Guild Wars 2

I’d like to introduce a friend to GW2, but I’d rather not shell out $50 for HoT. Also, because of the way the free/trial version works, I won’t have much interactivity with her (I’d like to help her get set up with some basic food, bags, weapons, etc.).

Does anyone know of a decent way to find an old, unused copy of the game? And if so, would this work to establish a new account? Thanks.

You might find core games for sale at some of the Anet authorized retailers. For example Amazon sells the core game for much less but I think the Amazon listings for GW2 core are for a physical copy which would include the game code needed. So your friend would have to wait for it to arrive in the mail..

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/retailers/

I would be very cautious buying from a retailer that is not listed as authorized by Anet. You might end up buying a bogus code or a code that was sold by someone who bought it using a stolen credit card. That can cause huge problems.

On a side note your friend could still give the free version a try. You can still send your friend items. Also once you become mutual friends there should not be a restriction on whispering to each other.

You can read more about it here.

https://help.guildwars2.com/entries/95982157

Free accounts can receive whatever. They just can’t mail stuff back. Free accounts can even join guilds for chatting or talk in party chat. They just can’t talk in map chat.

ANet no longer official supports sales of the core game. Your friend, however, can play for free. You can send them stuff to help them get started and help them level. I’d say start with that. If they like it, then you can worry about tracking down an unused access code (although, there’s no guarantee that someone doesn’t have that number stored some place — if there’s an issue, ANet won’t be able to help your friend recover the account).

If your friend really wants a base account just look on amazon they are all over.

At least on UK Amazon HoT is about the same price as the core game, sometimes cheaper depending on the seller.

JustTrogdor.7892:

I would be very cautious buying from a retailer that is not listed as authorized by Anet. You might end up buying a bogus code or a code that was sold by someone who bought it using a stolen credit card. That can cause huge problems.

I think it would be ok as long as they’re a reputable seller. For example in the UK I’ve seen GW2 sold in both HMV and PC world. Neither is on the list of authorised retailers but they’re both large, well established chains who I can’t imagine would ever be stupid enough to risk their reputation by selling fake or stolen copies of games.

Importantly though neither offered the pre-purchase. I think that’s mainly what the authorised retailer list was about. Back when GW2 first came out there was a lot of confusion over the pre-purchase system because some retailers had already been offering their own pre-order for months and others set ones up, but these weren’t done in association with Anet and didn’t enable players to get the pre-purchase bonuses.

(Technically anyone who has the contacts in place to order copies from the publisher can set up a perfectly legitimate pre-order system, but the pre-purchase was more complicated because it involved getting some stuff out in advance of the actual sale.)

But yeah, if it’s a retailer you’ve not heard of before (and/or a 3rd party using a site like Amazon) and what you’re getting seems too good to be true, and especially if all you’ll get is an email with a code, it’s probably best to assume it is too good to be true and look elsewhere.

Also, while you are looking for a copy, your friend can start with the free account and then upgrade it later. No need to wait for the mailman.

I started a free account to see what it was like and if it was something I could recommend to family & friends. After I messed around with it a while, I bought a new core box off Amazon for like $18 and applied that code to the free account. Worked without any trouble. You still have to go through the normal unlock process, waiting for restrictions to lift.

It would be quite wasteful to buy a core account, you can find a copy of HoT online for less than $40, but before that the free account should be enough for introducing someone to the game.

If they don’t like the game much, they’re not going to run up against the inconveniences of free accounts much, and if they started feeling inconvenienced by the free account, they’re playing the game enough to like it which means it’s time to buy