Guild Wars 2

Thanks ArenaNet for posting a so-called “full” event-guide which actually covers none of the actually pressing questions (precise mechanics and stats of ascended gear and infusion, the two missing monthly achievement items, whether new stuff in the Gem Store will once again be just uber-rare in Black Lion Chests etc.).

cesmode.4257:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Re-read through this entire thread that consists of close to 900 posts. I think you’ll find that the people in favor are the minority.

Blind assumptions…

Na, I’m just more vocal in that I agree with update and feel compelled to contrast the whiners or entitled naggers that must voice their “concerns” of the game.

Most people just read the update and move on.

Essence Snow.3194:

Jestunhi.7429:

Essence Snow.3194:

1st time….Paid advantages…this was side-stepped by calling them “conveniences”. The level of advantage is/was irrelevant. It’s the fact that they said there wouldn’t be any, but in time they were added.

Convinience items != power.

Is there anything in the cash shop that would effect the result of a duel between 2 otherwise equally geared, specced & skilled level 80’s?

Armor booster, strength booster, rejuvenation booster, speed boosters, etc are all available via BLCs. They are minimal 5%, but that is besides the point as well as not being in pvp is besides the point. The point is they are there when we were told they wouldn’t.

Oh… that makes sense then.

I mean, even though it has absolutely NO BEARING on PVP of ANY SORT whatsoever… it’s clearly a broken promise.

souldonkey.9534:

You couldn’t fight Shiro without becoming closer to the stars. It was literally not possible. Yes it was a part of progressing the story line,

Hey, look! You found the point! Completing the Closer to the Stars mission was a requirement to advance further in the game. It was not an increase in your mechanical power. A requirement that you complete mission 1 before you can play mission 2 is fine. A mechanic where completing mission 1 permanently doubles your attack power, and mission 2 is intended for people who deal twice the damage they did in mission 1, is not.

GW1 gets praised as the holy grail of MMOs (even though it’s not an MMO, but that’s a different argument) in these forums all the time yet, when I make a comparison about how a feature that you don’t like about GW2 is very similar to a feature that was in GW1, suddenly the tables have turned? Interesting…

Here, unfortunately, you have not found the point.

Guild Wars 1 having good mechanics was not some intrinsic property of being Guild Wars 1. A good mechanic is a good mechanic no matter which game it’s in, and a bad mechanic is a bad mechanic no matter which game it’s in.
Guild Wars 1 happened to have a lot of good mechanics, which set it apart from and above many of its contemporaries. The hard cap on max equipment stats was one of the absolute best mechanics, and because of that, there was an implicit assumption that the same sensible design decision would be carried over into Guild Wars 2.
Infusion was a bad mechanic. Grinding out reputation points for the Lightbringer title was a bad mechanic. They were the bad parts of Guild Wars 1, and it should come as no surprise that people get upset at the prospect of adding similar ideas back into Guild Wars 2.

Do you see people campaigning to remove jumping and dodging from Guild Wars 2, because those things weren’t in Guild Wars 1? Do you feel that it invalidates an argument for keeping the good parts of Guild Wars 1 if one doesn’t advocate for removing jumping and dodging?
If the answer to those questions is ‘no’ – and I hope it is – then you might need to do some self-examination.

hoeppy.4567:

Agien.9834:

P.S. In my opinion eventually the current exotic gear will be replaced with better gear. We will see new crafting recopies we will see new dungeon gear we will see new event gear. It allows for harder content and new ways to play. If that really angers people to the point they have to quit the game maybe an MMORPG is not right for you…

“harder content” is not made by bigger numbers. You make things difficult by new and difficult mechanics. Item treadmills are things for subscription based MMOs, not for free to play games.
Furthermore, new item tiers reduce the content you have at “endgame” since the usual MMO Bob follows the carrot on the stick, which is gear.

This entire situation reminds me of the “New Game Enhancement” (16.11.05) for “Star Wars Galaxies” which pretty much destroyed everything that most people loved, just to make it more appealing for the WoW crowd.

