Have you ever booted up your copy of The Sims 4, loaded into the neighborhood of Willow Creek for the thousandth time, and thought, “I wish there was more to explore.” Well my friend, you’ve come to the right place.
As a fellow Simmer with a penchant for discovering new places, I’ve scoured the internet high and low for every trick in the book to get more worlds for The Sims 4 without emptying your wallet. With a bit of mods, cheats, and creativity, you’ll be exploring fresh new terrains in no time. Let me walk you through it.
Use Mods to Add Fully Fledged Worlds
Without a doubt, mods are going to be your best friend when it comes to getting premium quality worlds for free. The Sims modding community is filled with talented artists and creators who have built astonishing new worlds that capture that same magic as the official DLC ones. I’m talking maps with unique themes, detailed terrain sculpting, customized lighting—the works!
Now I know what you may be thinking: “Ryan, I’ve never used mods before. Aren’t they risky and complicated?” While modding does require a bit more care than usual, quality mods really do elevate The Sims 4 to new heights. I promise with just a few simple steps you’ll unlock a treasure trove of incredible free worlds.
To get started, you’ll first need to grab a couple essential tools:
The Sims 4 Mods Folder: This is where you’ll drag and drop any mods. Make sure this folder exists in your Sims directory.
Sims 4 Studio: A free program that lets you easily package and manage mods.
Once you’ve got those covered, here are some of my favorite world mods to check out first:
| World Mod | Description |
|---|---|
| Newcrest 2.0 | A complete overhaul of the blank slate Newcrest world with new neighborhoods. |
| EVO Farming World | Converted from The Sims 3, this mod adds sprawling farmlands. |
| Hanasaki Village | Beautiful Japanese inspired architecture and landscapes. |
| Sue Me‘s Eco World | Adds an eco-friendly futuristic neighborhood. |
To install these, simply:
Click the “Download” button on the mod page. This will download a .zip folder containing the world files.
Open Sims 4 Studio and use it to package the .zip into a .package file.
Drag and drop the .package file into your Mods folder.
When launching Sims 4, enable Custom Content and Mods in the options. Load up your game and voila, your new world will be ready to explore!
With thousands of world mods available, the possibilities are truly endless. Here are a few of my favorite Modding sites to browse:
ModTheSims: The OG Sims mod site with a huge collection. Make sure to check the “Worlds and Neighborhoods” section.
The Sims Catalog: A newer mod site with an intuitive layout and tagging system that makes finding worlds easy.
Tumblr: Tons of creators share their world mods on Tumblr. Searching “Sims 4 world” brings up tons of results.
The best part about downloading world mods is that once installed, you get to keep these worlds forever! So don’t be afraid to take your time browsing until you find ones that fit your style perfectly.
Import and Upcycle Sims 3 Worlds
Here’s a little secret for you: worlds from The Sims 3 can be imported into The Sims 4 with a bit of file wrangling. Why build a world from scratch when you can upcycle and gives new life to an existing one?
For this method, you’ll first need to get your hands on the world files for whatever Sims 3 world you want to import. These are typically found in Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > InstalledWorlds on your computer.
Next up:
Use the Sims3Pack Clean Installer to package the Sims 3 world files into .Sims3Pack format.
Download Sims4Studio and use it to extract the newly created .Sims3Pack file. This will give you the essential .world and .resource.cfg files needed for importing.
Plop these extracted files into your Sims 4 Mods folder.
Launch up Sims 4 and voila, your converted Sims 3 world will be ready to play in! While the terrain and landmarks will carry over, you will need to furnish the lots and populate the world with Sims manually.
Here are some of my favorite Sims 3 worlds to try importing:
Sunset Valley – The quintessential Sims 3 starter town, now remastered.
Riverview – Charming countryside vibes with fully fleshed out sims and stories.
Barnacle Bay – Picturesque seaside architecture and sights.
Breathing new life into classic Sims 3 worlds is a fun way to capture that nostalgic feeling while enjoying Sims 4‘s updated build tools. Get creative and put your own spin on these legacy worlds!
Repurpose Worlds From DLCs You Own
If you‘ve picked up a few expansion or game packs for Sims 4 already, you may have more world options available than you realize.
Many packs come with special gameplay features or themes tied to their worlds that you can actually disable, turning them into normal neighborhoods for your sims to live in.
For example, say you own the Jungle Adventure pack but aren‘t interested in its archaeology gameplay. By disabling the unique Jungle Adventure features, you can transform the gorgeous Selvadorada world into a standard residential area to build or play in.
