I've only been playing for about three weeks so I was never a witness to the chalenges this game faced when initially launched so I can't speak on how this game compares to it's original form. I can, however, say that I have been enjoying the game quite a bit in the time I've played.

Some of the things I enjoy - as the game is now - are:
1) the pace of battles
2) quests (in general)

These two aspects are well done IMO.

Some things I dislike include:
1) the UI
2) targeting

On the topic of leveling, I have found that if I want to achieve the highest level availible I will have to dedicate time to grinding. That is just my experience with RPG's as a whole.

Overall I am excited to see what 2.0 will hold.