Can paper get old and give bad prints?

[Birdybren]

I havent used my Epson R2400 printer in a couple of years (I know, terrible) so I changed out all the cartridges with new Epson inks, did cleanings and printed a few pics and surprisingly nozzle checks are perfect now and pics pretty good. BUT, I notice blacks arent as black, whites neither and crisp detail is missing. Could it be that the Epson Enhanced Matte paper has aged and causing the issue? The photos dont have that standout almost 3D, lifelike image.Printing on glossy paper improves it somewhat but still not perfect, but that glossy paper is old also. Ive got lots of money invested in some really good papers, could it be they all will print poorly now? Thanks