Guild Wars 2

I have been DYING for a good PvP game. WoW and League are boring now. I am done with MOAs. Hated Blacklight Retribution, got bored of TF2, Aion wasn’t my thing etc.

I bought this game a long time ago but never even got to the twenties because the atmospere and music seemed somewhat boring and generic to me. The fact that you can use the bread and butter of your abilities before even level 10 makes the game intensely boring for me as well. I want to try this game out again and I think I can bear the boring leveling if the PvP is good. I just want to kill some dudes in a balanced, fun, strategic game.

I don’t mind if gear dictates the winner, as long as the grind isn’t HORRIBLY long and boring. With that said, is this game’s PvP for me and is it worth it?

Is it worth leveling through this game, trying to enjoy it as much as possible for the PvP?

Does this game’s PvP provide fun, balanced, at least somewhat strategic gameplay where it is not about who can spam buttons the best, but who knows how to put them together depending on the situation? Does this game have such depth?

I am absolutely dying for a PvP game and I heard how amazing Guild Wars was, although sadly I never had the chance to play it.

I’d say gw2 combat shines for PvP. However, Anet never got to take advantage of this potential in which case it gets stale after a while due to lack of new stuff so it depends on how long you stay interested.

Also, you can level through sPvP and to a lesser extent, WvW.

sPVP has no gear restriction, you get everything you need and you get uplvled to match others, you’ll only need skill.

WvW is more “end game” PvP where your gear and level sorta matters.

Caelus.7139:

I’d say gw2 combat shines for PvP. However, Anet never got to take advantage of this potential in which case it gets stale after a while due to lack of new stuff so it depends on how long you stay interested.

Also, you can level through sPvP and to a lesser extent, WvW.

sPVP has no gear restriction, you get everything you need and you get uplvled to match others, you’ll only need skill.

WvW is more “end game” PvP where your gear and level sorta matters.

Wow, that doesn’t sound too bad. I have a level 11 thief, I will try this sPvP and decide for myself!

PvP is excellent, the only issue is lack of balance. But honestly, there’s always going to be an overpowered build that takes less skill to play than another.

PvP is why I keep playing skill actually matters in thisgame regardless of what some may say. 1 good players can even kill 5 bad players or a group of 5 can wipe 15 and I love that kind of stuff.

Stale and unbalanced. But most importantly, there’s no sign of things getting even a little better anytime soon (even if by “soon” you mean within a year).

I’m new to PvP, but it is quite good. Very balanced from the gear side, as you have access to virtually every stat combo you need, and even skilled lvl 2 players can utterly dominate the arenas. It’s all about the build.

You seem experienced so this probably won’t be an issue to you, but matchmaking is borked. There doesn’t seem to be any division by rank in SoloQ, so as a newbie you get tossed right in with the veterans. It can be discouraging at times.

PvP in GW2 is more spam than strategy I’d say. It is fast paced and actiony, but it completely lacks depth. The balance is terrible; there are tons of builds/traits/weapons/stats that are basically useless. Most classes have 1-2 builds considered viable. The balance devs are slower than molasses in January, The balance changes they’ve made in a year is equivalent what Blizzard would do each patch in Vanilla.

Honestly, if WoW and LoL didn’t hold you then GW2 won’t last you long. It is fun for a bit, but because it lacks depth and is so imbalanced it gets old fast. Given that there are so many skills and traits in the game it’s really sad that you’ll basically see the same builds every match. All that being said, you’ve got the game already so do some SPvP. No leveling necessary.

vincecontix.1264:

skill actually matters in thisgame

I lol’d hard… xD

Pvp gets stale quick, since theres only one game mode its basicly AI, aoe, spam like builds that just bunker to a point and sit there. If something needs major balancing as others have mentioned expect a 6 month wait before anything happens, while they claim there “discussing it internally”. It was super fun for about 6 -8 months, then it drops off……..fast

Distaste kinda nails it on the head overall though, youll see class “a” with a certain weapon type, and immediately know everything thats about to happen not allot of diversity to it.

pvp is bad in this game

it misses alot things and has absolut no infrastruture

you waste your time when you wanna play guildwars 2 just for pvp and when someone tell you others than they trie to scam you

dont waste your money

It’s really fun, but the pvp happening on these forums is quite bad.

