It turns out that the key to a successful career is to play more video games.

The last time I played The Sims, I was in high school. That was unnervingly close to 20 years ago, and a lot has changed. But the heart of The Sims 4 remains the same: to build. To tell stories. To celebrate the eccentricities we all have. And to turn our whole world into a game. The Sims 4 continues that long tradition on PS4, and it does so with surprising aplomb.

Almost everything from the PC version appears on PS4. That includes years of DLC, updates, and ghosts. Sim ghosts, but still impressive! For those looking for a content-rich, feature-complete experience, this is it.

New to The Sims? Come prepared to make choices. The Sims 4 encourages experimentation and procrastination in equal measure. Spend hours creating a whole family in game, or building a dream home brick by brick. Micro-manage every bathroom break and block party, or focus on building a career. Make friends, find love, have children, and watch them grow. Everything is on the table.

To navigate The Sims 4, the touchpad acts as the player’s liaison between the game world and the all-encompassing UI. It’s rare to see the touchpad serve so vital a role, but it works here. Interact with your Sims and the world around them, then switch to the menus to ricochet between Sim stats, relationship meters, items, and much more.

During my brief time with The Sims 4, I bought a house, hosted an impromptu party (They just showed up by themselves, I swear!), started a career as a computer programmer (first task: play video games), and finally, played video games. An eventful day by any measure, and a small sample of the seemingly endless moments that make up everyday life in The Sims.

Somehow, The Sims 4 manages to feel like a character creator, relationship manager, town builder, and architectural software, all rolled into one — with no specific end goal or ultimate victory to achieve. Yet it is still a videogame, and — as we discovered above — playing these video games is the first step to starting life as a world-class computer programmer.

The Sims 4 launches November 17 on PS4.