People are up in arms about the upcoming The Sims 4: Eco Lifestyle Expansion. It does seem like a rather superficial expansion, especially when EA could be putting their efforts towards the various quality of life issues players would like to see addressed, such as a long-overdue open world mechanic.

However, many players voted for an Environmental-based Stuff Pack back in 2017, so why has this expansion evoked such passionate hate?

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It's The End of The World As We Know It

Well, it's actually not the end of the world, but it sure feels that way with a global quarantine in place over the last few months. The developers couldn't have had worse timing with releasing a global crisis themed expansion. When the world as we know it seems to be crumbling down around us, why would the developers want to bring that apocalyptic feeling to their escapist fantasy?

The Sims is all about escapism. The game allows players to take a break from reality and 'play with life' by creating absurd scenarios, manipulating relationships, attaining lofty goals, and building dream abodes that may otherwise be fantasies. But environmentalism is an attainable goal and one we should all be striving towards.

EA is by no means an environmentally savvy company. However, they've now plucked up the audacity to market on player aspirations of a greener world. The developers are creating a facade of eco-friendliness based upon players' personal choices, while our real-world forests burn and our oceans fill with trash.

It would be one thing if EA was using this expansion as an eco-friendly movement and donating a portion of the proceeds to various environmental activist groups. That would at least transcend their in-game notion into a real-life initiative. But this is not the case. The developers are merely profiting off of a global crisis and filling their wallets from players pretending to save the planet.

Though there seemed to be support for environmentally friendly 'Stuff,' perhaps players were simply hoping for solar-powered decorations and maybe the implementation of vehicles via an eco-friendly Prius. The prospect of litter-filled streets and toxic living conditions probably weren't what these fans had in mind.

While solar panels, greenhouses, sustainable attire, and electric cars would've made great additions to the aesthetics, an entire expansion seems to have been a bit off target. Let's hope EA doesn't decide to capitalize on the 'Isolation Lifestyle' next, complete with social distancing regulations, 'out of business' signs, and Haz-Mat fashion.

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