It's good to hear from an OG like you that you still see Splinterlands to be successful long term. Priorities and preferences in life change and so your choice (if ever) of leaving is very much valid.
I always liken Splinterlands with Magic The Gathering. I love the game when I was young but I could no longer keep up with it. The costs, time, complexity, etc. I'm happy to see it still thriving with players (OGs and new ones as well).
Maybe you just want to rest from it for a while, or you needed liquidity; that is totally fine. I do hope if your interest on it rekindles, it would be easy for you and anyone to get back into it. :)
Yes, I've shared some comments about my love of the game in the responses to other comments on this post. It is a complex, multi-faceted beast. It is an enduring game formula, and it's probably ahead of its time, like so many other notions and ideas.
So many of those things perish, some endure and find their people. I think Splinterlands has found its people, but there's more out there. It could be incredibly more accessible, and with all the work the team has completed, I believe that it would be scaleable, too.
The fundamentals are, capture even a small portion of MTG / Wizards of the Coast market cap; and you've still got an enormous pot of player base. Even if that player base is 1 or 2% the size.