By default, The Sims 4 has a fixed set of life stages, so adding brand-new age groups isn’t something the base game supports. To go beyond what EA provides, mods are required.
Get the Shorter Teen Preset by Niveasims
In The Sims 4, aging up from a child to a teen feels like a big jump. Teens suddenly look much closer to young adults, which can be jarring. If you want something more realistic, there’s a shorter teen preset by NiveaSims that helps bridge that gap.
Using it makes teen Sims look more like they’re around 14 to 16 years old instead of full-grown adults.
Use a Height Slider Mod
Using a height slider mod is an easy way to make teens feel more like teens without breaking the game. It helps close that awkward age gap visually, even if the animations stay the same.
There are plenty of height slider mods available for The Sims 4, so you can pick one that fits your style.
The Problem with Teens
Teens worked much better in The Sims 2. In The Sims 4, they basically look identical to adults, dress like adults, and can do almost everything adults can do. That’s why the age jump feels so awkward, since there’s very little visual or gameplay difference anymore.
It is nice that teens can use the same wardrobe as adults, since it gives them more clothing options. At the same time, real-life teen fashion is pretty different from adult fashion, so it can feel a bit off when teens in The Sims 4 dress exactly like grown-ups.
The Real Issue is Animation
The bigger issue when it comes to EA adding additional age groups to The Sims 4 is animations.
As soon as you add a different height for teens, every animation involving them would need to be redone. That includes animations between Sims and also interactions with objects.
That’s a huge amount of work, which is likely why teens in The Sims 4 ended up using the same body and animations as adults.
Happy Simming!