The only time I cheat needs is if I rotate to a household first thing in a morning and for some reason all their energy is in the red.
Other than that, it is very rare that I cheat them. The game offers so many ways to deal with needs such as magic, potions, rewards, food, etc. Cheating needs simply makes these mechanics redundant. What's the point of brewing potions if no sim ever needs them?
I also find that if I just go with it, it can throw up lots of emergent gameplay. Sims being awake in the middle of the night while others are sleeping etc.
Awake.
Shake dreams from your hair
My pretty child, my sweet one.
Choose the day and choose the sign of your day
The day's divinity.... The Ghost Song - Jim Morrison
I like taking care of my sims' needs, think it would get boring without them. That said, I couldn't play TS1 without cheating needs. It's so much easier to take care of needs in TS4, even off the home lot, so I don't see the need to cheat them anymore. If they are hungry and social bar is low, I call a friend over and have them cook together. If they need to raise fun meter too, I let them watch TV while eating. They don't cook everyday, so there is plenty of time left for skilling and other activities. However I do like the flexibility of freelance type jobs as it gives sims more time to enjoy otherwise.
I almost never cheat needs. I would say that I never do it, except I did do it once recently (my Sim was *this* close to completing his aspiration, but he was on a community lot with no food options, and he was starving, and his uncomfortable moodlets were stacking enough that he didn't want to do anything).
But in general, I consider the Sims' needs to be part of the game. I play on normal lifespan, and part of the appeal of the game for me is to try to get their aspirations completed, allow them to live full and complete lives, before Grim comes. Needs are a challenge that I have to work against.
I've always played with managing needs. I'm surprised some people cheat them but that just highlights how we all play differently! For me, I miss the comfort and environment needs from TS1 and TS2. I know that they technically aren't needed as moodlets and buffs have replaced the need for them but it made the game more challenging, which I like because the needs in TS4 are so easy to manage lol, especially once you get some reward traits.
I remember years back I had a pregnant sim in TS2 and her furniture was low quality which meant I got stuck in a loop of her comfort, hunger, fun and energy being extremely low. When I tried to fix her hunger for example she'd keep passing out on her food so neither her food or energy need was being filled and she ended up dying. I'm kinda traumatised by that experience because it's one of my only vivid memories of the Sims 2 lmao.
I've also noticed that some sims needs decay faster than others. If i can't fulfil all their needs by the time they have to be at work or school i click on the mailbox and max their needs at 6am.
Managing my sims' needs has always been an integral part of the game for me. I would even go as far as saying that I couldn't imagine playing without it. That's why, as much as I love vampires in TS4, I get tired of playing with them quickly because they almost never need anything, including sleep, which means they reach their goals too soon, and that's usually when I stop playing with a sim because I don't know what else to do with them.
And most of the time, I'm fairly good at tending to their needs. The only one that really gets on my nerves on a regular basis is Social. I wish there was a potion for that in the rewards store, like there is one for almost every other need. But even that is part of the game, and somewhat realistic (even though real life introverts like me may never understand it), that's why I don't buy the reward trait that turns it off permanently. It adds to the challenge.
Managing my sims' needs has always been an integral part of the game for me. I would even go as far as saying that I couldn't imagine playing without it. That's why, as much as I love vampires in TS4, I get tired of playing with them quickly because they almost never need anything, including sleep, which means they reach their goals too soon, and that's usually when I stop playing with a sim because I don't know what else to do with them.
And most of the time, I'm fairly good at tending to their needs. The only one that really gets on my nerves on a regular basis is Social. I wish there was a potion for that in the rewards store, like there is one for almost every other need. But even that is part of the game, and somewhat realistic (even though real life introverts like me may never understand it), that's why I don't buy the reward trait that turns it off permanently. It adds to the challenge.
Some of my sims with plants and low social bars have started talking to their plants. When I leave them to their own devices they always run to the garden to share impressions with one of their plants.
