, houses, businesses and workplaces. Simoleon packs can also be purchased at the Store.
Lifestyle Points (LP)
You earn LP by completing goals. LP are also among the treasures a dog may uncover in a Sim's yard! LP can also be purchased in the Store. Use LP to finish any action or construction instantly! LP can also be used to buy cupcakes for your Sims.
Social Points (SP)
SP can be earned by completing Social goals or purchased in the Store. Use SP to purchase special Homes or items from the Home Store.
Cupcakes
Cupcakes can be used to instantly satisfy all of your active Sim's needs and make them 'Inspired'! Cupcakes are particularly useful when you have a lot of Sims in your town to take care of.
Simtracker
The Simtracker is used to monitor all of your Sims at once. Tap on their portraits to visit them or tap on the whistle button to make them come to your current on-screen location! If a Sim is engaged in any activity or has finished one more recently than you have visited them, they cannot be summoned. You must first visit the Sim to collect any Simoleons or XP they have earned from completing their action.
House Bonus
Sims' actions earn bonus XP and Simoleons when performed at their own houses.
Build Mode
Use Build Mode to buy and place furniture, add or resize rooms, change wallpaper and floors, add doors and windows, and even make a garden. To delete a room, tap anywhere in the room and select the Sell button.
Town Value and Daily Rewards
Everyday a percentage of your town value will be delivered to your mailbox. As you fill your homes with cool stuff and build up your town, this reward will get bigger. Come back everyday and check your mailbox to make sure you get the maximum benefit.
You may notice a point at which your daily bonus amount appears to "plateau" or no longer increase as drastically with your Town Value; this is normal.
Town Map
Along with Simtracker, your other way to get around town is to use the Town Map. From the Town Map you can choose to build more Sim houses, workplaces, and businesses. You can also collect XP and Simoleon revenue from any constructed buildings and visit Sim houses and other locations you have built, like the Park. Sometimes you will need to satisfy certain conditions before you can build something, like reaching a certain level or having a certain number of Sims.
Relationships
Sims can develop several different relationships. Tap on any Sim you want your Active Sim to talk to, and choose a social interaction to drive their relationship in whatever direction you choose. You'll receive big XP bonuses for reaching relationship milestones.
Jobs
Sims have career aspirations just like you! Build workplaces on the Town Map so they can get jobs. Different jobs have different work times, so choose the ones that suit your lifestyle. Press the pulsing briefcase in Simtracker or the Career Info Panel if you'd like to send them to work when it's the right starting time (one hour before the listed start time and up to two hours after the listed start time). So don't worry--you have a generous window, and the game will remind you!
Promotions
Starting wages for jobs aren't that high, but sticking at it and getting promotions is a great long term investment for your Sims. Every day your Sim goes to work, they move closer to getting a promotion. Keep it up and your Sim will start raking in the XP and Simoleons.
Promotions R Us
Build the Hobby Shop and you can buy objects for your Sims to interact with, which will help them improve their careers and get promoted more quickly. The Hobby Shop sells many other cool items that are just for fun, too.
Cars
Build the Car Yard to buy cars for your Sims. Cars let your Sims go for drives, which is a great way to earn big XP.
Gardening
Gardening is a great way to earn Simoleons. Buy a Garden Patch in Build Mode and place it in a Sim's yard. Then just tap on the Garden Patch and choose a seed to grow. More seeds will unlock as you Level Up.
Baking
Baking works just like Gardening. Buy and place a stove in Build Mode, then tap on the stove and choose a recipe to bake. More recipes will unlock as you Level Up.
Supermarket
Did you realize every time your Sim gardens or bakes, those ingredients are being delivered? That can sure get expensive! Build the Supermarket, and you can buy seeds and ingredients much more cheaply. A little organization will save you a lot of Simoleons in the long run.
Get answers to common Sims FreePlay questions.
How many Sims can I have in my town?
The number of Sims you can maintain depends on your level in the game. If you try to add a new Sim and are not able to do so, you will be informed that you must level up to increase your population or delete an existing Sim to free up a slot. If you have not reached the Sim limit, you can also choose to spend Lifestyle Points (LP) to unlock the next Sim slot early.
You can view your population count/limit at any time by tapping the person icon in the icon bar along the top of your screen.
How do I add a new Sim?
Tap on an empty home or vacant lot icon. If it is a vacant lot, you will first need to build a home before you're able to add a new Sim. If there is already an empty home on the lot, you will have the opportunity to add a new Sim straight away, as long as your town is not at its population limit (based on your current level).
Why can’t I add any more Sims?
If the Add Sim icon is grey and you cannot add a new home or more Sims, your town may be at maximum capacity. It is also impossible to add multiple homes at the same time; wait until construction has completed on any current new homes before trying again.
