One of my favorite ways to enjoy a new challenge in The Sims 4 is by playing The Sims 4 Decades Challenge!
I am a lover of history, and I love finding new, challenging ways to enjoy this (sometimes too easy) game.
Playing through the Sims 4 Decades Challenge also gives you a sense of the passage of time as you play through a legacy-style (multi-geneation) family!
The Decades Challenge has been around for a long time, and over the years, people have come up with all kinds of variations on the rules.
I’ll share a few of these different options later on in the post. But the core of the challenge remains the same!
What’s Included In The Post?
I will be going over the basic rules of the challenge (originally by ZombieCleo).
Each generation will feature a different decade and will come with new rules and restrictions to follow to simulate what it was like to live back then!
I will be sharing some tips to start the challenge, including variations on the rules.
Then I will go over how to play the Sims 4 decades challenge!
I have an amazing Sims 4 decades challenge save file to start you off in the 1890s with a built-out town, period accurate townies, lovely lots, and very minimal required cc.
I will be sharing pack recommendations that are best for historical gameplay, so you can make informed decisions if there’s a new EP you’ve been wanting to snag on sale.
And finally, I will be sharing ideas to make the sims 4 decades challenge more engaging! This will include tips to adjust the rules to your liking, as well as some storytelling ideas (because this challenge is amazing for storytelling in-game!).
Throughout the post, I will be sharing my own personal tips, as someone who has started this challenge a ton of times.
This quick-start guide to the sims 4 decades challenge will also kick-off a new series here at The Mods Babe! For each decade, I will be creating a post of cc and mods I recommend for that era.
Stay tuned for updates on the cc round-ups for each of these decades! They will be coming soon. 🙂
Without further adieu—let’s get started on the sims 4 decades challenge!
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How do you start the Sims 4 Decades Challenge?
Like any legacy based challenge, you start by creating your founder sim!
Make sure to pick a last name you love, because you’ll be seeing it for a loooooong time.
Depending on which rules you’re following, you will start either with 1 sim or 2 sims (a married couple).
CuteCoffeeGal’s rules even allow you to add a parent of your founder sim, to simulate and inter-generational household which was very common in the 1890s!
Personal tip: I like starting with a married couple. Getting your family established is hard enough as it is, without having to worry about finding love.
You can also make your sim’s dislike video games in the new preferences in CAS to try and limit how much they use their phones autonomously (which really messes up immersion).
Once you have your household created (keeping in mind clothing and hairstyles that feel historically appropriate), it’s time to find your house!
There are great options on the Sims 4 Gallery, if you search #1890s or #DecadesChallenge!
Of course, you can also build your own lot (my preference!) or even start on an empty lot and build as you go.
The Best World’s To Start Your Sims 4 Decades Challenge
- Chestnut Ridge (perfect for old-west town vibes)
- Brindleton Bay (quaint New England small town vibes)
- Henford-on-Bagley (English countryside, very rural! Even the town center feels historical)
- Windenburg (specifically the top countryside neighborhood, or the island!)
- Newcrest (if you only own the base game)
Just about any world can work if you’re creative enough, but those are my personal favorites.
Personal Tip: HollieBB (a former sims Twitch streamer who now works for EA) created a Decades Challenge alternative called the Upgrowth Challenge (more on that below) but she created a great video walkthrough series about how to set up a save for the 1890s. Check out the full playlist here.
Once you have your sim created, your starter-world picked, and your homestead ready to go, now it’s time to decide which variation of the rules you want to follow.
Variations of the Sims 4 Decades Challenge rules
The original challenge rules are by ZombieCleo. However, the creator has since stopped updating them with each pack release, so not many people use this rule set anymore!
The most common sims 4 decades challenge rules that most creators use on Youtube, and I see most simmers follow are by CuteCoffeGal.
CuteCoffeeGal updates these rules as the game updates, so you always know how and when to incorporate new pack features.
Personal tip: No matter which challenge you choose, I highly recommend bending the rules as you see fit! If you want to have same-sex marriages, or female heirs, do it!! Whatever increases your enjoyment. 🙂
Other Sims 4 Decades Challenge Alternates
- HollieBB’s Upgrowth Challenge
This challenge is based on the Decades Challenge but adds some additional situations, goals, and death rolls for each generation.
There are a TON of great resources on the Upgrowth website (linked above) that would be useful for setting up any historical save, so I highly recommend checking it out. - Black History Challenge
This is a sims 4 Decades Challenge alternate that centers on Black history! Each of the decade progressions include shifts that center on various important historical events and achievements by Black Americans. - Oregon Trail Build-A-Community-Challenge (BACC)
I loved playing Oregon Trail as a kid, and this challenge is perfect if that’s you too! This challenge isn’t quite based on the sims 4 decades challenge, but it is perfect if you enjoy the challenge and struggle of historical gameplay.
