The Sims 4 is approaching its tenth anniversary – incredible staying power for what is, in essence, a live-service game. ‘Project Rene‘ has been confirmed as the next iteration in the franchise, and while nobody has officially called it The Sims 5, it’s pretty clear that Project Rene is, essentially, The Sims 5. It was first announced nearly two years ago at the Behind the Sims Summit Stream Event, and Lyndsay Pearson, VP of Franchise Creative for The Sims acknowledged that Maxis had never shared info about a game so far out from release before, stating that there were years between that announcement and release. Throughout this post we’ve alternated between saying Project Rene and The Sims 5 – they are the same thing – Project Rene refers to The Sims 5. Why is The Sims 5 called Project Rene? Pearson referred to Project Rene as a “working title” for the new generation of The Sims.