Guild Wars 2

CorneliusCoffin.3169:

I’m glad you mention Tolkien with his evil overlord, who’s almost indefeatable, except for the fact that he wears his one ring of power over, instead of under his armor. And the giant, quasi-omniscient eye that this evil overlord later becomes, which has the capability to command giant orc-armies, yet for some reason leaves the only path to its destruction, that is the way up to Mount Doom, where the one ring was forged, completely ungarded.

Yes, I am in fact familiar with the concept of suspension of disbelieve. That’s why I mentioned all those things. If you can suspend your disbelive so much that you accept ogres, giants, dragons etc, I don’t see why you can’t accept a villain whose actually really clever and really powerful.

That you’re even bothering to argue that Guild Wars 2’s Scarlet Briar is as well-developed as Lord of the Rings’ Sauron shows a lack of literary sophistication on your part. Please don’t take that as an insult; some people like Saving Private Ryan and Mozart, some people like Transformers and Justin Bieber.

There’s nothing wrong with liking Transformers and Justin Bieber. But you lose us when you start trying to convince us Transformers is just as well-written and directed as Saving Private Ryan or that Justin Bieber has just as much musical talent as Mozart did.

CorneliusCoffin.3169:

3.) The argument that Scarlet’s over-the-top superpowers and her whole demeanor are unrealistic.

I am sorry, but I have to fight this one with sarcasm and I apologize in advance, but:
Really?
In a world where centaurs, trolls and giants live, where dragons spawn to spread magic and bring the dead back to life, where gods and demigods used to walk amongst mortals, an insane, superpowered plant-person is unrealistic? That’s where you draw the line? Really?

Yes, really. Trolls, giants, dragons, demigods…these are all present in Tolkien’s world. Yet his villains are well crafted and believable, and they don’t shatter the suspension of disbelief. Are familiar with that term…“suspension of disbelief”?

The presence of fictional elements, particularly those found within the fantasy and sci-fi genres, is obviously unrealistic. But if handled deftly, suspension of disbelief – the ability to set aside the fact that none of what you’re seeing is realistic – can allow us to enjoy the plot or setting nonetheless. Poorly handled, and these fictional elements destroy any chance of suspension of disbelief.

Singer.8740:

If you had been playing the game since flame and frost you would know that scarlet has an army of molten alliance tech specialists churning out weapons and materials and a horde of aetherblade pirates supplying her with man power and inquest innovations.

I have been playing since Flame and Frost, and I’m well aware of her minions. But even with the Dredge, Flame Legion, and Aetherblade at her beck and call…have you seen that thing? It looks to be the size of Divinity’s Reach. It’s a flying ship the size of a city. That’s about as believable as her being accepted by each of the asuran colleges.

So where did Scarlet get her recources to build…that?

The resources (materials, manpower, etc) required to build the space ship in Lornar’s Pass look to be immense. I understand the developers were going for “wow factor” here, but for me personally far fetched things like this are jarringly inconceivable to the point of being groan-inducing.

ThanatosAngel.8024:

Also, as I’m sure it has been brought up many, many times before…“ranger” does not equal “ranged combat.” Look it up. The word has many definitions, but “ranged combat” and “ranged weapons” have nothing to do with it.

Something else that’s been brought up many, many times before comes directly from the official website:

Rangers rely on a keen eye, a steady hand, and the power of nature itself. Unparalleled archers, rangers are capable of bringing down foes from a distance with their bows. With traps, nature spirits, and a stable of loyal pets at their command, rangers can adapt to any situation.

Whatever “ranger” means in the real world, it’s clear ArenaNet is advertising them as ranged combat specialists.

xXxOrcaxXx.9328:

Is this a troll?

There’s a line between trolling and satire, and OP toes it nicely.

Jamais vu.5284:

Have you even read his entire post?

Yep. The idea that the writers and developers would intentionally create something so bad as to be publicly mocked is far fetched, in my opinion. So if we dismiss that idea (OP hasn’t, evidently), that only leaves the option that it was unintentional. I can’t believe they didn’t put forth an earnest effort to make her a good character, but there’s little argument they missed the mark by a wide margin. Thus, I said, “You’re mistaken when you say she was successful because the players deeply hate her.”

Tobias Trueflight.8350:

darkace.8925:

Tobias Trueflight.8350:

darkace.8925:

Bob F It.5701:

12 months of work condensed into 17 clicks. And in this version, we don’t even have to worry about side character development.

