Guild Wars 2

Sorry if it has been asked before, but I couldn’t find it anywhere.

My question is, will the next expansion be discounted if you already own Heart of Thorns?

Since HoT has been stated to be included as part of the next Expansion, will it be discounted if you already own HoT? Since otherwise, you would be paying the same amount as someone who didn’t buy HoT, but for significantly less additional content.

We don’t know.

The only thing that’s been officially announced about the next expansion is that there is one.

There has been lots of rumours and discussion and speculation and some leaks of random screenshots which may or may not be true. But absolutely nothing official beyond the fact that an expansion is being worked on.

As a result we don’t know what it will cost or when it will be released or what packages they may offer or any of that. It’s possible Anet haven’t even decided yet.

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

" In the future, if we release further Guild Wars 2 expansions, we plan to offer all of the prior expansions, the core game, and the latest expansion for one single purchase price. "~ Here

Haleydawn.3764:

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

Yes but they could do something like Elder Scrolls Online did.

They offered the expansion + the core game for full price (same price the base game had been at release) and then just the expansion on it’s own for a discounted price.

So if you’re a new player you just pay once and get the full current game* but if you’re an existing player you don’t feel like you’re being charged twice for the stuff you’ve already got.

*Minus DLC in ESO/Living Story in GW2.

Danikat.8537:

Haleydawn.3764:

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

Yes but they could do something like Elder Scrolls Online did.

They offered the expansion + the core game for full price (same price the base game had been at release) and then just the expansion on it’s own for a discounted price.

So if you’re a new player you just pay once and get the full current game* but if you’re an existing player you don’t feel like you’re being charged twice for the stuff you’ve already got.

*Minus DLC in ESO/Living Story in GW2.

They could and one can hope they go with that model….

However, previous history however limited works against that notion.

Well, its logical to conclude ArenaNet can and will do either 1 of 3 things.

1.) Sell it at the same price to everyone, regardless of if they own HoT – I’m sure however if they did this, it would cause massive outrage and anger, which they would want to avoid for obvious reasons.

2.) Sell it at a discounted price to HoT owners – this makes most sense logically, but it also begs the question of how much to charge, considering someone people only bought HoT, and others bought the deluxe version, as well as if the new expansion in itself will have a deluxe version.

3.) Give it as a free addon to people who bought HoT – I see this as extremely unlikely to happen simply because it would undermine their work, and as a result, lower the profit they make.

Based on the information available to us, everyone will pay one price for the expansion. If it’s $50 then everyone pays $50. There will be no discounts for having the core game or HoT.

They could only offer a discount in the form of gems, but don’t expect to see that since they’d give items instead. They can’t offer an actual discount because that would mean having to sell a secondary expansion-only option and having to produce physical boxes for it.

My prediction: they’ll offer the game at a single price for everyone, veterans who pre-order will get a skin + character slot, veterans who order after launch will get the skin, and the base price will be less than $US50. I further predict that regardless of what they do, the forums will be filled with complaints about the costs.

I see the possibilities as:

• Offer the expac at the same price to everyone. This is what they did for HoT and everything they’ve said since suggests they favor this model.
• Offer the expac at a minor discount to existing owners. Based on the number of posts on this topic (and the umbrage, both hyperbolic and reasoned), I’m sure they are reconsidering this.
• Offer an extra character slot or other account bonus for veterans. They did this for HoT pre-orders (after some kicking & screaming by owners). It seems likely that they do that again, without waiting for the kicks|screams.
• Offer the expac at a lower base price than in the past. The core game launched at US$60 & HoT @US$50, so maybe they’d try US$40.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

I further predict that regardless of what they do, the forums will be filled with complaints about the costs.

Haha, yup.

Considering the quagmire that the HoT pricing caused for them, I’m hoping that they learned a lesson about price points.

Current players should be expected to pay no more than $30 for an expansion (ignoring any premium editions, of course). Whether you want to charge more for new players is up to you, but expansions+full game should not cost as much for someone who already has the full game.

I honestly can’t even believe this is a conversation. More appropriately, I am very disappointed in the player base if the above concept is the general feeling towards expansions. This false sense of entitlement only negatively affects the game. Simple concept. More players = stronger game. More players = more revenue for ANET. More revenue = more content.

