I'm not really sure which year I liked best. 2007-2011 are just one big blur in my memory (I'm talking about my general memory. I didn't discover Graal until 2009 or 2010) and I really don't know when I started playing. I just know what I was around to see.
I remember when Burger Refuge wasn't always packed and when guilds weren't an actual feature of iClassic, if that gives you an idea of when I started playing.
I left in mid-2011 and it doesn't seem like anything has changed since then, aside from the addition of quests that should've been there the whole time. The game hasn't gotten worse. In my opinion, it's gotten better; but the community has gone to sh*t. Most of my good friends have left for other games and there has been a surge in very young children that sh*t up the game in every way imaginable. Guys like-
Wait a second... I think I've all ready said all of this.
Anyway, I'll go with 2013 because I'm just happy to be back.