Guild Wars 2

I got here late, but I’d just like to remind everyone comparing this expansion’s price to World of Warcraft’s that Blizzard generates a colossal amount of cash from monthly subscriptions. They can afford to have (slightly) less expensive expansions. And if the expansions have more content, keep in mind they’re also working with decade-old graphical and audio technology—which requires less time and manpower to build upon. I’ll wager there is more texture detail in Lion’s Arch alone than an entire continent in WoW. Anet has allowed most of us to play what I believe is a greatly superior game for zero required payments monthly.

I have over 1,000 hours clocked, and have maybe spent $30 total on gems, which were entirely optional. So around 50 required dollars for years of entertainment, with free high quality updates handed out constantly that have greatly expanded on the world. Compare that to World of Warcraft, where I would have spent about $540 in 3 years time, not even including the base game AND expansions.

If you can’t afford $50 every 3 years (yes, it’s been that long), and/or you can’t wait awhile for the price to drop, I really don’t know what to tell you. I don’t think many of you understand that Anet actually needs to make money in order to provide you with this entertainment you enjoy. They don’t get it from monthly subs, and they don’t force you to purchase ANYTHING from the cash shop. They have to get the money from somewhere.

Furthermore, the base game is very much devalued now, so having it included with the expansion isn’t like new players are getting one SUPER AMAZING DEAL. Lol. I’ve seen the game selling for $10-15 often. The fact that we paid $50 for it at launch is irrelevant. All game prices go down over time.

Personally, I’ve taken a break from Guild Wars 2 (and all MMOs for that matter), but I’ve thought about returning to play this expansion, and considering how little I’ve had to spend on the game I really don’t see much reason to complain. It’s likely to provide hundreds of additional hours (at least) of solid gameplay, and Anet will undoubtedly continue to release free updates after the expansion.

Any way you look at it, Guild Wars 2 is a bargain—whether or not veterans get a discount for the upgrade.

So what if you can only get 2 out of the 5 minis (this time)? Save for the ones you like best and grab them. They’re not all cool—that princess doll isn’t going to win you favors running around everywhere behind you as a male character. Collectors can probably wait until next Wintersday to make the others, since I’m sure they’ll re-use the content, or if it’s really that important to them they can shell out some cash for the pets and help further support Anet.

But one thing I’ve learned is, no matter the MMO, if you try to collect or do everything there is to do, you’re going to make yourself very miserable. Just enjoy what you can.