The point then becomes to pick the best class and reach the highest level and when that happens the game is effectively over. Since players can adapt and overcome and develop new techniques of combat, the more a system depends on player-skill the more likely it will live a long and healthy life in the gaming market. Player-skill is more than just taking the outcome of combat out of the hands of some predetermined level system and into the hands of the players. If the outcome is simply decided by numbers as opposed to who is a higher level, it is no less predetermined. And that s the rub.
Companies are out to satisfy customers.
If a player loses in Quake he is out a few minutes of his life. Basing PvP heavily on player-skill gives us a pyramid system of winning. A very small percentage of players will be on top with the vast majority of players on the bottom of the pyramid. This leaves us with a few satisfied customers who win most of the time, and a lot of unhappy customers who lose most of the time. Not a very good model from a business perspective.