Seasons (weather) should be a basegame element. They can make money on events that only happen in particular seasons, later. They can remove 'gardening' and add that to the event pack if they want to explore 'seasons'. But weather and it's affects on Sims should have always been a basegame element if you are going to simulate a 'world' and 'life'. Special events that happen during a particular season is where they can take an EP rather than throwing gardening/farming into the base.
Generations/Parenthood should have always been a basegame element. Who wants to wait for a Sim to care about a family member three years later? Give me a break, that was such a money grab. Basegames (like TS2) should already care about other family members and simulate the life that happens between them. Such as fears, wishes, dreams, interactions, thoughts, simulation between child and parent, other family members, and not have to wait on EPs to flesh those out. How ridculous to wait for that. Then me scream omg, thank you for toddlers and my Sim parent finally lecturing the child for misbehaving....says a lot about what we were willing to accept as gameplay and a life simulator, doesn't it.
Kid games should be a basegame element and not just card games but games children play, they aren't all involved with a phone, and need those mental, physical and social developing skills and learning boundaries, by playing games together. Waiting on that is such a money grab.
Pets can remain an EP but will have to be more than what C&D turned out to be. Butlers, Nannies, etc. should have been basegame elements instead of having to pay $10 to get a butler. If they wanted to make an EP with more high living elements such as sports cars, high society living, pent houses, more expensive, flashy clothing (like in TS1's buyable clothes) and society like that, that added more luxury items, then they can put those in that sort of EP.
Grunge (decals in Vampires) should have always been a basegame element. Boarded up, broken windows, dirty walls, ripped wall paper, stained floors should always be a basegame element because it allows a player to tell their own story instead of cookie cutter Sim lives.
One bad or evil NPC or occult should always be a basegame element whether that is the fear of an alien or an unsavory charlotan or something else the base should always have someone you love to hate and fear. It's what makes soap operas and sitcoms or nighttime dramas more interesting to most, every storyboard needs an arch enemy. Something everyone can relate to and fear or dispise is always the key to uniting a community to play in ways that branch out of cookie cutter lives. Even the Sad Clown (TS1.basegame) was something everyone understood, disliked and or didn't know how to solve and united the players to overcome. (before spoilers to remove the painting)
Education shouold shortly follow a base, how many generations of Sims should a player have before they can attend a higher education facility. I think TS4 has missed the mark on this one. Better careers (by degree) should have followed a college education such as doctor or other open careers. University should have been the second pack to open up better paying careers.
