A Deep Dive Into My Sims 4 Save File (Work in Progress)

Last updated 1/19/2026

Hi Friends!!

Welcome to my brand new Sims 4 storytelling series and long-term save file building project. As a neurotic simmer who likes to play with every sim in my game (no literally every. single . one), I can’t just place households and leave them untouched. I like to develop their quirks, build their relationships, and slowly weave all their individual stories into one interconnected world.

That’s where this project comes in. Instead of jumping into a premade save, I wanted to create something completely unique: a blank canvas where every sim, lot, and storyline is crafted from the ground up and gets the personal attention I love to give my gameplay.

If you’d like to follow along with my journey and perhaps start a forever save of your own, consider subscribing so you never miss an update.

Synopsis

Starting with zero lots and zero sims with the goal of completing a fully realized, lore rich save. Each episode focuses on one randomly chosen household from the gallery or sim dump. We’ll explore their backstory, daily routine, personality, goals, and any chaos or drama they “naturally” stumble into.

As the series continues, these individual stories will begin to overlap. Sims will meet, form friendships (or rivalries), build families, find love, chase careers, and leave their mark on the growing save file. As neighborhoods fill up, relationships will naturally intertwine, and the worlds will slowly start to come alive to form an interconnected community; one townie at a time.

Note

Each episode is its own show (like Black Mirror) so you can jump in at any point. Also, the duration will vary from household to household. Some sims have more going on than others and will therefore have longer episodes. Additionally, some may be blog only stories, so again subscribe so you don’t miss any of it.

HUGE thanks goes to the incredible creators who graciously allowed for the use of their sims in my stories. None of this would even be possible without their generosity. All credit will always go to the original creator with direct links to their profiles or gallery IDs.

Check out my Sim Dump archive here

Expectations

FIRST and foremost, I am playing on a basic gaming laptop so the quality may not give top tier but that’s okay. Also, the photos won’t be extra crisp and edited because … well Baby I’m a writer not a cinematographer…

But in all seriousness, because this save file is starting completely from scratch, the series will evolve naturally and gradually which is part of what makes it fun for me. I love slow, intentional game play so I’m in no rush to fill up every single world right away.

While each episode will dive into the life of a different household, there will be a few consistent elements you can expect throughout the series:

A focus on slow storytelling

Every sim gets a personality, depth, and a sense of purpose. Even the most random role can spark an unexpected storyline. Because of this, gameplay is slow and intentional. If you aren’t a fan of slow gameplay this won’t be for you.

Natural relationship growth

Friendships, romances, rivalries, and family dynamics will form as sims interact with one another over time. Nothing is forced; everything unfolds organically as the save develops.

World building at a steady pace

I’ll be placing lots, community spaces, and households as needed, not all at once. This means each episode contributes to the progression of the world in a meaningful way.

Choices carry long term impact

Since I’ll be revisiting sims and households, their decisions will matter. Careers, aspirations, skills, relationships, everything has the potential to influence future episodes.

Lore can get deep and dark

Just a heads up, not every story is “wholesome”. That would get boring to me. Additionally, I play with every pack I own. This includes occults. I have deep occult lore embedded into my storylines but it isn’t apparent or even present in most of the stories. There will always be a disclaimer for those who find these types of stories disturbing.

Episodes

This section just serves as a quick access point and archive for every episode numerically listed in date order from first to last.

1. Journeé to Wellness
2. Homesick
3. Money, Power, Respect
4. Behind the Scenes
5. Meet the Popes
6. Home Ice
7. Pretty Privileged
8. Final Term
9. Road to Redemption
10. The Absent Roommate
11. Heartbreak King

Calendar, Aging, & Death

In this save file I play with aging on. I’ve tried playing with it off, or only aging played households, but because I like to play with every sim, my game really started to stagnate feeling like no progression of time was happening.

To prevent this in my Nothing Last Forever save, I use a custom time system. I play with 21-day seasons and a custom long lifespan with MC Command Center which gives my sims plenty of time to grow, evolve, and build meaningful relationships without everything feeling rushed.

This extended calendar helps the world develop at a realistic pace. Babies don’t suddenly become teens overnight, and adults have time to work in dead-end jobs, establish their careers, explore hobbies, and navigate their personal lives before aging up. It also means the world itself (careers, clubs, romances, neighborhood drama) have room to breathe and unfold naturally over many in game years.

Additionally, while I love neighborhood stories, in the beginning there are some settings I disable; primarily die in accidents as it would be counter productive to have sims dying faster than I’m placing them in the world. Death can still happen if a storyline calls for it, but only if I say so *rubs hands like Birdman*.

