[Rant] This game's practically dead in terms of actual content.

And that is exactly where the wall is for non-NX, non-8-hour-maple-per-day players.

Whereas in pre-bb, non-8-hour-maple-per-day players just never made it past level 50, NX or no NX.
And while there's nothing wrong, per se, in staying lower level, it did keep one shut off from most of the content of the game. Unless you had darksight or really enjoyed dying as soon as you set foot in a map that's too high level for you. And of course you couldn't take on any bosses beyond Mushmom, with or without a party.

I daresay the percentage of content open to casual players today is higher than it was back then.

Difference is, back then you had the motivation and the time to grind 40 hours a week for one more level on the slow slow road to reaching "endgame". Now you're older and busier and don't have time to grind 40 hours a week for one more 15% spell traced slot on your weapon on the slow slow road to reaching "endgame".