Guild Wars 2: The One Thread

[Blznsmri]

Seeing as how this game is set a few hundred years into the future, i think he himself won't be there, perhaps a descendant?

He could be one of those dwarves that survived being turned to stone though...

[Zorial]

That could very well be true, i had missed that actually.

[Smygulf]

I do believe it's possible, yes. Whether or not Arenanet is able to do it with GW2 remains to be seen. I can't really know for sure until I've tried it out myself. But the thing is though, I think there is a decent chance that they can pull it off like they say, since they are trying to design the game to be like that already from lvl 1.

If I didn't believe it was possible, then I wouldn't be looking forward to trying out GW2 as much as I do. I'm terrible bored of wow atm, not because wow is a bad game, but because there are some serious limitations to the vertical progression model that they use. That model forces me have to wait around ever so often for the really fun stuff, like new content, new raids. If I wanted more of that kind of playing, I'm sure there are plenty of other nice MMOs out there that I could play for 6-12 months or so before I had exhausted all the content.

Wow's weakness as I see it - as well as other MMOs that follows the same vertical progression model - is that when you have gone from lvl 1 to max lvl, when you have done those 2-3000 or so quests, you are basically 'locked out' of that content forever on that character. No amount of kicking and screaming can change that. What's done, is done. That part of the game is over for that character.

So then the developers have only one thing to do to keep you busy and happy, add more content and add it often. But there's the really bad part, the developers are never able to make new content fast enough for people. The players will always consume the content they are given, faster than the developers can create more. Unless ofcourse, they fall into another trap, and make the content grindy and repetative for the sake of slowing peoples progression down until they can push out more content.

The reason I believe that Arenanet has a chance to make a really fun game at all levles - so much fun in fact that you might even forget about your leveling at times - is that they are building the game around this idea of players having awesome fun without grinding already from lvl 1, and when you hit max lvl, you are not 'locked out' of the content. The content is still there for you to enjoy for months and years to come if you so wish.

The way Arenanet is designing the game, with the dynamic events that branches out to other events, makes it more or less impossible for you to experience all that the game has to offer first time around. It just isn't possible for you to go through it all in one go, because you're not the only one that gets to decide what happens in the gameworld.

There are thousands of other players around you that also has an effect on what's gonna happen next in the world. Will they fail at an event and start of another chain of events this way, or will they succeed at an event and start another chain that way? Will the game go into night time mode when you happen to be online, and start different events because of that? Will some lucky player almost by accident pick up that rock out in the gameworld while exploring, starting a new chain of events that could change the whole map whithin the hour?

So you will not even be remotely close to finished with the content when you hit max lvl. They are making a game with a shitload of replayability compared to many other MMOs out there. Arenanet isn't 'locking you out' of the content at all, instead they actually scale you down so you can still enjoy the content you missed more or less the way it was supposed to be experienced. Not by one-shotting stuff as you do in many other MMOs.

In wotlk our guild was farming ICC for the better part of a year. Every week, again and again and again. I was so bored at times I just wanted to rip my hair out, but there was little or nothing else to do for that year. But I still loved my characters, and liked to play them, so I just had to suck it up. Now if blizzard had gone and done some of the things that Arenanet is doing - with the downscaling and the karma/token/transmutation stones - then you can bet your ass our guild wouldn't have spent close to a year farming ICC.

We would have gone back to BC and done Kara, SSC, TK, BT and what have you from time to time. And we would have had closer to the same difficulty that we had before, and still get loot (or buy loot) we could use. Instead of going back and do those raids, being totally overpowered and get loot that even the vendors barely want anymore.

This is some of the reasons why I think Arenanet has a chance to make a game that is going to be so fun and engaging for such a long time, that hitting level cap will for many just feel like a little sidenote.

How's this for idealism mate?

TL;DR: Arenanet isn't gonna make all the fun content useless when you hit max lvl like so many other MMOs do, so it has a decent chance of being fun and engaging for a very very long time.

The most spot on post for me...sums up my thoughts exactly. Well written man.

Cant wait for diz game!!!

[Kakuzo]

He could be one of those dwarves that survived being turned to stone though...

Hope so aswell, problem is it might just be a **** to find him >.<. Dwarfs are said to have gone into the mountains or something (If I recall correctly) and hard to find. But hey I love exploring so won't be to big of a problem :P

[Sapho]

Thank you Tristan for articulating what I think of as the "meh" aspect of WoW.

For Anet and GW2, endgame begins at lvl1:

As Eric mentioned in previous interviews and what I tried to reiterate in my interviews:

In most other MMOs you reach max level - and the game you used to play stops, and you are forced to learn a new game.

We don't want to force players to abandon the playstyle they like once they reach max level.

You really like DEs? Fine, keep doing them. You like Dungeons? Here you go. You want PvP? Right there for you.

