its because the “oldies” are well designed and aren’t overtly obvious cash grabs.

well I mean some are cash types. but quite a few old MMOs have a great life due to private servers and whatnot. And some “dead” MMOs are still alive solely on private servers (Star Wars Galaxies for example)

and ones like ESO are great for not needing a subscription to play. you have the option to just buy the content outright if you’d like.

but yeah I would love to see a new MMO come along to bring that feeling back. the good old days of competition between MMOs. it does feel like cash shop gacha trash is everywhere these days.