I agree that the idea of two separate games in one is just a poor way to make a modern game. WOW's success has been bad for the genre in so many ways. It's skewed financial expectations and it crippled design evolution. It's sad really.
I enjoy leveling as well but it really is a waste of dev time when you look at the big picture. I feel the same thing about gearing as a means of Power Progression but that's for a separate discussion.
In the end I'm OK with Wildstar though. It's going to be a fun ride for a few months at least.
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I took that as someone back tracking and that his initial quote was closer to how he really feels TBH. Mainly because I've dealt with people like him in my own business.