R99 became terrible because staff didn't enforce rules, and when they enforced rules their actions made the server worse.
The actions of some staff go far beyond that, they lost any hope of (future) credibility on the server.
Resetting the server and banning everyone that is toxic in any channel, along with enforcing some very basic rules, would make the server far better then it was back then.
But its 2019, so the staff tells people what they like, not the other way around.
Guessing they had to replace the rubber bands in the CD-drive.