This is an over-generalization. And the longer a game is in play, the less clear it is to what extent this is a good idea. Does simplification get you a lot of new people? Does it lose some of your old fanbase? Does it make things that previously made sense no longer do so?
I was thinking the same thing. A radical change in how things work risks alienating their current fans with no indication that new fans will replace them or surpass their numbers. i.e. It's a tough spot to be in. I'm a fan of the idea that they should work to streamline the rules while retaining as much of the Shadowrun feel as possible. I played a little bit of Shadowrun in the late 80s and early 90s, but it wasn't one I played very frequently. I get a flood of warm nostalgia anytime I see art from the 1st edition book.
There's a lot to like about Shadowrun. While I've alway preferred Cyberpunk, I'll have to admit the setting for SR has always been pretty good and over the years has changed with the times much better than CP. I've always liked character generation and the way you prioritize what's important to you. Do you want to be a Troll? Do you want your lifestyle to be your lowest prority? How about Skills or Attributes? You have a lot of flexibility.
I picked up 5th edition a few years back and after reading the rules came to the conclusion that running this game didn't interest me. It's been a while, but I just felt the rules for magic, riggers, etc., etc. were all overly complicated when taken in the aggregate. Figuring out a mage wasn't too complicated, but when adding everything else it just seemed like a bigger headache than I wanted.
There was one thing that threw me and it was wireless devices. Like, I get how useful wireless devices where, but, for reasons I did't understand, a decker could hack into your cyberware because it was also online. If I were a cybered up Street Samurai, why on God's green Earth would I leave myself vulnerable to hacking by leaving my cyberware connected to the WIFI? Obviously it was to give the decker a chance to defend the group as well as participate in attacks on enemies as he hacks their cyberware, but it just struck me as monumentally stupid. I can accept magic returning and goblinization, but I sure as hell couldn't accept professional killers keeping their cyberlimbs connected to the WIFI.