[The greatest mastery is to appear weak and incompetent]

I can confirm that she defeated my squad of 50 on her own. I was multiboxing on my 50 alt accounts when she surrounded us. It was a long fight. We did our best. We stripped her boons and kept our own up. But, in the end her cunning attacks were too much for us. We died, each of my alts going down one at a time, leaving corpses scattered across the battlefield until finally it was only her and my main account. Without the distraction of running the other 49 accounts I managed to get her down to half health and then she did the unthinkable...she put her armor on. At that point she, no longer fighting naked, quickly put paid to me. It was a glorious sight, an epic battle, and I resolved to brand her name into my forearm so that I might never forget the lessons in battle puissance she taught me that day.

[I hope HOUSING in GW is like this!]

25 minutes ago, kiroho.4738 said:

Such as mount and glider skins.

What is the ratio of WV mount skins to Gemstore mount skins?

[I hope HOUSING in GW is like this!]

If implemented, housing in gw2 would be monetized heavily. Just as there has been very little in the way of mount skins available outside of the gemstore I expect we would see a vast majority of housing accessories released for the gemstore.

[Did someone request beach wear?]

I am curious as to how this will be packaged and priced. Sold in sets or as individual pieces? I can imagine that part of the reason for not designing these as outfits is to be able to break them up and sell them as individual pieces where getting a complete swimsuit might cost more than an outfit while an individual piece would cost less.

[Did someone request beach wear?]

At this point, if it contributes to the game's financial health, go for it.

[Who is open world content made for?]

17 minutes ago, Skub.8240 said:

But following this very logic means there should be easy raids for the 5k dps people because we need variety, right? So people wouldn't be mad if, after like five years, the next raid was geared entirely around people who struggle to take down outdated HoT champs, surely.

And that there, is basically the flaw with this argument. There is plenty of content already for people who want to target a higher skill floor and get better at the game, and I wholly disagree that, that should be the open world content's duty as well.

Or, the logic could mean that there should be easy instanced content for the 5k dps people....and there is.

[Please provide an option to the inspection cosmetics so Cosplayers come back - they are no longer found/seen]

8 hours ago, Sweetbread.3678 said:

I don't personally like the inspection feature (it's anti-social and just promotes people copy/pasting instead of actually being creative imo), but I doubt most people care or it ran off a significant portion of the playerbase. Though, I've gotta lol at the notion that a bunch of people so creatively bankrupt that they couldn't even consume a piece of media without having their character be a regurgitation of some pop culture character / brand mascot from another piece of media, losing their marbles over their originality being infringed upon by the plebs or something.

This.

[Who is open world content made for?]

33 minutes ago, Vayne.8563 said:

Games are about progression. People want to feel progression. Once you get to level 80, you're no longer leveling. Once you get your masteries, you're no longer getting masteries. What's left is skill progression. People get better at the game. Some people will only get a little better, and some people will get much better, depending on how much time and effort they put into it. Getting better at a game is the goal of most games.

There are dozens of open world metas in the game now. Only a couple of them are harder. Saying they shouldn't exist, is like saying I demand all content be for me and no one else.  Everyone has access to the same gear, the same classes, the same elite specs. Everyone can look up a build or try to make a good one on their own. 

And no one can stop anyone from participating in a meta. They can, at most, kick you out of a squad, which isn't really a problem because you can still do the meta.  Most metas aren't gatekept. There are usually enough people that know what's going on to get the meta done. But sometimes, in some metas, that's not the case and when that happens those metas fail. There are three options. You learn the meta and do better  next time, you never do the meta again, or you refuse to learn, keep doing the same thing, and hope people carry you through.

To be honest, there are plenty of people carried through metas, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Not everyone has the time, the inclination or even the ability to get better. But you can't gatekeep a meta, because it's not possible. Nothing stops casual open world players have any skill from participating. 

If your suggest, however, is that all metas need to be easiest enough for the lowest common denominator to do with no chance of failure, that's just a bad take. Everyone can get better if they want to, even if it's just a little. Why should the game be made for people who only care about what they want, and not what anyone else wants?

Exactly.

Variety is the spice of life. Some metas may be relaxing, chat with your friends, laid back events while others may ask more of each participant. Having some of each is a good thing.

[Legendary Weapon Starter Kits feel samey]

1 hour ago, Jumpin Lumpix.6108 said:

you guys really dont know the definition of the word exclusive do you? You should look it up, because saying a legendary is exclusive as in it is rare, or difficult to obtain is correct use of the word.

You are mistaken. Something can be rare without being exclusive. If there is only one of something then it is rare, if it is then passed around to everyone in a group there is no exclusion.

Anyone who wants legendaries in gw2 can get them. A variety of ways exist, including the ability to get one within moments of buying the game with minimal effort beyond pressing a couple of buttons. As no one in game is excluded from getting legendaries they are, by definition of the word, not exclusive.

[Legendary Weapon Starter Kits feel samey]

7 hours ago, Jumpin Lumpix.6108 said:

id say a legendary is more exclusive then a trash drop from queensdale.  See i used the word exclusive correctly in that sentence while making my point.

That is a description of rarity not exclusivity.

Oddly enough though GW2 legendary weapons are in fact exclusive...to players of GW2. So yes there is some exclusivity.

