One of the main selling points of Maxis and EA’s most daring Sims venture, the mysterious Project Rene, is its multiplayer features. While not much has been revealed about the elusive project, EA and Maxis have consistently and constantly reiterated that Project Rene’s multiplayer capacities are the main focus of the game’s team. With this in mind, Project Rene should use preexisting locations or location structures to expand its multiplayer features.
As mentioned, Maxis and EA have remained rather tight-lipped about Project Rene. However, information about the project’s multiplayer features has managed to slip through the cracks, and the mechanics could be game-changing.
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Leaked Information About Project Rene’s Multiplayer Features
Maxis and EA have yet to confirm the exact details of Project Rene’s multiplayer features, including information fans have uncovered through leaks and play testing. However, if these rumors and leaks are true, Project Rene’s multiplayer gameplay seems to be more centralized and isolated than fans were expecting.
The biggest leak surrounding Project Rene’s multiplayer features is a location known as “The Hub.” Allegedly, the Hub acts as a central location for players to participate in weekly events and purchase digital goods. Players can supposedly interact with others in the location. References to the Hub were revealed by a play tester, meaning that the Hub may not be a concrete feature of Project Rene. Once again, none of this information has been confirmed by EA and Maxis.
Project Rene Should Keep the Gallery
The Hub has plenty of potential as the core of Project Rene. Mini-games, group design, and shopping, could be hosted in the area. However, most players expected Project Rene’s multiplayer capacities to be more similar to the Gallery, a platform used to share Sims and builds in The Sims 4.
If multiplayer features in Project Rene go the way of the Gallery, Simmers will have a better baseline understanding of the game before it is released. Currently, Simmers can create builds and Sims before uploading them to the Gallery to share with friends and other gamers. Players have used this platform to show off their creations and Sims content creators have used the platform to give their audience a way to play alongside them.
A version of the Gallery in Project Rene could be quite similar. Rather than simply downloading a build or a Sim to play in one’s own personal game, players could visit other players’ builds or meet their Sims face-to-face.
Project Rene Should Let Players Build Worlds
This feature would be incredible if used to expand Project Rene’s worlds. In previous installments, new worlds, or neighborhoods, are separate locations created by EA and Maxis that players can play and build in. Project Rene could take this base concept and take it even further by allowing Simmers to create their own worlds and neighborhoods from scratch. They could even upload these worlds to Project Rene’s version of the Gallery for further player-to-player contact.
Building worlds could be similar to The Sims franchise’s existing Build and Buy Mode. Rather than creating or renovating one location, players could choose a region or biome type to start with. From there, players could choose the number and size of lots they would like to be included in the world. Then building would truly begin, from residential lots to parks to libraries. Players would also be able to landscape as they please. Items would be chosen from Project Rene’s version of Build and Buy Mode, putting some limit on players. However, with plenty of items to choose from, and more likely added in updates, every world would be unique and distinct.
This expands the possibility of simply visiting other players’ lots to other players’ worlds. Perhaps public, private, or invite features could be added to determine if the world’s creator is comfortable with others renovating their creation. As mentioned previously, this would work perfectly if Project Rene incorporated its own version of the Gallery.
Ultimately, more information about Project Rene will be revealed as EA and Maxis will it. The Sims team has plenty of hard work to accomplish if players want a vast world to explore in Project Rene.
The Sims
Created by Will Wright and Maxis, and published by EA, The Sims is a long-running series of life simulation games with sandbox gameplay. Players create Sims and control every aspect of their lives, from the houses they live in to the jobs they work.