From what I played in the trial version of The Sims 4, there were a lot of new changes I loved (one of which is the search bar, oh god, THANK YOU), and some changes I didn't like (not as open world as Sims 3, e.g. loading screens everywhere). Regardless, it was still fun because it felt like a new game, rather than just an old game with a new coat of paint.
Granted, I would love to see features from older games transcending into the newer game, but I do understand you can't just cram every imaginable feature and function into one game. It's just unrealistic. I am saying this as a web developer, and the same can be applied to websites and web apps, but I digress.
TL;DR I honestly think The Sims 4 is great as it is, despite a few of its flaws, and I am glad that it's different than The Sims 3. Change is good. Gotta learn to adapt and move on.