It’s been over a decade since The Sims 4 first hit store shelves. While The Sims 4 has received 17 expansions in that time and is still receiving new content at a consistent rate, many fans are craving an all-new Sims experience. EA’s Project Rene is set to be such an experience, but fans might have to wait a bit longer to play it.
When Project Rene was officially confirmed to be in the works back in October 2022, Vice President of Franchise Creative for The Sims, Lyndsay Pearson, stated the game was in “very early” development and that it was still a few years out. Despite not seeing much official footage from the game over the last two years, there’s a chance Project Rene could release in 2025. But it might be a better idea to wait until next year.
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Project Rene Might Want to Hold Off Until 2026
2025 Is Shaping Up to be a Busy Year for the Life-Sim/Cozy Game Genre
The life-simulation genre has grown increasingly popular over the last decade or so thanks to leading titles like Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley, and, of course, The Sims. The genre has become so popular, in fact, that at least six highly-anticipated life-sim/cozy games are set to launch in 2025.
The first cozy game to release in 2025 will be Hello Kitty Island Adventure, a former Apple Arcade exclusive that’s about to hit consoles and PC on January 30. Two months later, Wanderstop, Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game, and inZOI are all set to release. Though Wanderstop‘s development team has an impressive lineage and Tales of the Shire has some strong brand recognition, it’s inZOI that Sims fans are mostly excited about, with it promising “deep and detailed” life-sim gameplay built using Unreal Engine 5.
If that wasn’t enough cozy life-sim gameplay, fans of the genre can also look forward to Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma and Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, both of which are set to release later in 2025.
2025 Is Already Packed With Long-Awaited Franchise Follow-Ups
While EA’s Project Rene would undoubtedly have more brand recognition than just about every title mentioned, it would be far from the only big AAA franchise entry to release in 2025. This year, countless franchises are set to receive long-awaited follow-ups, some of which fans have waited the best part of a decade for or longer.
Fable is finally set to make its return this year, marking 15 years since the last mainline entry in the series. Civilization 7 is hitting store shelves in February, almost nine years after Civ 6. Monster Hunter Wilds is set to launch in the same month, seven years after Monster Hunter: World. And, of course, Grand Theft Auto 6 is slated to arrive in 2025, potentially landing 12 whole years after GTA 5.
Though Project Rene would be able to offer a completely different gameplay experience to these titles, it might be best for it to still avoid their release windows. EA will presumably want all eyes to be on Project Rene when it eventually launches, especially if it still plans on going free-to-play, so it’ll need to pick a moment where the industry isn’t being flooded with other headline-worthy video games.
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