A video allegedly from the upcoming installment of The Sims has surfaced online, stirring concerns among fans about the future direction of the beloved franchise.

Project Rene—sometimes referred to as The Sims 5, though EA clarifies it's a separate spin-off—has been in the works for several years. A recent 20-minute gameplay video titled "City Life Game With Friends" has led many to speculate that this could be the next Sims game.

The video showcases a player navigating through various text prompts to customize their character's appearance and activities, before entering a sunlit Plaza de Poupon to purchase food and interact with other characters. The gameplay then shifts to the player working at an outdoor café.

Notably, the characters in the video are referred to as Sims, communicate in Simlish, and feature the iconic Plumbob, further fueling speculation about its connection to The Sims series.

"EA clearly wants to kill off normal Sims games and push people toward the mobile-style experience. So in their mind, a reboot literally means this — at least that’s what I THINK."

"This is not going to be for me, I can tell already," another fan stated. "It just seems so basic and I don't want to play The Sims on my phone."

"Making a PC/mobile cross-compatible Sims game isn't a bad idea," suggested another fan. "EA just believes that mobile games have to be ugly for some reason. They're chasing all of the design trends of the past decade, but it means that this thing already looks dated and it's not even out yet."

"The way The Sims was a literal satire about capitalist suburban consumption-as-happiness... And this is where the Sims ended up. Endless consumption-as-happiness," another commenter reflected.

Project Rene, initially rumored to be The Sims 5 but later clarified by EA as a different project, was first teased in 2022 during a Behind the Sims Summit. It's a free-to-play game with multiplayer elements inspired by titles like Animal Crossing and Among Us. Although it hasn't been officially revealed or given a release date, EA has been conducting small, invite-only playtests since its announcement, with recent leaks presumably coming from these sessions.

The name "Rene" symbolizes renewal, renaissance, and rebirth, reflecting the developers' commitment to a vibrant future for The Sims franchise.

Last October, images from a closed online test of Project Rene leaked, prompting criticism regarding the game's art style, limited features, and use of microtransactions. The inclusion of a café drew particular scrutiny due to its similarities to 2018's The Sims Mobile. In response, EA clarified that Project Rene is not The Sims 5 but a distinct "cosy, social game" within The Sims franchise.

Meanwhile, fans of the series were pleasantly surprised by the return of The Burglar in the latest update for The Sims 4, a nostalgic nod to earlier games in the series.