Have you been waiting for The Sims 4 console release ever since the game was announced? After almost three years (come September) the day has finally come. The Microsoft Store listed a product page for The Sims 4 Deluxe Party Edition for Xbox One. The game is slated for release November 13, 2017.
There is no word of if The Sims 4 is being ported for PlayStation 4 or the Nintendo Switch as well, and EA has not spoken on the console release, which is reportedly developed by Maxis & Blind Squirrel. Right now, there seems to be a Sims 4 Base Game, Deluxe Edition, and Perfect Patio Stuff available at launch. However, we will not know for sure until EA or Maxis speaks on the matter. The listing also states you’ll get Perfect Patio included if you preorder. Check out the description provided at the bottom of this page.
It’s worth adding that last July, Sims producer Lyndsay Pearson warned fans to ignore the rumors. Though, it’s anyone’s guess what she meant by “near future.”
“I want to clarify that we have no plans for a console version of The Sims 4 anytime in the near future. Ignore the rumors,” she said in a tweet.
For the past three iterations of the game a console release followed just over a year later. Sims 3 also released on the Nintendo Wii and DS. The first sign of Sims 4 console release delay came with a mysterious claims EA was having difficulty porting the game over. With each day came new fan speculation, including that EA may be waiting for the next generation of consoles to release. Another theory was that EA was foregoing a TS4 console version altogether in favor of developing The Sims 5 because of the negative reviews, which is still years away from a release date.
The Sims Community is torn over this information...well mostly utterly stunned and confused. Three years later...what’s the point? However, from EA’s perspective, why not? This will open Sims 4 up to a wider audience. But it does raise questions for the future of The Sims franchise. What’s their plan? The Sims Mobile in the works, which uses all assets from Sims 4. Sims Freeplay is still going strong. Now, if rumors prove true, there’s another iteration of The Sims 4 starting fresh. What does this mean for the next iteration of the game?
It also raises questions about the quality of The Sims 4 on consoles. One of the biggest complaints for the Sims 3 console version was that it was watered down. Maybe EA took criticism of The Sims 4 PC game to heart, and is trying to remedy those issues on mobile and console platforms? For example, the PC version launched without toddlers. The description confirms the Xbox version has the toddler life stage. This reasoning would explain the timeline of the upcoming Sims Mobile and this rumored console release.
We can’t forget people who religiously play The Sims 4 are The Sims 4’s worst critics. This is one of the best-selling franchises of all time. No matter what happens, people will play even if it’s not up to longtime Sims fans standards. EA can do whatever they want.
What do you think of The Sims 4 on Xbox One? Sound off in the comments and check out the Microsoft Store listing ans screenshots below.
