Have you ever felt frustrated trying to precisely position an item in The Sims 4, only to have it snap to the nearest grid point? Do you wish you could freely overlap objects like rugs, trees, and furniture however you want? Well my friend, you‘ve come to the right place!
In this expert guide, I‘ll be showing you how to move and rotate objects freely in The Sims 4 on PC and Mac using some simple cheats and keyboard shortcuts. With these tricks, you‘ll gain total control over object placement – letting your creativity run wild!
Activating Moveobjects – The Master Control Cheat
The Moveobjects cheat is like a magic wand for free placement in The Sims 4. Here‘s how it works:
First, open the cheat console by pressing Control + Shift + C on your keyboard.
Now type in
testingcheats true
and hit Enter. This enables cheat commands.Finally, enter
bb.moveobjects on
and press Enter again. A notification will confirm that Moveobjects is now activated.
With Moveobjects enabled, you can pick up, rotate, and place any object anywhere you want, completely ignoring snap points on the grid. No more alignment restrictions!
This cheat essentially breaks the game‘s placement rules. But as Uncle Ben from Spiderman says, "With great power comes great responsibility." Moveobjects gives you limitless freedom, but it‘s easy to create messy or non-functional designs if you aren‘t careful. I‘ll give you some expert tips later for using it smoothly.
First though, let‘s cover some alternate commands that offer more precise control.
Handy Object Placement Shortcuts
In addition to the traditional Moveobjects cheat, there are a few other handy keyboard shortcuts that grant you more nuanced object placement powers:
ALT – Holding down the ALT key while dragging an object with your mouse lets you place it anywhere freely. Objects will still snap to surface heights though. This is great for small adjustments.
9 and 0 – After enabling Testingcheats, tapping 9 will disable grid snap. 0 turns it back on. Perfect for quickly toggling snapping on and off.
[ and ] – Using the left and right bracket keys raises or lowers selected objects in tiny increments. Lets you fine tune vertical positioning.
These keys allow for controlled freedom. I use them all the time when building!
Off-Lot Building for Massive Creations
Normally in The Sims 4, you‘re restricted to building on the active residential or commercial lot. But say you want to design a sprawling mansion that spans the entire neighborhood? Or turn the whole region into a medieval kingdom? With a special cheat, you can unlock off-lot building for massive creations!
Here‘s how:
Open the cheat console as usual with Control + Shift + C.
Enter
bb.showhiddenobjects
to access special items.Type in
bb.enablefreebuild
and press Enter.
This cheat removes all lot restrictions and allows you to pick up and place any object anywhere in the entire neighborhood! No more boundaries. You can create epic builds spanning the whole area now. The possibilities are endless!
Let‘s look at some mods next that make object placement even smoother.
Convenient Mods for Precision Control
The basic cheats give you free placement powers, but some clever modders have taken things even further with handy utilities:
TOOL – Adds an awesome menu with toggle buttons for Moveobjects, grid snap, and grid visibility. Easily enable options without typing cheats.
Better BuildBuy – Lets you make micro adjustments to objects or terrain with the arrow keys. Perfect for precision.
Sims 4TM Object Mover – Allows rotating objects by degree, or nudging them pixel-by-pixel with customizable hotkeys. Next-level precision!
Search ModTheSims or other mod sites for utilities that match your workflow. They really enhance object placing freedom.
Now let‘s dive into some pro tips and best practices for smooth Moveobjects success.
Pro Tips for Using Moveobjects Like a Master
Freely moving objects with Moveobjects is incredibly powerful, but the sheer flexibility can lead to problems if you aren‘t careful. Follow these pro tips when placing items:
Mind the intersections – Objects can clip and overlap now. Make sure doors, windows, and walkways aren‘t blocked.
Check line of sight – Items placed above eye level can block views. Cameras may act weird.
Test routing – Overlapping objects can prevent Sims from pathing properly.
Anchor non-grid items – Floating objects may drift and spaz out. Anchor them to something fixed.
Use ALT for small shifts – Avoid going overboard with Moveobjects. Use ALT instead for most adjustments.
Save frequently – Improper placement can prevent your game from loading! Better safe than sorry.
Playtest builds – Moveobjects can break gameplay logic. Thoroughly test before finalizing designs.
Take it slow, save often, and assess placement impacts. With practice, you‘ll design with Moveobjects like a pro!
Designing Epic Off-Lot Landscapes
In addition to structures and furniture, The Sims 4‘s Build Mode offers tons of landscaping tools for organic environment design. By combining a few key cheats, you can now create sprawling hills, rivers, gardens, and scenery across the entire region!
Here‘s how to unlock off-lot landscaping freedom:
Open the cheat console and enter
testingcheats true
Type
bb.showhiddenobjects
to access special items.Input
bb.ignoregameplayunlocksentitlement
to remove restrictions.Finally, activate
bb.enablefreebuild
.
Now when you open the landscaping tools, you can build paths, ponds, hills, and lush forests anywhere outside normal lots!
I like to use this technique to create windy running trails through neighborhoods, adding flavor and realism. Your landscaping imagination can now stretch across the entire playable area.
Object Placement History and Evolution
The Sims has come a long way when it comes to free object placement powers. Let‘s take a quick trip back in time and see how the tools evolved across games:
The Sims 1 (2000) – Holding Alt enabled off-grid placement. Undo reset overlapping items.
The Sims 2 (2004) – Ctrl + Alt + C toggled Moveobjects. The hand tool allowed pixel-perfect adjusting.
The Sims 3 (2009) – Moveobjects returned as a cheat. Alt also worked. More precision tools.
The Sims 4 (2014) – State-of-the-art Build Mode gives incredible object freedom.
Understanding the progression of Moveobjects really puts The Sims 4‘s advancements into perspective. We‘ve never had more control over object placement!
Final Words – Build Your Dream World
Phew, we covered a ton of ground today! Here‘s a quick recap of the key tips:
Use Moveobjects for total object freedom
ALT, 9/0, and [/] offer more precision
Combine cheats to build off-lot easily
Add mods for extra convenience
Follow best practices to avoid issues
Landscape tools work across full neighborhoods
With your newfound object placing powers, you‘re limited only by your creativity. Moveobjects takes practice, but the payoff is incredible. You can construct the home of your dreams, defying gravity and physics!
So what are you waiting for? Fire up The Sims 4 and start building the world you‘ve always imagined. I can‘t wait to see what you create!
Let me know if you have any other questions. Happy Simming!