it's super hard to navigate
Can you point to anything specific that's confusing, or that you don't know how to do? I can think of some things myself, but I'd prefer not to put words in your mouth.
the is no general discussion
It's called GD now.
Additionally, the front page of Boards functions kind of like GD did - it is a collection of all types of posts. You'll probably want to switch to 'recent' sorting, if you want more of a GD-like experience.
and all the old threads are gone
Not gone, just archived.