Nearly two years ago, EA began teasing Project Rene, a modern installment in the Sims series that most gamers believed would become The Sims 5. However, in the wake of EA announces that it has no plans for The Sims 5 a modern set of screenshots from Project Rene were leaked last month, and the community is concerned about some pretty substantial supposed changes that have been made since the game’s launch.
Last week, several images from a recent Project Rene test leaked online, showing off some of the game’s modern features for the first time. Although Project Rene is still in development, many players have begun to criticize the changed art style, confined scope, and prominent operate of online microtransactions.
Several fans shared comparisons of earlier Project Rene images to these apparent leaks, with many surmising that the studio had to change development plans to make the game more mobile-friendly, which in turn diminished its art style.
I can’t believe that Project Rene has changed course from a promising successor to The Sims 4 to some nasty mobile game that will be another ad-filled moneymaker pic.twitter.com/55zBbi4vJI
— Tom (@simshive) September 29, 2024
These leaked images also show gameplay, which appears to include a to-do list, a chat window, and a petite area to explore. Most notably, the game allows you to work in a coffee shop, prompting players to draw comparisons to The Sims Mobile, a 2018 EA game that also featured a coffee shop (and stopped receiving modern updates earlier this year).
New photos from ‘Project Rene’ (which is NOT The Sims 5) pic.twitter.com/hSkPSkokuk
— Nostalgia The Sims (@Sims_Nostalgia) September 29, 2024
Quite a few players have also noticed that the leaked images apparently feature a mobile-style coin tab. These coins are apparently rewards for completing tasks and can be used to purchase modern outfits. However, due to the game’s mobile format, quite a few players assumed that there would be microtransactions in the game.
🚨 LEAKS 🚨
New screenshots of The Sims: Project Rene have been published, so it’s not the number “5”, this time it’s The Sims: Project Rene for mobile devices.
📸 @darrel840901#TheSims#TheSimsProjectRene pic.twitter.com/OESP3Q3iC4
— Like Life Sim (@LikeLifeSim) September 29, 2024
You all must understand. The Sims team has said that Renee’s project will be free to play. There will be a lot of microtransactions, and this little icon here will tell us everything we need to know about their plans for this game. pic.twitter.com/mTDOvUiiqJ
— TheSimYin (@TheSimYin) September 30, 2024
Due to comparisons with the original Project Rene announcement, which showed off a detailed furniture customization system that led players to believe the game would become The Sims 5, many players suggested that Project Rene could have been downsized internally or even scrapped and replaced entirely .
Project Rene, released in 2022, is a free-to-play multiplayer Sims game inspired by Animal Crossing and Among Us. It hasn’t been formally revealed or given a release date yet, but since its announcement, EA has been hosting petite invite-only playtests, and the latest playtest is likely what caused the recent leaks.
Amelia Zollner is a freelance writer at IGN who loves all things indie and Nintendo. In addition to IGN, they have contributed to sites such as Polygon and Rock Paper Shotgun, and recently released a game called Garage sale. Find them on Twitter: @ameliazolllner.
