The Sims 4 fans have been asking Electronic Arts for more skin tone options for quite some time now, and now it appears that the developer has finally obliged and released the highly-anticipated skin color update — a day early at that!
The Sims franchise is one of Electronic Arts’ most popular and profitable titles, and it’s no surprise too, given how the game continues to expand through expansion packs and DLCs. These expansions offer a variety of new content for players to make use of, from clothing and furniture items, new locations, and even fantasy worlds.
For instance, one Star Wars expansion pack that went live a few months ago gave Sims players the chance to travel to the fictional planet of Batuu. That being said, many players have criticized the franchise for lacking in diversity and real-life representation, concentrating instead on fictional packs such as the Star Wars one.
To be more specific, fans were displeased that the game didn’t have enough characters of color. Back in September, Electronic Arts addressed this particular concern, and the company promised that a new update would be released offering a wider variety of skin tone options.
Although this kind of content should have been included in the game from the beginning to accurately represent people and their differing skin tones, it’s still better late than never.
It's here – and a day early! Today, a free game update brings you 100+ skin tones, customization tools for skin tones and makeup, three improved base game hairstyles, and a main menu makeover. Available now to all The Sims 4 players! pic.twitter.com/p7QIIkI74d
— The Sims (@TheSims) December 7, 2020
https://twitter.com/TheSims/status/1336019656595951623?s=20
https://twitter.com/TheSims/status/1336020434043740161?s=20
Now, it appears that this fan-requested update is officially live, a day earlier than expected. The news was announced by none other than The Sims’ official Twitter account, which came as a series of tweets. The announcement also featured a short clip showcasing the different changes.
According to Electronic Arts, over a 100 new skin tones were included in The Sims 4, and there’s even a slider that allows players to customize the character’s skin color even more so that they get the exact skin tone they want for their Sim.
These incredibly-detailed customization tools have also been added to the makeup section as well. In addition to that, players will find that three base game hairstyles have been improved.
Last but not least, players who start the game will find a new and improved main menu, which gives The Sims 4 players the opportunity to stay up-to-date on all the new things available in-game.
Inclusivity has become such an important and necessary part of any form of media, whether it be movies or video games. As such, it’s such a joy to see Electronic Arts respond to the fans’ feedback in such an obliging and constructive way. The company even thanks a few social media personalities underneath the main announcement for their “constructive feedback” regarding The Sims 4.
Electronic Arts’ actions is yet another example of companies recently making an effort to change and improve the representation and inclusivity found in games — or lack thereof. Recently, Ubisoft apologized to the fans for including ableist language in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, promising to change the phrasing of the sentence in a future update.
It’s definitely heartwarming to see such big companies accepting accountability for their mistakes and then making an effort to fix them.
