Guild Wars 2

I’m actually pretty excited about HoT and eager to see the story continue in my third year playing.

Still, my experience in Dry Top and The Silverwastes has been pretty heavily zerg focused.
For me the game is about heroism and individual achievement. Zerging doesn’t fit that at all. It also pretty much sidelines my two favorite professions; Mesmer and Thief.

If I wanted to be a zerg zombie, I’d play WvW. Should it turn out that HoT is mainly about massive zergs, I will have to consider not buying it.

Devs, will there be anything in HoT for those of us who prefer to follow Snow Leopard?

it called working together to achieve a common goal… hehe

Considering how Dry Top plays and that zone was leading up to Silverwastes… I consider these two zones the testing grounds for HoT. So expect a lot of the same exciting mechanics and working together for a common goal in the expansion.

Haha the thing is I have a feeling players are gonna be alot more dispersed except for major events in HOT. The action may be focused around strongholds. But I have a feeling you wont be actively fighting with more than 3 or 4 other players against a single mob (assuming vet/elite mobs) If its working the way they said it would people will have MORE than enough enemies to keep them busy without them all screaming and shoving there dps down static champ after static champ.

If your unsure. Wait a bit and watch some live streams/gw2 lets play videos after HOT releases. then decide.

(also. If the area is diverse as the mastery system suggests. I have a feeling youl find areas off the beaten trail with stuff just for players that like to have a …quieter…experience)

Neither map can be zerged in the same way that World bosses and Edge of the Mists are zerged. Tequatl and Triple Trouble are fairly coordinated zergs (mindless zerging will get you nowhere with TT). So are SW and Dry Top (splitting up into smaller teams is the most effective strategy, not going together as a group as proven time and time again by DTOP and countless SW maps).

if hot is in the same mold as silverwaste and dry top then i don’t think i will be hyped at all

Omg Ithilwen.1528 will not buy the expansion. We are Doomed.

I’m baffled how many want to play the sole hero. It seems that’s the wish of the typical young male. Although I am that, I never felt the urge of being a hero. It’s rather unrealistic since 99.9% of our real lives we are just normal people.

That’s part of the appeal of fantasy games, doing things that you can’t/wouldn’t do irl. It’s also rather unrealistic for me to fight dragons in real life, which is why we have the game…

I think its more like being alone in a crowd.
Its group content that dosnt require a group.

Its like.. playing an RPG where hordes of NPCs run around you, randomly troll you, sometimes buff you a little, randomly troll you some more, and yell nonsense across the zone. Perfect online friend simulator for the friendless I suppose..

/queue-some-post-about-someone-who-met-their-husband-yelling-in-map-chat-how-zerk-is-bad-at-teq-and-it-was-love-at-first-who-cares

Seriously,
Add group content we can do with people we like; add instanced content kitten .

Id be find with instanced content if it wasn’t going to end up exactly the same way the current content does. Glitched/bugged whenever possible by a large portion of the groups you can get into. Or cheesed in any number of ways. Theres a part where strategy becomes cheese we crossed quite awhile ago in our dungeons.

If they can make the mobs/bosses difficult in unique ways and still manage to make them resistance to the most common tactics used today (as new bosses ALWAYS should be. Lets face it the second generation of bosses should NEVER have the same weaknesses as the first generation. Thats just boring gameplay) then im all for it.

But if they release dungeons and all we get is one more (stack here stack might dodge red hit 1) Snoozefest. Id be massively dissapointed.

This is true story:
There were 11 of us who started to play Guild Wars 2. We have played from the start, and we preordered our games so we had 3 days head start.

Now after all these years what we have been together with Guild Wars 2, it’s expansion is coming. Only one of my friend have said that she will buy that expansion. One of us is still wondering is it worth to buy. And 9 of us are saying that we are NOT going to buy this expansion.

Reason why we are not going to buy this expansion is those recent changes in the game. Game have been gone worse and worse with every changes what Anet have done. Only thing what I like in the game is login reward. That is only good change what they did. But in the game we have so many bugs what have been in there from the start and what Anet is doing. They are not fixing those bugs, they have change something in the game what was working and of course they made it worse.

10 of us don’t like much Silverwastes area and that one who is still thinking, is she going to buy expansion, is afraid that it will have same kind system as Silverwastes area have. Nonstop events preparing defend forts, then comes monsters who try to conquer forts and in the end some strong boss what people try mindlessly to kill. And some people say that Silverwastes is organized place, I don’t see any organized in it. Only thing what people are doing is that they are zerging and spamming their skills mindless and try to kill one boss in their area.

