The Sims 4 latest update which was launched on Tuesday includes Vitiligo skin details in an effort to further diversify the game.
The update allows players to add Vitiligo to their Sim’s face and body in Create-a-Sim, regardless of age or skin tone.
Vitiligo is an autoimmune skin condition that causes patches of skin to lose pigment. It affects 1% of people worldwide, yet there is still limited representation of this chronic condition.
The Sims community has been pressing for such features for a while- with many creators inventing or downloading custom content of the skin condition to create more of the representation in the game. EA has been criticised in the past for not having these options readily available when the game was first created, leading to an influx of players who use custom content. The new update allows players to select Vitiligo without having to rely on other resources.
The update was a collaboration with model Winnie Harlow who has branded the update as “Magical.”
This marks the latest in a series of updates that EA have worked on to diversify representation in the game. Previous updates have included surgery scarring, binders and medical wearables such as glucose monitors and hearing aids. The Sims community is known for being a diverse community of gamers and together with this update, it will encourage EA to stay on the same path of wider representation.
Words by Maisie Hancox
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