For over two decades now,The Simsfranchise has led the charge in the life-sim market, giving players the tools to create their own homes and families to live out their wildest dreams. And with eachnew generation ofSims, those dreams get even wilder. Every newSimsgame comes with its own set of improvements and additions, and then further down the road, that game is continually added to via expansions. But as fans approach a new generation ofSims, that iterative formula might receive some big changes.
Back in September of last year, rumors surroundingThe Sims 5started circulating the internet, with the vast majority claiming that the game would be adopting a free-to-play, live-service model. While EA hasn’t commented on these rumors,The Sims 5- know currently as Project Rene - will apparently be reimagining the series and introducing “new ways to play.” And ifThe Sims 5does go live-service, then a Battle Pass-like system can’t be too far behind, andOverwatch 2has some great foundations to build on.
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The Sims 5 Might Want to Borrow Overwatch 2’s Battle Pass Approach
The Sims 5making the switch toa free-to-play, live-service modelwould make complete sense for the long-running franchise. Since day-one,The Simshas continued to support its games long after their initial launch. Back during the days ofSims 1and2, this meant post-launch expansion packs that could be bought as physical discs. With the rise of downloadable content,The Sims 3transitioned away from physical expansion packs, and instead started to release online DLC for the game.The Sims 4continued this trend, and ran away with it, releasing over 60 DLC packs since its release in 2014.
The writing has been on the wall forThe Simsfor quite some time, with things really starting to ramp up at the end of last year. In October 2022,The Sims 4went free-to-play, opting to only earn revenue through DLC purchases. MovingThe Sims 5to a fully-fledged live-service model seems like a natural next step for the franchise, ensuring that revenue can be earned consistently over long periods of time. One of the best ways to achieve this with a live-service title is by introducing some kind of Battle Pass, a tiered progression system that offers rewards for completing challenges, refreshing on a regular basis and charging players every few months.
WhileThe Sims 5’s Battle Passprobably won’t be called that, a similar system is likely to crop up. But rather than offering players weapon wraps, emblems, skins, and sprays,The Sims 5’s Battle Pass is likely to include a range of different furniture and clothing. If this system turns out to be successful, then it could even potentially crossover with real-life fashion brands, similar to some ofFortnite’s past collaborations with Nike and Balenciaga. But forging a Battle Pass system from scratch is no easy task, and looking at other systems, such asOverwatch 2’s, could really helpThe Sims 5.
Overwatch 2’s Battle Pass offers 80 tiers every nine weeks, with each tier being filled with a handful of cosmetic rewards for all the game’s heroes. While players can level up this Battle Pass by earning Match XP by just playing, the best way to score rewards quickly is by completingOverwatch 2’s many daily and weekly challenges. These challenges are a great way to encourage players to try out certain features and characters they normally otherwise wouldn’t, and the Battle Pass system in general keeps players coming back month after month.
The Sims 5should borrowOverwatch 2’s Battle Passsystem, giving players unique challenges to complete and continuing to encourage them to start new families, test out new mechanics, and earn a ton of rewards in the process. Players should also be able to continue unlocking rewards after the end of the Battle Pass has been reached, just like howOverwatch 2continues to reward players with extra titles. Color variants of any outfits or items unlocked in the main battle pass are one option for these bonus rewards, withThe Simsbattle passes having a chance to be the gift that keeps on giving.
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