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Guild Wars 2: Beta Reflections

SBFordSBFord Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129

The first big Guild Wars 2 beta preview weekend has come and gone. We, however, have been thinking about it almost non-stop. We've got some thoughts to share about what we experienced. Keep reading!

Like you, I have been listening to what ArenaNet has been saying about the way MMOs are made and played for the last couple of years. It was like they were taking everything we wanted to change, but thought no one would ever listen and then acting upon it. We heard the developers and designers speak of an MMO that sounded like a dream come true. We listened and hoped that their promises were really going to come to fruition. So did they keep to their high goals? Have we been hoping for something that just can’t be done? Friends, I am happy to say that from my weekend experience I can see that promises are being kept, and that a new unique MMO is truly going to hit the market later this year.

Read more of David North's Guild Wars 2: Beta Reflections.

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Hail to you, ArenaNet! From what I’ve seen Guild Wars 2 will be a masterpiece.


¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 


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Comments

  • XarkoXarko Member EpicPosts: 1,180

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

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  • uller30uller30 Member UncommonPosts: 125

    Star Wars?

  • IPolygonIPolygon Member UncommonPosts: 707

    Sometimes first impressions are really important.

  • Superduper69Superduper69 Member Posts: 363

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

    Well it is his opinion.. but i would love to try and see it for myself. I remember similar hype for SWTOR but atleast it wasn't called masterpeice after one beta play through.

  • tom_goretom_gore Member UncommonPosts: 2,001

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt




     

    You know, when you play MMOs for a living (or are an MMO junkie), you know immediately when you hit something golden. Just as you know immediately when your hand meets some soft, brown substance.

  • pstatonpstaton Member Posts: 25

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt




     

    Yeah, what's your opinion after your gameplay session? Oh wait...

  • MagnetiaMagnetia Member UncommonPosts: 1,015

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

    Is it safe to say that a masterpiece can be something that effects you on a level so profound that you can't convey your feelings with mere words? Even an idiot can appreciate something that is good even if they don't quite understand why.

    Play for fun. Play to win. Play for perfection. Play with friends. Play in another world. Why do you play?

  • TotTWriterTotTWriter Member UncommonPosts: 54

    I don't think he was calling it a masterpiece in every way. That would requie it to be flawless, and I don't think any game can or will be considered flawless. (Especially when people have differing opinions on what constitutes a flaw.)

    I would say it's rather that he's saying his experiences within the game have already provided evidence that ArenaNet are delivering (or doing their best to deliver) on the promises they made in their manifesto. Certain aspect of the game are far too early to call, and no one is denying that, but the grouping mentality is something that should be obvious early on, especially since most of the press in the beta have come straight from games which make group play a disadvantage outside of instances. If you're pre-conditioned to play the open world part of a game solo, and within a day you are grouping with other players and it feels natural, I'd say that's a very good sign indeed.



    Edited first sentence for clarity. Sorry!

    Reality Bites. I'm only Barking

  • ComfyChairComfyChair Member Posts: 758



    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt










     

    It just means in those 2 days he played something that's simply amazing. Every jounrnalist has said that unless the rest of the game (remember, all the main mechanics were in the beta) is a pile of crap for no reason, this is THE MMO to look out for.



     

  • cippalippacippalippa Member UncommonPosts: 108

    Originally posted by Superduper69

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

    Well it is his opinion.. but i would love to try and see it for myself. I remember similar hype for SWTOR but atleast it wasn't called masterpeice after one beta play through.


     

    ... that was just an early signal  you shuold have read in between the lines :)

  • ComfyChairComfyChair Member Posts: 758

    But yeah overall we have two 'faults' in GW2 across every single beta article (and there's been dozens by cynics and fans alike). The cutscenes with two characters and the paintings behind them can be somewhat unimmersive for some people and the crafting system is 'only' slightly better than games like Skyrim.

  • PilnkplonkPilnkplonk Member Posts: 1,532

    A voice of reason from a fanboi... (devil's advocate mode ON)

    Yes, it seems that GW2 crew managed to deliver all they've been promising... but so have the SW:TOR's devs.

    Who knows what unforeseen problems might arise later on in the game? Many of the new concepts GW2 introduces have never been prorperly tested out in the field. Who knows what might happen down the road after a few months or years and with millions of players mucking around with it? Maybe some mechnanic we're all so hyped about has some surprising unpleasant side effects further down the road?

    Anyways, it's cool to be hyped but let's get a bit realistic here... From all the info coming from all over the place GW2 will provide a great experience right from the outset. So that's box money well spent. Whether it will stand the test of time, who knows? I have a hunch it will but I'm not a prophet and neither is anyone. At the moment I'm pretty confident I'll get my money's worth for the box price and beyond that.. it would all be a bonus, really.

  • tom_goretom_gore Member UncommonPosts: 2,001

    Originally posted by Pilnkplonk

    Anyways, it's cool to be hyped but let's get a bit realistic here... From all the info coming from all over the place GW2 will provide a great experience right from the outset. So that's box money well spent. Whether it will stand the test of time, who knows? I have a hunch it will but I'm not a prophet and neither is anyone. At the moment I'm pretty confident I'll get my money's worth for the box price and beyond that.. it would all be a bonus, really.

    Considering ANet will not get any sub money by making time sinks, I'd say they will have to work hard to bring out free content patches and paid expansions after the launch.

    I'm also skeptical if GW will hold me for years (even WoW hasn't done that, only UO has), but I'm pretty sure it will be a bucketload of fun for just the box price.

