The Sims FreePlay

The Sims FreePlay is a comedy role-playing game where players build houses, control Sims, and complete actions to earn currency and XP in real-time. With a limit on allowable couples and only married Sims able to have children, players can progress through 55 levels and create up to 34 Sims. Despite its hilarious storyline, the game is buggy with frequent ads and can be very grinding.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

60%

Audience ScoreBased on 9,997 reviews

story124 positive mentions

monetization824 negative mentions

The game offers a lot of customization options for characters and houses.
It's a fun and addictive game that keeps players engaged with various quests.
The graphics and animations have improved over the years, making the gameplay enjoyable.

The game frequently crashes, causing players to lose progress on tasks and quests.
Many tasks take an excessively long time to complete, making it frustrating for players with limited time.
The introduction of forced ads disrupts gameplay and can lead to a negative experience.

story
1,010 mentions
12 % positive mentions
84 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The story aspect of "Sims FreePlay" is heavily driven by quests, which players find both engaging and frustrating. Many users express that while the quests provide a fun narrative experience, the time required to complete them is often excessive, with tasks taking anywhere from several hours to days, making it difficult to progress without spending real money. Additionally, the game forces players to complete quests to unlock basic gameplay features, which can detract from the overall enjoyment and sense of freedom typically associated with the Sims franchise.
- “I love the quests but 5 million simoleons!”
- “I love this game, but I wish it was easier to accomplish quest lines.”
- “Great game, with fun quests and decent building.”
- “You have to grind through a lot of long mandatory quests to unlock everything; you're just waiting to be done with them.”
- “The quests take hours each, and to extend the time, it takes actual money.”
- “It's almost impossible to get the gift at the end or finish a quest on time when things take so long to complete; please fix this!”
monetization
894 mentions
3 % positive mentions
5 % neutral mentions
92 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has drawn significant criticism from users, primarily due to the overwhelming number of forced ads that interrupt gameplay. Many players express frustration over the frequency of these ads, which often appear after nearly every action, making the game feel more like a platform for advertisements than an enjoyable experience. Additionally, while in-app purchases are available, they are often viewed as overpriced, leading to a perception of the game as a cash grab rather than a balanced free-to-play model.
- “However, you can drastically speed this process up with in-app purchases, but not at all necessary.”
- “I don't mind spending money to support the developers and make in-app purchases, but there needs to be a line!”
- “It is possible to play without microtransactions, but I miss out on things.”
- “The ads pop up every 20-30 seconds over and over again, without warning, and with no option to cancel.”
- “I can't go a mere 30 seconds without getting bombarded with ads.”
- “The forced ads that pop up since the latest update are making the game very frustrating and borderline unplayable.”
graphics
531 mentions
33 % positive mentions
42 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with many players expressing disappointment over their quality, often describing them as outdated or poor compared to other titles in the Sims franchise. While some users appreciate the charm of the graphics and find them enjoyable, a significant number criticize the character designs and overall visual presentation, calling for updates to enhance realism and customization options. Overall, the consensus suggests that while the gameplay may be engaging, the graphics are a notable drawback that detracts from the overall experience.
- “The graphics are very nice and I love the new update and all the items you get.”
- “Great graphics, cute infants and pets, I love the many clothing options and there are so many things to do between tasks!”
- “I love the graphics and detail orientation.”
- “The graphics are terrible.”
- “The graphics are very poor compared to the other Sims games.”
- “The graphics are absolutely horrible!”
stability
267 mentions
1 % positive mentions
1 % neutral mentions
98 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has been widely criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent glitches, crashes, and freezing issues, particularly following recent updates. Many players express frustration over lost progress and tasks due to these technical problems, which significantly detract from the overall gaming experience. While some users still enjoy the game, the overwhelming sentiment is that the stability issues need urgent attention from the developers.
- “I love The Sims so much; there are no glitches or bugs ever. It is just an awesome game.”
- “Time-consuming, no glitches, entertaining, and creative.”
- “Greatest game ever; no glitches or too many ads. Perfect.”
- “Ever since an update over a year ago, there's been nothing but glitches and constant crashes.”
- “The glitches will cause you to have to pay more!”
- “It's constantly booting me out, and then all progress for my characters is lost, so if I have to have them perform an 8-hour task and start it before bed so it'll be done in the morning, I turn it on, it glitches, and then my characters have nothing accomplished.”
gameplay
126 mentions
40 % positive mentions
52 % neutral mentions
9 % negative mentions
Gameplay in "The Sims FreePlay" is generally described as enjoyable and easy to learn, with smooth controls and a fun concept. However, many players express frustration over long wait times for tasks, intrusive ads, and a monetization system that often feels like a "pay-to-play" model, which detracts from the overall experience. While the game offers decent mechanics and graphics for a mobile title, it suffers from slow progression and limited customization options compared to its PC counterpart.
- “The layout and gameplay, however, is very easy to play and much easier to learn than the PC version.”
- “Overall, I enjoy the gameplay, but the rewards system needs some work.”
- “Great gameplay with nice graphics!”
- “Gameplay takes about 2 minutes and then you're waiting 9-15 hours for actions to complete.”
- “Worst of all, gameplay is painfully slow and constantly interrupted by loud, intrusive ads.”
