Is your gameplay affected by the fact that almost everything can be bought with gold?

[ArchonWing.9480]

18 minutes ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

People don't care bc theres nothing impressive about a weapon that anyone can outright buy off the tp. When I see someone with a gen 2 legendary its much more impressive. You know for a fact they worked hard to get it. Same with Legendary armor.

I just see a huge waste of time. Stat changes are kinda nice though. But whether you use ascended or legendary, I couldn't care less.

If anything, I would respect a person more for putting together decent fashion as opposed to loading up a bunch of purples to look like a radioactive Christmas Tree.

Also I usually skin over my legendary armor. Meh.

 

Quote

If you had no goals in a game, would you keep playing it after you experienced everything a few times? I can only run the Chak meta or the shatterer so many times before it gets boring for me. Unless theres a goal im working towards. Same applies to raids, strikes, fractals and so on. After the initial fun phase is over, there has to be a goal to work towards to incentivize people to keep playing. It's human nature.

Well, there's something called a social aspect. A major point of a massively multiplayer online game, don't you think?

I do guild missions even though I really don't need guild commendations nor the  favor because it's just an activity to hang out with people I care to play with.

Goals are nice, but more for emphasizing content I wouldn't do normally.

 

 

 

Quote

 

How come games like mario party aren't something you can play daily for years? I would assume its bc theres no goals outside of the initial fun phase/playing through the whole game. Once you finish it you might play once in a while but it will never be a daily game to play. Unless its a pvp game where getting good is the goal. Gw2 is a pvp game though. 

Well Mario Party is luck based, so it's not very interesting.

Getting good is always the goal of playing a game to me, though. Badges are nice but not the most important things.

Edited November 18, 2021 by ArchonWing.9480

[Chichimec.9364]

On 11/17/2021 at 9:04 AM, Danikat.8537 said:

...I don't really care about any concept of prestige or making sure other people know how and where/when I got things. I'll use titles which fit my characters or what they're currently doing rather than ones I hope will impress other people and dress them in things I think they would choose or which fit their theme regardless of where those skins came from. If it's important to me I'll remember what I did to get those items, I don't need everyone else to know as well.

This. I don't pay a lot of attention to other players' titles, fashions, shinies, or whatver. Nor do I use titles, fashion, shinies or anything else to impress other players or demonstrate my own "prestige". So I really don't even understand the OP's question, let alone that kind of attitude toward the game. I get my leggy armor from WvW, a game mode I enjoy playing, and I get leggy weapons by saving up gold earned doing ingame stuff I enjoy. Heck, I spent time today just mat gathering while listening to an audiobook because I find that relaxing. All this is not to say that my attitude is right and the OP's attitude is wrong. They are just different attitudes. I wish I had something helpful to say about the OP's last question but I just draw a blank beyond play for fun.

[Beast Sos.1457]

23 minutes ago, ArchonWing.9480 said:

I just see a huge waste of time. Stat changes are kinda nice though. But whether you use ascended or legendary, I couldn't care less.

If anything, I would respect a person more for putting together decent fashion as opposed to loading up a bunch of purples to look like a radioactive Christmas Tree.

Also I usually skin over my legendary armor. Meh.

 

Well, there's something called a social aspect. A major point of a massively multiplayer online game, don't you think?

I do guild missions even though I really don't need guild commendations nor the  favor because it's just an activity to hang out with people I care to play with.

Goals are nice, but more for emphasizing content I wouldn't do normally.

 

 

 

Well Mario Party is luck based, so it's not very interesting.

Getting good is always the goal of playing a game to me, though. Badges are nice but not the most important things.

I'm not talking about what we find more pleasing to the eye. The fact that someone worked for the legendary armor or gen 2 weapon is the impressive part. Nothing else. Some will like the skins some wont. It's impressive, not respectable. 

