Life by You launches in Early Access this September

There's a new life sim in town.

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3 mins read
The key art for Life by You.

Earlier this month, Paradox Interactive announced several new games via a video it called the Paradox Announcement Show. This included new game announcements, like Cities: Skylines II. I covered that specific announcement, but not the one that really caught my eye entirely because there wasn’t enough information available for it yet. Today, the publisher shared much more about that game: Life by You. Its title pretty much describes what it is, an open life sim that’s said to be the “most moddable” around. Players can create humans and live their lives – without loading screens.

I’ve been iffy about Early Access titles lately, as it seems like there are so many and I really prefer a fully polished game. There are times I just want to ignore them entirely, but then there’s games like Disney Dreamlight Valley that I absolutely must have as early as possible. Life by You definitely falls into the latter category: I must play it the instant it becomes available. I’m hooked on the idea of being hooked to it.

When you watch the trailer (below), The Sims immediately comes to mind. Life by You is basically The Sims with customizability amped up. Everything is customizable. Players create humans and their households, build their homes, and tell their life stories. There is real language conversations, so there’s no need to decipher what characters are saying to each other. (I’m not going to lie, though, I’ll miss sul-sul!) Players can switch between third-person and direct-control gameplay, allowing an emotional connection to created humans. There are a wide variety of Creator Tools and Editors to let players tweak every aspect of the game.


As I said, there are no loading screens here: fire up the game and run free! There are quests available to complete, which unlock new experiences. Modding can happen at any time. I’m quite excited to see what building a house is like in Life by You… and what building a business from scratch is life! Players can drag, demolish, and rearrange entire towns. The Human Creator promises to be equally detailed, and includes deep personality and character traits.

“Paradox Tectonic’s vision for this game fits naturally with our wider philosophy of ‘we create the games, you create the stories’ and we’re eager to see what types of stories players create in this new sandbox,” said Fredrik Wester, CEO of Paradox Interactive, in a press release. “We’ve taken our community to space, back in time, and around the world. Life by You brings us closer to our own lives or allows us to explore different fantasy realities. We’re thrilled to be entering the life sim genre.”

Developed by Paradox Tectonic (a Paradox Interactive studio) and published by Paradox Interactive, Life by You will be released for PC via Steam/Epic on September 12.

 

Lindsay picked up an NES controller for the first time at the age of 6 and instantly fell in love. She began reviewing GBA games 20 years ago and quickly branched out from her Nintendo comfort zone. She has has developed a great love of life sims and FMV titles. For her, accessibility is one of the most important parts of any game (but she also really appreciates good UI).

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