I disagree Larger numbers make for larger variations in stuff. This allows for things like boss mobs to use higher damage moves and kill / not kill a wider range of people because the stats have a greater range in them. It opens the door for Ideas and mechanics that may have only had this or that out combs to have this or that or that or that because with higher stats comes more ways to combined them and come out with different numbers.

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Say what you will, but with a new tier in, everyone is going to expect that you have your ascended weap or whatever when doing dungeons soon enough.

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Lies. Lies. Lies.

Calm down and see the reality or get mad about nothing… that’s up to you.

HTXL.2598:

cesmode.4257:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Re-read through this entire thread that consists of close to 900 posts. I think you’ll find that the people in favor are the minority.

Blind assumptions…

Na, I’m just more vocal in that I agree with update and feel compelled to contrast the whiners or entitled naggers that must voice their “concerns” of the game.

Most people just read the update and move on.

22 pages of people disagree with you. There are a handful like yourself that have no problem, but by and large 22 pages of people disagree with you.

HTXL.2598:

cesmode.4257:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Re-read through this entire thread that consists of close to 900 posts. I think you’ll find that the people in favor are the minority.

Blind assumptions…

Na, I’m just more vocal in that I agree with update and feel compelled to contrast the whiners or entitled naggers that must voice their “concerns” of the game.

Most people just read the update and move on.

As opposed to blindly slobbering over everything ArenaNet pumps out without regard for anything of consequence. A mindset welcomed in communities that allowed SWTOR become what it is now.

Better than exotics? Most of my friends will quit upon this patch landing. They are here because there was not going to be a stat grind.

TurtleofPower.5641:

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Legendaries are not more powerful than exotics. The only difference is the skin. This is well known to anyone who is informed about the game.

TurtleofPower.5641:

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Say what you will, but with a new tier in, everyone is going to expect that you have your ascended weap or whatever when doing dungeons soon enough.

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Lies. Lies. Lies.

Calm down and see the reality or get mad about nothing… that’s up to you.

Legendary weapons are just skins, they are the same stat layout as exotics. So no, everyone doesn’t feel the need to obtain them. However, as in every other MMO EVER, if you give a stat boost to a new something, everyone is going to want it because it’s BETTER.

Ascended items are BETTER than exotics. Got the point there bucko?

So yeah, it’s to be expected that this is the next “required” set, assuming it is just another gear tier.

TurtleofPower.5641:

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Say what you will, but with a new tier in, everyone is going to expect that you have your ascended weap or whatever when doing dungeons soon enough.

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Lies. Lies. Lies.

Calm down and see the reality or get mad about nothing… that’s up to you.

except Legendaries are the same power and stats as Exotics. So there is no benefit to having a Legendary over an Exotic.

Unlike Ascended armor which will be better than Exotics/Legendaries. And Ascended armor even has an Infusion slot to make it even stronger than it already is. Making it much better than Exotics.

bcbully.7289:

This is what the game needs. Anet Please do not listen to the vocal minority of “Hardcore Casuals.”

I think it’s fairly safe to assume that in a game which used “no gear grind” as a selling point, people who dislike gear grinds are likely to be in the majority.

Although I agree that in a generic WoW clone gear-grind fan are likely to be the majority. But that’s not what this is.

really is there people that thinks that introducing new tiers of armors is something fresh and new?

Or what the games need?

99,9% of players that were informed on what they were buying, decided to choose GW2 because its different from other mmorpg…

There is no grinding REQUIRED, there is no trendmill of equipment and you can level and dress fast…..

Now some players here wants to make us believe that a move that push GW2 towards any other random mmorpg, and change the primary characteristic that led most players to buy the game, not only is good but is wellcome by a great part of the communit?

Good luck nobody will trust you……its too simple and too clear.

IF they will really introduce a new tier of armors they will just get more angry customer and this time a really HUGE %

Because GW is known as the no grind mmorpg………remove that feature and what is left?

TurtleofPower.5641:

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Say what you will, but with a new tier in, everyone is going to expect that you have your ascended weap or whatever when doing dungeons soon enough.

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Lies. Lies. Lies.

