Will The Sims 5 be announced at The Sims Summit?

With the ‘Behind the Sims Summit’ right around the corner, it’s time to speculate on what we could see at this mysterious online event. Will they officially announce The Sims 5?!

I say mysterious because I really hope they are going to announce something great and it’s not going to be something trivial!

Tuesday 18th October 2022 will be an exciting day for Sims fans! Not only is The Sims 4 base game going free to play but also because of an extremely exciting (we hope) Livestream that will take place at 10 am PT (6 pm UK time).

The ‘Behind The Sims Summit is described by EA and The Sims team officially as a ‘special edition stream’. They have set in bold that there will be updates for The Sims 4 in this upcoming stream so that is guaranteed but that doesn’t mean that The Sims 5 (or whatever they’re calling the next installment of The Sims) won’t be announced.

BUT are we once again on track to a big letdown? Given our combined track history between The Sims and its fans over the recent years, we could be. Surely it would have just been catchier to call this stream ‘The Sims Summit? Perhaps that title in itself is something to be wary of… or excited for. You’re messing with me EA!

I haven’t been this Sim-cited (trademark, lol) for a long time. The thought of a new addition to the franchise to get me back playing is enough to make my plumbob burst!

Looking back.

When they announced The Sims 4 there was a trailer showing the new Sims alongside real people and, more than anything else, it revealed how cartoony the sims were going to be in comparison to the previous games. It was quite shocking at the time. Looking back that was a big reflection on The Sims 4 and how it has evolved over the years. It was launched at a time when graphics in games really pushed the boundaries and people were curious as to how The Sims, a game with people at its core, would sit in that world.

They went with a cartoony look and an overall smoothness to the environment and experience. I feel that this has really hurt the essence of The Sims and they’ve lost that charm and humour that The Sims 1-3 had. I really hope that The Sims 5 is true to what The Sims is and that the graphics are not the leading factor. Obviously, it needs to look good but not at the cost of the game mechanics.

Over the past 8 years, I have lost faith in the game with all its ongoing faults and neverending broken content releases. This makes me nervous for the next installment but I know that the team behind these games are amazing and will take all the pitfalls The Sims 4 has seen and learn from them moving forward.

Myself and Dan from BeyondSims speculated about this Sims Summit event in this month’s edition of our podcast. If you’re into podcasts have a listen!

Ok, let’s break it down…

What makes me think we will get a Sims 5 announcement at The Sims 4?

• It’s been 8 years of The Sims 4.
• They’re hyping something (they really can’t say any more than they have and nor should they, we don’t want leaks!).
• Creators have been getting invites (why do that if it’s not something big?).
• They’ve had another rebrand.
• The Sims 4 will be free to play (perhaps the perfect way to have it sit alongside The Sims 5).
• It’s been in development for a while.
• People want it. We are so ready!
• I’m so blinded by my need to get The Sims 5 that I can’t see logic anymore.
• It’s been 8 years (did I already say that?)

What makes me think we won’t?

• They have a habit of hyping things up that aren’t that great.
• The Sims 4 could (and will) go on for so much longer.
• They rebrand so often that this time could be literally just for the new route The Sims 4 is taking.

What do you think? Is a Sims 5 announcement imminent? Will you be tuning in just in case?

PS. Does anyone else feel the need to decrypt the Simlish/colours/everything in the image above?!