Ever since I lost my job due to COVID-19 several months ago, I've been looking for ways to pass the time while stuck in quarantine. I downloaded titles like Rollercoaster Tycoon Classic, a childhood favorite of mine, as well as SimCity 4, another game played during my younger and more vulnerable years. Playing SimCity made me miss The Sims, the iconic life simulation game known to anyone who owns a computer and an idea of popular gaming culture. I played every Sims installment up until The Sims 3, losing interest in it as it began to move away from it's roots. I searched hungrily for the original game, The Sims 1, but found out that it was no longer supported on the current Mac OS.

Dejected, I abandoned my dreams of playing the game that meant so much to me in my youth. However, one lucky day, I was pursuing the App Store on my Mac for games to play until something caught my eye: The Sims 2 Super Collection. Without a thought, I immediately brought it and installed the game, enthralled that I was able to find the installment of the game that I played the most. Upon launching the program, I was instantly drawn back into my childhood, remembering all the fun I used to have while getting lost in the stories of my Sims. It dawned on me that this game was important to me for a reason: it allowed me to create the world that I wanted to live in, a place where I didn't feel lonely.

Okay, I know that sounds extremely sad and kinda pathetic, but you didn't know what it was like to be me. Growing up as a young, gay boy wasn't easy, especially when you were a bit feminine and preferred the company of girls rather than boys. I was constantly harassed by my peers and made to feel unworthy of having people I could point to as friends. The Sims gave me the ability to make friends and people who I would want in my life.

The Sims also gave me the ability to be creative, to make up stories for my Sims, and build the houses of my dreams. I would spend hours upon hours in this virtual world, getting the chance to live a life different from my own for a little while.

During this time of social distancing, this has been more important than ever. Being able to be in a world where nothing bad can happen (that is, if you chose not to murder your Sims via fire, drowning, or starvation) is doing wonders for my mental heath. I find myself having a far more positive outlook on life in the Sims realm rather than the real world, which seems to be deteriorating into a world of violence, racism, and ignorance. If you want to relive your childhood, and be creative or maybe even a little devious, I highly recommend downloading The Sims.

Except The Sims 4, that game is terrible.