And that is why I (actually Eric said it first, so credit where credit is due) said our endgame starts at level 1.

http://www.guildwars2guru.com/forum/...&postcount=173

This is, for me, one of the best things about GW2. In a big list of the many things I like, this is a contender for number 1.

[Deleted]

What's your story?

[Sapho]

What's your story?

Erm . . . what? If that was aimed at me?

[Deleted]

Erm . . . what? If that was aimed at me?

Was aimed at everyone.

Although tsk tsk, all those GW2 links in your signature and you don't even know!

[Sapho]

Ah sorry, do you mean personal story?

I'm gonna be a Norn, probably Raven (feathers forever!). I haven't chosen a profession yet, still have a lot of reading to do and we don't even know the last one. Also I am hopelessly indecisive. I like hybrids (love being Moonkin for the dps + support elements) so something along those lines. Erm, yeah, haven't really got a story yet

And yourself?

[Merendel]

Erm . . . what? If that was aimed at me?

one of GW2's catch phrases is "Whats your story?" AKA this game is all about the story of each adventurer... Whats yours?

And to Maklor the dwarves are not extint They've been changed to immortal stone. The vast majority died out finishing off the destroyers but the lore stated there are still some stone dwarves around in GW2 but they tend to keep to themselves. On the other hand to my knowlage the game never told us what happen to the stone summit dwarves, their storyline kinda stoped after slavers exile as I recall. the deldramor dwarves were the ones that changed to stone.

[Deleted]

Ah sorry, do you mean personal story?

I'm gonna be a Norn, probably Raven (feathers forever!). I haven't chosen a profession yet, still have a lot of reading to do and we don't even know the last one. Also I am hopelessly indecisive. I like hybrids (love being Moonkin for the dps + support elements) so something along those lines. Erm, yeah, haven't really got a story yet

And yourself?

I'm undecided on Profession and race Warrior or Theif, Charr or Human. If you love hybirds you'll love every profession then Also the last profession will be Mesmer.

[Merendel]

Ah sorry, do you mean personal story?

I'm gonna be a Norn, probably Raven (feathers forever!). I haven't chosen a profession yet, still have a lot of reading to do and we don't even know the last one. Also I am hopelessly indecisive. I like hybrids (love being Moonkin for the dps + support elements) so something along those lines. Erm, yeah, haven't really got a story yet

And yourself?

and most of the speculation is the last prof will be mesmer or something similar. We know that the last one is a scholar (aka light armor) class, There are also a couple instances in their videos showing folks in armor that are dead ringers for the GW1 mesmer sets. The silhouette looks very much like those characters in the video too. Cant recall how many classes they said were returning or if we've used them all up for sure or not.

[Mothhive]

Haven't thought about my characters too indepth yet, but I'm thinking something along the lines of:

Charming Noble Human Female Elementalist that worships Balthazar (love fire!)

Fierce Charr Male Warrior (haven't really looked into the available background options or anything like that for Charr yet)

[jvbastel]

and most of the speculation is the last prof will be mesmer or something similar. We know that the last one is a scholar (aka light armor) class, There are also a couple instances in their videos showing folks in armor that are dead ringers for the GW1 mesmer sets. The silhouette looks very much like those characters in the video too. Cant recall how many classes they said were returning or if we've used them all up for sure or not.

the next profession was confirmed to also be in gw1

I'll be a Norn engineer, probably male

[Skyve]

and most of the speculation is the last prof will be mesmer or something similar. We know that the last one is a scholar (aka light armor) class, There are also a couple instances in their videos showing folks in armor that are dead ringers for the GW1 mesmer sets. The silhouette looks very much like those characters in the video too. Cant recall how many classes they said were returning or if we've used them all up for sure or not.

Also Mesmers are mentioned in the GW2 books.

[Kakuzo]

Myself I kinda hope it isn't a mesmer :P Basicly because I'd rather see a totally unexpekted class I know nothing about than something I know alot about! Would peak my intressts alot more

[jvbastel]

Myself I kinda hope it isn't a mesmer :P Basicly because I'd rather see a totally unexpekted class I know nothing about than something I know alot about! Would peak my intressts alot more

Mesmer in GW2 is something we know nothing about, no hexes, no interrupts

[Merendel]

Mesmer in GW2 is something we know nothing about, no hexes, no interrupts

Which does not leave all that much from GW1 mesmers :P

[Deleted]

Which does not leave all that much from GW1 mesmers :P

Hexes got turned into conditions for the Necro. So the same will most likely happen for Mesmer. Also we will hopefully see some real illusiions going on this time.

[zombiemike168]

Cant remember where i saw it but they had stated there was gonna be 5 returning classes with 3 brand new. So far the returning classes are Warrior, Ranger, Necromancer, Elementalist. The 3 brand new have been Engineer, Thief and Guardian. The only original classes left are Monk and Mesmer. Seeing as theres no dedicated healer and that the protection/smiting theme of the monk has been spiritually succeeded by the Guardian it only leaves Mesmer =)