Guild Wars 2

I’d think it would be expected that they are ‘working’ on ‘stuff’ or they would not contnue to employee the people they do have.

But that stuff could be anything from bug-seek and destroy, to getting the game ready for a console port, to reworking the maps so they are not so square.

There are statements in this thread to ethe effect of, “no one claims that Anet isn’t working on stuff.” The reality is that there have been such claims made on these forums. There have been claims that Anet is too lazy to work on anything and the like. These are the people at whom Vayne seems to be aiming this thread.

Is Anet working on stuff ? It would be foolish to assume otherwise. Does it matter if they are working on stuff if that stuff doesn’t make it to live because of the company’s production model ? Not really.

Ultimately working on stuff is not the same as producing results. I think that Anet’s results have very much been a mixed bag. Recent, “additions,” to the game seem to remove entirely too much in my opinion. Others are flawed to a degree as to make me wonder how on earth a professional could have thought they were a good idea. Fixes to these problems seem somewhat slow to come.

Still I think that the living story concept has a lot of merit.

Goose.5196:

Well, good thing they are keeping everything under wraps. I mean, at least when they finally release an expansion, if they ever do, they can say “Even though 70% of our player base has already left and will not return, we didn’t let them down by communicating.” By not communicating, they essentially keep from having to deal with deadlines. If we don’t know about it, we can’t get disappointed right?

I don’t think 70% of the player base cares whether they communicate or not. I doubt 20% do. And of that 20% I doubt that most people will leave and not come back.

There are a few who might, just as some left over the ascended gear introduction. Shrugs.

Business as usual.

I don’t care for any announcements before a release, it is so pathetic to even say thay they have to announce anything at all and more or less no Devs for an MMO does that anymore becouse they know how much crap they will get if they delay or trash what they have promiced. I have seen it happen in every MMO I have played and the forums looks just like this one where poeple claims that this and that game has Devs that always says this and that, but on this and that gameforum we see the exact same type of posts.

Vayne clearly proves by his post that there is work going on at Anet and that they could be around a hundred working on some content- What it is, we can only speculate in and if we “White knights” will beleave it is something good and “doom and gloomers” whant to beleave it’s something bad let it be so… Let the future tell that tale.

Anyway, I have been enjoying this game from headstart and I realy like the way Anet communicates with us and I couldn’t give a rats kitten about what they are planning to implement in the game becouse I will know when time comes. It’s not like we can change anything by complaining before we have tried it anyway. … Oh well, We can but there is rarely any point to it.

Why did I even click this thread?

I honestly don’t know.

If they weren’t working on “stuff” that would mean they would shut down their business in the next few weeks.

Whats the freakin sense of this topic? Making fun of people who were waiting for 2 years to actually get some real content next to simplistic and linear LW fragments that barely tell anything and always end up grinding stuff nobody needs, like the 5th back piece?

I honestly laughed out loudly when I read the first Post.

I mean, what are you thinking? That is literally a worse topic than any of the mount begging ones. Like completly useless. You might just consider closing it.

Tristar.2687:

Why did I even click this thread?

I honestly don’t know.

If they weren’t working on “stuff” that would mean they would shut down their business in the next few weeks.

Whats the freakin sense of this topic? Making fun of people who were waiting for 2 years to actually get some real content next to simplistic and linear LW fragments that barely tell anything and always end up grinding stuff nobody needs, like the 5th back piece?

I honestly laughed out loudly when I read the first Post.

I mean, what are you thinking? That is literally a worse topic than any of the mount begging ones. Like completly useless. You might just consider closing it.

But I’m not consider closing it, because it being useless is your opinion…which you’re entitled to. I don’t find it useless and others don’t either.

Unless you’re denying that people have claimed Anet doesn’t have that many employees and there’s a tiny team just working on the living story and nothing else, then your comments are pretty much out of order.

The comments aren’t useless, you’re just feeling slighted because you think it’s aimed at your legitimate grievances. It’s not.

It’s aimed at people who are saying (and there have been more than a few) that Anet isn’t working on anything.

And because people say that, I’m perfectly entitled to post this.

I thought this was the discussion forum? I’ve seen alot of topics being closed because “it didn’t invite to a healthy discussion” or something like that.
This isn’t a discussion topic. This is a “let me defend Anet because they don’t say anything for themselves, so I’ll teach the community here on the forums exactly what’s going on!”

OP doesn’t even invite for a discussion. So I can’t see why this topic can be usefull.

OT: Ofc they are working on stuff. New trait aquire system was stuff too, so if they are working on the same kind of ‘stuff’ like that, I would never get my hopes up for something that’s worth playing to be worked on.

This topic is worthless, we all know they are working on something, its the things that they are working on that is the problem. Instead of fixing real issue that kitten players off on a daily basis, they go around and start changing things that don’t need to be changed. Things like trait system, NPE, megaserver etc… that always end up having more negatives that outweighs the positive.

Its also cool and all that casual players get content for them that is the living story and am sure many of the dedicated and hardcore players are ok with you casuals getting what you want. What we are kittened off at tho is the lack of updates to the current existing hardcore content (or at least suppose to be) such as dungeons and fractals. Also still the lack of raid content.

I know some people are going to go along the line of “hur dur only 10% of the population does dungeon or will raid” that is completely irrelavant as not even 1% plays the cesspool of an spvp they call it, yet they still update it often. Meanwhile wvw is still neglated. This game was suppose to cater to all sorts of players yet veterans and other sorts of dedicated players are still left in the rut. It annoys me that casual people on the forum is against hardcore players getting any sort of content for them, its insulting even.

calyx.9086:

Galen Grey.4709:

calyx.9086:

Vayne.8563:

So a few of us white knight types have been saying for a while that Anet is working on stuff and a few of you not so white knight types have been saying Anet isn’t showing us anything because they don’t have anything to show. Enter this article:

http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/11/25/flameseeker-chronicles-navigating-guild-wars-2s-tangled-paths/

The article itself is what it is, but there’s one bit of it that I’ll quote here:

“Although I’m bound by blood oath not to discuss any specifics (it’s a Necromancer thing), I can say with certainty that, yes, ArenaNet is working on stuff. It is working very kitten stuff. There is no internal catastrophe or barren office lurking behind the studio’s policy of limited communication as some fans have feared. There are a lot of highly organized developers there doing things I was mostly not allowed to see up close because there are probably nuclear fallout shelters less secure than ANet HQ. But it’s safe to say that they didn’t pull together hundreds of people and tell them to look very busy and enthusiastic and excited about their game just because I happened to be in the vicinity.”

