Project Rene AKA The Sims 5 Map Leak Hints at Open-World Gameplay!

Project Rene aims to be the next entry in Electronic Arts’ well-known The Sims franchise, which has amassed a following of millions of players since its inception in the year 2000. Although EA announced the game’s development through the Behind The Sims Summit event in October 2022, there have been no other official updates on its progress since then. 

However, several leaks have surfaced over the years, a major one involving a pre-release build of the game. One Dataminer on Reddit has obtained an overview of the map, showcasing possible open-world elements, similar to The Sims 3. Here’s everything you need to know!

Project Rene’s Playtest Build Reveals That the Map Is Reportedly Based in Paris

According to the Dataminer on Reddit, the leaked Playtest build of the game contains the full map of Project Rene, supposedly based on the city of Paris, as the user found IRL photo references within the game files. They also shared the screenshots of the map overview, showcasing some of the playable areas where your sims could roam around.

For those unaware, we already know that Sims 5 or Project Rene will be a multiplayer co-op, free-to-play title, available on all major platforms such as PC, Consoles, and Mobile. EA also shared information regarding overhauls to building and pathing, showcasing features like co-op building, better maneuvering, etc. However, none of the previous leaks suggested that the game would showcase open-world elements, which has raised concern among fans about its performance across multiple devices.

The Dataminer shared further information as to why they think the game could feature an open-world environment. They claim that the game utilizes technologies like asset streaming and LODs to offer solid performance even on mobile. They mentioned that even the leaked build they possess runs the game at around 30 FPS on their Galaxy S9 smartphone.

Furthermore, they also stated that the game does not have any UI icons for “travel” in its files and it does not have any other string references indicating “traveling” to other locations. This could possibly mean that sims could seamlessly move around the game world, without having to go through loading screens for every area.

While its open-world potential seems exciting, keep in mind that the leaked build of the game is over a year old and the developers could have made significant changes to the current version of Project Rene. There have been no other credible sources confirming these details, so please take this information with a grain of salt.