Guild Wars 2

I agree with those who’d like added complexity, sadly, it won’t happen because this game was designed with a certain demographic in mind.

Lack of combat log, player inspection, high rewards for completing difficult tasks, etc.

It’s been made very difficult to hold anyone accountable for their actions, particularly in group content, on purpose. The tactics required to complete said content allows most everything to be more “inclusive” so that no one feels like they’re shut out of all that the game offers. Don’t like jumping puzzles? Cool, because the rewards for completing them are insignificant. Don’t like gear disparity? Cool, because gear is very easily obtained by anyone.

A lot of people define these features as “fun”, and I wouldn’t argue with that assessment, but they fail to realize not everyone experiences fun in the same way.

Why do you think they introduced fractals? While it still leaves much to be desired, they are starting to realize that they cannot sustain the desired number of players if they don’t provide some kind of tangible reward that separates the haves from the have nots.

I don’t necessarily believe the trinity is the answer, but I understand those who would like to see it. People want added depth, challenge, something to demonstrate the level of effort invested versus those who may or may not care as much or cannot for whatever reason. It exists here to some degree, but not enough.

I gave the game a chance, enjoyed a good deal, but I’m not inspired because most everything that can be accomplished feels too trivial, including PvE combat.

They can probably maintain a good number of players if things remain consistent the way they are, but we don’t know what “good” means to them. Arenanet is a company, not a person, and they will do what they feel is necessary to succeed.

Personally, I don’t think this design model is long lasting enough. They’ve taken “casual” too far for this type of game. I think boredom will become an increasing problem.

Human beings have an inherent need to compete, it’s part of why we exist. Without struggle of some kind, in some form, you become complacent (regressive). We don’t reward all olympic athletes with gold medals because there needs to be something that seperates those who have acheived a higher level of performance from those who haven’t. We don’t call gold medalists “elitists” do we? On top of recieving medals, they get endorsements, publicity and all kinds of cash and prizes. That’s what drives them to compete.

Most games by their very nature promote competition in some form. You won’t sustain many players if they feel like everything is easy/reachable by the lowest common denominator. Even if they enjoy the content, eventually they’ll move on after becoming bored.

I see the term “fun” thrown around a lot. Well, a lot of people have “fun” through being competative, directly and/or indirectly. Gear stats provide a tangible benefit to people in game, which is why they have always been so valued.

I’m not arguing for or against the recent changes Anet made to the game, but I understand why.