The thing is, when an MMO comes out with all these classic MMO features ( gigantic open world, open pvp, super grindy leveling system) people complain about it and it flops. I think part of the reason they went the small map rout is because it helps with optimization, and they are catering to the masses ( they really cant afford any risky mistakes with this game). I personally think this game feels quite MMO like, as far as what MMOs have become.