I expect a trollfest of “PvP sucks because I die to this” in this thread. Actually good feedback, for the most part. Yeah, PvP is in a great state right now. All of the QQ is just because people cry about everything that doesn’t go their way.

Try it out, you’ll enjoy it!

Pvp is fun. There are ways to look at who is actually in competitive pvp, I suggest you weigh people’s opinions on pvp accordingly. This having been said my opinion holds very little weight

Pvp as a whole is fine.

Tiny Asuras, awful balance decisions,(rip sword/x mesmer) and lack of features promised since beta (Templates) really rustle my jimmies though .

Same as in beta – combat mechanics are great, everything else is kitten.

Darnis.4056:

Pvp as a whole is fine.

Tiny Asuras, awful balance decisions,(rip sword/x mesmer) and lack of features promised since beta (Templates) really rustle my jimmies though .

this person is the only person in the thread you should listen to. everyone else is just a pve casual who hasn’t played the game long enough.

one thing you should know is that some classes straight up WILL NOT beat another class (this is why the noobs above me complain about balance). the game is balanced around a 5v5 conquest situation. half of the game is rotating the classes that will beat other classes to the correct places and make sure everyone’s in a good situation. the actual skill cap on classes are actually fairly low, though it’ll probably still take you a few months to learn how to effectively play your class.

Darnis.4056:

Pvp as a whole is fine.

Tiny Asuras, awful balance decisions,(rip sword/x mesmer) and lack of features promised since beta (Templates) really rustle my jimmies though .

The jimmies have been rustled.

Well. Sort of bad things happen in there a lot.
When I stealth-ing to wait for other people to join when I fight with the superior class like warrior, they insult me for something like can do only stealth.
When I use Lich form when 1vs1, they said it’s not fair.

Not mention to lots of trolls available in PvP too. lol
It’s kind of fail community……somehow.

Every pvp community in every game is the same. Hell every sport is like it too people talk kitten get over it.

From a MOBA player to a MOBA player, I can tell you that this PvP is definitely a different experience. I’m still very very new to it, but I feel like it’s kind of bloated and cluttered.

Like, in League there are always particular moments where you can take advantage of your enemy’s weakness/cooldowns or any mistakes they make. In GW2 I find that these moments are a lot more rare. Like, I try and do my burst on someone and they pop some invulnerability/block mechanism. I try again, they dodge it. I try to stun/immobilise them first and try again, turns out they have stability on. I try again, they teleport/use a stun breaker. I try removing their buffs, they pop on a bunch of new ones, etc….

Well, maybe I’m exaggerating since it’s kind of impossible to have all that counterplay in just one build/skillset (and you’ve got to be pretty kitten experienced to manage your cooldowns and react so well anyway), plus with enough knowledge of your opposing class you can probably find openings in combat and learn cooldowns, but still, at least to a beginner it often feels like your enemy is an inexorable beast with an answer to every skill you throw at him/her.

Also, due to the fact that each class gets access to two dodges, a heal and roughly 14 other abilities (not counting the heal) at any one point, (some up to 24), there’s rarely a moment when you can exploit the fact that they’re on cooldowns and dish out a reliable combo.

Hell, not that I’m one to talk. I play as a mesmer and mesmers have pretty ridiculous things in their kit, such as the ability to be entirely invulnerable for up to 6 seconds (quadra distortion shatter + Sword 2), the ability to turn someone into a useless Moa for 10 seconds (I don’t even use it because of how cheap I think it is), and a bunch of disengages in the form of stealth, portals, blinks, knockback and clone swapping. It’s a case where rather than there being any weak classes, everyone’s overpowered to an extent, or at least that’s what it feels like to me.

Not to mention, some builds in the game are simply broken, such as a thief being able to pop in and out of stealth almost at will, giving him/her full control of the fight and the ability to disengage from the fight whenever s/he wants, or a warrior taking some insane bunker build that makes him unkillable in a 1v1, turning each fight into a 3-minute button-spam contest.

