This article was updated on January 29, 2026 with The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Expansion Pack Dynasty Gameplay Trailer. Explore more gameplay and capabilities for the Dynasty System and check out new lot sizes.
This article was updated on January 22, 2026 with The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Expansion Pack Nobility Gameplay Trailer. Explore more Noble Career gameplay.
Behold Ondarion: a splendid coastal kingdom (aka world) where legacies are forged, scandals brew, and fables come to life.
In this chapter of its storied history, Ondarion will crown a new Monarch, as familial dynasties vie for the throne.
The question you and your Sim now have to ask: what role will we play in this story?
In The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Expansion Pack, Sims can craft multigenerational lore through the new Dynasty and Nobility systems, uncover and ignite shadowy Scandals, encounter enchanted Powershifts, and explore a world of intrigue, prestige, and scandal. Every decision matters, and even the smallest choice can quietly tip the balance of power.
The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Expansion Pack launches on February 12, 2026. You can learn about the Grand Bundle below, available from January 15 through March 15, 2026.
So, are you ready to write your own Sims’ legend?
A World of PossibilitiesThe Price of PowerFor Dynasties Great and QuaintScandalsCreating With CommunityThe Realm Awaits, Your Majesty: A Grand Bundle
A World of Possibilities
Three vibrant regions (aka neighborhoods) shape Ondarion, each ruled by a powerful Dynasty (with more on these families coming in our Meet the Sims article). Every region is steeped in historic charm, rich culture, and the occasional whisper of scandal.
These ruling families didn’t rise by accident… and they won’t fall quietly, either.
Dambele is a community where the arts are cherished, and shared spaces such as the open palace gardens and communal market embody its culture of generosity and togetherness.Verdemar, populated by heroic outlaws and cunning nobles, is as unpredictable as the sea that surrounds it.Bellacorde is defined by romance, opulence, and candlelit corners that invite illicit rendezvous.
The Backroom Lot, a new Lot type, leads a double life. By day, it functions as a Library, Gym, or Museum depending on how you build it, but when night falls, it transforms into a Night Club. Sims can experience this shift in Dambele, home to a premade Backroom Lot that trades quiet study for nightlife after dark.
In Ondarion, Sims can reside in lavish, palace-inspired estates, and host resplendent Grand Balls. Every region is home to several noble dynasties, but the royal throne of Ondarion stands unclaimed.
Throughout this kingdom, Powershifts add fantasy, storybook twists to your royal tale. Sims may pull the legendary Sword In Stone, waltz into love at a magical Ballroom Dance in dazzling Crystal Slippers, woo a Noble Frog with unpredictable results, or consult the Enchanted Mirror to reveal hidden truths.
Master the art of Swordsmanship, a new level 10 Skill that lets your Sims duel for love, Simoleons, career promotions, noble rivalries, and more, with Swordsmanship Tournaments held at Gazebos found throughout every neighborhood in Ondarion as a Goaled Event, where opponents gather and players complete event tasks through duels.
Secret Passageways are the kingdom’s most mischievous shortcut. They let Sims teleport between connected passageways on their lot, or any other lots in the world that they place or discover. Add a Secret Passageway to a hallway, secluded courtyard, your secret lover’s study or your rival’s residence for stolen moments, secret romances, and dramatic entrances no one saw coming.
Beyond speeding up routing, Secret Passageways can unlock a new WooHoo location and offer chances to uncover other Sims’ secrets. Sims can also tamper with the Cuckoo Clock, located on the outside of the passageway, causing a mishap with the potential to trigger the newest dramatic demise: Death by Cuckoo Malfunction.
The Price of Power
The Noble Career invites your Sim into a storybook world of courtly intrigue, lavish pageantry, and dramatic power plays. From Noble Newcomer to Kingdom Leader, your Sim can rise through the noble ranks and claim the Throne as Monarch of many Kingdoms (thanks, cross-pack play!*).
Royal life is an active journey. It’s not just attending balls or wearing crowns, it’s about choices, from punishing the offender who blocks a mailbox to siding with commoners, from earning favor through service to hosting extravagant events, and learning when to let the winds of fate or a Powershift decide the outcome.
Advance Noble Rankings by earning favor at court, forging powerful alliances, or pursuing bolder paths through clever schemes and strategic marriages. And yes, your Sim’s spouse and children inherit those shiny titles, too. Power is scarce (each Kingdom can only have one true ruler).
Your Sims can rule through grand decrees, rousing speeches, and generous donations, or win over fellow Nobles by collecting Favor, a new two-sided resource earned through choices that appeal to either Nobles or Commoners. Power can breed rivalry, and the further you rise up the ranks, the more likely you will face Noble rivals looking to taint your name and image. Convince them to abdicate or meet them blade-to-blade in a Duel of Swordsmanship. Diplomacy or chaos, it’s your call.
You won’t be able to please everyone… and sometimes, the Kingdom remembers the slight longer than the victory. With Nobility, Sims can also capitalize on scandal and rivalry, challenge a rival to a duel, extort secrets, or navigate a Powershift that reshapes who rules and how favor shifts between commoners and royals.
