You could make *plenty* of analogies in the game to this - for example, beating Shadow Lord way back when sneak and invis didn't exist and the level cap was 50 (and of course, a lot of the gear and items and spells - like Refresh - that we know and love today, didn't exist), compared to soloing/duoing Shadow Lord at 75, or for that matter clobbering him with a party of 75's in a minute or two.
Does the fact that Shadow Lord is easy *now*, make the accomplishment of people who beat him way back then (when he was hard), any less meaningful? Of course not. They did something difficult when it was difficult. The fact that it happens to be easy now, if anything, makes their accomplishment greater, because newer people can't really simulate the previous accomplishment.
It's much the same for anything else that becomes easier, whether we're talking Promyvions or getting certain previously uber-rare (not necessarily uber-useful mind you, this knife was always overrated) items, or what have you. The past accomplishment is in no way diminished, because you can always take pride in having done it back when it was actually hard to do.
And if you look back on that time and consider it a waste of time, well, doesn't that imply you thought of it as a waste of time in the first place? If so, the smart thing you should've done in the past, was simply not do it. There's no shame whatsoever in placing a little value on your time and saying screw it to an exceptionally bad time sink.
I incidentally have zero sympathy for people who like to get items for the sole purpose of feeling pleased with themselves that they have something
that other people don't. Bolded for emphasis - the draw of the item to such people is not the effort put into obtaining it, or the improvement gained, or the quality of the item itself. It's the feeling of superiority over people who don't have it.
(As a stunning coincidence, it's frequently this sort of person who gets massively upset when things get easier and other people can get their previously unique and lord-over-able shiny thing. Because, of course, this concept bothers such people far more than it bothers someone who just wanted the thing for its stats.)
Not only is that shallow (and frequently a mark of insecurity), but it's really a very shaky thing to base your ego on - because, as we've seen here, a little flick of the switch by S-E and suddenly you ain't so special any more.