For a deeper dive into my calendar and aging setup, check out Realistic Time Progression in The Sims 4: My Calendar & Aging System

Lots

Brindleton Bay

Cavalier Cove

• Huge Coastal Family Home – kellyhartx
• Beech Byway Furnished – LuciaIvy

Sable Square

• Hillside Chiropractic – sbbna4

Deadgrass Isle

Whiskerman’s Wharf

• Cranky Crab Seafood Restaurant – DeeSims
• Coastal Apartments – NynyTheOne

Gibbi Point

Crystal Valley

• Wellness Retreat Center – Kikoi_builds

Jellyfish Junction

• Newcrest Grocery Store – Vylewa

Wanderwood Wilds

• Brindleton Clay – Whyeverr

Hidden

• Evergreen Hospital – loveheartish

Magnolia Promenade

Newcrest

Oasis Springs

Acquisition Butte

• Affluista Mansion 2.0 – zerotwenty-sims
• Modern Luxury Glass House – JessicapieYT

Bedrock Strait

• Unfurnished Base Game 7 – CaribbeanBrezze
• Small Modern Shell – bloomrachh
• Affordable Fam Apartments – VixiePixels
• Saucy & Co – smnthuh
• 3 Houses, 1 Lot – Honeymaysims

Desert Bloom Park

• Desert Country Club – KevTheBuilder
• The XP Hub – akiisims
• Corporate Office Building – BrunaSouzaG

Mirage Canyon

• Oasis Springs Gym – tam7727
• Oasis Springs Outlets – livingforsimsxo
• Lysh – smnthuh
• Capitol Records – Plumbobkingdom

Parched Prospect

• Luxury Apartments – Dreamscarx

Skyward Palms

• Library/Office Building – WanjiruStar

San Myshuno

Arts Quarter

Fashion District

Myshuno Meadows

Spice Market

• Brindleton Night Market (off lot) – loveheartish

Uptown

Regions

I play with the Home Regions mod by Kuttoe to set up my regions. I’m not even going to sugar coat this topic with y’all. There are two things I hate more than anything else in this game; 1 – sims spawning in locations they don’t belong in, and 2 – randomly generated townies. I go through great lengths to combat both of these issues in my game. It’s damn near a full time job at this point with no days off. My process is not perfect but I do end up with significantly less randos (only mod generated ones) and my sims stay in their designated regions. I’d call this a win.

Batuu

Batuu is basical

Bayou Region

Caribbea Region

City North

City North is the equivalent of the state of New York and includes Brindleton Bay, Britechester, Copperdale, Gibbi Point, Henford-on-Bagley, Newcrest, and San Myshuno. These worlds are fairly close together and are connected by trains, ferries, highways, and the kind of “you get there in an hour if traffic isn’t wild” logic that only exist in my delusional imagination. Its layered population consists of old money, new creatives, college students, blue collar families, farmers, and even the occasional werewolf ducked off in the mysterious upstate forests.

• Brindleton Bay
• Britechester
• Copperdale
• Gibbi Point
• Henford-on-Bagley
• Newcrest
• San Myshuno

Desert West

Desert West is the equivalent of Nevada and includes Chestnut Ridge, Oasis Springs, Strangerville, and Sixam. Here you’ll find ranchers, gamblers, tourists, conspiracy theorists, and a few sims who definitely moved there to find a “fresh start” (whatever that means).

Free Reign

Magnolia Promenade isn’t tied to specific region in my save, it’s more of an extension of whatever world I’m currently playing in.

• Magnolia Promenade

Europa Region

Metro West

Mt. Komorebi

Sixam

Tomarang

Sims

Played

Brindleton Bay

Copperdale

Oasis Springs

Jaxon Rhodes

him

Raven Blair

Scorpio | Vegetarian | Clubber | Creative – Student

Creator – symplesimss

Raven is an Oasis Springs native and first year university student whose personality is equal parts party girl and proud vegetarian. Outgoing, opinionated, and always the life of the party, Raven brings plant based snacks and hot takes wherever she goes.

Marlon Lowry

Capricorn | Stoic | –

Creator – MaggyzSims

San Myshuno

Camellia Fray

Libra | Creative | Foodie | Loyal – Stall Vendor

Creator – Honeymaysims

Camellia is a San Myshuno native with a heart as warm as her cooking. She loves experimenting with bold flavors and does so often at her food stall. You’ll always find her with a journal in her hand as she finds creative inspiration wherever she goes.

