I've been pretty vocal about many issues regarding the game but taking on the advice of some kind folk here i decided to approach this stress test with a more adoptive attitude and see if anything would change my overall opinion or outlook.
Combat: First thing i did was bind my heal spell to E, Q had my quick turn around and then Left Shift for dodging (basically because if im kiting holding right mouse button shift is the only key i felt i can use without letting go of any left hand fingers to in order to use that mechanic.) this worked out very well, made fighting 'less' intrusive.
However, for long periods of time (i basically played the entire stress test front to back) its strenuous. not entirely sure if this kind of mechanic will ever take over fully as i tend to view mmos as the downtime/escapism of my gaming lifestyle. having both hands constantly at the keyboard makes me miss simply point and clicking to move around when im not in a combative mood (examples would be in a city environment etc) and i did find it to be very taxing constantly playing in this vein. near the end i ended up simply standing still because i couldnt be assed moving anymore.
Enemy Strengths: Like GW1, the game basically equalises to your level except with 80 levels its more so apparent coming 'down' since you cannot scale up and you definately notice. I know its an opinion but i do think it steeps in a lot of 'facts' is the obvious mechanic employed with the ai. and that is, they simply hit you like a truck and if you dont move, you die. I know people bring up the dodge mechanic as this you-beaut thing BUT its the ONLY way to not die. your character may as well be made of paper which doesnt really add up when even a warrior seems to get popped just as easily as an elementalist. i would like it so your character felt a bit more meaty and can take a few because the 'constant' moving as stated above made me feel a bit on the drained side.
World Exploration: I view the zones/cities like a movie set. you are basically surrounded by a backdrop which circumnavigates the entire zone. within it, as we all know, DE's will reset, Hearts will be completed as a once off, and scouts will show more locations for skill point acquisition etc. I kinda wish scouts didnt exist. the whole point of exploring is to NOT be shown. i dont know if its a 'noob' thing to hold the hands of an mmo'er to show them where things are once you click on a scout, but i think doing away with scouts would promote MORE exploration as what Anet is saying in interviews and what not.
Also, and i think its 'normal', keeping an eye on your xp bar isnt something that will ever disappear. its true you get xp for nearly everything, BUT at level 12 my next storyline quest was recommended Level 19. it was the "Ashes from the past" one i believe, where you take on the ettins. there is NO way you can solo it at my level, which mean, id have to do 6 levels of grinding up. some people say 'well you should be working for your level' which then doesnt really equate to the 'fun' factor. i cant help it, i do like a very centralised questing system, or a system in place which, without fail, you know you'll be propelled forward. in gw2, xp is split amongst a bunch of stuff, and for the completionist, thats fantastic, for some that arent that way inclined, its a hindrance.
as a compensation, i think you should be upscaled for the storyline missions (note im not saying 'levelling up') because i believe that you should be able to finish the storyline and while acquire levels from it, NOT make it so it takes you all the way to 80. you might say finish on level 55, done the story but still have the world to go out and explore and level up the rest. in no way do i believe finishing the storyline means achieving level 80, hope thats clear.
Utility Tiers: well, im not a fan of how it is now. im sure its for balancing but i ended up sitting there going 'umm, i dont really want any of these but if i dont, i wont proceed to the next level'. again, i'll admit, i absolutely loved the gw1 build customisation. yes, a balance nightmare, but i think with effort they could have reduced and condensed like they have but still offer a fully utilised and customisable 10 slot skill bar with dual professions. because of the limitations even with weapon swapping (an elementalist staff still yields the same 'types' of spells regardless of attunement you have active) i felt kinda bored and wished i had more options. 8 fully swappable slots in gw1 offers more freedom than current, but, im a diehard gw1 fan lol
Character Graphics: hate them lol theres something 'off' which i cant quite put my finger on it. i loaded up gw1 mid beta just to compare and i do prefer the 'age ranges' and better factial and 'skin' types than in gw2. it almost seems like squishy plastic and feels more manequin like. after seeing other games like ArcheAge in beta, Tera, more recent race addtions to WoW, Rift etc, GW2 feel i dunno, 'off' is really the only term that comes to mind but then, its personal taste.
World Graphics: as a test, i had my ele in the charr homelands area, much like pre searing, then mid beta as i mentioned above, i also chose my ele and went to the charr homelands in eotn. theres not 'much' graphical difference. BOTH games have this Bold & The Beautiful hollywood glow which gives the impression of graphical impressiveness, but closer inspection does yield some pretty bad texturing. and its funny but because it doesnt look that much different it runs worse despite what id consider a simple upgrade from the EOTN engine. next beta try it yourself, you'll see.
Questing & Events: every single npc is constantly yelling or running up to you. its now in the opposite end of the spectrum instead of you picking up they are delivering. i think a mix between would be nice. but atm everytime you enter an npc area its like you're the person they've been waiting for their entire life and they are rushing desperately to your aid lol
i know its a lot of negatives and i did enjoy the time, (the last event was bad though, so many people got bored) but just like any game especially being a huge fan of the first personally, i do feel a lot has changed for a more casual type approach.
thanks for reading