‘The Sims 4’ fall update: EA heeds 86,000 petitioners; promises ‘authentic and respectful inclusion’ by improving skin tones, hairstyle options

An online petition garnered more than 86,000 signatures recently calling for EA and Maxis to fix and improve the skin tones and hairstyles options in “The Sims 4” to be more inclusive. The developers have now responded promising to deliver the fans’ demand in the upcoming fall update for “authentic and respectful inclusion.”

‘The Sims 4’ fall update to deliver a wider variety of skin tones and hairstyles

The Change.org campaign titled “A Color Wheel and More Skintones for ‘The Sims 4’” had only been up for a couple of months when it garnered more than 86,000 signatures. To EA’s credit, they have also provided a clear response and took accountability on not having inclusive gameplay features in the first place.

‘The Sims’ general manager and executive producer Lyndsay Pearson addressed the petition in a video message on Twitter last Tuesday. Pearson admitted to fans that they “have not done enough” to offer a wide variety of skin tones and hairstyles on “The Sims 4.” She promised, “We are making it a priority to release more options this year, as well as to address the visual issues with current skin tones--specifically, to improve the blotchy artifacts and ashy tones.”

SimGuru Lyndsay explained that the developers will deep dive into the “The Sims 4” assets and analyze where there is “any loss in quality.” To deliver an “authentic inclusion,” Pearson said they are taking feedback “from a number of places” that will not only help in giving them more information but also ensure there is accountability in how they execute the upcoming update. At the end of her message, Pearson promised fans that the improvements in the visual presentation of the existing skin tones as well as adding more options will be included in an update this Fall.

‘The Sims 4’ gets an ‘expanded experience’; what does this mean for ‘The Sims 5’?

Pearson also, interestingly, mentioned that they have “expanded” on the “The Sims 4” experience. While this may sound like a stretch, but it could be a discreet indication that the current game’s life cycle has been extended as well. This might mean that “The Sims 5” will not see the light of day in a few more years. EA and Maxis have yet to confirm if the next game has already entered development.