This is basically how I feel. I tried *very* hard to stick with AoC -- The idea behind the design is exactly what I'm (still) looking for in an MMO -- "Skill" based *open* PvP (which was not the case when I played -- I assume this has been sorted out (only need the last press of a combo to hit to deal the combo damage, healers/guardians owning everyone)), gear not making a substantial difference (just grab the appropriate level crafted stuff & go fight on relatively even terms), active defense (shields). They got a *lot* of things about PvP just right (imo).
Played for 3 months starting with launch. A couple of level 60+ toons (Bear Shaman, Dark Templar), a couple of mid-forties (another healer, ranger), and a bunch @ 20ish. The bugs killed it for me (Seriously, when your grouping mechanism doesn't work 1/3 of the time unless all interested group members drop group, log out for 5 minutes, and log back in, you should NOT release your product yet).
It was the most fun I've had online since EQ (fix Iksar pet bug!). But the grouping bug & constant crashes not being fixed (while they worked on more important stuff, like adding the goddamn dance system) destroyed any faith I may have had in Funcom to make it right.
I know it's been a long time, and I'm sure the game is in better shape. But I can't see ever going back without at least a couple free months -- I'm not going to quit my current game just to see if AoC has gotten better, so a week won't give me enough time to re-evaluate it, and I'm sure as hell not spending any more money just to see how things have improved...
