Would you buy a mapless expansion?

[Kelly.7019]

@mercury ranique.2170 said:To explain a bit. To me there can be many formats to release DLC's. Such formats are different from studio and studio, but it should be the same in a studio. An expansion will have the expectation that there will be new maps. If they do something else, it should be names differently.

And to answer if it is needed. I see your issue, but I doubt it will be the solution. I think that we need to replace current options with newer ones. Abandan the original games and put it on full maintainance. So add new starter and levelling zones in the expansions to come. keep the current maps in the original game, but remove them from the dailies. remove the incentives to go there and use them as an advertisement to play the newer parts of the game. The main population will move on and the problem will be solved while we still move forward.

True living world's don't need need new maps they could just do new content on old maps, but then i think this works against their current marketing strategies.

[Dark Red Killian.3946]

I mean as of right now that probably wouldn’t work, but as the game ages and you run out of areas to create, i could see more expacs in future being without maps. Just gotta make sure the features are there that people want to see, and I guess it would be ok.

[Silvia.9130]

Unless the price of the expansion was really low or there would be some huge reworks/additions.

[Finalfreefall.8247]

Absolutely. The game has a ton of maps, and a bunch of exploration-based content. It does not have a lot of ways to play those maps without going full altitis. Adding two elite specs would fix most of that and (with content) has a good chance of revitalizing Pvp and Wvw as well. If Anet dropped in a bunch of minidungeons into older maps, that would be cool too. Maybe add a single underground level to an existing map for the final fight. But right now the game needs elite specs. And ffs, don't tie them into the expansion this time! It's cool while we're in the missions but afterwards it just makes our characters look like tourists.

[Blaeys.3102]

New maps bring large scale event content that I can do with my guild - which is the only reason I keep playing.

The heart and soul of GW2, imo, is in large group (11 -100 people) content. Every update/expansion/etc, needs to include something of that nature.

I know that doesnt necessarily require new maps, but that is where they have done some of their best work for guilds that run together (especially now that guild missions are officially ancient history.

[Emberheart.8426]

The solution to all of your problems is just two words:Zaishen Missions

If they added those back, they could add even 100 new maps and it wouldn't matter much.

[Tukaram.8256]

I would rather not, but kind of already did. HoT was a horrid map and I never played it. So that was an expansion, just to get the glider - BUT I did not know that going into the purchase ha ha

[Mungo Zen.9364]

@Zergs.9715 said:You'd still have a main story, but it'd take place in already existing maps. I'd agree that exploration is fun, but there's also something to returning to familiar places.

I did vote yes but, I don't agree that re-using existing maps for new paid content is a good idea.

Technically, how do you separate the users who paid for new content and those who didn't? I assume it is possible (anything fits with a shoehorn big enough) but is it the correct thing to do?

I would purchase an expansion that didn't add maps if it included some or all of the following:WvW and PvP specific updates and contentNew Elite SpecsNew Weapons for Profs outside of Elite Specs (or new weapon types to the game)New Instanced PvE content (Raids, Strikes, Fractals, Dungeons)

The above does come with the caveat that any of those areas being reworked extensively to make them up to date in playability, not just rehashing the same complaints about them.

[Westenev.5289]

I think Gw2's true strength relies on the spirit of exploration, and the fact that you can log in after five years and still be somewhat relevant, so it's difficult to imagine an expansion without new maps.

But I think I would be partial to expansions that focuses more on cosmetics (ie. hairstyles, horns, moustaches, armours, costumes), a well written story, an elite spec that changes the way I play the game, and/or instanced content - so I can't just outright say no.

[Ototo.3214]

A new map isn't make or break for me, but that entirely depends on what else it has. I'd be game for things like new raids, dungeons, rehash/revamped LWS1. It just feels like it's kinda hard to make a new story without new places to go to. But if they can do something compelling with the maps that already exist? I'd be down.

[sorudo.9054]

i wouldn't even buy the LS, why would i buy nothing?

[maddoctor.2738]

Generally speaking, I don't decide to buy, or not, something based on what it doesn't have, but rather on what it does have. There is a slight possibility that I'd buy an expansion without maps, provided what it offered was very good indeed. But this is a very small possibility as maps are the most important part of the game, so they'd have to add something I'd really really want and be excited about, to ask me money for no new maps. So I vote "no"

[LucosTheDutch.4819]

I either want new maps or revamped old maps (like Living World season 1 and Lion's Arch). I want Cantha though, but after End of Dragons, I wouldn't mind if Anet focusses on revamping old maps instead of adding new maps. But when I say revamped, I truly mean revamped, not just adding a bunch of new metas and hearts.

