# Paralives Field Guide — full content dump

> Inlined long-form sibling of [/llms.txt](https://paralives.io/llms.txt). Contains every cheat, every player-leveled skill, every vibe, the Sims-to-Paralives crossover map, and the head-to-head comparisons in a single markdown document. Last updated 2026-10-07.

Sourcing: cheat codes, skill names, vibe mechanics and district facts are from https://paralives.wiki.gg/ (CC BY-SA 4.0) and the Paralives Studio press kit. All commentary is original to https://paralives.io.

Currency unit is the **Paradime**. The cheat console opens with **Ctrl+F1** or **Ctrl+Shift+C** (Windows) or **Cmd+F1** (macOS). Paralives ships no Steam achievements in Early Access, so no command below can lock one — the risk tier on each row describes what it does to your save.

## Cheats — full list (101 commands across 13 categories)

Hub page: https://paralives.io/cheats — alphabetised view at https://paralives.io/cheats/codes — macOS notes at https://paralives.io/cheats/mac.

### Money

- `PIGGYBANK` — Grants 1,000 Paradimes to the household.
- `MAKEITRAIN` — Grants 10,000 Paradimes to the household.
- `JACKPOT` — Grants 50,000 Paradimes to the household.
- `LOTTERY` — Grants a random amount between 1 and 100,000 Paradimes.
- `PAYDAY` — Grants money equal to the selected Para's salary.
- `PRINTMONEY <amount>` — Grants the specified amount of Paradimes to the household.
- `SETMONEY <amount>` — Overwrites the household balance to the value you pass in.
- `CLEARBILLS` — Deletes every pending bill the household owes.

### Time & World

- `ADVANCEDAY` — Skips forward by 24 in-game hours.
- `ADVANCEHOUR` — Skips forward by exactly one in-game hour.
- `SETHOUR <hour>` — Jumps the clock to the hour you supply, e.g. SETHOUR 5 for 5 AM.
- `SKIPTO5MINUTESBEFOREWORK` — Fast-forwards to 5 minutes before the selected Para's shift starts.

### Characters (CAS)

- `EDITCHARACTER` — Reopens Paramaker so you can re-sculpt the active household.
- `SHOWSTATUSEFFECTS` — Prints every status effect (emotion, virus, buff) on the selected Para.
- `CLEARSTATUSEFFECTS` — Wipes every status effect on the selected Para.
- `CLEARSTATUSEFFECTSONALLCHARACTERS` — Wipes status effects on every Para in town.
- `CLEARWANTCOOLDOWNS` — Lets Emotions roll new Wants immediately, ignoring cooldowns.
- `COMPLETECURRENTWANTS` — Marks every active Want on the selected Para as completed.
- `GAINSTORYCARD` — Hands the player a Story Card.
- `LEARNALLSKINS <category>` — Unlocks every learnable skin in a category, e.g. LEARNALLSKINS Recipes.
- `ADDSELECTEDCHARACTERSTOHOUSEHOLD` — Moves the selected NPC into your current household.
- `CLEARALLONSELECTEDCHARACTERS` — Resets the selected Para: needs, wants, queue, bills, memories, emotions.
- `CREATECHARACTER <model>` — Spawns a new Para from a model GUID or DisplayName, e.g. HumanAdult.
- `KICKCURRENTHOUSEHOLDINTONEWHOUSEHOLD` — Splits the selected Paras into a fresh household together.
- `KICKSELECTEDCHARACTERSFROMHOUSEHOLD` — Evicts selected Paras to no household. Use with care; can bug.
- `LEVELUPPERSONALITY` — Bumps the selected Para's personality level by one.
- `LEVELUPSKILL <skill>` — Adds one level to the named skill, e.g. LEVELUPSKILL Guitar.
- `PRINTAGE` — Prints the age of the selected Para to the console.
- `RESETPERSONALITY` — Drops personality back to level 1 and clears upgrades and trait choices.
- `SETAGE <age>` — Forces the selected Para to a specific age, e.g. SETAGE 18.
- `SETSKILLLEVEL <skill> <level>` — Sets the named skill to the target level, e.g. Guitar 5.
- `SHOWCHARACTERRELATIONSHIPS` — Prints every relationship and label for the selected Para.

