I personally don't mind the direction Sims 4 is headed in. I'm definitely in the minority when I say I don't really think Sims 4 EP's lack content, the recycled content is somewhat an annoyance for me, but sometimes this recycled content makes previously released content better. Rock climbing and Spa's for example are now more fleshed out with Snowy Escape installed, yes, in order to get a more complete experience for both features you need multiple packs, but even then I don't feel as though it is necessary to own all the packs to get an enjoyable experience for either feature, rock climbing still looks like a fun activity even if you don't own Fitness Stuff, Spa's are still a fairly complete experience even if you don't own Snowy Escape. The way I see it is if they never recycled these game play features, these previously released features would have otherwise never been improved upon, which I guess some view as a bad thing. To each their own.
Also comparing common features across the series, many are simply better/more enjoyable in Sims 4, for me anyways. Skills for example I find to be much more fleshed out in 4 compared to previous games, especially when it comes to crafting related skills. Careers I also have a lot more fun with in 4 because there's more variety in the types of careers available. We have 4 active careers, 5 freelance careers, 3 business types, we have work from home careers, all traditional careers have two unique branches, and I find the perks that come with many of the careers in Sims 4 flesh out your Sim's personality a bit here and there, a detail that wasn't really present in Sims 3 anyways.
One more thing I wish to mention, I see a lot of people saying that the EP's rarely add anything to their overall game. Maybe it's just my personal play style, but pretty much every EP has added something to my overall game. Retail shops, clubs, lot traits, pets, holidays and seasons, fame and reputation, University, NAP's, Eco Footprint as well as energy and waste management, and now Lifestyles. The only EP that really didn't add anything to my overall game was Island Living, but every other EP expanded my game in some way, and all these features combined make for a pretty rich and in depth experience.
The recent skin tone overhaul and the addition of sentiments shows that they are willing to add features to the foundation of the game, which excites me plenty, and that's the only direction I really care about at this point. Make the core game better and I'll be a happy simmer for a long time to come.
oh, and fix the bugs.