Maybe it’s just me, but I’m finding it more fun to run through Personal Story paths.

I was going to make a snide remark about our characters being side characters, but we’ve been given so little development since release (virtually none) that I don’t think we even qualify as side characters.

Just like Guild Wars 1!

I’m sorry, but what’s your point? Are you defending bad writing by pointing out other bad writing? Or was your going off topic unintended?

Not off topic. We’re talking about how sour characters never developed as characters right? Guild Wars 1 was the same way, really.

And since both are, ostensibly, by the same company . . . it’s like expecting them to actually get innovative with the Madden franchise.

Fair enough.

Tobias Trueflight.8350:

darkace.8925:

Bob F It.5701:

12 months of work condensed into 17 clicks. And in this version, we don’t even have to worry about side character development.

Maybe it’s just me, but I’m finding it more fun to run through Personal Story paths.

I was going to make a snide remark about our characters being side characters, but we’ve been given so little development since release (virtually none) that I don’t think we even qualify as side characters.

Just like Guild Wars 1!

I’m sorry, but what’s your point? Are you defending bad writing by pointing out other bad writing? Or was your going off topic unintended?

Bob F It.5701:

12 months of work condensed into 17 clicks. And in this version, we don’t even have to worry about side character development.

Maybe it’s just me, but I’m finding it more fun to run through Personal Story paths.

I was going to make a snide remark about our characters being side characters, but we’ve been given so little development since release (virtually none) that I don’t think we even qualify as side characters.

You’re mistaken when you say she was successful because the players deeply hate her. There’s “deeply hating” a fictional character because it’s well made (think Joffry from A Game of Thrones), and there’s “deeply hating” a character because it’s poorly made, shallow, cliched, unbelievable, and crammed down your throat at every turn (think Scarlet from Guild Wars 2)

The only stupid vistas in this game are the ones they didn’t put in Southsun.

lordkrall.7241:

kokiman.2364:

So people get used to it cough accountbound dyes cough

You mean the change made quite some time before release, and with the alternative being a rather grindy mess that most people probably would have hated even more than the current system?

Spin it any way you want, but there were other alternatives that featured neither “grindy messes” nor character-bound dyes could have been explored. The change wasn’t made to save anyone a grindy mess, it was done to increase dye pack sales. I don’t understand how anyone can claim otherwise.

And note that while I would obviously prefer account-bound dyes, I don’t really have a problem with them being character-bound since they’re just cosmetic items. But this…this is something entirely different. This I have a problem with.

lordkrall.7241:

shootist.3607:

They hired a former Nexon ‘expert’ for monetization, afaik. Doesn’t this say everything?

They did hire say expert several MONTHS BEFORE the release of the game though. So it is not something new. And if she did all this, one would wonder why she waited over a year with it.

Maybe revenue from the cash shop is slowing? If that’s the case, then I wonder how far they’re willing to go down this slippery slope.

Wow. And I thought the Thaumanova Reactor fractal was a slap in the face. We waited months for that fractal; some of use even based our vote on that fractal. One of the developers teased something to the effect of “I wonder what happens when Chaos Magic mixes with the Mists.” The possibilities stemming from that were endless. And instead we got Scarlet. Again. But this…this takes the cake. I’m not even into WvW and I find this insulting. I say again…wow.

Vol.7601:

I like how you neglect the fact that APB had to be relaunched because the previous company was in financial distress, let alone APB has pretty poor reviews.

OP isn’t discussing another developer’s financial health. OP isn’t discussing another game’s reviews. OP is discussing character creation as it related to Guild Wars 2. Do try to stay on topic.

If a new race is introduced at the same time new zones are opened up, I’d rather have the same thing we have for Kryta, Ascalon, Siverpeaks, and Maguuma (a 1-15 zone, a 15-25 zone, and at least two more non-level 80 zones). If new races aren’t going to be introduced, I’d like a mix of mid-level zones with one level 80 zone.

Though I think there’s virtually no chance of it ever happening, I’ve requested alternate voices here. As to fans providing the new voices, I’m pretty sure that could cause problems with the Voice Actors Guild.

Vayne.8563:

I think people are spoiled.

Ah, the “you’re spoiled” card…how original. “If you have criticisms of this game then you must be spoiled, because I think it’s fine the way it is.”

