The greatest motivation for me about 8x10 is the contact print. Devoid of Callier effect and shown exactly as seen and perceived, there is a purity and beauty to the contact print that can never be replicated by the enlargement or the ink-jet.
My preferred paper for contact printing in recent years is Ilford Warmtone but nothing has the rich enchantment of the old Agfa chloro-bromide papers. if I remember correctly it was Portriga-Rapid or Record-Rapid that first taught my eyes to sing.
I can't say that I am a huge fan of the current results I see of platinum printing but I marvel at the prints of guys from the pre-silver gelatine era such as Frederick H Evans.