This challenge centers around completing the “Oregon Trail” and various challenges and unlocking certain skills to earn your sim’s homestead at the end of it. - The Simerican Settlers Challenge
This challenge is an alternative to the sims 4 decades challenge which starts a little bit earlier in time! This is a great challenge if you enjoy the struggle of living off the land. - The Random Decades Challenge
This challenge combines The Random Legacy and The Sims 4 Decades Challenge to create a challenge that always keeps you on your toes! All major decisions (marriage, number of children, careers, etc.) will be decided by a random dice roll.
These are great rules to follow so you don’t fall into a rut and always have something interesting coming for you in the next generation. - StephAndMinnie’s Extreme Decades Challenge
This is a version of the sims 4 decades challenge only for the most serious of history players!! You start in 1700s, and the challenge rules incorporate a lot of historical events and death rolls.
The creator of this challenge streams her own gameplay over on Twitch, which is great to watch for inspiration! - The Ultimate Decades Challenge
This challenge is INTENSE! It technically starts in medieval times—1300s—and works its way to current American history. This challenge’s main goal is serious historical accuracy and y’all… this one’s not for the faint of heart!
There are a lot of death rolls your sim’s lineage needs to survive, LOTS of generations to play through, and an intense spreadsheet system to keep track of aging. There are also a ton of people playing this challenge on Youtube right now!
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How do you play the Sims 4 Decades Challenge?
Playing the sims 4 decades challenge is the best part!
Once you’ve selected what rule set you want to follow, just follow each generation’s restrictions, and HAVE FUN!
Remember: don’t be afraid to adjust the rules to what best fits your play style and your story!
Sims 4 Decades Challenge Starter Save File (1890s)
The worst part about setting up a Sims 4 Decades Challenge is getting your save file just right. Which is why I am so excited to share this Sims 4 Decades Challenge Save File with you guys!
Antiquated Brindleton by AnitquatedPlumbobs on Tumblr is absolutely. freakin’. amazing.
Brindleton Bay has been turned into a New England-inspired 1890s town, complete with new builds and households!
There is a very light amount of cc needed linked in the download post.
But this save file is an absolute GAME CHANGER to make starting your sims 4 decades challenge as easy as possible!
I absolutely love this save file and highly recommend it!
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Best Packs For Historical Gameplay & Sims 4 Decades Challenge
Here are the sims 4 packs that I think are best for the sims 4 decades challenge and general historical gameplay!
- Sims 4 Cottage Living (farm animals, off the grid living, cross stitch)
- Sims 4 Horse Ranch (horses, great western world, nectar making)
- Sims 4 Cats and Dogs (having pets, Brindleton Bay is a great historic world, great build items)
- Sims 4 Seasons (general immersion)
- Sims 4 Get Together (clubs are amazing, lots of great build items, great world)
- Sims 4 Vampires (wonderful build and buy content)
- Sims 4 Laundry Day SP (if you want to do laundry!)
- Sims 4 Nifty Knitting SP (adds a new historical hobby)
But of course, with cc and mods, you can have a ton of fun even with only the base game! And if you’re a console player who can’t use cc, then you can still use your imagination and try your best.
Ideas to make the Sims 4 Decades Challenge More Exciting (Storytelling Ideas, too!)
My biggest tip is to bend the rules to your liking, or to fit the story you’re trying to tell!
My second biggest tip is to tell a story!
Ask yourself why your sims ended up on a farm in Brindleton Bay. Did a long lost aunt leave it to them? Do the other townsfolk welcome them or treat them as outsiders?
Do your humble farmers start a grape farm in generation 1, only to have a roaring successful vineyard and property owned in Tartosa by generation 3, that their family takes vacations to?!
There are so many stories you can tell in a historical setting, and I highly recommend researching history to find inspiration!
You can also adjust the challenge to fit other cultures. It’s no secret that the core decades challenge is highly inspired by American history. But maybe you want to follow British history or Chinese history or Croatian history!
Don’t be afraid to make this challenge your own!
And that’s a wrap on my quick-start guide to the sims 4 decades challenge!
I hope you guys enjoyed it. This is one of my favorite ways to play this game, and I love sharing it with other people and making it an easier challenge to get into.
Keep your eyes peeled as I start rounding up CC and mods for each generation/decade! I will update this post as more generation cc round-ups are released. 🙂
In the meantime, happy (historical) simming!