I agree, but with EA being "the most hated" company right now, this would be the perfect time for another company to step in and say, "We can do better!"

So now that we've seen some concept art, any further predictions on graphics?

TS4 is 2D?
It's a pencil sketch on a paper, you can't predict much from that unfortunately

I wish we could because that drawing could turn out really good or horrendous if put in 3D

Sims 4 will be stylized realistic, which means basically the same as sims 2 & 3 but a bit more advanced. They want to keep the Sim style, they can't just start something completely new.
Plus if they would go for super realistic sure it would look cool for now, but keep in mind we will be playing Sims 4 for the next 5 years, and what looks realistic now will look like crap in 2018. They will make is stylized so it won't get outdated, just like Sims 2 & 3.
Another thing: most people who play the sims are in the age of 10 to 20. Most of them will live with their parents and share one not-so-fancy computer. Those computers will not be able to handle super realistic sims.

I bet it's going to look like TS3, though I kinda wish it'd be a bit like TS2...

I'd love for TS3 style graphics but with the...sharpness? I guess, that TS2 sims seem to have. I was making a new TS3 last night and my main complaint is that it's very hard to get the sharp, angular features I really like. They were very easy to do in TS2 but in TS3 everyone's face ends up soft and pudgy.
I really don't want them to go the uncanny valley route with the sims, honestly. I can play plenty of other games if I want creepily-realistic people, and it's not hard to make TS3 sims hit uncanny valley with enough CC already. Leave that sort of look to the modders.

Sadly, pudding will do that.

Uncanny Valley - it makes me shudder, they try and recreate the look of people realistically but in my opinion it makes them look even more false than sims in The Sims 2 and 3.

I honestly think we're going to get sims that look more comical (read: thick, bold lines to accentuate features and muscles a.k.a. Cartoony), as the eyes preview suggest. Also, from the Live Broadcast today, they mentioned the "stylized realism" hint then we're shown a sketch that looks like a stylized comic. This kind of stuff is very different from what The Sims has been, and I really don't like it. Think "The Sims 3: Freeplay" with a higher poly count. It will be almost identical. Comical. Cartoony. And for children.

Maybe they'll end up looking like Skelljay's CC-fied version of Dina Caliente.

That husband-stealing b*tch actually looks quite friendly there!

But looks can be deceiving...

That's her as a teen in Skelljay's story, Fortune & Romance. And yes, she's got layers. It's one of the best sim stories I've ever read. I highly recommend it!

If so, I don't think I'd mind that.

Yeah everybody hates EA, yet we're all posting about a EA game that's a year away and there's over a few thousand posts about it. IJS

And I guarantee you not all of those few thousand posts involve waxing lyrical about EA. Many are either rants and/or constructive criticism. We can support the game without being in agreement with the company.

I don't disagree, but that's not the issue. The issue was another company taking on The Sims franchise with a rival game. How does another company compete against a company that everyone hates but those who hate the company still buys the company's games?

There are two reasons for this:

1) Modders

Those who are not satisfied with their EA games (e.g. Sims 3) have the option to use mods for their gaming needs. This allows them to modify the game to suit their play style and fix game-breaking bugs and features. If EA announces a new expansion pack, there are players who will purchase it in spite of the company's history because they either have no beef with EA or believe that a modder will eventually fix what EA manages to break next. I am thankful for them but in some ways, modders are (indirectly) helping EA make sales by making the game better.

2) Lack of Competition

Because there isn't a life simulation game out there that can hold a candle to the Sims games, many players are forced to settle with what EA has to offer, hoping things will get better in the future. This is what some players are doing now, hoping that the Sims 4 will be so much better than previous installments and that maybe this time will be different. Of course, some of us aren't holding our breath.

So to compete with EA, all another company has to do is that. Compete with EA and show the fans what they're missing.

There are sort like games out there, take Singles 1 & 2 for example. But they never got that far because it's made by just a little company. All the 'big studios' aren't focussig on sim-like games. If they would they would probably get the name 'sims-ripoffers' and 'lack of creativity'.

I could argue that most AAA game development is FUELED by a lack of creativity!

Budgets for big budget games have gotten so big it's just not practical to make anything experimental anymore. EA is still making The Sims because it has proven itself over many years. But if The Sims was a new game today, they probably wouldn't have even attempted it.

There have been several attempts already mentioned in this thread which is the point

They don't count for reasons I've already mentioned.

Singles does not let you have children or different life stages. The Desperate Housewives game is not open-ended. The Partners game is set in an office. Those games are compared to the Sims because of similar features (e.g. motive bar) but they were never trying to compete to begin with. They were created for entirely different reasons and were never meant to be an alternative to the Sims. The developers of such games were not attempting to replace the Sims.

If a sandbox game comes out offering what the Sims games have and more, that's what I'd call competition.

I want a movies 2 so much

I hope they improve the graphics a little, make it less cartoony, sort like The Sims Medieval, like someone said before.
Medieval was one of the hardest games I've ever played, everything was too far away from my Sims, they almost died while attempting to complete a quest.
About The Movies, I have the game but never got too far away with it. I need to experiment some day.
Life simulation games are nothing new. I've played a thousand. If you guys want, I can talk more about them.
It is my favourite genre.
And glad somebody does know about Partner, the game.
That one is rare, but bad, as Monte Cristo games used to be.
One day I shall get Pop Life and TV Star.

Of course they count. They're life simualtion games.

The sims has been out for over a decade, you're telling me EA has the only programmers and developers that can make a life simulation game in that time? Or is it no one wants to take on a company that has customers who will buy the product even if they don't like it?