Guild Wars 2

Is there any information from Anet out there that speaks about raising the level cap in future expansions or creating better gear in future patches? Will the exotics I get now last the entire game or be replaced in the next content patch?

Any links to official responses would be greatly appreciated.

They didnt raise level cap in GW1 when expans came out. Why would they do that here? Leveling is not important in GW , shinies and content is the best thing PvE can offer.

Last year Colin Johanson the lead content designer of GW2 said this.

“Q: What of the level cap? Have you guys decided whether you’re going to be increasing the level cap in future expansions?

Colin: Yeah. The level cap will be 80 on the initial release of the game, and we absolutely would increase it further into the game, probably through expansions is the most likely place we would do that."

Oh so there will be a lvl cap increase!

I assumed they wouldn’t since it could mess up the balance with the trait system.

But then again it’s the same guys who had to balance GW1 so..

Vyniea.2054:

Oh so there will be a lvl cap increase!

I assumed they wouldn’t since it could mess up the balance with the trait system.

But then again it’s the same guys who had to balance GW1 so..

I imagine that they’d do what every other game has done with their trait/talent tree system and simply pile another tier or two onto it with the cap increase, just to prevent people from capping more than what is supposed to be for game balance.

I’m sure they will and i’m sure the gear will become outdated.. but the nice thing is, transmutation stones.. you will still be able to keep that epic look. And they way I look at it, no armor/weapon stats should last you the entire run of an mmo.

And i for one would happily welcome a level increase. The real question is, what will happen to orr? And what’s even more great, the difficulty of the zones will stay the same thanks to the lvl scaling.

Basically, A.net set themselves up for success imo.

It seems it would have to – they already stated the level will rise, and due to that player stats will rise (as set up by the current 1-80 system.)

So it stands to reason gear will then become obsolete.

They can raise the level cap as much as they desire due to the level scaling. They’ll likely complement this by adding additional traits and utility skills.

So far as I could tell, there are no plans to gear treadmill as hardcore in GW2 as is typical for MMOs. Gear would become obsolete if they raised the level cap, sure, but it would not be on the level of “The new dungeon is out, congratulations, now you can go for the next big upgrade! See you in a month!” that is in, say, WoW (implying they update that quickly, which is hardly the case.) The best gear statistically is pretty easy to get all things considered, so raising the level cap isn’t really a big deal in that regard.

lethlora.1320:

So far as I could tell, there are no plans to gear treadmill as hardcore in GW2 as is typical for MMOs. Gear would become obsolete if they raised the level cap, sure, but it would not be on the level of “The new dungeon is out, congratulations, now you can go for the next big upgrade! See you in a month!” that is in, say, WoW (implying they update that quickly, which is hardly the case.) The best gear statistically is pretty easy to get all things considered, so raising the level cap isn’t really a big deal in that regard.

BUT! We’re in “vanilla GW2.” Just as we were in WoW back in the day, these things are small at first but compound over time.

Then add scaling to necro pets, engineer turrets, guardian spirit weapons and anything summoned so the gear actually matters please Anet

Sebber.4952:

Last year Colin Johanson the lead content designer of GW2 said this.

“Q: What of the level cap? Have you guys decided whether you’re going to be increasing the level cap in future expansions?

Colin: Yeah. The level cap will be 80 on the initial release of the game, and we absolutely would increase it further into the game, probably through expansions is the most likely place we would do that."

Missed that, otherwise there’s a good chance I wouldn’t have purchased the game.

If this is true, I will most likely stop playing when they release the first expansion that increases the level cap. I’m not going to go through the gear grind twice on the same character.

I really hope not.

Further leveling would kind of kill the trait system.

VakarisJ.5619:

Further leveling would kind of kill the trait system.

No it wouldn’t they add a 4th tier. Problem solved.

VakarisJ.5619:

Further leveling would kind of kill the trait system.

Yeah plus PvP is balanced around everyone being 80.

Lethality.1634:

It seems it would have to – they already stated the level will rise, and due to that player stats will rise (as set up by the current 1-80 system.)

So it stands to reason gear will then become obsolete.

