- For the specially designated lot to perform festival activities, see Festival grounds.
A festival is a seasonal event that is held in the festival grounds in The Sims 3: Seasons. A festival may or may not occur the second day after the season changes. During the first day of the season, the festival grounds will be in "under construction" state. All premade festival grounds have the under construction state. If the players create their own custom festival, they may not provide the under construction state, in which case the festival will begin as soon as the season changes.
Festivals are open at 8 AM and closed at 9 PM. During the closing time, Sims will not be able to enter enclosed buildings at the festival grounds, such as toilet stalls, or use certain objects like chairs. Sims who perform certain activities at the festivals will earn festival tickets which can be redeemed at the concession stands. Not all activities will reward Sims with festival tickets. Festival tickets are only rewarded if the activities are performed at the festival grounds. Only playable Sims can earn festival tickets, so when players try to select a different household, those Sims will not have any festival tickets in their inventory.
Generic festival objects
Generic festival objects are always available at any festivals regardless of the season.
Concession stand
Sims can buy food and redeem festival tickets at the concession stand. The concession stand has different menus and items for different seasons. Sims with Festival Frequenter lifetime reward will get half price for the food. Some of the items are not available in the Buy mode. Some of the food are from the food truck and ice cream truck, and therefore requires The Sims 3: Late Night and The Sims 3: Pets.
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Face painting booth
A Sim having her face painted
Sims can get a temporary face paint at the face painting booth, which will wear off in 9 hours. Face painting costs §50, while Sims with the Festival Frequenter lifetime reward will get a half price. Sims will earn 5 festival tickets from having their face painted. Some face paints are available in certain season only, and there are 2 face paints that are randomly available in every season. The available face paints are as following:
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There's a 20% chance Sims will get a failure face paint. Unlucky Sims will get +15% higher chance, while Lucky Sims will get -4% lower chance. Ghosts, mummies, SimBots, and imaginary friends cannot have their face painted.
Greeting card photo booth
A greeting card photo booth
Up to 8 Sims can take a greeting card at the seasonal-themed photo booth. After Sims are done taking a photo, each of them will have a greeting card in their inventory. Greeting cards can be hung on the wall or placed on a surface. Additionally, the players are able to share the greeting cards in their own wall or their friend's wall at TheSims3.com, or share it to Facebook and Twitter.
In addition to photo booths, Sims can also take greeting cards at the city hall, science lab, or school. Different photo booth or rabbit hole will have different backdrop for the greeting card. Sims in the greeting cards will pose like in Create a Family snapshot.
Spring festival
Easter egg hunt
A child collecting an Easter egg
Every day during spring, Easter eggs will be randomly scattered around the festival grounds. The game will randomly spawn 10-20 Easter eggs at 5 AM. Sims can pick up an Easter egg when they see one, or search for eggs so they will look for the eggs on their own. Sims will earn a festival ticket for each egg they collect. There's a 10% chance finding a fancy festival egg when picking up an egg, and a 3% chance of the Bucktooth Butternut spring magic gnome. Sims can place the fancy festival egg at home as a decor that's worth §500.
Horseshoe court
Sims playing with horseshoe court
Horseshoe court can be played by up to four Sims, with two teams consisting of two Sims. Sims will take turns tossing horseshoes. Sims will build the hidden Horseshoes skill. The higher the skill, the more likely they will make a good toss. The winners of the game will earn 25 festival tickets, while the losers will earn 5.
Kissing booth
Sims being kissed at the kissing booths
Sims can ask to be kissed by a kissing booth attendant for §5. There are two kinds of kissing booths, one of each gender. Kissing booth kiss is not a romantic social, and therefore will not trigger jealousy. The kiss will not count towards first kiss either. Receiving a kiss from the attendant will give a positive "Got Kissed at a Kissing Booth" moodlet that lasts for 8 hours. Asking to be kissed will increase the Sim's gender preference towards the attendant's gender.
Sims who ask to be kissed will give a different kissing animation based on their traits. Sims with Great Kisser or Hopeless Romantic trait will give a steamy kiss, Sims with Shy, Loner, or Loser trait will give a shy kiss; while Sims with Slob trait will give a sloppy kiss.
