text:
- Publisher: NCSOFT
- Release Date: Aug 28, 2012
User Score
Generally favorable reviews- based on 2623 Ratings
User score distribution:
Positive: 2,047 out of 2623
Mixed: 170 out of 2623
Negative: 406 out of 2623
Review this game
- User score
- Most active
- By date
- Most helpful
- Most Clicked
Aug 28, 2012Now this is how an RPG should be made. No subscriptions but with everything and then some that the leading MMORPGs have. I can't wait to spend more time in Tyria.
Aug 31, 2012-----Two words. WoW KIller.----- Anet took everything that sucks, everything that was annoying, everything that didn't work in the Multiplayer RPG Genre and turned it into solid gold.
Aug 28, 2012This game is amazing, there has been many hyped-uped games this year, SWTOR, TERA , Diablo III. none lived up to my expectations, but GW2, not just lived up, but exceeded it. i've never enjoyed a game so much in a long long time. Great job Arenanet!
Nov 27, 2012Guild Wars 2 progresses the MMO genre. There's no grind, there's collaboration galore, a wealth of PvP, and quite possibly the most scenic game I've ever laid eyes on. I'm constantly bewildered by its beauty, and fun. Buy this game. Get in a big guild. Play WvW, play sPvP, get in dungeons, play live events...etc, etc, etc,etc,etcet,cet,
Sep 3, 2012As users like Chaiwallah and others don't understand with their supremely entitled natures, is that a launch of a huge game, such as Guild Wars 2, is not without it's hiccups. Games have gone from being a platform completely forgotten by a developer after release (so the finished product needed to be 100 percent out the gate) to living environments that need to be upkept and maintained. Nobody cares one little bit that you spent extra money to make a machine to play this (graphically intensive game?) That is a red herring, it has nothing to do with the issue at hand. Likely, your account was hacked and you need to visit Reddit to confirm that. The game is great for a non-subscription game, which is exactly why I tend not to play games like WoW, I can't justify playing a grind game that I pay extra for each month. Anyway, the game deserves a 10 just for treading in a new area in a different way. Also, to counter dumb arguments for jaded, entitled consumers that think the world revolves around them.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Pros:
Beautiful scenery
Detailed character models
Intuitive and addicting crafting system
Smooth combat once adjusted to integrating dodging/weapon swapping into your combos
Skill selection is highly limited to certain dedicated slots
Overflow (hopefully temporary) is highly irritating, especially when trying to coop with friends
There can be some level gaps when advancing through the story that force you to grind out a level or two
Clunky inventory/banking system
High repair and fast travel costs (compared to the rate at which money is earned)
First off, this isn't a bad game; not by a long shot. When Guild Wars 2 was first announced, I was ecstatic. I was looking forward to even deeper build customization and even deeper PvP. The original Guild Wars did so well what many MMO's failed to do on a massive level; and that was create a balanced and completely skill based PvP community. However, on being introduced to the beta and playing for a few days now on the headstart I realized the build customization and PvP took a small step back.
Gone are the days of tinkering with 1,000's of different skill combinations, putting any skill in any slot. No matter if it was a boon, a shout, an adrenaline attack, spell, etc. Now you have dedicated skill slots with considerably fewer choices. You are given a weapon with a minimal amount of skills to use, in fact you don't even get to pick the skills for whatever weapon you are using; they are predetermined and unlocked within five minutes of killing a few devourers. This can be problematic to players looking to say, build a straight up tank when many of the skills and abilities you can choose from wouldn't benefit your desired build. Slot skills, or utility skills, are the biggest selection but for many classes, a good majority of them are either no used to do to just being useless or, just aren't powerful enough to say, take the spot of something that would just give a large damage increase.
Secondly, the PvP has been largely turned into a massive zerg fest; and it has been directly affected by the changes to the skill slotting system I mentioned. Now that you are forced to only take a certain amount of each type of skill it cuts down the amount of possibilities considerably, and also lowers the usefulness of some classes to a degree; if a class cannot, say, choose to grab a bunch of cc or something like that they might be passed up entirely in favor of someone who provides raw damage; instead of 50% damage and 50% soft cc.
Third and last, and definitely least, the map/ui needs a lot of work. It is hard to tell where one zone ends and another begins. Which can become problematic when trying to clear out a zone or search vistas, points of interest or anything else regarding map exploration. While the absence of traditional quests is a fresh change of pace but it also presents a very big problem. Many world events take way too much time to not be considered a waste of time. especially when you could walk twenty feet in the other direction and complete a heart assist; not too mention you're not even guaranteed to get a gold contribution level or decent loot on completely what can sometimes be a 30-45 min world event. For example in Diessa Plateau, you help some townsfolk fend off a giant who is attacking their town. I spent 30 min helping roughly 20 people kill this sucker; guess what? I got a bronze contribution level even though I'd be willing to bet I did probably 10% of the damage and revived people over 50 times.
All in all, for an MMO of this size to be running so smoothly (compared to other launches), I am highly impressed. NCSoft has released a game that is subscription fee free, but has the content of other premium MMOs, and then some. What usually breaks a game at launch (massive server load without proper planning) has been alleviated somewhat buy the overflow system. It can be highly annoying but at least it has made the game playable and enjoyable. Hopefully it's only temporary as this game has massive potential with everything that has been implemented. Long story short, NCSoft has crafted a fantastic game that might not succeed in being better than it's predecessor, but, it succeeds in being a rich and engaging MMO with rich combat and a great story.… Expand
Sep 22, 2012Very mixed in multiple respects... the first view of the game is that it is fantastic. At least a refreshing view on the MMO world, really well done and finished, with innovative quest system and fantastic innovative levelling mechanism.
And after a while you're logging in and you don;t really know why you're accepting silly limitations like the stupidly think inventory system, the lacklustre crafting mechanism, the stupid "personnal story" system that for some quests is just so close to impossible that it is frustrating beyond relief (with no hope of overpowering the quest... my engineer has been stuck on a lvl 28 quest since the beginning...)
It could have been fantastic but it is barely passable due to these limitations. It is not a hazard if blizzard has simplified the silly things in wow... guild wars should have thought about it too...
WvW is very well thought but individual contributions are pretty much close to zero so the strategy is either zerg grouping or smaller "pro" groups which is boring after a while
I see this game performing very well over time but will require a LOT of refining to keep players in. NC Soft does not care because there are no subscription.
In some respect this game gave me the same feeling as TOR: an initial "Waouw" and then "but..... why did they... why didn't they....?"
Sad...… Expand
Aug 28, 2012Guild Wars 2 brings a subscription-free design to everything, and that's part of what makes it different from many other fantasy MMOs. While there is a progression system, it isn't designed as a traditional grind -- in other words, since there is no sub fee, there is no reason for the game to drag everything out with artificial caps and limits to ensure you pay for another month.
You get a ton of value for buying the game. I'd argue that you get more for paying $60 for this than any other AAA MMO, simply because you don't have to pay $15 a month to enjoy it.
I love the art style, a sort of graphic-novel meets 3D render ... but it won't please everyone.
The developers are fantastic. I think that's a point worth making here. They admit their mistakes, aren't afraid to clarify details, and are more open and honest with the players than any of their "corporate speak" competitors. I can't say if this will last forever, but I'd be surprised if they stopped being "real people."
I've seen some outright misinformation in a few of the reviews, sadly, so I'd suggest taking a moment to inform yourself from reliable sources, such as the game's wiki or main website.
The dynamic event (note that dynamic is not the same as random) system is really great, much like the Public Quests from Warhammer ... only enhanced and more interesting.
Every class has multiple roles. You can be a warrior that plays a powerful support role with massive fire and explosive damage from a bow, buff banners, shouts and so on, or you can become a front-line soldier. The different weapons offer completely different playstyles, and are well worth exploring. If you don't like the thief with daggers, try it with pistols. Or a shortbow. Or a sword. Totally different abilities, totally different feel.
I'm very happy with the game, and I hope that anyone interested in it checks some solid neutral sources before deciding if they should buy or not.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012The game is tremendous. Obviously it's early days, and there have been some issues here and there, but the playing experience is top of the line in every way. A vast world to explore. A good range of interesting classes and races. Excellent pvp, which can handle many players. (My only small gripe is that I would have enjoyed pvp in the main game world, but the game has large pvp zones which work very well). The world is alive with action and sounds. The draw distance is impressive. I have high hopes for this one - long may it prosper.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Absolutely superb game. It does have some issues right now with server stability etc, but what MMO doesn't on launch?
I love the dynamic questing, really makes you feel part of the world. beautiful artistic style throughout. Can't praise it enough.
Sep 7, 2012I played and enjoyed the first Guild Wars for years. When Guild Wars 2 came out I wasn't sure what to expect, I tried the beta and I loved it immediately. Everything that annoyed me in Guild Wars is fixed in Guild Wars 2. The only thing that worried me at first glance was the absence of the dual profession mechanic which I loved in the first Guild Wars; it offered so many possibilities! But the weapon swapping in GW2 is probably even more interesting simply because it gives you access to a larger bank of skills; skills are defined by the weapon you are holding. You can switch weapons dynamically during combat which is awesome and you can even change your skills any time during the game, no need to go to an outpost to reorganise your skill bar. Elementalists don't have the weapon swapping ability but they can switch between four attunements(air, fire, water and earth) anytime during combat... awesome! What sets GW2 apart from other games of the genre is the dynamic events which can occur anywhere, anytime in the world, and they require cooperation between players; downed allies can be revived eliminating the frustration of being teleported to a resurection shrine and having to walk all the way back. Areas are no longer instanced except for dungeons and story line missions. There is no tedious fetching quests anymore. Instead quests occur in specific locations on the map and you don't have to stray too far to complete them. You can now choose between five different races: Human, Charr, Asura and Silvari. They all have the same stats and abilities but they add a nice flavor to the game. Crafting disciplines were added which opens up a whole new dimension to Guild Wars. The trading post (the equivalent of the auction house in WoW or Diablo) is a nice addition. Item stats are more varied and make more sense than before. Graphics are amazing for MMO standards and the areas are breathtaking. I cannot comment on the PvP aspect of the game as I haven't tried it yet. The only annoying thing I can find is the constant pop-ups telling you that you are in an overflow because the instance is full but that will hopefully be fixed soon. So if you love MMOs or RPGs Guild Wars 2 is a must!… Expand
Sep 5, 2012After playin wow more or less 7 years i think tht GW2 is very very promising, i tried some others mmos in those years but didnt like any, except EVE online which is very good but another setting and kind of mmo.
GW2 in my opinion is mostly based on PVP, the world vs world is very fun and the structured pvp is imo a lot better then wow, especially the fact its not gear based, its a lot more skill based.
The PVE is a lot less structured then wow, there are no raids, and instances are more about kiting / controlling.
Its needed to understand how to play it, positioning, pulling, and the weapons used are key factor to beat the instance in the right manner in exploration mode.
There is no more tank/healer/dps trinity which is imo really a great idea, ofc it leads to a PVE totally different from wow based games.
If you like to pass the time stayin back of a boss pulling out max dps this is not the mmo for you, you will die every 2 seconds doing that, ive seen in those starting days a lot of ppl used to other mmos not understanding that the game here is different, its needed to be on the move, use the right weapons, hide when needed, use los and help the team with traits/utility skills.
The quest system is great, very fun and well made, compared to wow its a blast.
In many occasions its possible to complete events with follow ups that carry you around a lot before finishing.