Because of all this, I think you might find the PvP a bit frustrating and inconsistent. HOWEVER, having said all that, I think it’s worth a try. Despite my issues with it, it’s really action-packed, and if you actually have a fair and close game with no people leaving and no broken mechanics, it’s fun, exciting and feels rewarding. Get past the early frustration of PvP and you might end up having a blast.

How is PvP right now?

Well lets start by saying they nerfed engineers automated response by 50% and buffed up turrets.

Basically the developers like us having to fight AI over a real person.

I am enjoying the hell out of it, and its definitely some of the best MMO pvp out of ones I’ve played, but as others have mentioned, the underdevelopment of it is frustrating. Fortunately I haven’t burnt myself out on it, but it seems like PvPers have gotten the short end of the stick, there is rarely content for us. I’ve been hoping this would change, and they actually have a much more appropriate system of rewards now that feels good to advance in, that helps your account in some good ways, but I want more maps and more modes, and ways to rejuvenate and encourage the community to get in on more PvP.

Despite all its flaws and everything that is lacking; I still like it more than any other version of online pvp.

People who say the combat is simple and takes no skill don’t seem to understand the more sophisticated methods of playing a class. It’s simple if that’s all you can imagine.

The Dunning-Kruger Effect is alive and well on the GW2 PvP forums.

Structured pvp is always been fine (Balthazar is still around), it is more balance now then before.
but the current Player vs Player itself is lame and shame, the essence of pvp is been long gone and forgotten. i say its time to bring back Abaddon

Neffero.3678:

Does this game’s PvP provide fun, balanced, at least somewhat strategic gameplay where it is not about who can spam buttons the best,

No.

vincecontix.1264:

PvP is why I keep playing skill actually matters in thisgame regardless of what some may say. 1 good players can even kill 5 bad players or a group of 5 can wipe 15 and I love that kind of stuff.

U wot m8? With the way the downed feature works in this game good luck taking on more than 2 players that aren’t brain dead

@the morons saying pvp isn’t fun or sucks or any other complaints. Please try making it out of the percentages or at least attempting something other than spectating hotjoins until they can can join the winning team before saying kitten. Keep QQing badditrons!

Unfortunately Anet doesn’t give a kitten about PvP in Guild Wars 2… Its main focus is PvE. I’m getting bored of this game after 7 months for this reason… GW2 has the most potential of all MMOs but Anet does not take advantage of it. It’s all zerg, tank and spank brainless PvE for most of it, so I wouldn’t start playing now if I were you. Maybe in 42 years when Anet realises what they failed

in soloQ there are a couple bad maps where your team doesn’t know what to do, and like league- faces the problem of 4 random teammates.

That being said the pvp in this game is sooooo kittening fun and I highly, highly recommend it. Never thought and MMORPG could require such skillful gameplay. Of course there are some OP builds, and some kitten builds, but every class is viable. The dodge and endurance mechanics really eparate this game from the pack, as well as the traiting system. Lots of depth to character/build creation and can change specs on the fly, for free. It’s truly a great game.

Don’t listen to all of the naysayers, this is THE best MMORPG PvP experience out there. I’m planning on playing lots of gw2 pvp while I wait for BF hardline

edit: Watch some youtube videos or streams on twitch.tv, that will give you a good idea of exactly what this game is like. Like others say- devs care WAY more about WvW/PvE, but the organized PvP is still awesome (just updated less often), and if you like player vs player interaction WvW is a sweet alternative (fight 50 on 50 or roam and gank people solo)

Spvp is good. The combat is fluid and is the only reason I started this game to begin with.
As for balance, it’s fairly good right now, can be a bit bunkery but that’s the least of your worries. Yea there might be a couple easier builds that are considered “op” but these only shine in hotjoin or solo que but are useless in higher level play. I strongly suggest you don’t get used to these builds, they are a serious trap.
Only issue really is that we havnt been getting as much love frequently as our last balance patch was in April but I guess that’s due to the recent pve stuff. There’s a couple kinks here and there that they should address and we are a bit overdue for some newer content but hopefully that’s in the upcoming future.

