People might be able to see it coming, but could still be enticed by the riches to be made for a while by playing the game even while knowing how it ends.
You do not need to understand the entire operating system to benefit from open source. Open source can enable an end user to fix or at least report a narrow issue.
Do you think that the growing size and complexity of software might be part of the strategy of those profiting from the suppression of free software, rather than a necessity for increased software quality?