Every zone have a world boss event and at least a hidden puzzle zone to be discovered.
Most of the new ideas are lightyears further compared to wow, the AH is the best one ive seen in any mmo, and overall i think this game will be a winning one.
Anyway its not the mmo for anyone, ppl who are interested in raiding or really like tanking/healing system will not find those activities and mechanics in GW2.… Expand
Sep 2, 2012So nice with a game that finally dared to mix things up a little. Or not "a little", but a lot actually. Doing so many bold moves, people aren't familiar with and it works. Also a massive community feedback on every little error or bug there is. Never seen anything like it, and definitely also counts in on the score, when it's this significant.
Sep 17, 2012Having put countless hours into Guild Wars, I can now say with confidence that this is the MMORPG that stands the best chance of dethroning World of Warcraft. It's also one that I've thoroughly enjoyed. Guild Wars 2 is the modern MMORPG that offers a more streamlined and comfortable experience in open-world exploring and PvP for players of all skills/experience. And instead of ignoring players who want to be crafty or explorative, GW2 rewards them. I've really enjoyed some of the elements Guild Wars 2 has borrowed from other excellent action/adventure games (like Skyrim or Assassin's Creed). Those elements help give you drive to do certain things to completion, which often nets you achievements and bonus gear, XP, and an assortment of treasures. The game isn't a radical departure from MMORPG's, but it offers enough of a refresh to earn your $60 investment (without forcing you to buy into a subscription). There is a small learning curve to parts of this game, but nothing is unlearnable or un-masterable. If you've been waiting for a game to come along to pull you away from WoW's stale-ish experience or you just gave up on MMORPGs because of their lack of innovation, Guild Wars 2's world is one you need to experience.… Expand
Jan 24, 2014This is the only MMO I still enjoy after 3000 hours. I've done all the content, built a 300-adult superguild, made legendaries, full top-tier everything, a 600gold emperor title just for fun... And there's STILL STUFF COMING OUT! Sometimes the living story gets kinda boring but this is definitely redefining what good MMO's require. Kudos arenanet.
It was a good game, lot of potential. The premises (and prOmises) were amazing: No grinding, no gating...
Sure, it would have needed some bit of changes and fixes here and there (the greatest being the lacking of a proper LFG tool), but it was overall pretty great for a new MMO.
But with the Lost Shores patch they trashed it all. They broke ALL their promises, they went against their own manifesto. They went for an HEAVY grind style, a terrible gear treadmill. On top of that, the economy is ruined and prices are a real problem, especially for new players. So, if you want to buy or craft something now you pretty much have to buy money from their shop, making this a Pay to Win game.
Really disappointed, it had potential, but now it's just another WoW clone, and WoW still does those things better.… Collapse
Aug 28, 2012Great game! Haven't had this much fun in years. So much to see and do, so many options and none of it has me screaming in frustration. Crafting is probably the weakest part for me, but even that might pan out better once the AH is working. Otherwise, I'm canceling all my other MMO subs and plan to be lost in Tyria for months if not years. Can't wait to see how the game grows and what they add post launch to this already gigantic whopper of a game.… Expand
Sep 3, 2012GW2 is remarkable, not for bringing fresh ideas to the table, but taking fresh ideas and polishing them until they shine and shine. The finest MMO so far, and that includes WoW. If you're just into MMO's for raiding, it won't cater to you. If you're into them for a huge,explorable mountain of fresh content, artwork, amazing combat and previously unseen production quality in an MMO: get it, there's no MMO out or even on the horizon which can stand next to it.… Expand
Sep 17, 2013I like Guild Wars 2 a lot, but feel the MMO genre as a whole is losing touch with the world. There will always be a fan base and this is clear by the number of reviews. However, having played through the MMO's of years gone by I'm finding it a struggle to get through GW2. Maybe I'm just getting older and the patience reqired to climb the level ladder eludes me. It's a beautiful game and I applaud the creators. The combat is solid, graphics are very good, the score top draw and gameplay as near to perfection (in an MMO) as I've experienced. It is missing some basic tutorials (crafting in particular). There's logic to it but for the novice MMO player some hand holding would have been nice. GW2 is a stellar release and if MMO's are your thing it's worth you money. Having now monthly sub fees alone makes this an essential buy. Enjoy.… Expand
Sep 2, 2012Guild Wars 2 is the new revolution from the brilliant minds over at Arena Net. Playing GW2 for the first time is one of those exceptional feelings you experience only a certain number of times in you're gaming career. Incredible ideas converge with intense, masterfully crafted combat, and the most beautiful visuals ever seen in an MMO to create a mind-blowing masterpiece. The world is alive in GW2 and exploring it on you're own or with friends really is astounding. There are times when you will have to just stop and slowly pan you're camera around you to take in the absolutely stunning sites you will see throughout the gameworld, combined with a rediculous amount of attention to detail. The dynamic events are perfectly placed throughout the world and calling out for help in "Map" chat to see 20 people rushing into a hidden underwater cave to team up against the mean Blood Witch really is one of those wow moments that shows how well GW2 brings players together without forcing them to party up. If you aren't playing GW2 already(which you should), please do yourself a favor and checkout what is MMO's best chance of knocking off the reigning MMO titan....lookout WoW, GW2 is here.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012Absolutely stunning! Guild Wars 2 sets itself apart from all other MMO's by #1 polishing perfecting the genre. The seamless dynamic events let you jump in and help out fellow players anytime also letting you reap the XP rewards taking the normal "click and grind" questing out of the picture. The PVP is second to none!! MASSIVE siege battles and capture points in World VS World is something I've been looking for in MMO's for a VERY long time!! The environment and character graphics alone are gorgeous!!( Bearing in mind you have a system capable of running it maxed out). All in all Guild Wars 2 is an excellent game capable of keeping you hooked and it goes so far above and beyond the original it is literally no comparison. The game is also one of the most polished MMO releases to date! Absolutely worth every penny and a solid 10 in my book.… Expand
Sep 21, 2012Having played almost every MMO since the dawn of the genre (right back to MUDs) I've been jaded for a very long time and was almost hesitant to try yet another - the fact it was Subs-Free helped me overcome that reticence.
I love it. While I've yet to reach the "Endgame" I can certainly say that so far it appears to be the best MMO ever - to the point that I've got 7 characters already and regularly playing 5 of them without feeling bored or feel like I'm wasting time I should be spending on my "Main" (the fact that a lot of the game is Account-shared helps). Dynamic Events are fun without being annoying like Rift's Rifts, the Hearts revolutionize questing and deliver on the promises WAR made about questing but absolutely failed to deliver.
It's almost a no-brainer this one: once you've bought the box it's free forever. You'll probably find you do spend money on increasing the stingy Bank space and you might want more than 5 characters but otherwise the rest of the opportunities to spend money look easy to ignore/resist.… Expand
Dec 3, 2012Ah, Guild Wars 2. How the Internet have been waiting for you so long. What are they greeted with? A polished wow-clone. Channeling spells, lag, outdated graphics for it's time and an insane amount of bribes going to the critiques to cough out "Unique combat system" quotes whenever possible. As much as I like one-time fees, like with single-player games, it will only do harm to MMORPG's because they will need a steady stream of income to offer a continuous service. Otherwise, bankruptcy or P2W is inevitable. This fate can already be hinted towards on how they locked out the ability to purchase the game, being too cheap to have an adequate amount of availability on the servers while banning more users than Origin, clever NCsoft. In It's core, the game isn't by any means bad but it's just very, very, very average.… Expand
Sep 4, 2012I said prior that other titles had been the evolution of the MMORPG Genre' I am now sure that Guild Wars 2 is the start of the "Next Generation MMORPG" - Luckily it does not try to be too nudered down, something MMORPG's suffered from ever since the release of the Genre shifting (for the worse) release of World of Warcraft putting titles like Everquest, Ultima Online and Asherons Call as relics of fond memory; any game attempting to be like them would fail - and any game attempting to be too much like WoW would fail.
I Played the original Guild Wars at release like just about every other MMORPG looking for the next thing; and I "liked" it; but hated the use of instancing outside of city hubs; felt it to be over-all poor and figured the F2P design and lack of development funding in comparison to other companies may have been the cause and never touched it again - Thus I was not expecting much from Guild Wars 2.
What I received was an MMORPG that had Story Quests in the Vein of SWTOR but barely consume the game and feel like a "distraction" from everything else you do; The games questing system is basically endless Warhammer Online "Public Event" style quests; endless people are aiding in them and great XP is awarded - You do not have to be grouped to split XP - another feature that is so welcoming is say ORE Vein or a Tree to cut down; if 6 people rush at the same tree; the first person doesn't steal it from you - you each get your own harvest from it :) This is very convienent.
The combat system is near flawless in an MMORPG and the Graphics are Beautiful running on an SLI Geforce 680 GTX system with 16 gigs of ram and an 8 core AMD FX unlocked CPU - Everyone helps eachother out! you don't have to ask; you'll be revived; buffed; enemies killed with you as people run by (same XP) you gain XP for basically anything you do in the game which is also very very conveinent and refreshing.
The most NOSTALGIC and "Leap of Danger" that Guild Wars took with the game is the main PVP system; It's World versus World (3 worlds battling over 4 HUGE terriotories which feature many camps; towers; keeps and a main castle to capture, defend, retake etc along with Orbs of Power - This instantly reminded me of DARK AGE OF CAMELOT but on a LARGER SCALE!!! It's mind blowingly well done. The fighting struggle for territory never ends; and everyone scales up to level 80 still gaining XP from NPC enemies around the huge battleground; and from player kills (who also drop great loot!)
The other PVP option we also have around is "Mists" which are 5 different Server Based 16 player max, two team PVP Warzone/Battleground's in a "first to 500 point" style Capture objecctive warzone. No Level Up XP is gained through this mode and everyone has a preset level 80 template with all abilities unlocked (unlike regular world versus world which is level 80 with your gear scaling up along with the abilities you have unlocked thus far; but are able to continue to level up as it shows both your regular level then the scaled 80) --- In these warzones you get the PVP XP and level that up every level getting a treasure chest with PVP specific gear and it is a nice competetive breather; but takes the strategic world versus world PVP away.
Nothing like building siege weapons- or aiding in building them and controlling them to help smash down the gates of a castle and slaughter all the players coming out; with a frontal assault then a flank after they retaliate!
GW2 is the MMORPG TO GET!… Expand
Aug 28, 2012incredible attention to detail, beautiful scenery, amazing graphics and run well on any decent computer, TONS of things to do in all zones, many different ways to level, good amount of class/profession combos, fun dynamic events that actually work, lots of different skills/weapon combos, spvp, wvw, and many more things that make this game awesome. Anyone giving it a bad rating are obviously WOW trolls and haven't played anything else. I've played MMO's and video games in general for 22 years now and have to say this is one of the top 5 ever. Arenanet puts blizzard and other companies to shame with this release. Game of the year in my opinion.… Expand
Oct 7, 2012This MMORPG has it all.
Good combat system, good loot system, good crafting system with a bank implemented so you don't have to run around grabbing everything and the coming to the conclusion you took the wrong items.
It's colorful warm graphics and cutscenes are just so well done. And the good part is: No monthly subs. You pay one time and bang you can play it without paying 12 euros every month.
By the way... Why are you still reading this? Go buy the game it is better then your average grab a quest or go to bank, craft and fail etc MMORPG.