Now of course, this really means nothing. It’s one man saying he saw something at the studios when he was there, that he’s not allowed to talk about. But it was being done.

The same stuff a lot of us have been saying. He’s saying straight out the fans who say Anet doesn’t have plans in the background are incorrect.

I suppose time will tell, but it’s what I’ve always believed.

Yep LS and the gem store both count as “stuff”.

They also count as 20 – 30 employees out of 350 which is actually Vayne’s point.

So they claim. I’m not sure I believe much of what (little) Anet tells us. Honestly, I’m more inclined to trust a crackhead on their word over Anet.

why would they lie about that? they could simply have said nothing if they wanted the truth be known? besides what do they game if they say a mere 20 people are working on the living story when the number is actually closer to 300?

Zaklex.6308:

Galen Grey.4709:

leviathan.2148:

Is there any reference of Anet confirming the 20 dev size of Living World Team?

yes. it comes from Angel McCoy herself.

Source: https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/livingworld/lwd/Enough-of-your-GMPC-please/page/3#post4193277

“Our team changes in size, but there are just a little over twenty people on it at any given time.”

Well, I guess Angel decided to leave out one important piece of information, that team of 20 people is for each episode, and they work on 4 episodes concurrently(or they did, would assume that is still the case, otherwise they would not be able to release them biweekly if it was only 1 team)…which equates to roughly a total of 80 people working on Living World episodes(notice the plural)…and deduct from development staff, your overhead, GM’s, customer service, IT/network people, communication staff. etc. So it’s quite possible, that after all that, perhaps there’s anywhere from 100 – 150 working on bigger projects…maybe…but things could’ve changed since then.

One more thing, there’s another company up Arena.nets way that’s pretty kitten quiet about upcoming projects too, in some cases…until they’re ready or close to being ready…and they’re pretty kitten ed successful. I don’t think I need to name them either.

No she didnt. Ready the quote she said it used to be 4 teams each working on one episode. Now its one unified team of 20 or so people.

“The most notable being that we no longer have 4 Living World teams, each making their own content; we have 1.”

and sorry Fernling…. I really need to read all posts before replying but yeah what Fernling said

Vayne.8563:

Tristar.2687:

Why did I even click this thread?

I honestly don’t know.

If they weren’t working on “stuff” that would mean they would shut down their business in the next few weeks.

Whats the freakin sense of this topic? Making fun of people who were waiting for 2 years to actually get some real content next to simplistic and linear LW fragments that barely tell anything and always end up grinding stuff nobody needs, like the 5th back piece?

I honestly laughed out loudly when I read the first Post.

I mean, what are you thinking? That is literally a worse topic than any of the mount begging ones. Like completly useless. You might just consider closing it.

But I’m not consider closing it, because it being useless is your opinion…which you’re entitled to. I don’t find it useless and others don’t either.

Unless you’re denying that people have claimed Anet doesn’t have that many employees and there’s a tiny team just working on the living story and nothing else, then your comments are pretty much out of order.

The comments aren’t useless, you’re just feeling slighted because you think it’s aimed at your legitimate grievances. It’s not.

It’s aimed at people who are saying (and there have been more than a few) that Anet isn’t working on anything.

And because people say that, I’m perfectly entitled to post this.

Nah Vayne, as much as I like to respond to your comments, I have to agree that this topic is pretty much pointless.

So ANet is working on stuff. OK. But this is a discussion forum and this is no base for a discussion. All it causes is people to speculate, turning this thread into a flame fest, which will finally get the thread closed anyway.

No discussion base means, thread should be closed by moderator.

Arrow.4619:

Vlad Morbius.1759:

First off, anyone including this reporter and the OP and those accused of making stuff up are all guilty of assumption and that fault lies squarely on the shoulders of Anet. What amazes me is that people tear at each other every day and either try and prove their view is the right one when the company who knows the answer just sits idly by letting their own community turn to shambles. It’s pathetic to think that their is so little respect for the player base that they cannot trust us with the truth and think that letting this happen is justifiable in the end.

Anet/NCSoft has been the cause of all of this negativity, they brought it on themselves pure and simple so before you run out blaming others perhaps blame should be assigned where it belongs and that’s the company not filling in the blanks left for their community. Please don’t come back with they can’t tell us look at the reaction they got before….well boo freaking hoo, you’re a gaming company it’s to be expected, get a backbone.

It’s so pathetic and I am not participating in this charade any longer, I may or may not stick around but frankly the aggravation of trying to get answers just isn’t worth it, so I’m done posting or caring. If this strategy fails for them I hope the one responsible for the policy never works in the industry again, because its been pure poison on many levels.

Anet’s communication policy is a self inflicted wound they just keep reopening and reopening day in day out. I have the exact same reaction to the Anet “apologencia” who defend the company with “people will complain even if they are open and honest” crap. Seriously, that’s like saying Anet employees have the emotional and intellectual resiliency of 12-year-olds. Complaining customers are part of every business and if that is Anet’s underlying reason for this they do need to grow a spine, suck it up and learn to deal with it.

Is it? Just look at the oldest complain of all how many times has it been said the manifesto is a lie. The popular proof people put forward is the famous quote by Ree Soesbee that stated changes are permanent. you kill a boss it doesnt respawn 10 mins later etc.. How many people have pointed at that and said its all a lie? Arenanet where still open with their communication back then and they quickly came out and stated problem there is the manifesto wasnt clear enough. Colin was speaking about the open world. Ree was speaking about the personal story. Did Arenanet’s coming out an explain it change anything?

Or how about the swing a sword, swing another sword etc… how many times have they stressed they’re talking about mandatory grind?

Clarification simply dont work. Once damage is done there is no taking it back regardless if the damage refers to something real or tangable, a misunderstanding or simply people not happy with something.

