Guild Wars 2

Hmm. Well, color me interested. As people have said, you don’t rent out a main auditorium for a major presentation at a game conference for the usual vague “we are working on stuff but we can’t share anything yet” type promises like we’ve tended to get in the past. Certainly interested to see where this goes, sounds like maybe they’re finally going to pull back the curtain on all of that aforementioned “stuff” they’ve been unwilling to share about.

GW2 need a good expansion or two because EQ NEXT is coming, its like free copy of GW2 with world destructions and almost same classes…..just wait and see.

“Beyond the Point of No Return” Great title and really appropriate from an ironic point of view

Ragnarox.9601:

GW2 need a good expansion or two because EQ NEXT is coming, its like free copy of GW2 with world destructions and almost same classes…..just wait and see.

I would be very surprised if everquest next was released in 2015.

Black Frog.9274:

Kartel.2561:

But GW2 is laughably behind when it comes to “expansion-like content”. To pretend it’s been delivering SO MUCH in that regard, especially vs its own predecessor …is simply not credible. Are you seriously comparing 3 small zones in 2yrs to multiple continents? Maybe you’re new to the GW franchise, but even with a smaller team Anet used to be capable of so much more.

One thing absent from this conversation is total population. Opening up new continents, starting areas, etc. creates an issue with achieving critical mass of players in key areas. If the population is low (whatever qualifies as low for their purposes), opening new areas drains old areas and cripples many of the group events or the “social” interaction aspect of the game. If there is a constant addition of new areas, the process repeats itself until you reach a gas-like state of dispersion. Since they started the mega server thing, it’s clear that total population was an issue for some servers and may, in the bigger scheme of things, be a “problem” they’re factoring into their plans.

I think it’s more likely that they will move in a new sort of direction. The point of no return will turn out to be the point at which you “transfer” to a new server with the new content. The LS will take you up to that point and after some critical mass is achieved (so that there are enough people on the new server to run group content) you’ll move over as part of some event. Once there, you can’t go back. This will put your starting story line with Zhaitan and the followups with the original LS content in its own “chapter”/“server”/“zone” (whatever the correct terminology is). Then they can introduce new items and such without wrecking balance and the economy on the old server.

That’s my crazy prediction. Dream on guildwarians!

That would seriously mess up parts of the game.

GW2 is built on everyone-goes-everywhere. That’s the whole point of upscaling and downscaling. Forcibly splitting the population into a whole new world would have major knockon effects for all kinds of game systems and would be a whole lot of work for minor or non-existent benefits.

I could see completely redoing areas again…but honestly I wish they wouldn’t. What happened to Kessex Hills and Lion’s Arch is still a sore point.

Really, I want end-game content. By which I mean things to do that don’t involve progression.

I want minis to be more than just cute pixels – what about a beauty contest where minis have different moves and try to out-cute each other? Something for players to do! What about adding mini rooms to home instances, decorated with player-crafted items? It can use those ascended mats as well as other mats and generally be a boon for crafters and people who want housing.

What about smaller WvW maps capped at 10 people? More PvP modes? I don’t play PvP much but they’re constantly asking for more modes and maps.

TL;DR I hope they’re announcing major new features to make GW2 a place that feels alive and full of things to do instead of just trying to mimic activity by giving us lots of instances.

Will be interesting to see if the chapter on the 13th concludes in a way that gives us a big hint about the meat of the announcement 2 weeks later.

Certainly going to be an interesting month for the game if nothing else.

Guild Wars 3 confirmed.

Paid opinion, yeah right. I suppose it might count as such in that people motivated to work their butts off on a game might actually have positive opinions about their product and want to share said opinions, and of course they do get paid for said work, but I am feline tired of people assuming that any employee of ANet who posts happy thoughts about GW2 is only doing so as a job requirement.

Probably there are some employees there who feel a bit disgruntled, that’s going to be true of almost any workplace. And maybe it’s just generally a bad idea to post negative things about people who have at-will power over your employment status, so they won’t be doing that. But even unhappy employees will have something they like about their job or they would leave.

I have a friend who is a writer on a large MMO. He has plenty negative to say about the industry in general but when the day is done, he really loves what he does, he’s happy with the company employing him, and he’s constantly working to improve things no matter what the forum grumblers and flamers claim.

