A ranked tournament is a feature in The Sims 3 in which a Sim in the active household can use their telephones to invite the scheduled next opponent above them in the rankings to a match, with the goal of climbing their way up to the 5th and highest level in the tournaments. The opponents can be invited to both residential and public lots if the lots meet the requirements for setting up a match.
There are 3 available tournaments:
For chess and soccer, there must be at least 1 chess table or soccer goal on the lot where the Sim currently is.
Since the tournaments rely heavily on the usual "Invite Over" mechanics, the usual limitations related to the mechanics apply to the tournaments as well. Opponents will refuse to arrive if they're at work, if the time is between midnight and 06:00 AM, if the lot has a Safeguard Electronic Gate[TS3:LN] or if they're appointed to a cash register tenance. They will also usually refuse to arrive if they're a service Sim.
If a match is successfully played to completion, the two players will get a boost in relationship.
Although the tournament participations are unpaid, it requires substantial dedication to climb up the rankings.
All tournaments are gender-neutral, allowing men-versus-women matches with no restrictions. Usually approximately 20 matches must be won in order to reach the 5th tournament levels.
Ranked matches[]
A match in each tournament last approximately 1h15min each in-game. Matches must be played to conclusion no matter what, and either Sim can choose to forfeit the match at any time, which will result in a "No contest" instead of the forfeiting player having lost. NPC opponents can forfeit the match for any number of reasons, including having to go to a toilet, getting hungry, getting sleepy, routing errors, or wanting to ask for the opponent's autograph.[TS3:LN]
Chess[]
Two Sims playing a chess match as the sun sets.
The usual rules for chess matches in The Sims 3 apply: The two chess players agree to sit down together at a chess table for a match, and a winner is declared if the match is played to completion.
Martial arts[]
Illustration of two Sims sparring.
The Sim must have at least skill level 4 in Martial Arts, and ranking matches are only available in the phone interactions while in Shang Simla.
Once a match has been set up, the standard sparring format applies: A match is best-of-3 sets. The fighters have to stand a certain distance from each other. Hits with kicks and flat hands are permitted to the stomach, chest, and head. One such hit ends the set, so knockouts or technical knockouts never occur, and defensive moves are highly necessary. Fighters do not use protective gear, and are fighting barefoot with no helmet or toothguard, but are allowed to wear socks or stockings if they so wish.
There are no weight classes in the tournament.
Soccer[]
A soccer match in progress.
The two players shoot 4 shots each in a penalty shootout format. The first player shoots their 4 shots immediately after each other, then they change sides for the other player to shoot their 4 shots. The shootout must be played to completion even if the second player cannot mathematically catch up to the first player's scored goals.
If it's raining and one (or both) of the players have brought their umbrella[TS3:S] with them, the match will always be forfeited when changing sides, because the first player will spend time putting up their umbrella, leading to the second player complaining about a routing error because the first player can't get out of the way fast enough.