Here is a post I made comparing screenshots of the different games, for clarity, so everyone knows what we are really talking about. Yes, graphics are an opinion, but then again everything in this thread, including the topic of this thread is an opinion, we don’t need to rehash other threads. Part of the ‘desaster’ are the graphics, but it is only part.
I agree with GorbMort that the art style is to blame, not necessarily the engine. I think they could, and maybe even will, offer an option for a ‘realistic’ graphics pack to replace the existing graphics for people who prefer the art style of the previous age games. If they combined that with a flexible zoom system all the way out to whole map zoom, they would without question get higher sales, how could you lose sales by offering more options, people who like it the way it is could keep it that way.