EA Destroys the Sims yet Again
The Sims 4 has been no stranger to controversy and the latest game pack ‘My Wedding Stories’ personifies issues fans have had with the Sims 4 since its launch back in 2014. The pack is broken. Not only is it broken it was also originally withheld from Russian players over Russia’s LGBT laws- not because of the Ukraine crisis.
Outcry about the pack started from its announcement when two female characters got married in its trailer. Not only were overall homophobes angry but Russian law dictates that anything promoting non-heterosexual couples to young people is banned. The Sims 4 has allowed people to create LGBT+ sims and has contained canonically LGBT+ sims previously but Russia had to rate the packs these characters came in as an 18+ instead of the game’s overall teen/12 rating it has in the UK and USA.
Upon the news from EA that to sell the pack in Russia they would need to rebrand the cover art for the DLC and remove the female couple they decided they would no longer sell the pack in Russia to ‘stand up for LGBT rights’. Instead of the positive response EA presumed they would get they got the opposite.
Russian players were outraged that they were being discriminated against for their country’s laws when not all Russian players are homophobic and agree with the laws. Due to the backlash EA announced they would backtrack on their decision and instead push the release date to the 23rd of February, and they would make it meet the requirements to be released in Russia.
If it wasn’t bad enough that EA had managed to tick off large portions of their fanbase, when the pack did release it was extremely buggy and downright unplayable at times. From base game players not being able to access the new wedding venue lot promised to them by EA, sims glitching and not being able to carry out the new wedding event goals and the new objects being inaccessible by Sims.
These are only a few examples of the vast list of issues experienced by players. The game pack should not have been released in the condition it was and it’s looking as though it’s going to become the next ‘Dine Out’ and ‘My First Pet Stuff.’ EA must do better. It's not the fault of the Gurus as these issues have become almost systematic and ingrained into EA’s views and treatment of the franchise that is beloved by millions.
The Sims 4 has been a game that has always felt lacklustre, ignored by game developers and at times just straight up disappointing, EA has a lot of answer for when the inevitable Sims 5 game gets announced. The Sims 4 while being enjoyable at times was and has been a disaster from the start. EA must change and treat their customers with the respect and integrity they deserve.