What you need to know
- The Sims 4, developed by Maxis and published by EA, will be going free to play across all platforms on October 18, 2022.
- The game will continue to receive updates including additional content packs.
- From Sept. 14 until Oct. 17 players who have purchased The Sims 4 will receive the Desert Luxe Kit as a gift.
EA has announced that their popular social simulator The Sims 4 will be going free to play on October 18, 2022. The Sims 4 originally released in 2014 had has been played by more than 30 million players worldwide since that time. The move to make the game free to play is due to efforts from EA to change the game's payment model so that players are more likely to engage with the plethora of DLC options available for the game. At the time of this writing there are nearly 60 various expansions, kits, and content packs available for The Sims 4.
EA had previously offered a free create a sim demo so that players could test out the character creator as well as a free trial of the game. Subscribers to EA Access or Xbox Game Pass could also enjoy playing The Sims 4 as part of their subscriptions at no extra cost. Players who had purchased the base game, however, will receive a free gift in the form of the Desert Luxe Kit which will add oasis inspired furniture to their catalog. To redeem the Desert Luxe Kit players will need to launch The Sims 4 between September 14 and October 17 and claim their pack from the main menu.
In the press release announcing the free-to-play move, EA stated that Sims fans can expect a continuation of content via additional packs and kits for the foreseeable future. A special edition live stream titled Behind The Sims Summit will air on Youtube and Twitch via the respective channels for The Sims on October 18 at 10am PDT.