This thread needs more baseless facts. Just sayin.

So some wannabe-journalist says he saw that Anet is working on stuff? Did I get tht right? Its so complicated…

But anyway, thats AMAZING news!!!

How is this even possible? Because thats such a rare thing…a company working on stuff…

Now I bet Anet is working on stuff at least since GW2’s release, probably even before!

Nah..

So, in a nutshell, the issue is Anet’s communication policy.
How does Anet receive feedback? Through the game? Trough the Forums?

It doesn’t seem like Anet pays a lot of attention to the forums and even though I see people kittening about the game’s problems in map chat constantly, I still see no response from Anet.

I hope those of you who say this thread is pointless (which should be against forum rules anyway), would have the bottle to stand up the next time someone says Anet isn’t working on anything but the Living Story and point out that we at least have annecdotal evidence that that’s not true.

However, I strongly suspect those who say this thread is pointless will never do that. Sorta makes you think, don’kitten

Vayne.8563:

I hope those of you who say this thread is pointless (which should be against forum rules anyway), would have the bottle to stand up the next time someone says Anet isn’t working on anything but the Living Story and point out that we at least have annecdotal evidence that that’s not true.

However, I strongly suspect those who say this thread is pointless will never do that. Sorta makes you think, don’kitten

I will stand up right now and point out that we have anecdotal evidence that Elvis survived his demise and is still out there, somewhere, gyrating. Now pass me that bottle. A couple more slugs and maybe we’ll see Bogey. Here’s looking at you, kid.

Vayne.8563:

I hope those of you who say this thread is pointless (which should be against forum rules anyway), would have the bottle to stand up the next time someone says Anet isn’t working on anything but the Living Story and point out that we at least have annecdotal evidence that that’s not true.

However, I strongly suspect those who say this thread is pointless will never do that.

Why would anyone waste time responding to those claiming ANet isn’t working on anything but Living Story? Most people doing so are using hyperbole. They know ANet is working other things; the “New items in the Gem Shop!” every single Tuesday is proof enough of this. “Standing up to these people” is frivolous, and it usually degrades into an “us” vs “them” argument.

Vayne.8563:

Sorta makes you think, don’kitten

What really makes me think is that this game is in such a state that the developers earnestly thought the knowledge that “they’re working on stuff” would somehow be a panacea to the legitimate griefs some have with the game or the developers’ stance and/or communicating with their customers.

Tachenon.5270:

Vayne.8563:

I hope those of you who say this thread is pointless (which should be against forum rules anyway), would have the bottle to stand up the next time someone says Anet isn’t working on anything but the Living Story and point out that we at least have annecdotal evidence that that’s not true.

However, I strongly suspect those who say this thread is pointless will never do that. Sorta makes you think, don’kitten

I will stand up right now and point out that we have anecdotal evidence that Elvis survived his demise and is still out there, somewhere, gyrating. Now pass me that bottle. A couple more slugs and maybe we’ll see Bogey. Here’s looking at you, kid.

I’m not sure how you can continue to be this disingenuous. This is a guy writing for a game site that as to my recollection has always been fairly reputable. Comparing Elvis sitings by strangers to this doesn’t really do the situation, or you, any kind of justice at all.

And you know, a lot of people saw Elvis’s body.

The people claiming Anet isn’t working on anything have absolutely nothing to go on.

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

I hope those of you who say this thread is pointless (which should be against forum rules anyway), would have the bottle to stand up the next time someone says Anet isn’t working on anything but the Living Story and point out that we at least have annecdotal evidence that that’s not true.

However, I strongly suspect those who say this thread is pointless will never do that.

Why would anyone waste time responding to those claiming ANet isn’t working on anything but Living Story? Most people doing so are using hyperbole. They know ANet is working other things; the “New items in the Gem Shop!” every single Tuesday is proof enough of this. “Standing up to these people” is frivolous, and it usually degrades into an “us” vs “them” argument.

Vayne.8563:

Sorta makes you think, don’kitten

What really makes me think is that this game is in such a state that the developers earnestly thought the knowledge that “they’re working on stuff” would somehow be a panacea to the legitimate griefs some have with the game or the developers’ stance and/or communicating with their customers.

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Vayne.8563:

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

It’s also possible the author wrote a puff-piece in exchange for a visit to ANet headquarters and some cool GW2 swag. Such occurrences are not uncommon in video game journalism.

Vayne.8563:

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

I said most were using hyperbole. It’s certainly possible there are a few unreasonable people who legitimately believe ANet isn’t’ working on anything but the Living Story. But unreasonable people are, by definition, unreasonable. So what good does it do to “stand up to” them?

Vayne.8563:

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Ah, “agree with me or get out”. I see. Not constructive, indeed.

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

It’s also possible the author wrote a puff-piece in exchange for a visit to ANet headquarters and some cool GW2 swag. Such occurrences are not uncommon in video game journalism.

Vayne.8563:

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

I said most were using hyperbole. It’s certainly possible there are a few unreasonable people who legitimately believe ANet isn’t’ working on anything but the Living Story. But unreasonable people are, by definition, unreasonable. So what good does it do to “stand up to” them?

Vayne.8563:

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Ah, “agree with me or get out”. I see. Not constructive, indeed.

It’s not constructive. I shared something that I thought was interesting by someone who had a least some respectability.

Yes, he COULD be an Anet shill. You could be a Blizzard shill. But it’s information in an article that I shared.

Now, this is in response to those people and it’s been more than a couple, that have posted that the game has no updates coming that, or that there’s no one working there.

Surely that’s not unreasonable.

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

Vayne.8563:

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

Well, it’s most certainly not providing any kind of information, unless third-party repetition/re-wording of the company’s PR can be considered information, or news.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s nothing more than further stringling along, but this time originating from a supposedly “neutral” external source (yea…) as to give it extra credibility.
Partial or not, the guy isn’t telling anything more than the company itself had said so far, while retaining the same kind of enthusiasm (making the whole thing even more suspect).

