Non-playable character

NPCs are Non Playable Characters. They are in every Sim game: The Sims, The Sims 2 and The Sims 3. There are two main types of NPC; ones that through relationships and simple cheats will be able to be playable characters without any programming errors and ones that were specifically not meant to be played.

The Sims
There are several NPCs who appear in the game other than those which can be hired to provide services. In The Sims, most NPCs either can't be interacted with at all, or only have a few interactions that are related to their function. (While townies are considered to be a class of NPC, they are outside the scope of this article.)

Most NPCs are listed below:


 * Nancy the Paper Girl: The most commonly seen NPC in the game. She appears at 9 am every morning to deliver the newspaper. If a family has a dog, the dog may scare away the paper girl, but she will deliver the paper first.


 * Postal Woman: She appears every 3 days to deliver the bills, which she places in the mailbox.


 * Repo-man: If a family doesn't have enough money to pay their bills, the repo man will show up and use his repossessing gun to absorb some of the objects in their house to cover the bills.


 * Social Worker: If the player doesn't see that babies are taken care of, the social worker will appear to take them away.


 * Burglar: Whenever every Sim on the lot is asleep, the burglar may sneak in and steal their possessions. Players can either have a Sim call the police, or buy an alarm. With the alarm installed, the police will arrive instantly. If the police are called over the the phone, it may take too long for them to arrive, and the burglar may escape.


 * Entertainer: The Entertainer is introduced in House Party. If you buy the large cake under Miscellaneous and click on the command, 'Buy Male/Female Entertainer', the entertainer will emerge from within and start entertaining the guests. Be careful, though, because the entertainer might stir some jealousy from other people at the party.


 * Mime: Introduced in House Party, the Mime will show up at a party if it is going very badly. While he will try to raise the mood a bit, he isn't very good at it. The Mime has been known to steal objects around the house. He will leave only when the party gets better.


 * Party Crasher: Also introduced in House Party, party crashers will arrive during mediocre to fairly good parties, and have been known to destroy objects, though they do not always do so.


 * Drew Carey A real life celebrity who shows up as a reward for a great party.


 * Santa Claus: If you have a Christmas tree up, and you place a plate of cookies on a table near the fireplace just before midnight, Santa Claus will show up while your Sims are sleeping. He'll leave a "gift" for each of Sim in the family, plus an extra special present, which could be any item.


 * Obsessed fan: Introduced in Superstar, your Sims can attract unwanted attention if they achieve 3 stars of fame or more. The obsessed fans will stalk your Sims wherever they go, at home or at work. They leave 'special presents' for your Sims - black roses. They also paw through your dustbins.


 * Grim Reaper: Introduced in Livin' Large. Grim shows up whenever a Sim dies. What happens next depends on his mood. If Death is in a bad mood, he will take the corpse with no way to prevent it; if Death is in a good mood, the player can direct another Sim to challenge Grim. If he accepts, he will play rock, paper, scissors with that Sim, or will put a die under three cups and mix them up. The Sim will have to try to pick the cup which holds the die. If the Sim wins the game, or picks the right cup, the deceased is brought back to life for a second chance, but if the Sim loses/picks the wrong cup, Death will either take the corpse or, be nice and create a zombie.


 * Animal Control Evan: Introduced in Unleashed, he is the neighborhood's animal control officer. When Animal Control is called, he will come to remove El Bandito or Henri LeStanc. He cannot be called unless one of the two is on the lot.


 * Marilyn Monroe, Christina Aguilera and Avril Lavigne are introduced in Superstar. They will appear at random on lots in Studio Town.

The Sims 2
The Sims 2 NPCs are much more colorful. For starters, basic NPCs can be interacted with (talked to, befriended, married etc.) and each has a different face, hair color and name. They can be male or females and they make more logical decisions, mostly. When an NPC becomes playable, a new NPC will be generated to take the old NPC's place.

Playable NPCs
These NPCs can become playable through many different ways. For a full list of ways to make them playable see Turning a Townie into a Playable Sim.