So at least 9 of us will not buy this expansion.

I will definitely buy this expansion, as will most of my GW2-playing friends.

… But we’re such a small sample size, so who cares?

It’s clear that Dry Top and the Silverwastes have been testing grounds for various systems. Personally, I like both maps because they present players with constant activities and events. Heart of Thorns looks to take this much further, with larger, more expansive maps and a greater degree of exploration, individual challenges and group bosses. We’ve also heard developers mention instanced story content. To say nothing of the new class and specialisations that are restricted to Heart of Thorns owners.

Sinope.5630:

This is true story:
There were 11 of us who started to play Guild Wars 2. We have played from the start, and we preordered our games so we had 3 days head start.

Now after all these years what we have been together with Guild Wars 2, it’s expansion is coming. Only one of my friend have said that she will buy that expansion. One of us is still wondering is it worth to buy. And 9 of us are saying that we are NOT going to buy this expansion.

Reason why we are not going to buy this expansion is those recent changes in the game. Game have been gone worse and worse with every changes what Anet have done. Only thing what I like in the game is login reward. That is only good change what they did. But in the game we have so many bugs what have been in there from the start and what Anet is doing. They are not fixing those bugs, they have change something in the game what was working and of course they made it worse.

10 of us don’t like much Silverwastes area and that one who is still thinking, is she going to buy expansion, is afraid that it will have same kind system as Silverwastes area have. Nonstop events preparing defend forts, then comes monsters who try to conquer forts and in the end some strong boss what people try mindlessly to kill. And some people say that Silverwastes is organized place, I don’t see any organized in it. Only thing what people are doing is that they are zerging and spamming their skills mindless and try to kill one boss in their area.

So at least 9 of us will not buy this expansion.

Well, yes. It’s an expansion with a story line about a war against a dragon that is threatening the people of Tyria. I’m expecting areas that are battle zones and areas that are quiet and good for poking around and exploring.

No one is going to make anyone stay in the battle zones and fight. They can ignore all that as they please and explore, glide, farm, do the Living Story, see any new cities, Do whatever they like in there.

/shrug. Or they can not buy and stay in the old zones doing the old content.

But from now on, I’m expecting each expansion, each successive Living Story line, to be a fight against a dragon. Once this one is defeated, the next will be in line. Maybe underwater. Maybe in Elona or Cantha. Will you and your friends still not buy? It seems hardly worth staying in this game if they never buy the expansions and stay in Guild Wars 2 vanilla, watching from the sidelines.

Not sure if it was already mentioned in this thread:
HoT will include a variety of challenge mode-encounters. (They have shown 1 of them, where you run around with a flame thrower and try to get as many kills with it as possible. This examples wasn’t really interesting, but let’s wait and see once we get more infos.)

I believe HoT will include many interesting challenges and not just zergy spam feasts.

Once I found out HoT would share many of the features previously presented in Dry Top and the Silverwastes, my enthusiasm for the expansion died. Those zones were fun when they were new, sure, (except for the aspect skills in Dry Top; didn’t mind them in the Labyrinthine Cliffs, but didn’t want to see them elsewhere — or anything else like them — a la HoT’s jumping/bouncing mushrooms) but once that newness wore off, the fun wore off with it. I do still go back in every once in a while, more to the Silverwastes than to Dry Top, to test a build, or tag along with a guildie, or just to grab some loot, but it’s not something I can stand for very long at a time.

So I’m in no hurry to buy HoT. I’ll wait. Let the newness wear off, see what people are saying about it then. Considering how anet has handled GW2 since launch, especially in this past year with the trait system redesign and the NPE, my expectations are high that I’ll only be disappointed.

I am going to buy it, i am one of those rare people i guess that plays a game for the story so anything that furthers the story will be bought all the other stuff is just a bonus to me!

Buy the Witcher 3 if that’s your intend, 500 hours playtime, and super solo hero. (And buy skyrim as backup if you are out of time, then mass effect 3!). Problem solved Ithilwen XD

Phoebe Ascension.8437:

Buy the Witcher 3 if that’s your intend, 500 hours playtime, and super solo hero. (And buy skyrim as backup if you are out of time, then mass effect 3!). Problem solved Ithilwen XD

Those are well beloved RPG single player franchises. Using them like you’re trying to stick it to people dosnt make a lot of sense.

