For almost 20 years now, The Sims series has been one of the most popular game franchises out there. What started as a simple PC life simulator has branched out into four generations of base games, innumerable expansion packs, and dozens of console spin-offs. Millions of people around the world still play The Sims in one form or another, and this doesn't look like it'll change anytime soon. With The Sims 4: Seasons being one of the most-anticipated releases of June 2018, the Sims fandom is stronger than ever!

Since the series has been along for so long now, there are some Sims fans who've become completely obsessed with the later games in the franchise but have bypassed the earlier installments. While The Sims has far inferior graphics and far fewer capabilities than, say, The Sims 4, it has its own charms that newer players simply won't have experienced. Even long-term players might have forgotten some of its more unusual and subtle touches! The Sims may have ha🍌d fewer f🍒eatures than its sequels, but those that it did have were game-changing—and often pretty hilarious.

While some of the best concepts from the earlier Sims games made it into later installments in the franchise, others have become nothing more than distant memories. However, that doesn't mean that these forgotten features aren't just as awesome as the once we all know and love! Here are just some of the lesser-known aspects of the Sims series of games th🐼at every single fan should know about—whether they've been Simming since the year 2000 o𒁏r 2018.

25 🅘 🃏 The Real-Life Fire

Even if you've been a Sims fan from the start, you might not be aware of the franchise's interesting (and kinda sad) origin story. Turns out Will Wright, the creator of The Sims, came up with the idea of a life simulator after he in a devastating house fire. After experiencing the journey of having to quite literally build his life back up from the ground, he thought that it'd be a pretty cool idea for a video game—and so The Sims was born!

24 ♛ The Seasons Glitch 🌳

Seasons has always been one of the most popular Sims expansion packs, even since it was introduced in the game's second generation. The Sims 4: Seasons has been one of the hottest gaming releases of June 2018, so what better time to talk about the pack's somewhat rocky journey into production? Seasons were originally going to be included in the base game of The Sims 2. However, it was delayed and made into an expansion pack after a ꦕrendering error caused rain to fall inside houses!ౠ Not ideal for your poor Sims...

23 ▨ ꧙ No Happiness Allowed

If you ever had the joy of playing The Sims: Hot Date, you'll know exactly who Miss Crumplebottom is. Back in the day, the NPCs in the Sims franchise could be pretty prudish about public d🥂isplays of affection.

In particular, Miss Crumplebottom took things way too far!

She would hit your Sims with her handbag if they got too cozy—how rude! It was later revealed in The Sims 3 that Miss Crumplebottom acted in this way out of bitterness: her own true love passe🐽d away on the couple's honeymoon. Poor Agnes...

22 🧸 The Alien Abduction ♓

Back in The Sims 2, a pretty interesting storyline was built into the game that involved Bella Goth, Don Lothario𓃲, and aliens. It seems that one 🥀day, Bella was abducted by extraterrestrial beings.

She was never seen in Pleasantview again.

Her last location before the incident? Don Lothario's bachelor pad. Interesting... Were they having an affair? Does Don know something about the abduction? Why does Bella seemingly turn up in the neighborhood of Strangetown, far away from her home in Pleasantview? Sims fans had a lot of fun exploring these questions!

21 Everlasting Boarding Sꦏchool ൲

Back in the original Sims, life wasn't always easy for children. Not only did they have to attend classes every single day—including weekends—the threat of being sent to military school always hung over their heads. If your younger Sims couldn't keep their grades up, they were shipped off to this stricter school—and never seen again. That's right! There was no way for these kids to return once the military school had taken them, ♈not even through💎 gameplay cheats. It seems like a bit of an extreme reaction, right?!

20 More♒ Than A Maid ꦇ

From the first Sims game onwards, lazier Sims—or those with huge houses—could hire a maid to take on some of their domestic chores. At first, it wasn't possible to interact with this NPC character, other than to tip or fire her. However, that all changed in The Sims 2, and so much gameplay drama began! Not only could you have a friendly chat with your maid, you could romance with them—and even have an extra-marital time with them! Sims 2 players will reme♈mber the troub🐻le that this got Daniel Pleasant into...

19 The Heart Bed 💞

Back in the days before Sims could, er, get close—otherwise known as Woohoo—in any double bed, there was one particular Buy Mode object that made the game that little bit racier. Introduced in The Sims: Livin' Large, the Vibromatic Heart Bed gave Sims who loved each other very much the opportunity to use it. Sometimes, a baby would result from this—but only if the player wanted it to, of course! For many players, the Heart Bed is one of the most iconic objects from The Sims—just because it's so recognizable!

18 🦄 Burglar Alert!

Any Sims player who's only encountered the newer generations of the game won't understand the sheer terror that was hearing the "burglar" music in The Sims.

It's genuinely the stuff of nightmares.

Your poor Sims could have their personal belongings pilfered from their homes, although the police would sometimes intervene if they were called quickly enough. The first inclination you'd get that a thief was on you lot was that sinister little tune...  Eventually, the burglar interaction was deemed to be too scary: it was removed from The Sims 4.

17 ♋ Where Did The Pool Ladders Go? 𓃲

Another classic element of Sims gameplay that's been removed🐼 from newer titles in the franchise is the old "removing the pool ladders" trick. Back in the day, one of the few ways to bump off one of your Sims was to make them go swimming and then remove the ladders that enabled them to get out. Your characters would be totally trapped, and eventually, they'd perish in the water. These days, Sims who have no pool ladders do the much more sensible (but much more boring) thing of just climbing out via the sides.

16 ✃ Your Face Looks Familiar... 𒐪

In all Sims games from The Sims 2 onwards, plꦫayers have been provided with numerous tools, sliders, and designs to make their Sims look as unique and diverse as possible. You can change everything from the height of their forehead to the exact curve of their chin.

However, this wasn't always the case!

Remember the days of The Sims, when you could only choose from a few preset faces, bodies, and outfits?🌠 All of our Sims basically looked the same, and there wasn't m🗹uch you could do about it!