Do it now!… Expand
Sep 13, 2014So at release I would have given that game a 8/10 - 9/10, but today I can give it no more than 4/10. Why is that, you may ask? On one hand several bugs are still in the game after 2 years. But thats not the problem. The Problem is the content. PVE: As for normal dungeons there is ONE new path in one dungeon and fractals. Fractals have been added as a vicious grind circle were you repeat the same instances over and over again on different difficultiy levels in order to get items to play the same instance on a higher "difficulty" level.
The other thing you can do in endgame is either casually strolling around or farming for your "endgame gear", because the old ingame gear was pretty easy to get (what they promised), they added a new time-gated money grind tier of gear in order to keep ppl playing.
But that new tier doesnt have to do anything with skill or archieving something, it is just a time-gated money grind. Money grind cause you cant even farm specific items, so you have to farm money in order to buy what you need.
Overall the game is driving into the direction of a very repetitve asia grinder (especially since china release)
Since the last feature patch now a big button is placed inside the tradingpost (the gw2 form of an auction house) it states "Need some Gold?", and is a concrete statement:
"You want ingame money?
Buy it from us!"
The last Feature Patch even ruined the part of the game that distinguished it from every other one in the best way: The leveling. Now its time-gated and annoying as well.
Has many issues, balance, 4vs5 match-ups just to name a few.
2 Maps have been added one removed (cause they couldnt balance it).
One of the added maps is even more unbalanced than the one that got removed and is thus being hated by a majority of the forum community (Id say 70-80%).
Hated that much that some ppl even willingly go AFK in rated queues, accepting defeat, just in order not to play on it. (leaderboards are not trustworthy anyway, thats quite another topic)
Anets response on this is silence, okay when one of the "top players" asked them about it on their overhyped tournament of legends(which's final was watched live by only 1500 ppl)
they stated that forum community wouldnt at all represent player community, which might be true, but I ask myself how they know that if they didnt make a ingame poll about it.
Due to the lack of love for PvP , PvP has become pretty much dead, even though a lot of ppl got attracted to it first, especially because of the greatness of GW1 in that regard.
My advice , if you want a good game , buy Guild Wars 1 (all 4 parts), you cant jump there but in almost every other aspect it is superior.… Expand
Feb 14, 2013This is a tacky review, sorry.
THE GOOD: The aesthetics of this game are amazing. If you like looking at pretty pictures and running around a finely crafted world listening to good voice acting telling a better than average story then you are in luck. THE BAD: GW2 plays like a bunch of people who really liked playing pvp as dps classes on WoW got together and made a game. The laundry list of boons/conditions that all last half a milisecond quickly becomes meaningless spam that does not lend itself well to a game you play for hours on end (pve that is, it is great for pvp). Though overall most things about the gameplay are frantic and after a short time get filtered out. Along the same lines the constant battles when you travel anywhere get tiresome. Sorry, I liked being able to run freely through newb zones in other games without constant harassment. Hey devs, if you wanted people to play together why did you put in 80 levels? Because WoW has 80 levels? Exactly. The leveling down is a cool feature, but is forced on you like so much else in GW2. Speaking of which, not being able to assign your own weapon ability hotkeys! This throwback to when games sucked for technical limitations is inexcusable in 2012/3.
THE UGLY: Abandoning the mmo trinity makes for a chaotic cluster#### in groups. Dungeons feel like 5 individuals who happen to be doing the same thing instead of a group working together. Along those same lines the zone/group chat on GW2 is the quietest and lamest of any mmo I have played, though maybe that was just my server. Lastly, butter. This vendor will sell me milk, cheese, sour cream, and BUTTERmilk, but if I want butter I have to go kill monsters? The asari can build portals all around the world but haven't figured out butter? Why is a cave dwelling monster man able to make butter (into perfect bars that they carry in cloth bags) but nobody at the huge crafts/artisan market in the sprawling city can? What crap.
VERDICT: A very pretty package for a game that makes huge advances for MMOs while still managing to be a WoW clone that utterly fails at finding good solutions to MMO problems. Maybe worth a playthrough for the story in a purely solo run, but overall a bad online game.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012maybe my expectations were just too high. It isn't a bad game, nice graphics and smooth gameplay, but everything in the game is just a rehash of every other MMO, nothing innovative, nothing to really get you excited that this is something new and different, also nothing really to get you hooked early on.
Dec 2, 2012This is never going to be your primary MMO unless your a student maybe. The lack of a subscription is nice meaning that you can keep it on a back burner just in case you want to play it one day. The launch went well with less bugs than normal and the graphics are pretty enough. However, boy does this get tedious fast. For once, its not the quests that make it dull but the combat. I have tried a couple of different classes so far but they share one thing. Click target hit attack then repetetively hit one button (maybe 2 if you can be arsed) over and over. So many characters all the same as you wander around that it should be renamed clone world. This really kills the game for me. The skill tree just doesn't have diversity and the drip feeding of rewards is not satisfying enough. Compare this a game with much more diverse character development like Rift for an example of what is better. This is a new MMO. Massive Mediocrity Online. Nothing to detest here, but may as well move along because there is nothing to see here either.… Expand
Sep 6, 2012I picked this game up over the Labor Day weekend, and then my 3-day weekend ceased to exist. I haven't had a single evening since then either. It's been a long time since a game has made me utterly lose track of time. I've been having to set an alarm for myself otherwise I'd be up until 5:00 am every night. This game is what every MMO released in the last 8 years simply were not: Pure, unadulterated fun. To top it off ArenaNet doesn't take crap from all the exploiters, botters, and hackers that plague most other MMOs. They're perma-banned quickly and efficiently, and if this continues it might be the only recent MMO whose economy is not completely ruined within a month of its launch. The only reason I haven't given this game a perfect 10 is because of the rocky launch though, admittedly, even that has been better than most other recent MMOs.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Great game. Only problem at launch is the lag, they got more players than they expected obviously. And I've encountered a few bugs. But given that the game is just out, I'll let that pass. The design is excellent, love the atmosphere of the game. It's better than WoW in my opinion as a leveling game, but I've yet to experience the end-game content so this rating may change in the future.
Aug 28, 2012I am genuinely happy that I won't meet the people writing '0' reviews.One good thing about the game is its awesome community, and those people are better left out of it.
The game is purely awesome, the dynamic events are plenty and varied, you'll seldom get to do the same thing more than once in your standard map run. Crafting and exploring is quite rewarding and the landscape is very detailed, even having secret areas.
The reason this game gets 9 is because it doesn't allow duels between players (not full free open world PvP, I mean invitations and such) but it could be added into the future.… Expand
Mar 31, 2013As a great fan of Guild Wars i set myself to purchase this game as soon as it was released. I was not (too much) disappointed, its a great game, and a must have in for any MMO players. Go ahead, buy it, its worth it.
Why an 7 then? Well, despite being a great game, its not perfect. And its definitely not the experience i was expecting since i played for like almost 7 year of Guild Wars. Let me do this in topics of Pos and Cons.
- Gorgeous Graphics. Certainly a very good upgrade.
- Free group questing, If you are in the are with more random players, everyone contributes for that same quest.
- 5 distinct and interesting races. (personally i never had any issue of having a full human race on GW)
- Weapon and skills mechanic. Each weapon gives you a set of skill based on which hand its equipped. 3 skills for main hand, 2 for off hand. All 5 for a 2H weapon.
- Dedicated skill slots. 1 for healing skill, 3 for support skills, 1 for an elite skill.
- The removal of the "healer stress". Since everyone must have a healing skill, its up to you to make your own survival.
- The last stand mechanic. Which allow you to get back into the battle after you have been defeated if you kill 1 enemy before the timer goes down.
- The still rich lore.
- Lost its originality, compared to the original GW. Its just your regular MMO now.
- Old mechanics. Dungeons. Elite Mobs. Auction House. Regular "collect X", "kill Y" and such quests.
- Instant travel now costs gold, compared to the free travel of the original GW.
- Skill limitation. I loved to mess around with the enormous quantity of skills of GW, now classes like Engineer are limited to like 3-4 weapon sets.
- Dual class system was removed.
- Special class traits where removed. No more get energy with each dead enemy for necromancer, and such.
- Some classes where removed. Hope they get back on an expansion or so.
- Loss of tactical action. Since Monk was removed and everyone can heal themselves, you consider each class as a DPS. Just spam attack skills.
There are some other things that where added that in my opinion bring nothing to the game:
- Pseudo durability system. Pointless
- Jumping key. Sorry, i think this was a huge fan service, i think its pointless to have it compared to GW, i liked the fact i could use the space bar to do focused actions and not jump.
- The complete loss of character customization, where you had a complete different set of faces and hairs for each class (and campaign) in GW, now its just same sets for each race, leaving you probably recycling the same face/hair for many characters.
- No more skill hunting. You get a weapon, you use it to train the skills, that's done.
- Amped up level cap. Why? I loved the fact level cap was only 20 in GW, and the real game started from there on, where enemies got stronger and above that level cap. (lvl 31 Dragon Glint anyone?)
Bottom line, Guild Wars 2 is a great game, but lost the Guild Wars originality and became mainstream. If you like WoW or SW TOR you will like this game, if you loved Guild Wars, you might get a bit disappointed with this new installment. Let's hope new expansion will make things different.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012OK, cant logon to servers, so I'm taking my time to write this :). Took pre-purchase. Played for some 35 hours already. Now, I did have 1 guild wars 1 game, but I didnt like it, so I didnt play it very long, hence I cant compare this game to guild wars 1. But I can tell you that this game has been huge fun for me for the past 3 days, and thats only start :). It seems that people in arenanet have done their research, looked for everything that players of MMO's didnt like, and found a way around that. Materials clogging your backpack? you can put them in a bank from anywhere in the world. Production made easy cause you can access the bank directly from that window. If an area is full of players, and the game would be laggy otherwise, you will be thrown into overflow (copy of that area) to wait your queue. Everything you do in overflow counts just as it would if youre on a main zone. I understand that some people find this a minus, but to me it's realistic solution to computer and networking limits we have today. World vs Word is everything I hoped Warhammer online would be (warhammer looks like a todlers game in comparison). Before I thought that 10 keys in total would be somewhat on a minus side, but trust me, combinations are endless and fun, and you will use that 10 keys, not like wow where you have ton of abilities of which you use what? 3 keys for pve and additional 2 for pvp?
Graphic is nothing groundbraking, but looks very very nice. Caracter control are inferior to those of wow (again), but better than any other MMO I have tried, so close 2nd :). All in all, this is a game that knows the limits of todays technology, and deals with them in a right way. Programmers were not on drugs (hey, give us 300 million dollars, we will make you best game ever in the whole unknown and known universe, riight). And most importantly, this game is fun to play :).… Expand
Aug 28, 2012At first it took me a while to warm up to the game, but once you get a rhythm for the system and get absorbed into the world, you will have some of the most memorable experiences from any MMO
The world as absolutely breath-taking and massive and feels like such love went into the over all design that it's not not to at least appreciate the work that went into something on this scale.
Sep 1, 2012What a game. Better than any MMO before it, for someone who likes a hardcore game, but doesn't want the 'life investment' that comes with WoW. Caters to all types, quick PVP, perfect MMO world, big battles, easy grouping, fun combat. Truly the next big MMO, no doubt.
Sep 9, 2012Its a good Casual Game, with great PvP. But it is NOT the best MMORP of the last Years. The story is lame and presents acts thrown together, Events seem to have nothing like quests ( kill XY 90% of the Events) still to often as a Hack & Slay ( more then 3 Players at a Event)
There are many other examples where you realize that it's just standard, only the PvP is great! But it is Guild Wars, I expected this.
