It would be kind of cool to have a multiplayer mode, but I sure as heck don't want it forced upon me. I would use it occasionally, but 86% of the time I would play on my own, with my own families. Also not interested in switching to another Sims game at the moment.
I think it's a little early to completely dismiss a game that we know very little about. Yes, Sims online was a flop. But that was over a decade ago. So much has changed and developed in the gaming community since then. It's a different environment that it was 10+ years ago. I'm intrigued to see what this new online version will bring. Skeptical, yes, but nonetheless intrigued.
This is kind of a fun article as to what happened. I can get you better sourced if you want. It doesn't even focus on the grossness that was pretty much just ignored.
Even partially online means (most likely) nickel and diming us to death. I didn't invest in TS3 because of the store and I would 100% pass on TS5 if it had anything similar. All the packs are already enough.
EA knows it is sowing confusion among the fanbase of the Sims franchise and will bring its demise if we're forced to play online or in a multiplayer "MMORPG" style. I have been playing the Sims to get away from everything since I was a tween. When I want to play multiplayer games I just log on to any MMORPG really. By doing an online facet it would aim to make mods and CC obsolete and herald the era of paywalls and online micro-transactions to obtain new clothing.
I can only drink and look on from the distance as the fires of greed consume this franchise I once held so dearly.
Heck, I might even dig out my Sims 2, or maybe go find myself an ancient PC to play my Sims 1 stuff.
Already set with my TS2, on 2 machines. One of them is old enough to do TS1, and I' ve a pentium 2 around somewhere. Can't remember if it runs windows of no telling what version or DOS. Remember that?
DOS. Wow, it’s been a while. I’ve fond memories of being up all night manually building webpages and coding old text-based rpg environments. Nothing beats a command line for some things. I built my first (awful) website line by line in a text editor!
Is this official or just speculation? Unless the devs confirm it, I don't buy it. :v
It's speculation. Nothing has been actually confirmed - the idea was just floated by EA's CEO.
Not just speculation. It’s over-exaggeration and clickbait. Nothing was really explained or shown in the interview. Take that news with a grain of salt.
The problem here is that CEO of EA has openly pushed for every single title being online. Because it is far far more profit in that and the "games as services" model. Which is a bubble and already starts to burst, but hey. They never notice that until it's too late. They will ruin about 10 more titles first (they, as in AAA game publishers in general, not just EA).
I understand his business models and schemes. Anthem failed, Mass Effect: Andromeda failed, Star Wars: Battlefront 1 & 2 failed, etc. I still would take this clickbait article with a grain of salt. It’s some form of “news” but at best something not to fuss over about.
Their latest Star Wars game was released and is completely offline. It was a big hit. They might take a turn from the direction of always online games.
The latest SW is only offline single-player because Disney got involved after the failure of the last 3 big budget SW games published by EA. Don’t attribute any of those decisions to EA, they have not followed suit with any of their other games and they have no intention to. They simply did not want to lose the rights to SW and nothing more.
Sims will be online-multiplayer. That is undeniable at this point. They didn’t have enough of an audience in 2014 to make money off the idea. Now that they’ve distributed the game for free or for as little as $5 they probably do.
I hope there is no multiplayer. I've been with SimCity 2013 since the beginning and that was a disaster! SimCity 4 has so much functionality, especially for a 2003 game. Then SimCity 2013 comes along 10 years later and the whole game was stripped away.
If TS5 does go the multiplayer route, I forsee that the game will be so much emphasis put on multiplayer functionality, that the basics that have been with the series since the beginning will be neglected. The Sims 4 was so focused on emotions and the new build mode that the game left out a strong personality system. I've heard others' grievances about their inability to play out stories. I do acknowledge that TS4 did introduce some good things. The rotational play feature is really neat.
Moving forward, I believe we will need to have a discussion on what we want to see. Perhaps there can be surveys. I would like to see the best features between TS2,3,4 such as open world, some sort of emotion system, rotational play, ability to freely travel between worlds, building system similar to TS2,3 (S4 is too restrictive), 3 wall heights, multitasking (TS4 did well on this one), and a strong personality system. There should be some customizable world aspect also, Sims 2 allows us to customize everything in the world; Sims 4 is too prefabricated.
@drake_mccarty Where are you guys getting this online multiplayer rumor from? I took a break from the forums and I have come back to this.
Like @cheescaeks said the CEO mentioned multiplayer as something they are still interested in. A lot of people are concerned for a Sims 5 after that, but I haven’t seen anyone really mention the possibility they roll it out with 4 first. We know this game was built to be mp and a modder got it working awhile back. So I think that will be the first step players see toward multiplayer. I’m sure EA would gladly authorize additional resources to accommodate that type of feature for the current game.
do you think when thay tak abot the sism5 being online thay could be talking about streaming data like Flight simulator 2020 dose so you save space on your hard disk beause your game data is in EA's Serevers? Would that be exceptable?
Article in the Washington Post talks about it to. Can't link but it is on Pocket. Now I am just hoping they continue to support 4 and 3 after 5 comes out.
