Electronic Arts has confirmed that The Sims 5, officially still known by its codename Project Rene, will be free-to-play.
The creative vice president of The Sims franchise has appeared in a new installment of the official Behind The Sims videos to discuss some details of the upcoming game.
For starters, Project Rene will not be a premium release, but will instead be released as a free download.
According to EA, there will be no purchase required to start playing and there will be no subscriptions or energy mechanics.
The Sims 4 moved to the free-to-play format a year ago by making the base game free.
Although Project Rene “won’t start with all the existing content in The Sims 4,” the company promises to “add new experiences and content over time.”
The base mechanics will be free for everyone, while certain paid content will delve deeper into them. In the example they give, all users will have access to weather conditions, but they could launch a hypothetical winter sports content pack that added more snow-focused systems such as building dolls or ice skating.
The arrival of Project Rene will not mean the end of The Sims 4, which will coexist with the next installment of the franchise. Likewise, current Sims mobile games will continue to receive content in the future.
Project Rene was officially revealed in October 2022. It will be playable on multiple platforms and will focus on customizing decorative elements.