But if we’re defending the no-one-in-a-crowd-zerg-a-thon I’d say go play Lemmings. But then.. even a single lemming in that game had more meaningful impact than one person does in silverwastes/dt.

Ithilwen.1529:

I’m actually pretty excited about HoT and eager to see the story continue in my third year playing.

Then you will buy HoT.

If that’s not true, here’s some good news for you – Solitaire Is Coming Back on Windows 10!
Source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2483012,00.asp!

Ithilwen.1529:

If I wanted to be a zerg zombie, I’d play WvW. Should it turn out that HoT is mainly about massive zergs, I will have to consider not buying it.

Honestly, that’s the kind of direction ArenaNet has been talking about. Open world, zerg-based repetitive content… That’s what Silverwastes is, and it’s likely what HoT will be as well.

Every day I’m in Silver Wastes I see a lot of individual “hero” moments because one big zerg anywhere pretty much kills that map the way each part of every event spot is designed allows for clutch plays. Also, if all you do in WvWvW is follow the largest zerg, then that’s on you, not on that part of the game. I regularly run around on my own or with maybe five to ten people, and even in the large zergs, there haven’t been many sleepers but that might be the server I’m on. It sounds like the one constant in your experience with lame zerg players is yourself.

People who think the Silverwastes and Dry Top are about zerging understand neither map. You CAN zerg on both of them, but you certainly don’t “win” the map by doing it that way.

Try to get to Tier 6 in Dry Top by zerging, see how that goes for you.

ProtoGunner.4953:

It’s rather unrealistic since 99.9% of our real lives we are just normal people.

Incorrect. Normality is simply a choice that normal people are not aware they ever made.

On topic: If you plan to continue playing the game, you really should buy the expansion. What else are you going to do?

Well, there is only 1 reason why i dislike playing with zergs. Not because i hate other people or i am antisocial.

Its because its easy.

pressing 1 once to tag and you have guaranteed loot. This should never be the essence in guildwars 2. I feel with the current weaponskill system we should be able to fight bigger stronger mobs, who dont just die because your spamming one, or do 1 simple thing to dodge the big attack.

I want to actually be able to play and be required to use all my skills. In a zerg or without one. For AI, they need smart enemies who know what to do against people not paying attention or just dont understand what a dodgeroll is for. force them to die and restart. And let them learn the hard way.

This is the problem of the cassualness of PvE, its the same problem why zerker are used everywhere. The game is too kitten easy.

If there is one thing i hope anet will do is punish the people who arent ‘ready’ yet to play in certain content, not just by locking certain skills behind missions. But also because they lack a certain skill themselves irl and they need to practise it to get better and beat it.

I will purchase HoT, no question. However, I do have reservations if I will like it or not as I don’t care for dry top nor silverwastes. I only did map completion for dry top, and once I got my armor in silverwastes I never went back.
I’m sure there will be plenty to do in HoT, I’m just hopeful it won’t be a constant fightfest (like Silverwastes) as you travel from place to place.

My interest in HoT, and how much I would pay for it, is dependent upon what it contains and offers for my play style.

New area(s):

• I enjoy exploring full zones and immersing myself in the atmospheres of them while finding the little nooks. Because of how Dry Top and Silverwastes are micro-zones with a gimmick, as well as no real exploration potential or atmosphere, I do not enjoy being in those zones. As HoT will only be offering new area(s) that will clearly be more of the same type of gimmick and ‘keep them occupied’ mechanics found in those two zones, I would not buy the ‘expansion’ for the new playable area(s).

How much I would pay is decreased due to not containing something of interest to me.

No new playable species:

• One thing that would offer me many, many months of playtime would be adding another species to the game.
• Making a new character that is a new species would offer me 14 new ways (7 male, 7 female) to play the existing professions (minus engi that I cannot play due to hobosack) and to experience all of the existing zones all over again.
• This would induce plenty of appearance customizations, transmutation charge usages and using makeover kits as I tweak and fashion each one and see what the new species can look like. This could also mean more armor set skin purchases that work great on the new species that I had not purchased due to not looking right on the existing ones, as well as up to 14 new character slot purchases (at 20 currently).

