Here’s a thought, instead of trying to start yet another emotion-laden tear-jerker of a thread in a sea of crocodile tears how about you actually go to a little research of your own? Watch videos, watch reviews,
Hold up! Lets stop right there!
What videos? What reviews? Very little has been revealed of HOT so far. Heck, we don’t even have a release date yet.
And yet, we MUST pre-purchase and register before release, or we don’t get a “free” character slot. They encourage us to buy the game without information.
Welcome to the world of pre purchase. This really isn’t anything new in the gaming industry. When you buy early you get extras. Otherwise you don’t.
“It isn’t working!” CL4P-TP
Ingame Name: Guardian Erik
pre ordered or pre purcahsed ? Huge difference. And hope taht steak you have been thinking of since release day was bought fresh? I wouldn’t eat a steak that was in my freezer for 3 years.
Your best bet is to always buy directly from ANet’s site if possible. If there’s ever a need for a refund, for example, that’s the only way you’ll ever see one.
Welcome to the world of pre purchase. This really isn’t anything new in the gaming industry. When you buy early you get extras. Otherwise you don’t.
To be fair, the extra character slot wasn’t added as an “extra”, it was added in response to a large uprising by players who felt it should be a given part of paying for an expansion.
And to answer a question above: Yes, if they added a new profession as a stand alone DLC, I would expect it to include a character slot in the cost. It’d be weird to double charge by paying to unlock the profession on my account, then require me to either delete a character I’ve already built up or pay again for the profession by purchasing a new slot.
To be fair, the extra character slot wasn’t added as an “extra”, it was added in response to a large uprising by players who felt it should be a given part of paying for an expansion.
And to answer a question above: Yes, if they added a new profession as a stand alone DLC, I would expect it to include a character slot in the cost. It’d be weird to double charge by paying to unlock the profession on my account, then require me to either delete a character I’ve already built up or pay again for the profession by purchasing a new slot.
(Bold emphasis mine)
I agree with you. And yet, that is exactly what ANet is doing come release day.
As someone who’s played since beta, I wouldn’t expect a refund for my base game. If I remember right, that’d mean Anet would be paying me money to play Heart of Thorns. The refunds are only a feature being provided for the players that bought GW2 so they could play Heart of Thorns, amends being made for unintentional false advertisement. I would have liked to have an extra GW2 account, sure the extra daily rewards would be nice,, but by providing a character slot it’s basically the same as the GW1 Factions and Nightfall purchasing scheme.
Reparations have been made and now I’m just trying to figure out what to do with my 10th and 11th character slots I didn’t need.
Except it isn’t the same thing. Anet is saying we need to pre-purchase to get the extra character slot. If we don’t purchase HoT, we don’t get the slot. That isn’t the same as getting the extra slots when purchasing Factions and Nightfall. We got them regardless of pre-ordering.
Except it isn’t the same thing. Anet is saying we need to pre-purchase to get the extra character slot. If we don’t purchase HoT, we don’t get the slot. That isn’t the same as getting the extra slots when purchasing Factions and Nightfall. We got them regardless of pre-ordering.
The whole thing just stinks.
Exactly. I was perfectly willing to throw my fifty dollars at them upon release, but the fact that they want to put strings and conditions on something that is supposed to be an expression of appreciation for veterans is insulting.
I guess I’m only worthy of appreciation if I give them my money in advance. That kind of “appreciation” could not be any less sincere. Classy.
I spent 99.99 plus tax today for the Heart of Thorns expansion and I have spent thousands of dollars on Gems from day one until now and do not regret a moment of it. I enjoy this game so much and has brought me and family together for quality game time together. I wish people would try and think about the purchase as a way of supporting the company and brand rather then focusing on what the rest of the genre is doing or has done. I am just pointing out that it is a matter of perspective and how much you really want to support the brand. I think in the long run including the core game as part of the Heart of Thorns is going to save many head aches for the company and the players.
I spent 99.99 plus tax today for the Heart of Thorns expansion and I have spent thousands of dollars on Gems from day one until now and do not regret a moment of it. I enjoy this game so much and has brought me and family together for quality game time together. I wish people would try and think about the purchase as a way of supporting the company and brand rather then focusing on what the rest of the genre is doing or has done. I am just pointing out that it is a matter of perspective and how much you really want to support the brand. I think in the long run including the core game as part of the Heart of Thorns is going to save many head aches for the company and the players.
