...man I remember combat being slow in 1.0, just not that slow. Ah fickle memories we hold. XD

Anyways back on topic, the FATE system is what replaced open world content. For better or worse, personally I think worse unless they seriously expand on the FATE system. SE did post recently about possibly expanding on the Treasure Map/Hunting system, unfortunately they didn't provide many details. I'm sure they could do a NM Hunting system, ie monster hunter. However, I seriously doubt they'll add any sort of loot to the mobs. Which means people will complain until they are red in their face.

Yoshi already mentioned they weren't bringing back the roaming NMs sadly. I think it's a missed opportunity. Then again things can change over time.