The Sims 5 will reportedly be inspired by Animal Crossing

Arguably one of the most popular series of all time, the next instalment of The Sims will base its multiplayer on Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Rewind the clocks back to 2020, when Animal Crossing: New Horizons launched on Nintendo Switch when we needed it most. The jolly island-builder gave us all something to do during that nasty pandemic and allowed us to connect with each other by visiting each other’s islands.

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It was all very wholesome, and while the latest Animal Crossing didn’t last as much as we’d like with post-launch support, it’s still popular today, even though many are now ready for the next game.

However, people are also waiting for The Sims 5, which is currently in development with Maxis and set to be published by EA.

In a slightly surprising turn of events, Maxis has confirmed the new game, currently working with the codename Project Rene, will support online multiplayer and that Animal Crossing: New Horizons played a vital role in inspiring how it works.

Speaking via an interview with the Radio Times, vice president of franchise creative Lyndsay Pearson shared some details on the upcoming game’s multiplayer, and what elements will be inspired by Animal Crossing.

She Nintendo’s latest community game was “such a good example of my little space, my little island, but I can invite you over."

Pearson went on to say: “And we've seen throughout the last few years of Animal Crossing, people inventing ways to play together that the game doesn't specifically support, but they've made up scavenger hunts or whatever, which is amazing. Or people who hosted talk shows on Animal Crossing, I think, is incredible, right?"

How exactly this translates into the next Sims game is anyone’s guess, but it sounds like there’ll be plenty of interactive features for players to get involved with, so it actually feels like you’re living in a community with other players.

The Sims 5 currently has no release date, and a trailer is yet to be released.