"
*Obviously there were previous examples of striker fire pistols, but none of them seem to have gone anywhere."
The Luger never went anywhere?
The FN Model 1910? (A Browning design).
There were a bunch of other striker-fired pistols in the early days of handguns that were made in very large numbers, as well, such as the Savage series of semi-autos. They may look like they have a hammer, but they don't. The "hammer" is actually a cocking tab for the striker.