I don't understand why people say Old maple was so much better

I quit maple about a year ago, and I must say that the difference in MS from when I joined and when I quit is simple: I was 5 years older.
Things were much more amusing in this game when I was younger, but time went by and I noticed that all MS is, is a grind fest and a constant search for improvement, the fun factor was eliminated once you reached level.... say 120 and had nothing new left to explore.