 

You're right. For a lot of people it is a social dynamic. For me personally its not, and I'm sure for many others. It's a MMO at the end of the day, many people play for many different reasons. 

 

Goals are what give MMO's their longevity. Thats the point of goals. To get you to play content you otherwise wouldn't have. Very few people are going repeat the same content over and over without a goal/reward theyre working towards. 

 

As a MMO, this isn't a game where you can expect the goal of players being to get better. It's not competitive and the pvp is a side thought.  MMO's are very casual friendly in that aspect. 

 

 

 

[ArchonWing.9480]

27 minutes ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

I'm not talking about what we find more pleasing to the eye. The fact that someone worked for the legendary armor or gen 2 weapon is the impressive part. Nothing else. Some will like the skins some wont. It's impressive, not respectable. 

 

You're right. For a lot of people it is a social dynamic. For me personally its not, and I'm sure for many others. It's a MMO at the end of the day, many people play for many different reasons. 

 

Goals are what give MMO's their longevity. Thats the point of goals. To get you to play content you otherwise wouldn't have. Very few people are going repeat the same content over and over without a goal/reward theyre working towards. 

 

As a MMO, this isn't a game where you can expect the goal of players being to get better. It's not competitive and the pvp is a side thought.  MMO's are very casual friendly in that aspect. 

 

 

 

Impressive? Hard to say. A video of someone clearing content in X minutes/seconds would be a bit more impressive than just someone getting gen 2 legends.  Granted I couldn't care too much about either.

Yea, I guess people play the game for different reasons, but I feel like if you're unable to view the game through its social aspect, then it's only natural your view is going to be a bit skewed in this regard and that's why you won't be able to understand why people do stuff beyond the actual reward.  I mean no doubt that rewards and long term goals are a driving force behind any content, but I simply cannot relate to that. There's plenty of content (say sPvP) where no amount of "prestige" or shines will make me grind through it. And yes I know they try.

And play how you want. It just seems like OP's mindset seemed a bit unhealthy but we'll just to have to see.

Edited November 18, 2021 by ArchonWing.9480

[Malice.5867]

Thank you all for your input. I feel like a few people misunderstood the point of my question, or maybe I did not express myself the best way I could and the post looks a bit rantly or as if I'm complaining about the game. I love GW2 and that is why I have hundreds of hours ingame, and no matter how long of a break I take or what other games I play I aways come back. 

 

There are few mentions of "prestige" (I should've used a different word) items as a way of flexing on other people. I have like 5 outfits from the gemstore that I like and I use all of them on my characters. I literally don't have a single toon that is not wearing one and absolutely no one has the slightest idea that I'm fully legendary geared. I also mainly play WvW and in a zerg of 50 ppl I'm sure that no one even tries to look at me or even wants to. 

 

I gave the Ascension as an example, because it was very tough for me to get. As a casual player I'm not very good with multiple professions and this achievment pushed me way out of my comfort zone. I also had to spend a couple of months in the absurdly toxic environment of spvp (especially as playing a proffesion I'm not great at). Once I got it I felt victorious. I crawled through months of garbage and flaming and got something for my efforts. I don't even use the skin, but it's a personal badge of honor that I keep to myself. My point was that IF the same skin was available for gold and everyone else could've easly buy it after a few hours of farming meta events, it would diminish my sense of accomplishment.

 

Having a goal and playing towards it does not mean that I'm not enjoying myself or forcing myself to do it. However, it really helps me being engaged in the game. For example as a WvW player I don't do a lot of PVE events (I've done them all multiple times, but never actually farmed them). One day I was going through the achievments and noticed that I needed to do Tarir 20 more times for the title. I got so hyped that I didn't even care if it was 20 or 40 times. I was farming it literally on cooldown and I was having a blast doing so. Now that I have the title and all of the achievements I have absolutely no incentive to go back there. It's still a great event and there are still great rewards that people farm years after release, but I just don't see myself going back there "for fun". I used to have a lot of fun doing it, but my enjoyment had a different drive. 

