The game is so much better with easier enemies and faster leveling, I found ED so boring with how long and tedious combat was it interrupted the flow of the story I lost interest by the time I got dragon form, but things move along nicely and it does a good job keeping you moving forward. I can see though where masochists might not like this though.
I wouldn't call myself a "masochist" at all, it's just that challenge and risk/reward makes the game more interesting. If you just clicky-clicky without thought to kill everything it ends up very boring for me. Arcania: Gothic 4 is a good example... it removed any and all challenge from the game and that results in me being stone-cold bored the entire time I play it, it feels like going through the motions rather than playing a game.
Story is important in games, yes, but I don't play games JUST for story. I would rather read a book or watch a movie if story is all I wanted. It's the combination of story, exploration, challenging combat and choice and consequence that make me love playing CRPGs.
