i understand why se went this route. nobody wants to play a game where they're stuck at a certain point. and bicker about it all you want, but without the casuals you wont have a game to play. they overshadow these so called "hardcore" players by a huge margin. it's a delicate balance, and i think leveling shouldnt be a grind anyway. the most important stuff are in instances which the game kinda forces you into very early on. It introduces a lot of mechanics to "casuals" that have probably never experienced this kind of gameplay before.

So all in all, I think at this point its pretty much an introduction to how an MMO should be played. Introducing and familiarizing people with game mechanics, social interaction, etc. People are actually partying up rather than going solo all the time, which to me is a good thing. heck everyone is pretty much on TS/vent/mumble/etc for end game content, even the casuals. Its pretty amazing actually.