A brand-new rumor has suggested that the upcoming Maxis title,The Sims 5, could be free-to-play upon its release.The Sims 4went free-to-play last year, and it seems that it has been successful enough to see a change in the business model for the sequel.
Little is known aboutThe Sims 5at present, other than the codename:Project Rene. Maxis has been dropping hints about the sequel in a series of videos, usually teasing it alongside expansion packs forThe Sims 4.Project Renewas first revealed in late-2022, around the timeThe Sims 4went free-to-play, and updates have been sporadic at best. Maxis has given players a very brief look at gameplay of the new title, but it seems to be extremely early days at the moment.
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As first reported by PCGamesN, a job listing posted online seems to hint towardThe Sims 5being a free-to-play title. The role, Head of Monetization and Marketplace onProject Rene, refers to the game as “free-to-enter,” which also hints toward the possibility of expansion packs. This won’t be a shock to anyone who has ever played aSimsgame before.The Simsgames have a long history of expansion packsdating back to the original game, and they remain a key part of the business model to this day. However,The Sims 5being free-to-play at launch would be brand-new territory for the franchise, and it’ll be interesting to see if this rumor comes to fruition.
In this day and age of gaming, live service titles are becoming more common and the primary concern for fans ofThe Simsfranchise is that many high-profile live service games have often shut down rather quick after launch. However,The Simsis a special case, and this is why players shouldn’t worry. With the constant DLC for every game in the franchise,The Simstitles essentially wrote the blueprint for the live service business model. In a way, it has already been doing live service for years, but that hasn’t stopped Maxis from supporting each title for many years. There shouldn’t be any deviation from that withThe Sims 5. On the surface, the only difference for players will be the price at launch, and that’s a good thing.
While every piece of news aboutThe Sims 5is exciting, it’s important to remember thatThe Sims 4is not quite done yet. Just recently,The Sims 4revealed the Horse Ranch expansion pack, bringing one of the most-requested features by fans into the game. Maxis hasn’t confirmed when development onThe Sims 4content will finally wind down, but with a sequel still seemingly some way away and the DLC continuing to sell well, it almost certainly won’t be any time soon. Players on the fence about tryingThe Sims 4should certainly pick it up, given it’s free-to-play and has plenty of gas left in the tank yet.
