This question keeps coming up from many newbies on Twitter and elsewhere. Why can't Bitcoin be replicated by copying code and implementing same scarcity. My response is usually that new coin won't be able to replicate the following -

1. Perfect anonymity and disappearance of the creator sending it on a journey to become leaderless and truly decentralized

2. Energy required to change historical transactions in Blockchain has become enormous and so it's truly immutable

3. Network effects and participation