The Designers Using the "The Sims" as Architectural Software

Welcome to The Trend Times, a column that explores design fads in the age of doomscrolling.

When Kayla Sims, 24, embarked on renovating her first home she was, of course, going to use the life simulation game The Sims to do it—and not just because of her last name. The content creator known as lilsimsie has almost 2 million subscribers on YouTube and streams herself playing the game on Twitch daily. Sims’ most popular videos are builds, where viewers watch her create homes in which every room in the house is built with a different budget or color, for example.

Sims is obviously an extreme user of the game, but she says that, in her experience, Simmers who love building frequently use the app to help them design their IRL spaces. "People that play The Sims a lot do [use it] when they’re moving into a new place and trying to think about layout and it’s the easiest tool. There are tools like that are more professional, but if you already play The Sims and you’re like, where am I going to put my couch? Let me real quick build it in The Sims and then move it around a bit," she explains, noting that the base level of the game is now free, making it accessible for all. "You can actually see it in 3D, change colors and swap out things so easily. It’s helpful when you’re trying to picture what it’s going to be like in real life."

Two years ago, when Sims bought a house that needed renovations, she didn’t just use the game to design the interiors of her bedroom, bathroom, and office. In the case of the kitchen gut job, she actually showed her Sims build to her contractor, who was able to replicate it, even though he’s never played the game.

Even if you haven’t played The Sims yourself, most people have at least heard of it. Over the past 20-plus years, it’s become one of the best-selling games of all time. (The Sims 4 has reached more than 85 million global players since its launch in 2014). Launched in 2000 by Maxis and Electronic Arts, the sandbox game was an instant hit, in part because there was no way to win. One simply creates a person (called a "Sim") and then their entire world, ushering them through various stages of life and imposed narratives.

Built environments were always a key part of The Sims; in fact, game designer Will Wright got the idea after his home burned down in the 1991 Oakland firestorm. "When something like this happens, you get a big picture. Where do I want to live? What sort of things do I need to buy? You see your life almost as a project in process. When you’re embedded in your day-to-day life you don’t get that perspective," he told Berkeleyside in 2011.

Inspiration may have sprung from tragedy for Wright, but the game he created has inspired some players to pursue these existential questions professionally. When Leo, a 30-year-old architect also known as YouTuber XFreezerBunnyX, first encountered the game at a mall in the Philippines in 2005, he says, "it changed my life."

He quickly became obsessed and his parents took notice of the incredible houses he was designing, inviting over relatives just to take a look. After that, he says, "I got a lot of encouragement from my parents to become an architect. I definitely would not have considered it if it weren’t for The Sims, because I don’t think I was really that interested in architecture, to be honest."

Leo loves doing speed builds for his audience, and is known for his mastery of different styles, creating everything from Parisian rooftop apartments to traditional Japanese temples in the game. Even though it has limitations—like only allowing you to build four stories high—designing in The Sims is a reprieve, especially as professional architecture software like Revit and Autocad are far more complex and wonky. Leo thinks The Sims helped him become "the guy that did all the plans" at work; becoming the go-to person for layout after an initial sketch of a project was done. "Because I kind of got started at an early age making spaces for virtual people, I think it definitely got a head start," he says.

When Leo was just starting in his career, he was tasked with mocking up a roof renovation quickly with the client right next to him. Instinctually, he hopped on The Sims and was able to show them what a gable roof would look like on their windows. They didn’t seem to mind the format it was presented in, and the project was completed successfully.

For Allison Maeve, a 25-year-old architectural designer from Cincinnati, Ohio, working as an architect professionally in a "horrible work environment" couldn’t compete with the creativity and ease of streaming her builds full-time on Twitch. A key aspect of Maeve’s content is her professional background, as she uses it to educate her audience about architectural standards, like door clearances and thresholds.

Even though the game does not currently allow for Sims to be in wheelchairs, during her builds, Maeve takes the opportunity to explain things like ADA regulations to her followers. "I did a build [of a library] last week and I actually had to change my floor plan because I realized it wasn’t going to be accessible to someone in a wheelchair," she says, "It’s fun to question my community and we kind of learn together."

She continues: "I really use The Sims to teach my community about little architecture effects and tips and tricks here and there and they love it. We’re still having fun and we can be cool and funky and creative, but I’m going to show you how to do a floor plan the right way at least in my eyes…You can’t just be placing things willy nilly."

Though The Sims is made for civilians who play it as a vehicle for fantasy, the designers of the game itself are also making sure players have all the tools they need to recreate reality accurately. Sims Art Director Michael O’Connor, 50, says "the research is always king":

"What does it take to make a craftsman style home look like a craftsman style home? Besides the wall textures and the roof, how many columns do you need? How many doors do you need? How many windows in a set? We’re always thinking, okay, they’re going to tell this story…would they have all the tools to tell that story?"

The game is also forward thinking in terms of design trends, releasing new capabilities like the dream home decorator pack. The team works with consultants on what players might want in the future, as a development cycle for a new pack often takes about a year to bring to the finish line. "Cottagecore…that was a big hit," O’Connor says. "But we were kind of crossing our fingers when I was the art director on [the Cottage Living] pack. Is this going to be a passing fad by the time [it] comes out?

Leo thinks the game isn’t just tracking trends, it’s setting them. "I’m seeing trends that were popular in The Sims years ago that are only starting to be popular now," he claims. "In my actual architectural practice, those wood slat walls are all over the place. But I first saw them in The Sims [City Living pack] maybe two or three years ago. And I’m like, now they’re kind of like all over the place." Though, he adds, "I’m kind of sick of them at this point."

Illustration by Randy Pollak.

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