Has the idea to bring (some elements of) Geocaching into Guild Wars already been considered?
Ofcourse it would be ridiculous to have sylvari and charr running around with a GPS in the game, but it could be more fit into the game lore if there are magic crystals which shift color when you are approaching a certain cache. Those caches can be hidden by players in the game world and to give the gem shop a boost, it might be possible to create cache containers with cool skins (like one in the shape of a quaggan) which can be obtained with gems while basic containers can be purchased from vendors. A cache can be provided with a log and to prevent the game world from being clogged with thousands of caches, the caches can be set to dissolve or break apart after a certain amount of logs or period of inactivity. Players can change the color of containers to make them hard to see in the surrounding by using the dyes they aquired in the game as if they color their own armor set (multiple color areas on a container might be desired). It might be considered to create containers where you can drop one or more items in which can be taken by another cacher in return for another item like in IRL geoaching.
To prevent it from getting too easy and dull (run around till crystal turns red – pick cache – log – go on) you can set the crystal to turn its final color when you are in a radius of like 100 metres from the cache so the player is forced to do some searching in a larger area. Obviously the spark animation you see above drops or items in the game should also be removed from caches. You can only select it when you hold the mouse cursor over it while standing next to it. You can name your cache and optionally set some search tips and hints for your cache and the magic crystal shows the names and hints set for caches in a radius of e.g. 1000 metres if you right click on it.
Some players might ruin others gameplay by designing containers in bright colors which show up everywhere, but this potential issue can easily be adressed by making caches only visible to players who are wearing a magic crystal (it might be desired to have an option to activate or deactivate it) and limiting the amount of caches every player has hidden in Tyria. That way players who are not interested in this mini-game will not be bothered while playing Guild Wars as the caches will be invisible to them.
To attract players to this game you can add archivements or points to it – how about a geocaching daily or weekly objective? You can make the game as exciting, difficult or easy as you want by placing and searching caches in the relative safety of the cities or in the perillous lands of the Mists where pvp-ers lurk behind every corner. By adding travelbugs and geocoins you can make this game server wide, as a travelbug you pick up in Heavens Reach in Far Siverpeaks can be dropped in a cache in the world vs world battlegrounds and picked up by a player from Piken Square who drops it somewhere in Queensdale or whatever. The concept of travelbugs gives also use to the trophy items you often get as drops by attaching them to such bugs. Otherwise they would only be used to be sold as trash to the vendor.
A big advantage is that it takes players outside the cities and they’ll have new reason to visit places if they have seen all dynamic events and other challenges in a particular area. The pvp battlegrounds get a new dimension of gameplay.
Guild Wars 2 has the best detailled graphics and artwork ever seen in mmo’s so it’s undoubtly best fit for a hide and seek game like Geocaching. Geocachers tend to hide caches in interesting places or viewpoints so this behaviour would be a great way to get the best out of the best mmo available. It will also increase the potential userbase as people who do geocaching IRL and are temporary disabled because of an accident or disease are now able to continue their game in the world of Tyria!