Become a pirate captain in Red Rogue Sea that combines FTL and deckbuilding with a demo out now
(www.gamingonlinux.com)
It’s self-consciousness (less charitably called hack writing or selling out). These are game developers trying to chase market trends rather than following their hearts.
Some are honestly trying to make games that they themselves would love. But it does have a bit of the feel of “I love ice cream and I love dill pickles, so why not dill pickle ice cream?!”