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Over the years, PC players and later PlayStation players have been building and designing houses and families and just having the time of their lives playing The Sims.
The customization elements and all the extensive content can keep a player entertained for hours.
Recommended Read: 11 Best Nintendo Switch Games Everyone Should Try!
But what of those who want the same experience on their Nintendo Switch?
There aren’t many games exactly like The Sims on the Nintendo Switch, but there are many that feature the same familiar elements.
In this guide, we’ve gathered the best Nintendo Switch games like The Sims!
Table of contents
- Cities: Skylines
- Littlewood
- Two Point Hospital
- Graveyard Keeper
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Dragon Quest Builders 2
- Two Point Campus
Cities: Skylines
Now available on all platforms, including the Nintendo Switch, this game is much more in the vein of Sim City than The Sims base games, but this game is sure to remind you of the building and management aspect of The Sims.
Cities: Skylines is a city simulator that allows you to build your own town from the ground up, where it can become a larger city.
You can build residential, industrial, and commercial areas all while keeping track of the resources and funds you have available to continue expanding your city and keeping it running smoothly.
The Switch version comes with two DLC packs, After Dark and Snowfall, already built into the game.
One thing that makes this version different from the others on PS4, PC, and Xbox One is that it gives the option for a tutorial.
This game is perfect for new players to the genre as well as those looking for a Sims-like experience in a hand-held format.
Littlewood
Littlewood is a life/farming simulator game where you are the hero of Solemn, who has defeated the Dark Wizard.
The only problem is, you don’t remember anything from the battle or before.
In this game, you can move at whatever pace you like as you interact with the NPCs in the world and rebuild the town you live in.
Sims lovers will adore the building aspects of this game, as well as the other incentives that come along with it while learning about the world of the game.
There is a day and night cycle that follows the depletion of your energy as you complete your daily tasks.
Once your energy is low, the game will grow darker, and the music becomes slow and soft, letting you know that you must head back to your bed before you pass out.
This game is relaxing and lets you go at your own pace without any push to move the game forward, but it also gives you reasons to be motivated to keep the town in good shape for appraisal.
Two Point Hospital
Coming from the success of Theme Hospital on PC, Switch owners can have their own experience of this acclaimed game.
In this game, the goal is to build a series of successful hospitals that can treat people for any kind of ailment, from the traditional to the fantastical.
To begin with, you’ll build a reception desk, then a pharmacy, and then keep expanding your hospital to help treat your patients and diagnose their ailments.
In maintaining your hospitals, you will be given a star rating (the maximum being three stars) that will earn you money to keep your hospital running and give you an incentive to keep improving on your current systems to make sure they’re working efficiently.
The game offers a top-down view of your hospital and its workers and patients.
Though this game is only about building and maintaining hospitals, it’s surprisingly like The Sims in many aspects.
Fans of the Sims will love the recognizable elements in this game that give Two Point Hospital its charm.
Graveyard Keeper
Ever wanted to maintain your own cemetery in a medieval setting? Well, now you can with Grave Keeper.
Your character has been hit by a car and is transported to a strange world where you must become a grave keeper.
The goal is to open a portal to bring your character back to his own world.
The cemetery has become a mess due to the actions of your predecessor. Clean up the cemetery, explore the dungeons, and bury the bodies that come in from town.
You are free to customize your thriving business of death in your own way while keeping it efficient and running smoothly.
Graveyard Keeper also features RPG elements where you can upgrade your skills to help your character learn to make and harvest more things.
There is some combat in this game, like Stardew Valley and Dragon Quest Builders 2, but it’s more in the effort to find resources and materials from creatures to contribute to crafting and beautifying the graveyard.
This is another slow-paced game that allows you to take your time without a rush to finish tasks by certain times.
The only timer element is the time to go to bed and to prevent you from leaving a corpse out in the sun too long before burying it.
This game comes with a bit of a learning curve, but if you’re of the lot that knows The Sims and Stardew Valley well enough, you will feel right at home.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the newest hand-held iteration of the Animal Crossing franchise.
Released after Animal Crossing: New Leaf on the Nintendo 3DS, this game follows in its footsteps, with many of the same features.
You have begun your island life on a deserted island you now call home, along with the Nook clan and Isabelle, of course.
Build your house, pay your debts, and customize your island with everything the game has to offer.
You can terraform the land to your will, add bridges and ramps to every level of your island and add any little knick-knacks that help you personalize your island to your desires.
With a day and night cycle that keeps to the time of your Nintendo Switch, you can celebrate your favorite holidays with your villagers. Enjoy holiday-specific items during those occasions and make some great memories with your friends with online play.
The quirky personalities and charm of the villagers make wandering your island a joy when you find one to talk to and bring a bright attitude to your day.
This franchise is known for its cute villager characters as well as the elements that allow you to design your house to the style that best suits you.
There are also festivals like the Bug-off and the Fishing tourney to keep you on your toes and bring you items to sell or keep to help you improve your island and the museum.
If you want to get away, you can use the airline Dodo Airlines to travel to other islands and find new and rare bugs, fish, and other materials you might not be able to find on your own island. You might even meet a new villager to bring to your island while on your travels.
This game is frequently updated, so there will always be something new to explore on your island.
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Dragon Quest Builders 2 allows you to wander and fight your way through the world of Dragon Quest while featuring elements similar to Minecraft in its building mechanics.
Though this game isn’t as similar to The Sims as the others on this list, the building and management aspects will still appeal to Sims fans.
Gather, craft, and fight to obtain resources to build the town of your dreams. Help a community of villagers rebuild their towns after they have been ravaged by previous battles.
The story of the game is a continuation of the plot from Dragon Quest 2, where the world has been afraid of building due to the dangers that linger.
You, as the player, along with other characters, must help them realize how useful building can be in helping their communities go back to their former glory.
You can also play cooperatively with the Nintendo Switch’s online play so your friends can get in on the action.
If you love the Sims but also appreciate a little more story elements along with community and structure building, you will love this iteration of the Dragon Quest Builders series.
Two Point Campus
Two Point Campus is another addition to the Two Point franchise. If you enjoyed Two Point Hospital but want a little more, here is the game for you.
Two Point Campus is a population management simulator where you build and maintain your very own university.
All with your own programs that can range from normal university courses to how to become a medieval knight, among others.
You can build places outdoors for your students to help them attain their best grades, hire great teachers, make a thriving social life, and set up recreational activities so they can have their best university experience.
The big draw to this game for Two Points and Sims players alike is the opportunity to have a more extensive field to build on for students to go to school in.
You are sure to love this one for all its elements similar to the Sims and other population simulator games like it.
Those are our picks for the best Nintendo Switch games like The Sims.
Know of any other great games like Sims for the Switch? Let us know in the comment section below.
