I don't know how into video games you are, but there are four games I play with a dedication so strong that I've literally lost nights of sleep over them. One of these games is Sims. I played Sims 3 long ago, but I'm currently playing Sims 4, and if you're a Sim's player then you know that EA just keeps adding more expansions to this game.
I've played the game so much that I've beaten many of the challenges, yet there was one I have failed to complete several times. The Alphabet Family Challenge. The rules for this challenge are as follows:
1) You must play through 26 generations of the same household.
That's it. That's all the guidelines Sims gives players. Seems simple enough, right? WRONG! Sims is a time-consuming game. Getting to 26 generations takes a long time...and I may have neglected to consider what 'same household' might have meant until I was already a decent way into the challenge.
Needless to say, being the writer I am, I've found tons of inspiration from my Sims characters while attempting this challenge for what feels like the one-thousandth time. My Sims family tree has been interesting to watch. So, I thought, why not keep a log of each generation...that has obviously evolved from the note application on my phone to this blog.
To be honest, The note is just getting so long that it needs to be moved and just thinking about writing it all out makes my wrist hurt. Thus, I've decided to share the laughter, tears, drama, and sketchy situations my Sims get into with you all. You'll notice that the 'logs' get more descriptive the further into the challenge we get. That's because after reaching Generation A I decide if I was going to keep logs then they were going to be mini journal entries...like the family themselves were keeping a record.
Feel free to use these characters' lives for inspiration in your own writings.
Since The challenge is to make it through 26 generations, this is going to be an ongoing series here, on my blog. I'll give you an update on this wacky family periodically. Who knows, maybe this will get me into a more frequent posting schedule, lol.
Generation 1, Log 1 (GREENBURG):
Charlee Greenburg is our starting Sim. She's an orphan and moves to a naturalist town to start her life on her own. There she marries Knox Greenburg. They are both environmentalists who use rainwater for plumbing and generate their own electricity with wind power.
Charlee and Knox have three daughters; Stevie, Daisy, and Jett. Eventually, both Charlee and Knox died of old age.
Generation 2, Log 2 (WADE):
Stevie is the oldest daughter of Charlee and Knox, so we follow her out of the home. She left the naturalist town and moved to Hollywood, where she married Andy Wade. She became a world-famous archeologist and he was a freelance musician. Together, they had three children; Keith (boy), Frankie (girl), and Braden (boy). Both Stevie and Andy ended up dying of old age.
Generation 3, Log 3 (WADE):
Keith is the oldest child of Stevie and Andy, so we follow him out. Keith left Hollywood for New York. He squandered his family's hard-earned wealth and met a political scientist, Miko. He and Miko married and had two daughters, Maria and Sabrina. Both Keith and Miko died of old age.
Generation 4, Log 4 (SCOTT):
Maria became an interior decorator. She ended up marrying one of her clients, Travis Scott...who ironically hated computers but was a computer programmer. They had Odette and Marshall and moved to the countryside. Both of their kids ended up addicted to d**gs after a very long weekend of parties. Both Maria and Travis ended up dying of old age.
Generation 5, Log 5 (KIBO):
Odette hooked up with Akira Kibo in a dumpster behind a karaoke bar. She ended up pregnant and ran away to the city with Akira to have their son Emmett. Akira's cause of death is unknown but he haunts the apartment building he lived in with Odette. Odette dies of old age.
Generation 6, Log 6 (KIBO-TANIEU):
Emmett had to grow up fast with his childish parents doing the bare minimum. The kid was lucky to survive. He moved to New Mexico, accidentally unleashed an alien plant virus, had to cure the town of his mistake, met and married Lorenzo Tanieu (who he cured). The two men used science to create their twin sons, Aster and Neil. Both Emmett and Lorenzo lived a long life and died of old age.
***This is where I realized I was doing this challenge wrong and all sims are supposed to live on the same land plot for the duration of the challenge...think homestead. I decided that I'd take Alphabet Family literally and name each generation from here on out with the letter corresponding to their generation number.***
Generation A, Log 7 (KIBO-TANIEU):
Aster moved out to start his own farm in the country. When the twins' dad Lorenzo died, Emmett moved in with Aster and Neill took over their childhood home.
Aster set out to create a stable place for his family to grow. He married Radish (her parents had a thing for vegetables, she had a sister named Parsley) and had Bobby and Bailey.
Generation B, Log 8 (CORONA):
The first winter on the Family Farm was a hard one. Bobby, Radish, and Emmett starved to death. Bailey turned down university to help her father run the farm until he died of old age. Death, themself, stuck around after reaping the souls of her mother, brother, and grandfather. He sees Baily meet Jonah Corona and watches her get married.
Bailey and Jonah had twin boys, Christian and Caleb.
