Just to clarify something, I never said the game itself is bad. The game can stand by itself, and like you said, it's very good, which is why I'm still here today after all these years. Even though the game itself may be good, what made it even BETTER was the community. So, in other words, I don't mean that without community it's bad. I meant that with community it was even better. Like Vampire said, you will eventually need higher level help. I know, from experience, that trying to grind your way to the top will take a very long time, years even. This game was pretty much built so that receiving help from others was a natural thing. Of course, corruption happens. Now, people sell help, buy help, only play by themselves with many chars, and like you said, emphasize the "correct" way of doing a quest or the "correct" way of building a character. However, my first character had all the wrong stats and builds, and I still had fun, and I ended up making it reborn anyways, lol. Just have fun with it and learn on your own, but don't be too opposed to receiving help. It's not always a bad thing.

Lastly, as a vet, I definitely AM proud about this game, not just because of the communities. So, don't get me wrong. Just saying, the game itself may be temporarily fun, but playing with others will build memories that last a very long time. Even you said that you're playing with your friends, imagine playing that alone, with none of your friends. See? In your own way, you and your friends are building your own community. That's kind of what it's all about~ ^^