I've recently starting playing Sims 2 on my Mac, and I see the pros and cons of each.
The most stark difference to me so far is how difficult life can be in Sims 2. They lose their jobs way easier, and don't even get me started on how much of a struggle it is for my vampires to have a steady income and not die on the way to work or have their needs so low they lose their job. (I'm getting the hang of it, and they're doing better now, but it took a few deaths and changes of careers to figure it out.)
Romance is way harder. I had to give up on ever making one relationship work, because the guy hated my Sim no matter what, even with love potions at work. He also constantly walked away every time I tried to start a conversation. >.<
I must be a bad decorator, because the environment need bar is at best half full when the place is totally clean. And the aspiration bar tends to hover around the mid point as well. (As opposed to Sims 4 where they can accumulate satisfaction but there aren't any negative consequences if they don't.)
I like the Sims 4 range of emotions, though I was also pleasantly surprised by the great expressions in Sims 2. I disagree the Sims 4 has less personality, though.
The Sims 4 is more laid back and relatively easy to just cruise by if that's what you want to do. It's more a sandbox game than Sims 2. So I feel like I can play out the stories in my head easier in Sims 4. But if I want a more accurate-to-life game, Sims 2 is better.
So I guess this is a long-winded way of saying I enjoy both for different reasons. (Though I do feel more comfortable in Sims 4 just from the familiarity I've gotten from the much longer time play. I imagine if I put the same number of hours into Sims 2, I'll feel equally comfortable with both.)
