The Sims 5 being in development isn't exactly a big secret, considering Maxis announced it, and even showed off in-development footage. While there's still a while till the next entry in the series launches, you can bet there will be a host of new features that come along with it. The footage revealed by the developer illustrated the level of customisation you'll be able to have over individual pieces of furniture. However, a couple of leaked images – probably from a recent playtest – have given us a more macro view of the upcoming title.As spotted by PC Gamer, a handful of Sims 5 images that weren't revealed by Maxis found their way onto Reddit. The account has since been deleted, but the images have been saved by viewers and showcased on other platforms. What's different from the official reveal is that these images show the neighborhood view in Sims 5, which Maxis has not yet revealed. While The Sims 4's City Living expansion already gave us a slice of the city life, these images show a detailed neighbourhood, with apartment complexes and cars. "This play test mostly was focusing on the new building and furniture features," said the original poster in the comments section. "It had 4 preset studio apartments for you to mess around in or an empty one for you to build in. There were no sims in this at all." Hopefully, this means the devs have more plans for the surrounding neighbourhood. Considering that these are pictures of a screen and not screenshots, and also the OP account being deleted, we can assume that the images were taken in a rather unsavoury way.
While the official footage gave us a peek at just how customisable the game could be, some fans felt like the footage resembled the series' upcoming competitor, Paralives. The in-depth customisation and furniture manipulation feel pretty similar to that of Paralives, according to some fans. However, they are split on whether this is good or bad. Some feel that EA has ripped off its competition, while others see no harm in the series adapting with the competition.