This streamer’s The Sims 4 builds are so real, they’re fooling everyone

When building lots in The Sims 4, there are plenty of moving parts to consider. There are structural elements like walls and windows, functional parts like toilets and stoves, and miscellaneous set dressing that, when used well, can transform the lot from a simplistic structure to a stylish, homey space. That’s not all, though, as there’s a smorgasbord of custom content to sift through and a trove of official add-ons to expand your tool kit. 

In practice, the learning curve can often feel brutal, with your best efforts amounting to a cubic lot littered with random furniture. To help give you a fighting chance, we spoke to streamer and lot-building aficionado KawaiiFoxita, who shared some tips and tricks on how they craft enviably realistic lots in The Sims 4. 

“Most of the time, I'll start with a blank canvas and tinker until I think I'm onto something,” explains KawaiiFoxita. “Often, I'll not actually be confident about what I'm doing until the very end when the photos are taken and edited. That can be hours of work! Other times, I'll have been inspired by something I saw on TV or when I was out of the house and instantly feel good about it.” It’s fair to say there isn’t a perfect formula when it comes to starting a project, though KawaiiFoxita believes that scale is often a good place to start: “Rooms that are too large can be incredibly difficult to fill and don't always look very realistic. You want the place to feel like someone actually lives there!” 

In The Sims 4’s base game, you’ll have a choice of three unique worlds (Oasis Springs, Willow Creek, and Newcrest) with each location offering a variety of base lot sizes. When choosing a lot, aiming for one with less square footage can help reduce the decision-making anxiety of plotting rooms in sparse open spaces. 

An empty lot can undoubtedly feel daunting, something KawaiiFoxita is certainly aware of. However, instead of starting entirely from scratch, they suggest it can be valuable to re-create rooms or buildings you’ve seen before. “With practice and using references, you quickly learn how things should look and what ‘works’ in an interior space,” they explain. KawaiiFoxita pulls references from several sources, including The Sims community, Pinterest, architecture books, and pop culture. “For my Dragon Age builds, I used reference images that the game's artists themselves had put up on ArtStation or screenshots from the game to try to re-create them as accurately as possible. Sometimes I'll just go off on a wild tangent because I’ve felt inspired.” 

One of their pop-culture-inspired builds, The Orangery, which features stone arches and a neat, manicured lawn, came after watching Netflix's period drama Bridgerton. “It took about 13 hours to complete, as there were lots of details and it was so big, but I'm really happy with how it turned out,” they explain. “When I look at the pictures, I can easily feel the warmth of what it would be like in real life.” 

The builds often play with the balance of light and shadow, imbuing their projects with a realistic atmosphere that tricks the eye. Fans often leave comments expressing disbelief that one of their Build Mode creations isn’t a real-life photo. “It's useful to work out your lighting before you begin your build,” they note. “It can really help to set the stage for how your build will eventually turn out.” Whether through artificial lighting or the addition of large windows that let the sunlight in, considering where your light sources will come from can save you from panic-placing later in the build and disrupting the room's natural aesthetic harmony. 

Once you’ve organized your structure and lighting, you can then begin experimenting with the decor.  “Don't be scared to balance between 'less is more' and 'over cluttered' when it comes to decorating and filling your space,” KawaiiFoxita says. “Some builds work with a more minimalist approach, whereas others will feel more warm and cozy the more you add in the tiny details.” They note that small touches, like adding moss to pathways and around the edges of buildings, can work well to amp up the sense of realism within each build. 

It’s important to note that not all details in KawaiiFoxita’s impressive building projects are achieved within the constraints of the base game. They were keen to shout out the vast community of modders and creators who supply custom content and share personal tips for editing lots. “The game would not be as intuitive for me if it weren't for the Better BuildBuy: Organized Debug and Always MoveObjects On mods from TwistedMexi,” KawaiiFoxita says. “They allow me the freedom I need to sort through thousands of items of custom content and move my camera freely to take photos and place items without restrictions.” User-generated content repositories like Mod The Sims and CurseForge enable players to supplement The Sims 4’s Build Mode experience. 

Yet even with experience and custom content, KawaiiFoxita is aware of the technical obstacles some players will face when designing bespoke creations. “The Sims is not perfect and definitely has its limitations, but I'm lucky enough to have a high-end PC, so I can play on ultra settings, which really emphasizes the lighting in the game,” they say. Looking to the future, they hope to see The Sims developer Electronic Arts lean more on its growing fleet of custom content creators to expand the game’s aesthetic milieu. “I am very aware that having a good quality PC is a luxury that a lot of players do not have, and console players cannot install custom content or mods,” they explain. “So, for me, it would be a huge step forward for The Sims team to work even more closely with creators and create in-game content that people want,” they continue. “Opening up the floor for voting and discussion would all be very welcome.”

Once a build is complete, KawaiiFoxita’s final step is to take their screenshots into external editing software for some final touches. “When I have finished building and taking my photos, usually with an interior-design-magazine-style photoshoot in mind, I will take them through to Adobe Lightroom for editing,” they said. “I have created a range of personal filters that I can use based on the style and theme of the build, but my main focus is always to slightly enhance shadows and texture for a realistic look,” they continue. “I have lost count of how many times people have said to me that they thought my build was real or straight from a magazine because of this.”

You can add us to the list, KawaiiFoxita. Incredible work.