You may also need to either get to a level where a new Sim is unlocked (you will see a pop-up message informing you if this is the case), or you may choose to delete one of your current Sims to make room for a new one.
How can I add a new house if I have built all the houses on the Town Map?
If all vacant lots are currently filled by houses, you must demolish one before you can rebuild on that lot. You must first make an existing house unoccupied, either by moving the Sim occupying that house in with another Sim (they need to have a close relationship to make this social interaction available), or by deleting the Sim who currently lives there.
Once you have done either of these, an unoccupied house icon will turn green. Tap on the unoccupied house and select Demolish House from the menu. After demolishing the house, you can build a new one (unless you have reached your town's current population cap).
Note that demolishing your home will completely erase that home and all of its items. If you want to keep your items, you will want to move them to your inventory first!
How do I relocate a Sim family to a new house?
Tap on an empty/unoccupied home (must currently be showing the house icon, rather than a Sim's face on the Town Map) that you want the family to move into. Then select Relocate Household option and choose the family that you want to move into the house. The family and their pets will automatically be moved to the new home.
Why won’t my Sim perform the task I command? What do the footprints mean?
If your Sim refuses to perform a task, they may be in too bad of a mood to want to do it. Check your Sim’s mood, and attend to any needs that are showing red.
Your Sim also may not have access to the object or location where you are asking them to go. If this is the case, a speech bubble will appear above your Sim’s head with a set of footprints, and they will perform a “no” animation.
Check to make sure that your Sim has a clear path to the object or location. You may also need to enter Build Mode and ensure that the object you wish to interact with is facing the correct direction (this is represented by the grey “rotate” button and an arrow showing the direction the object is currently facing) and has sufficient travel space between it and nearby objects or walls.
Note: your Sim has a "side of the bed," just as many people do! If they can't get into bed on their preferred side, they may refuse to go at all. Make sure there's room on both sides of the bed!
How do I cancel an action that I asked a Sim to start?
To cancel an action, tap your selected Sim, then tap the X icon beside the task bar. Keep in mind that when actions are cancelled, no rewards are gained from the action and the cost of initiating the action is lost.
How do I change my Sim's appearance or delete a Sim from my game?
You can enter the Edit Sim menu by purchasing a wardrobe for your Sim from the Home Store (Bedroom tab) and selecting “Browse Clothes.”
To delete the Sim, tap the red icon in the top left corner of the Sim Edit screen/Browse Clothes menu.
How do I send my Sims to the Park, Community Center, Swimming Center, etc.?
To do this, you need to have already built your destination on the Town Map. Once you have the Park, Community Center, Swimming Center, or other location available, simply tap on it from the Town Map, then “Whistle” one of your Sims with the SimTracker. This will call them to the facility.
How do I take photos of my Sims to share with my friends?
To take a photo of your current view, tap the camera icon in the corner of the screen.
You can also add a message to your photo, if you have something to say about it and share your photos to Facebook or Twitter. You'll need to select which of your accounts you would like to share to and may be asked to log in or set permissions for the app to do so.
Where are swimsuits and winter clothes purchasable from, once they have been unlocked?
Swimsuits and winter clothes can be found in the Costume & Swim Store, located near the Children's Store on the Town Map. There are separate tabs in the Shop for different clothing styles.
What happens when I change my Sim's outfit from what I purchased at the Costume & Swim Store?
Your Sim will need to purchase the outfit from the Shop again to wear those items.
Where can I get Cupcakes?
Cupcakes can be purchased for 5 LP from the yellow Cupcake button beside the goal/Sim needs menu.
If all of your Sims in the current scene are already inspired, your Cupcake button will be deactivated (greyed out) to prevent you from accidentally purchasing a Cupcake when you don't need one! Wait for one of your Sims' needs to decrease for them to become uninspired, or make them kick a trash can at the front of the house to reduce their cleanliness until they are uninspired. This will activate the Cupcake button again.
What are genetically modified seeds?
Seeds with the specially marked icon on them are genetically modified. Planting genetically modified seeds can yield double the rewards or a nasty Sim-Eating Plant.
How do I get rid of the Sim-Eating Plant?
Tap on the Sim-Eating Plant and choose the "Negotiate" action to get the active Sim to convince the plant to leave the premises.
What are Organic Recipes?
Recipes with the specially marked icon on them are organic. Baking organic recipes is known for generating high returns; however, they have a chance to catch on fire once they're complete.
My oven caught on fire! What do I do?
Tap on the oven, and select the "Extinguish" action. Only an adult Sim can perform this action.
Source: https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/the-sims/the-sims-freeplay/the-sims-freeplay-general-faq/
