Genie

The Genie is an NPC that Sims can summon by cleaning an Antique Lamp or rubbing the Dusty Old Lamp. The Genie will grant wishes which can have good or bad consequences. Genie is generally considered to be a new life state in Living Large and FreeTime, although it is a special case, as a Sim cannot become a Genie, and the Genie cannot become a playable Sim.

The Sims
The Genie will give a Sim two choices for a wish, and these wishes can have good or bad consequences. Once the lamp has been cleaned, it cannot be cleaned again for the rest of the day, but it can be cleaned once a day for as long as it is on the lot. However, the player can sell a lamp after a wish has been made (but not for full price) and buy a new one with another wish, with no waiting and no limit. This sounds much better than it is, as in The Sims, the genie is not particularly adept, and wishes almost always go wrong. Also, the wishes that could be chosen sometimes had names like "Air" and "Fire", so players often did not know just what they were wishing for in the first place.

Wishes
In The Sims Bustin' Out and The Urbz: Sims in the City, he appears in the GBA and DS games when the player dies and resurrects the player. He looks like the genie from Livin' Large.

The Sims 2
The Genie reappeared in The Sims 2: Freetime and is found in the Dusty Old Lamp. He has violet skin and wears a waistcoat. His full name in The Sims 2 is Genie Midlock.

He can be summoned by any teen or older Sim in the household, regardless of who received the memory of having found the lamp, and regardless of who summoned him first. Any teen or older Sim in the household can make a wish, even if a different Sim rubbed the lamp to summon him. However, he grants three wishes to the object -- not per Sim.

Until three wishes have been made, he can be sent back into the lamp by selecting the Dismiss option, or he will go back on his own if he is not interacted with for a while. After all three wishes are made, he will return to the lamp and disappear, stating that this is required by Genie Law. The Genie can grant wishes for money, or even to resurrect dead Sims.

To be awarded the Genie, one or more Sims in the household must have enthusiasm in a hobby and high Lifetime Aspiration, which will summon the Gypsy Matchmaker to deliver the lamp. However, the chance of getting the lamp is small. There is a 2% chance (per day) the matchmaker will bring the lamp for each Sim with a 7 or higher in their Lifetime Aspiration (so if two Sims had that score, the chance would be 4%). The chance will be even higher for Sims who live in a dorm or apartment, because there are multiple Sims living in the same lot. The Gypsy Matchmaker may eventually deliver the lamp even if it is meant to belong to a Sim's dormmates, roommate, neighbor in the same apartment, or even a visiting Sim!

Before the lamp is rubbed to summon the Genie, it can be sold for money, even though a successful wish for wealth will grant more money than selling it. After the Genie has been summoned once, the lamp can no longer be sold.

In Desiderata Valley's Aspir household, there is already a Genie Lamp in the house.

Wishes
After summoning the Genie, there are six options to wish for:

 Give Me Wealth  Give Me Beauty  Resurrect  Give Me A Long Life  Give Me Power To Cheat Death  Give Me Peace of Mind  Give Me Youth (Hidden from play)  
 * Success: Over time, money bags with a total value of §23,000 will fall from the sky. The order of the bags' value is §10,000; §7,000; §5,000; and §1,000. However, the household has a higher chance of getting a burglar over the next few days.
 * Failure: No money falls from the sky, but the household still has a higher chance of getting a burglar over the next few days.
 * Success: It acts as a love potion — the Sim is more attractive to others. The wisher's attraction points will be set to 100, which will give him or her strong chemistry with all Sims of the appropriate age(s) and gender. However, NPCs ring the Sim's doorbell at all times.
 * Failure: NPCs will still ring the Sim's doorbell at all times.
 * Success: Resurrects a selected dead Sim or pet. As with the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, only Sims and pets the wisher is considered to know can be resurrected.
 * Failure: Resurrects a selected dead Sim, but as a zombie.
 * Success: Extends the Sim's life by 4 days.
 * Failure: Shortens the Sim's life by 3 hours.
 * Will not be available if the wisher is a young adult.
 * Success: This allows the Sim who made the wish to cheat death by pleading for his or her own life. At first, this will be successful. However, after each successful plea with the Grim Reaper, the success rate is decreased 10%. Note that pleading with Death while dying of old age will only prolong the Sim's life for another day.
 * Failure: The Sim will be unable to plead for his or her own life.
 * Success: Gives the Sim permanent Platinum mood
 * Failure: Appliances, plumbing, and electronics will break all the time.
 * Success: Adults and elders transition in reverse, and become teens. They will have to reattend public school. Any adult or elder job will be nullified, as will retirement, romantic relationships, and any occult status.
 * Failure: If the wisher is an adult, they will become an elder. If they are an elder, it will be their time to die.
 * Can only be unlocked by using a third-party mod.
 * Will not be available if the wisher is a teen, young adult, or pregnant.

The Sims 2 (console)
Genie also appear in The Sims 2 for Console, though nothing usually happens when Sims interact with one. Also, when a Sim awakens a Genie, all that will appear is the Genie's head. Genies can be untrustworthy, and will sometimes trick Sims into giving them their money. Good results of summoning the genie could be, raised motives, a plate of food, or money. If the Genie has red smoke rising from the head, it is in a bad mood and can summon fires or burglars, decrease the Sim's mood, make the Sim wet themself, and even strip the Sim of his/her clothes for a few seconds.

The Genie's lamp needs to be unlocked to buy it. This is fulfilled by gaining a certain amount of Aspiration points. When unlocked, it can be found under Misc. in buy mode.

The Sims 3
In a live chat on January 26, comments by developers suggest that the Genie will return as a life state in The Sims 3: Showtime.

In reporting on a hands-on demo in Cologne, SimTimes was able to provide a bit more information. According to SimTimes, the Genie will come in a lamp, and will be able to grant wishes, which may go wrong. SimTimes also reports that it will be possible to befriend a Genie and free him from the lamp; and that a freed Genie will be like a normal Sim, and can be added to a family.

In an interview for DualShockers, it was mentioned that the Genie Lamp would be hidden in places around the town, but no more details were given. This is different from both The Sims: Livin' Large, in which the lamp was obtained through Buy mode; and The Sims 2: FreeTime, in which the lamp was a reward. Another difference from the earlier games is that, when summoned, the Genie is shown with a full body, and is mobile.

It was also revealed that the Genie will be able to grant three wishes, though what will happen after the third wish was not mentioned. It was mentioned that, while the process of releasing a Genie is highly complicated, the benefits of doing it are good, since the Genie keeps a house tidy and is an excellent cook.