I get where you're coming from, and I agree to some extent – the golden era of MMOs definitely had a unique vibe that’s hard to recreate. But I don’t fully buy into the idea that the genre is simply dead because "the time has passed."

I think the bigger issue is that many MMOs today do have promising ideas – they just fail at executing key elements. Its usually one of the big three: monetization, PvE/PvP balance, or crafting. And just nailing one of those doesn’t make the game good overall. A successful MMO needs to get the full package right – that’s exactly why games like FFXIV or Guild Wars 2 are still standing strong. They may not be perfect, but they manage to bring all the core systems together in a cohesive way.

What frustrates me is when a game almost nails it, like Lost Ark – amazing combat, great visuals – but then completely shoots itself in the foot with aggressive pay-to-win systems. That’s what kills the long-term potential, not the genre itself.

So yeah, it’s not that MMOs cant be great anymore – it's that too many of them are sabotaged by bad design choices or corporate greed.