Personally, I'd be happy if instead of Sims 5 they just remastered Sims 2. The pull of the franchise is the sims themselves and while I've had lots of fun with my sims with this iteration there's so much more they can do with the AI for the next one.
Sims 2 was such a great game for me because the sims were so animated and lively. I use the game as a story telling tool and that game type fit me perfectly. I had to change my play style for Sims 3 because I wanted to experience everything-still lots of fun but not my original sims play style.
4 is okay and has definitely grown on me but what I want to see in Sims 5 is a true upgrade to the Sims themselves. Distinct life states, hobbies and more little details to make them unique and better characters.
I prefer the more cartoonish aesthetic and don't really care about open world, though open neighborhoods would be nice for those with the machines to handle it. I mean with Late Night, they'd say it was a hotspot and it'd just be you, a bouncer, and a bartender. Rabbit holes help with micromanaging big families and if the alternative is GTW-esque events, those get repetitive after awhile.
EDIT: I do like the work from home jobs though! More things like that would be great.