This DOES take real skill. In WoW after your epic gear grind, you just pew pew people who have less power and less defense. And you feel like a boss, even though it’s mainly your gear.. It’s a very MMO concept of “leveling creates power”. (Not necessarily more skill).

GW2 is more about strategic skill use, timing, DODGING (unlike WoW, Rift, and the like), and team strategy.

Good pvp, but it has 0 dev support so it’s really stale and gets old fast

The remaining people in pvp are pretty much jaded and have no confidence in anet’s ability to balance the game or to make pvp less boring. Pvp has essentially stagnated with a mediocre population and a miniscule competitive scene of the same people in every match.

Team queue games are essentially 1 sided stomps, with teams winning every game until they reach one of the few competitive teams that steamrolls them.

Balance is stagnant with no significant changes happening for months on end, leaving boring specs to domminate the meta for over 6 months at a time. Patches consist of tooltip changes and 1 or 2 bug fixes which amount to a tiny buff or nerf to a class at random.

Anet has attempted to organize tourneys for gw2 (tol & tol2) which become 124 wvw, pve, and pvp pug teams being steamrolled in each region by the 4 teams that actually have played together and are competitive. The winners and second place of ToL1 were predicted by everyone before the first match started.

Which is sad because GW2 really had promise with its combat system.

I keep it fun by trying new classes, and new builds. It’s always fun to try to design a build that uses a strategy that more experienced players have not seen before and do not know how to counter.

^ you can try this and then you will eventually realize the reasons why the more experienced players aren’t using those builds.

Unbalanced builds, ridiculous maps where players have to combat map terrain & mechanic more than other players, bad matchmaking, no substituting afks (if that one guy on your team is afk… its a 99% win for the other team), no substituting rage quitters or dc’ers.

All in all, spvp in gw2 is like playing closed beta warhammer online.

If you love pvp, dont play gw2. You will learn to hate it. Rather wait, maybe…. maybe anet will get their kitten together at one point and actually start thinking rather than just inventing new ways to annoy their playerbase.

NeXeD.3042:

^ you can try this and then you will eventually realize the reasons why the more experienced players aren’t using those builds.

I am not saying the build is more powerful. But if they cannot figure it out, you get some advantage.

The main thing is I enjoy new ways of doing things. So I have more fun mixing it up. Of course I am never as good as I would be if I played one class and build for 1,000 hours.

But I am less bored, given my inborn personality.

He already has the game.

No problem, OP. Just try PvP and see if you are one of the people who love it.

Just avoid sky hammer. That map will make you rage. Anet seems clueless to how much the community hates it.

Neffero.3678:

I have been DYING for a good PvP game. WoW and League are boring now. I am done with MOAs. Hated Blacklight Retribution, got bored of TF2, Aion wasn’t my thing etc.

I bought this game a long time ago but never even got to the twenties because the atmospere and music seemed somewhat boring and generic to me. The fact that you can use the bread and butter of your abilities before even level 10 makes the game intensely boring for me as well. I want to try this game out again and I think I can bear the boring leveling if the PvP is good. I just want to kill some dudes in a balanced, fun, strategic game.

I don’t mind if gear dictates the winner, as long as the grind isn’t HORRIBLY long and boring. With that said, is this game’s PvP for me and is it worth it?

Is it worth leveling through this game, trying to enjoy it as much as possible for the PvP?

Does this game’s PvP provide fun, balanced, at least somewhat strategic gameplay where it is not about who can spam buttons the best, but who knows how to put them together depending on the situation? Does this game have such depth?

I am absolutely dying for a PvP game and I heard how amazing Guild Wars was, although sadly I never had the chance to play it.

One of the best features of Structured PvP is being able to obtain Tome of Knowledge. It allows you to gain a level, and you can strictly use this method to bypass questing if you only PvP. They’re rewards from the Structured PvP Reward Tracks, which I think you get eight per track. Of course it’s slower compared to questing, but if you’re only wanting to PvP, you can stockpile the tomes. Keep in mind, PvP will scale you up to 80 in WvW and SPvP.

