To waiting or starting early? If you waited, you missed out on activities (Urn of Sacrifice, Blades, Queen's Wrath, Wolves, etc) and weapons (Jolder's Hammer, the Messenger, Shadow Price, etc.) not currently obtainable. You didn't have a year of fun experiences. If you started early, you had to pay more for the game and the expansions. You had to deal with some poor mechanics for leveling up armor and weapons.

Imo the game got worse with the arrival of y2 guys. The game wasn't as bad in year 1 now all these people crying for nerfs. No, I don't mean sunbreakers nerf but just about every -blam!-ing thing. There was far less bitching about EVERYTHING in y1. There was bitching, but not about every -blam!-ing weapon.