So drop the feline tinfoil already. Pessimism is fine (I used to tell my clients I’d rather be pessimistic and wrong than the reverse, when it came to predicting trial outcomes), but oy veys mir can we stop assuming life is only going to give us lemons no matter what?

I am bouncing in my seat with glee at whatever this announcement may be. I expect it to be grand. Even if it isn’t, it’ll be something changing the game and giving us new stuff to sink our teeth into, like when the wardrobe changes came in. I have a guildie who lives in San Antonio and she’s gonna be at PAX and you bet the rest of us are demanding insta-updates from her!

edit Apparently the post that sparked my little tirade vanished as I typed. Yay! But my points stand.

One of the most interesting things that I read in GW2 forums constantly is that people believe it is totally normal to have 300 people working on so little.

Anet already mentioned that the team working on Living Story is consisted of around 30-people. I have never in my life seen any MMORPG having 270 people maintaining the game and adding normal patches/revamps. It is by no means anything normal in the industry. Most companies tend to kick a huge portion of the staff after an MMO-release because not many people would be needed. The fact that Anet’s team became even bigger is one of two:

1. They have been planning to work on something from the very begining.
2. Ncsoft is a company that has no idea what they are doing and they are just throwing money at a company that hardly needs half the number of staff.

I know that some people here fancy commenting things like ‘’OH, THEY NEED ALL 300 PEOPLE TO TAKE CARE OF THE GAME ALONE. THEY WOULD NEED 5000 PEOPLE TO RELEASE ANYTHING BIGGER’’. In which case I can gladly tell you sir, that you have no idea how MMO companies usually work. And if what you are saying is true, Anet may as well contact Samsung to release an expansion for them, perhaps +15k staff are enough to release some expansion.

nGumball.1283:

One of the most interesting things that I read in GW2 forums constantly is that people believe it is totally normal to have 300 people working on so little.

300 developers? Or 300 employees? If it’s the latter, that’s actually a small company (it would include everyone from management to drones and all departments, including things like customer service)

It could be something great! or not.

Don’t let the hype train ride you too far, one thing Anet is fantastic at is hype…remember the feature pack? what would have been just a one page release of upcoming patch notes like other mmo’s do, Anet stretched it over three weeks...don’t set that bar too high, and you won’t be disappointed.

Black Frog.9274:

nGumball.1283:

One of the most interesting things that I read in GW2 forums constantly is that people believe it is totally normal to have 300 people working on so little.

300 developers? Or 300 employees? If it’s the latter, that’s actually a small company (it would include everyone from management to drones and all departments, including things like customer service)

Considering the fact that the company is working on a single title, it is not so small. 30 people work on feature patches? 30 for Living Story? 40 on normal patches and revamps? We have 200 people then taking caring of managment, marketing and costumer service.

While I do understand that a big portion of the employees don’t develope. It is unreasonable to beleive that 270 employees are just taking care of supporting an already released game. Also, Anet is owned by Ncsoft, which means that GW2 isn’t only managed by Anet. Important decisions and planning should include Ncsoft managment too.

nGumball.1283:

While I do understand that a big portion of the employees don’t develope. It is unreasonable to beleive that 270 employees are just taking care of supporting an already released game.

I’m curious. Why do you find that unreasonable? In my experience, there tends to be more ‘support’ staff orbiting the main project than people actually doing the project.

In many cases, the support staff was just as critical to the project as those working hands-on. And, in some cases, more important. Again, from my own, and varied, experiences.

For example, in the U.S. Air Force, you might have 30-100 pilots flying the planes on an air base. And the rest of the base? All some form of ‘support’ staff making sure the base ran and the planes flew.

We’re taking tens of thousands of military and civilian personnel not actually flying the planes.

So it’s not unreasonable to think something similar happens with other entities.

nGumball.1283:

Black Frog.9274:

nGumball.1283:

One of the most interesting things that I read in GW2 forums constantly is that people believe it is totally normal to have 300 people working on so little.

300 developers? Or 300 employees? If it’s the latter, that’s actually a small company (it would include everyone from management to drones and all departments, including things like customer service)

Considering the fact that the company is working on a single title, it is not so small. 30 people work on feature patches? 30 for Living Story? 40 on normal patches and revamps? We have 200 people then taking caring of managment, marketing and costumer service.

While I do understand that a big portion of the employees don’t develope. It is unreasonable to beleive that 270 employees are just taking care of supporting an already released game. Also, Anet is owned by Ncsoft, which means that GW2 isn’t only managed by Anet. Important decisions and planning should include Ncsoft managment too.

