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Guild Wars 2 - Do I need to play original?
Izork
Member UncommonPosts: 381
in Guild Wars 2
Hey,
I'm as excited as everyone for GW2, and I i've been wondering this question...
Do I need to play the original GW to follow the story / universe in GW2 (Be engaged in the story etc) or doesn't it matter?
Since I love story and "living" in the universe, I'm not sure if I have to play Guild Wars original.
Comments
No need to play the original unless you want a look at the lore predating GW2, but it's a fun game in it's own right and worth dabbling with (no sub fee, btw) if you're looking for a time filler.
Keep in mind, GW1 isn't a full on MMORPG, so some things will seem wierd compared to GW2. However, it's still quite enjoyable.
Oderint, dum metuant.
You can get most if not all of the lore from the GW1 wiki.
The game itself, it's mechanics and gameplay, are very different from GW2. You could download the trial and find out if you like playing it, but I really wouldn't buy it just for the story.
GW1 can be a mixed bag - I enjoyed it but none of my friends did
GW2 is a much different game than GW1
maybe try the trial before you buy?
http://www.guildwars.com/freetrial/
EQ2 fan sites
You don't have to, but if you love the story and the GW living universe, you might enjoy either playing Guild Wars (now GW1) a bit or you can also read the Gosts of Ascalon and the Edge of Destiny; two novels which cover the time period between GW1 and GW2 (you can buy them on the GW2 website or amazon)
Years ago, I played GW1 and loved it, then I got hooked into WOW. I've been trying to find a better game than WOW these past few years but all have failed (TOR, Rift, WAR, AoC, Aion, etc). I tried going back to GW1 but I couldn't play the instanced based game after being exposed to a persistent world. I've pre purchased GW2 and am greatly looking forward to killing/being killed in the Mists.
One of the things I'm really excited about GW2 is the community. I remember loving the community in GW1 and missing them as I played WOW. Most of the few good solid people that I've met in WOW (including my lovely wife) will be joining me in GW2. Can't wait! :-)
Chances are, everything you need to know about the previous story will be told in GW2, either by cutscenes, personal story or just talking to NPCs. If you just want the previous story, I'd say read the wiki or get the novels. If you do get the novels, I'd say read Destiny's Edge first and then Ghosts of Ascalon, even if that last one was released first, mainly because some of the characters of Destiny's Edge make cameo appearances in Ghosts of Ascalon, but when they do you don't really realize they're that important. Destiny's Edge deals mostly with the events around the main characters you will be interacting with during GW2, while Ghosts of Ascalon, while it is important to the game story, deals more with the previous story than DE.
What can men do against such reckless hate?
I think the intro of the game will go over the basics. But GW2 takes place a couple hundred/thousand years after GW1. The people would be long dead, the cities hae all moved. They wont really have much in common from then to now(GW2).
Don't bother it would take you too long to 'catch up' with the story via playing it. I'd say just do some research about the lore
Start here: http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Lore
BOYCOTTING EA / ORIGIN going forward.
no you dont NEED to but it is a great game. If you think you are missing something in the story the wiki would be plenty help.
No, you don't have to (lore can be found somewhere else if you don't have the time to play the original game). As the posts above already said, GW1 & GW2 are different games in terms of design.
Nevertheless, I strongly encourage you to buy the complete trilogy if (and only if) graphics are not your top priority, otherwise you'll be disappointed. I bought the game last year and I'm still having fun
I believe GW2 is 250 years after GW1
I tried going back to GW1 but just couldn't, after 3 years of playing WOW I got used to a persistent world and GW1 instanced based world just wasn't doing it for me; it made me really sad cause I remember loving GW1 and having tons of fun :-(
Thankfully GW2 has a persistent world :-)
There's 3 campaigns and it would take 1-2 days to finish each one. The GWEN expansion takes about the same amount of time, and the GW: Beyond series, you can knock several of those out a day. They're more difficult than they are long. If you already have the GW games, I recommend playing through them to get a sense of the lore, since it doesn't take long and chances are you could play through all of it 10 times before GW2 even announces a release date.