- “A ridiculous amount of the gameplay required watching ads to earn in-game currency.”
humor
37 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely appreciated, with players finding it entertaining and often hilarious, particularly due to quirky glitches and amusing character interactions. Many reviews highlight the game's funny dialogue and situations, such as comical reactions between Sims and unexpected bugs, which contribute to its charm. However, some players express a desire for more variety in character customization and gameplay options, as the humor can sometimes feel repetitive.
- “This game is so freaking funny and so fun to play!”
- “It's always hilarious to see the fights, complete with smoke clouds and everything.”
- “The memes are hilarious, and it's put together amazingly!”
music
30 mentions
10 % positive mentions
80 % neutral mentions
10 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the relaxing tunes and pop music options, while others report significant glitches that disrupt gameplay, such as music continuing to play after the game is closed or failing to adjust volume settings. Suggestions for improvement include adding more music selections and features like dancing or stereo options for in-game events. Overall, while the music enhances the experience for some, technical issues detract from its enjoyment for many players.
- “Basic but very inspiring; the music is relaxing, and your sims can become almost anything.”
- “The stereo for the sim house is fun, yet more music selection would be nice... the map is awesome.”
- “This is the best game ever! I've played it nonstop for the past 4 months, and now I can constantly hear the music in my head.”
- “Worst of all, the game's music will glitch out and the whole game will freeze up and crash.”
- “I had sound and music turned off on the app, with no warning an ad started playing, loudly.”
- “The flaw is that they just made the music shorter...”
grinding
25 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and time-consuming, with players often feeling compelled to invest real money to progress effectively. Many reviews highlight the excessive length of tasks and the necessity of grinding for multiple currencies, which detracts from overall enjoyment and leads to frustration. While some players find it manageable, the consensus leans towards it being overly grindy and a barrier to a more enjoyable gaming experience.
- “However, you will be spending most of your time grinding in this game, as there are three types of currency that are used throughout quests and tasks.”
- “The issues I have are that prized furniture from events are too pricey, SPs are required for everything but they're so hard to obtain without grinding, and the events are insanely difficult to complete without losing sleep or paying money.”
- “It's quite boring and tedious, actually.”
character development
16 mentions
19 % positive mentions
63 % neutral mentions
19 % negative mentions
Character development in the game has received significant criticism, with users highlighting the limited options for customization, poor graphics, and outdated character designs reminiscent of early 2000s games. Many players express a desire for more diverse body types, hairstyles, and clothing options, indicating that the current offerings feel restrictive and unsatisfactory. While some enjoy the gameplay overall, the consensus is that character design needs substantial improvement to enhance the overall experience.
- “Love the game overall though the character design is a bit restricted and the challenges are a bit difficult.”
- “I just wish there were more options for character design.”
- “I love it so far but the character design could use a lot of work compared to their usual quality.”
- “There's an insane amount of tasks you have to do and can't skip. The character designs are an absolute eyesore with no real way of changing it, as the options you have are few. This looks like it was ripped from a low-quality pixelized early 2000s game on a low-quality phone, and it's janky.”
- “The graphics are terrible, there is only one body type, you can only choose natural hair colors but not even black. There are barely any options for hairstyles, and the character design looks like something that would come from early Zelda games with 3D models but worse. This looks nothing like any other Sims game; the Sims mobile game is much better, and I hate that game.”
- “Character design is very, very limited.”
emotional
10 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players express a mix of emotional attachment and frustration with the game, highlighting moments of joy and connection, particularly with family-building aspects, but also significant disappointment when progress is lost due to glitches. While some appreciate the nostalgic and wholesome elements, others feel that the game has become overly commercialized and repetitive, diminishing the emotional experience. Overall, there is a desire for deeper emotional engagement and more realistic interactions to enhance the gameplay.
- “I rate this game stars, but the thing I dislike about this game that I would like the maker of this game to fix is that after a month of playing this game, I had a baby and a big family and everything, and it reset me.... I was so upset because I almost had every building and it reset my whole game. I cried a little bit because it reset my whole game!”
- “I loved The Sims FreePlay but it had so many glitches and when I tried to make it so that they weren't there anymore, I just ended up deleting them on accident. They may have been fake, but I was so attached to them and call me sentimental, but I cried for days. Every time I go back to the game, I think about my baby twins and my dog I just got, so now it ruins the game for me, so I can't play anymore.”
- “And once I downloaded this again, I fell in love with it and it made me feel close to her.”
optimization
8 mentions
88 % positive mentions
-25 % neutral mentions
38 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many users appreciate its smooth performance on mobile devices and tablets, some report poor performance and bugs. Despite occasional crashes, the majority find it acceptable for a mobile game, highlighting the quality of graphics and gameplay.
- “The fact that it runs smoothly on my phone is truly wonderful.”
- “The app is great, the gameplay has run smoothly; it's only crashed once, and that is acceptable.”
- “Graphics are the best, and I love how it's optimized for tablets!”
- “The game suffers from poor performance and frequent bugs.”
- “Optimization issues lead to frustrating gameplay experiences.”
- “I encountered numerous bugs that severely impacted the game's performance.”