I have been playing DnD mostly as a DM since just before first edition. I played with my friends as a teenager mostly 1st edition, my kids when they were ready mostly 3rd edition, and now my grandkids mostly 5th edition.

It was always about exploration and interaction with NPCs. My campaigns tend to have periods of exploration/interaction interspersed with combat encounters or dungeon crawling. The first couple DM's I learned the game from set a good example for me. I think your group and play style is what determined the nature of the game, not the books. We had DM's that had different styles and focus' when I was a tean. Some heavy on combat, some not much. Some very hard on the players, others way to easy. Same was true when my kids played with other groups, and same seems to be true with the grandkids.