Guesting broken ?

[Sandbird.3728]

I recently came back to gw2 after 1 year of absence. My homeworld was the Desolation server but now i am in a guild that plays on Seafarer's Rest. I am trying to play with them in WwW but i cant get 'guesting' to work. I go to the character selection screen and Guest on the server then join the game, but the WwW maps shown are still the Desolation ones...I cant see what my guild members see at map selection.Am i doing something wrong ? How can i join them ?

[Diku.2546]

Only works for PvE content. Sorry, it doesn't work for WvW.

Using

should have been that simple, but sadly it's not meant for WvW.

It would be nice IF this game mechanic were to be re-purposed for WvW to use instead.

I totally get what you were trying to do.

You wanted to play together with Family & Friends that's on another World Server. What you tried to do was pretty simple & made sense.

The only solution that you can do for now is to

that your Family & Friends are on.

Wouldn't it be nice if the Server Guesting mechanic is re-purposed to let you play with Family & Friends that are on different WvW servers?

Hope this helps & Welcome back.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[RedShark.9548]

@"Diku.2546" said:Only works for PvE content. Sorry, it doesn't work for WvW.

Using

should have been that simple, but sadly it's not meant for WvW.

It would be nice IF this game mechanic were to be re-purposed for WvW to use instead.

I totally get what you were trying to do.

You wanted to play together with Family & Friends that's on another World Server. What you tried to do was pretty simple & made sense.

The only solution that you can do for now is to

that your Family & Friends are on.

Wouldn't it be nice if the Server Guesting mechanic is re-purposed to let you play with Family & Friends that are on different WvW servers?

Hope this helps & Welcome back.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

Guesting would absolutely throw any population balance in wvw out of the window.

So no, it would be horrible, the things you could do with that, oof.

[Diku.2546]

---

@"RedShark.9548" said:Guesting would absolutely throw any population balance in wvw out of the window.

So no, it would be horrible, the things you could do with that, oof.

---

Your absolutely correct in saying that Server Guesting using our Current WvW Match-Up mechanics is horrible. I totally agree with you there.

---

I have to disagree with you, however, that Server Guesting is completely horrible.

IF Server Guesting is re-purposed correctly....it would solve the 3 Major problems of this game mode since it launched:

1. Reduce the direct impact of Server stacking to Match-Ups
2. Allow friends & family to play together from many different Worlds
3. Allow Off-peak capping, but let players to work out a solution themselves

We have to embrace the fact that we can't balance the Population because players fundamentally don't want to be balanced. Players want to stack on the winning team. Who doesn't want to join the team that's winning? Instead we need to re-design the game to use this basic player's behavior in a positive way.

Saying goes:

Applied correctly...it's medicine.

Applied in-correctly...it's poison.

Medicine for WvWhttps://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/89449/wvg-world-vs-globes/p1

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[Some Call Me Tim.2319]

@RedShark.9548 said:

@"Diku.2546" said:Only works for PvE content. Sorry, it doesn't work for WvW.

Using

should have been that simple, but sadly it's not meant for WvW.

It would be nice

IF

this game mechanic were to be re-purposed for WvW to use instead.

I totally get what you were trying to do.

You wanted to play together with Family & Friends that's on another World Server. What you tried to do was pretty simple & made sense.

The only solution that you can do for now is to

that your Family & Friends are on.

Wouldn't it be nice if the Server Guesting mechanic is re-purposed to let you play with Family & Friends that are on different WvW servers?

Hope this helps & Welcome back.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

Guesting would absolutely throw any population balance in wvw out of the window.

So no, it would be horrible, the things you could do with that, oof.

yep. We have linked server band wagoning instead.

[Sandbird.3728]

I just dont get it....i mean if you are 'that good' to switch to another server and bring chaos to the ballance...that means you are making some serious gold to just buy the gems and switch there anyways....What about the rest of us that just want to play with friends ? I am really surprised sometimes about the way some things work here.

