EA’s ‘The Sims 4’ Hits Important Milestone Despite No Appearance At E3
The Sims 4 fans who tuned into EA’s Electronic Entertainment Expo press conference are probably disappointed today. Despite the proven longevity of the simulation series, EA opted not to include The Sims 4 in its E3 press conference.
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, EA announced that The Sims 4 would not be part of their three-day EA Play event. EA Play, which runs from June 12 to June 14, is not technically part of E3, but rather a separate event occurring in Los Angeles and London. Given that The Sims 4 was never meant to appear at EA Play, it stands to reason that EA also never planned to showcase The Sims 4 at E3.
It seems that some fans still held out hope that EA and Maxis would make a big announcement for The Sims 4 during E3. Those hopes were dashed during EA’s press conference, and fans took to the official forums and Twitter to voice their dissatisfaction.
“I don’t get why EA treats The Sims like an unwanted child. It’s like they are embarrassed to place the game on the same pedestal as other games. Well, I guess I do get it as hardcore games would probably groan as soon as The Sims is mentioned”
@IGN why didn't ea say anything about the sims 4 #E32016
— joekilla1843 (@joekilla1843) June 12, 2016
According to IGN, EA’s E3 2016 press conference focused on several intellectual properties. AAA titles such as Mass Effect: Andromeda, Battlefield 1, and Titanfall 2. A string of games set in the Star Wars universe were announced with release dates as late as 2017. Even Fe, a new indie game in the vein of last year’s Unravel, was announced.
Even the monumental success of The Sims 4 comes with an asterisk. The news of The Sims 4‘s 5 million copies sold milestone was not contained in any formal announcement from EA or Maxis. The information was gleaned from a tweet by producer Dave Miotke, also known as SimGuruNinja. In a series of tweets on June 7, 2016, Miotke shared images of a grilled cheese bar held in honor of the release of The Sims 4 Dine Out. Near the end of the festivities, Miotke also shared his collection of pins related to The Sims 4.
Got you covered. pic.twitter.com/3VkE6zp8O6
— Dave Miotke (@SimGuruNinja) June 7, 2016
The fact that EA didn’t cover The Sims 4 during E3 doesn’t necessarily mean that the company doesn’t acknowledge the success of the franchise. Nor does it imply that EA or Maxis are washing their hands of the popular life simulation franchise. In fact, there are clues to the future of the franchise, if one knows where to look.
Sims VIP reports that EA has reserved the titles of future content for The Sims 4. The first release, The Sims 4 Kids Room Stuff, was announced during last month’s quarterly future content video. Though fans of The Sims 4 knew the theme of the upcoming stuff pack, the name has yet to be confirmed by the producers of The Sims 4. The other stuff pack, The Sims 4 Backyard Stuff, has not been announced by EA, Maxis, or anyone on the development team. While the existence of The Sims 4 Backyard Stuff is still firmly in the realm of rumor, it’s possible there is a grain of truth behind it.
The next future content video from the team at Maxis should be released in August. The impending video should cover content releases for The Sims 4 through the fall. Given that the most recent release for The Sims 4 was the Dine Out Game Pack, it is likely that the next content video will announce a stuff pack and an expansion pack.
[Image via The Sims]
