I did see a post by an ArenaNet employee who stated to oversee this current LS and concurred with a poster that the LS has been written without large plot building to prevent a long, strewn out, boring story, versus fast paced action with classic villains.
I’d really like to see the exact wording and context of this post, if I could. Source please?
…And I enjoy that. I enjoy getting little teases like her haven ‘seen’ the Eternal Alchemy. I enjoy speculating what this mass invasion could be in the light of her ‘teaching’ us things. And most of all, I have lots of patience for this story to unwind.
In fact, her claim to have “seen” the Eternal Alchemy tells me that WP may still be right about the whole alternate realities thing playing in to this. You wouldn’t see the whole Eternal Alchemy (I believe Vorpp does say she claimed to see the entirety) if you didn’t see the alternate dimensions.
And being a dimensional (and possibly time) traveler could explain how she became so well educated and no one heard of her before now. She did the three colleges in our dimension and the other racial training in other ones. After all, the other training was “rumors”, according to Vorpp, not known fact that has other people available to verify. He could have just been having sour grapes about her prodigiousness, but also perhaps he wasn’t.
Either way, I find Scarlet an intriguing mystery for the time being. I don’t expect to know all of why she’s doing what she’s doing, yet.
And to the OP’s point about the molten alliance and how a woman couldn’t have formed them. Scarlet might just have been able to show she’s that strong. She does say in the invasion text that the Aetherblades follow her “b/c they like living.” She’s strong armed the steam punk pirates in to following her, she can show enough strength to make the Molten Alliance believe she can give them amazing power if they do as she says.
That’s the standard symbol for portals that are deactivated due to various reasons ingame. It means they shut down access to the portal momentarily, probably switching from one overflow to the next or something.
But the whole time it was there, people were going in and out of it?
I took a picture of the shrine literally days ago as a part of a personal tour of DR… Man, that place was awesome, and it got replaced by a pay-to-enter, mini Lion’s Arch. How lame.
Yay! Thank you for posting a picture. I’m still sad I don’t have one of my own. Especially since Balthazar is my human’s god of choice. :/
I didn’t really have an opinion on this until people started getting up in arms about it. Reminds me distastefully of real-life religious zealotry.
Cool story, Bro. Still want the shrine back in some manner. (Or at least an in-game reaction to it just disappearing like this. But still infinitely prefer the return of the shrine if possible.)
Edit: Maybe they could move the royal terrace behind the stadium where this rather unfortunately proportioned set piece is? (Compare its size to both my character and the watchknight on the bottom left of the first pic. It’s way too small to be so close.) And they could have an exclusive elevator portal leading up to it or something.
True. Possibly more likely is that she’s planning to undermine Jennah, similar to how the White Mantle and the Ministry have done or tried to do. She’s proven to be a hard target to assassinate, but if you can show that the Queen is powerless to prevent you from causing havoc in Divinity’s Reach after you publicly warned her when the attack would take place…
This is a very interesting point. If that’s where the story goes, I’ll really like it.
Not exactly lore related, but does the scan and meter of the poem bug anyone else? The first couplet seems correct. After that, it’s just a jumble of syllables that happen to rhyme on the end.
When it gets to the “lessons to teach/Divinity’s Reach” part it throws off the rythm for me. The rest seems good, though. A fumble on the writer’s part or intentional hint at Scarlet being a calculating, but still crazy woman? Not sure.
And now its gone. o.O Is it cus I’m on an overflow?
EDIT: Nvm. Back on regular server and its still gone. Was it in game accidentally?
Also there was a small red energy net hovering down in the center of the pavillion. You could see it best if you stood on top of the bird/roof thing and looked down. And now its gone, too.
I didn’t take a pic (cus I’m an idiot. /kicks herself), but I jumped thru it. Other than actually surviving the fall to the waypoint of the arena (thru a load screen), nothing interesting happened.
Everyone convenes in the upper level of Divinity’s Reach, anxiously waiting to hear what the Queen will announce.
