Guild Wars 2

Here is a link to my review http://foxzaccardi.blogspot.ca/2012/09/guild-wars2.html

Why didn’t you just post it here?

There for those who dislike external links

When I was first introduced to Guild Wars 2 a few of the ideas quickly caught my interest. On the whole I will admit to being more than a little skeptical. No holy trinity? non-linear questing? Dynamic events? It all sounded great, but how successful would ArenaNet be at implementing these sweeping changes?

These days it’s tough to swallow all the hype preceding the release of new MMO’s. I’ve been a World of Warcraft player since its vanilla release. For me it’s time had come and gone but even today WoW is one tough act to follow. Regardless of anyone’s personal opinions it’s impossible to argue with the success and the impact WoW has had on the gaming world. Blizzard should be commended on creating a masterful product that has stood the test of time. Many MMO’s have been released and hailed as the new WoW killer, bigger, better, more innovative. All of them have failed and perhaps it is the intention of completing with the giant of the MMO world that got them all in trouble to begin with.

MMO’s like Age of Conan, Rift, Aion, Starwars the Old Republic… all failed to deliver what the hype promised. The buzz on the internet prior to the release of any of these MMO’s was huge, players were looking for the next big innovation, a next generation WoW as it were. You could feel the hope, and soon after release the crushing disappointment that each have inevitably brought to the majority of the MMO community. Each of these games have improved vastly after its release, but mostly its too little too late. Maybe gamers are to blame for placing impossible standards on the companies creating these products… after all expecting the same level of ‘polish’ on an MMO on release day that WoW had seven years down the road seems a bit silly. Or maybe the pressure to push out an unfinished game, whether they be financial or otherwise, places the blame squarely on the game developers for what can only be poor business strategy. After all wouldn’t it make more sense to allow a game to sit in development for six months longer but guarantee a far larger subscriber base over a far longer period of time? Thankfully I don’t have to make that call.

Does Guild Wars 2 suffer from these release issues? Well yes and no.

I’ve played through the Beta weekends and a couple of the stress tests (middle of the week during office hours? really?). Right from the start my experience has been a positive one technical issues aside, even during beta weekends. Since GW2 was released I have not had any technical issues whatsoever. Perhaps this is simply because I do not have the play time available that many gamers do. I am aware there have been many fairly minor issues reported but all in all in a technical sense so far as disconnects, crashes and similar problems, the launch has been far smoother than most.

It is often mentioned how intricate, detailed and beautiful the world is that Arena Net has created and I could not agree more. Character creation gives enough options to customize your characters without spending an hour tweaking every last detail. Races, for the most part, are all well thought out and designed with the same level of detail and care as the world they inhabit. I did not play the original Guild Wars and maybe that’s why I found the Norn race to be a little redundant. They are basically huge Vikings… which is kinda kitten anyway so I cant complain too much! but they simply look like big humans. After character creation the first chapters in the characters story unfold in unique starting areas. I enjoyed all of the starting areas, especially the Asura (which became available for the third beta weekend).

Combat in GW2 is a lot of fun, weapon switching and weapon-linked abilities are a nice change and add some variety to game play. Playing as a warrior I was fantastically entertained with the axe/shield and rifle combination. Being able to play melee and ranged with near equal effectiveness was just awesome! Each class offers a great number of options in so far as what abilities and weapon combinations to use. I have found that sometimes finding the correct combination for your play style can drastically change your opinion on any given class. Tried a thief? dislike daggers and the associated abilities? Why not give dual pistols a shot? the game play is vastly different and gives the class a whole new feeling.

The addition of a dodge mechanic seems to be giving many players a lot of grief. It’s a great addition that adds to the combat element of the game. Most of these issues stem from inexperience, as players become more familiar with timing and boss encounters I suspect it not be an issue.

As promised it does seem that the holy trinity is gone. Replaced instead by the roles of damage, support and control. In all fairness I should mention that although the trinity itself is no longer prominent this does not mean that all classes can take on any role. For example there are still classes, depending on spec and gear which are more ‘tanky’ and able to take damage far more readily.

Pvp, both structured and WvW, is accessible and fun. Structured pvp essentially levels the playing field by giving all players top tier level 80 gear and abilities and boosting the level to match. This helps by eliminating or drastically reducing queue times for matches since everyone regardless of level will be able to queue for a match with no separate level brackets.