 

I completely agree that the issue is not with the game, but with my perspective of it. I was just really interested to see if anyone feels the same way and hear the opinions of people that find different ways of enjoying the game, so hopefully I would be able to learn something from them and change my perspective in order to enjoy the game more. 

[Beast Sos.1457]

18 minutes ago, ArchonWing.9480 said:

Impressive? Hard to say. A video of someone clearing content in X minutes/seconds would be a bit more impressive than just someone getting gen 2 legends.  Granted I couldn't care too much about either.

Yea, I guess people play the game for different reasons, but I feel like if you're unable to view the game through its social aspect, then it's only natural your view is going to be a bit skewed in this regard and that's why you won't be able to understand why people do stuff beyond the actual reward.  I mean no doubt that rewards and long term goals are a driving force behind any content, but I simply cannot relate to that. There's plenty of content (say sPvP) where no amount of "prestige" or shines will make me grind through it. And yes I know they try.

And play how you want. It just seems like OP's mindset seemed a bit unhealthy but we'll just to have to see.

I agree. What you mentioned is more impressive but should that gameplay be the only thing that is found impressive? They both can be. People flying the griffon like a drone or using the roller beetle like they belong on a race track is also very impressive. It shouldn't take away from other gameplay styles that should have their prestige imo. You say my perspective is skewed but I can also say the same about yours. Bc its possible that the social aspects makes it that you don't see the flaws that effect the non social aspect of the game. Of course both our views are going to be different based the mentality we go into games with. I can't say yours is wrong and vice versa. 

 

FYI. I own one legendary, made 3 sold 2. I got 4k hours in the game. Clearly I'm not one of the grinding mindset. But I won't allow that to build a bias in me, which I think allows me to see what a ton of MMO gamers want. Goals. Things to work towards in game that gives me a sense of accomplishment and prestige. I truly believe thats what majority of MMO gamers enjoy. I might be wrong but to me it seems like the case. 

[kash.9213]

1 hour ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

People don't care bc theres nothing impressive about a weapon that anyone can outright buy off the tp. When I see someone with a gen 2 legendary its much more impressive. You know for a fact they worked hard to get it. Same with Legendary armor.

 

Ask anyone who butchered meat for themselves and they will tell you the meat tastes much better when you do. There is a big satisfaction difference between buying something with a currency or going out and obtaining it with your own hands. 

 

If you had no goals in a game, would you keep playing it after you experienced everything a few times? I can only run the Chak meta or the shatterer so many times before it gets boring for me. Unless theres a goal im working towards. Same applies to raids, strikes, fractals and so on. After the initial fun phase is over, there has to be a goal to work towards to incentivize people to keep playing. It's human nature.

 

How come games like mario party aren't something you can play daily for years? I would assume its bc theres no goals outside of the initial fun phase/playing through the whole game. Once you finish it you might play once in a while but it will never be a daily game to play. Unless its a pvp game where getting good is the goal. Gw2 isn't a pvp game though. 

It's an mmo. We're supposed to be the majority of content using the game mechanics and game modes. It sounds like you want to play a deep single player game. My goal is to have fun crafting my build and perfecting my look while I float around mostly WvW maps fighting with and against other players. Still, there are a lot of goals I'd like to have but realistically won't be able to achieve in this game because of time constraints mostly and again, gold doesn't buy everything. 

If there are parts of the game you wont play, that's not the games fault for lack of something to work towards. 

[ArchonWing.9480]

25 minutes ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

I agree. What you mentioned is more impressive but should that gameplay be the only thing that is found impressive? They both can be. People flying the griffon like a drone or using the roller beetle like they belong on a race track is also very impressive. It shouldn't take away from other gameplay styles that should have their prestige imo. You say my perspective is skewed but I can also say the same about yours. Bc its possible that the social aspects makes it that you don't see the flaws that effect the non social aspect of the game. Of course both our views are going to be different based the mentality we go into games with. I can't say yours is wrong and vice versa. 

