Michael Beckwith 
It’s official. EA Games confirmed that either The Sims 5 was canceled or never existed, the company is instead focused on continued support for The Sims 4 and new projects.
Strictly speaking, The Sims 5 had never been formally announced by EA. However, many simply assumed that Project Rene, which was touted as the next Sims experience, was The Sims 5 in everything but name. Earlier this year, though, there was speculation that The Sims 5 had been quietly canceled thanks to the LinkedIn page of a former EA employee.
Ultimately, whether it was in active development or not, The Sims 5 isn’t going to be a thing, which means fans shouldn’t expect a traditional sequel. So, what does this mean for the future of the series?
The Sims 5 isn’t coming, EA looks for more Sims 4 expansions, user-generated content
There will not be a The Sims 5, with EA instead planning to continue supporting The Sims 4 with new content and user-made content.
Speaking with Variety, EA vice president and general manager of the Sims franchise Kate Gorman confirmed the game will see more paid expansions and general fixes. On top of that, there will be Creator Kits, which will consist of new content and assets built by members of the Sims community.
“These Creator Kits will mark the first time that a full collection of in-game assets have been crafted by a creator and officially published by The Sims development team, making them available for all players.” Gorman told Variety.
The Sims 4 is officially a decade old with an active player base. It makes sense for EA not to push out a brand-new sequel when it still has a lucrative game on its hands, which likely led to possible plans for The Sims 5 being canceled. Gorman cites this as the exact reason behind this decision.
“I think as we think about the future of it, we want you to continue all of those families and generations. Those creations are your progress, your attachment. We don’t want to reset your progress,” Gorman added.
So, any improvements one would expect from a Sims 5 will ideally make their way to The Sims 4 down the line.
It’s clear EA and developer Maxis have a lot of long-term plans for the franchise. As for what’s coming in the immediate future, the next expansion for The Sims 4, titled Life and Death, will launch on October 31. Additionally, the MySims Cozy Bundle will launch for Nintendo Switch on November 19.
Project Rene isn’t canceled, and will actually be playable soon
Project Rene has not been canceled, meaning there will be a new The Sims game at some point, even if it’s not The Sims 5.
Alongside the confirmation of various other news alongside the Variety interview, EA reiterated that Project Rene still exists.
“Continuing its development alongside other exciting new projects within The Sims franchise, Project Rene is focused on building ways for friends to meet, connect, and share while playing together in an all-new world,” EA’s blog post reads.
This wording points to Project Rene prioritizing a multiplayer experience, something The Sims 4 currently lacks. There is a fan-made mod for it, but Project Rene could finally provide official multiplayer support whenever it comes out. There’s also mention of a private playtest for Project Rene later this fall, which will finally lead to some concrete details on the game emerging.
