I’ve played a number of MMOGs — Ultima Online, EverQuest, Anarchy Online, Asheron’s Call, Lineage II — none of them have come close to Saga of Ryzom in terms of freedom and enjoyment.
Great steps forward, above the alternatives:

All “loot” from monsters are either crafting ingredients or quest items

No reason to bother “camping” mobs

The game is [...]