I don't usually care for having a whole lot of character classes (including several that are just a variation of magic user), I don't like having a whole lot of abilities that open up special actions for the character like several feats do,
So you hate variety and like blandness?
I like variety well enough. But I would rather not be pidgeon-holed into my character. Games where there are several different kinds of spellcasting classes usually try to make them different by giving them some slight different mechanics, but also by giving them a limited spell list, which is the opposite approach of how AD&D did it. Now, I think you could reply that in 3e (and Pathfinder by extension), the arcane spell list is still pretty big and varied, but I think the only reason that is so is because they couldn't do away with how the previous editions managed the class (4e tried that and the results weren't very good). The thing about this is that I would rather have my character become a summoner, for instance, by finding or researching the right spells throughout the game, rather than by taking levels in a summoner class that has a very predetermined way of dealing with how creatures are summoned. Worse yet,if there is a summoner class, it implies that what kind of spell you can research as a generic M.U. is limited otherwise you might begin stepping on the toes of the summoner. Consider, for instance, how all those item creation feats, metamagic feats and improved familiars and what not in 2e were simply spells you could learn. In fact, I think if you take the Wizard's Spell Compendium books from 2e, you will find an amount of variety there comparable to, if not greater than, the whole of the 3e edition, even with 3rd party products (maybe add in the GNSB as well?).
Another example is feats. In 3e, you have several feats open up special combat actions. I would much rather do this as GURPS do, where you could have these special actions, but using them would be simply an issue of practice. That is, if you want to do a "whirlwind attack", you can, but you will need to deal with a hefty penalty to your weapon skill. You could train that specific move, which would allow you to reduce this penalty (even to 0). This is much more interesting in my view because: 1) you don't have to deal with the weirdness of needing a level to attempt something. I don't dislike level based systems. But when mundane stuff is based on levels, they can become really weird, as in, your character can't take a few months to learn a new language, he needs to first get a new level. 2) The player is free to use his creativity. If whirlwind attack is an example of what is possible, rather than a feat, then the player could come up with several different moves for his own fighting style. 3) Games where a move is an important part of character building, instead of simply an example of how to use this or that skill, usually focus on making this character building important and shy away from allowing the PCs to circumvent those things. For instance, in a 3e game, killing the "boss" encounter by using the old illusory bridge trick could be seen as bad because the whole group was looking forward using the abilities they spent so much time choosing. Or course, this depends on your group, but a game like Pathfinder would more get in the way of this kind of play than help it.