Service NPCs

The Maid, Repairman, Exterminator, Gardener, Bartender and Nanny are all service NPCs.

Emergency NPCs

The Police also appears to crash parties if it's late at night.
 * The Police: When a burglar appears on your lot and you have an alarm installed in your house or car, they will arrive instantly and fight the burglar, but if you don't have an alarm you can always call them. However, if you call the police when there's no burglar, they will fine you §500. If Nightlife is installed, the police officer will be furious with your Sim.
 * The Fire Department: If you have Sims with a low Cooking Skill attempt to cook anything involving an oven or a microwave, sometimes a fire will result. A fire can also be started by lighting a fireplace with dangerous objects nearby. The fire alarm should alert the fire department whenever there is a fire, but if you don't have one, it is best to phone them up quickly. If you prank call them when there is no fire, you will get a §500 fine.

Other NPCs
 * The Burglar: A burglar appears at night when your Sims are sleeping. Burglars are Townies that you can meet and even befriend (they still wear their crime outfit), but that won't stop them from robbing you.
 * Paper Deliverer: Appears at 7 am every morning to deliver the papers. Can either be male or female, but is always a teen. If Sims can tip service NPCs, they will also be able to tip the paper deliverer. If Freetime is installed, also delivers hobby magazines once a week, along with the newspaper.
 * Mail Carrier: Delivers bills, and comes to pick them up after they have been paid. May also deliver other mail.

University NPCs
 * Professors: Professors come from the University expansion pack. You meet them at class and when you befriend them, your Class Performance goes up. It's possible to get into a love relationship with professors.
 * University mascots: There is the evil mascot (the cow) and good mascot (the llama). The cow has few, if any, body points, while the llama mascot has the body skill maxed out. If both of these mascots appear on the lot, they will more than likely get into a fight.
 * Cheerleaders: Cheerleaders are almost always women, and they come onto a lot on campus (whether dorm or private residence) at random times during the day. However, a locked door can keep them out. Like the llama mascot, cheerleaders have maxed Body skill, and may get into fights with the evil mascot.
 * The Coach: The Coach is almost always a man, though rarely the coach will be a woman. The Coach will yell at a Sim to stop whatever he or she is doing and work out, but that Sim may not do so right away, in which case you can cancel the Work Out action before he or she starts working out. While the Coach can be very irritating, a locked door can keep him or her out, and if you can have his or her target ignore or avoid him or her long enough, he or she will give up and leave.

Nightlife NPCs
 * Gypsy Matchmaker: This old lady will show up whenever you call her. Sims can buy a love potion or a cure for vampires from her. She can also be given money to pick a random Sim to start a date with. The more you pay her, the more chemistry (lightning bolts) the random Sim will have with your Sim.
 * Grand Vampires: Grand Vampires lurk around Downtown at night. If you are drawn to the vampire life, you can have a Sim befriend a vampire. If the Sim and vampire have a high enough relationship, the vampire can bite the Sims. That vampire might start a biting rampage next.

FreeTime NPCs
 * Hobby Instructors: Instructors will contact your Sim when they increase their enthusiasm in a certain hobby. They can be found on the secret lots and instruct Sims in their hobby.

Non-playable NPCs
These NPCs cannot become playable without the use of mods, cheats, and/or expansion packs. They are usually recognized as objects in the game code.


