I just discovered a Sims 4 mod that re-enables features EA never should’ve removed, and I don’t think I’ll ever play without it again

The Sims 4 boasts a variety of quirky NPCs with fun socialization-related capabilities such as mobile invites, but EA has sadly scrapped some of the best – and now one mod aims to restore them.

A good few of my favorite moments while playing The Sims relate to silly interactions and relationships with NPCs, but it’s undeniably exhausting feeling as though my Sims always have to reach out first. Imagine a more dynamic world in which other Sims call on yours to invite them over for birthday parties, dates, promotion celebrations, and more. It would add an entirely new layer of realism that always should’ve been in-game, right? Well, it turns out that it was – and one creative modder has brought it back.

Thanks to modder “mitchsimmer,” players can download a quick fix that re-enables various removed invites from NPCs to Sims made via phone calls – and boy, is there a plethora of them. From base game invites to DLC-related requests, the mod makes it so that NPCs can ask your Sims to attend a circus, go out to the bar, head to the club for some spontaneous dancing, and even come over for sleepovers. It turns every Sims 4 activity into a more social experience that, for once, our own Sims won’t have to initiate.

Players without access to some of the mod’s included expansion packs don’t need to worry, either. You can freely pick and choose which invites you’d like to add back into your game, whether those be from the base free-to-play Sims 4 experience or from paid DLC like Get Together. I know that I’ll be snagging them all myself – and it looks like I’m not alone. Fans are singing the mod’s praises online, as one recent thread highlighting Simmers’ thoughts shows. 

“I don’t want to initiate EVERYTHING,” the poster writes. “All I need is the world around my household to feel more alive!” Responders share this sentiment, with many admitting they had forgotten all about updates removing mobile invites. “It has been SO LONG since I got some of these that I forgot they existed!” Another fan chimes in, “I love it when I don’t have to initiate everything and NPCs do things.” As a shameless Sims stan, I can’t help but agree – and I’ll probably never play without this mod again.

Looking for something new to play? Here are 10 games like The Sims 4 to check out.