If you don't, then no it's not critical. GW1 is the foundation for events in GW2, but lack of knowledge of its storylines wont hinder your enjoyment of GW2. I'm sure it will be referenced and talked about by NPCs to catch people up.
"Forums aren't for intelligent discussion; they're for blow-hards with unwavering opinions."
You are correct sir.
No
Not necessary at all and the games don't even play the same really.
Far as those suggesting you purchase GW anyways, I would try out the trial first if you consider it. Frankly, I found the game to be rather subpar in a lot of areas outside of PvP. Even PvP had its shortcomings in that game far as I'm concerned. Very overrated game least to me.
Many seem to either love or hate the game. Wasn't even remotely interested in GW2 until I started reading up on the game and found out it was going to be very different from GW in such a large range of areas. Thank fucking god.
1. For god's sake mmo gamers, enough with the analogies. They're unnecessary and your comparisons are terrible, dissimilar, and illogical.
2. To posters feeling the need to state how f2p really isn't f2p: Players understand the concept. You aren't privy to some secret the rest are missing. You're embarrassing yourself.
3. Yes, Cpt. Obvious, we're not industry experts. Now run along and let the big people use the forums for their purpose.
^ This.
And to someone who stated to not buy the game for it's story.. Most people bought GW1 because of the story.
Anyways, I do highly recommend you buying GW1 to learn the lore of the Guild Wars world. Searching through a wiki can be tedious. Playing through the gamepaign of Guild Wars 1 would give you a much better understanding of the lore then reading it on wiki.
You can buy the entire box set I believe for 20-30$. Another bonus with this is, if you accomplish certain goals and fill your Hall of Monuments in GW1, you can unlock cool titles and items for Guild Wars 2. So again, I HIGHLY recommend you buy and play GW1 only if you're that enthusiastic about Guild Wars 2.
I just have to say if you're too used to the freedom of an open world, and soloing most quests you might want to pass on this game. GW1 is a good game, but it's very special. You won't be able to solo most monsters, you'll need your heroes and henchmen to go along with you and it's very very instanced, plus some missions get really tough, specially if you're new.
I'll admit if it wasn't for the Hall of Monuments I wouldn't be playing it right now, but I've gotten the hang of it and slowly achieving points for my HoM.
Remember... all I'm offering is the truth. Nothing more.
You know... there is one thing I miss from GW1 that you can't get in GW2 or any other persistent world based game... vanquishing. There was always something satisfying to me about getting that zone vanquish in hard mode. I'll be fine without it, of course, but vanquishing was the one unique thing that the instanced world offered that I thought really added a nice aspect to it.
Oderint, dum metuant.
For as much as I am looking forward to GW2, I have to confess that I didn't really prefer how GW played. It certainly wasn't bad, I just didn't like the game play as much as other games. That said, I would still recommend to anyone that they should play at least a little bit of Prophecies. The pre-searing stuff especially. You definitly don't need to play GW to be able to get into the GW2 story. There is a lot of separation there. GW2 is not so much a continuation of the same story as it is a new story set in the same world. A whole new Epic Saga if you will. But understanding the setting is a good thing if you have the time for it. As mentioned you can also get all this information from the wiki but experiencing it, even just a little bit of it, in addition to reading the wiki is far superior. Also, I would point out. that you could just play prophecies and go straight into the Eye of the North Expansion to get the bulk of your lore. The other two campaigns are great but they deal with the other continents that will not be in GW2 to begin with. So if you skipped those you wouldn't miss too much that impacts GW2 as it currently is.
So if you have the free time anyway, I would play Prophecies and Eye of the North. Doing so will also allow you to reserve your name and get a few goodies in the Hall of Monuments.
All die, so die well.
Thanks for the many very constructive and helpful replies.
I decided to skip GW for now and read the books.
I've just bought Ghosts of Ascalon and can't wait for it to arrive!
Sorry if my english is rubbish, but it's not my native language.