The highly-anticipated Sims event, Behind The Sims Summit. revealed a large amount of new information about the series, including upcoming games, collaborations, and more. The celebration of the franchise coincides with The Sims 4 becoming free for all new players, which caused massive speculation about the news that would be coming about the future of the mainline series. However, the Behind The Sims Summit did not just focus on The Sims 4, providing new information about The Sims Freeplay and The Sims Mobile as well.
The Behind The Sims Summit began with a segment with the Sims Executive Producer Phil Ring, who spoke on The Sims 4 becoming free and what players can expect from the game going forwards. Ring stated that based on the positive user feedback regarding Sims Delivery Express Drops - which are small, free content additions to the game - updates for The Sims 4 can now be expected monthly. Ring also said that developers have "more Packs, more Kits, and more free updates" planned that will be given more detail once their progress is further along.
The presentation also focused on the early details for two upcoming Sims 4 Expansion Packs that are set to release in 2023, although their names were not given. Concept art for two new Worlds were shown, with one of the images showing what appears to be a colorful shopping center area, and the other showing Sims walking along the water with a San Francisco-esque bridge backdrop. Images shown showcasing "New Builds" include rustic wooden furniture in a kitchen and a cozy bedroom, and new items shown in another collection referred to as "New Ways To Tell Your Sims Story" include dentures in a glass cup, a messy jewelry box, storage boxes filled with tapes and photos, a pink chair, and new lingerie. One of the most important parts of the segment came at the end: audio of a baby crying, foreshadowing new changes being made to infants in The Sims 4.
The next key segment came from Lyndsay Pearson, the Vice President of Franchise Creative for The Sims. Pearson announced that there will soon be a new "trusted destination" where Sims 4 players can find mods and custom content for the game via a collaboration with software platform Overwolf - which runs mod aggregate site CurseForge - that aims to offer a more curated experience. Upon launch the service will feature collaborations with creators like beloved custom content maker HeyHarrie, one of many creators EA has assembled into what they called "The Mod Squad." More information about the platform will be revealed this holiday season. In terms of collaborations, The Sims has also partnered with Brazilian singer Anitta for a new creative project that involves a Sims-themed music video, although that's all that was revealed during the presentation.
The Sims Freeplay is set to receive a graphics overhaul for the first time since its release a decade ago, with major improvements being made to Sim faces and bodies at all life stages. Hairstyles are also now finally compatible across all genders, and more skin tones and other customization options are set to be added in the future. In a rare update for The Sims Freeplay, an entirely new home type called superyachts will be added to the game in early 2023. A seasonal event called "Christmas in the Heir" will come to Freeplay in December, which will offer special in-game narrative options. The Sims Mobile will also release balconies later this year as a new Build/Buy Mode addition.
The biggest announcement from the Behind The Sims Summit was for the next generation of Sims franchise plans that has been revealed under the codename "Project Rene," which was chosen because it's "reminiscent of words like renaissance, renewal, and rebirth." Lyndsay Pearson returned to discuss how Project Rene "represents a renewed commitment to The Sims" and the main goals of the new title: continuing to enhance storytelling for solo players or those looking to play and design with friends across all platforms. It's important to note that this project was not explicitly announced as The Sims 5 - while it's likely that's what Project Rene will turn out to be, it's no guarantee.
Pearson showed a short bit of early footage from Project Rene, focusing on the new creative tools featured in the upcoming Sims title. Video demonstrated that individual parts of furniture will now be able to be customized beyond simple swatches - players can also adjust individual pieces, with footage showing a base, headboard, and footboard for a bed all being changed separately in one clip, and individual pillows being placed and moved around on a couch in another. One of the hugest takeaways was the return of the color wheel, a beloved Sims 3 feature that will be a part of Project Rene alongside what appears to be expanded custom pattern options.
Project Rene will allow players to play or create by themselves or with friends, and new tools aim to make build sharing easier than ever before, with footage showing a user highlighting the furniture of a room and quickly publishing it to a Sims Gallery-type service. New crossplay options were also demonstrated during the presentation, showing a player with a work-in-progress room open on both a computer and phone - both of which updated with the same furniture regardless of which platform the piece was added from. Pearson stated that over the next few years, the Project Rene team will share more about the new software and eventually open it to early access, with a goal of getting as much feedback from players as possible at every step in the process.
Players have long felt The Sims 4 needs to fix babies in-game, as they essentially currently function as pieces of furniture that do not leave their bassinet until toddler age. It seems this will finally be addressed in 2023, as the Behind The Sims Summit was closed out with a reprisal of the baby cry from earlier in the presentation, followed by brief footage of a Sim baby crawling across the ground, sitting up, and sneezing. The event ended with text that read "The Sims 4: Expecting 2023," however it's currently unclear whether updated infants will be part of an update or DLC.
The Behind The Sims Summit has revealed that Sims fans of all kinds have many things to look forward to over the next year or so. New updates for The Sims Mobile and The Sims Freeplay are just around the corner, as is lots of new content for The Sims 4. There's still a lot to learn about the future of the new modding and custom content platform, collaborations with creators, and the specifics of new DLC, but this event gave a good overview for what Sims players can expect from the franchise in the near future.
The Sims 4 is now free for Playstation Consoles, Xbox consoles, and PC and Mac via Origin or the EA App. Exact release dates for all other updates and new content have not yet been released.