Now here’s the thing. I very much feel I should support those companies I trust to deliver quality. Which is why I pre-purchased Dragon Age 2. And why, after playing that game, I decided never to order another Bioware game before the (non-shill) reviews are in. Which is why I pre-purchased The Witcher 3 (definitely not regretting that one).
The point being: pre-purchasing is a matter of trust. And I do not trust ANet anymore, not when it comes to making good on what is essentially just another promise. They broke too many already. So the ‘Bioware protocol’ is in place. Show me what you’ve got, and then I’ll decide if it’s worth the $50. And not adding a free character slot to the post-launch purchases is a BAD start.
It’s cute when people think that business is like kids playing in the park. Those numbers come from NCSoft’s quarterly reports, which list GW2’s earnings (rather obviously in full, not only the sales of the game itself). Given how NCSoft is a publicly traded company, they can’t hide their numbers; and it’s very much laughable to think that they would hide their profits, anyway, when showing results to their investors.
GW2’s earnings are just that. It’s already taking in consideration gem sales, game sales and everything else you would like to mention. Yes, the game is earning less than a MMORPG released in 1998. No, there is no way to call it other than a failure. And you can go see by yourself, the numbers are freely available.
What you do not realize is that sales from China do not hit NCSOFT directly. From what I read, the Chinese company is doing all of the sales and NCSOFT gets royalties. Royalties are not reported as sales or at least not for GW2. They’re likely reported as other income or something of the like. You’d notice that GW2 sales didn’t increase at all when it was released in China which leads you to believe that it’s not part of the GW2 sales. I suggest that rather than blindly posting graphs and articles, you look into what they mean.
Its not easy to publish a game in china due to a lot of regulations so what happens is you partner with a chinese company, they do the publishing for you and you get royalties in return. Gw2 income from china is not under sales because NCSoft doesnt sell Gw2 in China, KongZhong does. What NCsoft get is royalty revenue.
I spent 99.99 plus tax today for the Heart of Thorns expansion and I have spent thousands of dollars on Gems from day one until now and do not regret a moment of it. I enjoy this game so much and has brought me and family together for quality game time together. I wish people would try and think about the purchase as a way of supporting the company and brand rather then focusing on what the rest of the genre is doing or has done. I am just pointing out that it is a matter of perspective and how much you really want to support the brand. I think in the long run including the core game as part of the Heart of Thorns is going to save many head aches for the company and the players.
I didn’t realize this was a charity, my mistake. I thought I was just buying a product.
I spent 99.99 plus tax today for the Heart of Thorns expansion and I have spent thousands of dollars on Gems from day one until now and do not regret a moment of it. I enjoy this game so much and has brought me and family together for quality game time together. I wish people would try and think about the purchase as a way of supporting the company and brand rather then focusing on what the rest of the genre is doing or has done. I am just pointing out that it is a matter of perspective and how much you really want to support the brand. I think in the long run including the core game as part of the Heart of Thorns is going to save many head aches for the company and the players.
I showed my support when I bought the original Guild Wars and each subsequent campaign and the expansion TWICE, along with extra characters slots and other things.
I showed my continuing support when I bought GW2, and gems (for character slots), and then a second GW2 account. But after all the stuff and nonsense Anet has put us through since GW2’s launch, like the non-seasonal temporary content vanishware that was LS1, the first trait system redesign, and the NPE, among other things, I’m not feeling inclined to be supportive any more.
So they got rid of the post in the news section addressing the char slot and now it’s in the HoT sub forum and not even a pinned thread. Seems sketchy…I was going to pre-purchase it eventually but Anet is really keeping that red flag vibe going strong…
Here’s a thought, instead of trying to start yet another emotion-laden tear-jerker of a thread in a sea of crocodile tears how about you actually go to a little research of your own? Watch videos, watch reviews,
Hold up! Lets stop right there!
What videos? What reviews? Very little has been revealed of HOT so far. Heck, we don’t even have a release date yet.
And yet, we MUST pre-purchase and register before release, or we don’t get a “free” character slot. They encourage us to buy the game without information.
Welcome to the world of pre purchase. This really isn’t anything new in the gaming industry. When you buy early you get extras. Otherwise you don’t.
but a character slot for an expansion that introduces a new class shouldn’t be an extra, it should be standard.
and that’s before we get on to how the whole preorder system is broken.
exactly. If an expansion adds a class, it should include a character slot as standard, without qualifications. without the slot, the expansion is not playable by itself, which is basically the measure of a reputable company.
