The Sims Medieval is easily my favourite spinoff of The Sims series. How could putting my Sims in a medieval kingdom full of magic and adventure where they are the destined heroes of the land be anything but amazing? Unfortunately, The Sims Medieval did not have a long life, but I picked up the Deluxe Edition of this game a few days ago and have fallen in love with it all over again. In fact, I was so excited about it, I decided to share the experience with all of you in this walkthrough-style Day in the Life segment! Are you ready for some medieval adventure? Let’s go!
The first thing you’re greeted with after the intro and title screen when you fire up The Sims Medieval is the Kingdom Ambitions screen. If that confuses you, you can just call it the game’s main menu, because that’s essentially what it is. This is where you can start a new game or load a previously saved game. Before starting a new game, you’ll have to choose an Ambition for your game. Think of Ambitions as the overall goal for your entire kingdom.
Since this is my first time playing this copy of The Sims Medieval, I can only select one Ambition. It’s called New Beginnings. If I click on that Ambition, I can see that my kingdom’s goal will be to erect buildings in my kingdom. The more buildings that go up during my playthrough of this kingdom, the better my Ambition score will be. Completing Kingdom Ambitions unlocks new Kingdom Ambitions to play, which encourages me to explore all the different ways to build and run a kingdom. I don’t need to stick with one strategy; in fact, completing many Kingdom Ambitions will ensure that I never play the game the same way twice!
Once I’ve selected a new game to play with the New Beginnings Ambition, I’m prompted to select a throne room and give my kingdom a name. I’m a big fan of Doctor Who, so I chose the name Gallifrey but you can name your kingdom anything you like. For the throne room, you get your pick of a couple different styles or you can choose an unfurnished throne room. Choosing an unfurnished throne room lets you start with more Simoles to decorate but I think I’m just going to select the Princess throne room that came with the Deluxe Edition of this game and jump right into the meat of the game.
After starting a new game, I get to take my first look at my kingdom. It’s a big place but wow is it ever empty! It looks like just the throne room has been built. Speaking of which, my throne room needs a Monarch. A kingdom can’t function without a King or Queen! Monarchs are just one type of Hero Sim you can play in The Sims Medieval. There are ten in total. In addition to the Monarch, you can also play as a Knight, Spymaster, Jacoban Priest, Peteran Priest, Blacksmith, Merchant, Bard, Wizard, and Physician. More Heroes will be added to the kingdom as we construct the buildings they need to operate. For now, let’s just worry about our Monarch.
I can choose from two premade Sims to run my kingdom or I can go into Create a Sim and make my own Monarch. Picking one of the premade Sims is a good way to just jump right into all the action if you’re eager to get questing, but I love customizing the perfect Hero Sims for my kingdom so I’m going to make my own Monarch.
Create a Sim works the same way as it did in The Sims 3, so if you’ve played The Sims 3, you’ll be familiar with this. I decide to make an elven queen named Eolwyn. Most of the items I’ve used on her are from the Pirates & Nobles Adventure Pack, which also comes with the Deluxe Edition of The Sims Medieval on Origin.
Sims still have traits in The Sims Medieval, but they work a little differently. You can only pick three traits for a Hero Sim, and one of these traits must be negative. This negative trait is called a Fatal Flaw. Think of the Fatal Flaw as a weakness in character that your Hero Sims will have to find ways to overcome during their quests. I’ve chosen the Eloquent and Entitled traits for Eolwyn. Being Eloquent will help her in situations where a diplomatic approach is needed. Being the Queen of Gallifrey, this is a useful trait for her to have. Royalty have a tendency to be a bit spoiled, however, so I’ve also selected Entitled. This means Eolwyn will be happier in lavish surroundings and become unhappy in dingy or plain surroundings. She’ll also get new socials related to this trait to use with other Sims.
For her Fatal Flaw, I’ve selected Hubris. This means our queen thinks a little too highly of herself and has a tendency to become overconfident. This overconfidence can be her undoing because it will saddle her with a negative buff that will lower her Focus quite frequently during quests. Unfocused Heroes have a harder time succeeding in their quests.
