Guild Wars 2

We all know Tyria to be a unbelievably rich world, full of detail; some of it amazingly well conceived, and as such I’m sure that from time to time, you like me have stopped for nothing more simple than to take in the landscape; listen too and watch events and why not, for the content of this living breathing world is well worth exploring.

And as such there are times when I would like to get up close to a Warg or a Orrian and have a really good look at them; or to stand in the midst of a war zone and just take in the sheer majesty of it all without worrying about my virtual skin or being attached for doing so.

To this end, I would like to propose an option for Guild Wars 2, that of making the avatar invisible to all enemies – in effect making them unable to see or perceive you, allowing the observer to go about the business of examination of Tyria’s environment without risk to themselves. And while in said mode to have a free hand as to where the game camera can be aimed, so it can be steered in any direction to see everything within a given range. The only limit being a non-clip lock-out so you cannot pass through walls with the camera but can go over things – this is, after all, exploration..

I for one would enjoy that, for it would allow me to visit places which are just too dangerous to go.

But I’m sure like anything else the lazy and the unimaginative would consider using such an option to get advantage, so I further propose that when said option is active, the character cannot gain any experience potential whatsoever. This way it becomes a tool for curiosity, not exploitation.

Activation can be accomplished via command-line input, perhaps /explore and the same again to toggle switch on/off. Logging, out or changing avatars will automatically change status to off. Other players can of course see the person who is using this option, but NPCs, friendly/unfriendly cannot and the person using said option is denied the ability to collect resources or use weapons but will be granted flight capability.

I actually like this idea. But to take it one step further and to reduce exploitation, I would recommend not being able to get any map completion points while exploring (such as vistas, POIs, and waypoints) as well as maybe having being teleported back to where the player first entered explorable mode, to prevent people from entering explorable mode and getting to really tough or challenging areas and then turning it off to get the credit for wherever they are.

The only other challenge might be those people adding to the map population or event scaling. Easily worked around, I think.

Another idea might be to have a separate world instance just for exploring.

Good idea, though.

What dangerous places that are just too dangerous to go to are you talking about? My characters can mostly go where they please!

For close ups can always suggest using stealth. =P

Well, Myrden.2456 – good point, and I had not considered that (guess I ‘blanketed it’ under no XP) and FrizzFreston.5290, imagine for the moment that you do not have a lvl80 toon, have the most basic equipment and want to explore! Pretty much that’s why I suggested it – if the enemy cannot see you, they cannot attack you. But as I initially indicated, this mode is purely for observation, so the user can switch off the GUI and take pics, and look around. Thanks for taking the time to comment.

The idea came to me last year while flicking through the original Guild Wars 2 bound volume detailing the world at the time of its initial release. This big book, white covered, has lots of images in it of various beasties and such, and well, most of them are not large enough to really do the texture mapping justice.

I like the detail and effort the devs have put into the simple things of this game, I often turn off my HUD and go exploring in first person mode and just to see everything that’s happening can sometimes tell a story.

So +1 to the idea lol

Part of what makes exploration rewarding is the struggle that it entails. In my opinion, having a free, invincible camera detracts from the enjoyment of exploration and doesn’t add anything compelling to the user experience.

The idea that a place is too dangerous to go is exactly why it is rewarding to go there. it encourages teamwork, it encourages people to set goals, and it creates conflict with the environment that makes the experience memorable and interesting.

+1 to the idea, I am going to refer to it as ghost mode.

While I like the general idea, I would have to vote no. Wouldn’t it allow one to scout ahead, find the best route through an area, and then tackle it? Thus reducing the thrill and risk of exploration?

Perhaps it could only be offered to 100% map complete characters, which I realize isn’t what the OP is after. Therefore, nothing new to discover, and presumably they’ve already been there, done that, so this would give them a chance to go back and enjoy the scenery free from hassle. As previously posted, they would return to where they started once they exit “ghost mode.”

DeanBB.4268:

While I like the general idea, I would have to vote no. Wouldn’t it allow one to scout ahead, find the best route through an area, and then tackle it? Thus reducing the thrill and risk of exploration?