And thereby destroy any reason to play GW2 instead of any other carrotkitten game?

Was really hoping to not have level cap increase tbh. Just area’s and such would be perfect imo. Not looking forward to the gear grind this will bring.

Looking forward to Expansions/level gains etc. As far as gear becoming obsolete and such, gear isn’t really hard to get anyways. Not that gear really matter all that much either. In GW1 and partly 2, gear is for looks and minor stat boost.

if they keep to what they said, wouldnt be any stat increases on gear, and lvl will remain the same. You play for new gear looks and shinies however i keep hearing that dungeon gear has best stats in the game…thus sort of killing that whole concept.

I think a lot of games don’t know how to add content without raising the level cap, because most games are built on a scale that makes content harder and harder, whereas GW2 is built on the foundation of almost a flat line in terms of content difficulty.

I don’t think they need to ever raise the cap, they could just add scale-able content in the future or add more lv. 1-80 zones with the expansions.

What I hope they avoid doing, expansion-wise, is adding new continents separate from the initial game like they did with GW1. They didn’t feel fluid, they just felt like totally different games and I hope they avoid doing that this time around.

I see no reason why they should do it, they can implement new weapons, utilities, and what have you without any problems. They just can add another race more zones and all that stuff which don’t need more levels. So I hope they stay away from that, never liked it in other MMOs.

Drudenfusz.2971:

I see no reason why they should do it, they can implement new weapons, utilities, and what have you without any problems. They just can add another race more zones and all that stuff which don’t need more levels. So I hope they stay away from that, never liked it in other MMOs.

I’m glad they didn’t.

The new changes are excellent and necessary to stay competitive in the current MMO market.

AliceKaye.1903:

I think a lot of games don’t know how to add content without raising the level cap, because most games are built on a scale that makes content harder and harder, whereas GW2 is built on the foundation of almost a flat line in terms of content difficulty.

How does raising the level cap fit with harder content ?
If anything, if you want the content to become harder, you would keep the level cap the same. Not raise it to make everything easier.

Then again, another 10 levels wouldn’t be bad, and it would allow ANET to produce exotics that have better stats than Ascended items, killing that gear treadmill.

This thread makes me sad to read. I realize just how much Anet lost their initial dream for this game. GW2 was perfectly playable for all gamers, not just the elitist gear grinders. Gear was easily obtainable and content was fun even as a lvl 80 with full exo gear. I feel like this new patch has almost completely undone all the things that made me buy it in the first place.

Level cap will be raised.
New gear will be introduced.
New content (dungeon, etc) will start locking you out until you do the previous ones.

They have already made it a point that they want the WoW market and that those are the “dedicated” gamers they are going to go after.

Gear matters, and it will matter more and more. Deal with it, get on the treadmill or go play something else.

Leveling your character to a new cap will be the easy part.

Replacing all your lvl 80 exotic sets with a new cap…well, that’s going to be some grind…and I won’t even mention higher item levels for ascendant or legendary gear.

Ostra.3927:

Level cap will be raised.
New gear will be introduced.
New content (dungeon, etc) will start locking you out until you do the previous ones.

They have already made it a point that they want the WoW market and that those are the “dedicated” gamers they are going to go after.

Gear matters, and it will matter more and more. Deal with it, get on the treadmill or go play something else.

Yes it will matter more and more, but that is not what we were promised with the release of this game. I’m sorry, but I am still going to be disappointed for being lied to.

Exonfang.6784:

Is there any information from Anet out there that speaks about raising the level cap in future expansions or creating better gear in future patches? Will the exotics I get now last the entire game or be replaced in the next content patch?

Any links to official responses would be greatly appreciated.

Yes.

They will be replaced, you will have to grind for new ones.

The big question we don’t know the answer of is: will legendaries be obsoleted by higher ilvl legendaries too?

Bring on the new Lvl 81 Legendary weapons! =3

Of course it will to your question.

As you post this question on the forums, your character has already become outdated.

Ostra.3927:

They have already made it a point that they want the WoW market and that those are the “dedicated” gamers they are going to go after.