Just because people get the base game and hot free with expansion, that doesn’t mean there is an injustice to you. You paid for the exclusivity to play the game for the past x years. So while it might seem they are “getting more than you”, what really is happening is that you gained so much more than them.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

I further predict that regardless of what they do, the forums will be filled with complaints about the costs.

That’s a safe bet if ever I saw one!

Regarding maybe giving a free character slot – since I doubt we’re getting a new class or race, I really don’t think a character slot is very likely as there’s (I believe) not going to be something new to immediately fill it with.

The answer to this question was already answered when HoT came out they charged all core game owners the exact same price as new users. The only difference is Existing owners got an extra character slot after much complaining by the player base. I would expect the next expansion to be the same minus the character slot as I doubt we will get any new base professions, most likely just new elite specs.

Vansten.5309:

Since HoT has been stated to be included as part of the next Expansion, will it be discounted if you already own HoT? Since otherwise, you would be paying the same amount as someone who didn’t buy HoT, but for significantly less additional content.

Yes, welcome to our world, as the rest of us who have owned GW2 since release will be paying for the third time, since HoT was not on discount for those who already own GW2 (and neither will the third expansion be, I assume).

Why is there an expectation for the expansion to be discounted?

Vesuvius.9874:

Why is there an expectation for the expansion to be discounted?

I think ‘discounted’ is the wrong term for what they desire. They are looking for price tiering, depending on whether you’re a free or brand new player vs a vet that has core and potentially HoT.

For example:

Brand New Players:
Core + HoT + Xpac2 → 50 Base, 75 Deluxe, 100 Ultimate

Core Only Vets
Hot + Xpac2 → 40 Base, 65 Deluxe, 90 Ultimate

Core + Hot Vets
Xpac 2 → 30 Base, 55 Deluxe, 80 Ultimate

Or some such. I just pulled numbers out of the air here, but that’s the idea people are going for.

Granted, it would be nice to see Anet do this. However, I don’t believe they will. I think it’s going to be one set of prices, period. As it was with HoT. I think the price point might be slightly lower, but not significantly so. As such, I fully expect another catastrophic player meltdown here on the forums.

I have popcorn ready.

I agree that somebody that has all the content up to this point should not pay the same price as someone who is just buying the game. That seems very unfair.

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

I just pulled numbers out of the air here, but that’s the idea people are going for.

Yes, that would be a nice idea, and one can only hope regarding the fact that there was no such payment model for expac 1.

If someone wants the same deal as a new player then apply the new expansion code towards a new account. You’ll be on the same ground as a new player.

New customers getting special deals isn’t anything new. A large number of companies offer deals specifically for brand new customers.

Ashantara.8731:

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

I just pulled numbers out of the air here, but that’s the idea people are going for.

Yes, that would be a nice idea, and one can only hope regarding the fact that there was no such payment model for expac 1.

I agree, there is no harm in hoping.

That said, I also don’t (personally) have an issue paying $50 for the next xpac either, if it garners my interest.

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

For example:

Brand New Players:
Core + HoT + Xpac2 -> 50 Base, 75 Deluxe, 100 Ultimate

Core Only Vets
Hot + Xpac2 -> 40 Base, 65 Deluxe, 90 Ultimate

Core + Hot Vets
Xpac 2 -> 30 Base, 55 Deluxe, 80 Ultimate

Or some such. I just pulled numbers out of the air here, but that’s the idea people are going for.

The problem with that approach is, given enough expansions, the price point will eventually hit 0. Do people really think that is viable for a business if it wants to keep making money? That’s essentially asking ANET to apply their own in-game law of diminishing returns to themselves…

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

Granted, it would be nice to see Anet do this. However, I don’t believe they will. I think it’s going to be one set of prices, period. As it was with HoT. I think the price point might be slightly lower, but not significantly so. As such, I fully expect another catastrophic player meltdown here on the forums.

I have popcorn ready.

LOL!

I’ve paid a whopping penny and a half per hour for my gw2 experience thus far. If another fifty bucks for another expansion bumps that up over two cents per hour, I suppose I’ll just have to find a way to bear it :p

Vesuvius.9874:

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

For example:

Brand New Players:
Core + HoT + Xpac2 -> 50 Base, 75 Deluxe, 100 Ultimate

Core Only Vets
Hot + Xpac2 -> 40 Base, 65 Deluxe, 90 Ultimate

Core + Hot Vets
Xpac 2 -> 30 Base, 55 Deluxe, 80 Ultimate

Or some such. I just pulled numbers out of the air here, but that’s the idea people are going for.

