Fantasy should be what the game should be about. Not just the one fantasy being the only one allowed because of lazy design goals and a fan base so unwilling to accept anything but magic being reliable they accepted Bounded Accuracy that makes it absolutely certain any and all skills are markedly unreliable.
Niche RPGs based on IPs can do well if they have decent mechanics and
lean into the IP to capture the essence of it. D&D needs to do that better, not try to make it generic.
D&D isn't a generic universal role-playing system and shouldn't be designed that way. D&D's niche is the D&D universe itself, with fantasy heroes striving against dungeons, dragons, magic, and supernatural threats, on top of any mundane threats. Magic is part of the fabric of the game (a "weave" of fabric, if you will), even for "non-magical" races and classes in the form of magic items, boons, and enemies to face.
I strongly believe that Rangers in D&D are
cooler because they lean into the primal magic. The Seeker class in 4E has some of that primal feel that I think Rangers deserve to lean into if they want.
Most non-magical abilities based on crafting (traps, poultices, poisons, etc.) should be subsystems that take time and money to invest in and implement. (Yes, this means they deserve better rules for implementing them.) They shouldn't be siloed "class abilities" because they shouldn't all belong to one class. I can see a rogue, artificer, or druid being able to set traps before a fight as much as a non-magical Ranger can. Poultices shouldn't belong to one class. IMO, Primal magic is the best way to create an in-world reason to make the Ranger unique in D&D, especially if mundane abilities can become part of a more general subsystem that others can get into.