I get what you mean: shared pseudo-persistent mmo features (likely modeled after D:Immortal)… but I’m currently playing an online game (shared pseudo-persistent world, cross play, pugs, global chat, trade, server-side profile etc) that lets me pause everywhere except in towns. (Also during pinnacle boss fights, which I’m nowhere close to.)
After I found & activated Hideouts, I can even skip the “shared town” experience. Game will pause in these (while global chat continues rolling). I can even edit my 'private town’ by arranging NPCs & objects for maximum efficiency… allowing me to farm, and then TP, talk to vendor & salvage NPCs, use the workbenches, browse & “craft” in my stash without taking a single step away from the TP - with a brook babbling in the background - and then jump back into a different dungeon.
https://ibb.co/7jXBxxY
https://ibb.co/St4GLSJ
As far as I can tell, the only ostensible reason D4 disables this degree of “pausability” is because of Helltides & Helltide clones.
D:Immortal (the inspiration for some of this world crafting) had a much more organic multiplayer both in overworld & some instanced questing. Something got lost in translation but never quite went in its own direction.
Aside from my attachment to the Diablo series, I hope one day to read the definitive book/ watch the definitive documentary about how exactly the development process unfolded for this game, its technical obstacles & its personnel drama. There’s a lot to be learned.