Over the years, DAoC has had both its good and bad moments. When the game first released, it frankly wasn't very good. After some initial balancing patches, and especially post-SI, the game (for me) hit its peak. ToA was o.k. to me...not the game-killer as it was to some, but also nothing really that great. As others have said, the quality of PvE has never measured up to EQ in DAoC.

PvP was/is another story. NF basicially killed the game for me. I went back as recently as yesterday, and I still prefer OF.

Anyway, this post is a little muddled, much like my opinion of DAoC. Maybe more than any game I've played, it has had very discrete highs and lows relative to different eras. I.e., somethimes the game was awesome..sometimes it was awful.

ok when I played DAOC many years ago in the UK, it was a 3D game that ooozed with Lore and role play.
The Bad...
1.  Impossible to solo as most mobs would bring ten of their friends, grave run...
2.  Mobs of same level were near impossible to kill, unless in a group or because of point 1.
3. Leveling was painful, and then some, and there was a list for most major leveling spots, that you usually had to beg to get on.
4. Nobly Pride...God I hated that guild, bunch of stuck up Elite arrrrrses.
5. Infinite spawn rate that just prevented you from progressing in any cave.
6. Awful UI...just awful...key-binding give me a break.
 
The Good
1.  Best Lore and role play bar none.
2.  Best PVP experience if you get in a good group, or in a Zerg storming a castle, bar none.
3.  Quests that test your exploration skills, and have a fantastic story as a back drop.  In DAOC I read every word, in WOW I just select instant quest text, and accept.
4.  Best Community bar none.
5.  I don't know why, and even though the graphics are dated, I still feel the castles look very realistic, and I get totally absorbed in RVR, I played wow for many years but WOW seemed more like a cartoon to me, where DAOC seemed like the real thing.
6.  Crafting again best bar none
7.  Siege warfare best bar none
 
The reason that DAOC nearly died, is because Mythic did not adapt quickly enough to the new competition, however I started playing DAOC recently, and even though people say it has completely changed from it's original, dam good I say, I'm having more fun in DAOC now more then I ever did,  the only people I ever see moaning on these forums about the good old days, are the one hit crit hunters who thankfully got nerfed, and the uber elite who don't want people pushing in on their image.
 
DAOC could be a fantastic game, because to be honest it was never really popular in the mainstream, and it's the loyal fans that are keeping it afloat now, if people want DAOC to be the mega hit that it should have been, then in my opinion it needs to adapt to the casual mass market, as this will increase numbers and revenue, and in the end be best for everyone.

 I didn't like it when I played ( a couple years ago) mostly because it felt dated, underpopulated, and laggy. But I did see why it as been so popular in it's heyday for so long

Coming from EQ, DAoC was like a breath of fresh air.  It gave me a sense of purpose lacking in EQ, after all I was part of alliance that could actually make a difference to the world I played in.  I remember my first time defending our frontier against the Hib hoards who had already obtained 20th level, and not minding in the least that I was going to die attacking them.  it only mattered that I hurt them enough for my fellow Middies to turn the tide and send them back to the black hole from whence they came!  To me the game had just the right amount of PVE, without becoming to over bearing.  My one big complaint was area control spells as that took a lot of the fun out, after all who wants to stand there waiting for their turn to be ganged!  I still rate DAoC as one of my favorite games along with the orginal SWG.