Sims too gay for Russia – MPs

A domestic alternative to the iconic life simulation series should be developed in Russia, a group of legislators says

A group of Russian MPs has called for the creation of a home-grown alternative to The Sims, one which would promote “traditional values.” The iconic games series has been actively promulgating a gay agenda and is therefore not suitable for the country’s gamers, the legislators argue.

The MPs raised the issue with Deputy PM Dmitry Chernyshevsky on Thursday, insisting that the creation of a domestic analogue to The Sims was long overdue and that merely hiding the series behind a mature rating was not enough.

“This game actively promotes LGBT and other forms of behavior that contradict traditional Russian spiritual and moral values. Despite receiving a formal ‘18+’ rating, the game is still popular among Russian teenagers,” the MPs said in a statement.

Therefore, saving the teenagers from the purportedly harmful influence of The Sims can be reached only if a solid alternative to the game series is offered domestically, the legislators suggested.

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“It seems that, in the current situation, it would be best to develop a domestic video game in the ‘life simulator’ genre, corresponding to Russian traditional spiritual and moral values and including an educational component that will help Russian teenagers gain the knowledge they need in real life,” the statement reads.

Such a game would apparently provide teenagers with valuable insight on how to create a traditional family, childbirth, basic Russian legislation, and so on. It was not immediately clear whether the MPs provided any concrete plan on who exactly may develop such a game, but they argued it might become a commercial success.

The fourth installment of the iconic series caused controversy in Russia early last year after its publisher, video games giant EA, announced that the ‘My Wedding Stories’ pack for The Sims 4 would not be sold in Russia. The company argued that the heavy presence of LGBT characters in its marketing may cause troubles with the Russian law. Still, it made a U-turn on the decision shortly after, promising to release the pack for the game, which already had the 18+ tag in Russia over homosexuality portrayal.

The whole affair with ‘My Wedding Stories’ ended somewhat inconclusively, since the pack was released a day before the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out, with EA pulling from the Russian market entirely shortly after.