 

FYI. I own one legendary, made 3 sold 2. I got 4k hours in the game. Clearly I'm not one of the grinding mindset. But I won't allow that to build a bias in me, which I think allows me to see what a ton of MMO gamers want. Goals. Things to work towards in game that gives me a sense of accomplishment and prestige. I truly believe thats what majority of MMO gamers enjoy. I might be wrong but to me it seems like the case. 

Yes, you can say my perspective is skewed too, but your perspective is missing some rather vital aspects of the game's design and you are claiming to speak on behalf of the majority of MMO gamers. It doesn't really make any sense that you could know what they want when you're missing literally 2 of the Ms.

I probably didn't make any legendary weapon until about twice your playtime and I have 3 now + 3 sets of legendary armor. mostly from just playing the game. Could have made some earlier, but decided to buy stuff like the Permanent Bank Express and Shared inventory slots because I thought they would provide much more utility than a legendary would. Convenience > Luxury if you ask me.

[Beast Sos.1457]

42 minutes ago, ArchonWing.9480 said:

Yes, you can say my perspective is skewed too, but your perspective is missing some rather vital aspects of the game's design and you are claiming to speak on behalf of the majority of MMO gamers. It doesn't really make any sense that you could know what they want when you're missing literally 2 of the Ms.

I probably didn't make any legendary weapon until about twice your playtime and I have 3 now + 3 sets of legendary armor. mostly from just playing the game. Could have made some earlier, but decided to buy stuff like the Permanent Bank Express and Shared inventory slots because I thought they would provide much more utility than a legendary would. Convenience > Luxury if you ask me.

Just bc I'm not big in the social aspect doesn't mean I don't socialize at all or haven't in the past. Most of the time I'm doing content that takes groups I socialize. Raids, strikes, WvW, pvp, meta events. I socialize in all of them but I don't go out of my way to socialize in games. By the time I finish work and talk to family or friends, I just want to sit back and relax as I play. Also, when I first started playing gw2, which was during the 3 day head start, I was much more social. I was a officer in a guild who ran events, did giveaway, helped people with content, etc. I also use to be on voice chat all day. I was 19-20 at the time so I had much more time to game. So I have experienced all aspects of gw2 and of a MMO. Social or solo. 

 

I gave my perspective on the topic. I didn't say anywhere that what I'm saying is based of statistics or facts. This is all a opinion made off observation. I gave my opinion on what I see most MMO gamers want but no where did I claim I'm speaking for them. I even stated I could be wrong. 

 

What you spent your gold on is not the point. No matter whether it is a permanent bank access or twlight, you still had the goal in mind to worked towards.

Edited November 18, 2021 by Beast Sos.1457

[Khisanth.2948]

4 hours ago, ArchonWing.9480 said:

Heck, most of the things we own in general can be bought, does that mean they don't matter as much? If you cook a meal, is  it worth less because you didn't slaughter the animals yourself? Silly.

If it weren't for the ability to buy things people wouldn't have time be doing stuff like play games XD

3 hours ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

People don't care bc theres nothing impressive about a weapon that anyone can outright buy off the tp. When I see someone with a gen 2 legendary its much more impressive. You know for a fact they worked hard to get it. Same with Legendary armor.

The vast majority of the materials used for your two examples can still be bought

3 hours ago, Beast Sos.1457 said:

Ask anyone who butchered meat for themselves and they will tell you the meat tastes much better when you do. There is a big satisfaction difference between buying something with a currency or going out and obtaining it with your own hands. 

That is a bad comparison. Is it even the same type of meat? The most likely meat for someone to be butchering is venison which usually has a gamey flavor. Some people hate that flavor while others regard any meat without it to be bland. Then there is the fact that commercially sold meat goes through some processing steps. At least in the case of pork that is legally required.

