The Sims 5 is apparently ‘dead’ as EA clarifies Project Rene rumours
If you were hoping to stop buying The Sims 4 expansions and jump into The Sims 5, EA might have some bad news for you.
17th Sep 2024 17:04
Images via Maxis
The Sims 5 is apparently ‘dead’ as EA clarifies Project Rene rumours
If you were hoping to stop buying The Sims 4 expansions and jump into The Sims 5, EA might have some bad news for you.
17th Sep 2024 17:04
Images via Maxis
Like we're waiting for the long-running GTA V to bow out and make way for GTA 6, fans of Maxis' The Sims are looking at what comes next. We've heard a lot about the mysterious Project Rene, and while even we'll admit we're guilty of referring to it as The Sims 5, EA has shattered our dreams.
Despite it being a decade since The Sims 4 first launched, EA doesn't seem to be slowing down with the Expansion Packs - most recently giving us July's Lovestruck. There were some wild rumours that The Sims 5 has been 'cancelled' due to staff layoffs, and while that might not be the case, it seems there's some truth to there being no fifth entry planned as yet.
The Sims 5 is 'dead'
Speaking to Variety, The Sims General Manager Kate Gorman has explained why we aren't getting The Sims 5. According to Gorman, the main stumbling block is the idea that another mainline game would require players to start from scratch. With a loyal playerbase of some 80 million, that was too much of a risk for the publisher.
Referring to how the previous mainline entries were replacements for the ones that came before, Gorman said, "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."
The Sims 4 will be kept alive via expansions, and fans will have the ability to sell their custom content through the EA store as “Creator Kits.” It's all part of a more creative Sims community, but for those expecting a new-gen revamp under the banner of The Sims 5, we're fresh out of luck. So, what about Project Rene?
As mentioned in a new blog post, Project Rene will bring multiplayer to the world of The Sims. You might remember when The Sims Online arrived on the scene in 2002 but ended up being something of a disaster. "We have a lot of learnings from ‘The Sims Online.’ We know that there is an opportunity to play in a very social, real time, multiplayer environment within our gamespace," said Gorman.
"We haven’t delivered that experience with ‘The Sims 4’ or any of our other titles yet so we’re looking at what that means and could look like. We know simulation is at the core of everything we do and we want to make sure our players still have that experience they want, but in a world with real players and NPCs. We’re still gathering learnings and working on it but stay tuned."
Project Rene is finally moving forward, with the blog post confirming it's "focused on building ways for friends to meet, connect, and share while playing together in an all-new world." We're told there will be an invite-only playtest' in Fall 2024, giving us an early look at this multiplayer experience.
Even if we could eventually see The Sims 5 move into the neighbourhood, it doesn't sound like EA is ready to let go of The Sims 4 anytime soon. Project Rene is still an exciting prospect that can finally give us the multiplayer Simsperience we've always wanted, but hopefully, the ghosts of The Sims Online won't be haunting us.
About The Author
Tom Chapman
Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.