Marcel Turner

Goofball | Materialistic | Self Absorbed – Stall Vendor

Creator – MagicBlueDragon

Samara Clements

Libra | Green Fiend | Unflirty | Hot Headed – Statue Busker

Creator – UsualStory

Alex Jacobson

Aquarius | Romantic | Ambitious | Self Assured – Stall Vendor/Bar Regular

Creator – MAYAKOONMAS

Antonio Belcher

Capricorn | Adventurous | Romantic | Ambitious – Mail Carrier

Creator – MAYAKOONMAS

Cole Gant

Sagittarius | Erratic | Active | Competitive – Stall Vendor

Creator – MAYAKOONMAS

Clarence Valdez

Virgo | Loves Outdoors | Goofball | Family Oriented – Stall Vendor

Creator – dreamscarx

Kolby Valdez

Cancer | Clumsy | Outgoing | Calm – Stall Vendor

Creator – RonnieeeT

Simone Montag

loyal

Creator –

Utu Talalelei – NPC Police

Capricorn | Foodie | Adventurous |

Creator – AlycesWorld

1

Unplayed

Magnolia Promenade

• Father Winter – bunnylita
• Base Game Burglar Townies – SakuraLeon

Oasis Springs

• Teenagers – Blackpanda
• NPC Jobs Stall Vendors – simajane
• Service Sims 2 – Simkhira
• Harris Family Base Game – SakuraLeon
• Base Game Elder Sim – Loaofanxiey
• Annabeth The Elder – Shantyvb1
• Cool Elder – sierral12
• NPC Bartenders – chaoticwhims

San Myshuno

• NPC City Living Statue – Simmaddness
• NPC City Living Weirdos – Simmaddness

Sixam

• Alien Family – CastinaRose
• Amir the Alien – CastinaRose

Why I Started This Project

I LOVE STARTING NEW SAVE FILES!!!

Is there any greater feeling than starting a new save? As a newer player to the Sims 4, I will never understand the turmoil people get around abandoning an old game and starting a new one.

I don’t care if you’ve been playing in it for 5 hours or 5 years; If you feel like starting over, START OVER!

Saying it’s my favorite part about playing may be a red flag to you, but I love it here. Also, there’s really no right or wrong way to play so let me be great! Building the relationships, tension, drama, and romance with every placement actually excites me and is my favorite form of escapism.

For some reason I have an extremely difficult time playing in other people’s save files (including the default EA one). It might have something to do with my excessive need to control everything, or my chronic anxiety around not knowing every single sim in the game, but I’ll tackle those issues another time.

It’s also such a dopamine hit finding the most perfect lot for a scenario or sim! Please tell me I’m not alone on this?

Because of this, I always play in a blank save every time I feel like starting over. The clean slate feels so refreshing and sends my mind racing with the unlimited possibilities awaiting me. I have primarily used the Srsly Blank Save and Empty Worlds Save but lately I’ve been using Plumbob Kingdom’s Ultimate Save and manually removing all the lots and sims myself.

It’s MUCH easier to download a blank save if this idea appeals to you.

For the record, even as a non builder or CAS girlie, I’ve never successfully filled and populated every lot, but that hasn’t stopped me from thinking next time will be different.

I’m hopeful that by documenting my process and sharing it with strangers on the internet, perhaps I just may this time.

Creator Appreciation

Additionally, to say I have an obsession with sim dumps is an understatement. I’m continually blown away by the absolute artistry of CAS creators. So many of you talented humans create sims the way sculptors mold clay and it’s incredible to see.

As a result, I truly derive so much joy from seeing your creations come to life while populating my save files. Not to be dramatic but it’s quite literally like watching live art for me and I find it highly satisfying.

While many simmers start forever saves to fall back in love with the game, that is absolutely not the case here. As a newer Sims 4 player I am so deeply engrossed in my game and gameplay. Every time I see a new sim, my mind immediately sees a career, goals, and whole life for them that I truly can’t wait to play through.

While I honestly hope none of you creators see my content, If you do, I hope I do your babies justice when narrating their stores. 💗

Photo Dump

Summary

This save file is not just a labor of love; It’s a long term passion project and tribute to the incredible creators who make it all possible. Real life can be brutal, cruel, and downright depressing these days, but your contributions bring joy and light to so many of us, and while they may seem small to you, they pack a big impact for so many of us in this community.

That’s all for now friends!

Stay Kind, Until next time 💋