How to make The Sims 2 more difficult using mods

If you’re like me and you find The Sims 2 a little too easy, there are several mods that alter gameplay and increase its difficulty. I’ve been playing The Sims 2 since 2006, and over time have found a LOT of mods that make my Sims’ lives harder. Below, you’ll find a list of my favourites, along with a description of each mod and how or where to find them.

Edited February 6th, 2025: Added More Realistic Pay and the YouTube video

Triplets and Quads

Yep, this mod does exactly what it says in the title. If you thought twins were hard enough to handle, TwoJeffs’ mod allows your pregnant Sim to birth triplets or quadruplets for triple or quadruple the stress. There are two versions, one that randomises the number of babies and one that allows you to select one, two, three, or four children, with the ability to set your own odds.

You can read more and grab the mod here.

More dangerous fires

If a fire breaks out in The Sims 2, chances are that the majority of your Sims will survive, even without a fire alarm. The More Dangerous Fire mod by Leefish makes them, well, more dangerous.

There are two versions of the mod, the More Dangerous Fire spreads faster and destroys faster than the basic version, and the Much More Dangerous Fire spreads and destroys twice as fast as the More Dangerous version.

You’ll have to select one. Personally, I use the More Dangerous Fire, which has resulted in the death of complete families – take a look at an example of one of these fires below (It killed two Sims) from my Twitch streams:

A screenshot from my Sims 2 game showing one of the many dangerous fires.

You can grab the mod here.

Death by Childbirth

Midgethetree’s Death By Childbirth mod gives Sims a 10% chance of dying in childbirth, which means having children becomes a lot more dangerous. The mod also increases the Sims’ chances of dying by 1% per day if they’re less than 14 days away from ageing into an Elder.

You can grab Midgethetree’s mod here.

Bigger Families

If you feel eight Sims aren’t enough to look after, consider adding Cyjon’s Bigger Families mod to your game, which allows an unlimited number of Sims on the lot.

Grab the Bigger Families mod here.

Bigger Bills

Cyjon’s Bigger Bills mod is an essential one for me. It makes bills larger and more frequent across all lots, including apartments, Greek houses, and dorms. Houses and apartments get bills six days a week, while Greek houses and dorms get them every day.

I recommend you grab Cyjon’s Loan Jar, which allows you to adjust the billing rate. Mine is currently set to Level 4, and my poorer Sims are continuously getting visits by the Repo Man, so be careful!

Grab Bigger Bills here and the Loan Jar here.

Edukashun Iz Gud

Another Cyjon mod, Edukashun Iz Gud limits the promotions Sims can get based on their education. College graduates can reach level 10, college dropouts are limited to level 7, and all other Sims are limited based on their high school grades.

Grab the mod here.

More realistic Pay

K-C’s More Realistic Pay halves the pay rate of all Maxis careers. I always thought Sims were paid far too much, and halving the rate makes it feel much more realistic. If you pair this with Cyjon’s Bigger Bills mod, your Sims’ financial freedom is completely diminished.

Grab the mod here.