Your friend is mostly right.
For instance, almost everything you suggested him is trivial/side lines. It's there but it's not really goal worthy.

If the game had more synergy with classes/jobs and we didn't have account based lock outs (Instead, if they were class/job based) and if crafting/gathering didn't utterly suck and instead it was meaningful (Provide powerful items if you work hard enough for it) then things might be different.
Then there is the problems that exist within the game and a whole list of other things I won't get into.

But yeah.