Calm down and see the reality or get mad about nothing… that’s up to you.

Can people please stop using purely cosmetic items like legendaries to excuse gear grinds?

It makes no sense whatsoever. Legendaries give no advantage.

phooka.4295:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Then the two of you bought a game despite something to the contrary being explicitly promised.

Even if you want gear-progression, a game.studio breking its promises so quickly should worry you.

I personally don’t care what’s “promised” and what’s not. As long as it’s fun, I’ll be happy.

If Anet’s vision for the game has been entirely flip flopped to a vertical progression philosophy, I’ll be fine with that. As long as it’s fun.

That being said, I highly doubt this. Personally, I feel this is most likely gear that is restricted to the lost shores, the dungeon’s themselves, or a new slot of gear / gear for backs.

Synthesis.6709:

HTXL.2598:

cesmode.4257:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Re-read through this entire thread that consists of close to 900 posts. I think you’ll find that the people in favor are the minority.

Blind assumptions…

Na, I’m just more vocal in that I agree with update and feel compelled to contrast the whiners or entitled naggers that must voice their “concerns” of the game.

Most people just read the update and move on.

As opposed to blindly slobbering over everything ArenaNet pumps out without regard for anything of consequence. A mindset welcomed in communities that allowed SWTOR become what it is now.

Sorry, I do consider myself a fan of GW2. I very much enjoy the game, and I hope the devs will do w/e it takes for the longevity of the game.

There is no subscription, and you can come and go as you please.

This and SWTOR can not compare, sorry for that too.

Crapgame.6519:

azurrei.5691

“Technically, you are correct. I’m curious as to why people don’t get all fed up with the fact that also, technically, legendaries like Twilight are 1% more powerful than a similar exotic in regards to weapon damage…perhaps because the bottom stats are in fact equal to exotics and sub-optimal unless you want soldier’s stats on a weapon.”

I don’t know really. Honestly this is all speculation on our part until we see what they blog. I believe we all agree on that at least. However, I for one as I’ve stated like the idea of a basic gear quality and stat base. It is something you can tweak via runes and accessories. Once you are done, that is it. Outside of some food or as you state legendary that is it.

All is more or less the same. Go on vacation and you are back in the game no worse for wear. Other games that isn’t really the case.

Like I said – I don’t know if it is a game breaker. The game has to progress to keep people interested. Is this enough? Is the list of 80 things to do after hitting 80 enough? No idea.

I like what I have played so far and continue to play. I’m only 1 person though and not paying Arena Net’s bills. I do know I’m personally not a fan of NCsoft games. Especially after playing Aion…

SO SAD

Just stop spreading out wrong informations you know nothing about.

Legendary weapons and exotic weapons are EXACTLY THE SAME ! STAT wise and DAMAGE wise. They changed the difference in patch …

This game doesnt need any vertical progression and definitely dont need players who wants it.

All the GW 2 needs is: Fix buggs, balance classes and add content/events on regural basis (classes, dungeons, skills, pvp maps, etc.)

We already have about 10+ mmorpgs that supports vertical progression (swtor, rift, lotro, aoe, tera, aion, wow, etc) so just go and play one of these If you love it so much and stop complaining and runing the game which is doing right without it.

I dont get how can complain about there is nothing to do at 80lvl .. there is plenty things to do and I know it more than most of you (900 hours played)

And besides .. I have played every mmorpg released in last 10 years and they had all vertical progression and GUESS WHAT? Everyone were complaining theres nothing to do either … So i guess its not the game, but you players who complain about everything .. If you dont like the game, you should quit and find something else to play instead of ruining it for players which are happy with current state.

hoeppy.4567:

I disagree Larger numbers make for larger variations in stuff. This allows for things like boss mobs to use higher damage moves and kill / not kill a wider range of people because the stats have a greater range in them. It opens the door for Ideas and mechanics that may have only had this or that out combs to have this or that or that or that because with higher stats comes more ways to combined them and come out with different numbers.

That can just as easily be done without bigger numbers. Just scale the new move to the current stat cap. No need to raise the stat cap just so a mob can hit harder. That’s the lazy/boring way to do things.

