Guild Wars 2

This is an old concept used in games like Anarchy Online. For those unfamiliar with the game, this is how it worked in AO:

The player interacts with the mission terminal. The player sets specific criteria to setup the mission such as Difficulty level (whether soloable, duo, or group) and type of loot priority (e.g. whether mostly money, or loot or a mixture) and type of quest (kill the boss, find the person, retrieve information etc, etc).

The player then receives co-ordinates (a waypoint) for the instance entrance and a key to enter the instance. Without that key, they cannot enter. If players join the player who setup the instance, then each member recieves a key to use on that instance. The instance can entered so long as either the quest hasn’t been deleted or completed by the original creator of the instance, or the player hasn’t left the group.

So, the player (and their group if applicable) finds the instance entrance, and enter (because they each have a key). The instance consists of a number of underground / interior rooms filled with mobs + boss mob at end with some loot dropping. Of course, as the main reason for entering the instance was the quest, naturally completion of the quest yields the best reward. Though the loot drops from kills also help.

Naturally, some minor adjustments would have to be made to the concept (using “quest boards” in the cities instead of mission terminals etc etc). But the basic concept can still be applied.

The benefit is (seemingly) randomly generated content inside the instance means different types of encounters. Players can use them as an alternative to doing other types of activities which the player would otherwise partake in.

The fact that the instance entrances aren’t permanently located and the relative randomness of the content inside helps to add to the feeling of the world being “dynamic”.

Sick of Orr? Sick of looking for a group?
Players could jump into these relatively small instances for something to do.
It’s basically an optional alternative.
More options are good.

Sounds pretty complicated technologically, but holy crap would it ever be worth it!!

+1 for the idea

To be honest, if an 11 year old game like Anarchy Online could do it, then surely GW2 can.

Here’s a few things to bear in mind:

We already know that mini dungeons are coming in the game. So Anet appear to be in favour of the concept of mini-dungeons. The difference being that I’m assuming that these mini-dungeons will be in “fixed” locations in the world and their content will be fixed too.

Now, when you think about it, there’s already lots of non-interactable doors of different types throughout the world (especially the human areas, for now they are just part of the environment at the moment). More could even be added where necessary in other places (set into sides of cliff faces, underwater grates, etc, etc).

This Halloween event already has “doors” appearing wherever the devs want them to appear, and they are also interactable too.

Lastly, unlike the DE system (which relies on players just being in the right location), the personal story system requires players to speak to an npc or enter an instance in order to initiate the proceedings. That system somewhat follows the “traditional” quest systems whereby the player must interact with an npc or the environment in order to “pick up” the quest. The mission terminal system in AO, and the “quest board” that I mentioned in my OP follows the same design.

So essentially, this suggestion just meshes those concepts together a bit.
Making instance doors interactable only if the player has a key (which could be sent to them via the mail if necessary once the mission has been accepted).
And if necessary, a time limit could be put on completing the quest (and thus the availability of the instance entrance). Failure to do it in the time limit, and the instance is no longer available. A new quest must therefore be “requested” via whatever means the devs see to use in the game (e.g. a quest board or npc).