My Score ist 8.5 /10… Expand
Aug 28, 2012What the reviews say is in fact the truth. ^^
Yes, some minor things need to be ironed out, but the game just launched. It is also really nice to see such a great community. Seems like a lot of sane people are playing this game...unlike let's say another MMO.
Dec 5, 2012A fantastic and fresh take on MMO's, most notably due to the unique combat system and PVP activities. The game, however, lacks engaging end-game content. Musically and graphically the game is fantastic. The story is generic though, and not very memorable. I had a blast playing this game for about a month, well worth the price, and hey, ITS FREE TO PLAY!
Oct 1, 2012Got the game even at it's high cost because of the hype. Installed it levelled to 22 and still didn't like it. Graphically good yes but when I fight things, the moves you get just are not satisfying. I'm not sure why so many say WoW is graphically terrible, when I turn everything on Ultra with 4x AA and SSAO it's wonderful so clearly you either need to change the options or get a better card or LCD screen. The game still isn't a patch on WoW, I can see quests from explanation marks and not silly love heart icons. Joining PvP in wow is fun and easy, dungeons, raids, all because of integrated functions using the finder tool. This just doesn't have the edge at all and sorry but if your praising it just because it's free you need to open your eyes.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012What is there to say? It's a lovingly crafted, very fun game. There's constantly things to do and joys to find, and yet no monthly fee. Beautiful, engaging, often hilarious and full of wit. The devs are hard not to love for what they've created here.
Sep 24, 2014Better than Archepay, The Secret World, and TERA, all things considered.
I've been purchasing every major MMO release this year and have left extremely disappointed each time. I would log in, see "kill X and Y", do the standard number mashing combat that you find in every MMO, and end up unsubscribing. I did try to give these games my all and see if I could break past the tedium, but I could not.
#GW2masterrace… Expand
Aug 30, 2012The sequel to Guild-wars set within the same world, 8 fun classes and 5 which are each different and have there own story, Graphics are superb and the music is beautiful with nice combat sounds. The combat is fun and compelling with a dodge system and fast paced action.
Highly recommended to anyone looking for a new rpg or mmorpg to play.
Oct 2, 2012No commitment fun. I'm not tied down by a subscription - which is great. But most importantly, the game is beautiful. I'm happy they worked on it an extra two years. Quality really shines through.
Oct 2, 2012This game is something new. I love that the questing system is not really there, and you have so much freedom to do whatever you want! The Event System is also genious. Despite all the bugs that has been since the early launch, I find this game to be very addicting, and is the best MMO I've played since WoW
Nov 25, 2013After one year of playing GW2 I can tell you with honesty that this game is NOT what the developers told the public that they were going to create. The game is top to bottom full of grind. The combat is repetitive and boring. Expect to Zerg when in open world events. Expect to Zerg in WvW. Expect terrible performance with top end hardware. Expect most items that you would like to be in the gem store only(you can pay with ingame gold but the exchange rate is rediculous).
Expect one shots
Expect time gated content...yes you look at a timer for things to do....
Expect the worst story from an MMO ever, even the Living Story updates are akin to an episode of Scooby Doo.
Expect terrible class balancing
Expect these things because that is what you're going to get with GW2. Future updates will in all likelihood NOT change the core issues that are mentioned.
GW2 has no Guild Wars...yes not even guild halls. The game should be called Zerg Wars 2, the rise of Trahearne.
The positives are that the game does look pretty good. The world is well designed but that is all I can pretty much think of really … Expand
Sep 4, 2012I am hooked. What an impressive MMO. You are fed the feeling of "raid" from other MMOs CONSTANTLY through simply doing tasks. Events happen nearby and everyone rushes there to get a huge amount of XP. You're left with HUGE battles that are extremely satisfying.
I can't believe how imaginative this game is! Its graphics are top notch for an MMO. The controls feels very natural and I keep wondering how it could be any better. World vs World PVP?!? I mean come on, you can't beat that. Loads of fun to be had in this addictive game.
Great job ArenaNet! I'm officially hooked.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012The game has been a complete disappointment. Graphically I'm not impressed. You would think in 2012 the graphics would be better. In addition I find the movement to feel very unnatural. While the game started fun, it quickly became a chore.
Worse came when on the second day a plethora of accounts getting hacked. Just a complete disappointment altogether.
Sep 23, 2012Don't listen to the naysayers they are just WOW fanbabies who are upset that GW2 is so popular and good. It really is fantastic and the graphics are some of the best I've ever seen. It also puts RIFT to shame and the world is HUGE and you get 5 starting areas and several classes and 5 races. It has one of the most unique skills systems I've ever seen with 5 of the skills out of the 10+ you get attached to each type of weapon you use. It truely is one of the best MMO's on the market now and well worth the $60 I paid for it. There is lots to explore and an very simple combat system but still enough to do to make it skillful and not just a roll face type of combat system.
It has daily achievements for you to do, monthly and many many more types to grant you titles and money.
The endgame is well not really an endgame because there's really no raiding required, there's no grind required UNLESS you want to grind for OPTIONAL ARMOR and WEAPONS that are PURELY COSMETIC and nothing more. Too many WOWbabies whine because it's not easy to get in 3 weeks time playing lol.
Trust me if you want a great fun MMO to play that doesn't take all your time away this is the one. Nothing out there is as good as this and so much fun. :)… Expand
Feb 15, 2013This is going to be my last attempt on trying to be serious on this game...since everytime I boot it up, it gets worse and worse everytime and I'm myself impressed by how bad this game gets the more I play. I have leveled over 50 and played a lot by exploring and doing all sort of quests, all sorts of actions, and again I tried the crafting after months of its release (since I bought it on launch). I initially said it was a great game due to the classes being well detailed, which ended up to be sort of a fake statement since all classes are basically "jack of all trades" class: you only get a different set of skills and while I appreciated the fact that they tried to remove the "holy trinity" (tank, dps, healer), this lack of feature makes every class basically a boredom due to the fact that you'll never feel unique: you're one of the crowd, and I don't see that point in a mmo where you'd wish to stand up among the crowd: it's that what makes an mmo worthwhile. I also mentioned how the game gives you different ways to quest. and events that are varied and different...but after a while you'll just discover that it's still the same quests just disguised as a "different" event, without mentioning that they can be boring too since you are, again, one of the crowd and I saw myself just spamming the same skills. About the skills, I initially mentioned that I liked it, but eventually I opened my eyes and I saw just how limited it was, since you'll just be spamming 5 skills in total, plus 5 more that can be set by yourself later on...but it is just not enough to keep the game fresh and I remember being bored just after few weeks of gameplay after release. Also the combat states that they hoped to be dynamic and always on the move, by giving you also the possibility to dodge and to fight while moving...and again you'll see just as a disguise for the same old routine; the dodge works sporadically and unless you're EXTREMELY precise, you can still be hit and make your dodge completely useless. Also, you have only 2 dodges, and once you're over you can easily stand still: even if you run their hit range is bigger than yours, and unfortunely this leads into some very overpowered enemies that can take basically 1/10 of your health in one hit (worst example: as a warrior, I received a critical hit of 990 from a NON-veteran/elite enemy...and I was level 11-12, and had only 890+ hp). It is engaging at times...and at first, but then you'll see the truth in a second: it's not fun and it is repetitive. I also mentioned how the shared resources is good...and is still good! But on the other hand the crafting system, while a little improved by lowering some items (I "think"...) it still remains hard to improve and I honestly never tried to improve it due to the fact that it requires so much material grinding that it would turn off any will of trying. And while some may say "get a guild" or "use a guide" to me, I say instead if I'm forced to ask for help, what's to enjoy about the professions?". The graphics are still great and I haven't got much to say: it still remains the best graphics I've seen so far. Although, the dubbing can be mediocre at times. The story, while I liked that you could create a story for your avatar, it's the same as the rest of the game: it's just a disguise that after some quests completely disappears and reveals nothing more than a simple questline with choices to make (which changes only few things by the way). While interesting, AGAIN, the freshness disappears rapidly and becomes a boring campaign that shows nothing more, and nothing less. I also mentioned that while there are 5 races, this is the game where I basically played one, since most of the races are...ugly. This is still personal and while I enjoy that they added more races than the first game, to me the human is still the only good race to play with (or the charr: they're awesome!). And for last, the community. I play in one of the most crowded server (Aurora Glade) and everytime I play...I hardly see anybody around! What happened? Even when I started a new character the places had barely few people around: I was playing alone all the time! Nobody even talked in the general chat (except cities) and while I'm not at cap level yet I've seen more players in the starting zones in many other MMORPGs, and this game supposed to encourage team work! That alone is why I quit, and why everyone should be aware of this game: I wouldn't bother if it wasn't of it's welcoming appearence but it soon shows how fake all the premise was and how basically it has nothing fresh into it. Not the worst MMORPG, but it's very close to it. You have been warned.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012From the ashes of the long burned-out MMO genre emerges Guild Wars 2. The original Guild Wars, which I still say is better tham WoW, should have set the standard for MMOs, but instead was marketed into obscurity; not this time. This time around the differences are noticeable and long-overdue for the genre. It's not just the gameplay, it's the choice. For once in an MMO, the illusion of choice is no longer an illusion. Tank, DPS, and Healer are no longer specializations, just positions. To say that all professions (as the game's classes are called) can do all three is abit of a misnomer. ArenaNet has officially ended the need and use for Tanks, DPS, and Healers altogether! All classes have self-heal, tank, and damage skills built right in, and when downed, can still fight and revive themselves, so wipes are almost completely eliminated. Each class also has access to a wide variety of skills that are almost completely dependent on what kind of weapon you're using (utility skills, as they're called, can only be unlocked by skill points). What's more: The pregame character custimozation actually does have an effect on character progression--by influencing the entire story! Quests? Sorry, the WoW,TOR, and TSW reviews are two pages away. In Guild Wars 2, action finds you. True, there are still some static quests, but the vast majority happen in real time and are completely indiscriminate of one another (you can be doing a quest to deliver a message only to be caught in the middle of a massive undead invasion), and if you fail one of these massive public events (numbers are no guarantee of success, as I found out the hard way), the game shows the results of failure and opens the door to more events that would be unavailable otherwise. To top all of this off, the game is subscription free! THANK YOU ARENANET, you're the smart ones in this industry; keep up the good work.… Expand
Apr 25, 2014I bought GW2 on a friend's recommendation. After playing for a few hours I got used to certain controls - mostly for skills 1 to 5 (pressing 1 to 5). So I log in again tonight and it has swapped around the order of my skills & it's impossible to customise (I've searched on the web). For no logical reason that I can think of. I now have to re-learn all of the controls for no reason because it has swapped around the skill order randomly. Anyway - if you are new and considering giving this a go - avoid.… Expand
Sep 6, 2012I like how all the troll posts are spouting lies that are so obvious you can see them a mile away and a quick search on youtube will prove them to be false. Of the negative reviews that are not troll posts, I'd like to point out a couple of things: 1. People complaining about there being no Raids, no Holy Trinity etc and how they bought into the hype and was disappointed are stupid. That stuff has been public knowledge for more than a year and in fact some of those things were actually used by the developers themselves to promote the game. If you know the game won't have those things, why buy it and then complain that they don't have those things? If you didn't know about those things, then why say that the game is different from the hype? Whether you like it or not is subjective of course, but it is exactly as promised. 2. Account Security. First and foremost, the large majority of people who lost their accounts to hackers only have themselves to blame for not keeping their details secure. That being said, ANet does need to improve certain parts of their security features, such as adding a 3 failed tries = timeout on their website (I have not checked recently, so they may have already added this). So ANet has to take partial responsibility for the accounts that were hacked through brute force methods, but the majority? It was their own fault. 3. Banned accounts. Anybody saying "I'm innocent why was I banned?" is likely lying. Go do a search for the Reddit thread with all the ban information. The large majority of those who complained were actually banned for perfectly acceptable, valid reasons. Some of them were so ashamed that ANet knows exactly what they did they actually deleted their original complaint. The minuscule few that were actually innocent were given apologies and un-banned quickly after a review. CS staff are humans too, sometimes they makes mistakes, but looking at the evidence the majority of bans were well deserved. What ANet can actually improve in this area though is to modify their "You we're banned" message to include the reason why. Now for actual comments about the game. This game plays like a TES game in that you are dropped in a world, with a little bit of direction and then you are mostly left to your own devices. People who like exploring and goofing around experimenting with stuff will love it. There are so many little nooks and crannies everywhere, it's insane. People who prefer a more linear, hand-holded/guided style of game likely will not. The combat plays in some ways like an FPS, but from third person view. In a traditional MMO, if you see a mob your own level attacking you, you eat the damage and stand still and attack while consuming stuff like potions when necessary. In this game, you need to actually dodge out of the way, either by moving sideways, hiding behind terrain objects etc (a la FPS games) or using the "temporary invincibility" dodge button that you can only use twice in quick succession and other damage mitigation skills. It's not quite "action-combat" but I would say is a hybrid between traditional MMO combat and actiony FPS style combat. Anybody who says that the Holy Trinity still exists is lying. You CAN get through certain situations using a Holy Trinity type setup (early game), but you will find that it is a lot harder and more inefficient than playing the game the way it's meant to be played, by watching the screen, not the hotbar. And being aware of your surroundings instead of focusing on hp bars. The Dynamic Events system is great, it makes the world feel alive. Everybody who says "it's just WoW questing" are slow people who are either blind or unable to read instructions, they mistake Renown Hearts for Dynamic Events, ignore the real Dynamic Events when they see one and then complain about it. Renown Hearts are static events that the game uses to draw you to Dynamic Event hot spots. They are two different things and serve different purposes, the majority of the PvE content are the Dynamic Events, Hearts are only there as a guide and was only added because initial play testers felt they needed more direction.The only real problem that the game has is that they underestimated the demand for their game and so had some infrastructure teething issues (which has already seen some marked improvements over the past 2 weeks). In fact, other than the usual small to medium bugs here and there that you expect from a software this size and scope, all of the other issues are infrastructure/capacity related. TLDR: The game is well designed with some excellent systems in place. They need to improve some of their backend infrastructure, which they have publicly acknowledged and are addressing. If you don… Expand
Oct 5, 2012Like many of you I have been disappointed by so many games over the years but I decided to get Guildwars 2 yesterday and it is awesome!