It’s becoming increasingly clear that you next to nothing about business at the corporate level.

The Small Business Association (SBA) defines a small business in this particular market sector as 500 employees or less. I don’t know where you got the 300 number, but if it’s correct, then the company falls well under the cap and is, in fact, a small business.

They’ll have HR people, Legal, Payroll, Accounting, Business Support (everything from secretaries and internal IT support to security and facilities maintenance), Customer Service, Sales and Advertising, Management, Quality Assurance, External IT (server runners and the like), Developers, and “the Creatives.” And that’s just typical business stuff. They may have any other number of positions for things that are unique to their company (e.g., we have an internal communications team that writes newsletters and all that corporate email spam).

When talking about the employees we have to keep in mind that multiple of the positions might very well be filled by NCSoft people rather than ArenaNet people., seeing as ArenaNet is fully owned by NCSoft and not its own entity. Support staff and such would most likely be NCSoft rather than ArenaNet for example.

lordkrall.7241:

When talking about the employees we have to keep in mind that multiple of the positions might very well be filled by NCSoft people rather than ArenaNet people., seeing as ArenaNet is fully owned by NCSoft and not its own entity. Support staff and such would most likely be NCSoft rather than ArenaNet for example.

Keep in mind that there is a difference between a being a wholly owned subsidiary and being a division within a larger company. I do not claim to know how NCsoft handles such, or how Korean companies in general do, but a wholly owned company generally has its own full staff including support, payroll, etc in the U.S.

aspirine.6852:

Ragnarox.9601:

GW2 need a good expansion or two because EQ NEXT is coming, its like free copy of GW2 with world destructions and almost same classes…..just wait and see.

I would be very surprised if everquest next was released in 2015.

That’s where I’ll be going when it is released, 2015 or otherwise.

I think they will be announcing a full-fledged expansion. The “new framework for how an MMO can grow its universe.” is GW2 having a combination of the living story and an expansion pack at the same time.

Hopefully they will announce something that will allow more skill customization. Maybe 3-5 options per 1-5 slots per weapon. A couple dozen utilities per profession as well.
The most exciting thing is to see what kind of part the CDIs played in this. I’m expecting some serious talk about raids, GvG and guild halls at PAX. Anything short of expansion or expansion amount of content will likely lead to extreme disappointment.

Stark.1350:

aspirine.6852:

Ragnarox.9601:

GW2 need a good expansion or two because EQ NEXT is coming, its like free copy of GW2 with world destructions and almost same classes…..just wait and see.

I would be very surprised if everquest next was released in 2015.

That’s where I’ll be going when it is released, 2015 or otherwise.

There is so few information about it. The first and only demo of it looked pretty darn good ok. But since then there is not a lot of infor given.

Stark.1350:

aspirine.6852:

Ragnarox.9601:

GW2 need a good expansion or two because EQ NEXT is coming, its like free copy of GW2 with world destructions and almost same classes…..just wait and see.

I would be very surprised if everquest next was released in 2015.

That’s where I’ll be going when it is released, 2015 or otherwise.

EQ Next was a bait and switch to sell landmark. I highly doubt they will ever release Next… the last update I read said they were still figuring out if the systems were possible… i.e. they haven’t even started building the game yet. Though I still get 3 emails a day telling me how great landmark is and that I should buy it to support the development of next… yeah… right…

On topic… I’ll believe it when I see it… 2 and a half years of next to no content doesn’t leave me very optimistic… they dismantled their dungeon team, merged the servers, flopped in china, and have only released 1/2 of a map in 2.5 years. I’m sure they will use a lot of hype words, and very vague statements and then tell us something big is coming that they will “talk about when it’s ready”. 6 months later they will announce that this “big secret project” no longer aligns with their development goals and was scraped.

Palador.2170:

Ardenwolfe.8590:

Can we at least wait and see before airing negative, and sarcastic, comments?

…. no?

Sorry, but so long as their policy of not talking about the future of the game is still in place, they CAN’T say anything big. Pretending they’re going to is just a farce, and everyone knows it.

