Zombie

A Zombie is a life state that Sims can be transformed into. This creature first became available in The Sims: Livin' Large. In The Sims 2, it appears in the University, FreeTime, and Apartment Life expansion packs. It returns, with some differences, in The Sims 3: Supernatural.

The Sims
In The Sims, if a Sim dies, a loved one can plead to the Grim Reaper and engage in a rock-paper-scissors game for the life of the Sim (Note that this option is not available for children). If the Sim loses, but the Grim Reaper is in a good mood, he'll bring back the deceased Sim as a zombie. Zombies retain all of their skill points, but lose all their personality points, as well as gaining a green tint to their skin. Other than that, zombies are like normal Sims in every way. Therefore, drinking the yellow potion from the chemistry set will give a zombie a "perfect" personality, with 10 in each trait. Children cannot become zombies.

If Unleashed is installed, Miss Lucille will restore a zombie back to their normal state for §200, but this will not restore the Sim's personality.

The Sims 2
Zombies are only available in The Sims 2: University, The Sims 2: FreeTime and The Sims 2: Apartment Life. In University, Zombies are made through use of the Paranormal career reward. Sims who died can be brought back through the use of the Resurrect-O-Nomitron. If a Sim bids between §998 and §4127 when using the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, a dead Sim will come back to life as a zombie. In Freetime, if a genie resurrect wish fails, the Sim will return as a zombie. In Apartment Life, one of the evil witch spells is to bring a dead Sim back as a zombie.

The Sim in question will return with a blue skin-tone and distorted facial features, a set personality (outgoing 4, active 3, playful 1) and lose most, or all, of their skill points. However, a zombie's personality can still be altered with the Sim Modder. The new zombie will have a lowered daily and lifetime relationship score towards the Sim who brought them back as a zombie.

Zombies cannot walk, skip, or run — they move with a zombie "shamble", though they can walk up and down stairs normally. Zombies are only able to age if they are teens. They can get scholarships and go away to college, where they will become young adults. When they return, they will become adults, then stop aging. Therefore, zombies do not die of old age. Babies, toddlers, and children cannot become zombies. Sims may show disgust when a zombie is in their presence, and zombies will occasionally think about brains, which is a reference to the common belief that they eat brains. While it is possible for Sims to enter into relationships with zombies, both male and female zombies are sterile. That being said, if a zombie is impregnated via testingcheatsenabled, their newborn child will be normal, possessing none of the zombie qualities. A zombie's hygiene level may decay more quickly than that of a regular Sim.

Once a Sim has become a zombie, they cannot be cured without the use of a hack such as the InSimenator or a program such as SimPE. Therefore, players should not turn a Sim into a zombie unless they are sure that is what they want to do.

Unlike how zombies are usually portrayed as, zombies cannot eat Sim flesh (or brains) or turn other Sims into zombies, though mods do exist which add such interactions. However, zombies can use the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, and can be witches. Therefore, they can bring deceased Sims back as zombies, just as living Sims can.

If University is installed, the zombie skin tone is available in CAS debug mode.

The Sims 3: Supernatural
Unlike The Sims 2, zombie in The Sims 3: Supernatural is a condition, not a full life state. Sims are able to transform into zombies by drinking a potion, and can be restored to their normal state by drinking another potion. A second way a Sim can change into the living dead is by getting bitten. Lastly, Sims who eat the quick meal, "Brain Freeze a la Mode", might have a chance to become a zombie a few minutes after finishing the meal. A witch can cast the Reanimation Ritual at a tombstone to bring a deceased Sim back as a zombie.

Features

 * Zombies can try to attack Sims
 * They tend to walk slower than normal Sims, like mummies
 * A Sim can become a zombie by drinking a potion or by having another zombie bite them
 * There is a cure to transform a zombie to a normal Sim
 * Players can also transform Sims to become permanent zombies
 * Playable sims cannot interact much with Zombies
 * Zombies cannot converse with other sims
 * Zombies cannot WooHoo
 * Zombies will try to destroy the garden
 * Zombies will not attempt to attack children, toddlers, or babies
 * Zombies dance if there is a radio playing nearby

Gameplay
Zombies are randomly spawned from the inactive Sims every full moon of the lunar cycle. Zombification appears as a moodlet called "Zombified" and will occur for 48 Sim-hours with a -30 drop to mood.

During this time, the Sim to Sim interaction options available to zombie will simply be labelled as "Arghhhh" or "Braiiins". Argh will perform an interaction that often leads to a drop in relationship points, while brains leads to an option that forces an attack which the target Sim will perceive as "Zombie Attack". The zombie will be successful if they lunge at the Sim, grab them in a hug, and bite them. The target will push the zombie off and cough repeatedly then fall into a dying animation in which they are sucked below the ground, and rise again as a zombie. It will fail when the target Sim begins to scream to the point where the zombie holds their head and ceases the attack.

Supernatural Sims are unable to become zombies, unless randomly spawned as such by the game on the full moon. They can be bitten, but will only cough like a normal Sim, and will not transform. They can still however become zombies through use of elixirs or the reanimation spell by witches.

Trivia

 * PopCap Games, which produced Plants vs. Zombies, is now a subsidiary of EA.
 * Zombies can also be seen in the cemetery in SimCity 4.
 * In The Sims 3 Pets Expansion, pets don't often like zombies at their homes and would growl at the them.