Vayne.8563:

There’s two weeks now, one of which is mostly passed, before the next update. I think that’s the point.

It’s not like we didn’t have two week updates for the last several months before the Christmas break.

I don’t care if there are daily updates if the quality of the updates isn’t up to par or the content of the updates is uninteresting. That’s the point.

Vayne.8563:

I’d also like to note that a lot of people were asking for a break from the two week content, because they felt overwhelmed by the content. That’s not a complaint I’ve often heard in response to MMO patch updates.

That’s probably because most MMO patch updates don’t drop a checklist in your lap and tell you you’ve got two weeks to finish it before it’s taken away and another checklist is dumped in your lap. People are usually free to enjoy MMO patch updates at their own pace.

zenleto.6179:

What were you doing before this update? The game hasn’t stopped.

This particular defense of the Living Story comes up far to often. Whatever someone enjoyed before this update will eventually run out or grow stale. If they want more content in the vein exploring new zones, experiencing new Personal Story, or trying out new builds they’re out of luck. That means, effectively, the game has or will die for those who don’t enjoy the Living Story. And before you reply with “so go play something else,” remember that a larger community is and always will be better than a smaller one where MMOs are concerned.

bri.2359:

I would first suggest the people doing this event read dulfy’s guide. All the info is there on how to advance the event and which champs are at the end of each lane.

The issue isn’t one of ignorance, it’s one of gross incompetence.

Rezz.8019:

So the jungle dragon is controlling her. How original.

“Ah, yes…the Reapers. We’ve dismissed those claims.”

My post isn’t exactly an answer to the question you posed, but it is related.

It’s not uncommon for people to burn out on video games; even those games they really like. When this happens, taking a break from the game is usually just what the doctor ordered to recharge the interest in the game. But with the temporary nature of the Living Story, players are being punished for taking breaks from this game. This…forces is too strong a word…strongly encourages them to keep playing whether their burned out or not. And when players keep playing a game on which they’re needing a break because outside forces are making them to feel they have to, that can and often does leads to jaded outlook on the game and those who developed it.

I know it’s never going to happen – it’s neither necessary nor cost-effective – but I’d personally pay a decent chunk of money for a different voice file for humans. Don’t get me wrong, the voice actors they went with did a fine enough job. But certain voices just don’t match certain looks. Plus, playing a new, different looking character that sounds exactly like one I’ve spent more than a few hours with doesn’t quite feel “new”.

HykCraft.4610:

The ONLY time you encounter ruined mats, is when you are using salvaging materials that are LOWER level than what those nodes need, usually in the leveling area (etc 15-25, 25-40). Using a level 10 pickaxe in a 25-40 area with copper nodes could possibly result in ruined materials.

I’ve mined during battle, and I’ve had no ruined materials.

False. As the post directly above you accurately states, a trait triggering an effect while gathering will cause you to harvest ruined materials.

vrannar.5618:

WoW devs NEVER tell ya how to beat their bosses. The best groups do then publish videos and guides. Too much complaining, these fights are amazing.

WoW has instanced bosses. Think for a moment what that means. That means you can choose who is going to fight the boss alongside you. Just as importantly, that means you can choose who is NOT going to fight the boss alongside you. You don’t have to worry about some random guy being AFK in a turret…a turret upon which the entire fight (and the hour(s) spent waiting for the fight) hinges.

Sinbold.8723:

So they remove things that are useful and only available from the chest and add Essences of Luck and Scroll of Knowledge? Anyone other than me feel this was a bad change?

So they replaced a mildly useful Karma Booster and replaced it with Essences of Luck and Scrolls of Knowledge (two things that can be found in abundance in just 30 minutes of mindless champion-zerging)? Makes sense to me.

I’ll agree with you that the writing for Scarlet and the Living Story in general has been pretty bad, but I’ll disagree with you that the writing in Guild Wars was any better. It had a different tone, sure; but it was still pretty bad.

Smooth Penguin.5294:

Don’t worry about it. As I mentioned in a different post, the TTS Guild will analyse the encounter, and beat it. We’ll then provide some tips on how to go about it.

So ArenaNet made an event solely for mega-guilds like TTS? I sure do hope this game’s population holds, lest events like this and Tequatl go forever unbeatable.

PS – You don’t get to decide what people should and shouldn’t worry about. Everyone has their own opinions; you shouldn’t poopoo those of people with whom you disagree.

lordkrall.7241:

Didn’t we have more or less the exact same thread a few hours after Tequatl was updated as well?