It doesn’t matter if they’re secretly cracking genetics problems and planning to clone charr buddies for all their players, they can’t talk about it due to their policy. All they can give is, at best, vague hints of anything more than a week or two out. We can either laugh about it, or get upset about it. Personally, I’d rather laugh.

kinda this….sadly….I really hate their policy. I can see the answers to the panel now…

Question: “What will be beyond the living story?”
Anet: “The players will really like it and be surprised!”
Question: “Will there be a new class?”
Anet: “We are really excited for what we have in store for our players!”
Question: “Will Cantha make a come back? Or more zones?”
Anet: “We can’t wait to play along side you with what we have in store!”

“…we’re setting up a new framework for how an MMO can grow its universe.”

ArenaNet: perpetually planning to prepare to iterate big things that may or may not make it into the game.

Anet – masters of hyperbole.

darkace.8925:

“…we’re setting up a new framework for how an MMO can grow its universe.”

ArenaNet: perpetually planning to prepare to iterate big things that may or may not make it into the game.

This is awesome.

Nice! I wonder what’s going to be reset?

I see a lot of comments about hype and hyperbole, but I have yet to see a single word released by ArenaNet about anything being announced.

What exactly have they hyped about Pax South? The only thing I’ve seen is an announcement about the Tournament at Pax East. I’d be very interested in reading all this ‘hype’! Please post the links.

i will be more happy on getting new GW game rather than just expanding the current mess that gw2 is, unless this expansion is so good that will fix everything we complain about

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

I see a lot of comments about hype and hyperbole, but I have yet to see a single word released by ArenaNet about anything being announced.

What exactly have they hyped about Pax South? The only thing I’ve seen is an announcement about the Tournament at Pax East. I’d be very interested in reading all this ‘hype’! Please post the links.

People are saying that the session at PAX will be purely hype and no actual details, all flash, no substance. They are not saying they are hyping pax.

Don’t.. assume..
Don’t.. hope..
Don’t.. hype..
Don’t.. dream..
Just pretend this thread doesn’t exist until something significant is announced.
You’ll be much happier for it!

Immensus.9732:

i will be more happy on getting new GW game rather than just expanding the current mess that gw2 is, unless this expansion is so good that will fix everything we complain about

I hate to break this to you but…

No game will ever ever ever ever ever fix all the complaints, because new complaints will just arise. If you keep setting your expectations that high, you will always be disappointed.

Kartel.2561:

Bandit.8279:

Lack of new content? 3 new maps, Fractals, dungeon path, EoTM, armor/weapon skins, new gemstore items, LS1 & 2, festivals and new crafting levels are what I can think of off the top of my head.

MMO’s typically don’t put out much content within their first couple of years as it’s spent smoothing over the game and putting in things that were promised but missed at launch. Yet we got all of the above for free!

Maybe you’re new to the MMO world but your expectations need to be checked. Now if the current pace of content continues than next year I might be joining you.

Also, check message boards and forums for spare tickets. You can usually find them as people’s plans change and what not.

It’s sad that I actually took the time to make a “thank you” thread rather than the usual complaining, and still get accused of “being new to mmos”. Is this where we compare who’s older and who’s been playing online games the longest? Kudos if you win, but I don’t think I’d bet on it.

Do we need to bring up GW1 and the amount of content and features it saw added in this same time frame? That’s my preferred example anyway; others like to use other games like FFXIV. Heck, even the original EQ has seen 21 xpacs in 15yrs. True, not all themepark games get lots of content added, some do. The ones that do tend to be more well regarded for it, and that used to include GW.

Maybe next time you shouldn’t lead your “positive” thread with the first paragraph filled with negativity. Comparing an MMO to an online-RPG is apples to oranges as well.

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO. Of course we want more because we all enjoy this game and I would be more than happy to see an XPac in late 2015;-)

Happy New Year!

Bandit.8279:

Kartel.2561:

Bandit.8279:

Lack of new content? 3 new maps, Fractals, dungeon path, EoTM, armor/weapon skins, new gemstore items, LS1 & 2, festivals and new crafting levels are what I can think of off the top of my head.

MMO’s typically don’t put out much content within their first couple of years as it’s spent smoothing over the game and putting in things that were promised but missed at launch. Yet we got all of the above for free!

Maybe you’re new to the MMO world but your expectations need to be checked. Now if the current pace of content continues than next year I might be joining you.

Also, check message boards and forums for spare tickets. You can usually find them as people’s plans change and what not.