Companies that make products that have hidden extra charges, like Anet, are dodgy, and shouldn’t be supported. Simple as that.
The dodginess factor of Anet is increased by selling a product at full price without a release date, and without full discosure of contents, and selling the core game prior to the expansion saying it was required and then including it for free and editing the FAQ.
If a company did any of these things “in the real world”, they would be labelled dodgy, and potentially up for fines, at least in the jurisdiction in which I live.
Not anymore, read news. Every veteran will get +1 character slot, on the top of the one slot that is already offered for deluxe and ultimate versions.
Not every veteran. Only the ones who pre-purchase the game. No thanks.
On another note, I really love how so many people in this thread (not directed at you, Mortifer) keep going on about how “entitled” we are for thinking the expansion should simply come with the flipping character slot without strings attached. If anyone in this situation is acting entitled, it is most certainly ANet, who seems to think they are entitled to my money before they even announce a release date, let alone provide the product they want me to pay them for.
Honestly, they have done their level best to try to pressure people to buy a character slot. They originally had no intention of including one at all in the basic version of HoT, and were only dragged kicking and screaming to the point we find ourselves at now, where they grudgingly agree to provide one IF, and ONLY IF, we give them our money before they provide the product.
I get that they are a business. I get that they need money to keep that business running. But they could have— in fact, should have — chosen to earn that money by providing us with the opportunity to purchase things from the gem store that we would enjoy. Instead they have chosen to release a product with less than we will need in the hope that we will pay them even more money to get full use of this product. This just creates a feeling of resentment on my part. It feels like a greedy rip-off.
Yes, they need cash, but it’s not like Collin is out in the company parking lot collecting empty pop cans for the deposit money so they can pay their electric bill. They aren’t desperate, even though this move kind of makes it look like they are.
So they got rid of the post in the news section addressing the char slot and now it’s in the HoT sub forum and not even a pinned thread. Seems sketchy…I was going to pre-purchase it eventually but Anet is really keeping that red flag vibe going strong…
So they’re supposed to have it up until the expansion releases? You’re making insinuations out of nothing.
After looking at the thread, her post is still there. What likely happened is that one of the mods merged a thread that was older than her post into this thread which then pushed her post back.
I have a question. Maybe it was answered somewhere but…
Veterans are told to get free char slot if they buy Gw2 from official retailer same as from official store. (GaileGray post on reddit, cant find it now)
Does this happen for ppl who bought Gw2 AFTER 23.01.2015? Will they get refund of base game or will get the character slot if they buy HoT from official retailer? Or they will get nothing buying from retailer?
I have a question. Maybe it was answered somewhere but…
Veterans are told to get free char slot if they buy Gw2 from official retailer same as from official store. (GaileGray post on reddit, cant find it now)
Does this happen for ppl who bought Gw2 AFTER 23.01.2015? Will they get refund of base game or will get the character slot if they buy HoT from official retailer? Or they will get nothing buying from retailer?
Those that bought the game before that date, and pre-purchase before the expansion is released, get the free character slot.
Those that bought the game after that date will get the difference between what they paid for the game and the $50 for the expansion. So someone who bought the game for $10 during one of the weekend sales will be able to buy the expansion for $40. Supposedly this is automatic but I’d look around first for verification.
Edit: Missed the retailer thing. Unless the retailer gives you the HoT activation key, you may not get it. I also vaguely remember seeing that this was only through the game store but I could be mistaken.
They have not been distributed yet. I imagine ArenaNet will either make an announcement, or the forums will be full of threads with some kind of comments about it.
You don’t get a slot for pre-purchasing the standard edition. You get one for prepurchasing deluxe or ultimate and one for having an account registered prior to January 23rd.
I pre-ordered the Ultimate edition and I have a character slot that says beta on it. I am not sure if that is what you are speaking of but, if so then yes I have it already. I also got the 4k gems already and all the digital items like glider and Revenant Rytlock the guild thing and something else.
To qualify for the free character slot, you may make your pre-purchase directly from our website, our in-game store, or through an authorized retailer. Remember that in order to receive the free character slot, your Heart of Thorns serial code must be registered to your Guild Wars 2 account prior to the day that Guild Wars: Heart of Thorns is launched.
