SE is a company that wants to make money, and the way companies make games is almost a direct result of what people want in a game. If you are wondering why no niche genres of MMOs can survive you have to look no further than yourself when placing blame. I know there is a small number of us that want nothing more than a nice community that enjoys a very rich and specific game direction where things aren't always handed to us so easily and gear is an actual achievement when obtained. But more and more we are going to see companies go away from those specific ideas that some communities (like the ffxi community) enjoy and hold dear, including myself. We are coming to an age in gaming where in order for a MMO to become and stay successful they must cater to the masses and make games so general that it can appeal to a large number of peoples tastes.

At the end of the day I believe that SE has done a pretty good job so far with 2.0. It's "westerny" enough to appeal to those people who only know and want to play those WoW style button mashers, and Japanese enough to hold the attention of old school XI lovers.