Imaro
Legend
I'll say the misconception here is that 4e is fundamentally different in this regard.
"I've used my spells up, now I need to spam crossbow attacks."
vs
"I've used my daily and encounter power, now I have to spam magic missile."
Sure there are some differences, but acting like it's some total redesign of the system to insert a new thing to default to, it just feels silly.
I agree with what you're saying, and it's one of the reasons I like the recharge system...when a spellcaster uses a spell he's actually taking a risk now, since he doesn't know when he'll get access to that spell again...though there are some spells with pre-set very long recharges, they generally aren't going to recharge within a combat anyway. So you have to continually adapt to a different array of available spells each round. IMHO, it gives magic a more chaotic and wild feel.