The problem with that approach is, given enough expansions, the price point will eventually hit 0. Do people really think that is viable for a business if it wants to keep making money? That’s essentially asking ANET to apply their own in-game law of diminishing returns to themselves…

I’d have just had 2 groups. People who have bought and people who haven’t. So group one would be people who bought, either Core then HoT, HoT and unlocked the Core game with it or Core game but not HoT. Group 2 would be new players and F2P players.
So only two different prices, one for those who have bought the game in any way and one for people who haven’t.

It does not seem like anyone is paying attention to what has happened. The prices for the game has changed. The base game with expansion/s is now $30, the Deluxe is now $55 and the Ultimate is now $80 ( and that includes the $50 worth of gems)

Those prices are not temporary just so everyone knows and its a fair price for everyone new or old that has or wants to get the game. Console gamers will pay $60 each for every new version of a game they like that comes out, and we are not that much different from each other wanting new things to do. So what is the difference here? We just have a game that continues without having to constantly buy it. Hence the living story content that is free for those who just log in at the time, and if your new it is not.
If you do not log in, or just get the game you have to purchase those episodes so now who is getting a better deal? Really depends on perspective and if you even like doing things like that.

I’m not sure that the price for a 1 1/2-year old game will dictate what a brand new game (or new expansion) will cost.

The price for expansion 2 may, or may not, be the same as Heart of Thorns. Really, only time will tell.

As for getting the best deal, that would be those that logged in, but waited to purchase Heart of Thorns at a discount; they got all of Living World Season 3 at no additional cost.

mtpelion.4562:

Current players should be expected to pay no more than $30 for an expansion (ignoring any premium editions, of course).

There was talk a while back that suggested ArenaNet was going to do half priced, but yearly expansions. More recently, MO revealed their plans to run the living world and expansions back to back, which would mean an expansion every ~1.5 years since seasons were meant to be a year long. With HoT’s permanent reduction to $30 at such a late time, which is likely within the refund period for the next, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the new standard price. If they aren’t planning on dropping their 1 box model, which doesn’t make sense for HoT considering it isn’t actually required, it would have certainly been easier to keep a fixed price and simply upgrade accounts. If it is the new price, the trick is that $30 every ~1.5 years is the same as $50 every ~2.5, while the deluxe+ ends up being more profitable.

I’m just spitballing here, but perhaps if it was discounted for vets, BUT they included S3 for new people, it could be more justified in charging more to new players?

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

I’m not sure that the price for a 1 1/2-year old game will dictate what a brand new game (or new expansion) will cost.

The price for expansion 2 may, or may not, be the same as Heart of Thorns. Really, only time will tell.

As for getting the best deal, that would be those that logged in, but waited to purchase Heart of Thorns at a discount; they got all of Living World Season 3 at no additional cost.

Yes but we dident know that living world season 3 would be free even for ftp accoutn if they logged in while it was active untill after hot had launched.

We just have to pray they keep that policy.

Vansten.5309:

I’m just spitballing here, but perhaps if it was discounted for vets, BUT they included S3 for new people, it could be more justified in charging more to new players?

They already do this vets pay same price newbies pay the same and have to fork over more for s2 +s3

Linken.6345:

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

I’m not sure that the price for a 1 1/2-year old game will dictate what a brand new game (or new expansion) will cost.

The price for expansion 2 may, or may not, be the same as Heart of Thorns. Really, only time will tell.

As for getting the best deal, that would be those that logged in, but waited to purchase Heart of Thorns at a discount; they got all of Living World Season 3 at no additional cost.

Yes but we dident know that living world season 3 would be free even for ftp accoutn if they logged in while it was active untill after hot had launched.

We just have to pray they keep that policy.

But, they knew that before Season 3 launched. If players weren’t interested in purchasing HoT at launch, Season 3 beginning wasn’t going to change their minds. Again, those that waited for the discount got the best deal, as there were/are no drawbacks, as far as more expenditures go.

I just bought this game and now talk on purchasing the next expansion? Oh gawd, your killing me guys…

I don’t care if it’s discounted or not I will still buy it. I don’t even care if it came with another free char slot. I have been playing since Beta over 4 years ago and am still having a blast. The price per minute for me is so minuscule. I would be happy to pay another $100 for the deluxe version. I have gotten more play time out of this game than most games on the PS or XBox that we have and I have usually paid just as much for them so for me this game is worth every penny.

