Guild Wars 2

Yep, Guild Wars 2 is as dead as that old EverQuest game.

Oh…wait…

I liked Lion’s Arch, but for me that same feeling happened during the three day headstart when I explored most of Divinity’s Reach. Still my favorite city in the game.

Except that we’re not the people who did that. I know I never did. I don’t have an issue with other MMOs, and had just come from playing both Rift and Lord of the Rings Online just prior to buying the game.

Actually, I don’t think it was your post I was referring to. Sorry if you thought that.

Teen phenomena? Can you elaborate?

They were probably too busy building an awesome game to bother playing someone else’s game. Did that not occur to you?

If anyone owes anyone an apology, I think all the people raining down negativity owe the rest of the GW2 community an apology. It’s one thing to complain, but when every forum thread is repeated negativity or every good thread is hijacked, it makes coming to the forums a real pain to deal with.

You cannot even start a thread about enjoying the game without someone trying to turn it around on you. It’s getting quite tiresome.

You know, it’s getting to be where someone can’t even ask a simple question anymore without a bunch of negativity raining down on their threads. If you can’t answer the questions, please don’t jump into to say: “doesn’t matter, game is broken, hurr;” because it’s really getting old.

On topic, I’m personally hoping that they add more dynamic events or open up some more explorable areas.

SamTheGuardian.2938:

1.) There are a lot of players upset about DR.

True. There are just as many players tired of hearing the constant complaints about it, but nobody wants to address that.

SamTheGuardian.2938:

2.) There are a lot of players who are leaving because of this (we don’t have numbers but the forums are lit up over it).

The forums represent a very small portion of the player base. If the population of the servers are any indication, it’s a very very VERY small portion.

SamTheGuardian.2938:

3.) The implementation of DR came unplanned post launch as a response by the game studio to a problem (broken system) that did not reveal itself in beta testing

Why is it no one is ever mad at the people who caused these systems to be put into place (bots and exploiters), and are always mad at the companies that had to implement them in the first place? Also, the system wasn’t broken. They likely just underestimated the bot problem.

SamTheGuardian.2938:

4.) Most MMOs fail, even the great ones like SWTOR. When you look at all the data and try to figure out why that happens it generally falls back on things like item 3.

Actually, the number one reason why an MMO fails is lack of a player base or sales, something which Guild Wars 2 is having no issues with currently.

The studio in panic mode throwing solutions at broken systems. Solutions they have not properly tested or considered long term fall out of. My assessment right now based on what we do know is that all hands are on deck just trying to just keep the water out of the ship.

I’m sorry, you didn’t tell us you worked for ArenaNet. I’m glad you shared this insider information with us.

Oh wait…

Also, you answer your own question here:

SamTheGuardian.2938:

Are resources focusing on new content? We don’t know! In a screen cast Friday Johnathan ‘Chaplin’ Sharp said that most resources were focused on fixing things right now.

See, there’s your answer. What’s the problem?

They worked very hard to create a great game and then in haste end up destroying it. This is how great MMOs die unfortunately and I would say that statement isn’t even a point to dispute you can see it time and time again. So my question is how long before we know…

Wrong. I would dispute this point all day long. They haven’t destroyed their game at all. I log in daily and know many others who do as well.

SamTheGuardian.2938:

I don’t ask because I hate GW2, I ask because I love this game and don’t want to see it happen. I’m not happy with ArenaNet’s communication post launch, but that is subjective.

I’m going to call you out on this. If that’s all you’re upset about, why didn’t you just say that instead of ranting about so many other things?

SamTheGuardian.2938:

There were some rumors at Gamescon this year related to GvG, etc which Colin Johansen quickly squashed, but in his public statement on those rumors he said the community could expect to hear about ArenaNet’s post launch plans very soon. That was a month ago. I just think there’s some reason to be concerned at this point.

Yes. Because new systems can be put into place in a month while so many other issues are at hand. Also, they should have an expansion pack out already, three new races, eight new classes and half of Guild Wars 3. /sarcasm off

Here you go:

How long should they be given? As long as they need. Give them time to sort it all out. They’ll take as long as they take.

Because, even though it might be affecting more than the exploiters, it is doing the job that needs to be done to stop the exploiters, which is what’s the most important thing. As far as whether or not it is “unfairly punishing” people is a matter of debate. The few times I encountered it weren’t that big of a deal; because I’m not one to stay and do one thing over and over anyway.