It would mean quite a bit of money for ANet from me, and many, many hours of playtime leveling the different characters. By not offering a new species, ANet not only forgoes all of that additional spending, they also decreased my interest in HoT and the likelihood that I’d even purchase it.

Again, how much I would pay is decreased due to not containing something of interest to me.

A new profession:

• I enjoy playing many of the existing ones (I have nearly 20 characters), but it would be nice to experience the existing world with a new profession.
  (I could experience the world with an engi for the first time if they’d remove the hobosack, instead I’d need to purchase HoT to experience the world with a new profession)
• At most I would fashion and explore the existing world with 2 characters; a male and a female…maybe a few more of another race or two. However, there would be very little to nothing spent on makeover kits due to my already knowing what I like existing species to look like. I already have the heavy armor skin sets I want due to how they look on existing species. I’d likely use a few existing transmutation charges one time due to not needing to experiment with looks on the two genders.
• I may not like the way the new profession plays and not explore the existing world at all due to it not being enjoyable.

A new profession does not decrease how much I would pay, but it also certainly does not increase how much I would pay due to the possibility that I may not like it.
A new species guaranteed new ways to play 7 professions that I already know I enjoy playing; a new profession could be hit or miss. If it’s a miss, then I’d feel I made a poor decision spending that money for it. This would then lead to less interest in spending more money on the game or on future ‘expansions’.

Because of the possibility of it being a miss, how much I would pay is decreased due to not wanting to risk spending more for something I am not sure I will enjoy.

The switch to releasing only outfits instead of both armor sets and outfits:

• A big part of what I enjoy in the game is not just exploring large areas, but looking good while I am exploring large areas.
• The complete scrapping of and refusal to release new armor sets, and this switch to only releasing outfits, has caused me to not spend much time fashioning my characters.
• They’ve made it clear that they do not intend to release more armor sets in the gem store. They’ve done this not only by releasing only outfits for so long, but now also by releasing appearances that clearly should be armor sets as outfits.

No new armor sets that I can buy and integrate into existing fashions as my characters’ appearances evolve, as well as it being highly unlikely to see any new armor sets in the store in the future due to the 100% switch to only releasing outfits without a single word or a single response in the hundreds of threads on these forums alone, has severely decreased how much I would pay for HoT.

Many other negative changes and nonsensical overhauls of unbroken systems, as well as the lack of effort to decrease the number of actual broken systems and persistent bugs, leads to quite an even higher decrease in how much I would pay. I’ve seen how they conduct themselves with the base game, why should I think it will get better after the ‘expansion’. I do not reward bad undesirable behavior.

Yeah not gonna lie… I really don’t like the zerg.

There’s many issues there —

One… the game runs like crap. I mean it’s still “playable” but it’s hard to appreciate the care that went into the graphics and sound with everything being AOE bombed on top of you constantly.

Two… It also means you can’t play very strategically even if a boss is designed with tells and that sort of things, when there’s too many people doing too much for you to see it.

Three… Other than being present and doing damage, what’s the point of having people together? I can’t speak for everyone but to me that’s just a crowd and I hate being crowded. At least with the old trinity there’s some subconscious appreciation… ok good for that tank they’re holding aggro, good for healer they’re not screwing up, good for the nuker they fire off their big recharge skill, etc… I don’t have any subconscious appreciation for GW2 zergs accept for the commanders. More people just kind of lowers the logic of every encounter though. This is a very old problem with the game… the sense of roles in content is remarkably absent which means everyone is just damage and self-preservation… which means you’re really just stuck in a crowd if you want to do the popular farm or world event or whatever.

Cbomb.4310:

Phoebe Ascension.8437:

Buy the Witcher 3 if that’s your intend, 500 hours playtime, and super solo hero. (And buy skyrim as backup if you are out of time, then mass effect 3!). Problem solved Ithilwen XD

Those are well beloved RPG single player franchises. Using them like you’re trying to stick it to people dosnt make a lot of sense.

But if we’re defending the no-one-in-a-crowd-zerg-a-thon I’d say go play Lemmings. But then.. even a single lemming in that game had more meaningful impact than one person does in silverwastes/dt.

Obviously you aren’t playing SW correctly then, there’s plenty of things an individual player can impact…finish of a base capture, or prevent a base from being lost because everyone else died…wait, even finish off the last 10% of a Breach boss in 30 seconds because the rest of the players are laying down dead and refuse the WP…you must run around with the zerg’s that are totally useless in SW.