Paralives: How to disable aging and manage the different life stages

In the freshly released early access Paralives, it is possible to disable character aging, which, as you'll see, will change quite a few things gameplay-wise. In this article, we'll take a look at how to disable this option, and what it involves.

Disabling aging in Paralives

You'll have the option to disable aging right from the start of your adventure in Paralives. This is done as soon as you start a new game. At the end of the introduction, once your character has been created, you're invited to choose a narrator, each with its own difficulty level. For example, Maxence is a narrator that lets you play almost blindfolded, whereas another narrator will be more difficult.

Note

Selecting the right narrator is a fundamental element, especially to let you focus on the enjoyment of the game.

Once you've chosen your narrator, a customization menu becomes available. There, you can disable aging for members of your household, as well as for those outside of it.

The life stages in Paralives

The game offers a total of eight life stages, each with a defined duration in in-game days.

Life stages table

Each life stage has its own characteristics and associated challenges. For example, infants require care, whereas teenagers begin to deal with the complexity of their interpersonal relationships. By stopping aging in the game, you can choose to focus on other aspects of the game. On the other hand, the challenges specific to progressing through the different age groups won't be part of your adventure. It's up to you, in short!

The consequences

While this option makes the game lighter, it can also make it lose credibility, and the depth of interactions between characters may suffer as a result.

Without aging, you'll also have the opportunity to explore the world at your own pace, focusing on other aspects of the game, such as building houses or forming relationships.

Aging is in itself part of this overall life; neutralizing it can lead to a decrease in that immersion. Characters form certain relationships specific to the dynamics of their age group, relationships you won't be able to witness if you decide to disable aging.