Guild Wars 2

I have read the threads regardings the upcoming yet still unknown changes to the meta. The discussion often seems to revolve around the fundamental issue of “Play how you want” and the fact that there must not be a “Holy Trinity” in Guild Wars 2.
This made me wonder: How can such a game be designed so it caters to all players while still adhering to the above mentioned principles? (and still being fun!)
Right now you can clear all PvE content with whatever stat combination you like, zerker is just a little faster while still fairly easy to pull off. The obvious answer would be to alter boss (and mob) mechanics so playing a full glass cannons requires more skill or that other stats bring more to the party. If we assume that this would realize the goal of making every build equally viable… then what? Every encounter would be purely skill based since the stat combination would not matter anymore. Your class, your gear, all of this would just be about looks and personal preference without any impact on the game. This sounds pretty boring to me. (Note that this is strictly theoretical, achieving such a balance is of course nearly impossible!)
If you want equipment to matter, there has to be content that caters to certain stat combinations. Theoretically, you could have dungeons that require survivability, others that require conditions and so forth. Still, you would end up with a game that is primarily about horizontal progression. Stats would be different but never better.
I actually enjoy looking for a certain build that gives me maximum efficiency in most situations. Like most people (at least as far as I know) I like feeling superior.
So, in the end, to me the question is actually: Do we want skill to be the primary factor that determines how good you are – or – should the theoretical aspect behind it (equipment, build) matter as well and how much?
Personally, I would like the idea of zerker builds being high risk high reward or better/faster than the rest as long as every class has a viable zerker option. The only thing that needs adjustment right now is the skill cap. What I don’t want is a game in which every class can do everything and nothing really matters. (Dramatization)
What do you think?

I think it was only a matter of time before this happened and anyone who is familiar with the gw1 game would have seen it coming a mile away, they changed the meta frequently and in any case this is long over due. People shouldn’t be running all the same thing, it makes sense that zerker would be optimal for warriors or even thieves but it makes no sense for them to make that the most viable option for every class (makes no sense to have full zerk squishies but maybe that’s just me), that it looks lazy and it IS boring. Its about time it was addressed IMO.

Back on topic, yes I believe its possible they just need each class to have benefits from running types of builds like to give guardians less dps and make them more viable defenders… there doesn’t need to be a trinity but there should be equally viable and necessary defensive and offensive classes… again just my opinion though.

I would also suggest that every class should put an emphasis on a certain role without being locked into it. As a guardian I would achieve maximum efficiency by playing something that is rather heavy on group support and survivability without sacrificing everything else completely. This is associated with one rather grave danger however: If not done correctly, this could make certain classes completely useless because their area of expertise isn’t needed. Basically, like it is right now ; ) That’s why I suggested that every class should be able to pull off the high risk high reward thing.

I would also like to see them buff professions like the Necromancer who bring very little to the team and are seen as a liability in parties. Heavy Armor classes seem to be way more useful than other classes in dungeons and fractals. I’m talking about PvE, I don’t do enough PvP or WvW to know if classes are balanced there.

Balance is always impossible as long as a game allow different professions, stats and skills.
For a game to be completely balanced you would need to be able to select a grand total of 1 specific class, with a grand total of 1 specific skill-set and be unable to effect your stats in anyway.

Anything other than that will always have balance issues.

I want to ply full cleric heal Guard and be just as viable as full Berserk Warrior.
You can play the way you want to, but that doesn’t mean there’s balance.

Nick.6972:

I want to ply full cleric heal Guard and be just as viable as full Berserk Warrior.
You can play the way you want to, but that doesn’t mean there’s balance.

And it doesn’t necessarily have to be balanced but there should be more viability to builds like cleric guardians or condition… anything. I would like to play something defensive or supportive as a change of pace and still feel like I’m contributing to something and not dragging a group down by lack of dps.

its possible but harder then balancing ht

It depends on what you mean by balance.

Check out this episode of Extra Credits to get an idea of what balance should be in an MMO.

lordkrall.7241:

Balance is always impossible as long as a game allow different professions, stats and skills.
For a game to be completely balanced you would need to be able to select a grand total of 1 specific class, with a grand total of 1 specific skill-set and be unable to effect your stats in anyway.

Anything other than that will always have balance issues.

Pretty much my thinking but a lot of people seem to interpret the manifesto in such a way that “Play as you want” means everything is or should be equally viable. I’d really like to know if that’s really the case. Does the playerbase want a certain build that trumps everything else but is really hard to play or is that viewed as an unfair deviation from the initial manifesto?