Could implementing some form of "Community warfare/Faction Warfare" work in the mean time as they try to figure out Gammas?  I mean create 12 smaller islands we can war over and take "control" over and wha-la.  Course with the track record that might not work out so well either.

Also from what I've heard in the forums, considering I lived on a gamma with a previous character (noobish at best) more than a year ago, that they were all very self sufficient.  I was too busy then to really exploit where I was, but is the self sufficient part true?  If it is then that's an issue.  Gamma island shouldn't be fully self sufficient, there should be a short fall of something on each island, whether one or multiple resources.  This in turn will promote/force trade and movement of other goods.  If you hem up a majority of the players on self sufficient islands then trade dies.  Say one island doesn't have HDT for example so they are forced to import it but to compensate the island has slightly more then average titian ore, and vise versa.  This will open up markets and such but also the faction warfare aspect will open up another market to replace items for the PvP players.  ( It's an idea.

To finalize it MISSIONS need a revamp of some kind, geez BORING.  I do understand the grind that come with some mission running but more than the three or four missions you get would help a lot.  OH and could you add missions where you fight waves of bots, so lights at first then a new wave spawns with harder bots and so on ( for kill missions) last time i played one that's not how it was.