### Needs

- `CHANGENEED <need> <value>` — Raises a single need by the given amount, e.g. Hunger 2.
- `DECAYNEED <need> <value>` — Drops a single need by the given amount.
- `RELIEFALLNEEDS` — Maxes every need on the selected Para.
- `RELIEFALLNEEDSOFALLCHARACTERS` — Maxes every need on every Para in the world.
- `RELIEFNEED <need>` — Maxes one specific need, e.g. RELIEFNEED Hunger.
- `SETNEED <need> <value>` — Pins the value of a single need exactly.
- `SHOWNEEDS` — Prints every need value for the selected Para.

### Careers

- `ADDVACATIONDAY` — Adds one paid vacation day to the selected Para's job.
- `CLEARALLOCCUPATIONS` — Forces the selected Para to quit every job they hold.
- `ADDSTRIKETOOCCUPATIONS` — Adds a disciplinary strike to all of the Para's jobs.
- `CLEARSTRIKES` — Wipes every disciplinary strike across the Para's jobs.
- `ENDWORKDAY` — Resolves the workday: pays salary and grants an upgrade point if performance held.
- `PRINTALLOCCUPATIONS` — Dumps the full occupation list to the console.
- `PRINTALLPOSSIBLEEXTRASFOROCCUPATION` — Lists every Occupation Perk available to the active job.

### Pregnancy

- `GETPREGNANT` — Forces the selected Para into a pregnancy.
- `GIVEBIRTH` — If pregnant, triggers birth immediately.
- `MAKEBABIES <n>` — Pairs two selected Paras for a baby. Pass 1-3 for single, twins or triplets.
- `PREGNANTSTATUS` — Prints the current pregnancy state for the selected Para.

### Aging & Death

- `NEXTLIFESTAGE` — Ages the selected Para forward one stage, e.g. Baby to Toddler.
- `PREVIOUSLIFESTAGE` — Rolls the selected Para back one lifestage.
- `NEXTGROWTHSPURT` — Advances one growth spurt within a lifestage (used for Teen).
- `PREVIOUSGROWTHSPURT` — Rolls back one growth spurt within a lifestage.
- `KILLCHARACTER` — Kills the selected Para.
- `REVIVEALLSELECTEDCHARACTERS` — Revives every selected Para.

### Fire

- `EXTINGUISHALLFIRES` — Puts out every active fire on the lot and around town.
- `EXTINGUISHSELECTEDCHARACTERSONFIRE` — Puts out the selected Para if they are currently burning.
- `SETITEMONFIRE` — Sets the targeted item ablaze.
- `SETSELECTEDCHARACTERSONFIRE` — Sets the selected Para on fire.
- `SETITEMSTATE <state> <value>` — Forces an item state defined in the control panel, e.g. IsOn 1.

### Newspaper & Mail

- `DELETEALLNEWSPAPERISSUES` — Removes every newspaper issue from the household.
- `GENERATENEWSPAPER` — Spawns a fresh newspaper issue.
- `GENERATEMAIL` — Releases the queued mail into the mailbox.
- `RESETMAILBOX` — Clears every item out of the mailbox.

### Build Mode

- `TOGGLEEDITTOWN` — Toggles a developer town-edit mode. Add and remove lots, but expect rough edges.
- `REPAIRALLITEMS` — Removes the 'broken' state from every item in the game.
- `UNSPOILALLITEMS` — Removes the 'spoiled' state from every food item.

### Debug & Misc

- `ALIASES` — Lists every cheat alias the mod system has defined.
- `CLEAR` — Clears the cheat console window.
- `HELP` — Prints the full cheat list.
- `SCHEDULE <cheat>` — Runs a cheat every frame with the output pinned top-left, e.g. SCHEDULE FPS.
- `STOP` — Cancels the scheduled cheat command.
- `RESETMUSEUMDONATIONS` — Clears the museum donation log so items can be donated again.
- `UNSTUCK` — Snaps the selected Para back onto the navmesh.
- `UNSTUCKALL` — Snaps every Para back onto the navmesh.
- `SHOWCURRENTCHARACTERGUID` — Prints the GUID of the selected character.
- `CANCELALLCHARACTERSINTERACTIONS` — Cancels every queued interaction for every Para in town.
- `CANCELALLHOUSEHOLDINTERACTIONS` — Cancels every queued interaction in the active household.
- `CANCELSELECTEDCHARACTERSINTERACTIONS` — Cancels every queued interaction for the selected Para.
- `DELETESELECTEDCHARACTERSINTERACTIONS` — Deletes (not just cancels) every queued interaction for the selected Para.
- `QUITTOMAINMENU` — Drops back to the main menu.
- `RAGEQUIT` — Quits the game immediately.
- `SAVE` — Saves the current game.
- `ZIPSAVEFILE` — Zips the current save file and drops it on the desktop.

