Electronic Arts (EA) has confirmed that there are no plans for a Sims 5 game in the works.
In a new interview with Variety EA’s Vice president and general manager of The Sims franchise Kate Gorman explained that the main reason for this decision was concern over players having to start all over again potentially losing a decade’s worth of gameplay.
She explained “What we’re really working with our community on is this a new era of ‘The Sims.’ We are not going to be working on replacements of previous projects; we’re only going to be adding to our universe. With that, you’ll see there are more ways to experience ‘The Sims’ on different platforms, different ways to play, transmedia, and lots of great offerings within this universe”.
Instead of a brand-new game, The Sims 4 will continue to receive free updates alongside paid expansions. The Sims 4 has been the longest-running instalment in the twenty-five-year-old franchise, now at ten years old. However, the title has not been without controversy due to the large number of expansion packs being criticized by some, especially due to some packs arriving seemingly unfinished and buggy. However, the base game became free in October 2022 meaning players can enjoy the basic game without spending a penny.
With the focus on the expansion of The Sims 4 as opposed to a new game, it’s likely many more expansion packs, game packs, stuff packs and kits are on the way. The Sims team recently announced they will partner with modders and custom content creators to sell their own kits, a new product known as “Creator Kits.” These include the recently announced The Sims 4 Storybook Nursery Kit and The Sims 4 Artist Studio Kit.
The company has also teased that Sims players will soon find out more about “Project Rene” which had long been rumoured to be the code name for Sims 5. It was originally suggested this may be a multiplayer feature coming to The Sims 4 however Variety issued a correction to their article stating:
“An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that multiplayer mode would be coming to “The Sims 4.” The multiplayer addition to “The Sims” franchise is a separate project, currently dubbed “Project Rene,” and not part of “The Sims 4.”
The Sims 4 is now playable on PC, Mac, Xbox and PlayStation.
Words by Louise Eve
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