I wonder if instead of making my own updated re-implementation of the original SimFarm, that I go isometric with it. Replicate the isometric pixel art aesthetic of SimCity 2000. (I am not a pixel artist; I would legit need someone else to create all the game assets for me.)
I'd still want to eschew a lot of realism to keep gameplay stuck to a grid, to make it look and feel like a classic style game.