I like worlds that look playable to me. That there isn't an overload of vegetation or far too many lots closely crammed together. I also look to see if there have been building cheats used.
It's very frustrating to begin play in a nice world, only to have it hang and freeze because a sim has become trapped somewhere due to a building cheat or routing problem. Bridgeport routing did that lot with spawning mixologists in NPC apartments and they can't get out, so I removed all NPC doors.
I choose worlds that I think look beautiful as well as look as if they would play well. I like interesting, scenic terrain ( but prefer flat lots for building ) pretty beaches and fishing spots, and areas that look unique.
I prefer empty worlds with just lots placed so I can build them to my liking. I nearly always end up editing or replacing lots in some worlds, so I figure that I might as well do it myself from the get go.
I try nearly every world I come across. Many don't stay in my game, but a lot do.
