They shut off passive abilities, activated ones, on death triggers all while rendering the target pretty pointless in combat
Being cast regularly on turn two means that if you have the ability to grant him lifelink and trample, he can take over games, possibly not having to use up +1/+1 counters until hes already taken a player out from commander damage
All of these cards have since received Magic equivalents
Nearly every game involves someone's graveyard to some extent, with some decks being so dependent on recursive effects that a well-timed graveyard hoser can end their game immediately
For me, the most durable of the Silver Bordered cards are those that actually fit alongside cards printed since, cards that arent wacky or out of place
This card's age makes it the most difficult to find in NM condition, with no recent sales in that condition on TCGplayer