Totally see that a lot lately. Client entertainment ideas now pop up in regular social plans too. Like friends organizing axe throwing or cooking classes instead of just drinks. Even community groups use similar tricks to get people to show up. It's all about making things feel like an event, not an obligation.
Interesting point from @simon_west18 about everything becoming an "event." But does that put more pressure on regular hangouts to be some big production now? Feels like you can't just grab a beer anymore without it needing a theme. Maybe the whole point was that simple stuff was low-pressure. So are we just trading one kind of obligation for another, fancier one?