Highlights
- The Sims fan base eagerly awaits The Sims 5, with leaks and rumors providing several insights into the game’s development.
- Project Rene leaks have revealed details on apartment customization, character design, and the use of Unreal Engine 5.
- Though Maxis has faced backlash over cartoonish character designs, potential Denuvo DRM integration, and a possible compromise on mod support in The Sims 5, it is important to note that leaks and rumors are not offical – even if they are appearing constantly.
The wait for the next iteration of a widely popular franchise can often stretch for years after a release, and in the case of The Sims, fans had been sitting tight for almost a decade as they wait for The Sims 5. In October 2022, the fan base caught the first whiff of signs of development of the title, with Electronic Arts unveiling the Project Rene working title for its next big entry into the life simulator genre. Official updates about the game’s development have made the rounds now and again, but leaks and rumors have been somewhat consistent and equally exciting. Some of the most viral snippets surrounding The Sims 5 have come through leaks, and this barrage of rumors doesn’t appear to be in danger of ending any time soon.
Leaks are an expected part of the game development process nowadays, despite developers’ best efforts to keep details firmly under wraps. In recent years, titles like Genshin Impact and Grand Theft Auto 6 have suffered high-profile leaks, and The Sims 5, codenamed Project Rene, is no different from its RPG counterparts. Leaks concerning The Sims 5 have made for great talking points on social media, some positive and others not so much, and the reaction to such disclosures could play a role in steering Maxis on the right path in its development of the next blockbuster installment.
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Leaks Spell Trouble For The Sims 5
The initial announcement of Project Rene’s development at the Behind The Sims Summit left players with more questions than answers. The showcase displayed scant footage of decorations and environmental outlays, and given the heightened curiosity of the fan base, it was only a matter of time before leaks stepped in to fill the gap.
Project Rene Leaks Tease Apartments and Character Design
The first round of unofficial details concerning Project Rene came a little over a week after its initial announcement, as fans gained unauthorized access to the playtest, which primarily contained furniture testing and apartment customization. While some of the detail seen in Project Rene‘s numerous pictorial leaks had already been teased by Maxis in the past, features like the multi-share tool and furniture menus have caught the attention of the series’ fan base. There also appears to be an increased degree of freedom regarding item placement, with the developer allowing clutter to give a more homely feel to its buildings.
Those leaks, which made the rounds around the end of 2022, are just the tip of the iceberg in a string of rumors that have birthed controversies in The Sims fandom. Additionally, recent leaks have revealed the prospective art style of Sims in Project Rene, and their cartoonish finish has given rise to pushback from the community. Although The Sims franchise has typically featured characters with cartoony appearances, Maxis’ commitment to developing The Sims 5 to support gameplay on mobile phones and computers appears to have exaggerated the effect even further. Realism in character design is a general expectation from AAA titles at this juncture, and the leaks are viewed as an unwelcome compromise in quality on the developer’s part.
Denuvo Rumors Are Making The Sims’ Fan Base Uneasy
Seemingly to combat the pirating risk from the playtest saga, recent rumors are stating that The Sims 5 is being built using Unreal Engine 5 instead of Frostbite, and there’s a sense that Denuvo will also feature in The Sims 5‘s development. On the surface, the anti-tamper DRM doesn’t seem like a bad idea, but Denuvo has garnered a bad reputation in recent years since outages in its system back in 2021 left a host of games unplayable for long stretches of time.
Apart from this potential issue, mods form a critical part of The Sims‘ offerings, and Denuvo could sideline this core component of the franchise’s functionality. It remains to be seen if the leaks hold any water officially, so fans will have to wait for more official updates from Maxis before coming to a verdict about how The Sims 5 is coming along thus far.
The Sims 4
The Sims 4 is the latest offering from Maxis and The Sims Studio, serving as a sequel to The Sims 3. Although it was released back in 2014, the game is still going strong today thanks to an array of DLC add-on packs that give players access to more unlockable items and events.
- Released
- September 2, 2014
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Genre(s)
- Simulation
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Crude Humor, Sexual Themes, Violence
- How Long To Beat
- N/A
- X|S Enhanced
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 22 GB (November 2023)
- Metascore
- 70