Is this official or just speculation? Unless the devs confirm it, I don't buy it. :v
It's speculation. Nothing has been actually confirmed - the idea was just floated by EA's CEO.
I have to disagree. When CEOs start spewing 'buzz words' you have to take notice. The last two CEOs stated one time they didn't green light any project unless it had online components. Guess what, soon after there was Sim City 2013 and Project Olympus (aka multiplayer TS4).
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
do you think when thay tak abot the sism5 being online thay could be talking about streaming data like Flight simulator 2020 dose so you save space on your hard disk beause your game data is in EA's Serevers? Would that be exceptable?
No, he metioned cloud server, that will mean server worlds, online all the time in my opinion. How else would you save to cloud if not online all the time. So it could sync with the server worlds. EA has made some claims lately about their S.E.E.D. project which we should also assume will have elements of it in TS5, changing worlds with current events of real world conditions etc. every time you load a game. That's their dream (just one of the many features of S.E.E.D.) that points to server worlds. He thinks players play The Sims because of the competition....Maxis PR has had a hand in that I would think by promoting all these influncers to rival each other to get the swag and big bucks. Everything about TS4 has been nudged in the direction of 'competition'. Just look around for the evidence. Who could play the most hours...in an open-ended game? really? Who can get the most likes for builds on the gallery (Maxis Promoted to get them more), who is the most popular on the forums (sticky notes at top of forums) who can complete a TS4 quest the best and fastest. Whose Sims can woohoo the most. Who can ge the most skulls. Who can make the best whatever and get a free pack. Who can get more followers on Youtube and get a free $600 T-shirt. Who can influnce and sign up more players..tumblr. Whose Sim can poop the most (inside game) or whose Sim can do anything (check list inside game). Who has racked up the most hours (promoting competiton to be king of the hill). Whose Sim got the most downloads on gallery, again Maxis promoted so they get more downloads. Regardless if it's a unique Sim or just a premade uploaded. Maxis started this stuff in TS3 with those silly badges and other things. (player achievements). TS4 is TS3's baby on steroids as far as Maxis pushing a game like The Sims into some sort of competition between players. And EA is under the impression that's a good thing (the dough is rolling in) and sanctions it for TS5. No one was counting hours played in TS1. Why is this even a thing about TS4...because Maxis and EA think this should be and is a competition. And where do competitions head in a future..mulitplayer competitions.
Post edited by Cinebar on
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
Is this official or just speculation? Unless the devs confirm it, I don't buy it. :v
It's speculation. Nothing has been actually confirmed - the idea was just floated by EA's CEO.
I have to disagree. When CEOs start spewing 'buzz words' you have to take notice. The last two CEOs stated one time they didn't green light any project unless it had online components. Guess what, soon after there was Sim City 2013 and Project Olympus (aka multiplayer TS4).
Exactly. A CEO does not just "float ideas to the media". That's not how it works. And as @Cinebar says, the last two CEO's refused to greenlight any projects at least not partly Online.
EA has not forgotten what happened with Sim City. They just think we have. They are most likely going to try something very similar again, and be surprised when it doesn't work out, because we insists on "wanting the wrong things".
Speaking about EA CEO's being stubborn and sabotaging their own company tho: I am halfway expecting Sims 5 to have the same game engine as Mass Effect Andromeda / Dragon Age Inquisition and Anthem has, since higher-ups in EA at least until 6 months ago FORCED all studios to use that engine for new projects. And since the engine is not... very good, it has been a disaster since at least Andromeda.
I am currently back playing Sims 2 , I never really enjoyed 3 maybe because my computer was coming to the end of its life at the time , so struggled to run it and 4 has been so shallow with every pack release . If 5 is online and not a huge step up from 4 then my money stays in my pocket
Sims 4 was going to be an online version until the disaster of SimCity and then just after that they hurredly changed it to offline , but didn't build a game engine to support offline properly , Just after that also the CEO at the time got the boot I believe
IF The Sims 5 really is geared towards online gameplay almost strictly, then I’m out too. It’s not that I don’t like multiplayer, or online play, it’s all the “In game purchases” that will be no doubt added. An expansion, flat out, is like $50. But now, like someone else said, oh $1 for this chair and $2.50 for the matching table etc... and then before you know it this method could easily cost hundreds just to have a halfway decent game play. I didn’t actually start playing The sims 4 until sept 2019. I was still playing the sims 3 until my computer crashed and I had to start over.
I just don't know what they haven't understood. TSO was a financial failure according to their own developers who wrote blogs about it way back when. Hard to find those critical views these days on internet. Sim City 2013 was a first day failure with server problems and huge backlash for online only gameplay. They waited sooooo long to implement single player to that game they lost many who would have purchased it if it had been build that way to start with. TS4 huge backlash for even considering online/multiplayer. I don't know, maybe all those kids who have come on board in the last few years from tumblr, instagram and got the game for free have told them yes, build that multi player. Never mind your core fanbase who have been telling for 20 years just no. And Simport may have been tried by me or others, but it was a total failure and annoying as all get out. (that means annoy as h e double toothpicks)
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
Comments
Thank you for posting that link. It explains something I've wondered about and is more evidence that online is a bad idea for Sims.