It’s sad that I actually took the time to make a “thank you” thread rather than the usual complaining, and still get accused of “being new to mmos”. Is this where we compare who’s older and who’s been playing online games the longest? Kudos if you win, but I don’t think I’d bet on it.

Do we need to bring up GW1 and the amount of content and features it saw added in this same time frame? That’s my preferred example anyway; others like to use other games like FFXIV. Heck, even the original EQ has seen 21 xpacs in 15yrs. True, not all themepark games get lots of content added, some do. The ones that do tend to be more well regarded for it, and that used to include GW.

Maybe next time you shouldn’t lead your “positive” thread with the first paragraph filled with negativity. Comparing an MMO to an online-RPG is apples to oranges as well.

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO. Of course we want more because we all enjoy this game and I would be more than happy to see an XPac in late 2015;-)

Happy New Year!

Sure, lot’s of content has been released. That’s good. But the bad part? Not the right kind of content, the stuff we the community have been begging for since the launch of the game. We want new maps, we want new classes, we want new skills, new weapons. What do we get? Gem shop after gem shop crap. There is a limit. The content was also released using the worst possible medium. After the first few living story updates, the community already complained relentlessly about it. Only after a whole season they decided to change it, but still it the amount of permanent and repayable content out of living world is nothing but atrocious. There is only one way to save the game now from it’s very foreseeable demise. That is an expansion, or an overhaul of the current game adding in “real” content for the players, or else more and more veteran players will quit from the complete lack of things to do.

Bandit.8279:

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO.

I would hardly consider:
– three new PVE zones whose combined size is about that of Brisban Wildlands
– one new universal skill and one new class-specific skill per class
– zero new classes
– zero new playable races
– zero new weapon options for existing classes
– zero new dungeons (one, if we count Fractals)
– and an episodic campaign so thin it can be completed in a day
to be “plenty of new content” for an MMO that’s more than two years old, but that’s just me.

darkace.8925:

Bandit.8279:

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO.

I would hardly consider:
– three new PVE zones whose combined size is about that of Brisban Wildlands
– one new universal skill and one new class-specific skill per class
– zero new classes
– zero new playable races
– zero new weapon options for existing classes
– zero new dungeons (one, if we count Fractals)
– and an episodic campaign so thin it can be completed in a day
to be “plenty of new content” for an MMO that’s more than two years old, but that’s just me.

You forgot Skyhammer and Edge of the Mists. They’re not PvE, but they are content.

…sorta.

nexxe.7081:

The Living World was just the beginning.

…interesting.

Happy New Year to upcoming games!

AndreDaAzn.2659:

Bandit.8279:

Kartel.2561:

Bandit.8279:

Lack of new content? 3 new maps, Fractals, dungeon path, EoTM, armor/weapon skins, new gemstore items, LS1 & 2, festivals and new crafting levels are what I can think of off the top of my head.

MMO’s typically don’t put out much content within their first couple of years as it’s spent smoothing over the game and putting in things that were promised but missed at launch. Yet we got all of the above for free!

Maybe you’re new to the MMO world but your expectations need to be checked. Now if the current pace of content continues than next year I might be joining you.

Also, check message boards and forums for spare tickets. You can usually find them as people’s plans change and what not.

It’s sad that I actually took the time to make a “thank you” thread rather than the usual complaining, and still get accused of “being new to mmos”. Is this where we compare who’s older and who’s been playing online games the longest? Kudos if you win, but I don’t think I’d bet on it.

Do we need to bring up GW1 and the amount of content and features it saw added in this same time frame? That’s my preferred example anyway; others like to use other games like FFXIV. Heck, even the original EQ has seen 21 xpacs in 15yrs. True, not all themepark games get lots of content added, some do. The ones that do tend to be more well regarded for it, and that used to include GW.

Maybe next time you shouldn’t lead your “positive” thread with the first paragraph filled with negativity. Comparing an MMO to an online-RPG is apples to oranges as well.

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO. Of course we want more because we all enjoy this game and I would be more than happy to see an XPac in late 2015;-)

Happy New Year!

Sure, lot’s of content has been released. That’s good. But the bad part? Not the right kind of content, the stuff we the community have been begging for since the launch of the game. We want new maps, we want new classes, we want new skills, new weapons. What do we get? Gem shop after gem shop crap. There is a limit. The content was also released using the worst possible medium. After the first few living story updates, the community already complained relentlessly about it. Only after a whole season they decided to change it, but still it the amount of permanent and repayable content out of living world is nothing but atrocious. There is only one way to save the game now from it’s very foreseeable demise. That is an expansion, or an overhaul of the current game adding in “real” content for the players, or else more and more veteran players will quit from the complete lack of things to do.

