@Cinebar GTT has the club system which is new to the sims franchise. Also with GTT akin to NL sims invite sims to hangout. But in GTT it is expanded to include exclusive parties, b'day parties, and lots of other variations. There is no comparison of the world(s) in NL to Windenburg. I pulled out my Double Deluxe (base game & NL) is only a 74 page booklet. All of that stuff you can see in game in TS4.
There are some different functionalities between TS4 & TS2 which makes them both unique games. TS2 integrated well with SimCity and you could take worlds you made in Simcity, port them to TS2 and create a custom world. But in TS4 you get to play all of the worlds with their unique flavors and weather.
In TS4 all sims age, in TS2 households you don't play freeze their aging. In TS2 all the sims look alike. in TS4 you can really create unique looking sims, and create sims that look almost realistic.
Miss the matchmaker, then go to the romance festival in CL. Also, think EA is moving away from the racist troupe - 🐸🐸🐸🐸.
I like that dating is slightly different in both games. So, I get a different playing experience when I play them. And there is attraction in TS4. I know this because I have created single sims who aren't in to each other only to discover they were attracted to a completely different type of sim. So it is different. Do I miss scope the room, yeah, but not a deal breaker.
GTT has the club system which is different from groups. But sims do form impromptu groups and go out in TS4.
You got poker in TS2 in TS4 they play cards, a jenga like game, darts, and that table game in bars. You get the dance sphere in TS2 and dance groups in TS4. What I do miss in TS2 is if you have a shy sim, they would dance differently than an outgoing sim. And like you mentioned, sims would point at a bad dancer. But, I am glad the game has evolved and everyone moves and grooves in TS4 with no condemnation.
The cool thing is you can play and enjoy both games.
Yes, the EPs in TS2 were huge compared to TS4. Heck, I'm still annoyed that in IL they were so lazy they only put wild plants in one area. That should be fixed in a patch. I also hate they doubled the price of EPs and give you less, but that's everywhere isn't it? You pay more for less & lower quality.
Personally I think TS4 is most like TS2, but upgraded. Prior to university in TS2 teen sims didn't age up with their friends.
I think for a game that was launched 6 years ago, you're not going to get EPs akin to TS2. And if TS5 comes out, I think EA wants to move to all online where they nickel & dime you like in the sims mobile games.
I have to disagree about all Sims in TS2 look alike. Looking at the townie generator in TS4 I would have to say that game has more Sims as clones as any of them. TS2's townies are created by Maxis and not a town generator unless a townie dies. All those townies have character files in their own folder in the game programming. The game doesn't generate townies. They are created by Maxis. (like premades) But the game does and can generate townies on it's own when one dies etc. to replace a cashier or if a player chooses to play a townie. However, just go any day of the week to the bin in TS4 and tell me you haven't seen that same face and or body shape and or skintone before. It may have a different name but dang they were there the last time before it was culled. Same Sims, same faces just different names. Same wide hips, same old Sim, same mom with two unrelated skin type kids. I don't know why anyone couldn't create unique looking Sims in any of these games (other than TS1 heads) it's been possible since 2004. I don't know why anyone thinks it's all just been discovered with TS4.
"Games Are Not The Place To Tell Stories, Games Are Meant To Let People Tell Their Own Stories"...Will Wright.
More realistic sims in TS4 and all the TS2 sims look alike? Surely you jest. In TS2 you have, at least for the ladies, 27 basic faces. Select a face. You now have up to 9 right clicks on any and all of the others (click 10 selects that face) to do your modifications. Do the math; 27x9x26. And that's before the face segments with their own array of variants and sliders.
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I have to disagree about all Sims in TS2 look alike. Looking at the townie generator in TS4 I would have to say that game has more Sims as clones as any of them. TS2's townies are created by Maxis and not a town generator unless a townie dies. All those townies have character files in their own folder in the game programming. The game doesn't generate townies. They are created by Maxis. (like premades) But the game does and can generate townies on it's own when one dies etc. to replace a cashier or if a player chooses to play a townie. However, just go any day of the week to the bin in TS4 and tell me you haven't seen that same face and or body shape and or skintone before. It may have a different name but dang they were there the last time before it was culled. Same Sims, same faces just different names. Same wide hips, same old Sim, same mom with two unrelated skin type kids. I don't know why anyone couldn't create unique looking Sims in any of these games (other than TS1 heads) it's been possible since 2004. I don't know why anyone thinks it's all just been discovered with TS4.