Some of you need to stop begging for more freebies and discounts on a game that has $0 in monthly access fees.

If some of you want some super deal then wait a year after the next xpac launches.

Ashantara.8731:

Vansten.5309:

Since HoT has been stated to be included as part of the next Expansion, will it be discounted if you already own HoT? Since otherwise, you would be paying the same amount as someone who didn’t buy HoT, but for significantly less additional content.

Yes, welcome to our world, as the rest of us who have owned GW2 since release will be paying for the third time, since HoT was not on discount for those who already own GW2 (and neither will the third expansion be, I assume).

At least we’re not WoW, where you have to pay every month AND every expansion (And until relatively recently, new players had to buy every expansion prior to the currrent one, even though they were deprived of the experiences of those expansions in their glory days. I still remember when The Burning Crusade was new and I was on my parent’s account, when Shattrath City was a thriving hub of player activity, Black Temple and later Isle of Quel’Danas were the end-game raid places to be. I remember returning years later with Cataclsym, having to buy all the expansions, only to encounter abandoned ghost towns and obsolete content.)

ESO is every month, every DLC, and every expansion.

FFXIV is every month. I don’t know if it has expansions.

Most games have either every month (3-4 months being a game), and/or expansions you have to buy.

I’m certain it will be the typical $60 price tag whether or not you own HoT. And probably in a year after the release they’ll have some special discount for a weekend of something like 50% off. That’s so far how their trend has been.

Except the prior expansion was $49.99, so not really a $60.00 trend.

I’m expecting the second expansion to be the same $49.99; I will be pleasantly surprised if it is less.

I’m hoping Anet learned from the debacle last time, and sells the expansion cheaper to people who own the game already.

They won’t, they’ll go “beep boop the expansion is $50 no matter what” again, but it’d be nice.

didn’t they mention that the expansions would be a kitteneaper than the last since the story content would come in LW patches?

How about none of us buy it until they finish giving all aspects of HoT that was paid for including the legendary weapon set? =P

But on topic, if the leaks are as complete as they seem, there looks to be less in this xpac than HoT. If this is the case, it should be cheaper anyway. If you can’t even provide what you set the bar as 50$ xpac content in the required time frame, step down to a smaller xpac for a smaller price, but I might just be crazy.

As for the tiered option, Lanfear’s example is exactly the numbers (even if pulled from thin air) that I would consider paying for a GW2 xpac on release all things considered. And there are ALOT of salty salty things to go with the popcorn to be considered.

Danikat.8537:

Haleydawn.3764:

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

Yes but they could do something like Elder Scrolls Online did.

They offered the expansion + the core game for full price (same price the base game had been at release) and then just the expansion on it’s own for a discounted price.

So if you’re a new player you just pay once and get the full current game* but if you’re an existing player you don’t feel like you’re being charged twice for the stuff you’ve already got.

*Minus DLC in ESO/Living Story in GW2.

The Morrowind upgrade for ESO was almost as expensive as the full HoT game at launch (40€ for Morrowind vs. 45€ for HoT), while the full ESO+Morrowind package was considerably more expensive (60€ if I’m not mistaken).

If the next GW2 expansion keeps to a similar pricing model as HoT (and possibly includes some prepurchase extras for existing paid accounts again, as HoT did with the extra character slot), then I personally will find the pricing very acceptable even without an upgrade option (especially since HoT gave me a lot more content suitable to my tastes than Morrowind did, despite myself enjoying both the new class and zone/questlines in Morrowind atm).

Danikat.8537:

Haleydawn.3764:

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

Yes but they could do something like Elder Scrolls Online did.

They offered the expansion + the core game for full price (same price the base game had been at release) and then just the expansion on it’s own for a discounted price.

Yes, they could, but by their own stated policy at the time HoT was released they decided to not do it that way.

Sure, it is possible they may change that policy, but i consider it unlikely.

For one, if they did that, they would have needed to change the pricing of HoT as well, and that would be like reopening a can of worms. Worms with pitchforks and torches.

