This is one of the things I like about it. 4e, while not a bad system on its own (it works really well for Gamma World), just doesn’t feel like D&D as much as it feels like “MMORPG the Tabletop Game”.
I can see this, but that’s really only if you just follow the suggestions and use the “standard” build options. Changing up the backstory, taking some feats instead of stat bumps, and even just picking the different class options can definitely make some radically different characters.
One of the problems I had with 3e/3.5e near the end of its life, and eventually Pathfinder, is that the massive prevalence of splatbooks and alternative character options, while it did give great flavor, it also meant there was a pretty heavy instance of power creep that became min-maxer heaven, especially towards the later levels. High-level campaigns in 3.5/Pathfinder felt more like we were forces of nature walking around than adventurers. Part of this may have just been DMs who were overly generous with magic items or something, but it felt like it lost the humanity somewhere in the middle and you began to play games as gods. If I wanted that, I’d be playing something like Exalted.
(It’s also one of the reasons I like Shadowrun. Character progression is mostly skills-based, so to progress to the point where you’re basically superhumans would require YEARS worth of play using the standard Karma rewards rules. Yes, it’s possible to min-max a troll beatstick that’s basically impervious to small arms fire, but it’s equally possible for that character to come into contact with a squadron of Red Samurai who don’t give a shit about his damage resistance. Unfortunately, the character progression keeping characters not terribly different from their creation is balanced out by the always impressively pain-in-the-ass Matrix mechanics…)