I’m not saying the complaint isn’t legitimate. Just give them time to tweak it and figure out what they want to do with it.

Well, if we’re being honest, GW2 isn’t perfect. I know that. But what works, works really well (and the majority of it works). The bugs can be fixed. I’d like to think that the DR code will eventually either be phased out or just won’t be too much of a concern.

It was only a matter of time before they were dealt with. I’m glad to see progress in this area.

Surprisingly, the game is completely opposite of these forums. I have never played an MMO with such a group of nice players in my life. People will go out of their way to heal/rescue you or help you out. I do the same for others.

Even the map chat can be pleasant when people ask questions and others respond. I’ve played some other MMOs where asking a question got you labeled as a noob and everyone tried to shame you for asking something really basic, even though the people doing the shaming were all in the same position once. Makes no sense to me.

The amount of teamwork and fellowship in the game is astounding. I get more “thank you” responses from people in a day than I would have gotten in a month in other MMOs due to the competitive nature of those games.

I think the best thing that GW2 did for MMOs was show that there’s a way to do PvE that doesn’t require competition, while still allowing for competition in the form of good PvP.

There are a couple of key differences between a dynamic event that requires you to kill 10 bandit waves and another MMO giving you a quest to kill 10 rats. Let’s examine what they are:

1) You can fail to kill the bandit waves. The bandits can win (I’ve seen it happen). Can the rats win? They can kill you, sure…but you can keep coming back until you have all 10 and still beat the quest or restart it. You can fail to beat a dynamic quest.

2) You can leave in the middle or start at the end. In other words, you don’t have to kill all 10 bandit groups. Maybe you came in when 9/10 were destroyed and just wanted to help folks finish the thing up. You still get credit. How many “kill 10 rat” quests give you a starting credit of 9/10?

3) As someone else already pointed out, the rats will probably be sitting in a field. The waves of bandits are whole waves of bandits rushing at you. Similar questing, different execution…and far more exciting, IMO.

4) Other people can help you that aren’t in your party. When you go to kill those 10 rats in another MMO, if the area is swarmed with folks, how many of their kills count toward your completion? Answer: 0, unless they are in your party. Against the bandit hordes, everyone’s kills help you achieve your goal.

5) When the quest is over, you get your reward. In other MMOs, you must travel back to the person who gave you the quest or another person who could be far away to receive your reward. Maybe not a big deal, but a huge time saver IMO.

6) When given a quest to kill rats, they will not usually dynamically become tougher based on the number of people in your party. In GW2, those 10 bandit hordes might be tougher if 20 extra people come along to help you out. A bandit veteran or champion might even become involved.

In summary, I think it’s a weak argument when people say that dynamic event quests in GW2 are just like quests in other MMOs because they include an arbitrary number required for completion. They aren’t. Only the framework idea that you are on a “quest” remains. I am still baffled that people cannot see this.

I don’t feel there are enough appreciation threads. Honestly, every thread seems like someone is raging about something. Sometimes it’s understandable, but most times it just seems really blown out of proportion.

…I just can’t go back to other MMOs. Guild Wars 2 has completely spoiled me with its innovative approach to the genre. Good job.

I’m sure someone negative will come along an hijack my appreciation thread with their complaints, but until that happens, I just wanted it to be known how much I love this game and how happy I am with it. I’m sure it will only improve over time.

Working in an industry related to the gaming industry does not make you an expert in how things work. I don’t mean that to sound rude, but that’s the facts.

I am a computer programmer, though, so maybe I can explain to you why it seems like the bugs are being ignored when they probably aren’t.

Programs can be really complex. Many factors go into how complex they can become: How long they have been worked on, how many programmers have touched the code over its life-cycle, how many different modules, classes, functions or sub-routines have been created for them, etc.

When a program is really really large and complex, finding and eliminating issues may not be as easy as people think. Take the bugged skill point challenges. You probably believe that there’s a special place in the code that handles those things, and you would likely be right. However, it’s possible that the issue isn’t caused by something within that section of code. Something in another part of the code entirely could be causing the issue, which makes it really hard to track down.

