Look, we all know The Sims is overdue some proper competition and I think this gorgeous hyper-realistic life simulation may now be leading the pack. As spotted by GamesRadar, Krafton, which also publishes PUBG, showed off Inzoi (styled “inZOI,” but not the most memorable name, still) at the G-Star convention in South Korea earlier this week. And damn it really looks like it might turn up the heat under The Sims’ rear.
The trailer (above) is a whole six minutes of gameplay covering character creation, some life simulation, and a build mode. The parts are all here, gang, and they look fantastic. There’s a lot of familiar stuff here: characters cooking, exercising, working, and cleaning. There’s a needs system for things like hunger and hygiene, and ambitions your Zoi will want to achieve. There’s also a schedule editing menu which makes it seem like different characters can visit locations on a set schedule even while you aren’t controlling them. Some destinations in the trailer include an office, convenience store, internet cafe, and parks.
It appears to be very free-roam in a way Sims players have definitely been longing for, though it’s unclear from the trailer if it’s truly open world. Also of note are the menu tabs for editing weather, the city, and crowds. That does make me wonder if the gameplay here is more dollhouse than simulation, which I admit is a fine line.
The official trailer description calls it “a life simulation game where players become gods within the game, allowing them to change everything as they wish and experience endless new stories in various forms of life.” The description given over on the G-Star website, when translated into English by Google Chrome, adds “also, rather than simply living the life given to you, you can become the protagonist who leads the life you want.”
That’s all a bit mushy and non-specific. “Endless new stories” and “become the protagonist” are some very aspirational marketing phrases that likely just mean: extensive character creator and lots of control over activities.
Personally, I’m most psyched about the detail editing on clothes and furniture. There’s definitely a full color wheel picker for both with pattern and material swatches too. Furniture editing has modular pieces, as shown by swapping out the leg style on an office chair. Modular furniture is one of the things I was most excited to see from early Sims 5 reveals, so it’s rad that’s become a popular concept.
If you want even more (I did) Krafton sponsored videos from some habitual Sims players who got hands-on time with Inzoi ahead of its announcement. YouTuber Acottonsock has a nice breakdown on Inzoi playtesting here. She digs into some of her likes and dislikes from the build she played which validates my obsession with good furniture tools and also some current drawbacks like shallow gameplay around babies and romance.
Anyhow, I could spend way too long picking apart the official trailer and the gameplay floating around, but Inzoi seems very worth keeping a keen eye on. On the small but growing list of upcoming Sims competitors, I personally prefer the very stylized visual direction of Paralives to the almost uncanny realism of Inzoi, but I’ll take nearly any fresh blood I can get.
Oh, and one very important detail that Acottonsock confirmed is that you cannot drive the cars (so far) but you can get hit by them. Look both ways out there, Zois.
