Why is this game multiplayer?

Not a change in hell. The next time you are at a World Boss or Legion, Whisper Tree, etc. take note of how many people have a clan tag. You are severely underestimating how many group players there are. D4 was advertised and promoted as being multiplayer friendly. There would be legal repercussions to eliminating multiplayer. Most of the popular streamers play with other people. There is “zero” chance of eliminating multiplayer.

The often used statistic is that 80% of players primarily play solo which implies 20% primarily play in groups. However some of those primarily solo players sometimes play in groups suggesting as many as 30 - 40% of players primarily or sometimes play in groups. If you factor in all the primarily solo players, who do not hold negative opinions about open world play, than the number of solo only players who hate multiplayer falls to a very low percentage. You are in the minority by a very wide margin.