Guild Wars 2

I’m a little bit disappointed about the lack of announcements about GW2’s second birthday tomorrow. Coming from a long tradition started in GW1 I was expecting… well, I was expecting that the date would at least be marked by something small and for all players regardless of when they rolled their characters. As it is, it just looks like ANet hopes it will quietly go unmarked (lack of content shame theories incoming) while they go all out on the feature pack update.

Sure, there were the birthday presents, but I personally didn’t think them very interesting. It’s also not something that we share as a community, or is even related to the game’s own birthday. (Save for those of us who started, like me, during pre-launch.) Surely a birthday would be a happy occasion, something to share with everyone?

GW1 did mini festivals each year (and may well still do so). It had special mini games, special drops, fireworks… much of that was also available during other festivals, but at least it did something to celebrate that everyone could share in and be part of. Last year in GW2 we had Jenna’s Jubilee and I more or less expected that to be the new “birthday thing” until I found out it was basically just Living Story.

I’m not saying there should be a huge festival, but it would have been nice to see something for everyone to enjoy- the birthday of GW2 should be a reason to celebrate for everyone, even if it is just fireworks going off in LA for a day.

Perhaps the most disappointing thing isn’t even that there will be nothing to mark GW2’s second birthday, but rather that there isn’t even a single word from ANet about why.

Am I the only one who wonders about this? Am I the only one secretly hoping there will be a surprise (mini) update tomorrow to add a little festive cheer?

I’d say it’s a little early to be disappointed, since there might be some sort of update to mark the anniversary. And the Queen’s Pavilion is a recurring festival- we’ve already had it this year. It happened before the anniversary last year, too.

I had sort of expected some type of announcement. Maybe they’ll surprise us.

GW1 does still do all it’s mini events, and normal events, and weekend bonuses. Just fyi.

Guhracie.3419:

I’d say it’s a little early to be disappointed, since there might be some sort of update to mark the anniversary. And the Queen’s Pavilion is a recurring festival- we’ve already had it this year. It happened before the anniversary last year, too.

We had it this year, but not as part of any birthday celebrations- it was completely unrelated. It’s also not coming back for the game’s birthday- that we know of, anyway.

Like I said, I’m disappointed by the complete radio silence more than anything. I am still quietly hoping for a ninja update and surprise party, but I just don’t see much reason to believe that hope is grounded.

We have 1 day to go and there has been no word whatsoever. It’s just… odd.

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

I had sort of expected some type of announcement. Maybe they’ll surprise us.

GW1 does still do all it’s mini events, and normal events, and weekend bonuses. Just fyi.

Fingers crossed for the surprise!

Also, thanks, I did not know those were still going. I may just find myself playing GW1 for Halloween and Christmas this year. I never did tire of those holiday quest chains.

I’m told there is some event going on in GW1 right now involving the Shiverpeaks and access to Tormented Weapons. If my low level post-Searing character can participate, I’ll be doing that tonight with guildies.

I’m sort of sad the OP posted this because I do think something fun may happen tomorrow now, and I wasn’t even dreaming of it before. It would have been a wonderful out of the blue surprise had no one commented on the possibility!

Unless they pull some surprise on us at last minute I have to agree that I am kind of disappointed about this anniversary. The birthday blaster is better than the 6 or so Queen Jennah’s I got last year and its a nice addition to my collection of toys However, it would have been nice to get something more especially with no LS going on right now and next update we know of being the feature pack.

Donari.5237:

I’m sort of sad the OP posted this because I do think something fun may happen tomorrow now, and I wasn’t even dreaming of it before. It would have been a wonderful out of the blue surprise had no one commented on the possibility!

Sorry! Have a GW1 Birthday Cupcake, I’m sure my GW1 account still has some lying around.

Kind of illustrates the point though- it’s been so quiet that players don’t even know that it’s a special day for the game. :o

/noms cupcake
Thankies!