Here‘s how:
Open the cheat console by pressing Ctrl + Shift + C (or all shoulder buttons on console).
Type in "testingcheats on" and press enter to enable cheats.
Next enter "bb.enablefreebuild" and press enter again to unlock build/buy mode options.
Enter "bb.showhiddenobjects" to reveal any hidden lots or areas.
Shift-click on the mailbox and pick "Disable Packs". Uncheck whatever packs you want to disable features for.
And that‘s it! By toggling off pack-specific features, you can repurpose worlds from DLCs you already own and get more mileage out of them.
Here are some of the best pack worlds to try this with:
Evergreen Harbor (Eco Lifestyle) – Disable the eco footprint system for a quaint seaside town.
Selvadorada (Jungle Adventure) – Strip away the adventure mechanics to create a rural Latin American village.
Henford-on-Bagley (Cottage Living) – Remove the countryside quirks for a cozy English inspired world.
Don‘t let unique gameplay features lock you out of enjoying the vast worlds available in Sims 4‘s DLC packs. With a bit of tinkering, you can find new ways to use them.
Keep An Eye Out For Free Trials
Every so often, EA and Origin will run free trials on select game or expansion packs for Sims 4. This offers a limited chance to download and try out a DLC pack completely free.
And while the packs themselves revert back after the trial ends, any worlds they come with remain fully playable! It’s a great chance to permanently add premium worlds to your game for zero cost.
To catch these deals, keep an eye on the digital storefronts:
Check Origin periodically for free trial offers on packs and their worlds. These typically run for 3-5 days.
Follow Sims news blogs and YouTube channels for announcements on upcoming trials.
Sign up for EA’s newsletter emails to get notified directly about deals.
Some worlds you can currently grab via free trials until March 2, 2023 include:
Del Sol Valley (Get Famous) – Fame and fortune awaits in this glittering Los Angeles inspired world.
Granite Falls (Outdoor Retreat) – Escape civilization among the pine forests and lakes of this national park world.
Windenburg (Get Together) – Explore picturesque European villages connected by vine-covered stone bridges.
Free trials are limited time only, so be sure to pounce on these opportunities right away. The worlds you unlock during the trial will remain yours to keep enjoying forever after.
Custom Neighborhoods Expand Existing Worlds
If you’re looking to freshen up the existing worlds that come with The Sims 4, neighborhood mods are a great middle ground option. Rather than entirely separate worlds, these mods add new explorable areas and locations that seamlessly integrate into current worlds.
For example, some popular neighborhood mods include:
Willow Creek Neighborhoods: Adds a downtown urban area, trailer park, and camping forest to Willow Creek.
Forgotten Quarter of Windenburg: This huge mod extends Windenburg with a sprawling medieval themed neighborhood.
Port Promise: Introduces a new coastal seaside location to Brindleton Bay with beaches and a lighthouse.
Neighborhood mods breathe new life into existing worlds while keeping your sims rooted in familiar territory. They strike a nice balance between fresh exploration and comfort.
Cheats Unlock Hidden Areas
Believe it or not, some worlds in The Sims 4 have secret hidden areas that can only be accessed via cheats and debug codes. Unlocking these hidden gems can unveil entirely new areas and lots to build on or play in.
For example, did you know Willow Creek has a hidden island? Here’s how to uncover it:
Open the cheat console by pressing Ctrl + Shift + C.
Type in “bb.showhiddenobjects” and press enter. This unveils any hidden map areas.
Enter “bb.enablefreebuild” and press enter again to permit building on these hidden lots.
Load into the Willow Creek world map and you‘ll now be able to freely place lots on the previously hidden island!
Other worlds like Newcrest, Oasis Springs and Windenburg have hidden neighborhoods and features that can be unlocked through similar cheat commands. Poke around online or experiment yourself to discover secret areas lurking just beneath the surface!
Unlocking these hidden maps and locations offers yet another free way to carve out new spaces for your sims completely free.
Closing Thoughts
And there you have it, all my best tips and tricks for getting more worlds in The Sims 4 without emptying your wallet. While the official DLC worlds are stunning, don’t feel limited by what you can and can’t afford. With a thriving mod community, legacy Sims 3 content, repurposed DLC worlds and clever cheats, you can craft incredible new places for your sims to live and play!
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to explore a recently uncovered hidden neighborhood I found in Oasis Springs. Happy simming!