I am a MMO fan and have enjoyed playing such games as WOW, SW:TOR, Everquest 2, Rift and Tera but I have to say Guildwars 2 blows them away. There is so much to do and see. Believe the hype!
Sep 8, 2012I am stunned. Truly stunned.
There has been a long line of MMORPGs ever since World of Warcraft designed the genre. Many were predicted to be "WoW killers" or "Revolutionary", but many lost their subscribers or switched to a free-to-play model a few months later. It's only been a few weeks for Guild Wars 2, but the content I have experiences so far is so breathtaking that I see no way now, or any time in the future, that this game will die out. This game adds so much depth, creativity, and fun to the MMORPG genre that I can see it becoming a new home for the MMO players who have been looking for a new one. This game IS revolutionary, and it IS going to last a long time. I don't have to go into detail about the game to prove my point, just go out and buy it. No subscription fee makes this an extremely worthy investment.… Expand
Sep 11, 2014I am changing my original score for an up to date score. I have put in over 1500 hours into this game which is the most time I have ever invested in a mmorpg so I think GW2 deserves a really really good score.
Some Good Points
Beautiful graphics Good character creation, the ability to change your character hairstyles and other cosmetic stuff can be bought from cash shop which is ok by me.
Interesting and alive world with funny NPC's having funny conversations.
Achievements are fun and rewarding.
Lovely and feminine armours. Being able to dye my armours is such a bonus and the new system of once you buy an armour that skin is unlocked for all your characters is really fantastic! BEST THING EVER!! Of course you have to buy the transmutation token things to change your skins but again I can live with that!
Armours are made from different fabrics which show colours differently when they are dyed. Such great attention to detail from the artists in this game. There are hundreds of dyes to unlock and they are cheap and easy to obtain and are unlocked account wide. Each dye looks slightly different based on what material your armour is made from. It gives you the opportunity for a lot of experimenting with colours and fabrics and each armour can look so different depending on the colours you use. I have never seen an mmo use this system- it is fantastic!!!
The open world events are a great way to level up collect loot. Your character feels really powerful when you are levelling, I love that and I love some of the fun skills you have with each class. Like electricity for mage, bombs for engineer, cutie pie pets for ranger, Mesmers and their mirror images and the love hearts and pink effects everywhere, a girl gamers paradise!
You are not limited by your level in open world questing. I like the way the achievements work and the chests of reward everything so often.
Crafting is nice and easy and levels well. It's great to craft stuff to gear up my own character with and sell too.
Map Exploration is a lot of fun with events and loot. Anet seems to be on the ball with updates and improvements, new armours and weapon skins.
The Not So Good
The story in this game is pretty meh, not much excitement level. For each character I created I played the story up to about level 60 just for the odd chest key you sometimes get as a reward. I never got the chance to finish my personal story as for the very last story you need a well trained and equipped group. We tried one night and wiped out so badly, my husband and I decided to watch the ending on YouTube. I'm not sure having a storyline that you can play solo all the way to 80 and then forcing you into a group suddenly is the way to go, at least not for me and my tastes.
The Bad
For me this would be the dungeons. As you level you get a series of invitations to go and do various story dungeons. The first arrives just before level 40 I believe. However if you make the mistake to pop along and join a dungeon using the dungeon finder you might find yourself at the mercy of dungeon elitists who will either see you there and leave the group, kick you out or politely tell you that the dungeons really are too difficult for low levels and to wait until you are level 80 and geared in exotic stuff. I actually did wait and ended up doing many dungeons with many types of players and some of whom were much lower level than 80 to find that yes, groups with lower level players would wipe and very often too. It would be disheartening and a struggle and unnecessarily stressful. It certainly makes me wonder why the dungeons are opened to low levels at all when they are exceedingly way too hard for all but the most experienced. Of course in my time learning the dungeons (a steep learning curve it is too for someone with mostly PVE background) I met many nasty, impatient, rude people who just wanted to rush through the content, skipping mobs and leaving the less experienced to die and respawn over and over or to be kicked out by other group members. Of course there are some SAINTS doing those dungeons who you might be lucky enough to get teamed with, but for every one of those there of plenty of the other type. Behaviour of players is obviously not strictly monitored or policed and you can really tell this in the course of a month of doing dungeons every day.
So for the more genteel, soft of heart or just light hearted players out there I would recommend giving that aspect of GW2 a miss.
Its got so much going for it though I would say buy this game and play it and enjoy the parts that make you happy. That's what I do.
(Anet I removed 1 point from your perfect score as the abuse and nastiness going on in the dungeons is really unpleasant)… Expand
Sep 17, 2012There is something fishy about the ratings, I aggregated the critic scores and it was a 97, I think someone fiddled with the review, or was poorly aggregated. Mistake or not, this needs to be fixed. Also, don't consider loisho's review, he/she seems to hate everything, giving Dead Space 2 a 0/10, Skyrim a 0/10, GW2 a 4/10 (his/her highest score!) and DD (not D&D) a 1/10.
Aug 28, 2012Guild Wars 2 isn't a huge revolutionary entry into the genre but it does take a lot of good steps in the right direction when trying to correct what people often see as faults in traditional MMOs. As far as visuals, the game is often stunning. Technically speaking, the visuals aren't top of the line but the art style and aesthetic make it a pleasure to look at. The best element they've added to this game in my opinion that most every traditional MMO lacks is the urge to explore world. With dynamic events, mini dungeons, and puzzles, and more, traveling and exploring is actually a pleasure instead of a bore and the main element that drives PvE. The dynamic events aren't as amazing as they were made out to be, however they're still much more fun and engaging than your typical MMO "Kill 5 boars" quests. Because of all these things grind, for once, is extremely minimal and the leveling process doesn't have to be an annoying chore but rather the appeal of the game. Bad news is, that for now, a lot of things aren't up and running as they should be. Guild, trading posts, and more are either screwy or don't function at all. However, I expect these things to be corrected fairly soon after launch.… Expand
Sep 10, 2012A nice mix of single-player RPG and MMORPG. Lots of character customization (face, hair, body, etc.). A branching personal story for each race and profession chosen. Cooperative gameplay is encouraged and rewarded. Dynamic Events are engaging and some can change the map depending on whether you win or lose. Game mechanics prevent ninja-looting, mob camping, and resource node contention. Lots of NPC to NPC dialog that can be quite funny. PvP that's actually skill-based and not gear-based. IMHO, GW2 is better than UO, EQ, and WoW. Your mileage may vary.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012I don't give 10s lightly, but this game deserves one.
The World... wow.. just wow. It's like you're actually living in another realm, with the amazing vistas, adventures and people you meet - the story is good (not narrative driven, so not as deep as say SWTOR's) but it really plays second fiddle to the living, breathing world ArenaNet has created.
When you log in you feel like you've been transported into another place and time, you do missions - battle other servers for dominance and glory and the sPvP is AMAZING. The amount of tactics/pre-planning/skills required is phenomenal, a much higher standard required when comparing it to WoW et al.
Pick this game up now, you will not regret it.… Expand
Sep 3, 2012I hated it before I played it (wasn't pleased by vocal fans touting it's many "new" features, none of which were actually new). Having had a go at release, I liked it at first, felt better than most, graphics were OK but not great (really low poly counts), but with some impressive layouts (PVP) and some really dull ones (PVE).
After a couple of hours playing I realized it's just **** The floaty animations, disconnected feel of the controls, boringly simplistic skills (mesmer may be an exception) and a pointless dodge function. I went from "hey this combat feels ok" to "i want my WoW back" in the time it takes to finish the battleground tutorial. Hated the questing system, auto-grouping is OK but it just makes everything so mindless and repetitive - which is what they hoped to avoid with dynamic events.