Got a mouse in your pocket? Your liberal usage of we, suggests that you do. You really seem sure of yourself with your predictions, got a score for the Superbowl? Get so tired of mouthy players thinking they speak for everyone.

CMM.6712:

AndreDaAzn.2659:

Bandit.8279:

Kartel.2561:

Bandit.8279:

Lack of new content? 3 new maps, Fractals, dungeon path, EoTM, armor/weapon skins, new gemstore items, LS1 & 2, festivals and new crafting levels are what I can think of off the top of my head.

MMO’s typically don’t put out much content within their first couple of years as it’s spent smoothing over the game and putting in things that were promised but missed at launch. Yet we got all of the above for free!

Maybe you’re new to the MMO world but your expectations need to be checked. Now if the current pace of content continues than next year I might be joining you.

Also, check message boards and forums for spare tickets. You can usually find them as people’s plans change and what not.

It’s sad that I actually took the time to make a “thank you” thread rather than the usual complaining, and still get accused of “being new to mmos”. Is this where we compare who’s older and who’s been playing online games the longest? Kudos if you win, but I don’t think I’d bet on it.

Do we need to bring up GW1 and the amount of content and features it saw added in this same time frame? That’s my preferred example anyway; others like to use other games like FFXIV. Heck, even the original EQ has seen 21 xpacs in 15yrs. True, not all themepark games get lots of content added, some do. The ones that do tend to be more well regarded for it, and that used to include GW.

Maybe next time you shouldn’t lead your “positive” thread with the first paragraph filled with negativity. Comparing an MMO to an online-RPG is apples to oranges as well.

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO. Of course we want more because we all enjoy this game and I would be more than happy to see an XPac in late 2015;-)

Happy New Year!

Sure, lot’s of content has been released. That’s good. But the bad part? Not the right kind of content, the stuff we the community have been begging for since the launch of the game. We want new maps, we want new classes, we want new skills, new weapons. What do we get? Gem shop after gem shop crap. There is a limit. The content was also released using the worst possible medium. After the first few living story updates, the community already complained relentlessly about it. Only after a whole season they decided to change it, but still it the amount of permanent and repayable content out of living world is nothing but atrocious. There is only one way to save the game now from it’s very foreseeable demise. That is an expansion, or an overhaul of the current game adding in “real” content for the players, or else more and more veteran players will quit from the complete lack of things to do.

Got a mouse in your pocket? Your liberal usage of we, suggests that you do. You really seem sure of yourself with your predictions, got a score for the Superbowl? Get so tired of mouthy players thinking they speak for everyone.

+1

I can give you the content already in its essence: “We are really excited about what is on the horizon, but we can’t really say any more than that because of our non-communication policy. No new dungeons though, because that doesn’t fit well into our vision of delivering content with the living world.”

Palador.2170:

Ardenwolfe.8590:

Can we at least wait and see before airing negative, and sarcastic, comments?

…. no?

Sorry, but so long as their policy of not talking about the future of the game is still in place, they CAN’T say anything big. Pretending they’re going to is just a farce, and everyone knows it.

It doesn’t matter if they’re secretly cracking genetics problems and planning to clone charr buddies for all their players, they can’t talk about it due to their policy. All they can give is, at best, vague hints of anything more than a week or two out. We can either laugh about it, or get upset about it. Personally, I’d rather laugh.

I will likely reget not reading all posts till the end before replying but this really needs to be said, so if its said more then once.. good some emphasis was needed.

The policy is not to talk about stuff until its set in stone (close to release, code freeze, whatever that means to them) its not about not talking about anything related to the game’s future.

quite a few of us have deduced there are a lot of employees working on stuff we do not know about. (350 employees, only 20 working on living story. some employees working on pvp, feature packs etc.. but release is a fraction of what LS provides to teams working there are likely not much larger then 20) Not to mention high profile people who have literally disappeared since release like Ree Soesbee, Jeff Grub etc.. They have stated in multiple interviews there are 2 big projects being worked on in addition to the feature packs and the living story. I imagine they’re now close to competition and thus they feel its time to talk about them. 3 more weeks and we’ll know. I am excited.

