Thanks for the tips and cautionary tales.
I'm nearing the halfway point in my trial account. I'm a level 13 troll hunter with a pet boar. I've been through Durotar (and Orgrimmar) and some of The Barrens.
Pros:
- The world is huge and varied enough to pique my sense of adventure, and you don't need to spend your whole night getting through it.
- The areas look nice despite the somewhat dated graphics.
- There is character skill and item complexity enough to keep me interested.
- There are many players.
- There are many quests.
- It's cool to be able to play tauren, orc, troll, and undead characters.
- It runs fairly smoothly.
- Blue-skinned troll chicks are hawt.
Cons:
- Seems to lack character diversity (partly due to the class limitations).
- The combat/encounter system is something to be desired.
- It's difficult to get a real sense of fellowship when you're in a party with all that running around.
- Characters seem to float and flit about the screen with no real attachment to the world. Maybe it's all the running around.
- Not much roleplaying going on in the roleplaying server. (I've been spoiled by NWN online.)
- It costs $15/month, which is $15 more than the NWN server I currently play.
- Generally, it hasn't whisked me away to a world of magic. There's something missing. I'm a big roleplaying geek; maybe this isn't the game for me.
Mind you, I haven't had much beyond a noob's experience. But this is a trial, after all. What do you guys have to say about this?