I've bought a bunch of LEGO during the pandemic and I very rarely see pieces that are only present in one set (and when I do they are mostly printed pieces, or

I've bought a bunch of LEGO during the pandemic and I very rarely see pieces that are only present in one set (and when I do they are mostly printed pieces, or standard shapes with unusual colors). I think that what makes the models more "realistic" aren't custom pieces, it's smaller pieces. A lot of models have a lot of 1x1 square, circle or quarter-circle tiles, or small slanted pieces, which allows for finer details. At the same time, these pieces are often smooth on top, so they are less composable than studded ones and harder to manipulate, especially for children, so I can see how this could be a problem. There are also a lot more colors and shades than there used to be, so it is a little harder to make substantial custom constructions that don't look like rainbows.