Highlights
- The potential of The Sims 5 being free to download is a positive for accessibility, allowing more players to enjoy the base game content and potentially growing the Sims community.
- However, The Sims is famous for expensive DLC and expansion packs, which raises concerns about the cost that players may have to pay to fully enjoy the game.
- The fact that Project Rene is free to play at launch may lead to an even greater number of microtransactions, potentially leading to a costly full experience for players.
The Sims 5 has great potential, but its marketing has raised some concerns over it being free to download. Its accessibility isn't an issue, which is a great thing at a surface level, since more players can enjoy its base game content. However, The Sims is notorious for its DLC and expansion packs.
Its fame for expansion packs is well-deserved, as some DLC remains in player's hearts, but a lot of mixed things could come from it being free to play. As accessible as that is, Sims expansion packs can get pricey fast. Since it's supposedly intended to be a multiplayer game, that could be a reason to charge extra for the new packs, kits, and more.
Project Rene Is in a Prime Position to Revamp One of The Sims 4's Least-Appreciated Packs
When it comes to Project Rene, the next Sims installment, there are certain things the game has to do better than its predecessors, like packs.
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Project Rene Being Free-to-Play
The Good Things About Project Rene Being Free
With the game being free-to-play at launch, the Sims community can grow to be bigger than ever before. Given the generally friendly attitude of the community, it would spread positivity like wildfire.
There is also some nostalgia to be had here. With Project Rene being multiplayer and working as an online simulation game, it'll be hard not to see similarities to early 2000s chat room and dress-up games. It's no surprise that some Simmers started out in those dress-up worlds, so being able to have that throwback modernized in the form of the Sims 5 could do wonders. Some nostalgic games it could take inspiration from are:
- Movie Star Planet
- Pixie Hollow
- Animal Jam
The Bad Things About Project Rene Being Free
When its predecessor, The Sims 4, was made free to download, there was a lot of controversy about it. It had been out for so long that it went on sale often enough, and that money spent was now wasted, since the game was free and offered no refunds. Project Rene being free to download could stir the fear that there's already a game on the way to replace it. As unlikely as it sounds, it is still a valid concern.
Also, like The Sims 4, players don't want to see this new Sims project rushed. When Sims 4 was initially launched, the game felt incomplete to many and there was a lot of conflict about the new game. This pattern shouldn't be repeated with Sims 5. It deserves time to be fully fleshed out and be enjoyable for fans when it is released. The stakes are high for this upcoming Sims game.
Though the game was eventually freshened up to be where it is today, The Sims 4 has a notoriously buggy history, which would also harm Project Rene if it continues.
The Unfortunate Truth About Project Rene Being Free
Being free to download at launch may also be an omen of big things to come. As enjoyable as expansion packs and the like can be for Sims players, it's no surprise that they are expensive and sometimes too buggy to play, like the Sims 4 My Wedding Stories pack. If packs come out on launch for players to already be added to their game, it could put Project Rene in a bad light. It sends the message that though the game is free, a full experience is not.
And though there have been claims that Project Rene will not have a paid membership system like a lot of online role-playing games have, that doesn't mean a similar service is off the table. With how many microtransactions there are, there's bound to be some sort of battle pass for the Sims 5 or another similar move. These elements aren't inherently bad, but it can be very easy to make a bad impression when it becomes clear how much it could cost in the long run to enjoy the full experience of the game.