Harder content in terms of more interesting and varied mob mechanics, that’s how you make the game more interesting and fun. Just making the mob hit 10x times harder is just “meh.”

Harder content in terms of more interesting and varied mob mechanics, that’s how you make the game more interesting and fun. Just making the mob hit 10x times harder is just “meh.”

This I agree with. In my opinion the two laziest things any dev can do in any game is; 1: add enrage timers. 2: Increase the dmg / health pool of mobs and call it new.

These are lazy ways of trying to make encounters harder. Note I don’t use the word fun there. All they do is frustrate and make things hard. FUN is new mechanics, not new numbers.

Angry Tom.4068:

Essence Snow.3194:

Jestunhi.7429:

Essence Snow.3194:

1st time….Paid advantages…this was side-stepped by calling them “conveniences”. The level of advantage is/was irrelevant. It’s the fact that they said there wouldn’t be any, but in time they were added.

Convinience items != power.

Is there anything in the cash shop that would effect the result of a duel between 2 otherwise equally geared, specced & skilled level 80’s?

Armor booster, strength booster, rejuvenation booster, speed boosters, etc are all available via BLCs. They are minimal 5%, but that is besides the point as well as not being in pvp is besides the point. The point is they are there when we were told they wouldn’t.

Their lack of use in PvP situations, WvW, sPvP, Hot Join, is precisely the point. In PvE, it doesn’t matter that a random internet stranger is using their Regen, Armor, and Strength boosts. What advantage do they have over someone not using them? The might kill things faster but that doesn’t really impact anyone.

It’s besides the point b/c it’s a tangent of what they were quoting…and having you quote upon the tangent has taken it even further from the original point, thus making it beside beside the point

[quote=702965;Angry Tom.4068:][quote=703007;Sky.9347:]

I think it is great, and I can’t wait to see it.

Thanks Anet for keeping up with the game!

HTXL.2598:

Synthesis.6709:

HTXL.2598:

cesmode.4257:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Re-read through this entire thread that consists of close to 900 posts. I think you’ll find that the people in favor are the minority.

Blind assumptions…

Na, I’m just more vocal in that I agree with update and feel compelled to contrast the whiners or entitled naggers that must voice their “concerns” of the game.

Most people just read the update and move on.

As opposed to blindly slobbering over everything ArenaNet pumps out without regard for anything of consequence. A mindset welcomed in communities that allowed SWTOR become what it is now.

Sorry, I do consider myself a fan of GW2. I very much enjoy the game, and I hope the devs will do w/e it takes for the longevity of the game.

There is no subscription, and you can come and go as you please.

This and SWTOR can not compare, sorry for that too.

Longevity that will stem entirely from a single PvE dungeon according to their Lost Shores site.
One of the reasons people were attracted to this game was for the multiple available paths of character progression. I don’t mind another tier so long as it means I can craft, PvP, or find another way to obtain it.
I cite SWTOR much like I could cite DaoC, or Rift, or WAR— all games who turned their backs on their original philosophies and now are shells of their former selves. A lot of us are concerned because we’ve seen this happen before.

Hunterdan.4921:

phooka.4295:

bcbully.7289:

HTXL.2598:

Most of us are in support of the upcoming update, just a small minority complaining.

Exactly.

Then the two of you bought a game despite something to the contrary being explicitly promised.

Even if you want gear-progression, a game.studio breking its promises so quickly should worry you.

I personally don’t care what’s “promised” and what’s not. As long as it’s fun, I’ll be happy.

If Anet’s vision for the game has been entirely flip flopped to a vertical progression philosophy, I’ll be fine with that. As long as it’s fun.

That being said, I highly doubt this. Personally, I feel this is most likely gear that is restricted to the lost shores, the dungeon’s themselves, or a new slot of gear / gear for backs.

Finally some words of wisdom in a sea of out of control whining. I couldn’t have put it better myself.

If only I would have known ArenaNet was going to put in a gear grind before I spent $150 on gems. Oh well.

