What makes a video game worth playing? Is it because it has exciting gameplay? Or is it because it has a good community behind it?
These are questions that popped into my head when I started to think about why the Sims franchise became so popular. Since it’s release in 2000, the Sims has become arguably the most famous life simulation game. It’s quirky and vibrant gameplay features have attracted players, leading to them spending thousands of hours building houses and creating virtual families for years now.
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The standout and most controversial aspect of the Sims is by far the packs system. Each pack introduces a new aspect of the game allowing the player to customize their gameplay.
However, all of this comes for the not-so-small price of $39.99 per pack. In fact, to own all 71 packs that the Sims 4- the latest iteration of the franchise- offers will cost you $1,235. The high cost has drawn criticism from players, who accuse EA of prioritizing new packs over fixing bugs in existing ones or improving the base game.
As a result, players have had a growing reliance on modders (independent coders who create additional content for the game) to patch bugs and issues in the game. This is a responsibility that shouldn’t be left to them, especially when most modders offer their work for free. Frustrations worsened when the base game was made free, leading players to feel cheated out of the money they originally payed.
Image Credit: Mahdi Bafande from Unsplash
For a long time now, players have had no alternatives due to the Sims being the most advanced game within the life simulation genre. However, this is coming to an end.
South Korean company Krafton launched InZoi, a life simulation game, on 30th April 2024. The game has been said to have the aim of ushering in the next generation of life simulation games. Last month, the character creator was released on Steam for a short period, gaining a total of 18,000 players at one point. The game sparked curiosity within the Sims community, resulting in many Sims content creators covering the game.
InZoi isn’t the only life simulation game threatening the Sims’ reign over the life simulation genre, with the long-awaited game Paralives looking like it will be released by the end of next year. Indie designer Alex Massé's game, inspired by The Sims, offers more detail and has attracted a large following of Sims players looking for an alternative.
Image Credit: Caspar Camille Rubin from Unsplash
Though it is unclear whether the Sims team has recognized that it is now facing competition for the first time in years, its obvious that the development team are stepping up their game.
The success of the last expansion pack- Lovestruck- has given players reason to have hope. The love-themed pack has completely revolutionized the game’s romantic interactions and has shown a possible shift in the audience, recognizing the game’s teenage and adult player who have kept the franchise alive.
However, after the recent announcement of the Life and Death expansion pack for the game’s 10th birthday, players are unsure whether to be excited or not. This is because of the Sims' recent track record of having unfinished features and uninteresting gameplay within packs which has previously left players disappointed.
But the real question is, are all of these promised packs and updates enough to save the Sims franchise from the threat of it's upcoming competitors? Ultimately, it’s all up to the players. With the next game in the franchise -Project Rene- due to release in 2026, the developers will have to fight to prove to players that the uncertainty and dissatisfaction formerly experienced is a thing of the past.
Could this be the final chapter for the Sims franchise? Only time will tell.
