The next Sims game is still a long way off, but Maxis is already sharing sneak peeks of their project, codenamed Project Rene.

Electronic Arts did not announce The Sims 5 during today’s Behind The Sims Summit Livestream, at least not in so many words. It continues to describe the next Sims game as “the future of The Sims”, but has already given it a working title, “Project Rene”.

Lyndsay Pearson, creative vice president of EA’s The Sims franchise, referred to Project Rene during the live stream as the “next generation Sims game and creative platform” before giving a glimpse into some of the editing tools and cross-platform play.

The next Sims game seems to bring back an expanded version of the Create-A-Style tool familiar from The Sims 3. I’m really happy about this because it’s basically the only thing I want from The Sims 5. Maxis has shown that you can choose patterns, materials, unique colors, and even modular pieces like different sofa backs or bed headboards for each part of a piece of furniture. Oh, and it looks like some items (the sofa cushions in the video shown) can be rotated on the Z axis, something Sims 4 players can only do with a popular mod.

It also appears that it will allow you to collaborate with friends by sharing designs more directly than the current Sims Gallery, which is known for being a rather cumbersome way to exchange creations.

In a blog post about the livestream, Maxis writes that “players will be able to choose to play alone or collaborate with others, and will have the option to play their game across supported devices,” referring to the live decor editing between desktop and mobile demonstrated during the show. The “collaborate” part is less clear. Maxis may be planning some sort of full-fledged multiplayer, but so far there’s been no specifics on the scope.

Pearson explains that Project Rene, whatever it’s really called (“Sims Infinite” or maybe just “The Sims”?), is still a few years away.

“Over the next few years, we will continue to share updates with you all about Project Rene,” Pearson says. “We’ll be sharing work in progress, discoveries, insights and behind-the-scenes content, and over time we’ll begin to open up early access to Project Rene software to small groups of people.

“It’s super early for us, and we’ve never shared information about our games years before they’re released to the world, but we’re really excited to take you on this journey with us.”

Forrás: PC Gamer