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
Albert Einstein

How many MMOs have gone after the WoW market ?
Are any of them still doing well ?

Gear matters, and it will matter more and more. Deal with it, get on the treadmill or go play something else.

People will. Then ANET will lose the one group of people they might have been able to keep: The people who don’t want to play WoW.

Zid.4196:

Leveling your character to a new cap will be the easy part.

Replacing all your lvl 80 exotic sets with a new cap…well, that’s going to be some grind…and I won’t even mention higher item levels for ascendant or legendary gear.

That depends on how long ANET decides to make those grinds for max stats. They could decide to follow their manifesto and make as easy to acquire to people at the new cap as rares are for people at 80 today.

Or they could keep trying to grab WoW players, who have a long history of going back to WoW, and make the grind as long as they like.

Mews of Despair.3704:

Ostra.3927:

Level cap will be raised.
New gear will be introduced.
New content (dungeon, etc) will start locking you out until you do the previous ones.

They have already made it a point that they want the WoW market and that those are the “dedicated” gamers they are going to go after.

Gear matters, and it will matter more and more. Deal with it, get on the treadmill or go play something else.

Yes it will matter more and more, but that is not what we were promised with the release of this game. I’m sorry, but I am still going to be disappointed for being lied to.

Its not a lie if they said this a good year ago just ppl seemed to missed this and are so “fan boy/girl” about GW1 they where blinded.
I must say
http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/19873-level-cap-increase-in-expansions/
Is a very good read about the good thing and bad things about adding in these level per expansion and higher end gear.

If this is what they are doing. Going up on cap, making things/gear obsolete. And keep grining for levels/gear etc like other games. They might as well make this game Pay to Wins as well lol. This will make this just like any other game and not the game people come to GW2 for.

Before the introduction of the gear treadmill, I would have wagered that the cap would not be raised.

After the introduction of the gear treadmill, it seems blatantly obvious that they will raise the level cap.

The problem is not raising the level cap per se.

The problem is there are too many item slots and exotics drop/obtain rate is not too great.

I need three exotic sets for my Mesmer: zerker, rampager, and rabid. That’s six pieces of armor each, six accessories with six exquisite jewels each, plus a number of zerker/rampager/rabid weapons to swap for each of the sets. I am not even considering higher level runes/sigils, and it still adds up to a lot of annoying grind for drops or gold.

They will be. The direction they took the game in requires it.

Level 80 should always remain the cap!
Exotics stats should be the stat!

Infusions on all exotic can provide progression without gating content. As long as their is only a small different between weak and strong infusions. And not all new content requires a infusion.

It’s funny really, as i’ve heard other stuff when people were talking about the game in it’s “Development” days.. Oh well, it seems that GW2 will become “yet another MMO” in the long run.. Shame, really..

80 levels are already too much.. Anet needs to create something unique and simply enhance mid-range gaming instead of raising the level cap.. Something that doesn’t require legendary or grinded gear to be played, something that even the RL busy player can log in and enjoy..

Besides, what’s the point in the sidekick system if there is a level cap raise? They have it in for someone higher to simply not outlevel any content.. Then why should they increase the level cap when they have that powerful feature in the game? Adding more zones or content for 40-80 level ranges would be enough, there’s no need for level cap increase..

[sarcasm]
June 2013 – Two players talking :
- Hey pal, what’s the level cap in this game?
- 290
- Whaaaaat!? player’s head explodes
[/sarcasm]

Exonfang.6784:

Is there any information from Anet out there that speaks about raising the level cap in future expansions or creating better gear in future patches? Will the exotics I get now last the entire game or be replaced in the next content patch?

Any links to official responses would be greatly appreciated.

Yes, your gear is already outdated for 3 pieces.

To me level cap increase = another grind and I’m sure that I speak for many when I say that grinding to higher levels and for more gear is not attractive at all.

Sorry Anet, I like this game but 80 levels is more than enough. And I’ll be saying “seeya!” if you raise the cap. Hell, I was hesitant to even start this game when I saw that the level cap was 80. You dont need to raise the level cap whenever you introduce new content because you wont keep or attract players but will most likely drive off many of them, me for certain.