Perhaps it could only be offered to 100% map complete characters, which I realize isn’t what the OP is after. Therefore, nothing new to discover, and presumably they’ve already been there, done that, so this would give them a chance to go back and enjoy the scenery free from hassle. As previously posted, they would return to where they started once they exit “ghost mode.”

Yeah the scouting situation could open up a can of worms, maybe it could work with the restriction of having 100% map completed a zone, then you can “ghost”

I think it’s a nice idea, as Guild Wars 2 is quite a pretty game and has many little details to appreciate. That said, I would support its implementation ONLY with the caveat that your character is teleported back to where it first entered ghost mode once you’re done. Too much potential for cheesing otherwise.

That would be fun, but maybe it should limit your use of weapons so you don’t go around assassinating any enemy you please. :P I think, if it cloaked your character well enough, you could use it to take your own screenshots of deadly enemies and places.

Moyayuki.3619:

That would be fun, but maybe it should limit your use of weapons so you don’t go around assassinating any enemy you please. :P I think, if it cloaked your character well enough, you could use it to take your own screenshots of deadly enemies and places.

Nah I totally think that we should be allowed to run around in godmode and kill everything. I don’t want to have to try in PvE

Any idea even remotely similar to this would be a boon to Roleplayers who wanted to write in the open world. Combat can be very disruptive to the writing process.

The only way this would be feasible is if such a mode meant you did not unlock waypoints, pois, vistas, HPs, couldnt interact with anything, was limited to the map it was activated in (map transitions automatically give you a waypoint), and when deactivated, it sends you back to the exact point you activated it.

Sometimes miss not pulling aggro of monsters far below your level like in other games.
Allowed you to view those beautiful elite areas in peace.

Restrictions:
Must have 100% map completed, so no exploration bonus.
Cannot interact with objects, nodes, enemies.
Snap back. Must return to starting position.

The more I think about it, the more I like this idea.

The restrictions are a MUST.

Well, to add to the original post; my original idea was simply to be able to examine avatars, places and the like without risk of being attacked while examining something! Perhaps I or another person wants to take screen captures of something and well, to try and do so would be hard if all they ever saw of that character was the character bearing down on them in a state of furious vengeance!

Therefore I never planned too have or use weapons, effects, etc. Its purely a camera mode, so you would could see your toon as you do normally, be able to enter first and third person modes, be able to switch on and off the GUI (as we can do at the moment) so you can take screen shots without overlays but above all else it would be purely for the purposes of exploring, taking screen shots – in effect its a tool for that. And yes, good ideas above!

Unlock specifically for any person who has world completion or who without world completion purchases (more money for you, ArenaNET!!) the GHOSTLOOK tool, which might be an ability to allow you to have an “out of body experience” and travel as you wish across the landscape, but with provisions.

Those being that they have to be in the region being examined in order to use it and that they have to remain where they are to use it, and on switching out of it, snap back into their physical body once more. Whether a person goes ahead and explores and fights on the spot, or simply examines ahead of them without fighting sooner or later they will go to those places, so nothing is really being lost – they’re just seeing it without having to fight through it that first time (in ‘’ghost mode’’)

That no POI, Vista, WP or interaction be permitted whatsoever so the person using said mode still has to gain that experience the old-fashioned way. Anyway, if this ability was implemented I would happily spend my days with my lvl80 world completed toon taking in screen shots of the rich world of Tyria for my and others appreciation (and I use a third-party tool for this, Beepa Fraps).

http://youtu.be/DbuN6kURYxE
Now this is exploration mode

An exploration mode for dungeons, fractals, PvP maps and raids would be great.

I never understood this. Art teams put so much effort in making these areas, yet they give us no option to just relax and enjoy the art like they do open world zones.

No mobs, no experience, keep the lore items around (like selectable things), no rewards, just letting us run around and enjoy.

Still love this idea and want to experience what it would be like.

Hire some guildies or friends, or even ‘hire’ some hearty warriors in the map your on to be your body guard—You can explore, take nice pictures, and enjoy the fresh air without worry.
The mercenaries of Tyria thank you .