Hmm I don't think I agree with most of you. This game feels like it has so much to do, often its overwhelming. For more casual players, the content never seems to get old and SE does a good job of keeping your gear close enough to hardcore players. There are plenty of grinds in this game, but it's an MMO.

The horizontal progression is a thing of the past. It drives people to play for a while then quit. Especially more recreational characters. If the gear in 2.0 is as good as 2.4, you just cant expect the majority of the player base to pay that sub for some vanity options.

Of course, maybe if I played every day I would progress faster. I only get to play about 10 hours a week. But lets be serious, some people play this game 30-40 hours a week. That's a job and people love to complain about their jobs ;-)