 * The Grim Reaper: Stereotypical death. Scythe, cloak, mobile phone, clipboard, etc. When the death is not from old age or drowning, other Sims can plead for a loved one's life. He can also be contacted through a special phone to bring a loved one back, usually as a zombie unless offered more than 5000 simoleons. This can only be activated in University.
 * Hula Zombie: Appears when a Sim dies of Old Age.
 * Mrs. Crumplebottom: Introduced in Nightlife. She is Downtown's favorite old prude. She hits you with her handbag if you kiss/flirt in front of her. She will also lecture Sims if they go onto a Downtown community lot in their underwear/swimsuit.
 * Social Worker: If Sims neglect their children, whether intentionally or not, the Social Worker will take them away.
 * Social Bunny: If a Sim's Social bar becomes low enough, then the Social Bunny will appear. The Sim can socialize with the Social Bunny until the Social bar is halfway full. There are three versions of the Social Bunny, each one with a different colored suit. He can only be seen by the Sim being treated.
 * Skunk: Introduced in Pets. It is a skunk and can "spray" a Sim or pet and make them smell. This usually happens if Sims or pets try to pet them or chase them off. They are black and white cat-sized creatures with a tendency to hang around lots with flowers. Sometimes, they just appear randomly.
 * Pack leader: Introduced in Pets. It is a black wolf with glowing yellow eyes. Teens and older who have a high enough relationship with the pack leader may be bitten and turned into werewolves.
 * Repo-man: If the player allows a household's bills to go unpaid for too long, the Repo Man will come and take some of their items to compensate.
 * Carpool Driver: Carpool Drivers, as the name implies, drive the carpools that take Sims to and from work. Under normal conditions, they should not be seen outside of carpool vehicles, though they can be seen through the windows of those vehicles.
 * Unsavory Charlatan: If Sims encounter him on a community lot, he may try to steal their wallet.
 * Penguin: Introduced in Seasons. Usually appears during Winter season for Sims to pet. They are attracted to fish and will chat with a scarecrow or snowman.
 * Therapist : Also known as Sim Shrink. He appears when a playable Sim's aspiration level is very low. He can only be seen by the Sim being treated, so other Sims in the area will think the Sim is crazy. The therapist will raise the Sim's aspiration level a tad, and will disappear.
 * Mr. Humble: Introduced in Freetime, he will drop by newly-occupied houses and leave a computer with The Sims 3 game on it.
 * Pollination Technician: When a Sim gets abducted by aliens, the Pollination Technician appears on the family tree as the father of the new alien child. They are not a real Sim, instead they just a set of genetics.
 * Ideal plantsim: Introduced in Seasons. When a PlantSim Spawns a Sporebaby, half of the Sporebaby's genetics come from the Ideal plantsim. They are not a real Sim, instead they just a set of genetics.

Playable NPCs
These NPCs can become playable through many different ways. For a full list of ways to make them playable see Turning a Townie into a Playable Sim.

Service NPCs

The Maid, Repairman, and Babysitter are all service NPCs. Also, a Magician was going to be an NPC, but EA canceled it because of glitches when you had a child with her. In very few cases she will appear.

Emergency NPCs
 * The Police: When a burglar appears on your lot and you have an alarm installed, they will arrive soon after and fight the burglar, but if you don't have an alarm you can always call them. However, if you call the police when there's no burglar, they will fine you §500.
 * The Fire Department: If you have Sims with a low Cooking Skill attempt to cook anything involving an oven or a microwave, sometimes a fire will result. A fire can also be started by litting a fireplace with flammable objects nearby, or a birthday cake can spontaneously combust. The fire alarm should alert the fire department whenever there is a fire, but if you don't have one, it is best to phone them up quickly. If you prank call them when there is no fire, you will get a §500 fine.

Other NPCs
 * Carpool/Taxi Driver: Typically either a bald man with facial hair in a suit, or a woman with messy hair and a blue jacket, that drives the carpool and/or taxi
 * The Burglar: A burglar appears at night when your Sims are sleeping or out on the town. Befriending burglars does not stop them burgling you. Burglars will be in the Criminal career track, your sims can also become burglars. The most common burgular in Sunset Valley is Robbie Bland
 * Paper Deliverer: Appears every morning to deliver the papers. Can either be male or female, but is always a child. Also delivers a random book, on Mondays along with the newspaper if a member of the household is a member of the book club.
 * Science Geek
 * Mummy
 * Consignment Specialist: A random Sim (sometimes an NPC or a Townie) in The Sims 3: Ambitions who works at the Consignment store. Since the consignment specialist is a randomly picked Sim, even sims in the neighborhood could work there. If the Consignment Specialist is moved in via Edit Town, he/she loses the job.
 * Mailmen/women: They are the people that deliver the bills in the mail. They are not random sims, they are always premade sims. They also deliver mail.