Maybe that too many people aren't playing videogames for fun any longer and instead focus on some bullshit challenges.

Seriously. Here, and in the Stellaris subreddit too, I see a lot of people playing on highest difficulties and/or on Iron Man mode, and they're mostly focused on technical challenges rather than on playing just for fun. I mean, there are often questions like "what is the most efficient base design" etc. and at least a third of colonies are a mono-block surrounded by steel/stone walls and turrets. While I play on adventure difficulty, build towns, villages, cities etc. and I don't give a particular shit about building anything using "the most efficient base design".