The game itself still isn't fun, and I'm still only here for the players I know. What I'd like to see is for PS to be a good game, one I won't feel like logging off of if my friends aren't online to talk to. MMO's are supposed to be addictive, but frankly the day my buddy list is all red with people that quit is the day I uninstall the game and go find my RP fix elsewhere.
I'm going to give my two trias on each of the options:
Updated graphics, sound, and environment
This. A million times this. Personally I don't mind the graphics, but they are the number one complaint I personally hear from new players when they tell me they hate the game. They say it looks too old. Perhaps it falls in the wrong place in the uncanny valley for a lot of people as well, it's never bothered me but I've seen that complaint before. It'd suck to throw all of the hard work that has been put into the current look out the window, but a whole new look might actually bring people in and keep them here for a while, if the rest of the game is good too.
Updated skill training, with personal trainers available always
It may be immersive but it's also obnoxious to have to run all over the map looking for your trainer. My suggestion for balancing between convenience and immersion is this: You still rank up, you still see the message, and you still have the maximums, but instead of buying your next level, you have the option of ranking up again through grinding for free (save for the cost of weapons and such) or you run to the NPC and buy a lesson off them that ranks you up. Perhaps with some way of avoiding the exploitation of this like you can only have one lesson in each skill every 24 hours because the trainer only has so much time on their hands (as in like one lesson PER skill, not one lesson a day period because that would be awful and I know someone is going to misread this).
Edit: Another WoW comparison, I know, but what I like there is that it "trains" you to know how to use skills at the later levels early on. You start off learning how to do the basics and then later on, if you PvE, you run dungeons in instanced locations with boss fights (something I'd like to see done in PS but I'll have wrinkles IRL and will have likley forgotten PS exists by the time that gets put in) and those "train" you for the raid bosses once you're maxed out and ready to get the best equipment for your level. I know the vision for PS isn't to have endgame content like this, and it works much better with a game like WoW where it's largely about being in an area suited to your level and "graduating" to the next-hardest one, but it'd still be cool to have quests past the tutorial that teach you more about how to play.
Updated animation, combat, and magic system
Animation goes with the first one. It bothers me that mining looks like fishing looks like harvesting, and it's probably even worse for someone who's never played the game before.
As for combat, yesterday I was in the arena. A gladiator glitched out on me. It was more fun to chase him around than it was to actually fight him. I think that speaks for itself.
More Enemy types and much more content added
Eh, I think there are enough enemy types. I'd like to see some of the farm animals and the ones established to be in Yliakum under normal names (bears and foxes and such) around. "More content" is a pretty generic term, though, I think everyone would like that in every game.
New skills and major skills
Eventually, but not yet. Grinding skills isn't fun. Find a way to make it fun, vary the ways to level the skills (again, leatherworking feels like smithing feels like cooking), and THEN add more skills.
Updated pvp system with pvp weapons and armor?
I'm not a PvP person but I'm all for PvP-specific content. I don't have much to say on the issue, other than that it works great in WoW and you can level up with PvP or PvE or a mix of both and it's brilliant. PS's player base was a lot stronger when there was a huge duelling community, and guess what game the ones I knew moved on to.
Updated map with new surroundings and personal world maps?
Personal world maps, yes, updated maps, yes (I've been pleased with recent changes though I still haven't gotten in to the gem-enchanting cave yet), but I'm assuming "new surroundings" means new maps and that I have to say no to. The world is too big for the amount of players we have right now, in fact, I wouldn't object to some areas being closed off until we have more people to reopen them to. It should be small enough that the game community looks alive yet (just) big enough that if you want to go hide while afk or have a secret IC meeting you can.
Poll