[Diku.2546]

@"Sandbird.3728" said:I just dont get it....i mean if you are 'that good' to switch to another server and bring chaos to the ballance...that means you are making some serious gold to just buy the gems and switch there anyways....What about the rest of us that just want to play with friends ? I am really surprised sometimes about the way some things work here.

---

Exactly...wouldn't you naturally expect WvW to allow you to Play with All your Family & Friends regardless of the Server you're on & without having to join a "Special" Alliance Guild that still limits who you can play with?

Sadly, the current game design doesn't allow it.

I also feel that "Server Guesting" should allow you to do this, but it has to be applied correctly to WvW or it becomes a poison.

ANet is going to lose many players like you...who are potential customers to their gem store...but get turned off by the current state of WvW.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[joneirikb.7506]

@"Sandbird.3728" said:I just dont get it....i mean if you are 'that good' to switch to another server and bring chaos to the ballance...that means you are making some serious gold to just buy the gems and switch there anyways....What about the rest of us that just want to play with friends ? I am really surprised sometimes about the way some things work here.

This post is going to be a bit long, trying to explain some of the details for why the entire world system is so weird with WvW right now:

---

The entire server system is a bit of a mess right now. ANet is working (?) on the "Alliance" system, once that is out, servers are effectively removed from the game, and you just select EU or NA. And you would just select one guild to be your WvW guild, and you'd follow that guild (and any alliance that guilds would be in). That should solve that issue, and let people play together with guild mates etc.

Sure, it have a few other problems, but yeah. Especially that we have no clue when it will be out, nor how far they are on developing it. It also means that ANet isn't going to invest time/effort into any other changes to the Server system until after that is done.

---

WvW has been plagued with "server transfers" from the very start, and players realizing that if they all stack on the same server, they can dominate match-ups. Human nature. And it didn't help that transfers was free the first half year or so after launch in 2012.

This might be the best thing about the Alliance system, to make it much more difficult to stack Worlds.

---

Guesting is a relic from before the "MegaServer" system (2014), back when we played on specific worlds/servers only. But since the MegaServer system been introduced it no longer server a function, since MegaServer already allows every player in EU to play with all other players in EU in all PVE maps.

Guesting never worked in WvW, for obvious reasons, everyone would just guest whatever server was winning etc.

That said, at launch, the guesting system didn't work/wasn't implemented yet, so ANet made transfers free for a period until they got guesting working. You can guess how well that worked for WvW.

---

I'm not familiar with the EU servers, but you can still play together with your guild under certain requirements:

• Both of your servers are "Linked" together (for 2 months)
• Both of your servers share the same color in that weeks match-up, you can play together in EotM

This has been a common problem since the MegaServer was introduced in 2014, because players join guilds with players from all kinds of servers, because it doesn't matter in PvE/PvP. And then find themselves split up in WvW, because it is the only place left in the game that makes Servers matter. Eventually, hopefully, Alliance will fix that, whenever it comes.

[RedShark.9548]

@"Balthazzarr.1349" said:

@RedShark.9548 said:

@Diku.2546 said:Only works for PvE content. Sorry, it doesn't work for WvW.

Using

should have been that simple, but sadly it's not meant for WvW.

It would be nice

IF

this game mechanic were to be re-purposed for WvW to use instead.

I totally get what you were trying to do.

You wanted to play together with Family & Friends that's on another World Server. What you tried to do was pretty simple & made sense.

The only solution that you can do for now is to

that your Family & Friends are on.

Wouldn't it be nice if the Server Guesting mechanic is re-purposed to let you play with Family & Friends that are on different WvW servers?

Hope this helps & Welcome back.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

Guesting would absolutely throw any population balance in wvw out of the window.

So no, it would be horrible, the things you could do with that, oof.

yep. We have linked server band wagoning instead.

And it would be even worse with free guesting.

