Guild Wars 2

When I first went I tried rushing through and died…and that’s actually a sign of great level design! At first it is tough to navigate and lots of dangerous creatures are about (meaning you have a credible chance of dying if you get careless, again something done right) but after unlocking masteries the map becomes easier so within this context Tangled Depths is actually brilliant: it offers an initial challenge to the player who is in his first stages of exploring the map but has more convenience after earning them making meta participation more accessible. Once you learn the chak’s tells then countering them becomes easier, like vault or sword 3 at the proper time when it’s going for the big knockdown or stealing retaliation from the electric ones then going all out when the breakbar is available. Positioning also becomes quite important in many encounters.

From a lore standpoint it’s also a great map because Nuhocs and Rata Novus are interesting.

For the next expansion I think something like Tangled Depths should be on the easier side with later maps taking lots of inspiration from Sen’s Fortress with narrow walkways, pendulums, and monsters actively attacking while on those.

I actually agree with you completely. I think the biggest issue is that despite the maps depth, for 60 bucks, most people (myself included) expected a few more maps at launch. I think even just one more map with the breadth of the Tangled Depths would have been great.

My hope is that when they do these in the future, assuming they eventually tag Elona, Catha, and the Far shiverpeaks, they don’t simply relegate these to one simple super map. That would be a bad idea imo.

Shock horror!

I actually like Tangled Depths too, once you get used to how the meta events work.

Seamus.9645:

I actually agree with you completely. I think the biggest issue is that despite the maps depth, for 60 bucks, most people (myself included) expected a few more maps at launch. I think even just one more map with the breadth of the Tangled Depths would have been great.

My hope is that when they do these in the future, assuming they eventually tag Elona, Catha, and the Far shiverpeaks, they don’t simply relegate these to one simple super map. That would be a bad idea imo.

The number of maps that would be in HoT was listed on the website. I believe the website went live at the same time that they announced the expansion was for sale or maybe it was late August. If people were disappointed because they were expecting more maps then that’s entirely on them for not doing some research before making a purchasing decision.

I could not disagree more. Even with masteries, TD is extremely frustrating to navigate. Without them, it’s throw-my-computer-out-the-window frustrating. I don’t mind the complexity and difficulty, but making it hard for players to get around on even a basic level is just a mistake. Maybe if there were literal signposts around and/or the minimap were better at showing three dimensions it’d be ok but as-is, TD can die in a fart.

Ayrilana.1396:

Seamus.9645:

I actually agree with you completely. I think the biggest issue is that despite the maps depth, for 60 bucks, most people (myself included) expected a few more maps at launch. I think even just one more map with the breadth of the Tangled Depths would have been great.

My hope is that when they do these in the future, assuming they eventually tag Elona, Catha, and the Far shiverpeaks, they don’t simply relegate these to one simple super map. That would be a bad idea imo.

The number of maps that would be in HoT was listed on the website. I believe the website went live at the same time that they announced the expansion was for sale or maybe it was late August. If people were disappointed because they were expecting more maps then that’s entirely on them for not doing some research before making a purchasing decision.

Oh don’t get your knickers in a bunch, You know what i meant. A lot of people are disappointed with the amount of content not the quality of it and more of it would have silenced a dramatic amount of the complaints.

Tangled Depths was initially my least favorite map because of how poorly the minimap interacts with the multi layered design. It made it impossible to tell where I was or where I was going. But after spending time and energy to learn the map, Tangled Depths has become my favorite.

It is the only HoT map that lives up to Anet’s promise of 3 distinct Biomes: Jungle Floor with the Ogres and Nuhocs, Tunnels with the Chak and Rata Novus, Lanes with the huge meta event and Chak Gerent.

In addition, it is the only map I feel i can log in to it, roam, and be rewarded. There are always events Happening, whether it is Legendary Chak, one of the four meta chains, or random defense of Outposts. Not all of them are meta driven like DS and VB, which is my big complaint with those maps, and they exist unlike AB, which is why it is my least favorite map despite how beautiful it is. You can also fill up on Cystalized troves if you have Chak Acid.

Ultimately, I would like Tangled Depths to be the Gold Standard for future maps with varying levels of difficulty.

PS: Do not mention anything Dark souls related. Though I love the game, too many people on this board will jump down your throat for encouraging “punishing gameplay.”

Maps….hmmm. Just my two cents worth. Hope the devs stop and think about making some of these levels much clearer.

I did mapping in the military back in the day when you used rolled up maps. The topography was really clearly marked by their color and markings. Hash marks on maps can help a lot to determine depth or circular dark-to-light colorations can show height.

Just a thought…

The minimap does indeed interact poorly with the multi layered design. That is why I don’t want anymore maps like Tangled Depths. Open world mazes may be your cup of tea but they aren’t mine. I am not a fan of the mutli layered concept. I much prefer single layer large maps.

To think of it, the only thing I really hate about TD is how unclear the actual map is. It’s made me a big advocate of ANet investing some effort into allowing account-wide custom map markings, so each player can add on items of importance and little waymarkers.

In my brief experience with Overwolf and other overlays, I was really fond of one I stumbled on. It set markers in your actual location and makes them visible to the character as well as puts them on the minimap. That particular overlay wasn’t finished, and I believe the author is under no great push to flesh it out further, but it’s a huge QoL thing ANet could add.

As for the rest of TD? I’m Meh on it. The mobs are generally less frustrating and play on synergy. On their own, easycake. Get too many at once, and you have a bad time. And I like that. It rewards attention/intelligent pulls and promotes diverse combat mechanics without making a singularly irritating creature (like mushrooms, arrowheads, and auto-dodge frogs…).

I still loathe the design and would not care to see it again. :\ I was more a fan of Verdant Brink, if they could add more upward access for not-boss times.

TD becomes easy to navigate once you take some time and participate in the events. Doing the events for all four meta chains allow you to traverse the majority of the map.

Navigating is as simple as opening your map. In the bottom right is the option to go between layers. On the map are symbols such as cave entrances and ramps. Clicking on these will shift you to the layer that they lead to. You can easily trace a route by doing this which I have before.

Vistas, POI’s, HP’s, and so on show you how far you are from them. They also show whether they’re above or below you. If you open the map, you can figure out what layer they are on and then how to get there. The majority of them are obvious enough that you can determine the exact layer.

If you need a guide for map completion, you can google one as there is a video showing a route without using wallows. It also purposely takes the longer route in some places to show you how to navigate to different locations (e.g. From whispers camp to DS).

The map is not difficult to learn once you put in the time and effort. That time and effort is far from being an extraordinary amount. I did each meta chain as well as map completion. After that I spent an hour teaching myself to navigate based on what I already knew. You’d be surprised how interconnected the various sections of the map are.

I love all the maps, including TD. Honesly, VB is probably my favorite, because hang gliding is such a joy and you use it so much there, but I agree, TD is a lot of fun….

although a pain in the kitten if yer trying to run through it, especially without stealth lol