Here's our first look at how Sims look and behave in The Sims 5

Maxis has provided another look at The Sims 5 - more properly known as Project Rene - and while the game's still in the early prototyping phases, we're starting to get a sense of how Sims will look and behave in the new game.

If you're hoping for a proper deep dive into The Sims 5, you're going to be disappointed, because this is a pretty surface-level overview of an array of different features. But it is our first direct look at anything beyond the new build mode and furniture customization tools, including an impressive new lighting model and hair customization options.

The real revelations here are the Sims themselves. The devs say they're putting a greater emphasis on animations to communicate your Sims' states of mind. "Our vision for animation is driven by the phrase 'read the room,' which means we want players to know how our Sims feel and what they're thinking just by how they behave," animation director Nawwaf says.

On that point, the devs are trying out a UI-light approach. "Right now, we're actually experimenting with how little can we get away with," producer Jill explains. "We're really leaning into just clear, playful, simple visuals that'll start giving us a feel for how much information is too much, too little, what's working, so we can really better hone in that sweet spot to help you better understand what your Sims are actually talking about."

We also get a bit of talk about the new Sims pathfinding model, including some intriguing looks at a prototype that shows a bunch of figures wandering around an open neighborhood. Art and visual effect director Stu notes that your Sims will "exist in a broader neighborhood full of Sims," and that these neighbors will have their own schedules and routines as they wander around the neighborhood.

One look at the Among Us-like characters in that neighborhood model should tell you how early this is and how much it's subject to change. But that talk of a 'broader neighborhood' sure sounds like the return to an open-world setting Sims fans have been hoping for, doesn't it?

It's almost certainly going to be years before The Sims 5 achieves its final form, and it seems even Maxis is still in the process of deciding what shape many of its core mechanics will take. Here's hoping that by the time it arrives, it'll prove a worthy new entry into a genre that's inspiring major competitors like Paralives and Life by You.

Maxis has confirmed that The Sims 5 has multiplayer, but it's "not an MMO."