More on the Reward Tracks, you’re able to obtain gear (around your current level), work toward level 80 weapons and armor from a Dungeon Track, and many other items, like crafting materials and Transmutation charges. Also with the Rank system, each rank will give some cool stuff as well. Mostly Karma, Luck, etc. It’s a lot better than how it was before April. A lot less RNG compared to the old PvP Crafting system, but you’re limited by what you’re rewarded and so you’ll have to get a skins from PvE content, if PvP can’t supply it.

The game isn’t about spamming buttons, but more along the lines of how to Control/Damage/Support yourself and/or fellow players. It’s a lot to take in upfront, but I’m sure you’ll catch on. If I had to compare it to WoW’s PvP, GW2 has a quicker pace. It’s some of the best PvP I’ve encountered. The game feels better than it did before the April’s major patch, at least to me it does.

All-in-all, you’ll fall and you’ll succeed, you’ll fall some more and you’ll conquer. It’s easy to perish within a number of seconds, especially against heavy condition or crowd control builds. SPvP only requires skill (sorta), since the only thing between you and your enemy is your or his/her’s build and intelligence. Some builds are over-the-top and easy to engage in, too. Build your character how you want, or find something that’s already built. The build system is great also, once you get use to it.

I’m genuinely surprised by the number of positive comments on the combat system. Out of curiosity, what exactly do you like about it? I assume the fluidity is a major factor but that largely comes from the ability to use practically all skills while moving. Is that what keeps you happy?

What about the absolute lack of any inherent risk involved in skill usage?
The extremist approach, encompassing invulnerability and massive burst skills, as well as the huge divide between stat specs?
The simplicity of skills (few conditional effects), and their relative ease of use?
The abundance and ease of use of shutdown skills (stuns), gap closers and escape skills?
The relative few options you have of directly helping your teammates?

I consider all of these examples of design philosophy rather than balance,.
Off the top of my head these things, to me, are some of the biggest fundamental flaws and probably the main reasons I’ll never really enjoy the way combat works. But I’m genuinely interested in hearing thoughts on these things from people who do like it.

vana.5467:

I’m genuinely surprised by the number of positive comments on the combat system.

now just because you do not like it, does not mean everyone else has to not like it too, yes?

Out of curiosity, what exactly do you like about it? I assume the fluidity is a major factor but that largely comes from the ability to use practically all skills while moving. Is that what keeps you happy?

yes. this is one of the reasons.

What about the absolute lack of any inherent risk involved in skill usage?

does not bother me.
and what you said is not true.

The extremist approach, encompassing invulnerability and massive burst skills, as well as the huge divide between stat specs?

nothing wrong here. working well as intended.

The simplicity of skills (few conditional effects), and their relative ease of use?

all is good here. working well as intended. simple is good.

The abundance and ease of use of shutdown skills (stuns), gap closers and escape skills?

all is good here as well. it is only “abundance” if we equip the right weapons and take the right utility skills.

The relative few options you have of directly helping your teammates?

not true. there are enough support options in the game.
laying various combo fields is a direct help provided team mates can make use of them.

I consider all of these examples of design philosophy rather than balance,.

i have no problems with these design philosophies.

Off the top of my head these things, to me, are some of the biggest fundamental flaws and probably the main reasons I’ll never really enjoy the way combat works. But I’m genuinely interested in hearing thoughts on these things from people who do like it.

one man’s poison is another’s meat.
beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

perhaps guild wars 2 sPvP is not meant for you after all.

Deimos Tel Arin.7391:

now just because you do not like it, does not mean everyone else has to not like it too, yes?

Obviously. That’s why I’m asking.

If you’d indulge me, let me follow up on some points where I’m not too sure what your stance is:

Quite often, risk in skill usage comes from recharge- and resource management as well as cessation of movement. In GW2 it comes entirely from either recharge or resource management. Is this also a case of simplicity being better to you? Do you prefer the lower risk / more straightforward design?

You say simplicity of skills is a good thing and to a certain extent I agree with that, but it necessarily takes away from the “player skill” required to use it, no? (this being anything from individual timing/reflexes to team coordination).

vana.5467:

Quite often, risk in skill usage comes from recharge- and resource management as well as cessation of movement. In GW2 it comes entirely from either recharge or resource management. Is this also a case of simplicity being better to you? Do you prefer the lower risk / more straightforward design?

recharge, as in the cool down, recharge time?

resource management, referring to warrior adrenaline, thief initiative, mesmer active illusions, necromancer’s death shroud life force?

well, yes, even though i played guild wars 1 very casually for many years, i have accepted that gw2 simplicity is better off for me.

so, yes, i prefer the lower risk, more straight forward design.