KarlaGrey.5903:

Vayne.8563:

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

Well, it’s most certainly not providing any kind of information, unless third-party repetition/re-wording of the company’s PR can be considered information, or news.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s nothing more than further stringling along, but this time originating from a supposedly “neutral” external source (yea…) as to give it extra credibility.
Partial or not, the guy isn’t telling anything more than the company itself had said so far, while retaining the same kind of enthusiasm (making the whole thing even more suspect).

It’s providing a link to an article on a gaming site. That’s information in and of itself. It’s not meant to be law. It’s meant to be an indication of something.

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said, but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

A lot of people don’t believe it when Anet says it. So a guy not actually employed by Anet might be a better source for those people. I’m not sure I see that the problem is here.

Vayne.8563:

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

It’s also possible the author wrote a puff-piece in exchange for a visit to ANet headquarters and some cool GW2 swag. Such occurrences are not uncommon in video game journalism.

Vayne.8563:

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

I said most were using hyperbole. It’s certainly possible there are a few unreasonable people who legitimately believe ANet isn’t’ working on anything but the Living Story. But unreasonable people are, by definition, unreasonable. So what good does it do to “stand up to” them?

Vayne.8563:

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Ah, “agree with me or get out”. I see. Not constructive, indeed.

It’s not constructive. I shared something that I thought was interesting by someone who had a least some respectability.

Yes, he COULD be an Anet shill. You could be a Blizzard shill. But it’s information in an article that I shared.

Now, this is in response to those people and it’s been more than a couple, that have posted that the game has no updates coming that, or that there’s no one working there.

Surely that’s not unreasonable.

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

its not exactly like he is a paid shill, but the entire point of the colum he is writing is to discuss the cool things in GW. Someone who takes on this job is basically going to be very optimistic, and thats what they are expected to write. Both of the former writers got jobs at anet.
He is noy really a journalist(in this instance), he is a writer, and his job is to talk about the cool going ons of arenanets flgship game. Bias is inherent.

Vayne.8563:

KarlaGrey.5903:

Vayne.8563:

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

Well, it’s most certainly not providing any kind of information, unless third-party repetition/re-wording of the company’s PR can be considered information, or news.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s nothing more than further stringling along, but this time originating from a supposedly “neutral” external source (yea…) as to give it extra credibility.
Partial or not, the guy isn’t telling anything more than the company itself had said so far, while retaining the same kind of enthusiasm (making the whole thing even more suspect).

It’s providing a link to an article on a gaming site. That’s information in and of itself. It’s not meant to be law. It’s meant to be an indication of something.

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said, but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

A lot of people don’t believe it when Anet says it. So a guy not actually employed by Anet might be a better source for those people. I’m not sure I see that the problem is here.

This post is a textbook example of the ‘talk a lot, but say absolutely nothing’ rhetoric, and I trust any and every sensible reader can and will discern at least as much.

And the sole reason this thread has not yet been closed is because it’s an attempt to promote the game.

I also agree with phys’ above post – the bias is inherent, intended or not, and as such oughts being pointed out clearly.

phys.7689:

Vayne.8563:

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

It’s also possible the author wrote a puff-piece in exchange for a visit to ANet headquarters and some cool GW2 swag. Such occurrences are not uncommon in video game journalism.

Vayne.8563:

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

I said most were using hyperbole. It’s certainly possible there are a few unreasonable people who legitimately believe ANet isn’t’ working on anything but the Living Story. But unreasonable people are, by definition, unreasonable. So what good does it do to “stand up to” them?

Vayne.8563:

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Ah, “agree with me or get out”. I see. Not constructive, indeed.

It’s not constructive. I shared something that I thought was interesting by someone who had a least some respectability.

Yes, he COULD be an Anet shill. You could be a Blizzard shill. But it’s information in an article that I shared.

Now, this is in response to those people and it’s been more than a couple, that have posted that the game has no updates coming that, or that there’s no one working there.

Surely that’s not unreasonable.

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

its not exactly like he is a paid shill, but the entire point of the colum he is writing is to discuss the cool things in GW. Someone who takes on this job is basically going to be very optimistic, and thats what they are expected to write. Both of the former writers got jobs at anet.
He is noy really a journalist, he is a writer, and his job is to talk about the cool going ons of arenanets flgship game. Bias is inherent.

his job is as a writer who’s job is to write about Gw2 not necessarily the cool goings on of Anets flagship game. He isnt employeed by Arenanet, he’s employeed by an online magazine that write about plenty of MMOs not just Gw2. Does the fact he writes about Gw2 mean he can’t be objective and needs to always paint a pretty picture? No. Massively don’t care about making a game sound nice or ugly, they care about retaining their audience. Writing always nice things about games would just get their audience jaded making them leave! what do they stand to gain doing that?

Besides this is isnt even in question really. He doesnt only have nice positive articles after all. He has one about how bad it is we don’t have precursor crafting yet in which he even states his wife stopped playing the game. He has an article about stuff that has been left unfinished since the start of the game. Or his article about why Gw2 should have mounts etc…

Besides what does it matter in the end. If he stated There were 100s of employees busy at work when in fact there where 50 and 1/2 of them were staring about would that change anything? Will people suddenly become super happy because Anet is busy working? Doesnt seem so based on this thread really

phys.7689:

Vayne.8563:

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

I think it’s entirely possible that the author of that article has seen the same spurious claims by the same people and thought he might throw that out there, because it’s just as ridiculous to him as it is to me.

It’s also possible the author wrote a puff-piece in exchange for a visit to ANet headquarters and some cool GW2 swag. Such occurrences are not uncommon in video game journalism.

Vayne.8563:

As for what people meant, some of those posts were pretty kitten ed clear. People claiming less than 50 people work at Anet can’t be taken as hyperbole. There are enough of those kinds of posts where sharing this doesn’t seem that bad to me.

I said most were using hyperbole. It’s certainly possible there are a few unreasonable people who legitimately believe ANet isn’t’ working on anything but the Living Story. But unreasonable people are, by definition, unreasonable. So what good does it do to “stand up to” them?

Vayne.8563:

If you don’t like that I shared it, you don’t have to comment in the thread. It’s not constructive.

Ah, “agree with me or get out”. I see. Not constructive, indeed.

It’s not constructive. I shared something that I thought was interesting by someone who had a least some respectability.

