CazzT.1870

I didn't know that. This must be pretty recent since I took a break in November and haven't been back since. Not having to buy any expansion and just a sub for all content is pretty insane considering many people like myself already subbed for the perks alone. Was there not a huge outcry from people who already bought the expansion(s)? I would be kind of ticked off if I bought it and the next day it was free with a sub.I'm sure there's someone who isn't happy with how ZM does it. But you only have access to the expansions while your sub is active. Stop the sub, and at the end of that sub period, you lose access to the stuff. You still have the base game (and whatever comes with the F2P package). Then again, you can sub for a few months, get the crowns needed to purchase the expansion, buy it with the crowns, and then drop the sub and still have unlocked the expansion. Not a bad way to do it. I'd be fine with a sub here if it meant getting a reasonable amount of gems each month of active subscription. People who have mountains of gold would still be able to do their gold-to-gems conversion if they wanted to.

Just as a note to add to dandamanno's point of the LW being vital to the story.... I just had to make a choice between three factions (Blazing a Trail). I have no idea who any of them are, what they stand for. My original plan was to play through the whole story, from the start, so I could make decisions in these scenarios, knowing who the parties are, having an investment in my character and her developing into who she is. But when I saw I have to spend more money to get the story that would let me properly do that.... I lost all interest in the story. Now I'm having to make a choice, worrying about the items I'll get from it instead of how it will change the story. As someone who values story over loot, this is not a pleasant experience.

No.. they gate all content behind a seperate purchase, every monthAnd GW2 doesn't gate anything behind a purchase except for the expansions. Subscription is not gating.GW2 gates LW behind additional purchase of the content, on top of paying for expansions.Never seen anyone call subscriptions "gating" before.... So let me get this straight ..Content you can buy permanently with a one time real money purchase AND earn in game is gated content... BUT .. Content that is gated behind a real money purchase that you have to repeat monthly is NOT gated content? A sub grants you access to the entire game, not just part of it. If there were tiers of subs, where higher tiers gave access to content that lower tiers did not, THAT would be gating with subs. And I can't think of a single MMO that does that. So no, subscription is not gating. You must have forgot subbed games also have the audacity to have cash shops on top of having to paying for their game like another bill, AND some subs even go a step further and having to pay to get into certain servers depending on how unlucky you are. That is one hundred percent gating.No, that is not gating. But for the record, I'm not a fan of cash shops in games with a sub. And since that's not part of this topic, it wasn't something to forget.In regards to paying to have access to different servers..... Runescape is the only game I can think of that does this. But even if there are others, that's not a problem. Just like with ESO, if you pay a sub, you get access to the whole game, expansions and all, with the sub, even if you never actually buy the expansions. Paying a monthly sub for access to a different server is not a bad thing. You don't bloody pay for something and then have the company take it away with their hand out. That's just gutting even more money from already generous or naive players. That's takes advantage of a lot, yet you people still act like this is okay.I've never seen any MMO make their customers pay for something, then take it away, only to sell it back to the players later. And I certainly don't know where you're getting the idea that I, or anyone else in this thread, think this is OK. Sub games would have been more defendable if they were buy to play, but sub games have NO excuse to charge what they do, AND have cash shops AND pay for whatever else they want you to pay for. That's just robbery at that point, and I do not support that, period. A company is not going to control when I play a game or when I pay them to have fun. That's why people will always lean towards free to plays, if they can, if they are solid. Subscriptions is an outdated, greedy idea.Subs are not outdated. In fact, they're on the rise because the F2P model has proven to be even more greedy than subs with cash shops are. Case in point, this entire topic.As for a company controlling when you play a game... they always are in control of that. You don't get to decide when maintenance happens, nor if the servers stay online. They have control over whether you're even allowed to log in.People will always prefer free over paying for something. But, people also know, you get what you pay for. Which is why subscription games tend to have a more consistent community than F2P games. Which is better is entirely subjective.

They don't have to give the episodes away for free in the first place. They do this to keep the game active, so players keep coming back.I haven't seen anyone having an issue with them giving away the episodes free to the active players. The issue is in the way they lock it after. But more so it's how they do nothing to inform the player they are not getting the full story when they buy the current expansion. If any other company did this, it would be called what it is: deceitful. It's not free because the content isn't worth paying for. A whole season is basicly a free "light expansions". Only thing Arena ask from you is to be an active player in the game, since that helps them in return. If you're not, you are going to have to pay a very fair price to get them, or just earn the gold and pay for them through gameplay.Then players need to be informed they exist when they're buying the current expansion. As I've said, I'm known about LW for years. Since literally no other MMO sells crumbs of their content like ANet does with LW, it never even crossed my mind that I wouldn't be getting ALL of the story when I bought Path of Fire. When you buy a car, you assume you're getting the whole car. What would you call it if you suddenly found out, after purchasing it, that you have to pay more for the radio change stations, pay more to change the temp for the AC, pay more to roll down the passenger window... Things you naturally expect when you buy a car, because that's how every car works that's made today. Would you defend that? Because that's what you're defending here.

