Times are just way fucking different now. More people are way more skilled and knowledgeable about the game than before. I remember the first shit thing blizzard did, even back then was add in the armory, the precursor to gearscore and shit like that. Im sure they did not think to would become what it was back then, but It became the meta to check every single dude you wanted to invite to your group to check their gear and if they were worthy enough to carry your ass through a run of DM. Then it became, hey why not just do away with all that nonsense and label everyone with a fucking number. I just think all this shit ends up splitting and dividing the player base eventually. Youre no longer playing with buddies and having fun, but playing with NPC with higher numbers because it makes shit easier. It also ruins immersion if you think about it.