Yes, he COULD be an Anet shill. You could be a Blizzard shill. But it’s information in an article that I shared.

Now, this is in response to those people and it’s been more than a couple, that have posted that the game has no updates coming that, or that there’s no one working there.

Surely that’s not unreasonable.

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

its not exactly like he is a paid shill, but the entire point of the colum he is writing is to discuss the cool things in GW. Someone who takes on this job is basically going to be very optimistic, and thats what they are expected to write. Both of the former writers got jobs at anet.
He is noy really a journalist, he is a writer, and his job is to talk about the cool going ons of arenanets flgship game. Bias is inherent.

Bias can be inherent but that doesn’t justify adding an aside to a story about something else completely. He didn’t have to add that.

What blows my mind is people who have issues with the game absolutely refuse to believe people can like the game or genuinely be excited about it without working for Anet or having bias.

It’s no better than calling people mindless fan boys.

Everyone is biased all the time about everything. That doesn’t mean that they don’t speak the truth.

KarlaGrey.5903:

Vayne.8563:

KarlaGrey.5903:

Vayne.8563:

Trying to turn it into something it’s not, on the other hand, could be construed to be unreasonable.

Well, it’s most certainly not providing any kind of information, unless third-party repetition/re-wording of the company’s PR can be considered information, or news.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s nothing more than further stringling along, but this time originating from a supposedly “neutral” external source (yea…) as to give it extra credibility.
Partial or not, the guy isn’t telling anything more than the company itself had said so far, while retaining the same kind of enthusiasm (making the whole thing even more suspect).

It’s providing a link to an article on a gaming site. That’s information in and of itself. It’s not meant to be law. It’s meant to be an indication of something.

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said, but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

A lot of people don’t believe it when Anet says it. So a guy not actually employed by Anet might be a better source for those people. I’m not sure I see that the problem is here.

This post is a textbook example of the ‘talk a lot, but say absolutely nothing’ rhetoric, and I trust any and every sensible reader can and will discern at least as much.

And the sole reason this thread has not yet been closed is because it’s an attempt to promote the game.

I also agree with phys’ above post – the bias is inherent, intended or not, and as such oughts being pointed out clearly.

It says plenty. You don’t like what it says so you try, as you often do, to make it seem like I’m not saying anything.

But the truth is, you’ve been against the game and strongly vocal about it since two months after launch. If everything I say as someone who enjoys and plays the game must be taken with a grain of salt, the same would apply to what you say.

Vayne.8563:

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said,

Then what worth is the article?

Vayne.8563:

but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

How? Honestly, how? Nothing of substance has actually been stated in the article, or by ANet.

At the manufacturing plant I work at, we sometimes get potential customers coming through on tours. Companies that are thinking of doing business with us send someone to take a look around, usually there’s a group of them.

We generally know when they are coming, and we’re told to make sure the place looks extra good when they’re there. Their perceptions of the place do not always match the reality, because we’re trying to hide the normal chaos and we make sure everyone looks busy.

So, having someone come along and say “I went to ANet, and they sure looked busy!” when they can’t even tell WHAT they were supposedly busy doing doesn’t do much for me. They didn’t get to see what it’s really like, they just got the show that ANet put on for them.

Gene Archer.8560:

Vayne.8563:

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said,

Then what worth is the article?

Vayne.8563:

but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

How? Honestly, how? Nothing of substance has actually been stated in the article, or by ANet.

Provides an observation by a 3rd party?
A ton has been said on the subject based on absolutely nothing but gut feels.

Some arguments I heard
- Its been 2 years what we’ve been getting so far is all that we’ll be getting so far.
- Anet outsource a lot, there is just a handful of people working there thats why they cannot develop an expansion
- Most employees have quit
etc…

Like I said its an observation. Doesnt say anything per-se but at least its something to base arguments on.

Stating hey living story is just 20 people and counting for another 40 people working on PvP and Features respectively that still leaves about 300 people working on something else doesnt mean much if people claiming most Anet employee have quit their job or the people arguing only 50 people work at Anet does it?

But now that we have a 3rd party confirming he saw 100s of employees busy working though reinforces that argument. Suddenly we know its true there are a lot more people working on stuff then what has been produced and that in turn means that when at the beginning of the year Arenanet told us there were 2 large projects being worked on in the background its quite possible those projects are still in the work cause well we now know they still have the necessary men power to do LS, Feature packs, PvP updates in parallel with big stuff like New continents / Expansions whatever they’re working on.

That is the worth of the article in a nutshell.

Palador.2170:

At the manufacturing plant I work at, we sometimes get potential customers coming through on tours. Companies that are thinking of doing business with us send someone to take a look around, usually there’s a group of them.

We generally know when they are coming, and we’re told to make sure the place looks extra good when they’re there. Their perceptions of the place do not always match the reality, because we’re trying to hide the normal chaos and we make sure everyone looks busy.

So, having someone come along and say “I went to ANet, and they sure looked busy!” when they can’t even tell WHAT they were supposedly busy doing doesn’t do much for me. They didn’t get to see what it’s really like, they just got the show that ANet put on for them.

yes I am sure you hire 200 people for the day to man areas that are generally barren. Oh come on, this is not about employees being busy or not. No doubt when there are people about you try to look more busy than normal (skip a coffee break that sort of stuff) but thats not the point we’re trying to make here. The point is the 100s of people busy working at the game. Or do you really think they have 100s of employees and management lets them stare do nothing all day? That generally they might skip 5 mins here or 5 minutes there which they didnt do on this day isnt an issue.

Simzani.4318:

Zaklex.6308:

I don’t think I need to name them either.

Name please ?

You want a name…I’ll give you a name…it’s called Valve…and they usually don’t talk about kitten till it’s close to being ready either (in most cases).

Gene Archer.8560:

Vayne.8563:

And yes, the guy hasn’t said anything that Anet hasn’t said,

Then what worth is the article?

Vayne.8563:

but having someone not in Anet say it, to me anyway, is at least a bit better than just Anet saying it.

How? Honestly, how? Nothing of substance has actually been stated in the article, or by ANet.

Of substance is a funny word. People keep ignoring what I’m saying. One would almost think they’re trying to start a fight. To simplify:

1. On more than one occasion I’ve seen people on this forum insist Anet isn’t saying anything because they’re not working on anything.