Character progressions is nonexistant in the true MMO fashion - even as far as themeparks go. You activate skills by using the appropriate ones before hand - something which has no point other thant to keep your interest the first couple of levels (which is how long it takes to unlock them ALL). You're insta max level in BGs, which can be useful if you don't like to level (and therefore don't like MMOs), but I don't have to explain what an oxymoron that is, do I? They could've easily done tournament servers ala WoW, where you can create max level characters, if that's your game.
tl;dr, don't belive the hype.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012just amazing in it own right, a fresh mechanic mmo with no tank or heal system, dynamic world quest, good graphics..
very good not perfect class balance but time will sort that out :)
Sep 1, 2012Guild Wars 2 set a new standard for MMOGs. It's a polished game with everything you could want in a massive game. A very well balanced and fun PvP experience and some amazing PvE moments. But GW2 shines when it gives the player to option to play as he likes. You will be rewarded for exploring, killing or crafting. You might play the game the way you want and not the way the devs want you to do it. The story is well written and the world is alive with events. You might arrive in a small town and see it under siege by hordes of centaurs and when you save it you see the soldiers regrouping to counter-attack and you join them. It's highly polished and really well done. It's not a revolution, but an evolution of the genre. A must have for MMO gamers. Technically the graphics are amazing and the sound effects are well done. Music ? Well, Jeremy Soule, that's all i have to say. The game have flaws ? Of course it does, but they don't make it less fun and all of them will be fixed in due time. Without a doubt this game has everything to be the new king of the genre.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Absolutely fantastic!.....Give it a year, and this actually IS the MMO that will knock WoW off the top, and it deserves to......................................Dark Souls, GW2 and a even more fantastic looking games coming up... its a great time to be a gamer!
Aug 28, 2012This game is a good step in the right direction for the MMO genre. The graphics are decent: while the engine is a little dated, the art style and concept art that forms the loading screens and "cutscene" backgrounds are absolutely stunning. While the writing and voice acting isn't on the level that we saw in The Old Republic, it is still more engaging than most MMO's. The gameplay isn't as freah as I would have liked, but it still feels more interesting than games such as WoW. The combat is fasted paced, amd the ability to dodge attacks adds a little skill to the game, rather than being purely based on number crunching. The dynamic events get a little repetitive after a while, but they are still much more interesting than tour standard "kill 5 bandits" MMO fare. The game encourages and rewards participation in these events, and everyone gets their own XP and loot. The PVP is an interesting concept, amd once everyone gets the hang of it, I can see some truly epic experiences going in there. It's also cool how you get bonuses based on how well your server is doing. The only downsides to the game are minor grievances: trading post unavailable at launch, so no economy; you're limited to only one server, and the guesting feature is not functional yet; servers are extremely crowded and you are often stuck in an overflow instance, separate from your party members and guildies; some guild functions are down. Keep in mind that this games endgame is meant to be PVP. Overall, a good game that a lot of time and planning went into. I look fkrward to seeing where they go with it. And the best part is, of course, there's no subscription!… Expand
Aug 30, 2012I play mmos since WoW came out. I literally tried out everything since then. I know there are more HC gamers, who started before me. For me this game is the best MMO I ever played with yet, I really do not have anything to add. Easily a 10/10 for the time being.
Sep 4, 2012Let me start of by saying two things first of all I do NOT give high scores for the sake of giving them and I usually only take time to write reviews if I really like the game. Second of all, all I have seen from the lower to mid ratings is complete jealousy that it beat out their favorite MMO. I'm sorry, but AN did so many things right and so little wrong.
I would like to go over some things that I felt were not touched upon in several of these other reviews that are just so brilliant. First off the story, music, atmosphere, combat, pvp, and events are perfectly done and incredibly engaging anyone who says otherwise; it's just not their cup of tea or again they are jealous that it really is done this well. Arenanet's attention to detail is unfathomable, the amount of work that went into their puzzles and mazes and keeping it varied consistently is nothing short of extraordinary, you always feel like you are doing something new or different when you come upon these. Then their are skill challenges and if you are lucky enough to solo of these it really does give you a sense of difficulty and what you still need to master, whether it be timing, precision, or just combos. I really enjoy a particular one where the guy kept you laughing the entire time. Next, the group events these are not so much engaging as game changing literally. If you fail to stop a Giant attack on a city for example, then you will not be able to use any merchant or events in this area until that Giant has been taken down. Likewise whole areas can shift from control to NPC to enemies based on if you succeed or fail an event. There is alot more to touch up on, but I feel these few should give players an idea just what makes Guild Wars 2 so enticing.
Then we have to cons these range from miniscule bugs to the very simplistic crafting. The bugs from what I have seen so far are few and far between whether it's getting stuck in the map, creates that just give up, or NPCs that don't want to advance the story. There is always a workaround and they never bring you out of the experience. Then there is the crafting, which is mainly build up resources, refine said resources, use special materials to make inscriptions or insignias and repeat. I do like the discovery tab, but they give you almost zero recipes that are not common sense, really taking away the feeling of making something special to just the next thing on the list to get your bar higher. I feel if they added more mystery and adventure to their recipe making that people would have alot more fun crafting.
This is just a small slice of what GW2 have and the PROS well outweigh the CONS, do yourself a favor and give it a try for yourself with no subscription fee you never locked into anything and can quit anytime and pick it back up later. I feel that my purchased was well justified and I hope you will feel the same. I did want to say one more thing the WvW feels exactly like the brilliant mode from DAoC and can be jumped in at anytime, which offers its own rewards and xp towards PvE. There simply is too many thing to about, I just hope people who read this actually see a better reason to pick it up, as for me I am back to enjoying this game 100 fold.… Expand
Sep 1, 2012I won't spoil anything here, but the game is no super marvel. This is just another cog in the great MMO wheel migration. Another game churned out, another spin taken by a huge nomad gaming community. The perk being that you only pay once is a huge draw, and yes you can assume I am a player who is hardly pleased by the MMO spectrum. To break it down, the controls are a 2.5 for me. The characters reactions to my inputs are a 2.5, this goes for movement animation gliding and the such. Yes, I am nit picky. (Not a latency issue unless it's server side, my ISP services are Broadband 250Mbps DL and 15 Mbps upload with no network interference.) The Graphics are amazing, absolutely and I won't touch that because lets face it, that's not what makes a game fun.
The narrative and story is flat out suck, I won't bore you with this because I am comparing it to TOR and while that game is not the epitome of story, in the standards of MMO, it's the highest there is. The pvp system is interesting and plays similar to Warhammer online, albeit improved and it has it's own level of excitement. Combat mechanics are your standard fare but with some interesting twists on how things are utilized... Like the great sword for a certain stealthy caster class. It still comes down to being the exact same thing as any other game. Push this, cast that, move this way, avoid the fire, kite kite kite kite. Sadly, you can't escape this kind of mechanical build for the MMO genre, it's just what works best.
Still, I feel this game will go the way of all current MMO types. The main base will work hard at it, play hard and at the 3 month mark, you will see the servers start to dwindle in population size. The 6 month mark we are going to see free server transfers and server merges. It will go the way of the Old Republic and settle into it's normal numbers and have a nice base of players. I will not likely be one of them but I will give the game 6 months of my time and post another review then. It's not awful, it's just another mmo that doesn't push or change anything in any extreme manner. Weapon swapping isn't new, it's just given a bit more range and utility other than stat dancing. The one thing I do like is how the Thief plays out and I will be looking to push this class as far as I can. In comparison to other MMO games of the current few years, TOR and GW2 are the only ones I will be bouncing between because the rest really can't touch either of them. TOR has a long ways to go and I hope GW2 is the motivation to make that game grow into a great f2p game to bounce to when I get sick of GW2 and vice-versa. My only other problem is that I feel coddled in this game. It does good for a large player base with a wide range of tastes but I feel there is nothing that will keep me tied to the game in the end of all my time spent. This is of course, my personal opinion and I don't expect to have anyone see it as I do.… Expand
Oct 3, 2012Pre-ordered months in advance in anticipation, but sadly the game just does not live up to expectations. For the first few days I'd have gladly given the game a 10/10 however, when you make it into the 70-80 range the PVE content immediately falls off and becomes boring due to poorly tuned events and somehow even more repetitive combat than the "Cookie cutter" MMOs such as WoW. There is no true difficulty in the game since you will almost never really die and fighting PVE bosses is as simple as learning their one threatening move that is hidden in around 4-5 weak but flashy hits and then using your invulnerability dodge to get through it. A.Net had such potential with the open world bosses and they really could have made some interesting open raids such as they did with the earlier bosses, but the late game ones really don't even come close to that quality. Most will say the focus on GW has always been PVP, which is true so let's go to that. Currently PVP is entirely imbalanced which is alright I suppose due to it being new, but even then the PVP is for the most part slow and repetitive with very little reaction based combat for most of the classes and is in many ways worse than GW1 and honestly right now not even WvWvW is fun enough to make up for the core gameplay mistakes. Overall it's fun enough that I got my moneys worth and will still make alts for the fun low level content, but most players will want to look elsewhere for a good MMO. Both PVE and PVP players have much better options to choose from.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012I usually don't give things, 10's this game is an easy 9 though. The 10 is just too offset all the 0's. I really think metacritic should take the user rating system down.
Aug 28, 2012This game is fantastic, a milestone. Not only the overall level of quality and detail is above almost any other MMO in the market, but it also innovates the genre in many ways.
No more single task, static questing, but a living world where events are not waiting for you to click on an NPC to happen: you explore, you see things happening, you join them and your actions have consequences.
No more gear grind: both in PvE and PvP, you won't need to farm gear for ages just to be able to join the action. At max level everybody is on the same gear level, the outcomes of the challenge is determined by your skill, finally.
No more being pigeon holed within one single class role. Every class can finally be ranged and melee, healing or dpsing. Shift your weapons, manage your countless skills, dodge and parry the incoming attacks. This is finally an engaging combat!
No more waiting for a healer or a tank to show up: you want to do that dungeon with 5 warriors or 5 necromancers? You can, it works.
No more subscription fees: you by the game and you play it as much as you want, at your pace. Content will be periodically added, and it will be free. You just have to buy the official expansion when they will come out.
This game is different in mechanics, is gigantic in scope, is beautiful and intriguing. Do yourself a favour and don't miss it. It's not "marketing" or advertisement. It's how the game is, as a matter of fact.
(Final note: I read some of the few "0" rated reviews here and I am appalled by the false information they spread. One thing is expressing opinions, one thing is spreading clear lies. Only 5 skills? False. I cannot play with my friends? False. Give the game a try, you'll see by yourself what's true and what's false...… Expand
Feb 20, 2013Guild Wars 2... I have such mixed feelings about his game. I will start with the PROs I will say it is a good game. It is high quality and it very detailed and adventurous. I love the world, the artwork and most of all the character creator. The character creator is possibly one of the best I have used and I had a lot of fun (In the beginning) playing this game. I waited a good long few months so i soak up what this game is all about from the gameplay and 'is it fun?' perspective. But, after the things I have encountered... though high quality, the game seems to be unfinished. I will explain. CONs First thing that annoyed me unlike other MMOs, is there are certain things that must come as standard in every MMO. By these I mean, trading with other players, mounts and a well designed and easy to use Auction House. This game lacks all of those. No trading option still puzzles me, but the auction house feels unpolished since it was first created, the text is choppy and the filters are terrible, ontop of that, the way the auction house is set up makes is EASY for other players and gold farmers/seller to exploit and drive up the currency market. Mounts, I understand Arenanets solution to no mount is to create instant teleport points. Yea, that is convenient, but personally I like buying/earning mounts in a game. I also love galloping through the environments. But, (I may be speculating) That taking the mounts out of the game frees up time and money creating the animations, skins, programming ect, making this a cooperate decision and not a game one. Next is the combat system and skill system. No trainers, no weapon learning, no nothing. Around level 30 you will unlock all you skill slots and spell you will use for the rest of the game exspereince. You will only have 5 weapon spells (5 more for underwater) and 6 buffs/cooldowns. That is it. i personally could not bare with using the same 5 or so spells over and over till lvl 80. The combat is just not fun. The weapon skills and spells are so limited. I feel brain dead though right now. This maybe the worst review I have written, but I feel I touched on the things that greatly disappointed me about this game. So to sum things up. PROS: No monthly fee, Excellent Character creator, Amazing world and environments, refreshing questing and story concept, good graphics and animations, and finally fun exploration and puzzle mechanics. CONS: NO mounts, NO player to player trading, Poor (But tolerable) Auction House and currency system, Limited spells and abilities, no tank/dps/healer concept (Which makes boss fights nothing but freelancing spell spamming chaos with no team work.), and a boring and repetitive combat system.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012Reasons why I love guild wars 2 [not a review]
Every MMO I played generally states that humans are a new race and they are so majestic, dignified and young race. Guild wars 2 is different instead they say they are a **** up race who **** up so much that they are left to such a small kingdom.
