For years, Sims was the top dog among life simulations. With Inzoi, the biggest competitor is still entering the stage on Steam in March 2025. The head of the game has now explained why nobody dared to do so for so long.
Who is it about? Hyungjun “Kjun” Kim is the Game Director of the Life Simulation Inzoi, which is to be released on Steam in early access in March 2025. He was involved in MMOs such as Elyon or Aion before Inzoi.
On the official Discord server from Inzoi, he has now commented on the development of life simulation and why nobody could really take on the Sims of Electronic Arts before Inzoi.
Anyone who is too mean in Inzoi on Steam becomes a punishment and must make everything to make up for
More videos
Autoplay
The MMORPG problem
What makes development so difficult? “When I remember the time two years ago when I decided for the first time to tackle this project, I have to smile because I know how careless and brave I was when I was even thinking about developing a game of this size,” Kim writes on Discord (via PCGamer.com).
The reason for this is one that he should already know from his times as a MMO developer:
Now I understand why so few companies have tried to develop a life simulation game. The challenge is not only additive, the more you try to build – it is exponentially. From a certain point, it feels like you are playing with invisible ghosts when you find mistakes in this huge world we have created.
He also admits that Inzoi’s development is his “biggest challenge” so far. This is probably because Inzoi, like new MMORPGs, has to deliver many features, systems and content in order to have a chance compared to the competition – even if the competition such as Sims or WoW has already been ahead of over 20 years.
Unlike the Sims
What is Inzoi? The characters in the game are called Zoi and are the focus of all activities. As with the genre king, you first create your family with the help of an elaborate character editor. If you want, you can also fall back on the integrated face scan that transfers your own face directly into the game.
Inzoi is already very different from the graphic from Sims. Thanks to Unreal Engine 5, the life simulation looks significantly better and you can also insert your own items from your household into the game by photo.
In addition, you should have a high degree of co -determination with many aspects in the game. So you can place furniture freely and also have a say in what the world should look outside of your own four walls.
Inzoi also offers a unique karma system that accompanies the life of your characters. If a character dies, it is forced to repent and must serve as a spirit for the common good. You can find out more about this here: Anyone who is too mean in Inzoi on Steam becomes a punishment and must make up for everything