Yeah, I don't think there will ever be a thing like the old Novice license again. For those of us who came up that way, it was a beneficial, if not always "fun" experience. I got mine when it was still a two year license - but unlike the initial versions, mine was renewable. Those older tickets expired and you had to start all over - jeez.
It was a generational thing then. You didn't have a casual interest in ham radio. You wanted a license and you made a commitment - you had too or it wasn't going to happen.
I can say that I learned a great deal and garnered valuable experience from being a Novice. Image all the Novices in the US crammed into two 50kHz segments - one on 80m and one on 40m at night. You learned how to squeeze every bit of performance out of whatever equipment and antenna you had in order to make those canned CW contacts. You discovered the joy that a 500Hz Collins mechanical filter could bring. Understanding propagation was key to making the most of your operation time. The list goes on. You learned and studied or you just floundered. No, not a great reason to bring the license back, but more of a snapshot of the time. Self-reliance.
if you want a dose of nostalgia, take a look at what our brethren in the UK go through for a license.
The license structure today seems to fit the environment we live in. All of us "antiques" can continue to answer the questions we see posted here from newly minted Extras like "How do I hook up these red and black wires?"
Carry on.