Give it a few days and people will figure it out, just as with Tequatl.

And a week after that it will be nothing more than an afterthought to the casual player, just as with Tequatl. And for the record, I have no problem with the difficulty of this event (or Teq), but I do feel they could scale much better. I don’t see why these fights couldn’t be just as difficult for a group of 25 or 40 as they are for 80 to 100.

The Gates Assassin.9827:

Because the only reason to play video games is if it gives you rewards.

The reason to play video games is to have fun. If OP doesn’t find the kind of content being implemented in the Living Story, and there’s nothing new being offered by Living Story, wouldn’t it behoove him to speak up?

CuRtoKy.8576:

Celestial => 39% Crit Dmg
Berserker => 62% Crit Dmg

======
Pre Patch (Currently – full Celestial vs full Berserker/critical damage)

Celestial => 62%
Berserker => 71%

Ouch. I didn’t jump through the time-gated hoops to get a set of Celestial, but I’d be none too happy if I did.

Boneheart.3561:

darkace.8925:

Like new zones, new Personal Story, new races, etc. How many people look forward to runing around Lion’s Arch pressing F to break 150 dragon pinatas for achievement points? I don’t know the answer to this one.

How many people look forward to exploring the Crystal Desert, engaging Primordus and his minions, or playing a Tengu? I don’t know the answer to this one, either; but I’ll bet it’s a hell of a lot more than the first group.

So no special events/holidays, just give us the dragons and huge updates. As soon as the game was released, they should’ve been working on that?

Those special events/holidays didn’t feel nearly so special when they were wedged between Scarlet events. What made them special in the past was lost when they were reduced to just another Living Story update.

Changes like this aren’t out of line, but it does underscore the punishing effect time-gating ascended crafting has on those who want to craft multiple sets of weapons or armor (particularly if they have multiple characters).

Phenn.5167:

Why are balance changes universally made with PvP in focus?

As a PvE player who has zero use for Hunter’s Shot and Unsteady Ground, I often ask myself this very question.

Mindx.9610:

They were having fun with it, you can tell that alot of detail enters their mind and carefully pick and choose what they want to say in a way that wont reveal to much.

You’re all just stuck up

Man do I love the “blame the players” crowd. Criticize game design elements? You’re entitled. Criticize a lack of professionalism? You’re stuck up. It’s somehow you’re fault, not theirs. Gotta love it.

Edit: I’m not saying the developers in the stream were unprofessional, as I’ve not seen it. But obviously there are some among us who feel they were. And of course those who feel that way are being attacked for their opinion by those who want to defend the game and its makers against all criticisms, legitimate of otherwise.

Xavi.6591:

Bacon, sushi, cheeseburgers…
Stop it! Just stop it!
This thread is making me hungry!

But we haven’t even got to the vanilla custards and red velvet cakes yet.

Any Scarlet invasion if enough people are participating.

I gave each of my characters one unique crafting discipline, then I gave all of them Cooking. If you’ve got high level character and some bank space, Cooking really easy to level on multiple characters.

Boneheart.3561:

Flytrap.8075:

We need real, substantial content; enough with these biweekly achievement point farmfests.

Like?

Like new zones, new Personal Story, new races, etc. How many people look forward to runing around Lion’s Arch pressing F to break 150 dragon pinatas for achievement points? I don’t know the answer to this one.

How many people look forward to exploring the Crystal Desert, engaging Primordus and his minions, or playing a Tengu? I don’t know the answer to this one, either; but I’ll bet it’s a hell of a lot more than the first group.

Vayne.8563:

darkace.8925:

Vayne.8563:

You’re right in saying that Guild Wars 2 seems to have no real direction. That’s what happens when you have 300 people developing.

No, that’s what happens when those in charge lack direction and/or leadership.

So this line that I wrote doesn’t matter?

“Guild Wars 2 probably needs someone with vision, a central director actually directing. I’m not feeling it has that.”

You’re so intent on contradicting me that even when I say what you’re saying, you still contradict me. lol

I’m just underscoring the idea that strong leadership can keep 300 developers all moving as a cohesive unit. Don’t take things too personal.

Vayne.8563:

You’re right in saying that Guild Wars 2 seems to have no real direction. That’s what happens when you have 300 people developing.

