One thing that I think about a lot is the difference between crafting Ambrosia in the Sims 3, vs in the Sims 4.
Crafting Ambrosia in the Sims 3 is a quest - not in the video game "discrete assigned task" sense, but in the sense that it's a journey. Take especial note of what it means to aquire Deathfish, in particular.
First, actually cooking the dish requires level 10 Cooking skill, and the recipe book required to learn it is expensive (§12,000).
Second, the first component, deathfish, needs level 10 fishing skill to catch. These fish can only be caught from Graveyard between midnight and 5AM, or all day long in a deathfish stocked pond, with angelfish bait.[n 3] If the Sim is an angler, bait isn't needed nor do they have the time constraint to catch fish. Players can also catch 10 deathfish and "stock" a pond at home with them for all day access.
If the Sim has read a book that reveals the bait from the deathfish, then the Sim is able to catch the fish at level 5 fishing skill and above (though the book is readable at level 7 and above).
Finally, the Ambrosia recipe requires life fruit, which is only growable from Life Seeds, which are only plantable at level 7 gardening. The seeds can be found randomly scattered about town labeled as "Unknown Special Seeds", especially around or in the graveyard, after reaching stage 7 of the science career (the life fruit will show up in a Sim's inventory after a while) or as a reward from an opportunity from the EverFresh Delights Supermarket.
Now, let's look at what the ingredients for Ambrosia in the Sims 4 are.
Death flower (Graft Pomegranate and Orchid to get the death flower)
Angelfish (Found in the Willow Creek river near a boat)
Potion of Youth (Purchase from Rewards Store)
The... Rewards Store. Not even a physical place in the world that you visit as a rabbit hole like the Bookstore in the Sims 3 was, just... a menu, that you can access from the bottom of the screen, to to non-diagetically cash in satisfaction points in exchange for cheat-y items and traits.
Where's the sense of occult knowledge in that? It doesn't help that in The Sims 4, Ambrosia has the exact same effect on living sims as the Potion of Youth does, making it useless unless you specifically want to revive a ghost. In the Sims 3, Ambrosia's effect on the living is unique, and it has potent properties beyond lifespan extension: it instantly fills the hunger need, and grants a powerful +75 mood boost that lasts an entire week; furthermore, unlike other cooked food items, it never spoils.
I feel like the sense of "secrets" is greatly reduced in the Sims 4. Even if, in the current world, nothing is ever really a secret in a videogame... a sense of procedure is immersive, you know? Going to a specific time, in a specific place, has a stronger narrative than just buying things out of a gameplay rewards menu.