[Secrets of the Obscure: Looking Back and Forward]

42 minutes ago, Dotveg.5108 said:

I respect your opinion, but I'd like to add just one thing, respectfully: dislikable is highly subjective. As a person on the autistic spectrum, I liked Zojja's snappiness and struggle to belong with the "normal" people of Destiny's Edge! I loved to see her thrive in the Tower, and when I met Isgarren and Dagda, two super-clammed, super socially awkward and easily interpretable as arrogant, pedantic and downright rude characters, I had a genuine moment of "Yup, I get it. That's your people" for her.

I won't drown you under a character study since you don't like Zojja, but I just wanted to share my two cents with you. I liked her writing, which also means I understand why you didn't. I don't necessarily think there's much of a lesson to be learned other than you can't create a universally loved character, and that's totally fine. Hell, some people despise Canach when I find him hilarious. I'm glad we don't all like the same things, otherwise the world would be extremely bland.

If someone is actively abusive toward you they are not intended to be liked. If someone in real life was actively abusive to a person on the spectrum, or not for that matter, they would be seen as borderline evil. Abusing people because they cannot defend themselves is not acceptable behavior. Kicking puppies and drowning kittens for fun are not cool either. I can, as a member of an audience, enjoy a good villain, that doesn't make their abuse of the innocent likeable.

[Secrets of the Obscure: Looking Back and Forward]

A lesson not mentioned as having been learned might be that if you implement a character specifically to be unlikable, to the point of being abusive, such as Zojja, prior to SotO it is not a good idea to hang emotional connection to expansion elements and characters on her shoulders. If you purposefully make me dislike the character and she is my connection to the expansion then you have set me up to dislike the expansion. 

[Who is open world content made for?]

1 hour ago, Astralporing.1957 said:

You clearly do not know how the traits and stats on gear work, and how big impact they have on your dps.

I've done naked DPS testing on a variety of builds. Autoattacking can exceed 5k dps on a broad range of builds including LI options. Don't get me wrong, it is very possible to purposefully kitten yourself, but the trait system (assuming that a player is literate) makes it hard if you do at least a bare minimum of reading.

[Please provide an option to the inspection cosmetics so Cosplayers come back - they are no longer found/seen]

I am sure that the number of people who left because of this feature is small and is greatly overshadowed by the vast hordes who left FFXIV and WoW to come here for it.

[June 25 Balance Update Preview]

41 minutes ago, Chyro.1462 said:

Uhh.. but scepter hasn't been reduced in condi damage. All it's gained are buffs on power. So if you play condi scepter, you're not doing any less damage - you're doing more. How is that reason to retire a character?

Oh, thank you. I misunderstood then. Appreciate the response!

[June 25 Balance Update Preview]

A little bummed by the decision to convert Ele scepter to a more power focus. Im not fomd of the aesthetics of ele pistol so this is likely to result in the retirement of a character.

[Shortest story ever?]

52 minutes ago, Astralporing.1957 said:

Sure, but businesses making bad products have it even worse.

Sometimes.

[WvW but without other players?]

If only there was an option for players, either singly or in groups, to fight computer controlled enemies in a large open environment. I'm not sure what you would call such a game mode. 

[Shortest story ever?]

1 hour ago, Kranlor Greyhelm.8417 said:

If you focus on making a good product, the profits will follow. 

"The profits might follow," would be more accurate. Businesses making a good product fail all of the time. In fact they fail more often than they succeed.

[The good things about SotO]

 Interesting, the things listed as the good aspects of SotO would have been on my list of some of the worst.

[Obsidian Legendary Armor Tier 2 Preview]

23 minutes ago, Sobx.1758 said:

I find "the time investment for this legendary armor doesn't seem worth it if this is all we get" to be a weak piece of feedback

Do you find telling someone, who already knows that they dont need to get this item, that they dont need to get this item to not be weak feedback?

[No point in joining any outdoors activity without flying mount]

On some maps, yes. Most maps this is not an issue.

[Obsidian Legendary Armor Tier 2 Preview]

Nothing screams, "obsidian armor" like green, yellow, or red glow.

[The amount of filler content in story is out of hand]

4 minutes ago, Zok.4956 said:

The big difference is that a higher max level (as it usually is in other games) usually invalidates all the gear that you have (hardly) earned. And then you have to grind for new gear for the higher level. 

And the original idea of the masteries was that they only apply in the corresponding maps of the expansion, but do not influence or trivialize other maps. However, Anet deviated from this early on in HoT at the player's request (with gliding) and later on with other masteries.

Understood. But, again, increasing opponent stats in order to require players to get new levels and gear to be able to compete is not that dissimilar to increasing map navigation demands in order to require players to get new levels (of mastery) in order to compete.

I get that it isnt exactly the same but in both cases you are leveling up in order to complete new content challenges that would be difficult, or even impossible, without the new "levels". Rendering my gear obsolete is annoying, but so to  is doing the same to my existing/preferred mobility.

[The amount of filler content in story is out of hand]

4 hours ago, Zok.4956 said:

The progression I'm talking about means horizontal progression with masteries instead of the vertical progression of other games with simply an increased maximum level.

 

Is there really all that much of a difference between challenges that you need to overcome by increasing your horizontal progression mechanics and challenges that you need to overcome by increasing your level?