Why do you assume people who are upset about this upcoming stuff pack didn't (and still don't) feel the same way about The Sims 3 store? Like someone else said in this post, social media wasn't nearly as big when Sims 3 was released. That's why you probably didn't hear much about it. In fact, I certainly DO recall people complaining about it. I was one of them. I thought the "store" was a horrible idea even when Sims 2 briefly did it for awhile (does anyone even remember that being a thing? lol).
However, I will say that most (if not all) of the store content was 100% optional and not required to actually enjoy the game itself. The Sims 3 (yes, even the base game) was filled with content and features. There was never a time when it felt lacking. Meanwhile, in Sims 4, the base game alone was a huge problem when it was first released (no pools, no toddlers, no ghosts, no create a style, no open world, etc). You honestly can't really compare the two games when it comes to DLC.
The only major issue Sims 3 has is the fact that it's very laggy and often very glitchy. Otherwise, it's almost a near perfect game (with some minor exceptions). Even your "Top 5 Sims Games" note says that Sims 3 would be higher on your list if it worked properly, so I'm not entirely wrong, am I?
The point is, The Sims 3 store was indeed a terrible idea. I won't disagree with you on that. However, it was also a 100% optional feature for a game that was already filled with a lot of content. You didn't need anything from the store to make the game itself enjoyable. The Sims 4 simply isn't the same. It gets boring and repetitive way too quickly. The new content is what makes the game re-playable for most people. Packs are basically a must have for this specific game. Otherwise, it wouldn't have any replay value. Especially when it's possible to do almost everything in one generation of a family. That's how lacking the game is (even after almost 4 years of being released).
