[Draephon]

I have and do play different MPORGS (EQ,DAOC) the thing that drives these types is actually two different things. unlike Diablo which is linear and story based, but has multiple players in it. where as with EQ and DAOC, the story is what you make of it. there are thousands of quests that you can do over the course of your leveling, some take multiple levels to complete (epic weapons on EQ start at level 40 and continue to be worked upon untill well in the high 50s moreso if you dont focus on it) so they give you a goal to strive for, there is no "beat the game" in these types, you just continue to build your character. The reason people enjoy them, even if they charge a monthly fee (which in the long run is nominal, EQ and DAOC are both under $15 a month) is
a) no matter how big you get your character, there is always something bigger that you can fight, the programmers make sure of this.
b) noone can outright kill you (PKs) unless you either duel them or go into designated areas. unlike diablo, there is a constant watch for hackers and cheaters. anyone caught cheating in everquest is banned, their characters deleted.
"what about using bugs to their advantage?" you say? there are on average 2-3 'hot patches' (they dont bring the server down to do it) a month to correct bugs that either guides or players have found. if someone took advantage of the bug while it was out and about then its not punishable to that extent but they may roll your character back to a previous time frame (sorta like going back to a previous save point in IWD or BG)

being able to play and not have to watch my back against players is worth it to me, I quit playing Diablo after I had my ranger blown up one too many times in town by a player, losing all her stuff yet again because every time she respawned they blew her up.

as for time consuming, yes and no. it depends on which classes you play, some can solo from the get go, some cant. I personally play one of those characters that can.(bards in EQ, rangers in DAOC) so I can pick up the game for 20 minutes, or as long as I want, and not have to worry about waiting for a group. also, being in a guild helps with that, cause most of the time, if they are near and it is a good guild, someone will team up with you.

-=steps off the soapbox with a blush=- sorry for the length of the post, there were a lot of questions that were asked hehe

~Drae~
fire in my hand is good, fire on my sleeve is not.