I’m trying to get my Sim to read a book. She says she wants to, but instead of getting one from the bookcase that has been the subject of relentless clicking, she stands resolutely motionless. Sadly, lock-up is just one of many bugs players are likely to encounter in this fourth main instalment of the life-management series. Other problems included Sims loading in completely different worlds from the one selected, and total, blue-screen-of-death failure of the game. Not a great start.

When you’ve battled through the problems, there are some neat features added to The Sims 4, notably multitasking. Exercising and chatting at once, for instance, boosts both categories, speeding up some of the game’s minutiae. Building is also improved, with more options but a simpler interface. However, longtime fans of the series are likely to find the bad outweighs the good, with countless features from Sims 3 absent, proving a major disincentive.