Once all the emissaries have gathered on the stage, Queen Jennah appears, greeted with applause.
“Friends of Tyria, as you all know, this ceremony has been held to celebrate the unity of our forces. With this theme in mind, I cannot think of anyone else who I would rather deliver this news than…Trahearne.”
The curtains part and the Firstborn steps forward into a sea of whispers.
“My friends, it is my pleasure to announce that we have finally rid Orr of the Risen and permanently put a stop to Zhaitan’s influence. With the help of Queen Jennah, we will begin rebuilding Orr into the great city that it once was. Additionally, we will use Asuran technology capable of recreating the battles that we have fought (for those who haven’t finished the PS). Let us never forget the feats that can be achieved when we work as one!”
^I want this. This would be cool. And it would make sense since the rebuilding of Orr would be a very human-centric concern. (And technically its not a new zone, so :P to that argument.)
That watch is so pretty. They need to put those on sale somewhere. I’d totally buy that.
I love how the poem is filled with multiple layers of meaning. World being built on fog and sand, time for time to stop, “Kryta’s flames”. And its fun to say. This whole promotion is really quite cool.
I think that with all the heroes that have been attracted to the city by the gauntlet aswell will get their time to shine by defending the city. Those heroes, being us, will likely save alot of lives though I doubt we can save all.
Then Kiel will take credit for it. If not her, then someone. Save whatever you want,someone else will get the credit. Then they will use the power they’ve gained by taking credit for our hard work to do horrible things. Don’t believe me? Look at everything that happened because of our actions in GW1. We set loose a mad dictatorship, that has it’s only goal as maintaining more power at the expense of it’s suffering people. We put a freaking undead king with enough power to fight zhaitan into power in elon, where his first act was be as sadistic and vicious as possible to the few people there that helped us fight. We awoke an ender dragon….o.k. wait that one is a bit shaky you see there were these destroyer things etc. Still in almost every case where the player did not directly take credit, it was much worse for the world. Horrible things happened because we let people use power for us, but they weren’t ready for that power.
When did Colin say there would not be any new zones this year? Or the dragon fight line? As far as the dragons are concerned, we could easily have story involving them without a “dragon fight”. I’d like a source so I can see the actual wording, if you have it pls.
Honestly, thinking they chose a mini of her just for that rather hilarious Logan picture.
Also: All hail, the end of (pve) culling! (The fact we suddenly have twice as many citizens as we used to better not be Jennah’s surprise, though. >_>)
So, I was wondering, where is the inspiration for the fights in the Queen’s Gauntlet coming from? From a lore perspective, I mean. Is there a Liadri in GW history or somewhere out in the world? What about Halmi with his dogs, or some of the others?
Or did Queen Jennah/the Shining Blade/whoever was in charge of setting the gauntlet up just make up all these villains off the top of their heads?
It seems that the balloons do NOT reset. You need to find 30 unique balloons across the entire world map. This could make it problematic for players with only low level characters.
What percentage of players do you think fit that category?
o/
The game has grown since launch, you know. There are new players.
Also like all these. And a soiree would tie in with the theme of masks being offered in the gem store if it was a masquerade or something. (You know, besides the “Jennah is a mesmer.” thing)
Personally, I’d just like a UI element that lets me access the site’s newsfeed in game. And maybe a specific section with in that UI element archiving the short stories. No need for lore-based justification. Just a convenience thing that can be updated with an alert icon whenever there is anything new. That way people who just log straight in to the game rather than visit the official site wouldn’t miss the info.
Why must topics like this happen? Is this what our society has been reduced to? The constant struggle not for equality, but for demands being placed on art. We all have our values, but no one cause should define your life. If your really passionate about your morality then there are so many real life causes you can get involved in.
Perhaps the whole “it’s a video game or it’s art” arguments are overdone, yet they are the most constant and logical ones to make. Even if female body image was on the creators’ brain, does not you noticing it make it on yours as well? That is perspective. Step outside of yourselves from time to time.