A Sim tending a kissing booth
Sims can also attend the kissing booth to earn extra money. They will earn money depending on how many kisses they've made. Each kiss will earn the Sim between §0-§10. Sims can use the self-"Be Flirty" interaction, which can make them more attractive so other Sims are more likely to ask to be kissed. Sims who are a vampire, have Great Kisser or Hopeless Romantic trait, or have Attractive lifetime reward will also attract other Sims, albeit considerably less than being flirty.
Love tester machine
Two Sims using a love tester machine
Sims can use the love tester machine alone or with someone for §5. The machine will calculate and give a result. The machine has 10 outcomes, ranging from good to bad:
- Uncontrollable
- Hot Stuff
- Passionate
- Burning
- Wild
- Naughty but Nice
- Mild
- Harmless
- Clammy
- Cold Fish
The machine will generate a random number. The number is modified by the Sims' temperature, traits (if used alone), and relationships (if used together). Low temperature will give negative bonus to the calculation, while high temperature will give positive bonus. The positive traits and lifetime rewards that affect the score are Attractive, Charismatic, and Flirty, while the negative traits are Childish, Commitment Issues, and Loner. If both Sims are romantic interests, partnered, engaged, or married, they will get a positive bonus, while exes will get negative bonus. If both Sims are also attracted to each other, they'll get a positive bonus.
As the machine calculates the score, good outcomes will give "Burning Loins" moodlet, 3 festival tickets, and a relationship boost; neutral outcomes will give 2 festival tickets; and bad outcomes will give "Frozen Loins" moodlet, 1 festival ticket, and a damaged relationship.
There are certain conditions that will result the machine to give a definite positive or negative outcome.
- If either Sim has "Frozen Loins" moodlet, they will always get a bad result; but if either Sim has "Burning Loins" moodlet, they will always get a good result. The "Frozen Loins" moodlet check always precedes the "Burning Loins" moodlet, however.
- If used alone, a SimBot has a 50% chance that they will get Uncontrollable result, and a 50% chance for everything else.
- Certain life states will give definite outcomes. The following pairings will give a positive outcome:
- Both of them are SimBots
- Both of them are werewolves
- Both of them are zombies
- One of them is a vampire, while the other one is a regular Sim
- One of them is an imaginary friend, while the other one is a fairy
- On the other hand, certain life state pairings will also give a negative outcome:
- Only one of them is a SimBot
- One of them is a vampire, while the other one is a werewolf
- One of them is a witch, while the other one is a regular Sim
Spring dance floor
Sims dancing at the dance floor
On last day of every spring, the festival will announce king and queen of the spring dance. Sims need to dance for at least an hour at the spring dance floor in the festival grounds in order to be qualified as a king or queen. There's a 20% chance for a Sim to be picked, and an additional +20% for each hour they dance. This means that Sims who have danced for 5 hours will always be picked for qualification. If there are more than 2 Sims who are picked, the game will randomly determine the king and queen of the spring dance queen; otherwise the sole Sim who is picked will become the king or queen. Dancing any longer will not increase the odds to be crowned.
Sims who is crowned the king or queen of the spring dance will receive a plaque in their mailbox and earn 250 festival tickets. They will also become the subject of Spring Dance King and Spring Dance Queen Photography subject.
Summer festival
Hot dog eating contest
Sims competing in a hot dog eating contest
Up to four Sims can compete in a hot dog eating contest. Sims can participate in the contest on their own or invite others to join. If no one is available to participate, the contest is cancelled and Sims have to retry participating. The contest lasts for approximately an hour, during which the winner will be determined, and after the contest is over, Sims have to wait for another two hours to compete again. If the eating contest stand is not on a festival lot, the contest can immediately be participated in again. Plumbots, stuffed Sims, and nauseous Sims cannot participate in the eating contest.
In determining the winner, each of the participants has a weighted winning chance. They are given a random weighted chance between 0 to 50. The higher the weighted chance a participant has, the more likely they'll win. It's not impossible, however, that a participant with lower weighted chance wins. The weighted chance is modified by a number of factors.
- If the Sim is hungry, the weighted chance increases by +10.
- For each eating contest a Sim has participated in, the weighted chance increases by +5, but is capped at +25.
- If the Sim is a SimBot, a ghost, or an imaginary friend, the weighted chance increases by +10. If the Sim is a vampire or a mummy, the chance decreases by -10.
- If the Sim's favorite food is hot dog (or key lime pie for pie eating contest), the chance increases by +10.
- If the Sim has the Competitive Eater lifetime reward, the chance increases by +20.