2. A writer from a website goes to Anet. He sees the same comments I do and comments on them.

3. I share the article because he commented on them, and I’ve had some of the same thoughts..but not the benefit of having visited Anet.

Three quarters of what’s said on this forum has less substance than this. You’re only actually replying to this because it says something you don’t agree with.

It’s not proof of anything. But I’d rather take this guy at his word than a random forum poster who’d never been to Anet.

And if people don’t know about the article, they might be inclined to believe something said on the forums a few times, even though there’s nothing to base it on.

Palador.2170:

At the manufacturing plant I work at, we sometimes get potential customers coming through on tours. Companies that are thinking of doing business with us send someone to take a look around, usually there’s a group of them.

We generally know when they are coming, and we’re told to make sure the place looks extra good when they’re there. Their perceptions of the place do not always match the reality, because we’re trying to hide the normal chaos and we make sure everyone looks busy.

So, having someone come along and say “I went to ANet, and they sure looked busy!” when they can’t even tell WHAT they were supposedly busy doing doesn’t do much for me. They didn’t get to see what it’s really like, they just got the show that ANet put on for them.

Saying you can’t talk about what’s going on is not the same thing exactly as not knowing what they’re doing though. I’m sure he doesn’t have specifics, but clearly he knows something he’s not allowed to talk about.

You have to read all the lines to interpret what’s being said, not just the ones that back up your point of view.

Galen Grey.4709:

yes I am sure you hire 200 people for the day to man areas that are generally barren. Oh come on, this is not about employees being busy or not. No doubt when there are people about you try to look more busy than normal (skip a coffee break that sort of stuff) but thats not the point we’re trying to make here. The point is the 100s of people busy working at the game. Or do you really think they have 100s of employees and management lets them stare do nothing all day? That generally they might skip 5 mins here or 5 minutes there which they didnt do on this day isnt an issue.

We call them “temps”, and we use them a lot, actually.

More to the point, though, there’s no proof that they’re working on Guild Wars 2. Yes, I’m sure they’re working on something, but what? Also, I’m sure there’s slow moments for people at ANet just like there are slow moments for people at my plant. You’re stuck waiting on someone else’s work to get done so you can start what you’re supposed to do. When there’s a tour coming through, you don’t let on that that’s happening, though. You make yourself look very busy and productive, so they don’t get a bad impression.

Yes, we should be busy and productive anyway. But just as you can look busy without being busy, so it’s possible to be busy and look like you’re not doing much at all. Guess which one is more important when there’s a tour there.

Anet: “Guys, we are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Outside source: “I went to Anet, I can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Hypothetical more sources go: “We too can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “Well, none of us went, so you ALL must be in a conspiracy to keep up the charade that Anet is doing stuff!”

I’ve given up on trying to argue with those people. There is no point. They hate the game, they bash the game, its all they do. Anet could come out with an expansion that could be held as the greatest thing ever in the MMO community, and they will still trash it. There is no winning.

Palador.2170:

Galen Grey.4709:

yes I am sure you hire 200 people for the day to man areas that are generally barren. Oh come on, this is not about employees being busy or not. No doubt when there are people about you try to look more busy than normal (skip a coffee break that sort of stuff) but thats not the point we’re trying to make here. The point is the 100s of people busy working at the game. Or do you really think they have 100s of employees and management lets them stare do nothing all day? That generally they might skip 5 mins here or 5 minutes there which they didnt do on this day isnt an issue.

We call them “temps”, and we use them a lot, actually.

More to the point, though, there’s no proof that they’re working on Guild Wars 2. Yes, I’m sure they’re working on something, but what? Also, I’m sure there’s slow moments for people at ANet just like there are slow moments for people at my plant. You’re stuck waiting on someone else’s work to get done so you can start what you’re supposed to do. When there’s a tour coming through, you don’t let on that that’s happening, though. You make yourself look very busy and productive, so they don’t get a bad impression.

Yes, we should be busy and productive anyway. But just as you can look busy without being busy, so it’s possible to be busy and look like you’re not doing much at all. Guess which one is more important when there’s a tour there.

Well temps get abused in a lot of ways but so far being called for one day in the 100s just to make a place look busy would be new to me

Yes you’re absolutely right there. Its possible they’re not working on Gw2 but on something else. is it likely though?

No doubt there are slow moments for some people but guess what? those slow moment existed prior to release too yet in less then 5 years they delivered (well you know what gw2 had at launch.. all that stuff)

What I am trying to say is you’re 100% right. when there are visitors definitely production will be higher. But only slightly higher. It will definitely not be 5x more then it is usual which is what you’d see if you compare all the content that was create for release vs the content we’re getting through living story.

Not to mention that I am sure during development they had a lot less visits then they’re having now after release so shouldnt productivity be more now anyway if this was a factor?

Galen Grey.4709:

Provides an observation by a 3rd party?

Such an observation!
Much stuff!
Many wows!

There is no substance to it.

Galen Grey.4709:

A ton has been said on the subject based on absolutely nothing but gut feels.

And this article does nothing to help sway those gut feels because it has no substance.

Saying that ANet is “working” on “stuff” isn’t saying anything of value.

Galen Grey.4709:

Like I said its an observation. Doesnt say anything per-se but at least its something to base arguments on.

But as an observation, it doesn’t actually -do- anything. And it says absolutely nothing. It doesn’t -help- the situation or the general toxicity that has enveloped the forums.

Galen Grey.4709:

But now that we have a 3rd party confirming he saw 100s of employees busy working though reinforces that argument.

“Goody goody gumdrops! ANet is “working” on “stuff”. We can’t say what that “stuff” is, but it’s totally “stuff” and you guys should be super excited for this “stuff”! "

Well, what a motherkittening relief. ANet is “working” on “stuff” because some guy was given a tour of ANet headquarters and saw them working on said “stuff”.

You know who else saw some “stuff” once? A couple guys who were given a tour of the Valve buildings.

Both ANet and Valve are “working” on “stuff”!

Half Guild Life Wars 3 confirmed, you guys!