Oh, I knew, though to me Aug 25 is always the special day. I took the week off to play, something I’ve never done for any other MMO release. I got as much sleep that Friday afternoon as I could, since the expected launch time was 3 am eastern. Then they said they’d try to do it earlier, long enough in advance that I knew to keep paying attention and not sleep to 2 am or anything! (Yay communication). And they delivered, it started at midnight eastern, so by 3 am when I collapsed into bed I’d made my 5 name placeholders and turned one of them into Donari, using slider choices determined in beta.

Best Aug 25 I’ve ever had, I think. And I’ve had 48 of them.

Donari.5237:

/noms cupcake
Thankies!

Oh, I knew, though to me Aug 25 is always the special day. I took the week off to play, something I’ve never done for any other MMO release. I got as much sleep that Friday afternoon as I could, since the expected launch time was 3 am eastern. Then they said they’d try to do it earlier, long enough in advance that I knew to keep paying attention and not sleep to 2 am or anything! (Yay communication). And they delivered, it started at midnight eastern, so by 3 am when I collapsed into bed I’d made my 5 name placeholders and turned one of them into Donari, using slider choices determined in beta.

Best Aug 25 I’ve ever had, I think. And I’ve had 48 of them.

/reminisce

I pretty much did the same exact things, although I’ve not celebrated nearly as many Aug25’s as you have to compare! It’s a very ambiguous date for me anyway, there are a number of special things happening each year and my account anniversary isn’t even the biggest one.

I still expect any real celebration (if any) to be on the official launch date though.

/nudges ANet

SAB pls pls pls pls

Well there is a birthday vendor in la that doesn’t do anything yet……

Honestly, I logged in for a few minutes and I might log in a few more times for a short period. But the 2nd birthday is underwhelming. Giving me the same stuff as last year is unimaginative.

Sorry to burst everyone’s bubble but I don’t think there will be any surprises.

According to the data mined stuff we already got everything that the data mining guy found,so,unless ArenaNet actually updates the game tomorrow so they can enable the surprise sometime later in the day,tomorrow will be just a common day in Tyria,unfortunately.

My first character’s birthday is in October,so yeah…This month in GW2 means nothing to me since I don’t get any gifts and stuff.
At least people who had a headstart or bought the game on the same day it was released got something for Gw2’s birthday.

Liston.9708:

Well there is a birthday vendor in la that doesn’t do anything yet……

It does for people who had their first birthday last year.

Lady Elvea.2847:

Liston.9708:

Well there is a birthday vendor in la that doesn’t do anything yet……

It does for people who had their first birthday last year.

A title and one achieve point.

Also if you delete your birthday blaster (or don’t have it in inventory) you can ask her to give you another one.

Astral Projections.7320:

Lady Elvea.2847:

Liston.9708:

Well there is a birthday vendor in la that doesn’t do anything yet……

It does for people who had their first birthday last year.

A title and one achieve point.

Also if you delete your birthday blaster (or don’t have it in inventory) you can ask her to give you another one.

^This.

Of course, we can hope that the vendor will offer more as of tomorrow… conspiracy theory time! What if the Devs are ignoring this thread because they might accidentally confirm a big surprise? :o

Oh wow and I though I was the only one disappointed by it. The only thing we got were the bltc deals.. which is pretty sad.

I don’t know if “going all out” is how I would describe what they are doing with this feature pack. But there’s always next week, where we get to see what “big changes” they have planned for collecting and trading (that will hopefully not need to be modified halfway through the week because they didn’t think about the consequences…)

As for the anniversary… yeah I don’t think they’re going to do anything but the gem store sales, which is pretty apropos for the ANet of today.

Andred.1087:

I don’t know if “going all out” is how I would describe what they are doing with this feature pack. But there’s always next week, where we get to see what “big changes” they have planned for collecting and trading (that will hopefully not need to be modified halfway through the week because they didn’t think about the consequences…)

As for the anniversary… yeah I don’t think they’re going to do anything but the gem store sales, which is pretty apropos for the ANet of today.

