Well, I'm another one of those "vets" who are here since 2010 summer, or are from around that time.
Got to agree, the game was very, very different back then, the speeds and skills provided a totally different gameplay than our current version, obviously.
The speed was different, a lot. I remember when the devs introduced the poleaxes, I instantly saved up for the Elegant.
(yes, people HAD TO save up back then, you only earned like 200-250 if you were good per round.)
And it had a speed of 97, later 95, then 93, and now, 92. I'll only mention this weapon because It's my most used and trusty weapon in the game, can't really judge other stuff, let alone non-polearm things from personal experience.
To be honest, what I really miss from old times is the feeling of achievement. Granted, you can grind to 31, then get a heirloom, do nice deals at the market, but this feels kinda meh. You can have everything so easily now.
At old cRPG, people were afraid of experimenting, or buying certain weapons because rumors were told that they're bugged.
Anyone remember Gnjus with the Sniper Crossbow? Yeah, things like that.
Also, what I really dislike, is how we modernized in a lazy way. People just.. optimize. Optimize their leveling speed so they reach 30 in a blink of an eye compared to old times, optimize their builds to the last skill point, optimize their gear and equipment to the degree that we'll end up fighting each-others clones, with different sets. At first, it felt like you were given a map, with some basic knowledge of your destination. You had to find out all the mechanics, all the back info, and you had to rely on gossip. It was an adventure.
Today this is replaced with a fully updated GPS screen what can get you to anywhere, in a blink of an eye.
During this one year, the personal skill of the avg. player really increased.
Or is it because there are a lot of 30 people so it became a bit "standardized" compared to older days, where we had level differences?
And granted, people have more fun early, but it just feels a bit dull. No offense, maybe it's only me being tired of the game a little bit, but that's how I feel.
Back on topic: I think that speeding the game up won't give these feelings back, let alone give better gameplay. It'll just end up being a bigger spamfest than ever.
(Some test server for it would be handy, though.)
