I go back and forth with this a lot, and I think I see both sides to the coin here.
Obviously everyone is entitled to play the game how they want, and there is no 'one size fits all' to playing COH. On one hand, I think things like 'burnout' is definitely an issue with games like City of Heroes, and I think power leveling / farming helps with that a lot. People can only take sooooo much of that grind, and I do think that's understandable - getting those levels via a faster medium actually helps with player retention, and decreases people dropping off after the first few months. In that sense, it's a plus IMO. And I do suspect that especially now, with Homecoming, the MAJORITY of players are returning peeps whom have most likely played the game through and have experienced a majority of the content it has to offer.
On the other hand, I do think it's a shame that certain zones just aren't being utilized as they were back during the early years of the game. Like, back in the day? During the earlier levels? The Hollows and Perez Park would be PAAAAAACKED with people doing Frostfire, running street sweeps, etc. And now, those zones are literally more empty than the elephant graveyard in The Lion King. Which is particularly concerning b/c this was the very reason why they kinda did away w/ Galaxy - because no one was ever using it.
So, yeah. I'd say that's the most disappointing side of effect for me.
Hrrrrm. What about Bio Armor / Stone melee? Thoughts on that?