Horses for courses
Sweden wanted a fast multi-role aircraft that didn't cost too much - it only has a single engine which is probably acceptable given their geography. They never planned a full on attack on Russia but just to have enough power to make it a tough swallow
The Eurofighter nations wanted a powerful multi-role aircraft that was (eventually) going to replace things like Tornado, Phantom, F-104S, Lightning etc etc They envisioned a full-on war against the Warsaw pact and so needed a more complex aircraft
trouble is the world has changed and cots are now more important than capability in most of the world