No, that’s what happens when those in charge lack direction and/or leadership.

I just hope the addition of this item means we’re never going to get a nice, handy “Consumables” slot.

VOLKON.1290:

— Sociopolitical Diversification: Player housing (Customizable from rewards gained in the open world), Guild Halls (Customizable from mass play rewards) and Map Wide Meta events unlocked through Order progression (Leading to both individual and group rewards such as titles and skins)

I hope this includes at least the concept of a new crafting profession

I do too, but I don’t see any way to read “rewards gained in the open world” and think “new crafting discipline”.

Vayne.8563:

People hanging on every single word and then misinterpreting what was said based on their own preconceptions happened.

There is NO mention of gear grind or vertical progression in the manifesto video. None at all. The only way you could possibly think it was mentioned is to ignore everything around it.

What happened is people placed their own definition of grind into the manifesto and decided that’s what Colin meant when he was talking about grind, when in reality Colin already defined what he was talking about…and later clarified it in other places.

And you’re once again focusing on the narrow-scope of the Manifesto rather than the spirit behind it AND the interviews and blogs that were released. I understand why you’d use such a tactic, as your position becomes much less tenable when looking at the big picture. Just know the Manifesto doesn’t exist in a vacuum.

Chaotic Storm.2815:

thats what salvaging is for. If anything I kind of wish there was less leather. Stuffs sells for kitten so I end up just vendoring off piles at a time.

As I’ve already pointed out, salvaging involves a lot of rng (rng to get a drop, rng to get the type of armor that yields leather or cloth, rng to actually get the leather or cloth, etc); whereas ore and lumber can be harvested in a very time-efficient manner.

CrashTestAuto.9108:

Many people buy gems on a regular basis JUST to support the game. The less they feel like valued customers, the less they’ll be inclined to do that.

If the rng weapon skin tickets in the Black Lion Chests, the exclusive dyes in the rng dye packs, the ~$7 Mask of the Wanderer (a face tattoo), and the ~$65 for a stack of 25 Upgrade Extractors haven’t turned people off the gem shop by now then nothing will. My guess is the people who decided not to support rng or ridiculous prices came to that decision long ago and everyone else, no matter how much they cry here on the forums, are going to be lined up to throw money at the gem shop the instant something new is added.

Nike.2631:

Observation: A lot of the contributions folk have made tend to operate at the micro level. I think many of us get a little antsy when the Proposal doesn’t at least mention some of those details… its easy to feel as if what you’ve said has been overlooked. We’re still building trust that everything has been read at all, and with weeks having gone by, its even harder to be confident that things said early on are still remembered.

A lot of micro-level ideas get thrown around in these discussions. Including them all could be cumbersome, but how would we decide which ones to include and which ones to leave out?

Gray Fox.9178:

The market will speak for itself, and these items will be ousted, but the gall of the man in charge who priced these products is unbelievable.

You are sending a heavily negative message to your consumer. Whoever OK’d this either did not review prices or is horrendous at reviewing. What’s more regrettable is that these improper pricing concerns happen consistently. Please, if you don’t have someone, get someone dedicated to deliberating these prices.

Gather ‘round, kiddos, it’s story time.

A few years back the people who make EVE Online released a very expensive vanity piece (a monocle, I believe). This item cost those who wished to purchase it a whopping $40. Shortly after this item hit the cash shop an internal memo from one of the company’s higher ups was leaked. In this memo he acknowledged that the item was ridiculously priced and guaranteed to drum up a kitten storm of backlash from their customers.

That’s right…they knew the item was priced way more than it should have been and they knew their customers would be upset over the pricing of such an item. But they did it anyway. Why? Well, as the memo explained, they only needed to sell a few of the items to turn a profit; and they knew there would be a portion of their player base who would spend any amount of money to look unique.

The morale of the story? Developers can and do release highly overpriced items because they know there are players who will pay for them. And because it only takes a few of these items to pay for the development costs, and everything after that is profit, they will continue to do so. That’s just the way it is, and that’s probably the way it will always be.

This wouldn’t be a problem if we lived in a proper house (like Eir’s) instead of a series of freaking balconies.

WTB – an actual house in which to live.

Zaoda.1653:

I would like to imagine 500 Chef giving foods extended durations (more than 1 hour)

Considering they just added an item to the gem shop that gives the option to extend food duration, I wouldn’t bet too much on this happening.