To me managing needs has always been a part of a sims game. I like it, but I wish they were a little harder to keep up like in previous games. In TS4 it's super easy to take care of needs and the reward options seem pointless because of it. I've never cheated needs.
Edit: Wanted to add that I'm story focused (rather than goal), but don't feel like the needs are getting in the way at all.
Like others, I enjoy needs management as part of the game. That said, for my core sims, I am happy to buy reward traits like Hardly Hungry and Steel Bladder that slow down needs decay. Also, I don't consider Potion of Plentiful Needs to be cheating (Gwen has an apple tree and a dozen of these in inventory at any given time).
I do get annoyed when sims don't see to their needs in a timely manner. OK, Elsa, you're really, really hungry. So stop chatting and wandering around and actually the grilled cheese sandwich, which you are holding in your hand!
Fate is a riddle and we choose our own answer.Wyrd Girls
I think it would be strange to play without needs management. Needs are easy in TS4 and there are so many ways to take care of them too. I had this slob child sim who camped alone a lot and dumpster dived and the only problem was how to take care of her hygiene, because I didn't always want to look for a shower for her and didn't want her to be dirty all the time either, so she and her grandma went on a holiday to Selvadorada and the grandma bought those water bottles that help with hygiene and that solved the hygiene problem
I don’t cheat needs. I don’t use mods and I don’t buy any permanent need reduction reward traits. Filling needs gives me more of a challenge. I use the simple living lot trait in most of my households Too. Most of my households start off in a starter house. I don’t use mansions, so it’s not like it takes hours to get across the home. Filling needs is part of Of my gane
I don't cheat needs. It would make things too easy for me. I keep an eye on what they are doing and direct them accordingly. Once in a while that ends in unexpected trouble (Bob Pancakes recently died because he swam out too far in the ocean and was too tired to swim back, poor guy). But for the most part, that is part of the charm of the game. I've learned that I usually need 2 or more sims due to the Social need, but now that they can talk to their garden plants, even that isn't quite so hard to keep up with.
I think the game has plenty of ways to mitigate the needs drain. Depending on the issue I'm having with specific sims over and over again, I might choose the aspiration reward Steel Bladder or Seldom Hungry to help out. If a house gets in too bad of a shape emotionally, I shift+click the mailbox and make the whole household happy. I also have UI Cheats because it's convenient to have it if I need it.
I use UI cheats extension mod because I love having the ability to drag the need bars up or down to suit my storytelling. And, yes, I actually do drag them down as well as up. It depends on what I want them to need or not need for the story.
Meeting their needs in Sims 4 is easy in comparison to in the past, so it wouldn't even occur to me to think about them much. Now I am having horror flashbacks to the first Sims game... Oh the crying, my poor sims shed so many tears..
I like that they are there. In Sims 1, and a little in 2 I played using a lot of cheats, for money or needs, and I found I got bored. It was just me skilling everyone up, and drilling them through game play. Then I decided to actually play the game, and found I enjoyed it waaaay more. Obstacles are important for my enjoyment. Now I have to plan better. If I know I need my sim to be ready for a party that night I shouldn't have her working out beforehand unless she has time to shower off.. I have to actually earn the money for those nice things like, walls, and toilets.. I also like when things go wrong, or get difficult.. Difficulty in the Sims nowadays is a novelty.
The only time I cheat now is when I load a new household that is out of whack with the time of day and where they should reasonably be.
Features I'd like brought back from the dead.
| Picture in Picture mode | Custom Paintings | Preset scenarios for resident sims | Placing my own lots |
| Saving my own Buy Mode collections! | Saving an outfit in CAS | CaSt. Smaller is ok | Open World |
I used to cheat needs, but now I don't anymore. I like to manage their needs and play at least semi-realistically. Plus, this game needs all the challenge it can get and playing without needs doesn't satisfy that for me.
Mostly I ignore them and let them work themselves out, unless they're about to pee themselves or collapse in exhaustion and I still need them to do something... then I will try and help them!!
