ESM

Prisma struggles to correctly load `.env` files in monorepo setups, doesn't support NODE_ENV-based `.env` switching, and silently pollutes `process.env` without explicit dotenv usage. Recent versions (6.7.0+) have introduced critical ESM-related module resolution failures across Turborepo, Next.js, Remix, and other frameworks.

Exceptionally large codebases experience slow page loads due to the high number of unbundled network requests in ESM-based development, requiring network overhead optimization.

CommonJS packages don't work seamlessly with Vite's ESM-first architecture, requiring manual configuration via `optimizeDeps.include` to function properly.

Developers starting new browser-based projects in 2025 sometimes default to CommonJS (`require()`) and heavy webpack configurations despite native ESM working everywhere that matters. This creates unnecessary migration burden and uses legacy tooling patterns.