I choose based on everything.
I picked a hunter as my “preferred choice” after having tried it for a while.
I just liked how it felt to play as well as what theme/fantasy it catered to.
I don’t like casting/channeled spells.
I don’t like melee combat.
I prefer dealing damage over tanking/healing.
I like dealing damage that is based on weapons, not magic.
The fact that the Hunter class had/has a strong influence of using pets as well, is a bonus indeed.
Having said that.
I’m okay with BM even though it relies a bit too much on pets over ranged weapons, for my taste.
I’m not a big fan of MM as it’s heavily focused on hardcasting and channeling abilities. +I want additional options to rely on a pet for when I so feel like it/need it. Which isn’t really an option for MM, beyond the mere basics.
Current SV is a melee-based spec so, it’s a no for me.
My favorite spec that we’ve had, was Survival as it was designed prior to Legion.
In short, this is what I would like to see in the modern game for the Hunter class, to get that playstyle back which I liked so much: