Poormany.4507

How is it not? There's currently no personalized housing system with collectible items and such that is accessible to players, only Guild Halls that have too large costs and do not allow personalization to individual/solo players.

Disagree with OP. There's honestly not much that can be realistically added to GW2 at this point on the scale of mounts/gliding (other than player housing, which I do think they will add at some point) without completely overhauling the engine or making an entirely new game (pretty much the same as making a GW3). The current new features in SotO seem reasonable to me.

Given the new Twitter restriction that only registered accounts can view Twitter content, it would be really nice if Anet could also post their videos/pictures/posts to at least one other official platform and/or blog posts. Users who do not (and/or do not wish to have) Twitter accounts are currently locked out of seeing any of Anet's posts, many of which are only currently accessible there, videos and photos in particular. The current "Tweets by GuildWars2" sidebar just gives an error to anyone not signed into Twitter since this update.

Given Anet's trailers are usually already released only a few weeks or days (if that) before full-scale expacs or LW episodes were launched, and Anet said the expac would be released in the Summer in the "laugh" teaser, I wouldn't expect an official trailer until late August or early September. I would expect a couple more teasers in the meantime though.

Pot meet kettle? This kind of power hungry mentality just leads to echo chambers that make everyone even more divided than they already are. Of course remove blatantly racist, homophobic, etc. posts, but the goal of getting rid of anyone you personally view as "evil bigots" just deepens divisions and stifles any kind of actual discussion on topics. Imo, mods should just reopen the subreddit. Plenty of other subreddits have already done polls and opinion surveys that showed that the vast majority of users voted to keep their subs open permanently, don't really care about the pricing changes that much, and just want to be able to discuss and make posts on their regular platform. If mods actually "love their community" as they claim, they would listen to what the vast majority of them are actually saying, such as in the current thread, and reopen without second thought,

We know the Asura also set up seemingly large-scale settlements and research outposts outside of Central Tyria, such as those in Draconis Mons and Elona (before they got Awakened). Why can't we have a long-term Asuran settlement elsewhere with a different culture based on their environment/locale (similar to the Olmakhan)? The other races have also had over 200 years since GW1 to expand and explore new areas, the Charr in Eastern Ascalon in particular with multiple other Citadels existing in that region in the lore. I would love to explore some of these other races' homelands, new settlements, and cultures as well. There could also easily be new (sub)races or previously unknown ones in currently unexplored regions, much like the Itzel and Nuhoch tribes in Maguuma that were not previously there in GW1. We haven't actually seen any semblance of large-scale civilized Centaur society iirc, only the war camps filled with "Die Two-Legs!!!" types. It would be interesting to explore the other side of their society, which I'm guessing was at least partly planned for the cut IBS Centaur plotline and map. Exploring these and other minor races civilizations would be neat without veering into random "lets try to different for the sake of it" that contrasts with existing lore.

What you've quoted here isn't the whole expansion, it's a smaller part of it. The planned expansion release doesn't fit gyala and you know it (hence the convenient trim). I didn't write that the quarterly update will be the whole expac and I'm not sure why people are implying it is. Based on Anet's post, it seems like the quarterly releases will be released as multi-part maps and compose ~1/3 of the expac content (the other 2/3 will be the 2 seemingly regular full, single-release LW or expac size/quality maps) Based on the release page of What Lies Within, as well as the aforementioned post, it implies that Gyala is similar in format to what the quarterly updates will be, which is concerning, given how little content/quality were included in it compared to prior LW seasons because most of the resources/staff went into the next expac: What Lies Within’ will remain permanently free to play for owners of Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons. If you haven’t logged in to check out the previous story update yet, you’re in luck—’What Lies Beneath’ is still available to play for free today! That means if you didn’t log in for “What Lies Beneath,” you’re in luck—that content is still available to you today! We’re making that change to reflect how we’re thinking of expansions and related content moving forward. A third of the expac content being consistently subpar is not a good look. I'm really hoping that Gyala's the exception, rather than the rule, for sacrificing quarterly release content for expac development, but given Anet's already done this before with IBS, it's not looking too good.

They didn't announce the new release format until half a year after EoD was released, so anyone buying EoD at release would have reasonably expected the same LW format that has been in place for the past 8-10 years. Based on the Studio Update: "In the following quarterly updates, we’ll add another open-world map, additional story chapters, challenge modes for the Strike Missions, a new fractal dungeon and challenge mode, new rewards, and additions to the new systems introduced in that expansion." That's pretty much what Gyala was, indicating that future quarterly updates will quite possibly give similar low levels of quality and quantity, especially since they will get much less effort/resources/staff because the whole team will be working on the next paid expac (same as how late IBS was sacrificed for EoD development and now the Gyala updates were sacrificed for Expac 4). So, I would not be surprised if the actual mini-expacs consist of two LW-level maps and story and one subpar Gyala-level map and story from the quarterly updates.