Art without criticism isn’t art.
Criticize art about its content and meanings not just " I see metal chests ". That’s all I ask. Some maturity and not just juvenile critiques.
The content and meaning is exactly what’s being debated….
What a double standard put on the female image. What about guys like Superman? Tall, dark, in perfect shape and fearlessly brave. How does that effect my male body image? No, I’m told I have to be that guy.
Yet somehow when the same thing is applied to the female form, this is up for mature debate. It’s just not logical.
No one’s upset the watchknights are pretty (even if I think they aren’t cus their faces scare me) or that they exemplify positive traits like bravery or something (mostly cus they don’t, since they aren’t sapient.) So the Superman analogy doesn’t really apply.
As for double standards, I’d have as much of a problem if these were naked male forms since my main problem with the whole thing is the immodesty and the objectification it breeds. And it undercuts any positive image traits that can be garnered from these watchknight’s “pretty and deadly” vibe when there is fancy lacework to draw the eye to their derriers or an obviously naked form complete with exposed breasts. (And possibly portraying arousal, too, as the bolts could have been just more lacework. Instead they’re bolts that stick out.)
Why must topics like this happen? Is this what our society has been reduced to? The constant struggle not for equality, but for demands being placed on art. We all have our values, but no one cause should define your life. If your really passionate about your morality then there are so many real life causes you can get involved in.
Perhaps the whole “it’s a video game or it’s art” arguments are overdone, yet they are the most constant and logical ones to make. Even if female body image was on the creators’ brain, does not you noticing it make it on yours as well? That is perspective. Step outside of yourselves from time to time.
Art without criticism isn’t art.
Criticize art about its content and meanings not just " I see metal chests ". That’s all I ask. Some maturity and not just juvenile critiques.
The content and meaning is exactly what’s being debated….
Here’s one missed opportunity for the balloons and the escort events around them.
They could have given a little bit of backgrounds to the characters you were escorting.
Like while we wait between attacks, they could tell you why they were going to DR.
But i’m just nitpicking here.
Would have been an excellent addition, yeah.
Still, though, this update is really top notch so far as far as the story goes. I like it.
I was initially torn. I think the level of detail is beautiful (so beautiful). But do the watchknights really need nipples? Really? Once I realized that, I realized the watchknights present not just a typical skin-tight-I-can-fight-in-heels fantasy female body, but a naked female body to gawk at. Not even an attempt to hide the objectification. Do they really need heels? I wish they would have been androgynous, or that the lace/engraving effect was more emblematic of clothing. Do the breasts and butt really need the extra attention drawn through the lace design? Was someone like “You know, that engraving on the genitalia isn’t eye-catching enough… let’s give the robots nipples, too”?
And if you think a single topless male NPC (Braham) is equivalent to a whole type of NPC that makes up an army that we see over and over again in the span of seconds in the case of the Jubilee events, supposedly commissioned by a strong female ruler, I… I don’t even know what to tell you other than to ask you to sit and think about it for a while. And yes, EDI from Mass Effect 3 was way less sexualized in design than this. The details of her breasts, for glaring example, were kept inside of her “suit”.
Some sort of equivalence that could ~make things even~ is to get some male watchknights up in there with their testes made into the bellybutton/nipple “bolts” and some embroidered codpieces.
Those are my opinions, yes. That’s also not what I said in that post. You’re still arguing past me instead of at me. Reading comprehension, please.
You can’t argue with an opinion, and thus I can’t argue “at” you and am forced to argue against your method instead of your content. What you’ve said is irrelevant if it isn’t logical.
We’re all having a discussion about whether the aesthetic of the robots is overtly sexualized or not, not whether they are actual women. As I’ve said to you several times now. You are right. They are not actual women capable of biological reproduction. That’s also not what anyone is talking about besides you. Not responding to you anymore now unless you are actually on topic. kthnx.
