Has The Sims 5 been cancelled? Project Rene explained
Everything we know about the state of EA's iconic series.
It's already been more than 10 years since EA first brought The Sims 4 to our screens. So, where on earth is The Sims 5?
As one of EA's longest-running and most successful series, many fans are unsurprisingly baffled as to why the elusive Sims 5 hasn't made an appearance yet.
Well, it's more complicated than it seems, with the developers working on a new, multiplayer Sims experience, codenamed 'Project Rene'.
So, what does this all mean? Has The Sims 5 been cancelled? What actually is Project Rene? For everything you need to know, read on!
Has The Sims 5 been cancelled?
Despite previous reports claiming that The Sims 5 is in development, EA has confirmed that it is not making The Sims 5.
EA is not making The Sims 5 "as a replacement for 4", anyway, according to Kate Gorman – EA's vice president – talking to Variety.
Gorman explains that EA "will continue to bring HD simulation experience and what people would want from a 5 — but it doesn’t mean that we’re going to start you over, reset all your progress, and really feel like you’re going to lose all of that amazing play you put into 4".
EA doesn't want its millions of The Sims 4 players to have to restart after a decade of progress and building.
Gorman adds that: "The future of the franchise looks more like keeping your progress, keeping things across titles, and really having an ongoing experience, and not a start-and-stop experience between products."
What is The Sims Project Rene?
Previously, game director Grant Rodiek said in a stream: "Project Rene is not an MMO [massively multiplayer online game]. It is not this public, shared space where everything you do is always with other people...
"You can play on your own, on your terms, and then again, when you want [and] on your terms, you can invite others to come and play with you."
In the Variety interview, Gorman added: "We know that there is an opportunity to play in a very social, real-time, multiplayer environment within our gamespace."
In terms of what Project Rene will contain, Gorman is remaining tight-lipped as the development team works on the title.
"We know simulation is at the core of everything we do, and we want to make sure our players still have that experience they want, but in a world with real players and NPCs. We’re still gathering learnings and working on it - but stay tuned."
When could Project Rene come out?
Without official word from EA, we cannot say for certain when Project Rene will come out.
Don't expect it until sometime in 2026 at least, though, as details are scarce on the project as of writing. It's still got a project name, after all.
We could be waiting longer, too. Time will tell when the Project Rene release date will be and, hopefully, EA enlightens us on the multiplayer Sims project sooner rather than later.
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Authors
Ben Huxley is a freelance contributor to Radio Times, with bylines also in TechRadar, WhatCulture, GAMINGbible, and Live Science. A writer of fiction, too, he has a few short stories published and a novel on the way. He has a BA in English Literature, and an MA in creative writing.
Toby Saunders is a freelance writer specialising in Video Game journalism. He has a wealth of experience in the field and is published on many different websites including PCGamesN, Nintendo Life and Pocket Tactics. He has a degree in Film Studies (he gets to write about Film and TV occasionally, too).
