I agree with you about hyperrealism. I don't think it would be fun in the same way if it wasn't cartoony, maybe it would feel too serious if the art was very realistic, or anything negative/scary might feel more upsetting than if it happens to cartoon characters.
I don't know that there's one particular ingredient I'd need for the game to be fun for me.
I am reluctant to spend a lot of money all over again on packs that I already bought for TS4 though (like seasons, pets, werewolves)
Probably, I will wait to buy a TS5 unless/until it seems like something that works well and is fun to play, either as a basegame or with packs that have different content than what I already bought for TS4.