And the matter of the fact they imitate the female form and that imitation is overtly sexualized is what is being argued in this thread. You realized that female shaped robots aren’t actual women and argued that point successfully in a condescending manner. Grats.
Your OPINION is that they are overtly sexualized.
Your OPINION is also that overt sexualization of objects is “wrong”.
Those are not facts.
Those are my opinions, yes. That’s also not what I said in that post. You’re still arguing past me instead of at me. Reading comprehension, please.
You’re being ridiculous. You know the problem is thakittens an overtly sexualized female aestetic. Its immaterial whether it is biologically female and capable of reproduction when we’re talking about the imagery used, not debating a robot’s biology. Your argument is a red herring.
So you concede my point that they are not females and have adjusted your argument to be that your opinion is that anything that resembles a female is “wrong” as long as it meets your personal definition of overtly sexual.
Fine. Your opinion is your opinion. It is by definition unprovable, subjective and arbitrary and thus inadmissable in a debate.
The fact of the matter is that these are robots and not females.
And the matter of the fact they imitate the female form and that imitation is overtly sexualized is what is being argued in this thread. You realized that female shaped robots aren’t actual women and argued that point successfully in a condescending manner. Grats.
The first thing I noticed when looked at their chest was not the nipple. It was the detail of the gears.
First thing I noticed, too. But once it was pointed out, its been rather hard to unsee.
And to head off the nitpickers here: just because it had to be pointed out to me doesn’t mean the sexualization isn’t there. I can see it now, see the people who pointed it out have a point, and agree with them.
Being modeled after the female form means they have a female model. You’re trying to split a hair that isn’t there.
These robots cannot reproduce and thus are asexual. Female is a reproductive gender and is thus inherently sexual. Asexual means “not sexual”. You can’t be sexual and asexual at the same time because they are mutually exclusive.
Additionally, the fact that there is only one model directly prevents that model from being a “female” model due to the lack of a male model. A female is a counterpart to a male in the reproductive process. If there is no such thing as a male, then there inherently is no such thing as a female as well.
Again, these are robots. They have no gender. The fact that you find their appearance similar to something that has a gender does not bestow a gender on that object.
You’re being ridiculous. You know the problem is that it is an overtly sexualized female aestetic. Its immaterial whether it is biologically female and capable of reproduction when we’re talking about the imagery used, not debating a robot’s biology. Your argument is a red herring.
You folks are all just too young, first time I saw them I was immediatly reminded of “Metropolis” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolis_. A Classic if there ever was one and I thought the Devs took inspiration from there…
If the robots looked like the statue in that wiki article, I wouldn’t have a problem. Or heck, EDI from mass effect. She was pretty but still clothed.
Again, not seeing the nudity and high heels… Her body purposely has very little definition in those areas, with just the general form and a matte finish instead. If the robots in this game were an homage to them and looked like that, I wouldn’t have a problem. They’re not. (Or at best, its a very poor attempt.)
I’m mostly upset that they had to have -high heels.-
I mean… really? really?
Wearing high heels means you’re no longer capable?
Not capable of running around and fighting enemies? Yes. You can’t sword fight in heels, especially heels like that, effectively. Just b/c the mechanics of the game ignore that doesn’t make it less true. The game’s mechanics could make a fish levitate rather than swim, too. Doesn’t change the fact it’d be ridiculous.
The heels are there as part of the aesthetic and the aesthetic is overtly sexualized in nature.
They don’t have a female model either, just a mechanical clockwork robot model.
Are you seriously claiming that they aren’t modeled after the female form?
Strawman Detected.
What are you talking about? That’s what you said. “They don’t have a female model either, just a mechanical clockwork robot model.” /confused
I didn’t say that the female form did not influence the design, I said that there are no female models. They are mechanical clockwork robots. They can’t be females and thus it is not a female model.
Being modeled after the female form means they have a female model. You’re trying to split a hair that isn’t there.