You say simplicity of skills is a good thing and to a certain extent I agree with that, but it necessarily takes away from the “player skill” required to use it, no? (this being anything from individual timing/reflexes to team coordination).

well, not necessarily so.

a player who has only played PvE / WvW extensively
another player who played PvE / WvW but plays sPvP more often

now pit these 2 players in a 1 vs 1 duel, there will be a difference.
also depending on what profession they use though.
some profession will be harder, easier for some players.

for example, i heard a lot of people said guardian is easy to use, in sPvP.
but i can never really play my guardian well.

in the end, i am a warrior player.
warrior is one of the more easier professions to play, for me, at least.

and … no matter how easy or simplified it can be …

some things … such as “individual timing” or “reflexes” will make a difference.
for example, various warrior “good skills” such as endure pain, berserker stance, balanced stance etc, if activated at the wrong time, does not help the warrior.

sPvP battle experience, individual timing and reflexes will play an important role here.

for your information, personally i can never get these right, so i do not use them.
i tried using them in the past and it was a hit or miss affair for me.
now i try something else.

well, team coordination is another matter.

Forget GW2, bad design, ridiculous uncalled for punishments, lag, crashes etc.

Find another game before you waste anymore of you time

vana.5467:

Deimos Tel Arin.7391:

now just because you do not like it, does not mean everyone else has to not like it too, yes?

Obviously. That’s why I’m asking.

If you’d indulge me, let me follow up on some points where I’m not too sure what your stance is:

Quite often, risk in skill usage comes from recharge- and resource management as well as cessation of movement. In GW2 it comes entirely from either recharge or resource management. Is this also a case of simplicity being better to you? Do you prefer the lower risk / more straightforward design?

You say simplicity of skills is a good thing and to a certain extent I agree with that, but it necessarily takes away from the “player skill” required to use it, no? (this being anything from individual timing/reflexes to team coordination).

you play pvp on an extremely low level and do not even try to play it competitively and then make accusations that there’s no skill involved. at least you sound smart, but we can all still tell youre a noob.

vana.5467:

Deimos Tel Arin.7391:

now just because you do not like it, does not mean everyone else has to not like it too, yes?

Obviously. That’s why I’m asking.

If you’d indulge me, let me follow up on some points where I’m not too sure what your stance is:

Quite often, risk in skill usage comes from recharge- and resource management as well as cessation of movement. In GW2 it comes entirely from either recharge or resource management. Is this also a case of simplicity being better to you? Do you prefer the lower risk / more straightforward design?

You say simplicity of skills is a good thing and to a certain extent I agree with that, but it necessarily takes away from the “player skill” required to use it, no? (this being anything from individual timing/reflexes to team coordination).

The only parts that I consider ‘core’ and would think of replicating is the fluidity of skill movements, evade/block system and the general camera, movement and targeting systems. ie. few skills that outright prevent a player from moving. Though I would definitely adjust the risk of skill use. Mainly many classes would use a resource + cooldown and some higher impact abilities will slow movement during the channel.

Honestly outside of those basic controls there is a LOT of room for improvement.

Ps. Already have 3 working weapon sets coded and the rough control scheme within a month. It isn’t hard to make aside from the graphics and animations.

You can’t change the risk of skill use without drastically altering the game. Skills already have risk. Burn your heal at a bad time your kittened, burn a dodge when you didn’t need to your kittened, burn a block or an evade at a bad time. Use your burst when your opponent goes invuln or blocks or reflects your kittened. I can probably go on and on like this….. so I’m gonna go ahead and say there is risk. And at no point in time should someone who can’t even make it out of the percentages be commenting on the balance of pvp….. if those people are wondering why I would say such a thing….. well its like this a youth football player gets to play the game but it’s pretty obvious it’s not even the same game as pro, college, or even high school.