Archive for July 2012

Emotional Connections in Guild Wars 2

Posted 31/07/12 by

Concept Art

In a new blog post today, Ree Soesbee and Jeff Grubb talk about what it takes to make a game emotionally compelling.

Jeff: The question of emotional connection in a game is a tough one to answer, I think. How do we keep people from saying, like in Alice in Wonderland, “You’re nothing but a pack of cards” and dismissing the game entirely? How do we engage the players and make them care?

Ree: I think one of the first things any game has to do is to encourage the player to connect with their avatar in the game. In order to get the player to invest in the game world and think of the NPCs as compelling characters, the player has to think their own character is interesting and worth spending time with.

You can read the whole article at the official ArenaNet Blog.

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Guild Wars 2 Pre-orders at TESCO

Posted 30/07/12 by

UK gamers looking to pre-order Guild Wars 2 can do so from today through TESCO. TESCO Entertainament has the game on sale for £34.97 which I think is the cheapest I have come across yet in the UK.

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What to expect in Guild Wars 2

Posted 27/07/12 by
Don't let false expectations spoil your experience

Don't let false expectations spoil your experience

Guild Wars 2 changes the MMORPG genre so much, a lot of people are just confused about it. It’s even a big change compared to Guild Wars 1. This guide is written to clarify what Guild Wars 2 is, what it isn’t, and what frame of mind to approach it to get maximum enjoyment. It’s also there to help people not have unrealistic expectations that will spoil what could instead have been a really good experience. I have also taken off my fanboy hat, and really tried to be as objective as possible.

My prediction is that the Guild Wars 2 community will continue to grow over time, as people learn to understand what Guild Wars 2 is about, and learn to appreciate it in all its complexity and simplicity. Guild Wars 2 introduces a lot of new concepts, it changes how we think about MMORPGs. No wonder then that is seems alien to many. Although the game is crafted to ease people in, there’s still a lot of re-learning and adapting to be done. I think a lot of those changes needed to be done for the MMORPG genre to grow out of the stale clonish state it was in. History shows that good changes in isolation is not enough.

I believe that a lot of what initially makes Guild Wars 2 good or bad depends on how open-minded you are to these new concepts. Sure, no game is ever made to please everyone. But Guild Wars 2 has a lot to offer for those who know where to look.

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Dungeon Sets Video

Posted 27/07/12 by

I came across this video earlier today from Dontain showing all Dungeon armor sets for all races and genders. A very nice compilation this one.

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The Pillars of Guild Wars 2 Gameplay

Posted 26/07/12 by


Earlier in the development of Guild Wars 2 we released our MMO Manifesto video, a high-level look at the philosophy behind the design of the game. As we approach the launch date, now is the perfect time to talk about the outcome of that design philosophy with a look at the core ideas that the game is built on: personal story, dynamic events, combat, and PvP.

Check out the videos after the break…

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More Guild Wars 2 Impressions

Posted 26/07/12 by

Seeing as we can’t play right now, the next best thing is to read about the game some more. There’s a few new preview articles you can check out today.

It certainly feels like Guild Wars 2 fever is starting to hit.

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Guide to the Hall of Monuments

Posted 26/07/12 by

The ArenaNet blogs are fairly flowing this week and today we have John Stumme’s Guide to the Hall of Monuments. In the update John explains exactly what the Hall of Monuments is for those not familiar with recording your achievements in Guild Wars. John also put together this nice video guide to show what the rewards look like in Guild Wars 2.

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Telling Stories in Guild Wars 2

Posted 24/07/12 by

The latest ArenaNet blog update comes from Jeff Grubb who discusses the different story types in the game that make up the whole Tyria experience. While many focus on the personal story, there are also the global stories and iconic stories to think about and without all these pieces Tyria would feel a  lot emptier.

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Post BWE Impressions Around the Net

Posted 24/07/12 by

Well testing os over and excitement builds toward the launch at the end of August. With the beta weekend now in the can, a few articles have popped up with impressions.

So what do you think of the game now you have either had a chance to play and the Beta is over?

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Reserve Your Guild Wars Name

Posted 24/07/12 by

This is an important notice for Guild Wars players wanting to reserve their name, ArenaNet will be building their reserved name list on 31 July so if you want to reserve your name from Guild Wars you will need to login to your account before that date to be considered.

Also important top note is that the name will not be reserved indefinitely, you will have to create a Guild Wars 2 character with the same name during the headstart period. After a short period, ArenaNet will free up any unclaimed names.

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Moment to Moment Screenshot Contest

Posted 21/07/12 by

Taking in the scenery

All budding screenshot grabbers should make sure they check ArenaNet’s “Moment to Moment” screenshot contest where they are looking for Best Action Shot and Best Landscape with some Steel Series goodies up for grabs.

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Watch the Sylvari Cinematic

Posted 21/07/12 by

OK, so you are all playing tright now, but just in case you are for some reason not playing, the Sylvari cinematic is below along with some commentary from Ree Soesbee. Now, back to the Beta!

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