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The great thing about The Sims 4 is that it allows players to create wildly different scenarios to play with. From raising a family from toddlerhood into the high school years and beyond, to living the virtual-digital-nomad life on the tropical island of Sulani, to trying one of the harder fan-created challenges, there's something to suit everyone. If players are looking for a way to celebrate the spooky season, there are plenty of packs out there that will allow them to enjoy all things dark and scary.
There are many packs available in The Sims 4. Included in this list are Expansion Packs, Game Packs, and Stuff Packs. These vary in terms of what they have to offer. Expansion Packs are the most expensive, but they tend to introduce more features to the game, including new neighborhoods, lot traits, and even occult species. At the other end of the scale, Stuff Packs are cheap, and are focused on Build and Buy and Create A Sim items around a particular theme. Sitting in the middle of those are Game Packs, which usually have something unique to offer (like the Vampires game pack, for example). There's a spooky-themed pack out there for all budgets!
5 Vampires (Game Pack)
Vampires is a game pack that introduces, unsurprisingly, vampires. For a game pack, it has a lot of content. As well as a new magical creature to try out, players will gain access to Forgotten Hollow, a deliciously dark and spooky neighborhood that makes a change from the typical, tidy suburban surroundings in The Sims 4. It comes with 140 new items, all with a mildly spooky Victorian vibe.
The vampires themselves are interesting to play with. They have a range of powers, including mind control, conjuring, casting hallucinations, and even turning into a bat. If players don't feel like chasing down and torturing other Sims using their dark powers, they can duel other vampires instead. Be warned: this will (understandably) create some enemies.
4 Spooky Stuff (Stuff Pack)
This pack works well in conjunction with any of the other packs on this list, but it also works if players feel frustrated by the lack of Halloween-themed items in the base game. Stuff Packs in the Sims give players new decor, items, and clothing options to play with. From cobweb-patterned wallpaper to skeleton rugs to pumpkins, it provides everything players need to get their Sims ready for Halloween.
Every Stuff Pack has a couple of stand-out items that introduce brand-new interactions to the game. In Spooky Stuff, these are the Pumpkin Carving Station, which allows Sims to create their own pumpkin masterpieces, and the Spooky Candy Bowl, which may give Sims a scare. If players can grab this pack on offer, they'll be set for the Halloween season.
3 Island Living (Expansion Pack)
The Island Living expansion pack introduces the beautiful world of Sulani, a tropical paradise for Sims to explore. Players can clean up the island, create a home right on the beach, and befriend the locals at the bar. All wholesome, light-hearted stuff.
However, there's a twist. Island Living introduces Mermaids, a new occult species that are fun to play around with. Mermaids have some pretty dark powers if they have the Evil trait, including summoning an Ocean Threat, causing other Sims to panic (and potentially drown). That's not the only spooky thing, though. It also introduces Elementals, the spirits of ancestors, which some Sims can commune with when they visit at night.
2 Werewolves (Game Pack)
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Just like Vampires, Werewolves introduces a new occult species (and the two Game Packs fit nicely alongside each other). Werewolf Sims are interesting to play with. Players can choose their Sim's 'lore,' deciding whether they were bitten or born into a werewolf family, for example. A werewolf Sim can be a lone wolf, or it can move in a pack instead. Either way, they'll transform at the full moon, and they can choose whether to lean into their wolf status by learning more about their own history or try to blend into regular life.
It also introduces scars to the game, giving werewolf Sims an authentically haggard look. Players will also have access to werewolf-related Aspirations and traits for their Sims, as well as 149 Create-A-Sim items, and some scruffy, battered-looking furniture and wallpaper. If players have ever wanted to create a vampire vs. werewolf scenario, now they can!
1 Paranormal Stuff (Stuff Pack)
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The most obviously spooky pack, Paranormal Stuff introduces a crucial gameplay feature that players have been asking for: the ability to create paranormal investigators. Sims can take up ghost hunting as a freelance career, visiting haunted houses to communicate with, and hopefully exorcise, trapped ghosts.
Players can also create haunted houses. These are fun to build, and players can terrorize their existing Sims with ghosts by giving lots the Haunted House trait. Plus, it has some beautiful, boho-style Build & Buy items, surprisingly versatile clothing, and the all-important Seance Table, which players will need to commune with the spirits. As a bonus, it brings back Bonehilda, a beloved character from previous games in the series.
The Sims 4 is currently available on PC, macOS, PS4, and Xbox One.