Probably due to the recent announcement of its first Expansion, Heart of Thorns, Guild Wars 2 is on sale for $10 USD for the remainder of the weekend. So needless to say anyone looking for a new fantasy MMO to sink time into this is a perfect opportunity for you, Sacred and myself are already getting ready to start back up ourselves. Now, for anyone else not sold that easily on that, get ready for a Crass rant.
Guild Wars 2 is the sequel to, you’ll never guess, Guild Wars, a niche fantasy MMO that was fairly well recieved despite its limitations. GW2, set 250 years after the events in the first game, has you pick from a multitude of races and professions, classes in this game, as you spin your characters own tale of heroics to help restore balance to the world of Tyria from the primordial dragons and their minions. Whether you choose to start in the lush Maguuma Jungle, the frozen Shiverpeak Mountain, or the scorched desiccated remains of Ascalon, you will undoubtedly find yourself fighting your way through a beautiful and exciting environment.
The vast environments and the random events that occur throughout all of them really are the highlight of GW2. The regular fetch quests that most are familiar with from WoW Clones do not exist in a direct sense in this game. Instead there are Hearts that one can fill through completing various tasks that vary with each specific Heart. With the fact that there are usually over a dozen of this Hearts on every map, and the fact that they are only one kind of event to be completed highlights the main attraction of GW2, exploration. Speed leveling quickly to max level will undoubtedly lead one feeling undeniably unsatisfied, as there is not much in the way of gear grinding in the end game, for the most part grinding is for cosmetic changes for your weapons and armor. The real feeling of accomplishment is much easier to come by exploring every nook and cranny of the maps, finding hidden easter eggs and calming retreats.
To make this journey you have a diversity of option at your disposal when it comes to race and profession. The bread and butter Humans were the only choice available in GW2’s predecessor, now they are mostly funneled into their fortress city in the plain. The giant shaman-like Norn were driven from the far north by an awakened Dragon, no settling in the no warmer Shiverpeak Mountains. The feline Charr were also driven from their home by a Dragon, now setting up their war machines in the ruins of the human cities of Ascalon, where they once fought, now begrudgingly holding a truce to survive a greater threat. The vertically challenged Asura show that even without their powerful magitech, that was unknowingly powered by a formerly sleeping Dragon, that smarts and science can still solve most problems, sometimes. Finally the Sylvari are a fairly new race, only being 25 years old, but showing that even with their child-like view of the world they are determined to protect it. After that you can decide whether you want to be a sword swinging Warrior, an agile and clever Ranger, an unmovable mountain of a Guardian, a clever Engineer, control nature itself as an Elementalist, sneak in the shadows as a Thief, confuse and seed chaos as a Mesmer, or raise the dead and curse your enemies as a Necromancer.
If exploring isn’t your thing, along side the Hearts there are also varying size of random event that occur on every map. Ranging from simple escorts to everyone on the map grouping together to defeat a powerful boss. If you’re not one to delve into PvE in general, there are two well traveled PvP enviroments, either fighting in a quick 5v5 in the Mists, or joining together with a mob in the giant arena known as World versus World, where servers fight one another to prove who’s top dog.
If you’re afraid of growing bored and money being an issue, no worries, GW2 is buy to play, meaning you only need to make the initial purchase then it’s yours forever. Due to the Living World, with new stories beginning everyone month, some changing the layout of the world, there’s usually something fresh to come back to. This on top of having one of the most friendly and helpful communities will hopefully make your stay in Tyria very enjoyable.
