has dominated the life simulation genre for decades, but that position could soon be shaken. While news about remains minimal, three strong competitors are getting ready to be fully released or released into Early Access in 2024 and 2025. For the time being, seems to be EA's life simulation priority as it continues to release DLC for the 2014 game. At this rate, could be in trouble before it ever sees a release date as more games take up the challenge of facing the franchise's long reign.
As of writing this piece, has been confirmed as being in development, and it's often assumed that Project Rene is the code name given to it. Meanwhile,,, and all seem to be ahead in the development process and ready to enter the market in the next year or two. However, they aren't exact clones of, and each one has unique features to set it apart from the others.
When first launched, there were complaints about features that should've been included in the base game but weren't. Additionally, continues to release packs and expansions, and quite a few of them were underwhelming with the content (or lack thereof) that they included. Most recently, the and kits were released, though it's important to note that generally received very positive feedback. Holding onto and continuing to release content that isn't building much enthusiasm could end up hurting or delay it from being released.
It doesn't help that DLC costs over $1000 in order to purchase all available content without any of it being on sale or any of the smaller kits being temporarily free. If the base game for ends up being free like currently is, then it might not be financially beneficial for EA to prioritize it over creating more DLC. Alternatively, pricing at the standard price of a new game might not sell well, especially if it also ends up being released without features that are widely perceived as belonging to the base game rather than added later.
is the first competitor to that will be released, even though
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