Most syntax errors can be located pretty easily with compilers and whatnot, but a logic error may go unnoticed even when the code is desk checked and tested. Programmers will sometimes pull their hair out for hours/days/weeks trying to figure out what’s wrong, and it could be something as simple as one symbol in the code being wrong and not obviously so.

(True story: I knew a programmer who spent a full day wondering why his function wasn’t working, only to find out that he had used ‘=’ instead of ‘==,’ and even though it was an obvious solution, he couldn’t see it because there are times where ‘=’ is appropriate and it didn’t stand out as an immediate error, nor did the compiler know it was an error).

Anyway, food for thought.

Not true. If you were thrown from your horse and couldn’t get back on it until after combat was over, but wanted to escape the combat (maybe you were losing), then I think a speed boost would be a life-saver.

Also, I imagine that mounts would be expensive or level restricted, so not everyone would have one at every level.

There are many ways it could be balanced.

Honestly, I don’t care if the game ever gets mounts. I’m fine without them, and I was prepared to disagree with the OP completely. But, it just occurred to me that there are ways it could work if ANet wants to explore the option, that’s all.

I was prepared to disagree with the OP, but then I gave it some thought. Correctly done, mounts could contribute a lot to GW2.

Hear me out, here’s my thoughts on how ArenaNet could handle it (hope they’re paying attention too):

• Movement speed would only be as fast as the speed you get when running with a speed boost, except permanent while mounted.

• While on the mount, the mount can act as your weapon. It would unlock a new group of weapon skills in combat so that you could guide the mount to attack. If you lose half your hit points, you are thrown from the mount and temporarily knocked down, and cannot get back on the mount until after the combat ends.

• Any monster ability that would knock you down would also knock you off your mount, not allowing you to get back on the mount until after the combat is over.

• You would be dismounted automatically if you entered any interior area or any city. They aren’t needed there and shouldn’t be allowed. Especially in dungeons.

• If ANet wants more gold sinks, your mount could require an upkeep to keep it fed and whatnot.

• Mounts can’t jump. No using mounts for jumping puzzles.

Those are my thoughts as to how they could add them. (It would probably be an expansion thing, though…I can’t imagine something like that in a content update). Thoughts?

Definitely the fun.

I’ve been looking for an MMO for a long time that is just fun straight out of the gate, and GW2 nailed that for me. Been playing since the headstart almost daily, and don’t plan to slow down anytime soon.

Ganadorf.3460:

Why would I need a group of people just to level up? We wouldn’t all be the same level for very long, anyway

You don’t need people to level up, but it is a multiplayer game. Just saying.

Also, it doesn’t matter if you’re the same level. If they’re higher than you, they will be scaled downward. This is the first game I’ve ever played where level doesn’t really mean much when it comes to partying with people.

I never had this problem in WoW, or any other MMO. It’s not like I’m Raiding or PvPing, I’m just trying to get a Class to 80, but I have to avoid half the quests in the game

What? Seriously? I haven’t had any problems soloing anywhere in the game (except dungeons). You can even take out champions with the right tactics.

I enjoy the challenge of raising people during combat. So much so that my Ranger took a skill that allows me to drop a trap around me while reviving someone so that monsters will set it off if they try to attack me.

Part of the fun for me is getting to raise that person while putting myself in danger. There are times where I will “break off” of the revive attempt if the damage gets to be too much, but I’m always looking for a way to get back in there and help out.

It’s a balancing act, and like a lot of things in this game, it’s part of what makes it different and fun.

At level 19, you barely have any of the skills unlocked and you aren’t fighting some of the really difficult opponents. Start running dungeons, that’ll change your mind.

I find it’s the opposite. I haven’t quit, I’ve just been too busy to play the last two days, but I’m eagerly waiting to jump back into the game the first chance I get.

And, while I find the forums entertaining, I really hate all the negativity that seems to be rampant here. The game does so many things right, but all some people can seem to do is moan and groan about a few hiccups, bugs or things that don’t go their way/meet their expectations. It gets really old.

I think the jumping puzzles are great. And Colonel Kernel is right, something you want to do is not something you need to do.

You aren’t required to get the vistas, so it’s not mandatory that you do them. If you want to 100% complete the map, you have to do them. End of line.

While I’m all for more PvP options, I certainly wouldn’t want to see a “duel” option enter the PvE section of the game. The ability to duel one-on-one in PvP is one thing, but PvE should definitely be free of that kind of stuff.