No.. they gate all content behind a seperate purchase, every monthAnd GW2 doesn't gate anything behind a purchase except for the expansions. Subscription is not gating.GW2 gates LW behind additional purchase of the content, on top of paying for expansions.Never seen anyone call subscriptions "gating" before.... So let me get this straight ..Content you can buy permanently with a one time real money purchase AND earn in game is gated content... BUT .. Content that is gated behind a real money purchase that you have to repeat monthly is NOT gated content? A sub grants you access to the entire game, not just part of it. If there were tiers of subs, where higher tiers gave access to content that lower tiers did not, THAT would be gating with subs. And I can't think of a single MMO that does that. So no, subscription is not gating. I'm not aware of the correct definition of "gated content", and google weren't to helpful to find examples that were relevant to game purchases.This one took me a few tries to find a definition, and even this one does not entirely encompass what gating has come to mean in MMOs:"Many games prevent players from progressing using gates. A gate might a physical door that they have to unlock, a time window that they have to show up for, a specific condition like a solving one task before unlocking another, or a requirement that a player research one technology before being allowed another."It's also why I mentioned that I probably should have used a better/different term. But I would assume that it means content that is behind a gate. Isn't that exactly what content locked behind a subscription is? Sure you payed for the game, but you don't have access to it without paying a monthly fee.A subscription is not a gate. While on the surface they appear the same, they are not. Gating is preventing access to content in a game you already have access to. At the end of the day that definition isn't relevant, how much money you spent is.3 months worth of subscription and you have the entire living story, or you have the option to earn it through gameplay.It doesn't matter how much it costs or how long you'd need to be subbed for to make up the same cost. The problem is that it's content that has to be purchased IN ADDITION TO THE EXPANSIONS. I don't know how to make that any clearer. No other MMO locks content like this.As someone above stated, bundle the previous season in with the new expansion. If they feel they still need to make money off something that probably doesn't even amount to 0.1% of their revenue, raise the expansion price by $5. Also also.... I just used my Level 80 boost. At least three different warnings about using it. If that were done when buying/upgrading to current expansion, I think that would alleviate a lot of issues. I still will never agree with how they don't include past LW as part of expansions (or outright removing any of them), but I think informing the customer clearly would be better than it is now.

*missed a word

No.. they gate all content behind a seperate purchase, every monthAnd GW2 doesn't gate anything behind a purchase except for the expansions. Subscription is not gating.GW2 gates LW behind additional purchase of the content, on top of paying for expansions.Never seen anyone call subscriptions "gating" before.... So let me get this straight ..Content you can buy permanently with a one time real money purchase AND earn in game is gated content... BUT .. Content that is gated behind a real money purchase that you have to repeat monthly is NOT gated content? A sub grants you access to the entire game, not just part of it. If there were tiers of subs, where higher tiers gave access to content that lower tiers did not, THAT would be gating with subs. And I can't think of a single MMO that does that. So no, subscription is not gating. But what happens if you decide to stop paying that monthly fee? Wouldn't you lose access to that content? I would consider that gating, to an extent.Then you would be using an incorrect definition of gating. I see the confusion, but they are not the same thing.Perhaps I should have used a different term. Though at this point I believe no matter what I say it will only result in more twisting of what I'm saying.

No.. they gate all content behind a seperate purchase, every monthAnd GW2 doesn't gate anything behind a purchase except for the expansions. Subscription is not gating.GW2 gates LW behind additional purchase of the content, on top of paying for expansions.Never seen anyone call subscriptions "gating" before.... So let me get this straight ..Content you can buy permanently with a one time real money purchase AND earn in game is gated content... BUT .. Content that is gated behind a real money purchase that you have to repeat monthly is NOT gated content?A sub grants you access to the entire game, not just part of it. If there were tiers of subs, where higher tiers gave access to content that lower tiers did not, THAT would be gating with subs. And I can't think of a single MMO that does that. So no, subscription is not gating.

No.. they gate all content behind a seperate purchase, every monthAnd GW2 doesn't gate anything behind a purchase except for the expansions.Subscription is not gating.GW2 gates LW behind additional purchase of the content, on top of paying for expansions.Never seen anyone call subscriptions "gating" before....

If offering LW seasons as part of the upgrade is going to cause ANET to shut down GW2, then it's already too late and ANET is already filing bankruptcy paperwork. This is not where they're making their money. Imagine if you bought Skyrim today and you weren't able to start at Helgen, but instead you had to start at the quest after getting Dragonrend. Want to play the story before that? Too bad, but here's a summary! Oh, but we'll sell you this package that lets you play the Civil War story arc, even though it ties heavily to the main story and should be included. You don't "need" it, but it will certainly make the story make more sense. With the current state of things, new and returning players will be discouraged from sticking around. Which means even less money in ANET's pocket. I'm not advocating the removal of the cash shop entirely. I'm just saying that certain things should never be hobbled like they've done with LW.