Whether your Sim becomes a gracious monarch, a charismatic socialite, or a cunning climber powered by gossip, power demands attention. There are no fixed hours in this career; performance hinges on completing Royal Duties each day. Neglecting those duties can quietly erode career performance until it’s too late to recover.
And power is never permanent. One misstep–a flirtation in the wrong hallway, an ill-placed insult, a heated Duel, or a Powershift–can send influence skyrocketing, or wipe it out overnight.
For Dynasties Great and Quaint
Ondarion is where familial dynasties of all sorts rise and fall. Your Sim can join one or start their own, and with the Dynasty System (cross-pack play!*), they can shape their house’s identity: defining values, appointing heirs, and creating lore future generations will brag (or cry) about. Any Sim can become head of their own Dynasty, they can cast someone out entirely OR designate someone as an outcast to stop them from damaging the Dynasty’s Prestige.
Founding a Dynasty puts your Sim in charge of all the big decisions: selecting a family crest, enforcing Values, forming Alliances, and even deciding who inherits and who’s cast out. Prestige and Unity track the success of your Dynasty: forge Alliances, avoid Scandals, and strategically grow influence across generations.
New interactions like Designate Heir, Designate Outcast, Usurp Family Headship or Expel a Sim from a Dynasty transform generational storytelling into active, playable moments. Every triumph and scandal ripples through the family tree, turning your house into a truly living, evolving legacy.
But beware: every secret affair, misstep, or rivalry could impact prestige and even challenge the values you have chosen. Family members may threaten to leave, or they might call another member to rebel against those values. Choose your Dynasty wisely, for loyalty and ambition must be carefully balanced.
Scandals
In Ondarion, even hushed words can topple dynasties. With the new Scandals System (cross-pack play!*), a quiet suspicion or rumor can erupt into a kingdom-shaking event.
Scandals range from minor missteps, like defacing a monument, to explosive revelations involving forbidden romances, illegitimate heirs, or forging a family tree. The bigger the scandal, the more you’ll notice its effect on the Sims around you.
When a Scandal comes to light, it can impact a Sim’s relationships, career, and even Dynasty Prestige. How your Sim responds to a Scandal is up to you: issue a public apology, deny the accusation online, they can even write a book about it and earn profits.
For those who crave maximum drama, potential Scandals can also be weaponized. Use them to extort rivals, fracture alliances, and climb the social ladder. NPCs can even seek atonement and ask for a noble pardon.
Just be warned: making enemies is a quick way to get your own scandals exposed!
Creating With Community
To bring the world to life, the team began close, collaborative concepting over a year ago with the * Pan Africa Gaming Group (PAGG)* and a group of Simmers with direct ties to West African countries and lived experiences across the Black diaspora in the UK and North America. This collaboration helped ensure that cultural inspirations were thoughtful, authentic, and deeply rooted.
Their guidance helped shape Create a Sim, Build/Buy, the world’s lore, and the Dambele neighborhood itself. These groups also contributed to last year’s West African update, which introduced new, free Create a Sim and Build/Buy items.
Simmers were involved directly in the development of the pack too! We were thrilled to bring on talented builders Plumbob Kingdom, Eva Rotky, EmeraldStories, and Studio Gabri to create lots throughout the world, and IceMunMun and Littlbowbub to create mouthwatering dishes.
You can learn more about how The Sims work with players and PAGG in upcoming articles on January 19 and 20, 2026, in The Sims Newsroom.
The Realm Awaits, Your Majesty: A Grand Bundle
You’re royalty now, and that comes with some major perks. Every purchase of The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy includes a FREE upgrade to the Grand Bundle, because everyone deserves the royal treatment. This bundle has everything you need to plot the drama and spill the tea. From January 15 through March 15, 2026, you’ll receive The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Expansion Pack, the Regal Treasures Digital Content, and two new kits: Tea Time Solarium and Silver Screen Style.
Look royally radiant in A Crown of Leaves and Sparkles, train to impress your Sim’s forbidden sweetheart with the Enemies to Lovers Practice Dummy, and add shining gravitas to your Sim’s space with the Under the Stars Lantern with the Regal Treasures Digital Content.
The Silver Screen Style Kit lets Sims step into roles worthy of the spotlight. Inspired by the mystique and glamour of a classic era, this collection features dramatic gowns, sharp suits, bold accessories, and iconic outerwear. From sparkling jewelry to trench coats made for intrigue, these looks are designed for powerful entrances, secret plots, and unforgettable moments.
The Tea Time Solarium Kit creates a refined retreat bathed in sunlight and elegance. With expansive glass walls, graceful windows, and garden-inspired furnishings, Sims can host elevated gatherings that feel both intimate and open to the outdoors. Complete with delicate tea sets, treat trays, and a banquet table, this serene solarium is the perfect place to sip, snack, and spill the tea in style.
Preorder The Sims 4 Royalty & Legacy Grand Bundle now for $39.99 to start playing immediately when it launches on February 12, 2026, for EA app, Epic Games Store and Steam®, PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One systems.
*Cross-pack play requires additional DLC purchase.