Disagree with the OP on this one. GW2's at one of its lowest points atm for me. EoD was fine, then instead of getting several LW episodes/seasons and maps as many people who bought EoD expected, myself included, we got a single map with 1 hour of story that includes a lot of pointless filler content (carrying and stacking boxes as a story step, srsly?, random Kurzick rune sidequest, multiple copy-paste story battle sections). All this after over a year of waiting. The new model is very risky with multiple issues that are already apparent: Probably no more large-scale expacs with long-term stories or new elite specs, at least for the next few years, if ever. Higher cost for less content that was previously free for regular players ($25 per year vs $30 every 4-5 years) for basically 2 or 3 LW episodes. The last of the 2-3 episodes is likely to be lower quality like Gyala since they'll mostly be focusing on the next expac at that point. Masteries are already feeling very niche (compare skiffs/fishing to mounts or gliding) so the new mini-expacs will quite possibly not include larger-scale ones as well, especially with the quicker development times needed for them. I find it very difficult to see Anet developing meaningful new large-scale systems like mounts or gliding with only a year or less of development time while working on QOL, fixes, and other stuff. For now, I'm cautiously optimistic that Anet is just spending the majority of its resources/staff on the expac and that's why Gyala was poorer quality, and that they can pull off the new model successfully, as they surprised me with how good the mount system was in PoF, but my expectations are not that high rn.

The new DE is ok for me. I like Rama and his kinda sense of humor. I was also suspicious of Joon throughout EoD and was pleasantly surprised that she did not end up being a villain, but just had differing views than the PC. I'm meh with Yao and Chul-Moo, but they really need more story centered around their backgrounds because I still feel like I don't really know who they are enough to care about them, just because their stories are so scattered and shown to us in a piecemeal fashion so far. Ayumi's fine as a character, but I honestly had no idea who she was without Wiki'ing her and am not that confident she would even join DE 3.0 because of how little game time she's gotten, and because she's already plenty busy being the leader of the Kestrels. Taimi and Gorriks' plots are pretty much done, so I'm guessing they'll have their official proposal and leave DE soon (at least for a while) to spend time with each other (outside of saving the world situations) similar to Kas and Jory. As for new members, possibly Min since she's getting along pretty well with Rama and they could be the new "couple" of the team. Ivan for Dredge representation (where even is he btw - wasn't he part of the detective agency?). Joon as already mentioned. Possibly a return of one or two of the old DE members - Canach and Kas/Jory seem like the most likely, since Canach's been around in Cantha and hints at future adventures after EoD and the latter are probably going to go back into action after their honeymoon. The others (Rytlock, Crecia, and Braham) felt like they were going into permanent-ish retirement and their story arcs were pretty much finished for now. Maybe we'll see them if we go back into Ascalon/Shiverpeaks, but the next Expac doesn't seem like it's going in those directions from what we've seen so far.

Agree- Why wasn't Caithe or someone actually close to Aurene (like anyone in the Crystal Bloom) there? Same with Cinder. What does Chul-Moo have anything to do with Cinder when there are so many better options of people who were actually involved in the Charr Civil War (Rytlock or Crecia, for example). It just felt like the VAs were unavailable and/or they were trying to shoehorn in these new Canthan characters, who I still don't really know or care about much (especially to pour deep and painful emotions out to), into the story. I also agree it should have been Trahearne, Almorra, and Eir involved in the Commander's reflections, as their memories are the ones who the Ravenous Wanderer actually successfully targeted in the last episode. It's not even shown how/when the Commander gets over their deaths... They just abruptly do at the very end.

Agree with OP. Also, this chapter had way too much random busywork that felt like filler content.The whole Kurzick runestone storyline and learning the incantation felt drawn out and unnecessary. In addition, the whole battle against the Ravenous Wanderer and its demons was very repetitive/copy-paste to the point where I got bored and stopped caring 3/4 of the way through the tunnel. While the story is fine, I really hope they step it up in the expac in terms of gameplay, because the quality of the last two quarterly releases has just not been enough to keep me interested...

The most recent Spring Update says they will be released ~once a year: so ~$25 per year. Still higher price for less than paying $30 every 3-4 years for a full expac for pretty much 3 Living World episodes, the third of which is likely to consistently be lower quality (Similar to Gyala) since most of the time/resources will go into the next paid expac content rather than the free quarterly updates. It's the same pricewise for new/returning players who would have to buy LW anyways (unless they logged in at the right times), but it is definitely higher for regular players who pretty much got LW for free before.

How exactly is GW2 in maintenance mode? GW2 has had a full 2 Living World seasons + expansion +LWS1 revival released since PoF and is currently releasing new content, including a new expansion soon without any end in sight. Maintenance mode is GW1's state right now since soon after GW2's release, with no new content being released, but the servers kept running for players to still be able to play.

This, but with a step between 2 and 3 of uniting and gathering all the allies together for the 100th time by doing renown hearts for each of them.