Are you also willing to pay a mandatory monthly subscription fee to play gw2? Anet doesn’t “force” anyone to buy anything off the gemstore. And you don’t have to spend a dime on items either, you can convert game gold into gems to get anything for $0. Also, nothing in bl chests gives you a combat advantage over another player. Some rng chests in other games aren’t great, but not in gw2. But if things change, then we better get ready to have exclusively gem priced items on the gem store for direct purchase. So those certain cosmetic items will have a much higher sticker price. I would be willing to pay a monthly sub if it gave access to all the LW chapters. ESO does something like this. You can play for free, but if you sub, you get access to all the expansions without having to buy them. I'm not asking ANET to get access to HoT/PoF with a sub, I'm fine with purchasing the expansions. But they clearly don't want new and returning players to experience this content which has a price tag of an expansion to get it all. And with a third actual expansion rumored to be coming, GW2 is about to get some fresh attention. But the way they're doing LW content is going to roadblock and scare off a lot of new and returning players. It's already got me questioning if I wanna stay. Lords know I'm not eager to pay for another expansion on top of what I just bought. Especially since I was given no heads up that I wouldn't be able to experience that content without paying more.

First off, I'm a recently returning player. Before this past week, last time I played was 2015 (or longer?).My experience thus far has been.... I don't have a clue what all these changes are and finding the info, either in game or online, has been a massive headache. And I say this as someone who has written guides and done the hardcore raiding scene and theorycrafting.Trying to upgrade to Path of Fire took me almost an entire week because the website is broken in three browsers and attempts to upgrade through the ingame store were met with repeated "unexpected error"I'm big on story, and ANet has boasted for years about Living World. I came back because I wanted to see this stuff. ....only to discover that I would have to essentially pay for a third expansion in order to get most of the LW (can't even get all of it since LWS1 isn't even playable anymore). But hey, if I wanna start in Chapter 5 of Book 2, I can do that for free! ....even though I don't have a clue who any of the characters are because I can't meet them properly.Nothing I have experienced since my return has felt like an expansion. It has, however, felt like lack of information, disappointment, frustration, and confusion.I feel like I'm forced to play PoF and forgo the story that came before it. I've never played an MMO that made me feel this way in regards to the story. Again, I'm a returning player, so take my feedback on this with that in mind. It's been long enough that I might as well be a new player.

On top of all the issues I've had as a returning player (took me almost a week to even get the PoF purchase to go through, as just one of several issues i've had), I run into one of the most bizarre experiences I've ever encountered. So imagine this.... You pick up an MMO, which boasts about its ongoing story and deep lore. "Awesome! I love that stuff!" you think. So you pick up the game and the current expansion and jump in. You progress through the story, you're enjoying it, and suddenly.... you have to jump clear through to Chapter 5 of the second book?! Why? Why is Living World not part of the purchase when you buy the expansion?! This is something I've watched GW2 boast about for several years now. And I can't even properly experience it with out shelling out MORE cash? This sort of decision will be a sour surprise for both new and returning players. Imagine not being allowed to read the first half of a book you've bought, but you can read a few chapters in the middle of the book. Want to read those early chapters? Gotta buy each one separately! Maybe I should listen to all the bad experiences and surprises I've had during the past week and walk away....

This is just mind blowing.I finally got lucky and my purchase of PoF went through via the ingame menu. Not sure if it's because I bought the $30 upgrade or because it finally stopped being broken for a whole five seconds. (website is still borked, though)Then, not ten seconds later, I'm trying to buy 1600 gems and..... unexpected error. sigh.......... here we go again. So I try a few hours later and it goes through.But now, another few hours later, I try to upgrade my character, needing 1600 again, and.... won't work. A few minutes go by as I do some crafting, and I try again and.... it works! But I only bought 800 gems, thinking that issue might be the amount I'm trying to spend. And yet again, not 10 seconds later, I try to buy another 800.... unexpected error. I guess I should give kudos for one thing. Most companies would fall all over themselves to make quadruple sure the cash shop works. ANet seems to be OK with theirs being a buggy mess.

I guess the part where I said "the website store is completely broken" just meant nothing? I'm sure you mean well, but your canned responses are not helpful. Especially when you flat out don't read what someone has written. Also, it's a little condescending to assume I'm too stupid to know that I don't HAVE to spend $80. And your search keywords are far too broad. Of course you're going to get thousands. Most people are going to include words "store" and "can't" and "broken" "doesn't work" alongside "buy gems". Can't even embed the image using the tools available, but here's a link to what the website looks like that. Looks that way in all three browsers: FF, IE, Chrome.https://imgur.com/CitlThsThere's nothing to click to make a purchase.

Having a similar issue. Trying to upgrade my account, but the website store is completely broken. When I try to upgrade via the ingame menu, I get an error when I try to complete the purchase. Kinda making me not want to even come back to the game.Oh, and I tried doing a search for similar issues. I got this thread and one from 2015. Tried multiple combinations and variations of keywords for the search.Frankly, if I have to jump through hoops, contacting a billing department instead of just using the website or ingame menu, it's just not worth the hassle. I'll save my $80 for a game that has a working store.