@Diku.2546 said:

@RedShark.9548 said:Guesting would absolutely throw any population balance in wvw out of the window.

So no, it would be horrible, the things you could do with that, oof.

---

Your absolutely correct in saying that Server Guesting using our Current WvW Match-Up mechanics is horrible. I totally agree with you there.

---

I have to disagree with you, however, that Server Guesting is completely horrible.

IF

Server Guesting is re-purposed correctly....it would solve the 3 Major problems of this game mode since it launched:

1. Reduce the direct impact of Server stacking to Match-Ups
2. Allow friends & family to play together
   from many different Worlds
3. Allow Off-peak capping, but let players to work out a solution themselves

We have to embrace the fact that we can't balance the Population because players fundamentally don't want to be balanced. Players want to stack on the winning team. Who doesn't want to join the team that's winning? Instead we need to re-design the game to use this basic player's behavior in a positive way.

Saying goes:

Applied correctly...it's medicine.

Applied in-correctly...it's poison.

Medicine for WvW

https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/89449/wvg-world-vs-globes/p1

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

My point stands, in the systen right now and pretty much every coming system this function could be abused in multiple ways.

[Sovereign.1093]

u have to transfer

[Vayne.8563]

Guesting has NEVER worked with WvW. It was not its intended purpose.

[Tiny Doom.4380]

@Vayne.8563 said:Guesting has NEVER worked with WvW. It was not its intended purpose.

What's more, Guesting was only ever relevant before the change to Multiservers. I'm surprised it still even exists. Since you can't - and never could - use it for WvW, which is now the only part of the game that uses named servers, surely Guesting could and should have been removed long ago.

[Diku.2546]

---

I agree with the comments of this forum community.

Server Guesting combined with our Current Match-Up design is HIGHLY TOXIC

Server Guesting without changing the game mode's fundamental Match-Up design would do more harm than any benefits it would bring.

---

Server Guesting in its current state when applied to WvW is much like snake venom to the average human.

However, if it's refined & applied in the Right Context....it becomes an anti-venom that can heal & cure.

---

Our WvW Match-Up design would need to undergo a fundamental re-design before a Re-Purposed Server Guesting could ever be applied.

This Re-Purposed Server Guesting would probably be unrecognizable when compared to its current form & how it's being applied.

Using something Re-Purposed helps to reduce the time to code & the time we would get a solution to the problem of NOT being able to Play with All your Family & Friends regardless of the Server you're on & without having to join a "Special" Alliance Guild that still limits who you can play with.

---

I'll stand by my basic knowledge of medical wisdom:

Applied correctly...it's medicine.

Applied in-correctly...it's poison.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[Sovereign.1093]

@"Diku.2546" said:

I agree with the comments of this forum community.

Server Guesting combined with our Current Match-Up design is HIGHLY TOXIC

Server Guesting without changing the game mode's fundamental Match-Up design would do more harm than any benefits it would bring.

---

Server Guesting in its current state when applied to WvW is much like snake venom to the average human.

However, if it's refined & applied in the Right Context....it becomes an anti-venom that can heal & cure.

---

Our WvW Match-Up design would need to undergo a fundamental re-design before a Re-Purposed Server Guesting could ever be applied.

This Re-Purposed Server Guesting would probably be unrecognizable when compared to its current form & how it's being applied.

Using something Re-Purposed helps to reduce the time to code & the time we would get a solution to the problem of being able to Play with All your Family & Friends regardless of the Server you're on & without having to join a "Special" Alliance Guild that still limits who you can play with.

---

I'll stand by my basic knowledge of medical wisdom:

Applied correctly...it's medicine.

Applied in-correctly...it's poison.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

hehe didnt make sense >.<

[Diku.2546]

@Sovereign.1093 said:

@Diku.2546 said:I'll stand by my basic knowledge of medical wisdom:

Applied correctly...it's medicine.

