Microsoft invests a lot of time and effort in (selective) backwards compatibility. It’s one of the draws to the OS. In past leaks of code we have seen it’s code base is littered with special cases. I can’t find the link but here have this almost good enough reddit link: https://www.reddit.com/r/Windows10/comments/lpdn0x/microsoft_really_understands_backward/
RoG adds a lot of content which makes the early game a bit easier, and opens up a lot of possibilities later.
The other expansions are only worth it once you have “completed” RoG.