I agree - The main issue to me in GW2's (and a lot of other games') stories is that the story goes well in general, starts to get to the end, and then the devs realize they are out of time and crunch a ton of plot points and skip important steps to get to the ending while it being blatantly clear to players that is what they're doing. This has been a problem since core GW2 (the fail Zhaitan fight and cut Zhaitan map) so I don't really mind it as much, but it still spoils much of the story and expectations for me. Same thing in this case - Anet has one half-episode (a single tunnel in fact) to get to Expac 4's plot, so they cut a ton of content. I would have LOVED to see the actual events described in Gorrik's journal happening in an actual instance (I speculate this may have even been planned or thought of initially), but it's clear there was no time/resources/staff for doing that. Unfortunately, the new release model makes this even worse, since Anet's constantly working on the next expac, so a lot of resources/staff/time will be cut from the quarterly updates in particular.

ftfy: Logan Faren ready for duty!

Because of this and demons almost certainly being the next expac's focus based on the concept art they posted, I'm pretty sure this plan's going to epically fail and/or backfire anyways, with us possibly losing one of our teammates to the haze (my bet's on Chul-Moo). That way, the PC's metal state would probably be one of the key plot points of the next expac, where it can be more flushed out than in a single tunnel in the upcoming update. Also I just cannot see Kanaxai being revealed and defeated in a single half-update, and he's most likely going to be the next big villain or second-in-command for the mini-expac..

If game development worked this way, we'd have playable Tengu years ago. I highly doubt Anet's going to change fundamental features like the one proposed this late in the game. Messing with important spaghetti code from 5 years to a decade ago written by devs who no longer work there is just going to introduce more bugs than the minor QOL feature it will bring. They already recently started letting us exit instances early with optional extra dialogue, and I think that's the best we're going to get in regards to this issue.

I also think this list is very off. Why are random games in a series chosen when others are left off? (e.g., Why are Morrowind and Skyrim listed but Oblivion isn't, even though it was extremely popular and is getting a remake?) How are giant MMOs like Runescape or Everquest not anywhere on this list even though they are pretty much everyone's first MMOs and pretty much every gamer in the world has at least heard of them, while niche games like Chrono Trigger rank in the 30s or 40s? (I love the game, but no way is that in the top 30s or 40s for the majority of gamers). Tetris as #3, seriously? (I forgot that's even a video game) Why not put games like Candy Crush or Farmville on the list, they're just as popular in modern times and have a ton of spinoffs? I do agree that GW1/2 should be on the list for their longstanding MMO statuses (How many other MMOs last 10+years?), but probably aren't due to marketing. Whenever I mention I play them to people irl, they've never heard of them. Definitely blame poor marketing on that one, which GW is notorious about, with poor decisions like releasing trailers the week or day before seasons or expacs launch and partnering with rando companies like Kung Fu Tea and Quiznos that most people have never been to or heard of.

That doesn't sound fun to me at all - It just sounds like combat would take forever per encounter and have annoying gimmicks each time. Overall, this idea sounds really bad imo for GW2. Maybe it would work for a single-player game or a different mmo that caters specifically to more hardcore players, but there is zero chance of this type of system being implemented in GW2 (a game whose appeal is largely casual player centric), especially this late in the game's life where players already have firm expectations of combat. That is not the reason people are not engaged in PvP and WvW... Playing against npcs should be distinct from playing against real players. If a casual player, such as myself, doesn't want to compete with other players or player-like AI, they shouldn't be forced to do so just because a few players want hardcore combat.

After looking into the demon designs in GW1, this one seems very similar to the second from the left on top. Given that specific demon was found in the Realm of Torment, formerly claimed by Kormir and now reclaimed by demons, Expac 4 could be the tie-in to or the actual Gods return storyline, which would be consistent with the hints dropped in GW2 so far (Lyssa being the main one).

With the new hints that Expac 4 will seemingly be largely centered on demons, where do you think the storyline will go? Kanaxai is almost definitely behind the events of Gyala, but where exactly do you think the story will go past that? Maybe some kind of connection to the Deep Sea Monster? It just feels really random imo for the main plot to go in this direction unless it has some kind of purpose or connection to a larger plotline.

Since they're switching to the mini-expac model, the chances of playable Tengu went even further down than the already extremely low chance they had. I doubt they would (or would even be able to) pack that big of a gamechanging feature into a mini-expac while simultaneously working on the next mini-expac to launch right after the previous one as they said they would try to do. The probability of playable Tengu in GW2 at this point is pretty much 0. Maybe in GW3 in 5-10+years (if ever)...

We do know that the Purists are up to something in Raisu Palace, which is where Shiro's body was last seen in GW1. Since they're supposedly controlling Risen using magic, I could see them potentially using Shiro's magic somehow and either intentionally or unintentionally bringing the Affliction back. I really doubt it will be a major plotpoint though, if it does come up, because the Affliction was already the main plot of Factions and it would pretty much also be redoing Joko's Scarab Plague plot in GW2.