Applied in-correctly...it's poison.

hehe didnt make sense >.<

You don't need to understand how anti-venom works, but you can still benefit from it.

Server Guesting if applied correctly to WvW - Will require changing the fundamental Match-Up design with an eye on abuse

Server Guesting if applied in-correctly to WvW - Without any change to our current Match-Up design is HIGHLY TOXIC

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[Some Call Me Tim.2319]

The problem with guesting of any sort is that people will always find ways to abuse it. It’s what humans do to gain what they believe is an advantage. This will never change as long as there are people who feel the need to cheat to win.

[Jugglemonkey.8741]

If people could guest in WvW, there would be nothing stopping guilds abandoning their server for a week or more if they want to dog pile on a particular guild in another matchup for the fun of it. Or, trolling their own server and joining the opposition. It would be unbelievably broken, and honestly if you don't play for a year, you should expect some adjustments to be necessary to enable you to play with your friends when you come back.

[Diku.2546]

@"Jugglemonkey.8741" said:If people could guest in WvW, there would be nothing stopping guilds abandoning their server for a week or more if they want to dog pile on a particular guild in another matchup for the fun of it. Or, trolling their own server and joining the opposition. It would be unbelievably broken, and honestly if you don't play for a year, you should expect some adjustments to be necessary to enable you to play with your friends when you come back.

---

You're absolutely 100% right.

Server Guesting if applied in-correctly to WvW - Without any change to our current Match-Up design is HIGHLY TOXIC

---

Server Guesting to properly apply it to WvW - Would require a huge undertaking to change its fundamental Match-Up design

After being refined - Server Guesting will not look like anything like how it looks like now. It's the concept to choose a Match-Up option by the players themselves under MAJOR Conditions to prevent abuse will it only then become an anti-venom that allows it to heal & cure. There's a posted "Medicine" link above that provides the concise knowledge & HowTo apply "Server Guesting" correctly if you're seriously looking for an answer to that question.

---

I agree - If you don't play for a year, you should expect some adjustments to be necessary to enable you to play with your friends when you come back.

We should naturally expect WvW to allow us to Play with All our Family & Friends regardless of the Server you're on & without having to join a "Special" Alliance Guild which would still limit who we can play with.

WvW is currently locked into an un-healthy path & un-sustainable path as a game mode due to an unclear Road Map & Vision to get us out of the direction we're going down...imho

Without clear direction...poor decisions can & often do damage the Long-Term viability of this game mode without any corrective actions being taken...despite dire & urgent community feedback.

---

We're punishing the natural tendency of players wanting to stack & forcing players to participate in ANet's version of "Balanced" Match-Ups which instead strangles the Long-Term population growth to death, and only encourages an un-sustainable toxic game mode.

We can't or we're not allowed to create a community of veteran players that would nurture the next generation of WvW players based on the Road Map & Vision we're currently going down.

It would be better if we embraced the natural tendency of players wanting to stack & use stacking to Power Healthy Competitive Match-Ups.

---

The OP's thought that Server Guesting was broken is much like a Madame Curie moment...you stumble upon something that in it's pure form is toxic, but later when properly applied becomes a cure. Would we be able to use this opportunity to destroy or cure the WvW game mode that many here enjoy?

It's a Curse or Blessing depending on your viewpoint.

Yes, it's within human nature to abuse & wreck harm to others, but the opposite can be said as well. We can only hope & try to put in safeguards that encourages the positive.

Yours truly,Diku

Credibility requires critical insight & time.

[RisingDaewn.8703]

Linking is basically like guesting nowadays, for two months. Transfers used to be free at launch too, but either way population get's imbalanced, as groups of people continue to transfer servers these days.

Even then you had guilds transfers in the past too, paying 1800 gems or whatever discount they got before the wvw seasons. Server pride is still around in some form, but not in the form of winning Matchups with linked populations, so no more flaming or compliments in any forums like there used to be.