The adjustment has been gradual but the signs were always there.
I remember the last time I bought a Civ game. Civ3. The physical CD launched on day one was just junk as it was buggy as heck with frequent crashes. Had to dL a 5 gig ‘patch’ (whole game on the disc was less than that). Then you had to buy multiplayer separately and the ability to mod needed another expansion. This was 2001.
Now my multiplayer is mostly free to play and my single player game purchases are considered with many updates and a lot of reviews before I buy.