At the end of the contest, the winner will earn 25 festival tickets, while other participants will earn 5 festival tickets. The winner can boast their victory, and all participants will bring home an excellent platter of hot dogs. There's a 33% chance the participant will vomit right after the contest ends, and another 30% chance they will get nauseous and vomit later. Vegetarian Sims will always get nauseous. There's also a 2% chance the watchers may vomit, and an additional +5% chance if the Sim is a vegetarian or pregnant.
Sims with Competitive Eater lifetime reward has numerous advantages in addition to boosted weighted chance. They will not get stuffed or fat from participating in the contest, and they will not vomit or get nauseous.
Roller skating rink
Sims roller skating
Roller skating rink is a common festival object in most seasons. There are two sizes of roller skating rinks; small and large. Small rink can have 5 skaters, while large rink can have 5 skaters in the outer lane and 3 in the inner lane. Skating will grant 5 festival tickets no matter how long Sims skate. Sims with Bot Fan trait in their robot form cannot skate.
Skating on the skating rink increases the hidden Skating skill. Sims with low Skating skill will start skating slowly and wobbly. At level 2, they will start skating fast. At level 3, they can spin alone or with another skater in the middle of the rink. The higher the skill, the better they spin alone. At level 4, they can skate backwards. The hidden skill goes up to level 6. Sims can ask anyone to spin together regardless of relationship.
Ghosts, mummies, SimBots, vampires, imaginary friends in their toy form, genies, fairies, werewolves in their wolf form, and zombies will not skate on the skating rink. Instead, they will run or hover around. In addition, they cannot skate backwards or spin. Plumbots will not wear skating shoes, but will still use the normal skating animation.
Water balloon fight
Sims having a water balloon fight
Sims can initiate a water balloon fight at a ball fight arena. Up to four players can join the game. Sims will throw water balloons against the opponents. Each water balloon that hits the opponent will give 10 points or 20 points if a team is outnumbered. The first team to earn 100 points will win the game and earn 25 festival tickets. The losing team will earn 5 festival tickets. Winning Sims will get "In Your Face" moodlet, and "One Man Army" moodlet if they're outnumbered.
Sims can initiate a water balloon fight on a flat ground as well, and up to 8 players can join if the space is sufficient. However, there is no win and Sims will not earn any festival tickets. Sims can also play a snowball fight in winter or dew fight in utopian Oasis Landing. Pregnant Sims cannot join a ball fight.
Playing water balloon fight increases Sims' hidden Ball Fighting skill. The skill goes up to level 3. The higher the skill, the more likely Sims will dodge and hit the target. The likeliness that Sims dodge or hit the target depends on several factors:
- The hidden Ball Fighting skill of 0 to 3 has the chance of 30%, 50%, 65%, and 80%.
- Positive traits and moodlets that will give +5% are Athletic, Lucky, Brave, Daredevil, Disciplined, "Well Rested," and "Adrenaline Rush"
- Negative traits and moodlets that will give -5% are Clumsy, Absent-Minded, Unlucky, Loser, and "Exhausted."
- SimBots have a bonus +25%.
For every hit, mummies will get soaked, SimBots have a 5% chance to get short out, and ghosts will get a sparkle effect instead of water splash / snowball effect. PlantSim's water motive will slowly increase during the game.
Soccer goal
Sims practicing shootout
Sims can practice alone or shootout against another Sim with the soccer goal. Plumbots with hover bottom cannot participate. When practicing alone, Sims will make 10 practice shots for each practice session. In a shootout, each player will take turn between the goalie and the shooter after 4 shots. The players will slowly build relationships during the game. The goalie may taunt the shooter during the game. Sims with Childish, Good Sense of Humor, Evil, and Mean Spirited traits are more likely to taunt, while Sims with Grumpy and No Sense of Humor will not.
Practicing shootout increases Sim's Athletic skill. The higher the Athletic skill differences between the players, the more likely they will succeed in catching the ball or making a score. The winner of the shootout will earn 25 festival tickets, and the loser will earn 5. If the game draws, both players earn 10 festival tickets.
If there's a soccer goal on the lot, Sims can invite over next ranked soccer opponent. They can challenge the opponent over a ranked soccer match. The ranked soccer match progress is tracked in the Sim's skill journal.
Tanning booth
A Sim having a glowing tan
Sims can get a spray tan in the tanning booth for §90 if the tanning booth is at a community lot. There's an 85% chance they will physically get suntanned, 5% for over saturated tan, 5% for discolored tan, and 5% for uneven tan. Sims can also get a spray tan at the spa for §175.