A grind under the name of “new content” is still a grind.

A level cap increase brings many design problems. One of the most obvious ones I can think about is legendary items. Legendary items are always supposed to be the best of the best. When ascended weapons are released, legendary weapons will be bumped up to the same stats as ascended weapons. Legendary weapons are, of course, level 80 items. So when the level cap is increased, to keep legendary weapons the best of the best, they have a few solutions, all “meh” in my opinion.

1. Make the items the best stats for the new level cap and up the level requirement. This means they are unusable until the players level up to the new cap.
2. Make the items the best stats for the new level cap. Don’t up the level requirement. Level 80s now running around with level 90-statted weapons.
3. Make legendary items upgradable in some fashion to increase the level requirement and stats. This is arguably the best solution. The user upgrades the weapon after leveling up to the new level cap. Similarly, legendary weapons’ stats could scale to the user’s level post-80.
4. Make new legendary items for the new level cap and throw an unfriendly finger to players that currently have a legendary item.
5. All items post-80 have the same stats as level 80 items. /Whistle

Nice necro, but sort of an interesting read.

The best part is, I wouldn’t even mind a levelcap raise every now and than, if exotics would stay the final tier (with legendaries being visual updates). But hey, nothing better than having to grind through three highend tiers of gear every expansion to come…

Things moved fast on this game…

I hope not. I dont even like to level at all.
Imo the ideal game would be a starting zone of like 1 to 10 that can be completed in about 12-24 hours of game play just to learn basic mechanics. After that everything else would be end game content. Or at least give the players the option to level or be instant 80.
I still cannot understand why gaming companies cannot figure that out.

SPvP-Heart of Mists is how the game SHOULD be. At least in regards to PvP. My biggest complaint with pvp in other games has always been that Skill is overshadowed by gear. If everyone is in the same gear then skill becomes the determining factor

DarkWalker.4385:

Sebber.4952:

Last year Colin Johanson the lead content designer of GW2 said this.

“Q: What of the level cap? Have you guys decided whether you’re going to be increasing the level cap in future expansions?

Colin: Yeah. The level cap will be 80 on the initial release of the game, and we absolutely would increase it further into the game, probably through expansions is the most likely place we would do that."

Missed that, otherwise there’s a good chance I wouldn’t have purchased the game.

If this is true, I will most likely stop playing when they release the first expansion that increases the level cap. I’m not going to go through the gear grind twice on the same character.

Nice Necro and agreed!
And quite frankly they already did that with Fractal.
From what I hear it is now the best place to get gear and once Ascendant armor starts dropping the old exotics will be obsolete too.

TimeBomb.3427:

A level cap increase brings many design problems. One of the most obvious ones I can think about is legendary items. Legendary items are always supposed to be the best of the best.

There is a simple solution to that problem: Every time the level cap goes up, everyone who owns a Legendary weapon gets 1 free fine transmutation stone (or better if better stones exist) for each Legendary they own. Then, when they get the new max stat gear, they can transmute their Legendary onto it.

Frankly, I don’t see why Legendary weapons need to have stats in the first place. I’d have just made them work like HoM gear.

HawkMeister.4758:

DarkWalker.4385:

Sebber.4952:

Last year Colin Johanson the lead content designer of GW2 said this.

“Q: What of the level cap? Have you guys decided whether you’re going to be increasing the level cap in future expansions?

Colin: Yeah. The level cap will be 80 on the initial release of the game, and we absolutely would increase it further into the game, probably through expansions is the most likely place we would do that."

Missed that, otherwise there’s a good chance I wouldn’t have purchased the game.

If this is true, I will most likely stop playing when they release the first expansion that increases the level cap. I’m not going to go through the gear grind twice on the same character.

Nice Necro and agreed!
And quite frankly they already did that with Fractal.
From what I hear it is now the best place to get gear and once Ascendant armor starts dropping the old exotics will be obsolete too.

That’s not really any different from many RPGs out there. The basis behind it is to constantly evolve and to upgrade.