Serophous.9085:

Anet: “Guys, we are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Outside source: “I went to Anet, I can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Hypothetical more sources go: “We too can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “Well, none of us went, so you ALL must be in a conspiracy to keep up the charade that Anet is doing stuff!”

I’ve given up on trying to argue with those people. There is no point. They hate the game, they bash the game, its all they do. Anet could come out with an expansion that could be held as the greatest thing ever in the MMO community, and they will still trash it. There is no winning.

ANet: Hey guys, we’re working on stuff!
White Knights: See guys! They’re working on stuff!
“Haters”: But what is this “stuff”? What is it you’re actually doing?
ANet: We can’t say, but it’s totally cool stuff! STUFF! SO MUCH STUFF!
“Haters”: That’s not actually telling us anything, thou-
White Knights: OMG YOU GUYS STOP HATING ON ANET. HOW COULD YOU!
“Haters”: We don’t hate the game, we actually love it and have become disillusioned by a lack of meaningful communication and not knowing what ANet actually has plann-
ANet: STUUUUUFFFFF!!!!!! SO MUCH STUUUUUUUFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!! AND IT’S SO AWESOME THAT WE CAN’T ACTUALLY SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT. IT’S JUST THAT COOL!
White Knights: SEE! SEE! IT’S STUFF YOU GUYS! STUFF! STUFF HAS NEVER GONE WRONG!

Gene Archer.8560:

Galen Grey.4709:

Provides an observation by a 3rd party?

Such an observation!
Much stuff!
Many wows!

There is no substance to it.

Galen Grey.4709:

A ton has been said on the subject based on absolutely nothing but gut feels.

And this article does nothing to help sway those gut feels because it has no substance.

Saying that ANet is “working” on “stuff” isn’t saying anything of value.

Galen Grey.4709:

Like I said its an observation. Doesnt say anything per-se but at least its something to base arguments on.

But as an observation, it doesn’t actually -do- anything. And it says absolutely nothing. It doesn’t -help- the situation or the general toxicity that has enveloped the forums.

Galen Grey.4709:

But now that we have a 3rd party confirming he saw 100s of employees busy working though reinforces that argument.

“Goody goody gumdrops! ANet is “working” on “stuff”. We can’t say what that “stuff” is, but it’s totally “stuff” and you guys should be super excited for this “stuff”! "

Well, what a motherkittening relief. ANet is “working” on “stuff” because some guy was given a tour of ANet headquarters and saw them working on said “stuff”.

You know who else saw some “stuff” once? A couple guys who were given a tour of the Valve buildings.

Both ANet and Valve are “working” on “stuff”!

Half Guild Life Wars 3 confirmed, you guys!

Serophous.9085:

Anet: “Guys, we are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Outside source: “I went to Anet, I can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “We don’t believe you”
Hypothetical more sources go: “We too can confirm they are working on stuff”
Haters: “Well, none of us went, so you ALL must be in a conspiracy to keep up the charade that Anet is doing stuff!”

I’ve given up on trying to argue with those people. There is no point. They hate the game, they bash the game, its all they do. Anet could come out with an expansion that could be held as the greatest thing ever in the MMO community, and they will still trash it. There is no winning.

ANet: Hey guys, we’re working on stuff!
White Knights: See guys! They’re working on stuff!
“Haters”: But what is this “stuff”? What is it you’re actually doing?
ANet: We can’t say, but it’s totally cool stuff! STUFF! SO MUCH STUFF!
“Haters”: That’s not actually telling us anything, thou-
White Knights: OMG YOU GUYS STOP HATING ON ANET. HOW COULD YOU!
“Haters”: We don’t hate the game, we actually love it and have become disillusioned by a lack of meaningful communication and not knowing what ANet actually has plann-
ANet: STUUUUUFFFFF!!!!!! SO MUCH STUUUUUUUFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!! AND IT’S SO AWESOME THAT WE CAN’T ACTUALLY SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT. IT’S JUST THAT COOL!
White Knights: SEE! SEE! IT’S STUFF YOU GUYS! STUFF! STUFF HAS NEVER GONE WRONG!

It’s funny, you know. There’s absolutely no substance to people who say Anet isn’t working on anything, and that they’re not talking because they have nothing to talk about, but I don’t see you getting into those comments and saying they don’t have substance.

That smacks of bias.

If you’re going to complain about lack of substance, be fair and complain about lack of substance on both sides.

If you don’t, then your comments about lack of substance lack substance.

Vayne.8563:

It’s funny, you know. There’s absolutely no substance to people who say Anet isn’t working on anything, and that they’re not talking because they have nothing to talk about, but I don’t see you getting into those comments and saying they don’t have substance.

That smacks of bias.

If you’re going to complain about lack of substance, be fair and complain about lack of substance on both sides.

If you don’t, then your comments about lack of substance lack substance.

They’re not the ones that made this thread, and are not the topic of the thread. The topic is the article and how it feeds your confirmation bias.

Whether or not anyone argues against those people is, however, irrelevant to whether “they’re working on stuff” is meaningful or meaningless. Because no matter what a person on the forums says, until that “stuff” is part of the game, it doesn’t matter whether they’re “working on stuff” or sitting around playing with Yo-Yos. As such, an article confirming that they’re “working on stuff” but still doesn’t give any details is as useless as Arenanet saying themselves that they’re working on stuff that we don’t see and have no idea what it is.

@Vayne

While I understand why you started this topic, and greatly appreciate it, not every one will. This is the internet, and there are more Negative Nancys than Positive Pollys. Its far easier to be negative, and try to tear down something, than it is to build something up. So even with this type of post, this information, that yes Anet is indeed working very hard there are far too many people who will try to argue the point regardless. These same people will try to argue if you said that they sky was blue. Nothing against those people, but any and all internet forums, regardless of topic, will see the same type of people. Thats the nature of the internet, and internet forums. In any event, great post! I love to see positive stuff said about a great company, great and amazing people, and a fantastic and wonderful game!