TurtleofPower.5641:

Jestunhi.7429:

TurtleofPower.5641:

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Say what you will, but with a new tier in, everyone is going to expect that you have your ascended weap or whatever when doing dungeons soon enough.

Just like everyone expects you to have a legendary now?

Lies. Lies. Lies.

Calm down and see the reality or get mad about nothing… that’s up to you.

Can people please stop using purely cosmetic items like legendaries to excuse gear grinds?

It makes no sense whatsoever. Legendaries give no advantage.

Well you can already get advantages from consumables. OH NO THE SKY IS FALLING I’M BANNED FROM EVERY GROUP WITHOUT LOTS OF CONSUMABLES ON ME.

Oh wait… doesn’t happen. Crazy people are just paranoid.

Advantages which work where?

Certainly not in any PvP situation.

And even if they did, you can buy gems with gold and buy boosters with those gems. Anyone can do it, no specific playstyle is required like an enforced dungeon grind. You don’t even need to go to a specific vendor as items which cost gems are mailed to you.

Gurpsmeister.9068:

Harder content in terms of more interesting and varied mob mechanics, that’s how you make the game more interesting and fun. Just making the mob hit 10x times harder is just “meh.”

This I agree with. In my opinion the two laziest things any dev can do in any game is; 1: add enrage timers. 2: Increase the dmg / health pool of mobs and call it new.

These are lazy ways of trying to make encounters harder. Note I don’t use the word fun there. All they do is frustrate and make things hard. FUN is new mechanics, not new numbers.

There was an interesting general gaming concept – a game that adapts to it’s player by introducing new abilities depending on how well player is playing.

In case of new dungeon articale over at mmorpg.com did mention something about more environmental usage. I could only hope this means that developers decided to finally use their “bundle of x” concept more, because right now it could as well just disappear and no one will notice.

People are so quick to leave if one thing doesnt go our way? I actually think another tier of gear ie fine…and it will only be needed to progress further into the dungeon. Are you really all this upset that we will have something new to do that isnt plinxx? How about wait for more details? I wonder how many peoole that are QQing posted things stating there was nothing to do in this game and they were going to quit. I for one say thank god for this new content endgame is stale.

So all of that karma, gold, tokens, and mats I grinded out for my armor sets were a waste? GG.

I feel betrayed. My enthusiasm for the game just bottomed out. Wasn’t Anet supposed to be different? I guess not.

I wonder if another company will have the courage to deliver what Gw2 was supposed to be. I want to play because it’s fun, not because you keep introducing more carrots needed to “progress” that just trivialize old content and make me grind to be on an even footing? I thought there was supposed to be skill progression instead of gear progression. I thought if I took a break from the game I wouldn’t have to play catch up when I came back, but would just have more to do and explore.

I thought gear grind implied that you were barred from completing content unless you had a certain level of gear…

I’ve played through Orr with Exotics on my main and Masterworks on my alternate (mesmer)…

Unless the you NEED exotics to complete the content…then I don’t see the problem.
WvW?

I’m just trying to understand where all this rage is coming from, especially since we haven’t actually played the content.

I’m all for PVE and dungeons, but I don’t think adding new forms of gear is going to solve the fundamental problem that dungeons feel chaotic, PVE feels absent of meaningful tactics and most builds lack practical variety.

I’d love to give Fractals of the Mists a shot, but new gear isn’t going to make me want to do that.

A better PVE system will. Because right now, it feels as if no matter how I spec and gear, combat boils down to running out of red circles, dodging telegraphed attacks and wailing on a boss.

In other words: My build does not seem to meaningfully alter my behavior in a dungeon, and therefore I don’t feel motivated to run dungeons.

vox.5019:

So all of that karma, gold, tokens, and mats I grinded out for my armor sets were a waste? GG.

I really hope that these new ascended items will be added with new armor slots. Elbows, knees, bracers, etc. Maybe actual exotic level back armor that’s not a guild backpack.

It would be a bit disappointing if this ascended armor is going to replace my exotics that I just finished grinding for. I’m almost done with my karma set, just need the boots, but at this point I’m not sure if it’s even worth the bother.

