It's weird to me how many people act like 1.3 is a completely different game

On one hand I'm glad No Man's Sky is finally getting the positive reception it deserves.

But on the other hand I wonder what exactly has won people over in 1.3 that 1.0-1.2x did not?

It's still the same game. Some things were tweaked to be better, some quality of life improvements made, and some new story bits added....but it's still No Man's Sky.

I think it's really bizarre how many people did a compelte 180 on the game. To me that's like hating Diablo 2 but falling in love with it when Lord of Destruction dropped. Or hating Street Fighter 4 but loving Ultimate Street Fighter 4. Or hating the iphone 6 but loving the 6S.

At it's core it's still what it's always been.