NEW LEAK: Early Look at The Sims Project Rene – Back When It Was Meant to Be The Sims 5

Turns out that all the years of reporting on The Sims 5 were true after all.

Maxis and Electronic Arts were indeed working on The Sims 5. Or at least that's what Project Rene initially was until it took several turns and expanded into two projects.

Project Rene WAS The Sims 5

The game's Art Director Mark Holmes, who worked on The Sims Project Rene for almost 6 years referred to the project as "Sims 5". He worked on the game as both a Principle Narrative Designer and Art Director.

So, what went wrong?

We reported as soon as the development started back in August 2018 that a next generation Sims game is in development. Also referred to as The Sims 5.

The project quickly got an official statement that it was in development by EA CEO Andrew Wilson, who revealed that the next generation Sims game would be both single player and multiplayer. Some additional reportings of The Sims Project Lotus being in development surfaced back in 2021, with exciting patents for new technologies and career opportunities hinting at Story and Narrative Features.

This was all concluded with the final reveal of The Sims Project Rene back in October 2022, when The Sims 4 went free-to-play and excitement came over for a next generation Sims game. Unfortunately, it appeared that The Sims 4 going free-to-play would delay a lot of things. And seemingly cancel them.

The essential team that made The Sims 5 and Project Rene a reality dispersed by 2024. The Art Director that revealed the words of "The Sims 5" above was in development left in October 2023, with Grant Rodiek announcing their departure just 3 months after.

By 2024, it would be confirmed that The Sims 5 is not happening. Instead we got a lot more Sims 4 content and promises of The Sims Project Rene - which in the beginning of this year was referred to as a Mobile-first multiplayer experience.

The latest Sims insider talks revolve around The Sims Project X, which is a mix of The Sims 4 and The Sims Project Rene technology. The game supposedly has a deadline until September next year, and the focus on it is bigger than on Project Rene (Multiplayer) - which EA has allegedly already completed for launch.

The Sims Project Rene as The Sims 5 Development: Early Concepts and Research & Development

We found the following images on Twitter / X thanks to user @PattonKieran, who shared early images of The Sims Project Rene when it was being developed as The Sims 5.

Keep in mind that The Sims 5 / The Sims Project Rene was always meant to be a multi-platform experience from the start. the only split that happened later was making The Sims Project Rene a multiplayer-only experience, with The Sims Project X taking the place now as a single-player only experience.

The following images and material were shared by multiple developers online, later reposted on Twitter. Note that they don't represent the final state of what the games could look like - only early research, exploration and game and concept development. The Sims Project Lotus seems to be the early stage name of The Sims Project Rene, also carrying the new simulation technology of Dynamic Motives which technically were in a shape of a lotus. This would later be carried over into the current version of Rene and possibly The Sims Project X.

The Sims Project Lotus

The following images and work shown below was done and published by developer Geoffrey C Mitchell.

According to the portfolio, the team was exploring:

• Mobile play + cross-platform synergy
• Synchronous, asynchronous & asymmetric multiplayer
• Story-driven gameplay with narrative customization and sharing
• More unique, authentic and dynamic Sims and relationships

Established interactive Simulation Gameplay platform and modular implementation dev tool-set to fundamental re-imagine a Sims experience that is:

Mobile play and cross-platform synergy - Multiplayer, synchronous, async., and asymmetric Story-driven with narrative customization & sharing Empowered by better, more unique, authentic, dynamic characters & connections

One of the most interesting concepts was Dynamic Motives. The idea was to give Sims motivations based not only on basic needs, but also on their character and current condition, making their behavior feel more meaningful and authentic.

Maxis was also experimenting with different layers of simulation time: Generation → Year → Week → Day → Time of Day → Routine → Activity → Action. These layers could support things like family trees, world story progression, calendars, work schedules, daily routines and day/night cycles.

There’s also a “Morning Routine” prototype showing how Sims could follow context-based behavior: wake up → check needs → shower/use the bathroom → get ready → eat

The Sims Project Rene - Early Development Screens

The following screens shared publicly by Mark Cordell represent early work on The Sims Project Rene from 2018 to 2023:

The images above represent various explorations for The Sims Project Rene. From lot selection across multiple platforms to how characters react to different environments and objects. Down to how different clothing options can react with physics and animations.

The early exploration phases of The Sims Project Rene also show a much larger map of a Sims-inspired Paris world. With prototypes showing much larger streets, more crowded neighborhoods and more.

Each clothing piece seems to have a concept for different modular endings and variations, with furniture being designed with new Sim characters in mind to match different animation scenarios.

The Sims Project Rene, when it was meant to be The Sims 5, looked like an ambitious and very large project. But do keep in mind that The Sims 4 was also like that at start. One of the developers shared Titanopolis - an early pre-production world that never saw the light of day. The big beautiful SimParisian landscapes have been reduced to small multiplayer corner gatherings from what we could see in recent playtests.

Hopefully some of the bigger HD technology showcased above is being used for the upcoming Project X release.

What are your thoughts on The Sims Project Rene from the days when it was meant to be The Sims 5? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned for more Sims News on Sims Community!