Imaginary Friend

An Imaginary Friend is a creature introduced in The Sims: Makin' Magic. They are reintroduced as a life state in The Sims 3: Generations.

The Sims: Makin' Magic
In The Sims: Makin' Magic, there is a children's charm called "Invisible Friend" that creates an imaginary friend, although that name is not used. Invisible Friends in this game look just like normal female child Sims. They follow the Sim that created them wherever they go, except for school. When their creator is at school or is asleep, they will wander around the lot, but have no needs. The child Sim who created the Invisible Friend can dismiss it, and the Invisible friend will eventually disappear.

To make the Invisible Friend charm, the child needs to get 1 Toadstools &amp; 2 Faerie Dust. Like all children's charms, it has six uses. The invisible friend may act badly towards the child Sim if he or she is in a bad mood when casting, or if his or her Social bar is full at the time of casting. If this happens, the child may not be able to dismiss the invisible friend, and would have to wait for the spell to run down. It is possible to have multiple invisible friends, but they all look the same.

The Sims 3: Generations
Imaginary Friends is a feature included in The Sims 3: Generations. The Imaginary Friend is a character that starts out as a doll that a new born or a toddler receives in the mail from a relative. With a lot of love the Imaginary Friend can come to life after the Sim that received it grows into a child.

Simology
When in doll form, the doll can be seen moving around the house and changing poses just like a magical gnome. It is shown to be able to teleport as when a baby has a birthday, it would teleport to the area where he/she is celebrating his/her birthday as if it is part of the family. Only the Sim that made an Imaginary Friend can see it. For example, if the Sim who made the Imaginary Friend hugs it, and another Sim sees this interaction, that Sim will think the kid is hugging the air. Interactions with an Imaginary Friend can only be done on the active family's lot. Once the kid leaves the property, goes to sleep or says that the Imaginary Friend must leave him alone, the friend becomes a doll again. Imaginary Friends can often be seen eating Spaceship cookies, Rainbow cookies, donuts, or cupcakes.

Imaginary friends come in a variety of patterns, with either spots, stars, or stripes. There are twelve possible patterns in total. Imaginary friends can act as private helpers, cleaning and fetching for their creator Sim.

Playing with the Imaginary Friend fills up the social motive in the same way as socializing with real people would. Even as children grow into teenagers and young adults, they can keep their Imaginary Friends around, and can even develop a romantic interest in their make-believe buddies once they are turned into a "real sim."

When turned into a real Sim, they will wear unusual clothing that resembles their original appearance. Although they have become "real" Sims, they can switch back to their doll mode at will. Sims cannot WooHoo with Imaginary Friends unless they have been transformed into real Sims and are not in their doll mode. Other Sims can see them in their doll mode if the Imaginary Friend has drunk the potion that allows them to turn into "real Sims." When using a Ghost Potion, an Imaginary Friend ghost will be white, with a purple glow on the ball of their head.

Imaginary Friends cannot have their own Imaginary Friends, nor can they even see other Imaginary Friends. However the children of Imaginary Friends can have Imaginary Friends. They can also teleport to different locations in rare occasions, or if they get trapped. Also, an Imaginary Friend cannot be turned into a vampire even if they have been turned into a "real Sim.". Although, it is possible for a vampire and an Imaginary Friend to have a vampire/Imaginary Friend hybrid baby as seen in the gallery below.

Once the Imaginary Friend is turned into a real Sim, they will have to go to school just like a normal child or teen. In addition, the Imaginary Friend that was turned into a real Sim will get new experience moodlets, such as the first time they slept in a bed or when they ate food for the first time.

If a Sim has children with the imaginary friend, there is a chance that the child will be partly imaginary friend as well. When a child of an imaginary friend grows up to the child life stage, and, if they inherited the trait, they can turn into the doll form just like their imaginary friend father or mother.

If the Sims move while the imaginary friend's owner is not at home, the doll will be lost and they can't have it back.

Methods of Obtaining an Imaginary Friend
There are two primary ways to obtaining an imaginary friend. One is to move a family with a toddler into a neighborhood. There is a chance when starting playing a new family that the toddler(s) will have a doll in their inventory. The second method is to have a baby in-game. There is a 75% chance that, when a new baby is born, a mysterious relative will send the Imaginary Friend Doll in the mail. The doll will immediately appear in the baby's inventory when an adult goes to the mailbox.

When naming the doll, players can set which gender it is by choosing whether its name is a boy's name or a girl's name. If a toddler Sim plays with the doll frequently, it will grow into a child-sized playmate who will happily hop onto the opposite end of a seesaw. An Imaginary Friend may even run minor errands for the child if they have a decent enough social relationship with it.

If you do not want your child to have an imaginary friend, but receive the doll anyway, simply refrain from playing with the doll as a toddler. You cannot sell the Imaginary Friend Doll in build or buy mode, but you can still give it away as a present to another child. If you bury the doll, it will eventually come back in its friend form. It is not possible to detonate the doll with the Ambitions Expansion Pack. In addition, unused dolls tend to behave in a way similar to magic gnomes. You can also put the doll in the inventory of another family member.

Imaginary Friends in Public
If the child has played with the Imaginary Friend a lot as a toddler, the Imaginary Friend will grow up and act like a real Sim. Other Sims cannot see the Imaginary Friend. If they chat, it will look like the child chatting to him/herself in other Sims' view, similar to Social Bunny. If the Imaginary Friend is holding something, (such as playing a video with the controller) the item will look like floating. However, if a Sim has an Imaginary Friend, he/she is able to see other Sims' Imaginary Friends.

Turning an Imaginary Friend Into Real Sim
If the Sim is good with the Chemistry Set (need min 8 point on logic skill), they can create the Imaginary Friend Metamorphium potion that will turn their Imaginary Friend into a real Sim. This can also be accomplished through an in-game opportunity if the Sim's relationship with their Imaginary Friend is sufficiently high. The Science Facility will offer to create a potion which can, though not specifically worded, turn their imaginary friend "real." The Sim must find a Rainbow Gem and deliver this to the science facility, then the Sim can buy the Imaginary Friend Metamorphium potion for §4500 from science facility after that. The option to 'Offer to Make Real' will no longer be grayed out.