Excellent game, great value. Worth checking out.
Having played a countless number of games, I think that Guild Wars holds its own against some of the most popular MMOs.

I picked up Guild Wars a few days ago after nearly purchasing it several times over the past year. There are zero monthly fees. When you purchase the game you've got a lifetime of free online gaming built in. I've seen a lot of people argue that it's not a "real" MMO or that the no subscription play is just the same concept as a multiplayer FPS. Dungeons and Dragons online, a 15$ a month game, runs entirely on instancing and most people consider that to be an MMORPG (though not a spectacular one). There is no difference between the two in that aspect of the gameplay. Putting that entire argument aside, I'll settle somewhere in the middle by saying that regardless of where you stand, Guild Wars still FEELS like a regular MMORPG.

Loot & Characters
-------------------------

In regard to gear, it is on the simplistic side but it's efficient and pleasurable. It's got a basic crafting system and a few other nice features. The characters themselves don't have a ton of customization. At the same time, though, I've seen many other games such as WOW that offer LESS customization than Guild Wars does. Given the usage of dye, various resources, and other factors, I've actually seen less player "clones" in this game than in any other.

Quests/grouping
-----------------------

The questing system itself is nothing new and similar to many other games. You have to deliver things to certain people, kill certain mobs, gather certain objects, etc. There's nothing revolutionary.There is one thing I really liked about the quests -- the map system. You can see where you're supposed to go and then after you've met your objectives, it's clearly marked where you must return to. This is a novel concept if you've played other MMO's. I can't tell you how much time I've wasted running around like a moron trying to find who I'm supposed to turn the quest in to.

As for grouping...

If you don't want to waste a lot of time gathering a party made up of real people, there's a great henchman system. It's an AI based system that works quite well. You pick the professions(such as mage, warrior, ranger, etc) you'd like to bring along. The NPC's level of experience is based upon your level and the area you're in. The AI behavior is pretty decent.

Value
--------

Once you've run all of the quests in the Guild Wars Prophecies there are two expansions that add entirely new realms to the overall experience. You're going to get many memorable moments out of GW. You could probably snag 100 hours of play out of this installment. This doesn't take into consideration Guild Wars: Nightfall and GW: Factions. There's also an active PVP system that seems to appeal to many of those types of players. I haven't scraped the surface of the content in this review, but hopefully my review will assist you in deciding on whether or not to buy the game.

Considering all of the other types of games out there that go for $50 and offer only 20 hrs or less of play, Guild Wars is something you should go out and get now, no matter what type of genre you generally prefer. Conclusion
----------------

Even with all of the next-gen MMOs coming out, Guild Wars is worth keeping around. The option to casually play without blowing 100+ dollars a yr on a subscription to maintain access is very appealing. It's important to stress that this game's fun on its own and not just because of the saved cash. It's a winner and not a game over.

PS If World of Warcraft doesn't appeal to you, I see this as a great alternative.