EA shies away from Sim 5 due to concerns over expansion bloat

It’s been a while since we heard much about The Sims 5. Unsurprising really, considering that it’s up in the air if it even existed at any point. But a new interview has shed some surprising light on why EA has ditched a new entry in the series; at least for the time being.

Expansion inflation

I think one of the things that puts off many new players coming to The Sims 4 is what I’d dub ‘expansion bloat’. So many great features and mechanics are gated off into separate expansions, and the cost skyrockets if you try and include all of them from the get-go (even with judicious use of sales).

And it seems that EA agrees. In an interview with Variety, EA Entertainment president Laura Miele unveils precisely why EA is reticent to go all-in on The Sims 5.

“What I wouldn’t want to have happen is you to have to start from day zero and start from scratch and give up all of the things that you have created, give up all of the content that you’ve purchased over the years,” Miele said.

“We put out over 85 content packs over the last 10 years on The Sims 4, and so resetting that is not player friendly and not a good idea for our community.”

Good guy EA…?

Now, it’s tempting to think of this as an unusually benevolent move from EA. But I think we’re a little too cynical for that. However, it’s still a good sign that EA is unwilling to take Sims fans for granted so much that they’d ask people to buy the expansions all over again. While expansion bloat is an issue, at least there’s recognition that EA can’t justify a repeat of The Sims 2 & 3.

In the rest of the interview, Miele seems to indicate that there’s a lot of focus behind the scenes on optimisation and upgrades to The Sims 4. Could a major overhaul be on the cards?

Hopefully, a fresh coat of paint (and maybe a few package deals, nudge nudge) would go a long way to injecting new life into The Sims 4.