So I'm not seeing how this is them changing things up from 2.0/3.0

[Ultimatecalibur]

Two weeks plus two weeks they used to "VACATION" and put off 3.1. Hmm they were not in 3.0 or they would have been playable at launch. But keep defending the whole 3.0 to 3.1. Nothing says fun like Aether and Neverreap for almost 4 weeks.

The Vacation happened after Gordias Savage and Sealed Rock were added. The two weeks then two week release pattern was for the playerbase's benefit not their own. They wanted players to enjoy the story and leveling experience rather than rush through it to grind endgame stuff. That would have happened had Gordias and Eso dropped on day 1.

Heck, 2.0 had a similar amount of content when (Adampor Keep and Wanderer's Palace were the only 2 "hard" mode dungeons until 2.1 dropped)

Yes that is how its remembered a magical time filled with overflowing game play. Not an empty wasteland of content after hitting 60.

I'm sorry you didn't level any other classes than Monk. 3.0 had plenty of gameplay. Most of it was not at Endgame. I spent most of those first few weeks leveling all 3 tanks to 60 and collecting the new gears sets.

The WoW "Only Endgame is important" mentality is an incredibly toxic.

[Moonlite]

Heck, 2.0 had a similar amount of content when (Adampor Keep and Wanderer's Palace were the only 2 "hard" mode dungeons until 2.1 dropped)

Most of it was not at Endgame. I spent most of those first few weeks leveling all 3 tanks to 60 and collecting the new gears sets.

The WoW "Only Endgame is important" mentality is an incredibly toxic.

First you are mistaken 2.0 had 2 dungeons but also had 2 8man dungeons. Literally double the amount of content. If I didn't say anything less then 4 before. Less then 4 is bad.

Second, I actually wanted to explore and loaf around gathering. Guess what, the gate to get into HW's wasn't the only MSQ gate. OK, I still have a couple zones to gather and craft from. Nope gathering with out flying is painful (put nicely). How hard can flying be to get? Do a couple quick quests and still fly around. Nope gated into MSQ and quest chains through out the zone. On day two of HW's I realized the development team was forcing us to do the zones.

It was simply faster to do all the MSQ and all the quests zone by zone. Gates open and flying open. They did plan the xp just right. If you did every quest you would hit 60 just as you got to gubal. So what did that exactly leave me? Zero quests in every zone right up to level 59. The fun of exploring lost because I was forced to quest to be able to go to zones. So I had fates and grind out the few dungeons. Maybe if the zones had twice the amount of quests or the whole flying didn't force me to try to do everyone. The game would have had more left.

When HW's launched I said it was an OK expansion. Between what we got on day one and what they added over eight months. I sadly find this the second worst expansion I had played. Other expansions have been bad. But I reserve the word hate for only two. Chains of Promathia which after I got to sea quit till Treasures (maybe my favorite or Lich king) and Heavensward.