I think playability will dictate otherwise. Not sure I am remembering the correct word, but "grognard" comes to mind. I think the days of "grognard" have passed. These days, due (usually) to the youth which, to a large extent, dictate gaming trends, there is more of a tendancy to make fast-moving games. And while 4X strategy games don't generally (IMO) appeal to today's youth, by the very nature of being a 4 game, one expects some kind of "grognard-ness" (if that's a word...
) but not TOO much.