Renault Electric Vehicles in The Sims 3: The 2010 EA Partnership

The deal covered The Sims 3 for PC and Mac across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia. That spring, the Renault Twizy Z.E. Concept was to become a free download inside an Electric Vehicle Pack. The pack also contained sustainable items such as solar panels and a windmill.

The game mechanics gave the pack a purpose. Using the electric vehicle content reduced the weekly household bills of the player's virtual family, so the brand placement came with an in-game benefit. Renault called electric vehicles a natural fit for younger, socially conscious buyers and early adopters, and the media agency OMD Fuse International negotiated the partnership for Renault.

Electronic Arts supplied the scale at the time. Elizabeth Harz, then EA's senior vice president of global media sales, framed the deal as brand depth for Renault and real added gameplay value for players. Steve Seabolt, vice president of global brand development for The Sims, added that players had shown steady enthusiasm for bringing real-world brands into their virtual world. The Sims franchise had sold more than 125 million units after its February 2000 start, and The Sims 3 had sold more than 4.5 million copies in the months after its June 2009 launch. Its community had produced 130 million downloads of player-made content.

This is branded content inside an entertainment game. It belongs on a serious games list because it uses a simulation to let players experience a real-world benefit of electric cars, the lower running costs, without a lecture. Nothing in the announcement claims a learning outcome or a measured effect.

The Sims 3 is still on sale. Electronic Arts lists the base game, released June 1, 2009, for PC and Mac through the EA app, Steam and Origin for Mac, starting at 39.99 euros on the EA app. The page lists many add-ons and does not mention an Electric Vehicle Pack or Renault content.

The Sims 3 community website still loads, but its newest news item dates from 2014 and its store area shows no current deal. The Renault electric vehicle website named in the 2010 announcement, renault-ze.com, no longer loads. A Renault UK page for the Twizy now forwards to the brand's general electric range page.