### Performance

- `BENCHMARKFPS` — Runs a 15-second framerate benchmark.
- `CAPFPS <n>` — Caps the framerate, e.g. CAPFPS 60.
- `FPS` — Prints the current framerate.
- `FULLSCREEN` — Forces fullscreen mode.
- `WINDOWED` — Forces windowed mode.
- `RESOLUTION` — Prints the current screen resolution.
- `SETRESOLUTION <WxH>` — Sets the screen resolution, e.g. SETRESOLUTION 1920x1080.
- `SHADOWDISTANCE` — Prints the current shadow render distance.
- `VSYNC` — Reads or sets the number of vsync passes.
- `STARTTOWNBENCHMARKSTORYBOARD` — Runs the town storyboard benchmark to stress test perf.

### Fun & Easter Eggs

- `BEAR` — Prints an ASCII bear.
- `CAT` — Prints a photo of a black cat.
- `EIGHTBALL` — Magic-eight-ball reply, dropped to the console.
- `HOTEL` — Prints 'Trivago'.
- `RANDOMIZEALLDEFORMATIONS` — Randomizes every Para slider with no limits. Expect mutants.
- `SPIN <percent>` — Spins a chance wheel with your odds and prints win or loss, e.g. SPIN 25%.

## Skills — all player-leveled skills (post-EA entries included)

Hub page: https://paralives.io/skills. Every skill caps at level 20 and pairs with a knowledge domain plus one or more careers. Use `LEVELUPSKILL <Cheat Name>` to bump a single level or `SETSKILLLEVEL <Cheat Name> <0-20>` to pin a level.

| Skill | Cheat name | Knowledge domain | Paired careers | Related skills | Detail page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guitar | `Guitar` | Music | Music | piano, triangle | https://paralives.io/skills/guitar |
| Piano | `Piano` | Music | Music | guitar, triangle | https://paralives.io/skills/piano |
| Triangle | `Triangle` | Music | Music | guitar, piano | https://paralives.io/skills/triangle |
| Cooking | `Cooking` | Food | Food | painting, exercise | https://paralives.io/skills/cooking |
| Exercise | `Exercise` | Fitness | Fitness | dance, biology | https://paralives.io/skills/exercise |
| Dance | `Dance` | Fitness |  | exercise | https://paralives.io/skills/dance |
| Graphic Design | `GraphicDesign` | Technology | Software development | programming, painting | https://paralives.io/skills/graphic-design |
| Programming | `Programming` | Technology | Software development | graphic-design, astronomy | https://paralives.io/skills/programming |
| Painting | `Painting` | Art | Art | graphic-design, cooking | https://paralives.io/skills/painting |
| Astronomy | `Astronomy` | Science | Science | biology, surgery | https://paralives.io/skills/astronomy |
| Biology | `Biology` | Science | Science, Healthcare | astronomy, surgery | https://paralives.io/skills/biology |
| Surgery | `Surgery` | Science | Healthcare | biology, astronomy | https://paralives.io/skills/surgery |
| Language | `Language` | Baby |  | dance, triangle | https://paralives.io/skills/language |
| Fishing | `Fishing` | Outdoors |  | outdoorsiness, cooking | https://paralives.io/skills/fishing |
| Outdoorsiness | `Outdoorsiness` | Outdoors |  | fishing, exercise | https://paralives.io/skills/outdoorsiness |

## Vibes — long-lasting personality states

Hub page: https://paralives.io/vibes. Four ship with Early Access; four follow in later patches.

