The Sims 5 development reportedly canceled, as per leaks

The Sims 5, also known as Project Rene, has allegedly been put on hold due to the departure of a team lead. Announced during the "Behind The Sims Summit Stream Event" about a year ago, The Sims 5 was officially dubbed Project Rene. Fans and loyal followers were excited to know that a new The Sims game was under development.

For almost 10 years, there hasn't been a new entry in the main series. However, the developers are still supporting The Sims 4 with new DLCs and a dedicated team for consistent quality-of-life upgrades and fixes for the core gameplay. Yet, fans have been playing the same game for a decade, and the demand for a new Sims title is high.

Unfortunately, recent developments and leaks have hinted at a grim fate for Project Rene with the halting of The Sims 5 development.

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Is The Sims 5 aka Project Rene canceled for good?

According to an official announcement, Project Rene was being developed by Maxis and EA. This new installment in the franchise promised to be one of the most detailed and immersive The Sims experiences to date. Players were to have full freedom in shaping their worlds and their avatars, aka the Sims.

The Sims 5 was supposed to have the most in-depth character creation options in the franchise. The development team had assigned some of its most experienced designers for the job. This effort was helmed by Tam Zamanli, who served as the Lead Character Artist for Project Rene.

A post by the leaker (Image via X)

Zamanli was responsible for leading the character team and creating the most advanced Character Creation System in the Unreal 5 Engine. However, according to known Sims insider @SimmerBerkay on X, Zamanli has left the development team.

Upon observing Zamanli's career page, however, we found that they aren't leaving The Sims franchise altogether. Zamanli has been transferred from the development of The Sims 5 to another team overseeing The Sims 4.

"The Sims 5" CANCELLED (rumor) byu/Vegetable_Ear_4141 inGamingLeaksAndRumours

So, does this mean The Sims 5 or Project Rene has been canceled for good? The answer is no, development may have been halted but not canceled. EA and Maxis have already started hiring new members for the development team.

Looking at the career pages of various EA employees, we have also seen that some developers who were associated with The Sims 4 have been moved to Project Rene. Thus, the development of The Sims 5 has not been canceled, but due to these changes and the recent layoffs at Maxis, the game's release date may be delayed.