I don’t usually make posts praising a game…especially an MMO. But wow am I impressed with GW2. This is my longish tale of how I started playing GW2 and why it will be on my HD for a very, very long time.
First, a little about me. Starting playing MMO’s with EQ1 vanilla. You know, back when you had to message a GM to give you a last name when you hit 20, and a GM would also announce when someone hit level 50. When a level grind, was a GRIND. No instances, no quest turn in XP, etc.
Anyway, I moved from MMO to MMO. From Lineage 2, to Shadowbane, to Anarchy Online, Conan, even WoW and Vanguard, and just about everything in between. My last MMO before I quit playing them was Warhammer Online. (Squig Herder = best class in any MMO…ever!). Well unless you consider Planetside2 and MMO….dunno.
After my time got shorter with kids and a wife and traveling for my job, I told myself I would not play another MMO. Too much time for a person like me, who is very competitive and has to be top tier type player. I started playing my race sim’s again (iracing, etc). Then went back to my combat flight sims (DCS series). While I loved the complexity and details of combat flight sims, I was real eager to play an RPG again. Not many good ones out there (I loathe Skyrim). So I looked for an MMO. I dl’d Neverwinter because I heard it was easy to solo, casual and free. Well it is easy to solo, it is casual, and free to some extent. I don’t care what anyone says about GW2 cash shop….its nothing as atrocious as Neverwinters ($35 for a mount….really?).
Ok, ok, so I played GW1 a little bit back in the day. Didn’t make much of an impression on me, since I don’t remember much about it. After playing NW and getting to max level (in 4 days) and running a few T1 and T2 dungeons and PvP I came to the conclusion that it was dull. Not open world, and nothing really interesting to see or explore, I decided to see what else it out there. I have been hearing about GW2 and thought, eh, lll check it out. WHAT? It isn’t free to play? Hmmm. Read reviews, watch gameplay, check out classes. Seems like it might be worth it. Ooooo….Ranger with a huge selection of pets? OK sold.
So, since last Saturday night, I have been hooked. I mean totally hooked. Not with just the classes, and the combat, but the actual environments. Starting as a Norn I thought the area you start in was the home “City”. Needless to say when I entered Hoelbrak for the first time my jaw dropped. I explored the whole kitten place. I got an area completion for doing it. But here is the kicker, I enjoyed exploring it. I enjoyed looking around. I wanted to. Now this of course led me to check out other starting cities. ALL of them not only represent each race perfectly, but are also awesome to look at.
As a person who does not any friends that play PC games, I am solo a lot. So running around, and just happening upon an event/quest and seeing other players there makes this perfect for me. Also the folks on my server Tarnished Coast, seem to be very friendly and helpful. I love the dynamic of the gameplay. Refreshing and seamless. From combat, to loot, to crafting/gathering, to mail, to bank management, etc. etc. is all perfect.
Now I know the newness of a new game wears off, but I can tell already this is a solid game. Eventually I will be looking for a guild of like minded folks, and getting back into PvP (which I enjoy very much), and dungeons and whatnot. I also know eventually there might be some grinding for certain items, etc. Thing is…I don’t think Ill mind it.
I think this is the first time in a loooong time that I have picked up a game with no expectations, and have been blown away. I am glad to be part of this GW2 community, and cant wait for 5 o’clock to log in and continue learn new things, see new areas, kill new monsters, and get new loot!
TL;DR:
GW2 is great. Coming from a person who has played just about type of MMO/FPS/RPG/SIM on the PC for 20+ years, that should mean something if it impresses me this fast.