Like many others, the introduction of the gear treadmill has blunted my enthusiasm for this game. I think that if they had restricted the bonuses to PVE content, I would have cared much less. But, as noted by many people, this will effect WvWvW as well.
Will I keep playing the game? Sure. I’ll play it casually with friends to run an occasional dungeon. It’s pretty clear now, though, that I won’t be able to summit the gear mountain then just enjoy the view and appreciate everything else the game has to offer. For my set of attitudes/style of play, there’s just no need for me to play it with the same enthusiasm I have to date.
Truthfully, ANet was never going to make a ton of money off a player like me anyway, so I wish them well with this business decision. I was hoping this game would be the MMO version of TF2 — skill-based, store sells mostly flavor/cosmetic items, gear has a negligible impact on power, great replay value — I’m just sorry that it isn’t!