A dozen The Sims content creators will compete for some real-life motherlodes starting Friday night on TBS.
"The Sims Spark'd," a competition-based reality show featuring popular The Sims streamers and a $100,000 prize, begins its four-episode run at 11 p.m. ET, with big names in The Sims community teaming up to go after some serious Simoleons. The show, a collaboration between developer Maxis, game publisher Electronic Arts, broadcast partner ELEAGUE and streaming platform BuzzFeed Multiplayer, hopes the twist on the 20-year-old series will connect with newcomers to the games and passionate Sims players alike.
"We have been listening to our player community and hearing that they would like more competition in the game," Sheila Judkins, director of global brand marketing for EA said. "There's really no wrong way to play The Sims, and because of that, the combination of builds, styles and stories you can tell is endless.
"Challenge in the form of time pressure can often bring out the best in people. Many artists say they perform better under pressure, so we knew that asking players to team up and face creative challenges would not only highlight their creativity but be a way to see the fun and drama that happens when working in teams."
This was no quarantine project, either. The Sims Spark'd wrapped in December 2019 and was plotted as a multi-season pitch.
"... It was an idea of how do we make competitive and collaborative game show using this beloved game," said Kelsey Impicciche, a judge for the show and a popular Sims content creator. "I think that was what really hooked me into it in the beginning."
In the game, 12 participants will take on a variety of in-game tasks to impress a panel of judges including BuzzFeed's Impicciche, one of the best-known Sims personalities; Taylor Parx, a singer and songwriter who also did voice acting for The Sims and adapted one of her songs for the game; and Dave Miotke, a Maxis developer who has worked on the game for 15 years.
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The show is a departure from the norm for all parties, including Impicciche, who went from creator to a judge of some of her peers. In May, the YouTuber known most for her 100 Baby Challenge in The Sims crossed the 500,000 subscriber threshold on her personal channel, where she does variety content. BuzzFeed Multiplayer, where her 100 Baby Challenge lives, has upward of 10 million subscribers.
"There's so many Sims YouTubers, some of which are featured in the show, that have made up their own challenges and done them with friends as a collaboration and things like that, figured out ways to work with others using this one-player game," Impicciche said. "And I think that's really what is kind of the basis for something like this."
ELEAGUE, the esports and gaming arm of Turner, will bring The Sims Spark'd to TBS during that Friday slot and at 8 a.m. ET on Saturdays over the next month. The episodes will hit BuzzFeed Multiplayer on Mondays following the TV debut.
The framework of The Sims has been just about the same since the franchise released its first game in 2000, Impicciche said: Build a home, get a job, find success, make cool stuff. Individual and impressive departures from that mold have always been a part of the game, too, but The Sims has evolved from a "life simulation game" to the home of things such as the 100 Baby Challenge, which Impicciche has been working on since December 2018. There's no right way to play the game, which leads to everything from morbid kill-every-Sim playthroughs to recreating Harry Potter's Hogwarts.
"It's always been a game about telling stories with the characters that you get to create that are human-looking and have interpersonal relationships," Impicciche said. "I think what's really changed is the use of YouTube and the introduction of Sims to the online community. I think that's what really opened up that dialogue and made it more than a one-player game."
Knowing the potential of The Sims and seeing it in action, though, are two different things. Matt Mosteller, Vice President of Content at Turner Sports, was surprised by just how engaging the buildup to the execution of the show's stunts could be.
The world-building, storytelling and technical intricacies of creating a Sims story might be new to some viewers, but the artistry is similar to that of Lego Masters or The Great British Bakeoff.
"You just get thrown into this Sims world and these new worlds that they're building," Mosteller said. "They start from a completely blank slate and create these bespoke characters and communities, and you get drawn into those worlds that they're creating."
The players are split into four teams of three, with one competitor building the lot the Sims will live on, one creating and developing characters and one mastermind for the narrative in each challenge. The Sims 4 players will also be able to take part in the four-episode series by completing the tasks from the show in their own games, with players who complete the goals getting a shot at appearing in future seasons of The Sims Spark'd, according to a statement from EA.
More than 20 years after its initial release, The Sims has gone from a monument of individual creativity to a worldwide showcase of inventiveness with cash prizes. Like any reality show or competition show with staying power -- whether powerful, hilarious or outlandish -- is figuring out what will ultimately need to impress the fans, viewers and judges.
"That's what I do in The Sims," Impicciche said. "I think that's the thing that I love most about the Sims and the thing I love most about creating as a creator in general. And so I think that was what I focused the most on is to make sure like every opportunity -- especially in these challenges, they only have a certain amount of time. So really every piece of the story or every piece that they put into their challenge or their game really needs to count."
Narratives, tension, prizes and competitive play? Sounds a bit like an esport. But whether The Sims Spark'd gives off that vibe or not, executives believe it has staying power.
"I'll be honest: We've done a lot of programs for ELEAGUE over the years from competitive gaming to just more casual; we've done some reality shows in the past as well," Mosteller said. "I just think this one has the ability to really draw people in with the characters and the game itself and the world. ... All of these pieces being thrown together created a really engaging four hours of television that we're excited for everybody to watch."