But this one does not elaborate WHO qualifies for the free slot. Are that only veterans (acc pre Jan 23) or also new players (acc after Jan 23). I understand that if a ‘new player’ will buy HoT through AN website they will get the diffrence back. I understand the part where ‘old accounts’ will get free slot.
But according to above post by GaileGray @reddit it is possible to get free slot by buying from retailer (list of retailers https://www.guildwars2.com/en/retailers/ ) But does this apply to new accounts too? Or only to veterans?
To qualify for the free character slot, you may make your pre-purchase directly from our website, our in-game store, or through an authorized retailer. Remember that in order to receive the free character slot, your Heart of Thorns serial code must be registered to your Guild Wars 2 account prior to the day that Guild Wars: Heart of Thorns is launched.
But this one does not elaborate WHO qualifies for the free slot. Are that only veterans (acc pre Jan 23) or also new players (acc after Jan 23). I understand that if a ‘new player’ will buy HoT through AN website they will get the diffrence back. I understand the part where ‘old accounts’ will get free slot.
But according to above post by GaileGray @reddit it is possible to get free slot by buying from retailer (list of retailers https://www.guildwars2.com/en/retailers/ ) But does this apply to new accounts too? Or only to veterans?
It does not apply to anybody who buys the game after June 16th.
If you bought the game before January 23rd, you get an additional character slot if you pre-purchase before HoT launches.
If you bought the game between January 23rd and June 16th, you get an additional character slot and will be automatically refunded what you paid for the game initially if you pre-purchase before July 31st.
If you bought the game after June 16th, then you get no additional character slot and no refund policy (you would have bought HoT anyway for $50).
If you bought the game between January 23rd and June 16th, you get an additional character slot and will be automatically refunded what you paid for the game initially if you pre-purchase before July 31st.
And does that apply to HoT bought from official retailers OR Gw2 website only? Thats my question.
To qualify for the free character slot, you may make your pre-purchase directly from our website, our in-game store, or through an authorized retailer. Remember that in order to receive the free character slot, your Heart of Thorns serial code must be registered to your Guild Wars 2 account prior to the day that Guild Wars: Heart of Thorns is launched.
But this one does not elaborate WHO qualifies for the free slot. Are that only veterans (acc pre Jan 23) or also new players (acc after Jan 23). I understand that if a ‘new player’ will buy HoT through AN website they will get the diffrence back. I understand the part where ‘old accounts’ will get free slot.
But according to above post by GaileGray @reddit it is possible to get free slot by buying from retailer (list of retailers https://www.guildwars2.com/en/retailers/ ) But does this apply to new accounts too? Or only to veterans?
The link I posted answered your questions. Your link also answers them.
I pre-ordered the Ultimate edition and I have a character slot that says beta on it. I am not sure if that is what you are speaking of but, if so then yes I have it already. I also got the 4k gems already and all the digital items like glider and Revenant Rytlock the guild thing and something else.
The beta slot is not the subject here as that one will vanish post-beta. If you have an older account and prepurchase any tier of HoT you will get a “veteran appreciation” slot on top of what comes in the HoT package.
So with your ultimate you should have a fresh live game slot already, and a second one on the way some time if your account with HoT on it was created long enough ago.
Yea…Not good enough. I’m not going to pre-order this game without more information and not buying the expac at all if the character slot is not included.
Yea…Not good enough. I’m not going to pre-order this game without more information and not buying the expac at all if the character slot is not included.
The choice is yours. The character slot for those who had registered the game before HoT was announced is only available until the end of this month. After that Standard Edition will not give a character slot.
I came back to the game after a few months and noticed this huge update because of which I barely recognized it.
Before some jump on the flame wagon know, that I have used the search button and also read the FAQ regarding the expansion.
One thing eludes me though, and that is if I already own a copy of the game, I again have to pay 40€+ to continue playing it? What happens if I just keep the regular copy?
You’re not buying the core game again. It’s a free bonus for all new accounts which purchase the expansion. As far as not buying the expansion, you’ll still be able to play everything like you do today.
The expac is $50/£35. New players get it the core game for free and all future expacs will give the previous expacs and core for free going forward – it is part their business model as stated in the community address on the subforum and on the homepage.
As for the discussion on whether people think it’s fair, there are dozens of threads you can view around the forum on that subject
;) Are you planing to “miss-use” the slot for something other than the revenant?
