Guild Wars 2

Howdy!
I love this game, and am planning on a continued residence in it for many years to come. However, like everything in existence it is not perfect. Just for fun, I would like to lay out my two largest thoughts on a crucial part of the game (and spark discussion i hope): servers.

One: the megaservers.
I loved this update. What better way to populate dead maps and broaden the community? Well, now this update has come to be in my honest opinion the worst change to this game. Here are my reasons:
Before this update, many of us would AFK in Lions Arch and just watch the world go by. OUR world. We would see friends and political enemies wander by; the same friends and political enemies we’d see every day. I felt bound to my community and the way that I recognised most players almost instantly. The gossip and guild drama helped that, as it felt more immersive. Overall, it felt like an actual community. Come the megaserver update, and who do I see? I can’t answer that any better than you can. I may have some banter with someone in LA /m chat, but 10 minutes later and I forget they existed. The communities seem constantly shifting and ultimately faceless, with thousands of players wander through crowds of thousands of players with whom they are unlikely to ever party with. Not only this but it made these fantastical guild alliances and relations meaningless, as the only place they mean anything now is in WvW. Overall, I believe this update was the nail in the in-game community’s coffin.

Two: PvP servers:
This is not a serious thought but one that I value highly regardless. I long for a time when I can roam through the Plains of Ashford, completing heart quests and then run into a player. However, rather than maybe saying ‘Hey!’ in /s, instead there is a moment of panic as I think to myself: ‘…friend or foe?’ I dunno, open PvP servers seem like a no-brainer to me as there are those who long for PvP with consequences. This would essentially be a ‘hardcore’ version of the game for willing players, and would only further support this title if waypoints were reduced and with greater prices. Not only this, but guilds and cross-guild relationships would actually mean something like the relationships of guilds in other games eg. Archeage.

I would like to hear your thoughts on these topics! Although there are far more important things on ANet’s mind, it’s an interesting topic nonetheless!

PS. I must stress that I LOVE this game and am unlikely to leave it! So please bare that in mind as this is not purely criticism, but just the general thoughts of a veteran.

Regarding a “PvP server,” I think that would be interesting if we could designate characters to participate in that. I wouldn’t want to have my whole account tied to a PvP server, but hopping on one every now and then seems like it could be fun.

Regarding the megaservers, I recently came back to the game for the first time since beta/launch. I love the megaservers and I see a LOT more people in PvE zones. I’ve made a lot more in-game friends because of the higher pops. My only grumble with the megaservers is that I’m on Yak’s Bend, I like to roam, and I can’t for the life of me find anyone else in-game to roam with. I used to roam WvW with friends and guildies, but most friends have since left or swapped servers. I joined a new guild hoping to find people to roam WvW with, but they’re all tied to different servers. It really really sucks that I can’t do PvP stuff with a PvP-focused guild =/.

I hate how if you and your friends all sign up for the same server you may never meet unless you are in a party. This map shard thing is ridiculous.

I’m not interested in running into a gank squad in a PvE area, I have enough of that in WvW. If I wanted that, I’d have subscription to that backward grind game, what’s it called again? Ah yes, World of Warcraft.

The GW team have done a good job separating PvP and PvE out. If you want the experience you’ve described, go to WvW maps, that’s what they were designed for. There your heart can race as you see someone approaching a camp you’re attempting to capture…

MegaServers:

I like them but then my sister and I are not on one of the more populated servers and we don’t RP. Maybe a compromise would be megaServers for non-city maps but each city map is populated only by the home server. The only exception to that would be when the living story takes place in a city, such as the destruction of Lion’s Arch.