Anyhow more to the point, there is no policy on not talking about anything not yet release just on stuff that isnt set in stone yet so yeah this can be about big stuff and big stuff thats about to release not that is still months away which makes it twice as exciting

lordkrall.7241:

Farzo.8410:

http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/2qv15n/today_guild_wars_2_is_as_old_as_guild_wars_1_was/

Lack of content, yes. Compared to their previous game.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Releases

Start comparing.
Also keep in mind that GW2 was MUCH larger at release.

I would also add to this to keep in mind the additional complexity.
Compare the work needed to create say lion’s arch in Gw1 and Lion’s arch 1.5 times no less in Gw2 (1.5 times because we got 2 lion’s archs in Gw2 but of course the destroyed version required less work then the full version)

Also keep in mind the added complexity of dynamic events to quests in Gw1 and how much more work went into Gw2 zones (dynamic events, vistas, jumping puzzles, hidden content, skill challenges etc..)

Its true gw1 delivered a ton of content in 2 years but the amount of work is very different between them.

CMM.6712:

AndreDaAzn.2659:

Bandit.8279:

Kartel.2561:

Bandit.8279:

Lack of new content? 3 new maps, Fractals, dungeon path, EoTM, armor/weapon skins, new gemstore items, LS1 & 2, festivals and new crafting levels are what I can think of off the top of my head.

MMO’s typically don’t put out much content within their first couple of years as it’s spent smoothing over the game and putting in things that were promised but missed at launch. Yet we got all of the above for free!

Maybe you’re new to the MMO world but your expectations need to be checked. Now if the current pace of content continues than next year I might be joining you.

Also, check message boards and forums for spare tickets. You can usually find them as people’s plans change and what not.

It’s sad that I actually took the time to make a “thank you” thread rather than the usual complaining, and still get accused of “being new to mmos”. Is this where we compare who’s older and who’s been playing online games the longest? Kudos if you win, but I don’t think I’d bet on it.

Do we need to bring up GW1 and the amount of content and features it saw added in this same time frame? That’s my preferred example anyway; others like to use other games like FFXIV. Heck, even the original EQ has seen 21 xpacs in 15yrs. True, not all themepark games get lots of content added, some do. The ones that do tend to be more well regarded for it, and that used to include GW.

Maybe next time you shouldn’t lead your “positive” thread with the first paragraph filled with negativity. Comparing an MMO to an online-RPG is apples to oranges as well.

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO. Of course we want more because we all enjoy this game and I would be more than happy to see an XPac in late 2015;-)

Happy New Year!

Sure, lot’s of content has been released. That’s good. But the bad part? Not the right kind of content, the stuff we the community have been begging for since the launch of the game. We want new maps, we want new classes, we want new skills, new weapons. What do we get? Gem shop after gem shop crap. There is a limit. The content was also released using the worst possible medium. After the first few living story updates, the community already complained relentlessly about it. Only after a whole season they decided to change it, but still it the amount of permanent and repayable content out of living world is nothing but atrocious. There is only one way to save the game now from it’s very foreseeable demise. That is an expansion, or an overhaul of the current game adding in “real” content for the players, or else more and more veteran players will quit from the complete lack of things to do.

Got a mouse in your pocket? Your liberal usage of we, suggests that you do. You really seem sure of yourself with your predictions, got a score for the Superbowl? Get so tired of mouthy players thinking they speak for everyone.

Maybe he/she does, I don’t know. What I do know is the community of players (around 40) that I joined this game with, left for the reasons he/she stated, plus the ones I have met along the way that no longer play due to those reasons.

We will see this year quarterly reports if he/she speaks for the majority. Money talks, bullkitten walks.

Black Frog.9274:

nGumball.1283:

One of the most interesting things that I read in GW2 forums constantly is that people believe it is totally normal to have 300 people working on so little.

300 developers? Or 300 employees? If it’s the latter, that’s actually a small company (it would include everyone from management to drones and all departments, including things like customer service)

its actually 350 people as of januaryish 2014 (they had at least 20 job opening every single month) (of course they also had people leave, no way to tell how many of those are actually hired, or if they just hire 1 person for the position or a 100 people) suffice to say it could and has likely grown a bit since then.

That being said 350 employees isnt really small at all. I mean sure if you’re blizzard its small but for a company maintain just 1 title thats a lot of people.