[Astralporing.1957]

@"maddoctor.2738" said:Generally speaking, I don't decide to buy, or not, something based on what it doesn't have, but rather on what it does have. There is a slight possibility that I'd buy an expansion without maps, provided what it offered was very good indeed. But this is a very small possibility as maps are the most important part of the game, so they'd have to add something I'd really really want and be excited about, to ask me money for no new maps. So I vote "no"Basically, this. I suppose it is possible of them doing a large part of the expansion content utilizing already existing maps (i'd say that especially old and abandoned LS maps would be good for that), and still do it well, but i would still expect them to add at least some new content.

On the other hand, i definitely wouldn't be against them doing some things to bring new life to the old content (as i said, at least some of ls3 and ls4 maps would be in desperate need of this) In addition to the main expansion content.

[Ledi.9742]

would buy only if it offers enough content and new things to do to make up for lack of new maps.

[ReaverKane.7598]

While i agree with the sentiment, there's a few issues with the whole idea:1) Not adding map won't necessarily open up that much manpower for the other stuff. The people in charge of environment, levels and music design, don't have the same skill set as those in charge of designing skills and professions. They wouldn't necessarily be unable to do it, but it isn't a clear either or scenario.

2) Without maps, what is it expanding? I mean yeah maybe professions, but honestly, i've held the belief that Elite specs should have been dropped during living world, because its been 5 years since HoT and we still only have 2, which entirely prevents the game from delivering on one of its fundamental promises, the no trinity. Had Arena Net delivered Elite Specs with Living World, instead of hogging them as another sell point for expansions, we'd have already 2-3 more elite specs, which, if well executed would mean that by now each profession would have at least one support, one dps and one "tank" spec, which would also improve the health of competitive play by balancing through counters instead of nerfing and gutting professions (looking at you Scourge).

3) The bloat is only due to Arena Net having a bit of a Obsessive compulsive behaviour on how they structured Living World from season 3 onward. It follows the exact same recipe every time, with only a couple recent exceptions. New Map, new currency, new stat combos, new ascended gear, some sort of new cosmetics, a bunch of achievements, and that's it. Season 4 actually ramped that with armor or weapon sets, which is kinda nice, but also increases the bloat. But the main thing has always been a new map, with the recent exceptions in Season 5. Istan, for example was a prime example of a map ripe for expanding, it feels tiny compared to the GW1 map, with barely half of it being accessible, compared to the original, yet that went unexplored, in favor of always new maps. While they could have opened that map up to Gandara in a homage to the original game, without changing any of the story, just relocating some of the setting.Dry top to this day still stands as probably one of the best map releases in the game, from the way it actually made sense in the story, to how we watched it evolve through several releases, and yet its one of the smallest maps in the game.Compare that to the huge vastly uninhabited expanses of some of the Season 4 maps, and new maps really stopped holding the importance it had when Dry top released. (Also we hadn't had a new map in over a year by then).

While i would also enjoy seeing Arena NEt take a step back and find their old aggressively innovative and creative core from the GW1 and early GW2's era, and the game really could use a much needed pass on much of the old systems and environs to add new systems, the economy and balance need a spring cleaning with many egregious changes having been made irrelevant by posterior changes and new content (for example the silk costs on ascended armor, a ton of balance changes, etc). An expansion without any new maps to explore would be a massive dud, while a lot of veterans might find a bit of appeal, the vast majority, and new players would simply find no value to such a purchase.

[choovanski.5462]

as a PvP/WvW player I'm basically buying a mapless expansion anyhow

[Blocki.4931]

@kharmin.7683 said:

@Blocki.4931 said:Only if it 100% reworked core Tyria.

That's not an expansion. That's an overhaul.

That's being pedantic, not a fact. Why wouldn't there be room for new stuff when reworking old stuff?

[kharmin.7683]

@Blocki.4931 said:

@kharmin.7683 said:

@Blocki.4931 said:Only if it 100% reworked core Tyria.

That's not an expansion. That's an overhaul.

That's being pedantic, not a fact. Why wouldn't there be room for new stuff when reworking old stuff?

Because that, to me, would go against the definition of "expansion".

[Eloc Freidon.5692]

I expect a new region every expansion minimum. Expansions are supposed to expand on the game's world.

[Windu The Forbidden One.60]

If there's more personal story content I'd probably buy it regardless if it came with new maps or not.But I still want new maps, I really like we have so many maps, I love exploring them.