Going all out on the daily announcements, not necessarily on its actual contents.

As for the sale… discounts on items I either already own, or would not care to have regardless of the price. Not much I’d consider worth mentioning as part of a “celebration”. :/

Sigh.

I miss the old Guild Wars 1 birthdays. Special drops. Once a year quests. Some of the lines the NPCs said in the holiday quests were so funny.

Like the lines for the Canthan New Years quest. Douse your enthusiasm.
Fehj: “No fun. No fun. The elder always has no fun! Nah nah. Can’t catch me!”
Elder Nofuun: “You petulant little ringworm. Get out of my sight before I curse your whole clan!”

I would love to see yearly quests for the special holidays.

Those were good, although my personal favourites were those involving the Mad King and his followers… I swear those cracked me up every time, I was quite happy repeating them on all my characters once a year.

Plus they were actually rewarding!

Welp, nothing. Maybe next year.

kokiman.2364:

Welp, nothing. Maybe next year.

I’m pretty sure they will have something at years 5 and 10. Just wait for it.

And remember what was: http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Anniversary_Celebration

that was underwhelming as hell. the birthday present was an improvement this year (in that cake gun > mini that i’ll deposit, the rest of the stuff is still crap taking space in my bank), but i was hoping for a big announcement, or a celebration, or anything.

GW2’s second anniversary has been as much of a flop as the feature pack :/

Random fact that may or may not have to do with why things are the way they are:

The majority of the current developers of GW2 had nothing to do with GW1. It wouldn’t even surprise me if half of the GW2 devs never even played GW1. The majority of the developers of GW1 left ArenaNet while GW2 was still in development.

Think about it, why else does GW2 lack that Guild Wars feeling that GW1 gave you?

Zera Allimatti.2541:

Random fact that may or may not have to do with why things are the way they are:

The majority of the current developers of GW2 had nothing to do with GW1. It wouldn’t even surprise me if half of the GW2 devs never even played GW1. The majority of the developers of GW1 left ArenaNet while GW2 was still in development.

Think about it, why else does GW2 lack that Guild Wars feeling that GW1 gave you?

It’s sort of like the difference between a small town and a big city.

The Devs in Guild Wars 1 took the time to celebrate with us. It was more intimate and meaningful.

Here it feels like they are rushing from place to place. Got to do this. Got to do that. They don’t seem to understand the importance of building a community. Of taking time to mark the important anniversaries.

Imo, while the birthday blaster was a nice gift, the others were…… well, they almost like an afterthought, or even commercial. Leveling scrolls (again!) for which most people will need to buy character slots to use. Soulbound skill points (really???). Birthday boosters (nice but utilitarian. Sort of like getting socks).

There is a distinct lack of lightheartedness surrounding this birthday. It’s as if they wouldn’t have bothered with it if people hadn’t so obviously expected something. It was a chore. Something to be ticked off a list. So they went to a meeting and got the chore done. The item on the list was ticked off.

No celebration. No special events. No special drops. No birthday quests. Just an emailed present with several of the items identical to last years.

Happy birthday, ANet.

(sigh)

I too feel very disappointed that the anniversary was just basically ignored. It should have been celebrated. They should have been an event, even if it was like a GW1 weekend event… double skill point weekend or something… but no all we got was a gem store sale and a small gift email. I’m just disappointed.

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

BrotherBelial.3094:

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

What event are they having?

steveway.3167:

BrotherBelial.3094:

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

What event are they having?

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Eighth_Year_Anniversary_Celebration

Sad. A game on life support has a big birthday bash and the main game gets…… A birthday vender. Who has nothing to vend.

Astral Projections.7320:

steveway.3167:

BrotherBelial.3094:

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

What event are they having?

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Eighth_Year_Anniversary_Celebration

Sad. A game on life support has a big birthday bash and the main game gets…… A birthday vender. Who has nothing to vend.

I see the current event going on is actually a celebration of the GW2 anniversary.

