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Paradox Tectonic revealed Life by You earlier in March 2023 in a short teaser during a Paradox showcase event, now the Sims-competitor has a release date: Life by You launches in early access on September 12, 2023, on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

Rod Humble, who has worked extensively on The Sims in the past, is the brains behind Life by You, which will be the debut game of his California-based Paradox Tectonic studio. How do the masters of grand strategy plan on tackling genre-leader The Sims?

Here’s the official description for Life by You from the game’s website:

“Open up a new world of creative possibilities in Life by You. Be in total control of the humans that you create, the towns that you build, the stories that you tell. And oh yes – mods! We know life is always better with a heavy sprinkle of your imagination, so we’re empowering you with a wide variety of Creator Tools so you can design your lives the way you see fit – or break the rules of life itself. Designed to be one of the most moddable and open life-simulation games, we look forward to the humans, stories, and creations that you’ll make with Life by You.”

A two-minute trailer revealed early gameplay, showing us what to expect from Life by You:

Just like the description, the announcement trailer hammered home what Paradox seems to think is going to be the big selling point of Life by You: creative freedom. From entire quests to things as simple as cooking recipes, Life by You lets players tinker with everything to enhance their open world, which is envisioned to function without any loading screen whatsoever.

Paradox Tectonic states that additional platforms may be added in the future and says that Life by You is “currently a single-player experience.” The studio anticipates that the early access phase will take around a year and has also provided the minimum specifications your PC needs to run the game:

  • OS: Windows 10
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-8600 / AMD Ryzen 5 2600
  • Memory: 16 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 4GB / AMD Radeon R9 380 4GB
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Storage: 25 GB available space
  • Optimized for 30 FPS

The recommended specs look a lot juicier:

  • OS: Windows 10/11
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-10400F / AMD Ryzen 5 3600
  • Memory: 16 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB/AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Storage: 25 GB available space
  • Optimized for 30 FPS

Life by You is now available for pre-order at the price of $39.99 on Steam and EGS.