Happy 25th Birthday to The Sims!

The Sims franchise is celebrating a huge milestone – 25 years of creativity, storytelling, and chaos! As we prepare for the official anniversary on the 4th of February 2025, EA has lined up exciting surprises, free content, and a massive 25-hour livestream to mark the occasion. It looks like the first quarter of 2025 will be a huge party. And let’s face it, after the 21st birthday fiasco, we kind of needed it. Anyhoo, let’s have a look at what’s in store, shall we?

The Sims 25th Birthday Roadmap

Watch the Behind The Sims Birthday Special

Take a sneak peek at upcoming content as Mersea and Shawnee give Simmers a first glance at what’s to come for the franchise. The community can expect surprises not only for The Sims 4, but for The Sims FreePlay and MySims as well.

3 Iconic Kits

Kickstarting the festivities, EA released three new Kits for The Sims 4, two of which inspired by The Sims’ most iconic Sims: Bella Goth and Don Lothario! Bella’s Secret Sanctuary Kit and Don’s Casanova Cave Kit are the first two Kits to release with assets for both Create a Sim and Build & Buy.

The third release on the 16th turned out to be a collab with content creator LilSimsie. She helped direct the content for the Comfy Gamer Kit, with Build & Buy assets to create the perfect cozy gameroom for your Sims. You can read more about the Kits in EA’s official blog post or in their interview with Kayla.

Nostalgia Now

One of the biggest surprises for the 25th anniversary cam during the Nostalgia Now week. The event kicked off with a teaser – a short clip showing the nostalgic art style of both The Sims 1 and 2 – sparking speculation across the community. Later that week, EA launched a special Y2K Sims website, with a soundboard, photo filters and more.

Of course this was all a hint towards the re-release of The Sims 1 and The Sims 2! Both games are now available for Windows 10 & 11, and can be purchased either as a bundle or separately. It’s a great opportunity for longtime fans eager to relive the classics, but also for recent Simmers who want to see what all the fuss is about.

The 25th Birthday Celebration

As the Sims franchise turns 25 years old on tuesday the 4th of February they’ll host a – partially pre-recorded – livestream of 25 solid hours! Watch the livestream on the official Twitch, YouTube and TikTok platforms of The Sims, starting at 20.00 CET.

Sorry! The 25-hour birthday livestream has ended!

Free Content for The Sims 4

The Sims 4 will receive a SDX drop with over 70 new items for the Base Game. Players can give their Sims a full-blown make-over with this update. Create a Sim receives new clothes, shoes, accessories and (facial) hairstyles to dress up your Sims from head to toe.

Next to that there will be a bunch of new items coming to Build & Buy as well. From a new set of doors & windows, to a new fireplace and… even a new kitchen!? Whaaaattt? My flabbers were gasted also. I mean, we missed out on kitchens on multiple occassions, so this is a nice change of pace; We love to see it!

Blast from the Past Event

Battle Passes in The Sims 4 are here to stay, unfortunately. Simmers better get questing as the Blast from the Past Event begins. While the unlockable items are a fun throwback to previous games, they can only be unlocked for a limited time. Don’t miss out and hop right into Live Mode to unlock the items before they are gone! You can read our complete event guide for more details.

Exclusive Birthday Merch now Live!

As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Sims, there’s a bunch of exciting releases to showcase your Simmer pride. To commemorate this milestone, a new line of merchandise is now available on the official Sims shop. The collection include an assortment of unisex tops, enamel pins, posters and more!

Simmers can use code SIMS25BDAY at checkout for a discount in the merch shop. The promotion can be used up until the 28th of February, 2025 at 9PM CET on shopthesims.com only. See the official sale details for more information.

Limited Edition Vinyl Collection up for Pre-Order

The Sims has unveiled a special vinyl collection featuring iconic tracks from the game’s history. This limited edition release offers multiple variants, each with unique cover art and vinyl colors, making it a perfect addition to any collection. Whether you’re reminiscing about the original game’s soundtrack or the later renditions, this vinyl set encapsulates the essence of The Sims franchise.

The records are currently up for pre-order and are estimated to be shipped in May. Some of the shops – like JPC and Black Screen Records – are already sold out, but here are the shops that are currently (last updated: 21st of February) still taking pre-orders:

Retailer	Ships to
Enjoy the Ride Records	North America
HHV Records	Mainly Germany and Austria, but worldwide at higher costs
FNAC France	France
At the Movies Shop	Europe, Oceania, North America, parts of South America
JB Hi-Fi	Australia

Tip! Simmers from Australia! We can’t check for certain as we’re located in Europe, but it might be worth looking into ordering at At the Movies vs. JB Hi-Fi, if the color vinyl doesn’t matter to you. Costs for product + shipping seems to be lower when looking at total cost – excluding additional fees such as customs.

So What’s Next for The Sims?

On the 5th of February we’ve gotten a first glimpse of the upcoming Motherlode Season. A new Business & Hobbies Expansion Pack was teased and later that week EA released the full reveal trailer for the pack, coming to The Sims 4 in March. But that’s not all the season entails; expect new kits, a mystery reveal, and more updates in the coming months!

Stay tuned for in-depth coverage on all these events. What are you most excited for? Let us know in the comments!