The Sims 4’s My Wedding Stories delayed, but coming to Russia after all

The Sims 4Electronic Arts, publisher will publish its My Wedding StoriesAfter backlash by Russian Sims players, Russian Sims removed the content that prominently featured a lesbian couple. The new content, centered around love and marriage, will be delayed until Feb. 23, Electronic Arts said, to ensure a “global release” for the DLC.

My Wedding StoriesIt was originally scheduled to be released on Thursday.

Electronic Arts stated last week that they would no longer sell My Wedding Stories in Russia due to Russian laws that require content it deems “gay propaganda” to be labeled as mature content, available only to people 18 and over. “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,” The Sims team said in a blog post last week.

Now, Electronic Arts will release the game pack “unaltered and unchanged” in Russia, citing that it has “reassessed” its options.

Below is a copy of a portion from the Wednesday statement.

With this in mind, we’ve reassessed our options and realized we can do more than we initially believed and we will now release Sims 4 “My Wedding Stories” Game Pack to our community in Russia,Unaltered, unchanged Featuring Dom and Cam.

We want the entire Sims community to be able to celebrate together, so we’re pushing the global release of “My Wedding Stories” to February 23 — including in Russia.

The definition of love is:Sims Community will remain a safe place for all who wish to create a world that works for everyone. Even when things are difficult, we appreciate the team’s support and their values. Thanks for being a part Sims.

A spokesperson for Electronic Arts declined to comment.

The Sims team made reference to the opposition it received from prominent Sims influencers and the Russian Sims community in its Wednesday announcement. Russian Sims 4Some players claimed that Russia’s content was restricted to LGBTQ+ players, while others suggested Electronic Arts misunderstood the law. Electronic Arts didn’t explicitly state that, however. This Russian federal law it assumed the pack would violate, many pointed to Russia’s “anti-gay law” or “gay propaganda law,” which is designed to prohibit companies and organization from distributing content depicting LGBTQ+ relationships. Russia says the law protects “traditional family values.”

Sims 4This is a game of life simulation that allows players to choose how they want, without any restrictions regarding their gender or sexuality. Sims 4 has always allowed for gay weddings, and has previously included LGBTQ+ content in its DLC — including in Russia, where international research and advocacy group Human Rights Watch says Russia’s anti-gay “propaganda” law has “increased hostility” and limited “affirming education and support services” for LGTBQ+ youth. Typically, Sims 4 is rated T for Teen by the ESRB, meaning it’s acceptable for players age 13 or older. Russia Sims 4 Is rated 18+

“Since then, we’ve been listening to the outpouring of feelings from our community including both support for our decision and concern for their fellow community members,” Electronic Arts said in Wednesday’s blog. “It’s equally important for us to stand by our values, including standing against homophobia, and to share stories like this with those who want and need it most.”

The “gay propaganda” law has impacted video games in the past: Blizzard Entertainment decided not to publish an Overwatch Comic depicting Tracer kissing her girlfriend, an openly gay character. Blizzard Entertained told Eurogamer in 2017 that it “decided not to publish given the climate in Russia and legal feedback.”