Generation C, Log 9 (CORONA):
Christian was the oldest of the Corona twins and should have inherited the farm but he gained the erratic trait, heard voices, and was certified crazy. He remained at the farm until he froze to death while playing naked in the pond, in the middle of winter (he was a young adult). Death takes up residence in Christian's old room until Spring.
Generation C, Log 10 (CORONA):
Caleb took over the Family Farm and married London Sexton. He didn't know she was already married until she was pregnant with his kid. She left her husband, Darryl, at Caleb's request that their child be raised on the farm, but Darryl kept coming over to yell at Caleb while he worked in the fields.
Caleb and London had Damian and Dalya. Dalya married Hugh and moved into town. Damian stayed on the farm.
Generation D, Log 11 (CORONA):
Damian married Amile Thatcher, who he met while exploring the woods on the other side of the village. She and her dog Rex both loved the farm. Rex died of old age when their third child was born. Death took all of the family's chickens when he came to take Rex.
Damian and Amile had five children; Ethan, Evan, Evelyn, Ezra, and Erin. Amile had a hard time getting pregnant after Evan was born. She pleaded with a magic wishing well on the farm to have a second child. The well grants her wish and she has Evan. Ethan is taken away by CPS shortly after his brother is born. It devastated his parents and they became super clingy to the rest of their children. Amile made regular offerings to the Well.
Generation E, Log 12 (CORONA):
Evan was a little off after he witnessed his brother being taken away by CPS. His parents thought him talking to himself for long periods of time was a coping mechanism. He was diagnosed with paranoia as a teen, but despite that, he still asked to take over the farm. His parents were unsure after how his uncle Christian died but agreed he could help run the farm with them and his siblings.
Generation E, Log 13 (CORONA):
Evan accidentally started the field on fire when he dropped a firebug he was nurturing. The family decided to redo the field and make two that were separate from each other.
Generation E, Log 14 (CORONA):
The second home on the Family Farm starts on fire while Evan sleeps. Evan wakes up and runs into the flames. His family must extinguish him. At this point, his family thinks Evan is cursed. Random stuff breaks or starts on fire when he's around. His parents argue about him frequently. He tries to stay optimistic and tries his hand at dating.
Evan meets two girls while out at the pub with his younger brother, Ezra. Ella and Jsoo. Bad things happen whenever he's around them.
Generation E, Log 15 (CORONA):
Evan eventually marries Jsoo, who has taken it upon herself to bring peace to his family. They move into the second home on the family farm and remodel. Ezra and Evelyn move into a cottage in the forest with their friend Carson.
Evan and Jsoo have Francis and Francine before they move back into the main home on the Family Farm. They remodel again and install an indoor gym. Jsoo is big on meditation and yoga. She hosts guided mediation classes at the spa. Evan attends her classes and takes up jogging.
Generation E, Log 16 (CORONA):
Damian dies from working too hard as an elder. Amile became known as a black widow in town (apparently she 'forgot' to mention to Damian that she'd been married four times before him...WTF???). Death decides he likes the home renovations and spends time in all the bathrooms. Meanwhile, Erin aged up and moved out. She moved to Germany.
Generation E, Log 17 (CORONA):
Franklin is born to Jsoo and Evan. He's a fussy toddler and gains the squeamish trait as a kid. Neither he nor his brother are showing interest in the farm, but Francine loves the animals.
Flora is born.
Generation F, Log 18 (CORONA):
Francis suddenly takes up gardening, woodworking, and repair. He develops an interest in pomegranates and death flowers. He replaces all dead plants with death flowers or pomegranate seeds.
Francis decides he wants the Family Farm after all. He marries his childhood friend, Jade, and they have a daughter, Gracey. They remodel the second home on the property and update the foundation on both homes. The second home is expanded since Jade is pregnant again in no time.
The farm is legally renamed from Family Farm to Pershpone Farms.
Generation F, Log 19 (CORONA):
Franklin aged up to a young adult and moved to Germany. Francine has gotten married and had twins. She lives in her hometown and returns to the farm for visits with her brother Francis and his family.
Generation F, Log 20 (CORONA):
Evan died of old age just as Jade goes into labor. Coincidence? Maybe...or maybe it's the Well's curse.
Garth is born. Flora ages up and moves out. All that's left living at Persephone Farms is Jsoo, Francis, Jade, Gracey, and Garth.
Generation F, Log 21 (CORONA):
Flora died...literally right after moving out, getting married, and having twins. Poor Flora. Her cause of death is listed as embarrassment.
***Keep your eye out for Part II***
I am hooked. I can't wait for more.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy you're enjoying it! You should totally try this challenge. It's a pain sometimes, but really fun.
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