Everything/Anything I do gives me XP, So i dont have to worry about grinding at all and the dynamic events you like you are given the same XP for any number of times you try.
Professions and their powers are way different than other MMOs, you dont have to reach level 30 to get a specific good spell. At level 7 you can have 10 different spells from 2 weapons you can swap, one healing power and one utility power. And the interface is so clean.
you dont have to wait in queues, you can play all the time[thanks to overflow servers]. You can be level 80 anytime in W v W v W and have fun.
And the best one No monthly fee
there are so many articles, reviews stating their experiences in guild wars 2, which are so overwhelming, if you are reading this probably you have already read all those. So I am not gonna share my experiences all over again. I would just say "you know how MMO are supposed to be that alternate life where you lose yourself and enjoy and you can be awesome at it, GUILD WARS 2 does this best". If you enjoy RPG or MMO, this is a must buy. It is just 60$ for life, what is wrong with it. Buy it now.… Expand
Aug 31, 2012Easily the best MMORPG I've played since Pre-BC WoW. The only things missing are no FOV slider (which would really help to show off the beautiful world Arena Net made), no camera zoom out distance option, the zoom out distance is pretty low and it can cause headaches for some. Class balance issues are also a small problem which will for sure be balanced out in the next few months so it's not really a big deal. The good parts of the game is everything else. The combat is all skill based, where you have to swap between weapon sets, use your dodges at the appropriate times, and be careful of which skills you choose to use at certain times. The world is MASSIVE, the biggest i've ever seen in a game. There are also tons of incentives and rewards for exploring it which is amazing. There is no end game, as the end game is all throughout the game as events, which are incredible fun, especially if you have a group of friends to level together with. The zones all look gorgeous and highly detailed. Your personal story also has tons of choice with consequences based on your choices as well. The skill points and trait skills are all based on personal preference, and there is no cookie cutter build. You build your class however you want to build him. The cash shop is interesting, in the fact that it's all cosmetics or some minor bonuses. The minor bonuses can also be found in the world as well. You don't even have to pay money for the cash shop as you can actually convert gold you earned in game for the in game cash shop currency. Overall, the game is easily a solid 9 for me and it's for sure going to be my choice MMORPG for a longgggg time. If you are sick of WoW and your typical WoW style cookie cutter mmo's this will be a huge breath of fresh air for you.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012This game is excellent. Beautiful graphics, tons of content, and a huge, immersive world. Combat is smooth and responsive. sPvP is hugely skill based. WvW is an absolute blast, especially when you play with friends. On top of all that, it's B2P!
Sep 4, 2012The Best MMORPG on the market today, no.. the best MMORPG on the market since Ultima Online. This is close to perfection and Arenanet have delivered everything they said they would, a near flawless release and an experience unsurpassed in its genre.
Sep 6, 2012This is first MMO since Wow that has all the potential to be a hit for many years to come. ArenaNet have taken a lot of risks with going away from the traditional MMO style, but most of them have been received quite well. The game attracts all of types of players and provides a great amount of content fit for any player, whether casual or hardcore.
Nov 25, 2012I am downgrading my score from when it first came out because of some annoying bugs. On two occasions I suffered a rollback which meant I went back to an earlier version of my character, losing all progress. Each time it cost me a day's play. I believe they are aware of the problem but chose to do nothing about it. The rest of my review still stands - the game is fantastic fun to play though I found the story a bit weak.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012If you've played just about any MMO in the last 10 years, you are intimately familiar with floating exclamation points, dungeon grinding, and gear treadmills. Guild Wars 2 turns much of what we know, and have unquestioningly accepted about MMOs, on its head. The most obvious difference is in the questing. The vast majority of "quests" in GW2 are spontaneous and dynamic. You don't bump into someone who tells you their life story right before they ask you to kill 10 rats. Rather, you might come upon a farm under attack by bandits - if you or your companions manage to drive them off, it may lead to another stage where you go on the attack, and raid the bandits lair. If you fail, however, a different quest starts, where you may have to repair the damage the bandits caused. People passing through the area are free to join in or leave at any time, and the difficulty scales to however many are participating. Combat itself is vastly different from the usual 'stand still and mash buttons' you see everywhere else. Movement is key, and with no specific tank or healer class, players must be aware at all times and be ready to dodge whenever the boss winds ups for a special attack. It's refreshing, and, at times, difficult - there is a definite learning curve. Additionally, combat skills depend on your weapon type. A mage might throw a fireball while wielding a staff, but if he equips a dagger, it turns into a a completely different, aoe type attack. Various other quality-of-life improvements have been made. You never directly compete with other players for quest objectives or resource nodes. Fast travel works from any point on the map. The graphics are some of the best I've seen in an MMO, and the solo storyline is actually pretty good, varying wildly depending on what race/background choices you made during character creation. Max level pvp is accessible as soon as you create your character, and is easily the best system I've seen in an MMO yet. Exploration is fun, and there are rewards for doing it. Crafting has a unique experimentation aspect to it. And, of course, the biggest selling point - there is no subscription fee! Now, all this isn't to say GW2 doesn't have any flaws. There are still a lot of launch bugs floating around, ranging from minor (trouble grouping with players) to major (the auction house has been down for days). It's still up in the air how "end game" will be received, bearing in mind there is no traditional gear treadmill. The cash/gem shop is a little sketchy, and the game has many subtle and not-so-subtle ways of nudging you toward it. Anyway, I've been playing the game since beta and I can honestly say I've been having a lot of fun. The burning questions on everyone's minds (whether or not this will kill WoW, or if they should drop WoW for this game) are largely irrelevant, they are different games with different mentalities and approaches to MMO gaming.… Expand
Dec 29, 2013This game sucked my life away, so many hour of my time have been put into this game. This game offers a plethora of replayability. There's the standard open world play and there's also personal stories. There are multiple races to chose from and customizable stories for each, ensuring a different play through each time.
Teamwork is one of the biggest points in the game, most events cannot be completed without the help of other players. The use of guilds really brings this all together, the community's very tight knit and friendly making it very easy for beginners to hop in and learn.… Expand
Oct 17, 2012I normally hate MMOs and their formulas but a friend suggested GW2 and I can't stop playing it. Truly a game changer in the MMO market. A very smart take on the questing systems of old that keep you busy and never feels like a chore or a grind to play.Not only that but it looks incredible too. Fantastic game.
Oct 20, 2012I failed to see what all the hype was about. This game is by no means special.
HOWEVER: having said that, it is a very good Online RPG. Many characters to play, tons of items, skills, spells, etc. But for me - what's important in an online RPG is to play with someone i know. Otherwise - it's just no fun - even less fun if there was a single player campaign.
Nov 6, 2012Certainly the best MMO launch of 2012. While I had a blast playing TERA and The Secret World, they can't compete with the fun I'm having with Guild Wars 2. While I must admit that the so-called PvE in the game is more or less just an "alibi" feature of the game it is still fun. It's really stimulating to finish the small tasks ("Hearts") for different people and stumble from event to event. There are many things to collect that add up to daily and monthly tasks which, in the end, reward you with even more XP, Karma and other things.
The only thing I'm missing is more PvE content (yes, I know, GW is supposed to be about PvP ;) )...but it's okay so far.
Up until this, I would've given 10/10 nonetheless, but...here comes the stuff that I actually really don't like about GW2: The PvP. So far (11/06/12) the PvP is pretty much broken. Balancing is basically non-existent (Thieves and Mesmer kill everything using just two to three skills. One-hit-kills happen as well.) and there are certain class builds that are so ridiculously powerful that you barely see anything different. Plus, certain character combinations are more or less "indestructible" so if you're not playing one of the two "awesome" classes, you're gonna have a bad time.
I hope they'll fix this soon. 8/10… Expand
Aug 30, 2012If you're into MMO's you'll love this game. If you're into RPG's you'll love this game. If you're into pvp you'll love this game. This is the game you've been waiting for and there was no one better to do it than Arena Net.
Aug 31, 2012Really a big breath of fresh air after playing countless WoW clones for the better part of 10 years now. If you are like me and have long been bored of the tried and true formula approach to all MMOS for the past 10 years, this is what you have been looking for. Just give it a shot, its free so why not?
Mar 9, 2013Guild Wars 2 challenges whole genre of MMORPGs, and succeeds. ArenaNet got rid of silly rudiments, proving that they are not needed to make a fun, interesting and thrilling game. Just a simple example are you sure you need mana itself to make a complete, balanced MMORPG? It is not about graphics it's about artistic direction, it's not about sound quality it's about sound design. This game is not flawless, but it is the best MMORPG by far. It is not a milestone too, but a logical leap. I love this game and strongly recommend it to every gamer.… Expand
Jul 13, 2014Not the groundbreaking, revolutionary game we were promised, but great nonetheless. This game combines the best features from other games, and adds its own flavour, making it even better. It's not as good as its claiming to be, but one of the best choices right now anyway. It does at times tend to feel like a singleplayer RPG though, so find a group to play with and you should be fine.
Nov 27, 2012Great game. So much to do for $60, and no need to ever spend any more than that. The PvE will occupy you for a long time, but when that wears off, the PvP is endlessly entertaining.
Aug 31, 2012I preordered the game, and although they did have some start up issues and a few very unfortunate people got hacked- it had a fairly good start. So I will stick to the game itself.
The graphics are great, the chara customization is lacking- there's very little you can do to REALLY set yourself apart. The pre-sets range from good looking to not so good looking, and it seems you cannot have a chara with red hair which is weird. Crafting -The crafting system is the real grind of this game, in order to craft you need to gather the mats from nodes AND npcs. In the form of farming mobs for a chance to drop a specific crafting component. You then craft the separate parts and combine with the npc dropped item to craft a weapon/piece of armor. Without those npc dropped 'tokens' or whatever they're called- you cannot craft. So you either farm, or buy that mat very disappointing when you're crafting and you hit a wall because you haven't been farming mobs lately.
Leveling- Quests will only get you so far, i.e. a 1-15 area doing 100% completion according to the game, will leave you at level 12-13. The common solution from the player base is farm 'dynamic' events, pvp, craft, or do something else to level. If you just wanted to Quest, or Craft, PvP to level, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. It is possible to level doing 1 specific thing but it will require grinding, except questing since there are only so many quests available. Dynamic Events - Pre-scripted events that repeat on a random time scale, they attack you while you're crafting, and remove your waypoints so you can't warp. They never go off when you're around and need XP but seem to go off 2-3 at a time when you're busy. Mounts- They don't exist get used to running around taking 4-15 minutes of your life during WvW hoofing it.
