Deeper Friendship
For over a decade, the friendship system in The Sims 4 has remained largely untouched. You meet a Sim, chat for a few hours, and suddenly they are your best friend forever. The emotional weight of a falling out, the slow burn of a new acquaintance, and the nuance of a complicated relationship have all been flattened into a simple bar. The Deeper Friendship mod changes all of that by introducing five new friendship tiers, reworking how relationship rewards are handled, and offering an optional progression system that makes every bond feel earned.
An Overhauled Friendship Track
The core of this mod is a complete reimagining of the friendship tier system. Instead of the usual few broad categories, Deeper Friendship for The Sims 4 slots five new tiers seamlessly between EA's existing ones. Some of the original tiers have also received fresh, Maxis-match icons to keep the UI feeling cohesive. The new tiers are:
- Hated - The absolute bottom of the barrel, reserved for Sims who actively despise each other.
- Indifferent - A neutral state where Sims simply don't care about one another.
- Friendly - A step above acquaintances, where polite conversation is possible.
- Casual Friends - The first real layer of friendship, where hanging out becomes common.
- Close Friends - A deeper bond, just below the existing "Good Friends" tier.
These additions mean that the journey from stranger to best friend is no longer a sprint. It is a gradual climb through distinct, meaningful stages.
General Behavioral Changes
With the new tiers come new autonomous behaviors. It is now considered appropriate for Close Friends to grab a snack or take a bath on the active lot. Best Friends, meanwhile, can do all that plus sleep and clean. This makes visiting a friend's house feel much more natural. Additionally, a friendship is only considered "lost" once Sims fall below the Casual Friends tier (20 points), not just when they dip out of the old "Friends" tier. This gives players more breathing room to repair a relationship before it is truly over.
If you have the Growing Together expansion installed, Sims will also begin friendships at slightly different starting points depending on their compatibility. Child Sims now lose confidence when they lose friends, adding a new layer of emotional depth to younger characters.
Friendship Bit Loot Overhaul
In the base game, rewards are tied to reaching or dropping into a tier, regardless of whether the relationship is improving or declining. For example, dropping from Good Friends to Friends still grants the same positive loot, like a confidence gain, as if you had just become Friends for the first time. This mod fixes that illogical system with three separate loot lists:
- First Time Loots: Triggered when you reach a tier with a Sim for the very first time.
- Trending Up Loots: Triggered when the relationship improves and climbs into a higher tier.
- Trending Down Loots: Triggered when the relationship worsens and falls into a lower tier.
This makes the system more logical and emotionally consistent. Your Sims won't be rewarded for a failing friendship anymore. Instead, rewards and penalties now reflect the direction of the relationship, not just the label.
Optional Add-On: Long Term Building
For players who want an even more realistic experience, the Long Term Building add-on slows down how quickly friendships can deepen. When a Sim first reaches one of four milestones (Friendly, Friends, Good Friends, or Close Friends), they must wait a few in-game hours before the friendship can progress through normal methods. This prevents the "instant best friend" phenomenon and makes relationships feel more gradual.
Cooldown Details
The cooldown shortens as Sims improve their Charisma skill (or Social skill for children):
- Skill 2 or lower: 12 in-game hours
- Skill 3-4: 9.5 in-game hours
- Skill 5-6: 7 in-game hours
- Skill 7-8: 4.5 in-game hours
- Skill 9 or higher: 2 in-game hours
There are several special cases to be aware of. Sims that live in the same household and Sims younger than Child age are exempt from the cooldown. Sims adventuring in Batuu are also exempt. Furthermore, Sims can always rebuild relationships up to their highest previously reached milestone. For instance, if a Sim falls from Good Friends to Disliked with another Sim, they can climb back up without waiting at each step. A small "Milestone Recently Reached" lock appears in the relationship panel during an active cooldown. Once it disappears, the friendship can grow again. Sims participating in a Friendship Challenge are also exempt.
It is important to note that cooldowns only affect friendship gains. Sims can still lose friendship progress naturally, because it is always easier to burn a bridge than it is to build one. This add-on does not impact romantic gains.
Compatibility and Installation
This mod is compatible with MC Command Center's "Friendship Difficulty Adjustment" and "Friendship Decay Rate" settings. However, it will conflict with any mods that override the following tuning files: LTR_Friendship_Main.StatisticTuning, LTR_Romance_Main.StatisticTuning, friendship-disliked.RelationshipBitTuning, friendship-good_friends.RelationshipBitTuning, friendship-friend.RelationshipBitTuning, friendship-despised.RelationshipBitTuning, friendship-bff.RelationshipBitTuning, friendship-acquaintances.RelationshipBitTuning, loot_NoLongerFriends.ActionTuning, Loot_HasBeenFriends.ActionTuning, and simPicker_FriendshipBracelet_AskToExchange.
For those who want a hassle-free experience, the foxygame.net launcher offers a one-click install for Deeper Friendship, automatically handling version compatibility checks so you can jump straight into your game without manual file management. The launcher also keeps the mod up to date with the latest patches, ensuring that your friendship overhaul never breaks. If you prefer manual installation, simply download the mod files and place them in your Mods folder.
To download Deeper Friendship, ensure you have the Lot 51 Core Library installed, as it is a required dependency. The mod supports the base game and is fully compatible with the latest The Sims 4 versions, including the Growing Together expansion. For detailed instructions on how to install, check the mod's documentation, which walks you through every step.
This mod breathes new life into a core mechanic that has felt stale for years. Whether you are a storyteller looking for more dramatic arcs or a simmer who wants a challenge, Deeper Friendship for The Sims 4 delivers a richer, more rewarding social experience. The added cooldowns make every milestone feel like an achievement, and the revamped loot system ensures that your Sims' emotional states are always taken seriously.
In conclusion, if you have ever felt that friendships in The Sims 4 were too shallow or too easy, this mod is for you. It adds depth, logic, and a sense of progression that the base game has been missing. Download it today and watch your Sims' relationships evolve into something truly meaningful.