All games are expensive. Many people ask for free packs, enter giveaways, look for ways to play anything without having to pay for it. Some because they simply can't afford that specific game, others because they don't want to pay even if they have the spare cash. It doesn't make TS4 any more expensive than others, it's just the way things are. Back in the TS1 days, making copies of CDs was what happened: you'd hope one of your friends paid for a game so you could get a copy. And just looking at numbers against previous installments is unfair because currency inflation is a thing and 20$ now doesn't go as far as it did 10 years ago.
This iteration being called Sims 4 doesn't necessarily mean it's a sequel in the gaming world. Civilization games were numbered too and it meant that it's a new version of the same game, with modifications to the core idea: graphics, mechanics, etc. The same goes for the Final Fantasy franchise, each of the games stands on its own.
With game franchises, there's always the thing that people have their favorites. FF fans have theirs that vary across the entire series, TS fans have the same (I mean, how many people think Medieval or Urbz are the best? lots, I bet). I wish we had a proper version of the older games for people to try out so they can find their favorite without the need to pit them against each other (people AND games) because at the end of the day, they're different games.
