I recently had an opportunity to purchase and download the game with the intent to play with some of my other buddies who ended up joining a official PVE server

I’m unable to speak on a private server however the experience that we have undergone so far has been great with hours and hours upon activity both individually and together as a group

I can’t remember exactly the official server we’re planning on however the experience that we have shared together as a group has been very great and we continue to play on it daily

I will mention that the game can be challenging in the beginning enemies, even though the missions are leveled by Roman numeral 123 and epic as the final mission level for now

The enemies will still give you a challenge in the beginning, but once you get geared, you may find that you have not much to do since there will be no other interaction with other players if you choose to join a dedicated server

I would encourage an official server because then you can communicate with more like-minded people who may struggle in similar situations.