(Image from The Sims 3 Island Paradise.)
Rumour has it that EA will announce The Sims 4, the next game in the incredibly popular series of life-simulation games for the PC, during a conference call today. The publisher has invited several fan sites, including SimsVIP, to the call, which is a clever move when recent events (i.e. the disastrous launch of SimCity) mean that more neutral sites might be inclined to negativity.
According to SimsVIP, an email sent to select fan sites states that EA would be “making a big announcement for The Sims series” today and that those sites will be able to “hear directly from one of the developers about the exciting piece of news”. The sites will also “receive a brand new image to accompany this special occasion”, apparently “approximately three hours before the rest of the world”.
Even just based on this, it's very tempting to jump immediately to the conclusion that EA will announce The Sims 4 today; after all, the company normally announces expansion packs for The Sims 3 via its live broadcasts. But further evidence comes from the official (though unverified) Russian Twitter account for The Sims:
Хотите чего-то нового? Ðа Ñледующей неделе жизнь Симмеров поменÑетÑÑ 😉
— The Sims Russia (@thesimsrussia) May 3, 2013
Google Translate turns this into:
“Want something new? The following week, life will change simmer;)”
SimsVIP also has a deleted Tweet from the same account that translates to:
“Do you like to play online with your friends?”
Given that EA has recently closed The Sims Social, it doesn't look like playing online refers to a Sims-themed Facebook game. Could The Sims 4 be always on, like SimCity?
The final piece of evidence? Type “thesims4.com” into your browser and you'll get a redirect to the homepage for the official Sims website, with the URL “thesims4.com/en_US/home”.
