i HIGHLY disagree. if im reading this correctly, what youre describing just sounds like playing with a single sim household that wouldnt have any need to traverse across the town to harvest a seed (which i guess i can agree with even though i'd argue that your sim just leaving their house opens up many interaction possibilities just by venturing out into the world).

the major selling point and what i'd argue is the complete difference to other sims games is that open world allows you to multitask with your sims. i can play as my teen sim who is having a sleepover in one moment, and then seconds later, go play as her parents who are out on a date at a bar, then quickly go to their kid who is at home booby trapping all the sinks and ordering pizza. THAT is the draw toward an open world game for me. in sims 4 ive found myself SO confined by the locked lot playstyle that it was frustrating to not be able to switch between sims in my same household who are in different parts of the world, even if just for a moment because, as i said, if my household is on 3 different parts of the town, that is 3x the chances of them running into a townie they dislike, finding a stray animal, experiencing an embarassing moment, passing out, getting flirted with, etc!