Dungin.2983:

People are so quick to leave if one thing doesnt go our way?

It’s not just “one thing” – it’s “one more thing”.
Wether you like GW2 or not, it does have the potential to polarize. People like me may yet play it – because it IS better than the rest. But there is so much I find disappointing that another “wrong feature” might be enough to break the camels back.

Vorch.2985:

I thought gear grind implied that you were barred from completing content unless you had a certain level of gear…

People are elitist. Not having max gear (assuming it gives a measurable advantage) will likely mean being excluded from groups (dungeons in GW2, I’d think).

Crater.1625:

biggs.4702:

So everyone’s fairly cool with legendary weapons being in the game, but introduce something similar for armor and yall poop yer pants?

How does that make any sense?

The whole idea sounds pretty cool to me. I just hope that new armor is smexy.

People are alright with Legendary weapons because Legendary weapons are exactly as powerful as Exotic weapons. That Pearl Broadsword you can craft and use as soon as you hit level 80 at a cost of maybe 1.5-2.5 gold is exactly as powerful as the Twilight that you might get after several hundred hours of grinding.

So from the description of Ascended items, they’re not similar at all to Legendary weapons.

After reading what little is available I agree you have a point. I’m still making my “you gotta be kidding me” face over the outcry over this. Not as a knee-jerk reaction to an existing knee-jerk reaction, but because ArenaNet has proven (in my opinion) that they deserve to have the benefit of the doubt.

For the Halloween event, people reacted strongly and negatively at first but came around (kinda like with dungeons). Not everything about the Halloween event was wonderful in my opinion, but I really feel ArenaNet has shown their mettle. So to me, the outcry over Ascended items and Infusion upgrades is premature to say the least even if these items are not all that similar to legendary weapons. That was not such a great comparison on my part, but ArenaNet has shown they know what they’re doing when it comes to this aspect of the game (it’s tempting to throw in a “wish they’d fix what’s currently broken first” but that’s no fun—new content is still a must).

I just read a Review and read about this Ascended gear too and… I’m not really happy about it if it’s true.

One of the main reasons this game is so great for me, is that you can get the best exotics pretty easy and just “take it easy” from then on.

Playing occasionally only, having no need for the mentality of “I must log today for the best gear”, and this kills this awesome concept. I also mentioned to my friends how grind-free the game is, and that once they start they’ll notice how far it is from other MMOs where the gear grind is everything.

Even if it’s a marginal increase, it will make players think “I must get them”.

Please, if it’s true and these gear are better than current exotics, change it! Just make them the same as exotics so people who aren’t full exotics already can have another way of getting them instead of farming (the very little you need to), or just make them Skins that you can apply, anything but gear grind…

Well, at this point, I can only hope…

I’m not against Ascended ideas, in fact I’ll gladly take it as ‘Legendary Armor Sets’ or somewhat.

I’m looking at a lot of comments that aren’t very supportive of what Anet is trying to do around, “I LOVE GW2, IF YOU DO XXX, I’LL DROP THE GAME”. That’s not constructive and supportive at all, let alone loving it.

But I do admit that a lot of us here needs more things to do after 80, but it might not necessarily be gear grinding for the better ones, maybe more challenging contents, and better aggro systems definitely!

Full exotics aren’t hard to get, but getting that right gear and stat combination that really suits you, that’s the lovely part of the whole game.

And if Anet really wants to roll Ascended stuffs, make it a long run. I think our complaints are mostly that concern that 6 months later there’s going to be ‘Super Ascended Items’, and another grind all over. Otherwise, I’m all in for Ascended, do it Anet!

krookie.6378:

hoeppy.4567:

I disagree Larger numbers make for larger variations in stuff. This allows for things like boss mobs to use higher damage moves and kill / not kill a wider range of people because the stats have a greater range in them. It opens the door for Ideas and mechanics that may have only had this or that out combs to have this or that or that or that because with higher stats comes more ways to combined them and come out with different numbers.

That can just as easily be done without bigger numbers. Just scale the new move to the current stat cap. No need to raise the stat cap just so a mob can hit harder. That’s the lazy/boring way to do things.