“Wayfarer’s Reverie is a special event that occurs annually from August 25, 19:00, to September 1, 19:00 UTC (source), coinciding with the Guild Wars 2 original release date on August 28. "

GW2 birthday does not fit with LS. LS is serious business, they can’t allow that something interferes with it. No Birthday party, no SAB, no expansion, NOTHING until it’s done. UNDERSTOOD ?

steveway.3167:

Astral Projections.7320:

steveway.3167:

BrotherBelial.3094:

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

What event are they having?

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Eighth_Year_Anniversary_Celebration

Sad. A game on life support has a big birthday bash and the main game gets…… A birthday vender. Who has nothing to vend.

The event from april is still going on? WOW LOL

Lol. No. But they did have a big birthday bash.

It’s the comparison between the two.

Gaia Orunitia.5794:

GW2 birthday does not fit with LS. LS is serious business, they can’t allow that something interferes with it. No Birthday party, no SAB, no expansion, NOTHING until it’s done. UNDERSTOOD ?

Then the LS should have been done earlier or later. And no that is not a valid excuse.

You know I can’t even remember. Was there any sort of birthday celebration last year or was it a present only also?

Come on lads, gem store is flashier than ever, don’t you feel the feast?

when i made the same tred i was told to sit down and shut up !
the b day is going great see how many mining picks are there A NET ARE THE GAMING GODS ALL PRAY THE MASTERS !
i will not have anyone say anything negative ! the b day is going great ! ! ! ! !
take the gun and shoot cakes and do not complane do not be ungrateful like me !

The gun with cakes is fun, tho. Better than another mini. Only fugly as hell.

Remember how GW1 had all those additional drops during the festivals?
Would be nice, if nothing else, if mobs dropped cakes or something with useful buffs.

Guhracie.3419:

I’d say it’s a little early to be disappointed, since there might be some sort of update to mark the anniversary.

I don’t think it’s too early anymore…

With that said, I’m really enjoying the celebrations Anet prepared for us this year – just yesterday have I spent 30 blasting minutes shooting cakes in the air. It, as you all imagine, was first-class fun and although I may be a little disappointed with the overall scope of celebrations (cake shooting in the air gets boring after a few hours and rewards for it are rather lackluster), I know Anet has been tirelessly working on the galore of new features for the September patch.

Enjoy your content, my friends!

What’s really peculiar, the thread Happiest of Birthdays To You Gw2 got 4 red posts but none here to tell us what time the birthday celebrations are going to start.

Most peculiar.

Happy birthday ANet.

The party was superb. We must do this again next year.

(In fact, I know we will)
( the exact same “party” as the last 2 years)

I bet they’ll do something on the Chinese version anniversary. After all, we’re just getting content ported from there so might as well pretend the game launched worldwide at the same time as it launched in China.

steveway.3167:

BrotherBelial.3094:

And that’s why I’ve bee playing Guild Wars 1. The Guild Wars 2 birthday celebration is going on there.

What event are they having?

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Wayfarer%27s_Reverie it’s an event that’s been held for the last 3 years to build hype/celebrate the launch of GW2, it was fun going to
Places I’d not been to in years in most cases.

I just wanted to state that I share the disappointment over this, and it feels like just one more thing to add to the pile… I would not like to say anything more about it.

Isn’t there stuff in the gem store to mark the anniversary? Go spend some gems and buy something to celebrate.

Wooden Patatoes seemed to be convinced they would announce an expansion on the 2 year anniversary. (now his track record for predictions is not great, but it would be nice.)

The 2 year mark came and went…what did we see? A single addition to the gem store that, as many have identified, is a terribly inefficient item that many such as Dulfy have called a “huge rip off”.

Not a great way to turn over the occaision, but at least GW2 is still one of the best MMOs out there. =P

i told you this will happen ! my tread was 2 days ahed of the b day and i told everyone there is noting coming from a net !
you know why ? they hate old players ! they want new ppl to buy the game then stop playing !

is sad

Why no party Anet? We miss celebrating.

:(