I know this annoys some people, but I miss the danger the overworld had in Everquest. Places like the commons had "wandering nightmares" in the form of the East Commons Griffon or the West Commons Hill Giant which would crush lowbies in the areas, but gave higher levels a chance to play hero to the lowbies and bring those nightmares down so they could farm in peace. I miss how Kithicor Woods was a nice friendly place to level during the day but turned into absolute hell at night.

But I don't miss the strict class and intense time requirements that came after Kunark. It really brought out the worst in the community and just went downhill after that.

I'm fan of the hub system that the modern MMO uses as it pushes players together and gives the game a bit of life when you aren't out there questing. When I'm in the overworld, I don't like seeing a lot of people - but I love seeing lots of players when I'm in villages and cities as it feels right (which is a large reason I keep my home Aetheryte in Limsa. It's never quiet in Limsa)

I don't mind how the games have gone more casual now, as I like to diversify what I play. I like having the freedom to play something else for a couple days and come back and not feel like I've lost a ton of time that I could of spent leveling my character. Keeps the game from feeling like a job. If I feel like I have to log in every day to a game even if I don't particularly want to, that's a bad sign and I usually drop the game from my library and never come back.