- **Energetic** *(EA)* — Active interactions cost less stamina and fatigue ticks slower.
- **Gloomy** *(EA)* — Branches into Share Burden, Inspired by Sadness, Sadness Sponge, Sadness Redemption.
- **Jester** *(EA)* — Pranks and humor lines settle the Social need at a discount.
- **Overjoyed** *(EA)* — Branches into Expert Joy-Spreader, Happy Dreamer, Delighted Worker, Positive-Vibes Sponge.
- **Serious** *(EA)* — Branches into Hyperfocused, Logical Mind, Ambitious, Collective Focus.
- **Grumpy** *(Post-EA)* — Coming in a later patch. Mechanics still being tuned.
- **Peaceful** *(Post-EA)* — Coming in a later patch. Mechanics still being tuned.
- **Sensitive** *(Post-EA)* — Coming in a later patch — renamed from 'Anxious' during development.

## Sims 4 ↔ Paralives crossover map

For veterans coming from The Sims 4. Hub page: https://paralives.io/compare/sims-4.

- **Writing** → No standalone writing skill yet. Authoring books is handled by Story Cards and Paramaker memories rather than a skill bar.
- **Handiness** → Lives in the Repair knowledge domain. No player-leveled skill in EA; mod skills appear here.
- **Charisma** → Charisma is a personality stat raised by interactions, not a skill bar. The Sun-pack Story Cards still give +charisma buffs.
- **Mischief** → No mischief skill. Trolling and pranks belong to personality traits and certain Story Card outcomes.
- **Parenting** → No parenting skill bar. Parenting effectiveness is gated by personality, vibes and lifestage perks instead.
- **Gardening** → Tracked under Food / lot activities rather than a dedicated skill in EA. Countryside lots have the most room for the gardening update.
- **Logic** → Closest match is Programming (Technology) for code work, Astronomy and Biology for the lab-coat tracks. (see [programming](https://paralives.io/skills/programming))
- **Photography** → Folded into Graphic Design (Technology) and Painting (Art); no separate camera skill in EA. (see [graphic-design](https://paralives.io/skills/graphic-design))

## Head-to-head comparisons

Hub page: https://paralives.io/compare.

### Paralives vs The Sims 4

**Studio:** EA / Maxis. **Status:** Live since 2014.

The default comparison. Sims 4 is the genre's incumbent — large content library, vast modding ecosystem, but build mode and autonomy are dated.

- Paralives wins:
  - Grid-free build mode with curved walls
  - Continuous color picker on every prop
  - Open-world routing inside one neighbourhood
  - All future content is pledged free — pets and more arrive as updates, never paid DLC
- The Sims 4 wins:
  - Bigger career and skill catalogue today
  - Years of paid expansions and CC
  - Console ports (PS, Xbox)
  - More polished aging and toddler animations

**Verdict:** Switch if build mode and autonomy matter most. Stay (or play both) if you need the deeper content library that comes with a decade of expansions.

### Paralives vs inZOI

**Studio:** Krafton. **Status:** Early Access since 2025.

The big-studio life sim. Photorealistic art, ambitious AI-driven autonomy, but heavier hardware demands and a more uneven roadmap.

- Paralives wins:
  - Hand-painted art is easier to vibe with than uncanny-valley realism
  - Smaller scope, more stable on mid-range hardware
  - Steam Workshop integration already in the base game
  - Better grid-free build tools
- inZOI wins:
  - Stunning visuals and city-scale environments
  - Larger publisher backing means bigger marketing budgets
  - Multi-character AI more aggressive in spawning emergent stories

**Verdict:** Paralives is the cozier, more stable bet. inZOI is the cinematic bet. Pick by whether you want a Pixar movie or a watercolour.

### Paralives vs Life by You

**Studio:** Paradox Tectonic. **Status:** Cancelled in 2024 — never launched.

Paradox's life sim attempt. Shut down during early access. Paralives is now the surviving indie alternative for fans waiting for a Sims-like.

- Paralives wins:
  - Actively shipping vs. cancelled
  - Hand-painted art has a distinct identity
  - Smaller scope already feels feature-complete in build mode
- Life by You wins:
  - (none, no longer available)

**Verdict:** If you were waiting on Life by You, Paralives is the closest surviving alternative on Steam today.

### Paralives vs The Sims 5 (Project Rene)

**Studio:** EA / Maxis. **Status:** Mobile-first; not a Sims 4 successor.

Everyone calls it 'The Sims 5', but EA confirmed in January 2026 that Project Rene is a social, mobile-first life sim and explicitly not the successor to The Sims 4. A separate 'next evolution' for PC and console has been teased with no details.

