First off, houses only cost real world money if you want to buy one(optional) and not pay rent in game from your character, plus it is a way to reserve a house and plot if you want. It is not mandatory or even required to play the game, some people will never even use houses.
The push for the housing info I think is coming from people asking about it.
As for my "wishful thinking" I got that info from the rooster event they had which showed in game play and stated they didn't want to give to much out as well as chats I was involved with where I continously tried to get more story info, and was told(many times) that Tracey and Richard did not want to give out too much information that could spoil the story, and if you go by Richard's history he has never given out story info.
The conversation system they demonstrated(in the video I have linked countless times that many of you seem to be oblivious of) was pretty old school in the fact it would allow text based entries which looked as if it could add some depth.
As for the MMO/singleplayer, I think what they are trying to do is a bit different then what we are used to, and I think it has caused a lot of confusion since many cannot comprehend more then a few variables for what a game is. The way it has been explained and demonstrated would be that there are two modes completely offline and online with online split into three modes - single player, friends only, and fully open. Now this is where it gets a bit tricky to explain, single player online allows you to play the game solo, but with over arching world events and changes effecting your game(this is the benefit of online vs offline) You will see shops etc on your own map, just you will not be bothered by other players. Friends only is the same but you choose players you want to see and then fully open well I think you can figure that out.
Is it a perfect system? I'm not sure, but if it plays out right, a lot should be happy. I love the idea of my game having world events caused that change things as a play, it creates a dynamic world. Hence, I think why we are seeing things like housing being explained, it is safe to talk about that and not really effect what people know about the overall game thus ruining it. The video showed a lot of crafting (yes very mmo like, but what crafting in single player games wasn't? I guess you could argue that all crafting is like that)
Which brings me to the overall map and hexes. Interesting fact is they went that route so it would be easier to add to the world since replacing a hex with a new one…say a small hamlet is a easy art asset, then loading that hamlet on entering. There was some talk awhile back about how that would change and sometimes you could find some unique or rare event when you entered a hex. Provides a lot of interesting options.
I'm going to provide that link for the rooster presentation again, have a look and perhaps come away with a not so negative assumption.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKcoeH1ijjU
Also, did we not do a news report on this update? I can't seem to find it, strange since it wasn't about homes and maybe would have been a different take for some.
https://www.shroudoftheavatar.com/?p=29345
I also have access to some developers blogs where they show off their making of a dungeon and parts and pieces to make a random dungeon, it is neat to see.
Also, what is enough money nowadays for a big game...? Please tell me.