Gw1 had 280 I believe employees. Wildstar had 260. Titan had 100 employees. 38 studios had 160 employee for project Copernicus. Team behind elder scrolls online is 250 employees.

350 isnt small by a long shot, its actually probably one of the largest in the industry

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

I see a lot of comments about hype and hyperbole, but I have yet to see a single word released by ArenaNet about anything being announced.

What exactly have they hyped about Pax South? The only thing I’ve seen is an announcement about the Tournament at Pax East. I’d be very interested in reading all this ‘hype’! Please post the links.

hmm is it normal in your experience to have companies announce on forums what a big announcement at a convention going to be?Personally I’ve never see it happen.

Serophous.9085:

Immensus.9732:

i will be more happy on getting new GW game rather than just expanding the current mess that gw2 is, unless this expansion is so good that will fix everything we complain about

I hate to break this to you but…

No game will ever ever ever ever ever fix all the complaints, because new complaints will just arise. If you keep setting your expectations that high, you will always be disappointed.

not to mention people want opposite things.
Hey even some complaints were opposite each other. These will be marked in bold.

People complained for lack of vertical progression, too much vertical progression, no mounts, no flying mounts, no trinity, not being forced to play a specific role, being too forced to play a specific role, too hard, too easy

like you said it just impossible for any release to fix all complaints. Not just that but fixing some complaints will actually result in people complaining about the changes.

The new Dailies come to mind. or ascended Crafting before that.

expansion or bust

darkace.8925:

Bandit.8279:

Plenty of new content has been released for a 2 year old MMO.

I would hardly consider:
– three new PVE zones whose combined size is about that of Brisban Wildlands
– one new universal skill and one new class-specific skill per class
– zero new classes
– zero new playable races
– zero new weapon options for existing classes
– zero new dungeons (one, if we count Fractals)
– and an episodic campaign so thin it can be completed in a day
to be “plenty of new content” for an MMO that’s more than two years old, but that’s just me.

• Several new PvP maps, including one format (Team Deathmatch………….)
• 4 holiday locations
• 3 dungeons (2 temporary…)
• 1 temporary half-zone (Tower of Nightmares) ….
• 5 new traits per profession
• dozens – possibly hundreds – of new armor and weapon skins (both gemstore and not)
• Hundreds of new events, both temporary and permanent.

If you’re going to list kitten we’ve gotten, list it all. Even I haven’t done that.

lordkrall.7241:

Do people really think that they would take 1,5 hours on the MAIN STAGE for not telling us anything?

Oh I’m sure they’ll tell us all kinds of things we’d like to hear about what’s coming, and then when launch day comes along, only half of them will be present with tons of excuses and laments as to why they were cancelled.

I can see it now. Mike and Colin coming on only with a single piece of paper of note, titled: 101 ways to rephrase “it’s on the table” and “we’re not ready to say anything”.
That can easily fill up 1.5 hours.

tigirius.9014:

lordkrall.7241:

Do people really think that they would take 1,5 hours on the MAIN STAGE for not telling us anything?

Oh I’m sure they’ll tell us all kinds of things we’d like to hear about what’s coming, and then when launch day comes along, only half of them will be present with tons of excuses and laments as to why they were cancelled.

1.5 hours of “we’re considering it”, “we’re thinking about it”, “we have plans”, “we’re working on it”. Remember the new legendaries they were working on?

nexxe.7081:

http://south.paxsite.com/schedule/panel/guild-wars-2-beyond-the-point-of-no-return

Guild Wars 2: Beyond the Point of No Return
Join ArenaNet president and co-founder Mike O’Brien and Guild Wars 2 game director Colin Johanson for an exclusive sneak peek at what’s next in Guild Wars 2 and be among the first to hear how we’re setting up a new framework for how an MMO can grow its universe. The Living World was just the beginning.

PANELISTS:
Mike O’Brien [President and Co-Founder, ArenaNet], Colin Johanson [Guild Wars 2 Director, ArenaNet]

Just the beginning? Generally that means that BIG things are coming, not jus Big things.

And its interesting wording there… “setting up a new framework for how an MMO can grow its universe.”

There is not much more I can say without getting yellow carded, so I’ll only say that I hope there’s some truth to that sentence, and I really hope its not just pompous padding that can be ignored (something I’ve seen far too much lately among press releases by video game companies).