- Paralives wins:
  - Shipping today on Steam, not 'someday'
  - Single-player offline by design
  - No microtransactions
- The Sims 5 (Project Rene) wins:
  - Eventual cross-platform play and shared worlds
  - EA's content and CC pipeline
  - Bigger studio = more parallel feature streams

**Verdict:** If you want a desktop life sim now, Paralives is on Steam. Project Rene is a mobile social game, and EA's actual PC successor to The Sims 4 has no name, no platform detail and no date.

### Paralives vs The Sims 2 / 3 (legacy)

**Studio:** EA / Maxis. **Status:** Legacy — Sims 2 (2004), Sims 3 (2009).

The 'good old days' comparison. Sims 2 had personality depth, Sims 3 had the open world. Paralives is courting fans of both.

- Paralives wins:
  - Runs natively on modern hardware
  - Active development and ongoing patches
  - Modern build mode with no grid lock-in
- The Sims 2 / 3 (legacy) wins:
  - Sims 2 personality system still considered best-in-genre
  - Sims 3 open world covers a wider play area
  - Larger nostalgic CC library

**Verdict:** Paralives feels closer in spirit to Sims 3 — open world, slower pace, no per-lot loading — than to the more theatrical Sims 2. One caveat: every Paralives workplace is still a rabbit hole in Early Access, so careers play out off-screen the way Sims 3's rabbit-hole jobs did.

## Reference URLs

- Homepage: https://paralives.io/
- Things to do in Paralives (activity index): https://paralives.io/things-to-do
- Cheats hub: https://paralives.io/cheats
- Skills hub: https://paralives.io/skills
- Careers hub: https://paralives.io/careers
- Build mode hub: https://paralives.io/build
- Melino: https://paralives.io/melino
- Melino — all locations: https://paralives.io/melino/places
- Community Center bundles: https://paralives.io/community-center
- Town events weekly grid: https://paralives.io/town-events
- Bills & utilities: https://paralives.io/bills
- Aging & lifespan: https://paralives.io/aging
- Households: https://paralives.io/households
- Emotions & status effects: https://paralives.io/emotions
- Life goals & townie requests: https://paralives.io/goals
- Paras hub: https://paralives.io/paras
- Preset Para profiles: https://paralives.io/paras/sebastian-marquez (+ 9 more under /paras/<slug>)
- Vibes: https://paralives.io/vibes
- Story cards: https://paralives.io/story-cards
- Compare hub: https://paralives.io/compare
- Challenges hub: https://paralives.io/challenges
- Legacy challenge: https://paralives.io/challenges/legacy
- Roadmap: https://paralives.io/roadmap
- Patches: https://paralives.io/patches
- Should I buy: https://paralives.io/should-i-buy
- Workshop: https://paralives.io/workshop
- Money builder tool: https://paralives.io/tools/money-builder
- Make money without cheats: https://paralives.io/make-money
- Challenge generator tool: https://paralives.io/tools/challenge-generator
- Fix — crashing: https://paralives.io/fixes/crashing
- Fix — low FPS: https://paralives.io/fixes/low-fps
- Fix — stuck save: https://paralives.io/fixes/save-stuck
- Fix — backup saves: https://paralives.io/fixes/backup-saves
- Fix — known issues tracker: https://paralives.io/fixes/known-issues
- Fix — Try for Baby not working: https://paralives.io/fixes/try-for-baby-not-working
- Fix — build mode not working: https://paralives.io/fixes/build-mode-not-working
- Paralives on Mac (Apple Silicon): https://paralives.io/mac
- Workshop — mods replaced by patches: https://paralives.io/workshop/replaced-by-patch
- Collab items: https://paralives.io/collabs
- Achievements: https://paralives.io/achievements
- Language settings & supported languages: https://paralives.io/language
- Sitemap (XML): https://paralives.io/sitemap.xml
- Standard llms.txt: https://paralives.io/llms.txt

## Bilingual variants

Every URL above also ships at `/zh/<path>/` in Simplified Chinese with the same data and structure.