Hmm, yeah, it’s tricky. I think a lot of people are expecting a web “MUCK” to behave like an actual MUCK, which has literally decades of momentum/convention behind the way things are done. I had similar problems, expecting things to behave the way they “always have” when first poking at Wolfery.
That’s why some sort of room-specific trigger or something would be useful. So when you DO type the exit name(s) without “go” in the first couple of rooms, you get a reminder “Remember to type ‘go out’ to navigate!” and the like. More obvious hints that things aren’t 100% the same as what people are used to.
I’m usually a bad test, because I recognize a new system does things differently. Many people are less tolerant of change, and can be frustrated or decide they just don’t have the time to relearn things that are too different. Some people actually feel dumb if they don’t get something quickly (I’ve known several people like this) and will quit rather than subject themselves to self-inflicted humiliation.
So… every little bit helps is my point I guess. You don’t need bouncing, blinking tooltips and stuff like some video games use, but the more user-friendly the experience the more likely you are to retain someone who is perhaps more casual and just looking for chat.
I’ll try and look through the initial few rooms more closely and see if I can think of more suggestions. Maybe solicit input from others too? This is one of those ongoing things that is probably never really done, so tweaks and additions over time are good; hardly expect a pristine user experience in one sprint. 
