The Sims 4 teases its spooky new Life and Death expansion, leaving us hopeful a Reaper career may finally be in the works

The Sims 4 Grim Reaper character, a dark hooded skeletal figure without a face, using a tablet
(Image credit: EA)

As EA gears up to release the first full trailer for The Sims 4's spooktacular Life and Death expansion pack, developers dropped a short teaser to tide fans over - and it features just enough footage to send all sorts of speculations running wild.

The recent life-and-death-themed expansion reveal seemingly came out of nowhere, but it's been on the community's mind ever since the mysterious placeholder pages for preorders first popped up. Simmers have been discussing its possible content online, wondering whether the pack meant that a career seeing players taking on the role of the Grim Reaper would finally come to the game - and it looks like it just might.

EA's new Life and Death teaser is only nine seconds long, serving as a tiny taste of what's to come in tomorrow's full trailer, but it manages to showcase everything from the pack's eerie world to a possible cult-y career. A Sim wearing a cloak akin to Grim's own can be seen, a white skull symbol adorning the dark garment's backside. Surrounding her are dimly lit candles, books, and raven-themed wallpaper - it's more gothic than the gloomy Vampires DLC.

"Embrace what comes next," the trailer reads - and this simple tagline coupled with the Sim shown in the teaser has me and others in the community convinced we may get to play as the Reaper himself. A Reddit thread highlights even more theories, with one fan begging for EA to "please let me make a cult." Another ponders a possible "afterlife" of sorts: "Maybe once our Sims die we can choose to live on in an underworld?"

There's no telling what the expansion's new world is just yet, but I'd personally love to see an afterlife-esque realm myself. Imagine clocking into work as literal Death, harvesting Sims' souls, and then transporting them to this other world. Alternatively, it's true that the teaser may be pointing toward a "death cult" career instead of a Reaper job - either way, I'm just hoping we actually get to properly romance Grim soon.

Need something to play while you wait? Here are 10 games like The Sims 4 to check out. 

Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.