The Sims 4’s Star Wars: Journey to Batuu Makes for a Wild Vacation

As revealed during Gamescom: Opening Night Live last week, EA’s The Sims 4 is set to bring the world of Star Wars into the video game in a big way with the release of the Star Wars: Journey to Batuu Game Pack next week on September 8th. Ahead of its release, ComicBook.com had the preview opportunity to wander around the remote planet of Batuu for ourselves, and as one might suspect, it makes for a wild vacation.

If you’re somehow not already aware, the new Game Pack is inspired by the real-world location Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland and Walt Disney World. The physical place is essentially its own little slice of the Star Wars universe with all the usual accents like Stormtroopers, droids, and so on. Star Wars: Journey to Batuu is by no means a direct recreation, but it does include several of its places and people where appropriate. (Sorry folks; no rides here.) Given that there’s no telling when you might be able to safely attend Galaxy’s Edge in the near future, Journey to Batuu is a fine, if digital, replacement.

It’s easy to see the appeal wandering around Batuu — which, again, is a literal vacation spot within The Sims 4 — and checking in on the Resistance, First Order, and ragtag group of Scoundrels. There are Star Wars foodstuffs to eat, Star Wars clothes to buy and wear, and players can even build their own lightsaber and droid with a decent selection of options that they can then bring home once they’re done with Batuu. The Sims franchise has certainly dabbled with Star Wars content in the past, but the full Game Pack is a beast unto its own, and it’s hard not to imagine that folks won’t buy it for the simple pleasure of starting lightsaber duels in their digital home. (An activity, it should be noted, that can up their fitness skill.)

There will probably be some folks that scoff at the idea of a Star Wars-themed expansion for The Sims 4, but I also imagine that they aren’t exactly the target audience either. The game allows for plenty of weirdness already, and the idea of jetting off to a remote planet on a whim in the game actually as strange as it sounds. The Sims 4 contains multitudes, whether that be those that want to knit in peace or work with the Resistance against the First Order. Plus, the Millennium Falcon is, like, right there on the map. After spending a couple of hours with it, I don’t know if I’d pay $20 for the opportunity to do so on my own, but I do know many folks that would.

The Sims 4 Star Wars: Journey to Batuu Game Pack is set to launch next week on September 8th for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It’ll cost interested players $19.99. You can check out all of our previous coverage of The Sims 4 right here. This preview was done via guided demo and an early access PC version.

What do you think of The Sims 4 going all-in on Star Wars with the new Game Pack? Are you excited to check out Star Wars: Journey to Batuu for yourself? Let us know in the comments, or hit me up directly on Twitter at @rollinbishop to talk all things gaming!