@the nay sayers

I’ve seen several posts about how Anet may be working on something, but unless that something is “good” and something other than the LS it doesn’t really matter. First of all, “good” is a very subjective term. While some people found the quality, narrative, and content lacking, there are many many more who absolutely love it. Some people feel that a bi-weekly LS update is a grind and a poorly developed piece of work. Thats ok, you can feel that way. But please understand that there are many many more who feel the exact opposite. Of course when you bring such negative comments into a thread about positive things, those whom are mockingly labeled “white knights” who feel a desire and need to defend something they feel strongly about, are going to step in and do just that. We do so out of a sense of love for the game, a sense of loyalty and dedication to something we feel is worth defending. You can call us “white knights”, blind to the “truth”, or whatever. We don’t care. That being said, let us have our space to celebrate the positive things, to honor the Anet team, and enjoy those things we love most about GW2 without trying to bring us and everyone else down. If you feel disenchanted for whatever reason, please feel free to start your own thread about such things. We won’t stop you, and try to bring some positive energy into your negativity. I promise.

BTW: Happy Thanksgiving to you American types!

While I don’t usually agree with Vayne I have to say that I too believe there’s some big project being worked on as we speak.

My guess? An expansion.

There’s been too little content these past 2 years to justify all those people working at a decent rate.

I believe they’ve started developing an expansion about a year ago when it became clear the game needed one.

It means nothing – he didn’t even get to see anything then get tied up in the Mother of all disclosure agreements to not release what it was – if that had been the case this thread would have been of marginal interest.

Incidentally Vayne you have a kitten cheek telling people they are ‘off topic’ when pretty much every thread you create or contribute to descends into a semantic argument and ends up having nothing to do with the thread /question at hand, you are a Troll a lot of the time – a more subtle one that some granted – but derailing threads by telling people what they are thinking or what they are thinking is wrong or doesn’t fit your predetermined rules of interaction ( which you yourself break) is still derailing threads by attacking other peoples comments.

stop trolling.

I was going to make a bunch of separated answers, but that’s annoying and rude. So, I’ll just stick to the part I feel is the most important.

Galen Grey.4709:

Yes you’re absolutely right there. Its possible they’re not working on Gw2 but on something else. is it likely though?

Very likely, actually.

You know that old saying about putting all of your eggs in one basket, I take it? Well, why would a development studio of ANet’s size bank their fortunes on GW2 and only GW2? MMOs fail all the time, after all, or get replaced by others that improve on their ideas.

The fact that they have people that can make a game like GW2 means that they have the people they need to do most of the work on a new game as well. It’s simply common sense that they’d have some of them working on developing a new game. (How many is “some”? That I can’t say.)

MOBAs are hot right now, and some of the higher up people at ANet seem to have this obsession with e-sports. GW2 isn’t cutting it as one, do you really think they’re not doing some preliminary work on a MOBA of their own?

http://elvissightingsociety.org

I’d just like to know if the work they’re doing is the equivalent of the work they did on the trait system and NPE, so I can protest in advance. Not that it would make any difference, but at least I’d feel like I was fighting the good fight trying to save the game instead of bemoaning its destruction after the fact.

From my personal experience, you can keep a whole company busy forever, without producing kitten.

Wow, those people at ANet are busy. Great, but working on a whole lot of stuff doesn’t mean kitten, what count is what the players get.

Players got less than they expected, no confirmation on more to come.

Sorry, that not everyone is going to jump the hype train because someone saw that the employees at ANet are not just sitting around in the office picking their noses…

pdavis.8031:

This is the internet, and there are more Negative Nancys than Positive Pollys.

I’d say that there’s a larger number of Realistic Rhondas than Negative Nancys.

Yes, there are some who just want to complain. But I think more of the people who look at this and say “So what?” aren’t being negative as they are being realistic. We’re not trying to hate on the game and Anet. We’re trying to see what it matters.

Yes, they’re “working on stuff”. So? What stuff? More cash shop items? More living story? More NPE and trait-style screw-ups? More professions? More zones? More dungeons? More crafting recipes? More Black Lion weapon sets that ignore underwater weapons? More WvW maps or siege weapons or tricks and traps?

Who knows? They could be working on all of those or none of them (except cash shop items and living story). There are only two things we can actually count on Arenanet to actually be working on, and that’s living story, which to many is too little or too much work for not enough reward or is just simply not something they’re interested in, and cash shop items to try to get even more money out of us.

If the Realistic Rhondas are looking like Negative Nancies, maybe it’s because there’s realistically not much to be positive about.

Vayne.8563:

It’s funny, you know. There’s absolutely no substance to people who say Anet isn’t working on anything, and that they’re not talking because they have nothing to talk about, but I don’t see you getting into those comments and saying they don’t have substance.

That smacks of bias.

If you’re going to complain about lack of substance, be fair and complain about lack of substance on both sides.

If you don’t, then your comments about lack of substance lack substance.

I’m one of those people that have said “they may not be saying anything since they have nothing to report”. That’s not the same as saying they aren’t working on stuff, it’s still a matter of what stuff?

You simply cannot deny, we have no clue if they feel the NPE created an improvement in retention and we are basically stuck with it. Regardless if you think it’s an improvement or not, we simply have 0 to go on. I personally will only level alts with scrolls and maybe, play them to get a trait i want. Yet, based on the CDI they took what we currently have from?

When can we expect a trait rework or do they feel like the trait system is where they want it? We again have no clue. So in saying they may have nothing to say of these things, might actually be factually true, but we are so in the dark, it’s ALL speculation, including “working on stuff”.

What about the PS? How are they planning of fixing that so it actually makes sense again? Same thing with WvW, what are the plans to mix it up, it’s basically the same ole since launch, minus the orbs, which were to come back, at some point. Most people think the “new stuff” does nothing for the mode and certainly doesn’t mix things up. The scoring thread is all but abandoned now, what’s the plans for that, why start it when you can’t talk about it? It’s completely kittened…

I REALLY want to be on your bandwagon Vayne, i don’t want to resent Arena, i want to look forward to “stuff”, but given their track record, it’s pretty tough to feel optimistic about the games future.

I’m totally wiling to give credit to the new inventive mechanics to the new zones, they are actually quite awesome and in some cases challenging, but let’s all face facts, a couple of new areas with some decent mechanics doesn’t make for an “expansions worth of content”, which includes how friggen long we had to wait to get it.