In a recent interview about Classic, one of the Devs said:
" * The main difference from Classic to Modern WoW is the challenge that the world itself presents, every creature can pose as a threat, something that doesn’t happen when you are already the Hero of Azeroth, slayer of Titans."
Why not both? I’m pretty sure if I ask the same question in Classic forums, most will prefer the wandering traveler. But why not both in retail? Could there be a way for this type of design philosophy make a comeback in current days? With less instanced-content (i.e. islands, warfronts) and more focus on open-world stuff. Such as big questlines etc.