Harder content in terms of more interesting and varied mob mechanics, that’s how you make the game more interesting and fun. Just making the mob hit 10x times harder is just “meh.”

Agreed. Mob deals X damage. You have X armor. New mob deals X+Y damage, so you get X+Y armor. It’s number creep. The numbers get bigger, but the game does not actually become any more difficult. Difficulty is determined by unique abilities and strategems that players must adapt to.
One great example of difficulty (IMO) is the Fire Elemental in Metrica Province. While there are a large number of bosses that deal more damage and have more health, this is still one of the most difficult bosses. It spawns creatures that absolutely cover the field in massive AoE, requiring a player to respond with mobility, condition management, and killing mobs while still damaging the elemental. I would even go as far as to say that they could halve the elemental’s HP pool, and it would still be an incredibly difficult fight.

Much stronger bosses, with more health and more damage however, are weak. Take Tequatl or The Shatterer. Their attacks can kill max level characters in a single blow. Yet, their attacks are slow, easy to see coming, and easy to mitigate. Even the mobs they spawn are orderly, and easy to predict. Despite dealing more damage and having more health, both dragons are much easier to fight than the elemental.
Thus, bigger numbers does not equal greater challenge. It equals greater time, as you need to spend more time to acquire the appropriate armor.

vox.5019:

So all of that karma, gold, tokens, and mats I grinded out for my armor sets were a waste? GG.

As someone that just bought themselves an exotic set, I feel the same way. Super annoying.

“Their attacks can kill max level characters in a single blow. Yet, their attacks are slow, easy to see coming, and easy to mitigate. Even the mobs they spawn are orderly, and easy to predict. Despite dealing more damage and having more health, both dragons are much easier to fight than the elemental.”

Not really apples to apples at all if you are to be honest. Level 80 character, and gear, is downranked to zone. You don’t have the same health pool, etc. You do, however, have skills that are left to use.

I don’t understand the people flipping out over this… how is:

White<Blue<Green<Yellow<Orange< Ascended any different or worse then

White<Blue<Green<Yellow<Orange

There is no gear treadmill. A gear treadmill would be if you needed exotic armor to complete one tier of content and then you needed ascended gear to complete the next tier. This is not at all what is happening. You can still run all the content in the game in blues.

If this new tier of gear can only be used in that new dungeon and nowhere else, not even in other dungeons, than it would be acceptable. I don’t care if players can use the skins or not as long as the stats are downgraded outside of the new dungeon.

If Arena Net really designed that new gear with better stats and they don’t restrict it to that particular new dungeon they betrayed a lot of their most faithful fans, they betrayed those that played GuildWars for years.

If Arena Net starts the Gear Treadmill I won’t spend any more money on GW2, I’ll continue playing as long as it’s fun, but I won’t buy Gems or an expansion.

If there are new items with better stats (I don’t know yet), a main reason I gave this game a chance is gone. Therefore, I would quit.

Not angry, though. I got my money’s worth, I simply would cease business with this game. Which’d be a shame, but in my case, I simply value “no statgrind” above any other issue in this game.

As much as I love jumping puzzles and the exploration love. This would be a dealbreaker.

Erasculio.2914:

souldonkey.9534:

You can’t progress in Factions unless you’re Weh no Suh.
You can’t progress in the new dungeon unless you’re ascended.

Uh… You have not played Factions, have you? You became Weh no Suh during the middle of the storyline. The fight against Shiro was at the end of the storyline. You could not play the storyline out of order.

Ergo, it’s the same thing as claiming that, in GW2, you can’t progress to join an order unless you have done your first story arc. You cannot reach the point in the story in which you join an order if you have not done the previous story arcs before.

What? Did you even read what I said? I never said anything about joining the orders…

I said you couldn’t progress in the new dungeon without ascended gear (which isn’t even confirmed yet), and that’s similar to how you couldn’t progress in Factions unless you were Weh nu Suh. When you become Weh no Suh and when you fight Shiro is irrelevant. And yes, I’ve beaten Factions many times. Didn’t get 30/50 in my HoM without doing that.