WvW - Great idea, good balance, great atmosphere, boring as heck to run around in, siege equipment seems to cost too much (at a low level) to make it worthwhile, would love to see more siege equipment.
PvP - Fast paced chaos, I personally didn't like it. Everyone has a heal and when they're 'downed' they have a lot of stupid moves that delay the inevitable and WASTE your time. Irritating to have someone dead, surrounded by 4 of your teammates right about to be 'finished' magically teleport away, making us move to them, and restart the 3-4 second cast. Boring as crap, I joined PvP to PvP not play chase the guy that lost already.
Weapons - If you roll a class, and get a weapon you get 5 skills- don't like em? Tough, that's what you get for the next couple of years you'll play GW2.
Overall- Honestly I waited for GW2 to come out, it FINALLY get- I logged in, played for 3-4 days for a couple hours a day then logged off. I have no real desire to play it, even free. I have no enjoyment, farming for xp because the quests don't get me leveled, wandering into areas that are 3-4 levels above me and doubling back to find a event that's my level. Trying to craft but realizing I didn't farm mobs enough and having to go back and grind to get mats to craft to get gear so I can do more dps. It may appeal to some people, but right now- I'm writing this review instead of playing the game, because it seemed more enjoyable to me at the time.… Expand
Dec 12, 2012I've been playing Guild Wars 2 almost everyday since release, and I love it. I don't think I've enjoyed playing a game this much, especially exploring and completing dungeons with friends. I would have to consider this my favourite game. The reason I'm not giving it 10/10 is because it still has its problems.. It was incomplete on release, several bugs which still exist now, crappy loot, the progression has left everything empty except fractal dungeons and I don't believe the classes are evenly balanced (Warrior). I haven't had much experience with MMO's to compare GW2 with anything else (quitting through the beta of SWTOR is about it). There is definitely a grind aspect to the game, however they do a decent job of covering it up and give players options and experience towards that goal. Despite its issues, Guild wars 2 is beautiful and enjoyable with unique classes and races with a variety of areas to explore. There are a number of dungeons to participate in which can challenge and frustrate players. This game is definitely worth its money for casual and experienced players giving them flexibility of how they want to play.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012I am so sick and tired of community reviewers that feel it necessary to compare new MMO's to WOW which has had close to a decade to mature and polish itself. This game is amazing, and far more polished and entertaining as a 'new game' than WOW was. The graphics are great, you dont need a computer powerhouse to run it, and there is sooooo much to do. There are a few bugs, and problems with the system... of course. These things take time to correct, and im sure they will be. Enjoy the game, and the first MMO that really sets forth a legit challenge to the MMO throne.… Expand
Aug 31, 2012This game made me think that Arenanet might be the new Blizzard at least for me. The quality and quantity, effort put in, and fun you expected from Blizzard but couldn't get recently, this game has them all. The game looks amazing especially for an mmo The music, voice acting, and sound effects are top notch The gameplay is very fun and challenging. The game's longevity also seems very optimistic. Firstly there's no subscription fee! So you could come back anytime you want. Also there are many different stories, professions to play through in a variety of ways. Lastly the game's endgame focuses on horizontal scale rather than vertical scale. Vertical scale is your typical WoW raid or D3 tier system in which you get higher and higher gears as you play. In vertical scale, once the contents are gone, there's not much to do. Since GW2 is a Horizontally scaling game it focuses more on customization and PvP where your skill, choice, and play rather than your gear, gold, and playtime matter. High-end dungeons only reward cosmetic items and don't really give you a gameplay edge over others. This is generally much better for replayability unless you add contents faster than gamers consume. Anyways, this game really can't go wrong with its great quality and huge amount of contents. I urge you to go buy this game if you want a very decent mmo with both good PvE and PvP.… Expand
Dec 3, 2012Guild Wars 2 was my last MMORPG. The meaning of a MMORPG is progession, progression gets you too keep playing. I can now say, as I've had a lvl 80 for just about as long as the game has been released that progressions ends when you reach lvl 80. The Graphics: They are decent for an MMORPG, but it's very bad optimized. I've changed my old gaming desktop out for a completly new one and I see no increase of FPS. The gameplay: I love how you actually need some skill to be good in this game, it's not just about the gear, but about your skill of playing. This falls apart though, because the PVP system is not very good I'd say. SPVP is a nice addition for those WHO wants completely fairplay, but where does that leave the progression? You can't get stronger, faster or better by this. In WvWvW all your progression Means nothing, because 1 man can't make any difference. The Dungeons: Not rewarding at all, I hate how it's all bout those emblems and not about what bosses actually could be dropping. I loved in WOW how I always was so excited when we were in raids. Oh yeah, raids those doesn't exist in GW2. There is also a lack of dungeons. It's all just the same, there really isn't such big difference about them. I'm giving this a 6 because of the great idea and there is no monthly subscription. It lacks of content though. As said before, reach lvl 80 and feel the pain of nothing to do.… Expand
Sep 6, 2012My experience with Guild Wars 2 has been exceptional. There are some minor flaws but the good qualities far outweigh the bad in Guild Wars 2. I'll start with the flaws: 1. I have come across one or two skill challenges and events are broken. 2. The way in which quests and events are presented does encourage players to work together towards something but I feel like it almost discourages social player interaction because in many cases, nothing needs to be said to accomplish a goal. 3. Many of the utility skills seem useless to me for PVP or PVE. However, this could just be due to my lack of experience with my profession or the game in general. 4. Lack of tutorial. This is actually a plus for me because I like figuring things out, but I can see how this would frustrate some people.
The good points in Guild Wars 2 result in a much longer list for me, so I will just stick to the major points: 1. Doing arbitrary redundant tasks (such as traveling back to a city to free up inventory space) are nearly eliminated. 2. With the character creation options, armor dyes, utility skills, trait points, transmutation, and weapon selection - character customization is on par, if not better, than any MMO out there. I have yet to see another Charr Necromancer that looks like me, so finding one that does look like me and has the same weapons/traits/skills seems highly unlikely. 3. Questing/exploration structure is very well thought out and dynamic events prevent the boredom from setting in. 4. Compared to other MMOs and similar games, the launch of GW2 went VERY smooth. There are minimal bugs and plenty of content at launch 5. Doing lower level content is still challenging and rewarding. To my knowledge, this is the first MMO to accomplish this and it opens up a staggering amount of additional content to play through. 6. Any race/profession combo is allowed 7. Players are encouraged to work together. You get good rewards for participating in an event, you get exp for reviving another player, exp and rewards are given to all players that participate, and resource nodes cannot be "stolen" by another player. 8. Graphics are really good. I have a very nice gaming computer and I still can get 95-100% use out of both my GPUs on high settings. Not many games on PC do that for me. 9. PVP is well balanced at launch! Making everybody level 80 for PvP is a brilliant idea too.… Expand
Sep 8, 2012You've heard all the pros, and some cons that are actually constructive... It's an awesome game, It's so much fun, I'd give it a 9, but it's a 10 to off set the spamming trolling fan boiedom that is trying to drag the deserved score down. Get it, play it, and I'll see you out there!!
Sep 27, 2012Yet another overhyped MMO that turned out mediocre. Basic gameplay feels really clunky here, perhaps even worse than Warhammer Online. It's missing that MMO feel of games like World of WarCraft and EvE and feels more like a kindergarden. Somewhere in the construction of this game ArenaNet missed many of the important things of the genre. Building your character, the feel of being in a world, and perhaps most importantly, HAVING FUN.… Expand
Oct 19, 2012I often wonder whether people who give this game a negative review really put the time in the appreciate the mechanics of GW2. One person says there is no end game content and is infuriated. The other says there is end game content...and he is infuriated. I myself along with my group am enjoying this game thoroughly. I find the waypoint mechanic essential to getting around since there are no mounts, but being able to stay in the field longer means more gameplay, which in turns means time not wasted.
The combat is fluid enough for a MMORPG, the dodge mechanic especially useful for the larger bosses, and a sense of thrill as you feel the narrow escape of a lethal attack. The races and classes have fun diversities from other games of this setting and style. Fans of Skyrim may enjoy the Norn class, a Norse like people standing at 9 feet tall and following the ways of the mountain. In other parts of the world technology, nobility and nature may rule in place. It's steampunk at times without the self aware humor that sometimes comes along with it.
Ascetically the game has plenty to offer. Being able to change color patterns on the fly means never being bored of feeling mixed match unless you want that. Even items can be found that will combine the look of one item with the stats of another. Making a friendly PVE world has opened up the potential for this game. Taking down a monster with dozens of people gives a thrill as a complete stranger will lend you a buff, or even pick you up if you're knocked over.
PVP has great potential allowing anyone to dive in from the character screen, and leveling has been so much fun I'm working on three characters!… Expand
Aug 30, 2012This game is fun. To start the, the game is action-packed, the quest system is unique, the graphics and art style are beautiful and the music is pleasant. It took me about 1-2 hours to work out how to play the game. By no means does Guild Wars 2 hold your hand, it instead takes the approach of throwing you in the middle of the pool so to speak, not the deep end. They give you just what you need to go off and learn for yourself. I think this is refreshing compared to most other modern games. I can't pick to many negatives with this game other then it will be confusing to work out some of the mechanics; but as previously mentioned it is enjoyable in its own right.… Expand
Sep 13, 2012Game is a breakthrough in MMOs. It respects my time and doesn't favor people with monster amounts of time over adults with families and jobs. Grinding is essentially eliminated and the world event quests are very fun. No pressure to get to max level. Extremely Casual Player Friendly. RvRvR is fun and you can participate early one once you've acquired a few skills (otherwise you don't have enough skills to do much).
Lots to do. This game rivals any of the MMOs that have sub fees. The fact it has no sub fee is simply astonishing. The quality is second to none.… Expand
It was a good game, lot of potential. The premises (and prOmises) were amazing: No grinding, no gating...
Sure, it would have needed some bit of changes and fixes here and there (the greatest being the lacking of a proper LFG tool), but it was overall pretty great for a new MMO.
But with the Lost Shores patch they trashed it all. They broke ALL their promises, they went against their own manifesto. They went for an HEAVY grind style, a terrible gear treadmill. On top of that, the economy is ruined and prices are a real problem, especially for new players. So, if you want to buy or craft something now you pretty much have to buy money from their shop, making this a Pay to Win game.
Really disappointed, it had potential, but now it's just another WoW clone, and WoW still does those things better.… Collapse
Feb 6, 2013GW2 has made a powerful impact on the MMO scene, confirming years of expectations. Stunning presentation and revolutionary design guarantee a thoroughly enjoyable experience. However, it's not flawless, nor complete. The beautiful vistas, the massive PvP element, the rich leveling experience- those can offer hours of gameplay, but the endgame is desperately seeking for enrichment. [November 2012]
Jan 2, 2013Guild Wars 2 surpasses the original in every aspect, from its massive and atmospheric world to its addictive and engrossing gameplay.
Nov 28, 2012After spending fifty hours with GW2, I have a lot of praise for ArenaNet's work and the way it changes up some of the typical trappings of the MMO. And yet, I find myself thinking less and less about it each day. It's not a declaration against the product, mind you, but simply a fact that this game still is very much an MMO, and your enjoyment will directly relate to how much you enjoy the genre. For many who were hoping for a clean break from MMO design philosophy, Guild Wars 2 will probably come across as a slight disappointment. It pushes the genre slightly forward, however, and could lead to even further development in the future.