Cheating Death, Mourning, and Ghosts in The Sims 4

How to use the Sims 4 resurrect cheat

There are dozens of ways to kill a Sim, but there's also a cheat to resurrect Sims in The Sims 4. While you can't revive ghosts in The Sims 4, it's possible to cheat death if you act fast enough.

Information in this article applies to The Sims 4 for Windows and macOS. There's also a resurrection cheat for The Sims 3.

The Grim Reaper in a bathtub in The Sims 4
Maxis

How to Use The Sims 4 Resurrect Cheat

You can revive a Sim as soon as it dies with the move object cheat:

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + C to enter cheat mode.

    Mac users should replace Ctrl with the Command key.

  2. Type move_object on.

  3. Click the Grim Reaper and press the Delete key.

  4. Click the dead Sim and press the Delete key.

  5. The Sim's icon should now have a crosshair on it. Click the crosshair to resurrect the Sim.

This trick will not work for all types of Sim deaths.

Death in The Sims 4

Sims may not age, but they can certainly die. Sometimes Sims die in an accident, and other times it may be the player who is responsible for the death. If you decide the death will be permanent, then the family will be affected. Sometimes the family is haunted for years to come by the dead family member's ghost.

If a Sim dies and you didn't want it to happen, exit the game without saving. The Sim will still be alive when you restart.

Cheating the Grim Reaper

The Living Large expansion pack adds the Grim Reaper as a non-playable character (NPC) that appears when a Sim dies. Family members can plead for the Sim's life by playing a game against the Grim Reaper. There is a fifty percent chance you'll win; however, if you lose, there is still a chance the Grim Reaper will decide against taking the Sim's life.

The Grim Reaper takes a bath in The Sims 4.
Maxis / The Sims Studio

Graves and Urns

When a Sim dies, a tombstone or urn will appear in place of their body. You can move the tombstone or urn to a more suitable place or even sell it for 5 simoleans. Neither tombstones nor urns can be bought, so once you sell it, you can't get it back.

The tombstone or urn becomes a mourning place for your Sims. When they pass it, they will stop and cry. Some Sims will take much longer to pay their respects, while others will only take a few minutes. Generally, the mourning will only last up to 48 hours.

Ghosts in The Sims 4

If you choose to keep the grave of the dead on your family's lot, there is a chance the family will be haunted by a ghost of the dead Sim. Ghosts are green and transparent, so you'll know a ghost when you see one.

Ghosts don't do very much; they just walk around trying to scare the living. Ghosts can even haunt Sims outside of their family. Unfortunately, there's no way to bring ghosts back to the realm of the living.