I played in Vanilla since day one and completed all the raid content. I’ve noticed some changes that I think they impact the experience.
In Classic The Eye of Shadow is dropping quite generously from mobs in Darkwhisper Gorge (Winterspring). This was not the case in Molten Core times, this was a QoL change introduced later. Read this comment from an Allakhazam in 2005:
The eye of shadow dropped off of a hederine initiate in winterspring… My group tried tainted scar for about 1 hour and 30 minute, no drop… so we quit… the next day we went out to winterspring, and killed only hederine initiates… it had been a lil over an hour, we were right about to quit, and it dropped… killed somewhere around 80-100 Hederine Initiates before the drop… GOOD TIMES GOOD TIMES… i think we got lucky
Not only the respawn is faster but the drop rate seems way higher. I remember that given the rarity, your way to go with this item was killing Kazzak, which always dropped one, who isn’t even already in the game. I think this increased drop was introduced later (in AQ times maybe?)
Also Bindings of the Windseeker are aready dropping in Molten Core, and these weren’t introduced until Blackwing Lair patch. I find it quite ironic being able to start obtaining a legendary from the next tier when Dire Maul isn’t even made available (which will be irrelevant when it releases). I’m aware it can’t be completed until Elementium is accessible in BWL, but it doesn’t make sense to me these are already dropping.
I find the #nochanges philosophy the right approach and while I think that some late QoL changes should be kept (I’m fine with the Timbermaw repeatable quests although when I got my transformation trinket at exalted I had to kill more than 30k furbolgs because these quests didn’t exist (the concept of “repeatable quest” didn’t even exist)), but I think these ones mentioned affect the overall experience of the game, it contradicts staging the content in phases.