Rasimir.6239:

The Morrowind upgrade for ESO was almost as expensive as the full HoT game at launch (40€ for Morrowind vs. 45€ for HoT), while the full ESO+Morrowind package was considerably more expensive (60€ if I’m not mistaken).

That’s how it usually works. $50 is the standard price for B2P expansions.

If GW2 was like other MMOs, HoT would have been $50 by itself while the core game would have remained at $25. A year in, they would have bundled in the core game for free, then later dropped the price to $25 to repeat the cycle with the next expansion.

Larka.7683:

Just because people get the base game and hot free with expansion, that doesn’t mean there is an injustice to you. You paid for the exclusivity to play the game for the past x years. So while it might seem they are “getting more than you”, what really is happening is that you gained so much more than them.

That’s because people think they are buying a product, like a toaster, while in reality, they are paying for a service. I think the reason for this is that we are wired to consider things that don’t have a reoccurring fee as something we bought once and own. You are absolutely right, we received the service since the day we paid for it, and that’s value new people who buy the next expansion didn’t get. We paid for the right to play the game (use the license) and for ArenaNet keeping the servers running and providing updates and fixes. And they will probably do that for many years coming, for as little as 25 bucks one time payment. The longer you play, the less the “monthly fee” becomes for the service.

That also means, of course, that someone who got HoT 2 years ago for 30 Euros, paid 1,25€ per month to play the game (if he never bought any gems). If you took a break of 6 months, you paid 1,66€ per month.

Now, there is no “fairness” in this, because it depends on the value the individual player got for his/her money. If you spend a lot of time playing the game, you get more bang for the buck than a casual player. If you want to play HoT now and pay 30 Euros for it, and the next expansion comes in 3 months and you buy that, you basically paid 10€ per month for the entertainment you had. That’s still a cool return on investment in my book.

tl;dr: you don’t own the game, you paid for a service that was delivered. New expansion = new service. Your old contract will not be broken, you can still enjoy HoT. Don’t envy people who missed the last years of GW2 while you enjoyed them, that’s stupid.

While I can understand (somewhat) how HoT, and GW in general, can be seen as a service, the fact still stands that the amount of additional content HoT players are getting compared to new players for the same amount is vastly different.

Just because HoT players have played for longer does not, in my opinion, justify charging the same amount for less content

At the very least, give people who own HoT players something extra, like an exclusive miniature or selling the deluxe for a discount.

It was already discounted by a lot. Base HOT is only $30. When the new xpac is out I would think instead of making HOT free, they will bundle it with Vanilla for a very cheap price, like $15 or something.

$30 now is a steal, I would buy it because the next xpac could be late this year, and you’re missing out on a lot of prep work for all your characters etc.

I’ll gladly pay more money for the next expansion if that means I can skip everything hot related

Vansten.5309:

Sorry if it has been asked before, but I couldn’t find it anywhere.

My question is, will the next expansion be discounted if you already own Heart of Thorns?

Since HoT has been stated to be included as part of the next Expansion, will it be discounted if you already own HoT? Since otherwise, you would be paying the same amount as someone who didn’t buy HoT, but for significantly less additional content.

You can NOT be serious? We do not even know the name of the thing and already you are asking details about it?

Typically (but not always) it is cheaper to buy an upgrade to a program than the full thing from 0. That is no guarantee though as there are also counterexamples. Basically, wait until anet says something.

I dont think new expansion would be priced as HoT cause HoT miserably failed with content/price ratio and ppl are caution now.

After this week’s wvw update I can say they gave me game worth of 45€ or 60€ (I cant remember how much I paid), and this content took them only 2 years to deliver ( and they still need to deliver legendary weapons v2 so its not yet complete).

Any human with comon sense won’t again spend 45-60€ for unfinished expansion like HoT was.

Danikat.8537:

Haleydawn.3764:

It’s a “one pay wall” package.

Pay one price, get the current game.

Yes but they could do something like Elder Scrolls Online did.

They offered the expansion + the core game for full price (same price the base game had been at release) and then just the expansion on it’s own for a discounted price.

So if you’re a new player you just pay once and get the full current game* but if you’re an existing player you don’t feel like you’re being charged twice for the stuff you’ve already got.

*Minus DLC in ESO/Living Story in GW2.

Of course that was for vanilla. I was looking into it (I decided not to pursue it after getting it) and since it would not give me gold I figured to buy a discounted version of gold and get the upgrade if I liked the base game.