Originally, one of the functions of Imperial City was to serve as a population balance mechanism. If it had retained its gated design, the idea was that the "winning" alliance, having opened IC for it's members, would see its population decrease as players headed into IC.
Meanwhile, the "losing" alliances now have a more even playing field, against a weaker opponent.
With IC being open access, is the reverse happening?
It seems that, as an alliance starts to win in Cyrodiil, more and more members of that alliance show up to get in on the action.
Meanwhile, the "losing" side says "screw this" and heads back to the sewers.
As a result, the population balance, in terms of people actually in Cyrodiil, is worse than before. It can cycle between the alliances, as far as who is winning, but the times where the population is relatively even seem to be few and far between.
Agree / Disagree?
Mordimus - Stam Sorc