I can only drink and look on from the distance as the fires of greed consume this franchise I once held so dearly.
DOS. Wow, it’s been a while. I’ve fond memories of being up all night manually building webpages and coding old text-based rpg environments. Nothing beats a command line for some things. I built my first (awful) website line by line in a text editor!
The latest SW is only offline single-player because Disney got involved after the failure of the last 3 big budget SW games published by EA. Don’t attribute any of those decisions to EA, they have not followed suit with any of their other games and they have no intention to. They simply did not want to lose the rights to SW and nothing more.
Sims will be online-multiplayer. That is undeniable at this point. They didn’t have enough of an audience in 2014 to make money off the idea. Now that they’ve distributed the game for free or for as little as $5 they probably do.
If TS5 does go the multiplayer route, I forsee that the game will be so much emphasis put on multiplayer functionality, that the basics that have been with the series since the beginning will be neglected. The Sims 4 was so focused on emotions and the new build mode that the game left out a strong personality system. I've heard others' grievances about their inability to play out stories. I do acknowledge that TS4 did introduce some good things. The rotational play feature is really neat.
Moving forward, I believe we will need to have a discussion on what we want to see. Perhaps there can be surveys. I would like to see the best features between TS2,3,4 such as open world, some sort of emotion system, rotational play, ability to freely travel between worlds, building system similar to TS2,3 (S4 is too restrictive), 3 wall heights, multitasking (TS4 did well on this one), and a strong personality system. There should be some customizable world aspect also, Sims 2 allows us to customize everything in the world; Sims 4 is too prefabricated.
ea's ceo was talking about the future of the sims franchise and online functionality
Like @cheescaeks said the CEO mentioned multiplayer as something they are still interested in. A lot of people are concerned for a Sims 5 after that, but I haven’t seen anyone really mention the possibility they roll it out with 4 first. We know this game was built to be mp and a modder got it working awhile back. So I think that will be the first step players see toward multiplayer. I’m sure EA would gladly authorize additional resources to accommodate that type of feature for the current game.
I have to disagree. When CEOs start spewing 'buzz words' you have to take notice. The last two CEOs stated one time they didn't green light any project unless it had online components. Guess what, soon after there was Sim City 2013 and Project Olympus (aka multiplayer TS4).
No, he metioned cloud server, that will mean server worlds, online all the time in my opinion. How else would you save to cloud if not online all the time. So it could sync with the server worlds. EA has made some claims lately about their S.E.E.D. project which we should also assume will have elements of it in TS5, changing worlds with current events of real world conditions etc. every time you load a game. That's their dream (just one of the many features of S.E.E.D.) that points to server worlds. He thinks players play The Sims because of the competition....Maxis PR has had a hand in that I would think by promoting all these influncers to rival each other to get the swag and big bucks. Everything about TS4 has been nudged in the direction of 'competition'. Just look around for the evidence. Who could play the most hours...in an open-ended game? really? Who can get the most likes for builds on the gallery (Maxis Promoted to get them more), who is the most popular on the forums (sticky notes at top of forums) who can complete a TS4 quest the best and fastest. Whose Sims can woohoo the most. Who can ge the most skulls. Who can make the best whatever and get a free pack. Who can get more followers on Youtube and get a free $600 T-shirt. Who can influnce and sign up more players..tumblr. Whose Sim can poop the most (inside game) or whose Sim can do anything (check list inside game). Who has racked up the most hours (promoting competiton to be king of the hill). Whose Sim got the most downloads on gallery, again Maxis promoted so they get more downloads. Regardless if it's a unique Sim or just a premade uploaded. Maxis started this stuff in TS3 with those silly badges and other things. (player achievements). TS4 is TS3's baby on steroids as far as Maxis pushing a game like The Sims into some sort of competition between players. And EA is under the impression that's a good thing (the dough is rolling in) and sanctions it for TS5. No one was counting hours played in TS1. Why is this even a thing about TS4...because Maxis and EA think this should be and is a competition. And where do competitions head in a future..mulitplayer competitions.
Exactly. A CEO does not just "float ideas to the media". That's not how it works. And as @Cinebar says, the last two CEO's refused to greenlight any projects at least not partly Online.
EA has not forgotten what happened with Sim City. They just think we have. They are most likely going to try something very similar again, and be surprised when it doesn't work out, because we insists on "wanting the wrong things".
Speaking about EA CEO's being stubborn and sabotaging their own company tho: I am halfway expecting Sims 5 to have the same game engine as Mass Effect Andromeda / Dragon Age Inquisition and Anthem has, since higher-ups in EA at least until 6 months ago FORCED all studios to use that engine for new projects. And since the engine is not... very good, it has been a disaster since at least Andromeda.
Sims 4 was going to be an online version until the disaster of SimCity and then just after that they hurredly changed it to offline , but didn't build a game engine to support offline properly , Just after that also the CEO at the time got the boot I believe