The original The Sims launch version (released in February 2000) was a phenomenal game, but there was actually a lot of content removed from the retail version. Some of this content was minor; however, some of it would have made the game quite different. This list will include content that was removed from the game’s many expansion packs before their launch, and when this content was later introduced - if applicable.
Content that was removed from the original The Sims (and the expansion packs) outside of North America due to legal/social restrictions will not be considered for this list. The Crime career path is an example of this.
10 Tree-Hugging
Fans of The Sims games know all-to-well how great hugs are for reducing some of a Sim’s most crucial needs. With only a couple of hugs, a player can substantially reduce their Sim’s need for Social and Fun interactions. Developers almost included an option for players to have their Sim hug a tree instead of a family friend or family member; though there’s no information on if this would have fulfilled a Sim’s Fun and Social needs as much as hugging another sim. This feature was removed from The Sims: Vacations expansion before its retail launch in March 2002.
9 Investment Opportunities
Fans of recent The Sims titles have certainly encountered an occasional text box where the player is offered a choice at work. Choosing the right answer results in a bonus or promotion, while choosing poorly results in a reprimand. The original The Sims was going to have something similar in the form of investment opportunities a Sim would receive via the phone.
Choosing the right investment would have given a healthy profit while choosing the wrong investment would cause the loss of the initial investment in simoleons. Investments would become a fun feature in The Sims 3 but are not initiated via a random phone call.
8 Coffee Tables
The first The Sims game had just enough furniture to make a sim’s house feel more like a home. However, there was one piece of furniture planned for the launch version that got removed prior to the game’s release. This removed piece of furniture is something that is in nearly every home and is probably one of the most used pieces of furniture in a home – the coffee table. This efficient and versatile piece of furniture was probably removed from the launch version due to it not being fully implemented before the deadline. Coffee tables were introduced in The Sims: Hot Date.
7 More Choices In Neighborhoods
The launch version of The Sims had one map with an assortment of pre-made houses and a few empty lots for making custom houses. Originally, there were plans to give the player more choices in neighborhoods. A more rural setting was removed from the game before its release. This neighborhood did not feature sidewalks, was less forested and did not have pre-made houses. This could have been originally conceived as a retirement neighborhood. A secluded place to build your Sim’s dream house after conquering their career path and making more simoleons than they’ll ever use.
6 Interactive Vehicles
In the original, cars seemed like an afterthought. The fact that vehicles were present in the game at all leads one to wonder how much more interactive they were intended to be during development. There aren’t any vehicle interaction animations for Sims as they simply teleport inside a vehicle before it slides off-screen.
Vehicle ownership was also not a feature in the original The Sims title. Animations for Sims getting in and out of vehicles were later found by fans, which confirms vehicles likely played a larger part of the game during development.
5 Warning Notifications
One feature of The Sims games that many players appreciate is the lack of “hand-holding.” The games in the franchise let players explore the virtual world as one explores the real world – without a safety net. This was almost not the case though. Originally some actions would prompt a warning message to appear informing the player of potential negative consequences for having their Sim perform an action. The most known example of this was attempting to use a stove or oven with a low Cooking level. It’s possible this was also planned for other dangerous activities, like trying to fix a television set.
4 Children Kissing A Toad
Everyone is probably familiar with the fairy tale that begins with a just kissed frog transforming into a person of royal lineage. In The Sims: Makin’ Magic, this was added as a fun side-activity for players. Having an adult Sim kiss a frog had a chance of producing Toad Sweat or transforming the frog into a person.
Toad Sweat is a material spellcasting component in Makin’ Magic. For some reason, the option for children to kiss a toad was disabled. Oddly though, the code and animations for this action were left in the launch version of Makin’ Magic.
3 Locking Doors
In the original The Sims game, NPCs had full access to a player’s house. No area was sacred to these computer-controlled sims. There were a lot of players that immediately noticed that not only could they not lock the doors in their house, but something like that would have been relatively easy to include. Both the Superstar and Makin’ Magic expansions contain leftover code that implied this feature was considered, and then ultimately disabled. It would not be until The Sims 2: Open for Business that players could keep houseguests out of their private bathroom by locking the door.
2 Community Areas
Heading into town for some fun has now become a common feature in The Sims games. Players who go back and replay the original game soon realize they are stuck in their neighborhood. Originally, there was going to be at least one community area to which players could send their sims for a change of scenery. This area was later added as part of The Sims: Hot Date expansion as the Downtown area. This addition would have made the launch title of The Sims a very different experience.
1 Downtown Curfew
The Downtown area introduced in Hot Date is a great feature for breaking up the monotony of the daily work/house-chores routine players must grind though. One of the best features of this Downtown area is that it’s accessible to Sims 24 hours a day. This allows Sims with unconventional working hours to head out for some fun after getting home from work. Developers had originally planned for the Downtown area to have a 2:00 A.M. curfew before deciding against such a restriction. This curfew would have made some jobs a lot less appealing; which is possibly the reason for its removal from the Hot Date expansion.
NEXT: The Sims 4: 5 Of The Coolest-Looking Wearable Items (& 5 That Look Terrible)
