Steam users have another freebie to enjoy this week, one for both Grand Theft Auto fans and those who like The Sims.
Speaking of The Sims, some interesting developments today with Electronic Arts officially announcing its acquisition by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake and Affinity Partners.
EA is of course the publisher of The Sims, with a fifth game currently in development, but it’s unlikely this acquisition will change anything in regards to its development and release.
Enough about that though, if you’re a fan of The Sims it’s worth checking out this new Steam game, Citystate Metropolis.
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It’s a game coming to Steam next year, with a description that reads: “The creative, pragmatic, limitless city builder. Engineer a masterpiece of urban design, a small sustainable town or a futuristic metropolis. With procedurally generated buildings, grid-less zoning and powerful editor tools, everything is customizable: the city is yours.”
The key difference between this title and other sandbox games is it seemingly gives you full control of your city, down to the smallest detail.
You don’t even need to lead your city fairly and constructively either, you could go full Grand Theft Auto and let it fall to ruin if that’s your cup of tea.
It looks pretty good, so it’s a shame we have to wait a little longer for it to come out. At the time of writing the release date is scheduled for Q1 of 2026, which could be anywhere from January to April if I had to guess.
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For those who can’t wait that long though, there is an opportunity to play the game earlier, as early-access is going to be a big part of this game’s development.
You can sign up for the early-access through Steam and hope you're selected, but if you’d rather wait I’m sure there’ll be a demo at some point in the future.
As for the next Sims game, don’t expect to build your own city in that game, whenever it comes out. While you might have the option to let your Sims live in a city it looks like the next game will once again focus on households rather than expansive populations. That said it does feel like we’re due another SimCity game some time soon, so hopefully one is on the cards in EA’s future.