I prefer to tend to my sims' needs but it's not a must for me. If I have something more important that I want them to do, I'll cheat their needs. If my sim wakes up too late to eat breakfast or shower before work, I'll cheat them. On the flip side of that, if they have nothing going on, I'll pay more attention and cheat less. It all really depends on what else is going on in the game.
I enjoy managing their needs. It's been part of the game since TS1 (though it's much easier now) and adds a welcome touch of realism and challenge. I'd find the game way more boring without them. Like, playing a Homeless challenge would be basically completely redundant without needs management but even in a "normal" family it has an integral role to play in pacing out the game and adding a bit more decision making and challenge. I rather enjoy playing this one family of mine with a single dad and his 6 kids. Taking care of the kids and his own needs WHILE also trying to earn money, it gets rather hairy at times but I have fun with it.
I never cheat needs. I might rarely use the rewards like the potions or the traits which lessen the decay but that's not cheating since they are a game feature and you need to gather satisfaction points to get them.
Comments
Other than that, it is very rare that I cheat them. The game offers so many ways to deal with needs such as magic, potions, rewards, food, etc. Cheating needs simply makes these mechanics redundant. What's the point of brewing potions if no sim ever needs them?
I also find that if I just go with it, it can throw up lots of emergent gameplay. Sims being awake in the middle of the night while others are sleeping etc.
Shake dreams from your hair
My pretty child, my sweet one.
Choose the day and choose the sign of your day
The day's divinity....
The Ghost Song - Jim Morrison
But in general, I consider the Sims' needs to be part of the game. I play on normal lifespan, and part of the appeal of the game for me is to try to get their aspirations completed, allow them to live full and complete lives, before Grim comes. Needs are a challenge that I have to work against.
I remember years back I had a pregnant sim in TS2 and her furniture was low quality which meant I got stuck in a loop of her comfort, hunger, fun and energy being extremely low. When I tried to fix her hunger for example she'd keep passing out on her food so neither her food or energy need was being filled and she ended up dying. I'm kinda traumatised by that experience because it's one of my only vivid memories of the Sims 2 lmao.
And most of the time, I'm fairly good at tending to their needs. The only one that really gets on my nerves on a regular basis is Social. I wish there was a potion for that in the rewards store, like there is one for almost every other need. But even that is part of the game, and somewhat realistic (even though real life introverts like me may never understand it), that's why I don't buy the reward trait that turns it off permanently. It adds to the challenge.
Something wicked this way comes!
I don't use MCCC.
Some of my sims with plants and low social bars have started talking to their plants. When I leave them to their own devices they always run to the garden to share impressions with one of their plants.
Edit: Wanted to add that I'm story focused (rather than goal), but don't feel like the needs are getting in the way at all.
Updated with Werewolf Diaries (1)
I do get annoyed when sims don't see to their needs in a timely manner. OK, Elsa, you're really, really hungry. So stop chatting and wandering around and actually the grilled cheese sandwich, which you are holding in your hand!
I like that they are there. In Sims 1, and a little in 2 I played using a lot of cheats, for money or needs, and I found I got bored. It was just me skilling everyone up, and drilling them through game play. Then I decided to actually play the game, and found I enjoyed it waaaay more. Obstacles are important for my enjoyment. Now I have to plan better. If I know I need my sim to be ready for a party that night I shouldn't have her working out beforehand unless she has time to shower off.. I have to actually earn the money for those nice things like, walls, and toilets.. I also like when things go wrong, or get difficult.. Difficulty in the Sims nowadays is a novelty.
The only time I cheat now is when I load a new household that is out of whack with the time of day and where they should reasonably be.
| Picture in Picture mode | Custom Paintings | Preset scenarios for resident sims | Placing my own lots |
| Saving my own Buy Mode collections! | Saving an outfit in CAS | CaSt. Smaller is ok | Open World |
I never cheat needs. I might rarely use the rewards like the potions or the traits which lessen the decay but that's not cheating since they are a game feature and you need to gather satisfaction points to get them.