You folks are all just too young, first time I saw them I was immediatly reminded of “Metropolis” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolis_. A Classic if there ever was one and I thought the Devs took inspiration from there…
If the robots looked like the statue in that wiki article, I wouldn’t have a problem. Or heck, EDI from mass effect. She was pretty but still clothed.
I just assumed they were an ode to Fritz Lang’s 1927 film “Metropolis” . I think some of you may be getting upset over what should be a beautiful thing….a nod to a dead guy.
Did those robots have those “bolts” on their chests and stiletto heels? I’ve never seen the movie, but somehow I doubt it. Correct me if I’m wrong, though.
It’s a question of semiotics. The symbols of strength, prowess, dominance and grace, all valuable in celebrating the in-game human race, could be just as easily articulated without the heels or alluding to nudity, or by only representing one gender with these constructs. By using these signs something is being said about gender, like it or not.
Tott, there’s plenty of evidence to the contrary. You ignore it and brush it under the patriarchy. Your feeling of offense is not because there’s some master plot to sexualize women and promote them only through the male gaze.
In fact, where you see gross, unrealistic shapes that could forever ruin femininity, others see beauty and power in SPITE of form. The Watchknights are powerful regardless of how they look. However, all you see is how they look (women) and suppose that it MUST be sexualization, abuse of women, making women weak, etc.
It’s perspective, and your perspective is colored by sex-negative radical critical feminism.
They’re naked women fighting in dominatrix-style stiletto heels. I’m as conservative as southern girls come and I see the sexualization of these statues, too. I don’t understand how you and others can’t.
I absolutely agree that there could have been more Balthazar-themed surroundings in the arena. Perhaps it is possible to implement something like that after the celebrations are over?
This would be good. Implementing a new statue in the arena itself or maybe a new training grounds/shrine thing somewhere else in the district, since I believe they’ve said the pavilion will not be accessible when there aren’t events happening.. They could also replace the white tents on the hill directly opposite the royal terrace, on the other corner of the Balthazar Low road, and put it there. It would give them time to implement if they waited till the festivities were over.
No I meant an announcement x.x I never ever stepped foot in the area cause I waiting to reach it with my RP. I wonder how big and deep the hole was in comparison with what is going on now! : s
You’re RPing… You should expect the world to change without you. Unless you’re RPing a time lord.[/quote]
Still doesn’t change the fact there was no warning about the shrine changing. Not like the giant tent and scaffolding over the hole.
I’m honestly angry at this point.
Last year the game started off terrific. Who cares if all the WoW kiddies got bored within the first 3 weeks and ran back as soon as their Pandas&Pokemon expansion came out? That’s the way it should have stayed. Not slowly being contorted into a l00t treadmill ever since Fractals and everything else in that vein were forced into it.
Gw1 kept simple. We’d get a mini for each Alt, and all the Cupcakes we could find.
And we could STACK those cupcakes with whatever hell other Consumes we wanted.
I want that back. Not this …. Zynga iPad App that not even Dhuum would curse upon us…
Why not just construct a statue of Balthazar INSIDE the Arena?
Afterall, since he’s the Tyrian god of War, it would make sense if he was inside the Queens Pavilion center square.
That’d be good, too, but the arena will be closed when not in use for an event, so having a shrine outside to replace the one that was replaced is most important here, imo.
World design and narrative takes a back seat to a cash shop trinket…
The Royal Terrace itself, with the merchants/stations within, isn’t even laid out in a believable way. I would rather use the crafting stations from release. At least they look cool and fit in the world, even the smaller ones out in the starting zones.
The Royal Terrace has a very nice looking design and is laid out believably. The only problem I have with it is that it replaced Balthazar’s shrine.
Please, devs, is it possible to put his shrine back? Or at least put his shrine in another spot?
Along the same vein as other threads, I just wanted to say that I love most of the new Sovereign skins, specifically the dagger and the focus. They look lovely and my earth elementalist is gonna have a ball with them.
This whole promotion is really quite cool.
Cant beat that last Liadr chick.)
