Russia’s homophobic laws keep Sims 4 wedding pack out of the country

Electronic Arts is not selling its latest products Sims 4Moscow, Russia – Wednesday’s announcement by the company. Sims 4 has been considered “gay propaganda” due to Russia’s homophobic law since 2014, and slapped with a 18+ age restriction prohibited children from purchasing it. Sims 4’s My Wedding Stories DLC pack trailer focused on a gay couple’s joyous engagement and wedding — and the Sims 4 team said it was “not something we could freely share around the world.”

LGBTQ+ people in Russia have long faced harassment and discrimination, but Russia’s anti-gay “propaganda” law has “increased hostility” and limited “affirming education and support services” for LGTBQ+ youth, according to Human Rights Watch.

Sims 4This is a game of life that allows players to create their own characters and houses. There are no restrictions on gender or sexuality. Sims 4Maxis, the developer has been criticised for not representing Black simmers better in-game. Instead, players are leading the charge to create custom content.

The New My Wedding StoriesDLC pack coming February 17th Sims 4’s existing wedding options — adding new culturally-specific ceremonies, events like engagement parties and rehearsal dinners, as well as new outfits and decorations. Sims 4It has allowed the same-sex marriage of any couple, but My Wedding StoriesIt centers on a story that the development team would like to tell about a gay couple named Dominique and Camille.

“Imagining the stories our players will tell with our packs is at the heart of everything we create,” the developer wrote in a statement. “For ‘My Wedding Stories,’ we were excited to introduce you to Dom and Cam. The love story of Cam and Dom is a reflection of the lives of many in our community. As we moved through our development and brand storytelling process, we became aware that the way we wanted to tell Cam and Dom’s story would not be something we could freely share around the world.”

In an adorable trailer that looks like a movie, the announcement trailer focused on their relationship. You can read the developer’s full statement published below.

Our Commitment To You

From The Sims Team: A letter to our players

Yesterday, we introduced to Sims 4 “My Wedding Stories” Game Pack and along with it, to Dominique and Camille, a couple whose love knows no boundaries. Today we want to explain the decision we’ve made to not release this pack in Russia.

Celebrate Love Your Way

Over the years, you’ve delighted us with the ways your Sims have found love and celebrated that love through weddings in our base game. You’ve also shared with us your eagerness to walk down the aisle, have your Sims take their seats and shed a tear of joy as you made a lifelong commitment.

When we set out to create “My Wedding Stories” this was the vision we had for our global community: the joy of finding love, celebrating that love and telling stories that have meaning on a personal level.

All we do is centered around the imagination of the stories that our players tell about our packs. For “My Wedding Stories,” we were excited to introduce you to Dom and Cam. This love story is the result of the shared experiences of members of our team and community.

As we moved through our development and brand storytelling process, we became aware that the way we wanted to tell Cam and Dom’s story would not be something we could freely share around the world.

We are committed to our values

We are all about telling stories. Any story. Sims. Holding back Cam and Dom’s story meant compromising the values we live by. We believe in the freedom to express who we are and to share the stories that inspire us.

What does this mean for our players? We are steadfast in upholding that commitment by shining a light on and celebrating stories like Dom and Cam’s, so we have made the decision to forgo the release of “My Wedding Stories” where our storytelling would be subject to changes because of federal laws.

This means members of It SimsThis game package will not be available to Russian citizens.

Our Simmers all over the world are very grateful for your presence in our universe.

The Sims 4 My Wedding Stories On February 17th, Xbox One and Xbox Series X will be made available for Mac, PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5 on Windows PC.