Personally it’s a good thing, at least for me, that they aren’t sending them right away apparently I have a problem with keeping a slot empty, I just can’t do it
Yea…Not good enough. I’m not going to pre-order this game without more information and not buying the expac at all if the character slot is not included.
The choice is yours. The character slot for those who had registered the game before HoT was announced is only available until the end of this month. After that Standard Edition will not give a character slot.
They havent said that, they said aslong as you buy it before release and add the code you will get the character slot.
Has anyone that pre-purchased the HoT expansion (standard edition) got his character slot ?
I don’t think you get a slot for only standard. I pre-purchased the highest tier one forgot the name and got the 1 character slot right away from that.
Yea…Not good enough. I’m not going to pre-order this game without more information and not buying the expac at all if the character slot is not included.
The choice is yours. The character slot for those who had registered the game before HoT was announced is only available until the end of this month. After that Standard Edition will not give a character slot.
They said that if you get the expack now you will get a character slot. This is not the same as saying that if you get the expack after release you won’t get a character slot. They can give a char slot with both. It’s just good advertising to point out that buying now guarantees the char slot.
Be careful what you ask for
ANet may give it to you.
Here’s a table I made which will hopefully make it clear how many slots you get. Find when you bought the core game on the left and the version of HoT you bought along the top, the box where the two intersect shows how many character slots you’ll get.
In addition to this EVERYONE who pre-purchases will get a Beta character slot.
Attachments:
Danielle Aurorel, Dear Dragon We Got Your Cookies [Nom], Desolation (EU).
Here’s a table I made which will hopefully make it clear how many slots you get. Find when you bought the core game on the left and the version of HoT you bought along the top, the box where the two intersect shows how many character slots you’ll get.
In addition to this EVERYONE who pre-purchases will get a Beta character slot.
Was there a statement where they explicitly said that if you buy the basic expansion after release, you will not get a char slot? I’d like to see it as I haven’t so far.
Be careful what you ask for
ANet may give it to you.
The free character slot will be given on July 10th. Any account that upgrades after that date will have to wait for the weekly batch to receive their slot. FAQ
Was there a statement where they explicitly said that if you buy the basic expansion after release, you will not get a char slot? I’d like to see it as I haven’t so far.
They can add whatever bonuses they want after launch, but it wouldn’t be the same deal. As it is right now, the veteran character slot is only available to those who upgrade prior to launch. Under the FAQ they have it listed as an exclusive pre-purchase bonus.
The free character slot will be given on July 10th. Any account that upgrades after that date will have to wait for the weekly batch to receive their slot. FAQ
Was there a statement where they explicitly said that if you buy the basic expansion after release, you will not get a char slot? I’d like to see it as I haven’t so far.
They can add whatever bonuses they want after launch, but it wouldn’t be the same deal. As it is right now, the veteran character slot is only available to those who upgrade prior to launch. Under the FAQ they have it listed as an exclusive pre-purchase bonus.
Maybe. With advertisements, the devil is in the details.
https://help.guildwars2.com/entries/94582027-Heart-of-Thorns-Pre-Purchase-FAQ
“If you registered your core Guild Wars 2 game before January 23, 2015 and register a pre-purchase serial code for Heart of Thorns any time before the expansion is released, you’ll receive a free character slot! Once you apply a pre-purchase serial code, you’ll be eligible for the slot regardless of where you bought the core game.”
The key word here is likely “free”. An expansion pack after the release can still have a char slot in it, as long as it’s not free. It might cost as little as one penny and get around the exclusive pre-purchase part, as that’s only for free char slots. Most likely if they offer a slot it will be discounted. Or the expansion can cost $40 (discounted because no beta access offered and because it’s after release) and then $10 added to cover a char slot, for a total of $50.
I’m not saying this will happen. I’m pointing out that advertisements are slippery and don’t always mean what people think they mean.
Be careful what you ask for
ANet may give it to you.
I cant use the char slot I got from getting the ultimate HoT package!!?!
Where is the logic here?!!? I already paid for the update why wont you let me use the char slot? Why am I supposed to wait god knows how long for HoT to come to use that char slot for which I already paid?!!?!
come on anet… 0 logic..
Look at how effective someone is in a full Soldiers set.
Look at how effective someone is in a full Dire set.
Nice balance.
