Pre-Purchase Community Address

[Gray_Matter]

Indeed. In fact, I feel like the concept of an expansion is a poor fit for the GW2 model in the first place.

I don't think it's a poor fit. As long as it's done right. I was one of the people asking for an expansion not so long ago. At the moment it seems very thin on the content side of things. For me, the most important part of an expansion is that there is a big chunk of content. Sure you get the extra features like a new profession, talents and things like guild housing but there needs to be a decent amount of content. One thing that has driven me nuts over the last couple of years with GW2 is that there hasn't been any big content releases. There have been lots of little ones but I want to feel like there is a whole new continent to explore.

[Arlee]

I didn't say anything about the costs being burdensome if you re-read my post. I said the better deal is to wait- as you will get everything successively.

I also didn't say anything about costs being burdensome, if you re-read my post.

You said:

Sorta makes me not want to buy a GW2 game again or at the very least not purchase till it is deeply discounted. Seems kinda a poor deal to purchase early given the permanence and non-time sensitive nature of GW2's extremely casual play environment.

And the point is, why is this possibly surprising? Hell even without the expansion coming out you would have been "better" off waiting until this year to buy GW2 at all considering the deep sales they've been doing. Especially when considering games, buying later will always cost you less and generally the only thing you miss out on is playing the game while other who do buy early are playing.

- - - Updated - - -

I don't think it's a poor fit. As long as it's done right. I was one of the people asking for an expansion not so long ago. At the moment it seems very thin on the content side of things. For me, the most important part of an expansion is that there is a big chunk of content. Sure you get the extra features like a new profession, talents and things like guild housing but there needs to be a decent amount of content. One thing that has driven me nuts over the last couple of years with GW2 is that there hasn't been any big content releases. There have been lots of little ones but I want to feel like there is a whole new continent to explore.

I think that there is a big part of the problem for Arenanet atm. They seem to be looking at the expansion as a chance to make big changes to the game more than delivering a giant chunk of content, which I also feel like shouldn't be particularly surprising. It's one of the reasons I was never part of the "give us an expansion" crowd, I just never thought the two viewpoints on expansions would line-up.

[Gray_Matter]

I think that there is a big part of the problem for Arenanet atm. They seem to be looking at the expansion as a chance to make big changes to the game more than delivering a giant chunk of content, which I also feel like shouldn't be particularly surprising. It's one of the reasons I was never part of the "give us an expansion" crowd, I just never thought the two viewpoints on expansions would line-up.

They couldn't keep going the way they were going. Their revenue was slowly dropping every year. With an MMO you need to give them an injection of life from time to time. They didn't need to use an expansion to do that. They could have introduced big chunks of new content every 6 months or year. they weren't. They were introducing small amounts of content every 3 to 6 months. In most cases, it didn't take people more than a week or two to complete the content. Maybe a bit longer depending on the replayability of the content and the amount of grind.

The expansion has to give a chunk of new content if they want it to be a success. The other changes are nice but it doesn't take people long to get past those. The content is what keeps people and right now, unfortunately, that part is not looking great.

[kenn9530]

This expansion still has less going for it than Warlords of Draenor, which says ALOT, I am not dumping 50 Dollars on this, and I already know most of my guild feels the same. Call me entitled or a pissbaby, whatever it is this community does, but this is awful. Never before have I outright refused to buy a game, but this is the first, and hopefully the last.

WoD and GW2 are 2 different games, you pay 50 bucks for WoD and for the past 7 months have also paid 14.99 a month so that = to around 150 bucks, after 7 months of GW2 you still only have paid 50 bucks, GW2 releases constant while small bits of content throughout and has plenty to do, so what you pay for is entirely up to you as what you feel worth it but WoD costs multiply the longer you play and it still has very little content where as GW2 just costs the box price for as much as you can play.

GW2 expansion is still a fair way off also so there will be much more content available, not to mention new content after the expansion has been released.

[BeneditaNBeatriz]

Why can't you buy only the expansion if you have GW2 already?

[Fencers]

I also didn't say anything about costs being burdensome, if you re-read my post.

Your post said goods and services do cost more, emphasizing costs, when brand new. Which does imply that the costs would be burdensome otherwise the more modifier is unnecessary. So I re-read your post and either you misunderstood my position or you were speaking to the costs associated with goods and services having a premium- wherein the context of the conversation costs would be burdensome to a party not wishing to purchase such goods and services.

And the point is, why is this possibly surprising?

It's not? I am not surprised by strategy of HOT's sales. I just think it's a poor decision for consumers.

Hell even without the expansion coming out you would have been "better" off waiting until this year to buy GW2 at all considering the deep sales they've been doing.

Not sure if the newer sales of the base game came with all the extras of GW2 core or access.

Especially when considering games, buying later will always cost you less and generally the only thing you miss out on is playing the game while other who do buy early are playing.

Sometimes, yes. Other times, no, as in the examples given of games I bought recently with value-add for pre-purchase that included a discount from MSRP or at POS.

Which rounds to my initial post; I feel the strat Anet are using de-incentives pre-purchase for me. As I am sorta paying a double premium. Regardless of actual cost of purchase, it seems like one is choosing a poorer option by pre-purchase in this case.

[rhandric]

Why can't you buy only the expansion if you have GW2 already?

Did you bother reading the post at all?