Yeah - could well be. Having said that, in 1983 - being more Journey than Motley Crue was certainly the likelier path to success.
It's strange because they were really good at rocking hard. I guess the tours with the Scorps and Kiss helped them accelerate the learning curve....still. I can't imagine how one can shift from Hollywood Dreams to Hardest Part is the Night within just a few months and yet be as good at it. Or Richie Sambora turn from whatever he was doing into the shredder he was around 1985. It's a very abrupt and interesting shift in Bon Jovi's music. For me it's actually the most significant shift in their career - the stuff from pre-Bon Jovi to the first two records. Then it came back and they found a middle ground, evolved further and peaked with These Days...but even so. The difference between 7800 and These Days is for me a lot less stark than the difference between The Powerstation Years stuff and 7800.