Only teenagers and older can get a spray tan. Mummies, SimBots, genies, plantSims, mermaids, and plumbots cannot get a spray tan. Ghosts can get a spray tan, but will not receive any benefits from it, while vampires will say that they can "fit in." Sims who are sunburned, frostbitten, or have recently gotten a failed spray tan cannot get another tan. If The Sims 3: Generations is installed, teenagers can set a booby trap inside the tanning booth. Sims who get a spray tan in a trapped booth will get a discolored tan.
Fall festival
Pie eating contest
Sims competing in a pie eating contest
A pie eating contest is essentially the same as hot dog eating contest. The same applications apply to the pie eating contest, although with a few differences. Sims will eat key lime pie and receive an excellent platter of key lime pie. In addition, Sims' face will be smeared from pie and their hygiene drops slightly.
Apple bobbing tank
Sims cheering for apple bobbing contestants
Up to four Sims can compete in an apple bobbing contest. The principle is more or less similar to eating contests. Sims can participate in the contest on their own or invite others to join. If no one is available to participate, the contest is cancelled and Sims have to retry participating. After the contest is over, Sims have to wait for another two hours to compete again. If the eating contest stand is not on a festival lot, the contest can immediately be participated in again. Hydrophobic Sims will not autonomously participate in the contest, while SimBots will short out if they participate.
Sims need to bob 5 apples in order to win. Sims will randomly bob an apple for every under 15 Sim minutes, but 30 minutes for Unlucky Sims. The winner will earn 25 festival tickets and "Winner" moodlet, while the losers will earn 5. If any of the participants has germs, there's a 50% chance that the other contestants will get sick as well.
Haunted house
Sims queuing to enter the haunted house
Children and older can enter the haunted house to test their bravery. Before entering, Coward and Childish Sims may react hesitantly. Sims will spend 10 minutes inside the haunted house and exits. Upon exiting, Sims might vomit, pee self, panic, or just shiver. Coward Sims are more likely to vomit, pee self, or panic instead of just shivering, while Brave Sims will just shrug.
Sims will receive 5 festival tickets after entering the haunted house. There's a 5% chance Sims will also receive Cracklin Nackerbell magic gnome. There's also a chance Sims might get none or one of the following moodlets:
If Sims get the "Cursed by a Witch" moodlet, they will temporarily become a ghost of an old age until the moodlet expires.
Pumpkin patch
Sims harvesting pumpkins at the pumpkin patch
Although not technically a festival activity, all premade festival grounds come with a pumpkin patch where Sims can harvest pumpkins and carve them to decorate their house. Normally, the fall festival is where Sims can find and harvest pumpkins, but pumpkins can also be purchased at the grocery.
Winter festival
Snowball fight
Sims having a snowball fight
Sims can initiate a snowball fight at a ball fight arena, or on a flat ground with deep snow. The mechanics of snowball fight is essentially the same as water balloon fight, with the only difference is that it can only be done in winter with a deep snow. If the snow is not deep enough, Sims cannot initiate a snowball fight. Sims can still initiate a water balloon fight regardless of the season and snow depth, however.
Ice skating rink
Sims ice skating
The essence of ice skating is the same as roller skating rink, with the only difference is that Sims wear ice skates instead of roller skates. Unlike snowball fighting, Sims can ice skate regardless of the season, because the activity is based on the type of rink used.
In addition to the ice skating rink, Sims can ice skate on a frozen pond or a frozen lake, such as the lake in Twinbrook, Oasis Landing, or Lunar Lakes. Sims can ice skate only if the pond is vast enough, and the pond is frozen solid[2].
Half-pipe
A Sim snowboarding on a half-pipe
Sims can snowboard on a half-pipe. Sims can purchase a snowboard at the concession stand or from Buy mode and customize their own snowboard, although it is not required, because Sims will be automatically given a default snowboard when they use the half-pipe. Children have their own smaller snowboard. Other Sims might queue up to use the half-pipe, and when that happens, Sims will take turns in using the half-pipe. Sims will receive 5 festival tickets after they're done snowboarding.
As Sims practice snowboarding, they will increase their hidden Snowboarding skill. The skill goes up to level 3. The higher the skill, the more likely Sims will do tricks, and the less likely they will fall while doing tricks.