So…I hope people buy this game to have fun and get new updates not because of one little thing that doesn’t affect anyone except those who do dungeons and WvW.

To re-iterate: There are two types of people this affects.

Dungeon people: People who have to deal with elitist groups who say “LFM MUST HAVE ALL ASCENDED GEAR” Well, find yourself a good guild and a nice niche so you don’t have to deal with those people. Heck I’ll help you and rally a bunch of friends to run dungeons with you.

WvW: Alright, so you want to be ontop of your game in WvW. Well if you are a realy big WvW fan, you’d know it’s more of a matter of zerging and tactics than having certain people who are stronger. But yes, I guess you have room to complain here, but still, stay in a group.

PvE: It does NOTHING. Maybe it’ll save you 1-2 more hits on a single mob, but that’s worth quitting a game for?

So what if they went against what they said. Their intents are the same, they want everyone to have fun and experience the world of Tyria at its fullest, so they are offering new races, new armor, new content everywhere. What is so wrong with that?

Why do you even play this game? What does the no gear grind do for you? Why are so many people anxious and insecure about their armorsets…this shouldn’t be “Not Top Gear Anonymous”. I hope that the people who’ve supported Anet thus far has enough trust in Anet to give you great and fun content. Holding Anet against such a small political issue that does nothing to affect your gameplay is so harsh and kinda childish.

Come on guys, have a little more faith. And quit exaggerating. Maybe go get some therapy about low-gear stress because having non-top tier is not a bad thing and it shouldn’t make you so mad/sad.

I play GW2 because it’s fun, and I enjoy its story and features. End of story. I don’t care what they say, as long as when I log on and find it fun, I’m happy and I’ll give Anet credit for it.

It’s funny because it’s like we’ve got a game bigger than all of GW1 and expansions out of the gate… and people are unhappy. I’m happy. I’m very happy with all this content and immediate updates. It’s amazing!

WvW is a huge problem of this new tier thats incoming… there players that do only WvW and Spvp… and if there is no other way to get this new type of gear beside dungeons, WvW will suffer a lot.

But my concern in not for the new stats (i hope that di difference is minimal) but the new infusion slot, if a player that play only WvW cant have the infusion on its gear, he will be always less strong than a pve player that do sometimes WvW. i the new slot is accessible to exotics too, i think that the balance will be “fine”. we need only to grind some more, i have no problem to this, but one of the promises was “no grind for stats, but only for estetics”

What the heck? This isn’t my Guild Wars. I bought my cap gear already. I shouldn’t have to hunt down better stuff. Even if it’s marginally better, it’s still better.

I thought this wasn’t WoW!?

Zefiris.8297:

If there are new items with better stats (I don’t know yet), a main reason I gave this game a chance is gone. Therefore, I would quit.

Not angry, though. I got my money’s worth, I simply would cease business with this game. Which’d be a shame, but in my case, I simply value “no statgrind” above any other issue in this game.

As much as I love jumping puzzles and the exploration love. This would be a dealbreaker.

Why did you play the game at all then? you do know that there are items with better stats then blues right? why didn’t you quit the game the first time a green item dropped for you?

Crater.1625:

souldonkey.9534:

You couldn’t fight Shiro without becoming closer to the stars. It was literally not possible. Yes it was a part of progressing the story line,

Hey, look! You found the point! Completing the Closer to the Stars mission was a requirement to advance further in the game. It was not an increase in your mechanical power. A requirement that you complete mission 1 before you can play mission 2 is fine. A mechanic where completing mission 1 permanently doubles your attack power, and mission 2 is intended for people who deal twice the damage they did in mission 1, is not.

No one has stated anywhere that the Ascended Items will “permanently double your attack power” so how bout we wait for some facts before spreading hyperbolic crap like that. The article was very vague in saying that it would “increase power”. No one has any clue what that means. I’m speculating that it’s probably similar to Weh no Suh, or Infusion. You’re claiming the sky is falling because it will somehow “double your attack power”. All Arenanet has said is that they are “artifacts of great power”. That does not say anything about them increasing power or increasing any stats.