I don't play a lot of other games but to my knowledge most of the most popular FPS games have a predetermined linear skill tree that unlocks in stages as you progress.

The ability to skill into what you want, when you want to is very unique with Dust as is the ability to alter dropsuit/vehicle fittings to the degree possible within Dust.

Well this sucks. The skill progression in Dust514 is the number one thing I love about this game. The number one thing I hate about this game is my success being primarily determined by my teammates. I hope this game introduces a Free-For-All gamemode.

DUST is heavily based on team-work and interplay between classes. So you are unlikely to see a true free-for-all mode anytime soon in DUST, as the game relies too heavily upon teamwork. The most you are likely to see is a larger, multi-way match between squads. (A 6 v 6 v 6 v 6 for instance)

If you are overly worried about bad team-mates, I suggest you try to squad up. You don't need to have a full squad, but even having one or two people who you know to watch your back can cause you to be a substantially more effective force. Perhaps try to recruit one of your other friends who has interest in FPS?

Are there any other First-Person-Shooter games on the market that have a skill progression setup Like Dust514 has? I am not exactly a true gamer so I don't know much of anything about what games are out there. Also, I am looking to play the game online against actual people only; I don't play the Campaign Mode on games and I find AI Bots to be way too predictable.

Good question and the answers here cover it I think. You should get used to DUST - you won't regret it!