Litlle off subject but relevant. AoC at its best had nothing to do with content ingame and was all about the server and the community that pvpers created. That is the best way to have a great pvp game. If AoC did not dumb down the game, buff guards and Edit by Anzu: Moderation is not to be discussed on the forums. the game would still have its niche PvP crowd which would have kept this game alive much longer than it did. That the AoC Source crew stuck it out for so long after launch had nothing to do with Funcom but more to do with the community and competitive nature of pvpers.
Sandbox can be good for business if done right, there is proof in the past.