WvW works in a similar way as far as boosting players to level 80 however only skills already unlocked for your level are available. Gear is boosted in stats to 80 but it is the same gear you have available in PVE. WvW is astonishing in its scale. The maps are massive, with everything from keeps to supply depots and even siege equipment that ca be purchased and built on the field of battle. The biggest issue so far with WvW is the zerging. Massive groups of players going from objective to objective in a seemingly unstoppable wave. While organized resistance can be effective and indeed turn the tide, so far leadership has not been easy to find. ArenaNet will have to keep a close eye on WvW and make changes to ensure its enjoyable and approachable for players. The queue times can be quite long and when your on the losing side enjoyment can be a challenge. Overall I would say it has amazing potential and as time progresses I believe we will see some absolutely epic battles play out but only if strong with strong leadership present. Perhaps some way for battlefield commanders to issue objectives would be in order?

Ah questing… where to begin? Well rather than the typical questing offered by past MMO’s GW features area-based quests and dynamic events. Overall I think the biggest challenge to players coming into GW2 will be the change in how the game itself is meant to be played. The old method of racing to max level going from one quest to the other is best not used in GW2. Many players seemed determined to go from heart (an icon on the map showing where to find area quests) to heart without exploring anything in between. GW2 is best played at a slower pace, with more focus on exploration, switching between PvP, PvE, dungeons, dynamic events and crafting. In fact I think using hearts may have been a mistake on ArenaNets part. When trying to introduce such radical change into a established genre it might have been best to eliminate hearts altogether, almost forcing players to simply wander and have fun with out the carrot on a stick map markers to egg everyone on. Perhaps then there would not be so many players who without any real purpose rushed to level 80 during the first week of the games release. Heart quests would be far better in my opinion if players happened upon them randomly, it would have encouraged greater exploration and would be more immersive. Perhaps ArenaNet believed the game would be too unstructured? I think the average gamer deserves more credit.

Dynamic events are a really, really great idea but they might not quite deliver on everything they promised. Lets not mince words, dynamic events are often fun but can be repetitive especially at higher levels. I have seen many complaints from people stating that watching a dynamic event repeat itself five minutes (or less) after you have just completed it is immersion breaking. While that’s true I do believe the dynamic event systems is a great step in the direction of creating a truly dynamic world.

One of the major gripes during the release of the game was the trading post. Or rather the fact that it was completely unavailable for some time. This I think was a fairly big mistake on ArenaNets part. It should have been a higher priority fix. Many players during the leveling process end up with vastly different gear, some pieces being significantly lower in level than others simply because the right items were not available through a karma vendor and/or did not drop. That normally leaves the trading post as a resource to purchase gear that is at least somewhat close in level. Of course for many players that didn’t matter near as much as the fact the crafters need the trading post more tha anyone. To buy materials or to simply try and make a profit from crafting! I wont comment on the state of the trading post currently except to say at least its working. In the end the problems with the trading post upon release are likely soon to be forgotten.

There is another issue with GW2 that I would like to address. I’ve heard it over and over for the past week or so, people complaining about lack of end-game content. Gaming, especially online gaming is probably the most competitive environment anywhere. While I might not personally understand the need to rush through the games content like the road runner on speed, I do understand that many gamers have a very basic need to reach the top tiers of whatever game they play. Is it fair to power through a game in a week and then complain there is nothing to do before the average player base dings level 20? probably not. Considering GW2 has no subscription fees all I can say is the wait and see approach really cant hurt. The flip side of course is that it would be in ArenaNet’s best interest to keep these competitive, content hungry players in mind. After all it is these gamers that are most vocal in support of or against the game. From what I have seen ArenaNet has in fact kept these gamers in mind. From the articles and Facebook posts alone they seem keenly aware that end game is a major concern to many of the most vocal players. Lets see what ArenaNet can come up with in the months ahead shall we? I believe they deserve this much for a game that largely delivers a fantastic experience.

I wont mention dungeons in this review as my experience is very, very limited thus far. As a father of four who happens to like making Alts I really don’t have as much time as I would like to explore that area of the game. Once I do I will write my impressions for dungeons and end game content.

Overall GW2 is a massive stepping stone into the next generation of MMO’s. Is it the biggest game changer in MMO history? Not at all. It introduces a new way of thinking about how an MMO can be played, how it can be created, and succeeds in tearing down some of the outdated ‘rules’ MMO’s in the past have followed. GW2 certainly raises the bar for future MMO’s and ArenaNet should be given credit for taking a big risk and somehow making it work. Congrats guys!

Although I’m not very interested in your opinion, it was a good review. Good job

Thanks I Suppose lol. If your opinions differ from mine I for one would like to hear them After all the vast majority of forum posts are driven purely by opinion, hence the heated disagreements