Things that NEED to happen

[Amnesia]

I'm trying to understand why people are saying "these are just quality of life changes" insinuating that such changes aren't important for a game's longevity.

No, it's that they're not needed. No one is saying that they might not desirable or that having desirable things isn't good for the long-term health of the game.

IMO, too many people post on these forums insisting that their own personal wishlist must be satisfied or else the game will fail (That's what it means for a change to be "needed"). Perhaps there are some changes like that, but (IMO) the OP's list doesn't contain them.