     

  • orbitxoorbitxo Member RarePosts: 1,956

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

     when one plays many mmos for many years you can tell a good mmorpg in minutes. so, i take the review well.

     

    If you cant tell a good mmorpg within the first hour- you might as well go play some board games.

    also keep in mind the review were about 'masterpiece' game play while in combat.

    <.<

  • grimm6thgrimm6th Member Posts: 973

    Originally posted by pstaton

    Originally posted by Xarko



    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

    Yeah, what's your opinion after your gameplay session? Oh wait...

    Ummm...if you are asking the opinions of people on this forum who have played it, the answers that we will give you is that is IS a masterpiece.  It was a masterpiece 1.5 years ago at the first convention it went to, and it is even better now (based on newer information about the game).

    I used to TL;DR, but then I took a bullet point to the footnote.

  • 77lolmac7777lolmac77 Member UncommonPosts: 492
    Funny I dont see anyone asking how much ArenaNet paid this site to give a good preview.
  • orbitxoorbitxo Member RarePosts: 1,956

    Originally posted by tom_gore

    Originally posted by Pilnkplonk

    Anyways, it's cool to be hyped but let's get a bit realistic here... From all the info coming from all over the place GW2 will provide a great experience right from the outset. So that's box money well spent. Whether it will stand the test of time, who knows? I have a hunch it will but I'm not a prophet and neither is anyone. At the moment I'm pretty confident I'll get my money's worth for the box price and beyond that.. it would all be a bonus, really.

    Considering ANet will not get any sub money by making time sinks, I'd say they will have to work hard to bring out free content patches and paid expansions after the launch.

    I'm also skeptical if GW will hold me for years (even WoW hasn't done that, only UO has), but I'm pretty sure it will be a bucketload of fun for just the box price.

     

    hehe wow- had me for abt 2 expansions- and from ur avatar you should know iam now very happy to be back in warhammer online!- no regrets!!!!-luv waaargh

    GW2 & warhammer will have my respect till- Dark millinium!

  • IndolIndol Member Posts: 189

    This game is certainly a little different from the current themeparks.

    But having played it, it's not actually that different once you get into it. The trinity is broken up, and there are mechanical/execution differences but the core gameplay experience remains very similar regardless. They've changed how some things are conveyed, like quests, but the end result remains largely the same.

    Guild Wars 2 is a step in the right direction but it's still in the vicinity of the themepark. There's still that distinct waft of funnel cake and cotton candy in the air.

    The bulk of the innovation is in the PvP. Not that 'bulk' means there's a lot, but there's some!

  • nomssnomss Member UncommonPosts: 1,468

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt




     

    Well it was more like 20+ hours for many of them. I think it is more than enough.

    "In fact after the first wave was taken out we began to trade items that were not for our class, but helpful to our group."

    How'd that happen? Usually people would try to make profit, I mean sell it on auction house or something. Shed more light on that please :)

     

  • Superduper69Superduper69 Member Posts: 363

    I am sure this site was paid by Anet...

    *chuckles*

  • DeaconXDeaconX Member UncommonPosts: 3,062

    Originally posted by uller30

    Star Wars?

    Who?

    image

    Why do I write, create, fantasize, dream and daydream about other worlds? Because I hate what humanity does with this one.

    BOYCOTTING EA / ORIGIN going forward.

  • RizelStarRizelStar Member UncommonPosts: 2,773
    Originally posted by Indol

    This game is certainly a little different from the current themeparks.
    But having played it, it's not actually that different once you get into it. The trinity is broken up, and there are mechanical/execution differences but the core gameplay experience remains very similar regardless. They've changed how some things are conveyed, like quests, but the end result remains largely the same.
    Guild Wars 2 is a step in the right direction but it's still in the vicinity of the themepark. There's still that distinct waft of funnel cake and cotton candy in the air.
    The bulk of the innovation is in the PvP. Not that 'bulk' means there's a lot, but there's some!

     

    I'm a bit list a I've played it myself but the end results were different. Like let's elaborate I'd say if we took away the events and replace them with a quest hub it'd be the same and if for example completing an event didn't change anything. When it does...


    Maybe I'm not seeing it as its possible but if the experience felt the same as current MMOs I wouldn't be following it after playing, nor anticipating it.

    I might get banned for this. - Rizel Star.

    I'm not afraid to tell trolls what they [need] to hear, even if that means for me to have an forced absence afterwards.

    P2P LOGIC = If it's P2P it means longevity, overall better game, and THE BEST SUPPORT EVER!!!!!(Which has been rinsed and repeated about a thousand times)

    Common Sense Logic = P2P logic is no better than F2P Logic.

  • nhatnhat Member UncommonPosts: 166

    Originally posted by Magnetia

    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt

    Is it safe to say that a masterpiece can be something that effects you on a level so profound that you can't convey your feelings with mere words? Even an idiot can appreciate something that is good even if they don't quite understand why.


     

    Problem is that if one thing bugs you for example a great movie but an ok ending, the masterpiece can go to being ok.

  • nhatnhat Member UncommonPosts: 166

    Originally posted by tom_gore



    Originally posted by Xarko

    So you played an mmo for 2 days and you are calling it a masterpiece .. riiiight.. /salt










     

    You know, when you play MMOs for a living (or are an MMO junkie), you know immediately when you hit something golden. Just as you know immediately when your hand meets some soft, brown substance.




     

    Problem is that if one thing bugs you for example a great movie but an ok ending, the masterpiece can go to being ok. It's just premature and irresponsible to say something that grandious after a few hours play especially from an MMO.

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