Parents' Guide to

The Sims FreePlay

By Mark Raby, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Freemium sim both enjoyable and playable without spending.

App iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Android , Kindle Fire Free Simulation Games
The Sims FreePlay Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • The Sims FreePlay App: Screenshot #1
  • The Sims FreePlay App: Screenshot #2
  • The Sims FreePlay App: Screenshot #3

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 34 parent reviews

ellie1205
ellie1205 Adult
February 26, 2019
age 10+

good fun but can be expensive and definitly 10+

a very good game, easy to understand and use. in the game the goal is to create famalies to live in houses in the town they can have jobs and do fun activities. the kids go to school, there are even babies and a pregnancy option, and pets. the possibilities are endless and great at helping with imagination. plus a family member of mine uses this app to plan house designs she's an interior designer, she uses it as a rough guide but still. the things to watch out for is the s*x although in the game it is referred to as woohoo! and blurred out or if a bed present underneath the covers although the covers do move up and down. another thing to watch may be the pregnancy of course pregnancy is a beautiful natural thing but for younger users i'd just watch out. another thing to look out for will be the social aspect as players get rewards for having neighbours on facebook and they can visit each others town, its not really a concern unless you don't want your child having facebook. the main concern is the store in the store the player can buy various packs not avalible for free, these often have time limits and are desirable, players can also get extra money and lp's to speed up tasks, the tasks that have a time limit are almost impossible to complete without buying from the store, the store costs real money so don't let your child get your card on the game without permission as once on it is easy to purchase. there are also a few pop up ads advertising the deals in the store for real money. the final concern is there is some alchol being drunk by the sims which is moderate but if your worried. the general audience for this game, known by my family members group chats etc. is around 11 or 12. but can be much older. this game is good and fun and easy to understand and the updates are regular so not boring.

This title has:

Easy to play/use
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
1 person found this helpful.
Blahblahblah0
Blahblahblah0 Adult
May 5, 2021
age 16+

Money Grabber

This game is craftily engineered to hook you and encourage you to spend your real money. The quests are impossible to complete unless you spend. All the tasks take very long to complete (can be more than 10 hours) . You need LPs to finish the tasks quicker which is fine, except that you are given very little and it takes a long time to get a good amount, thus you are easily tempted to buy LPs from real money. This is addictive to an adult, so definitely not suitable for children! Trust me. Oh and last time I played I also got a computer virus from one of the ads on this game

This title has:

Too much consumerism
See all 34 parent reviews

Privacy Rating Warning

  • Personal information is sold or rented to third parties.
  • Personal information is shared for third-party marketing.
  • Personalised advertising is displayed.
  • Data are collected by third-parties for their own purposes.
  • User's information is used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
  • Data profiles are created and used for personalised advertisements.
Learn more about our privacy ratings

What’s It About?

Players choose from a relatively narrow list of personalities to create their Sim, then launch into a series of well-guided goals to earn simoleons, life and experience points, and increase the value of their town. Sims have six basic needs: hunger, bladder, energy, hygiene, social, and fun. To develop “highly inspired” sims, players must meet these needs. The app gives players free simoleons to buy basic things (toilets), but there are numerous opportunities to buy more with real money.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (34 ):
Kids say (101 ):

THE SIMS FREEPLAY is a great transition of the ever-popular Sims franchise to the portable world of mobile devices. It is a "freemium" app, which usually means players need to pour in a lot of real money after they've become hooked, but this game actually provides a vast, expansive experience for players without needing to spend a single penny. Although it is only a fraction of the size of its high-end PC game counterparts, this app manages to capture the same level of endless features and options for which the series has become so renowned. The touch-screen control takes a bit of getting used to and the responsiveness is not always perfect, but as far as apps that players can really sink their teeth into, this one ranks at just about the very top.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Help your kids research basic human needs. How does our environment change what we need to survive? What do we need to live in the desert? The Arctic? On the moon?

  • If your kids enjoy creating sim cities, introduce them to the fields of architecture or civic planning.

App Details

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