[Gibson.4036]

I’ve totally lost track here you guys. Is venison a legendary weapon, but pork is a gem store outfit?

And what about the Impossible Burger of GW2? Or will that be a feature of GW3 with the implementation of playable Tengu?

Edited November 19, 2021 by Gibson.4036

[ArchonWing.9480]

Good thing I ate dinner before reading those posts. 🧐

And speaking of that, we only have veggie Pizzas in Gw2. 😮

[Khisanth.2948]

9 minutes ago, ArchonWing.9480 said:

Good thing I ate dinner before reading those posts. 🧐

And speaking of that, we only have veggie Pizzas in Gw2. 😮

we also make pizzas by smushing two other pizzas together and sprinkling truffles on top

[Obfuscate.6430]

What spoiled the game experience for me is largely due to the instability of the game vs. my computer. I don't think there truly is prestige anymore. Honestly, when last did you look at a person's character and think "Wow, they look incredible - they must be a high achiever!" instead of "oh my god my EYES" . People being able to do what they want with gold is a non issue. 

 

[Raciid.9045]

To answer the original question: yes, and in a good way.

Since the purpose of the game is enjoyment, I prefer to do the things I enjoy and skip the rest. Farming gold is one of the things I would rather pay to skip, specially since it's extremely inefficient compared to making money IRL. In either case you have worked for your gold in some way.

As for impressing people with gear or titles, no one will know how you got your stuff anyway. Even if something is raid-only, you could have paid for someone to carry you through the raid until you got what you wanted from it. And for everyone who is impressed by your shiny gear, there is someone who will think you're a no-life for having it.

I play to fulfil goals that I set for myself; achievements, crafting gear, coming up with fun builds etc. It's OK to only do the fun parts.

[Pierro.2981]

I'm not sure if i hunderstood what you mean but i can tell you how i approach the game. When i set a goal like crafting legendary stuffs i try to achieve it without farming to death, or better say i farm just the thing i find fun. For exemple i like to do fractals, pvp, wvw, some meta event, but i do what i want when i can. I log in and there is a meta event on the run? i try to do it.  Maybe i find in the lfg someone who search for my specific role? i join, there isn't? I go in pvp or wvw. Every activity in this game give you gold, some are more profitable, but for exemple if i need gold i don't like to farm riba or others specific meta events like someone do. In the end while doing stuffs you like you forgot about the gold and in a blink of an eye you'll have the gold you need.

One last thing, there is stuff that you can't just buy with gold for exemple the legendary trinkets or armor, mount, titles, wvw or pvp ranks. All these things aren't mandatory and don't know if them really give you 'prestige'; for exemple i set the goal to reach 35k AP for the radiant armor set, maybe more golds can help a bit but not so much

[Vayne.8563]

It doesn't bother me now but it did a bit at the beginning. Now I just try to find the most efficient way of getting stuff done that I enjoy.  It takes a while but since I'm having a good time why would I care?

[captrowdy.9561]

“Work” in a video game is a joke. I have a job and a life so I play games for fun. Knowing that I can whip out the credit card and buy something shiny so I can go back to pvping is one of the best things about this game. 

[Ashen.2907]

On 11/18/2021 at 11:24 AM, ArchonWing.9480 said:

I just see a huge waste of time. Stat changes are kinda nice though. But whether you use ascended or legendary, I couldn't care less.

If anything, I would respect a person more for putting together decent fashion as opposed to loading up a bunch of purples to look like a radioactive Christmas Tree.

Also I usually skin over my legendary armor. Meh.

 

Well, there's something called a social aspect. A major point of a massively multiplayer online game, don't you think?

I do guild missions even though I really don't need guild commendations nor the  favor because it's just an activity to hang out with people I care to play with.

Goals are nice, but more for emphasizing content I wouldn't do normally.

 

 

 

Well Mario Party is luck based, so it's not very interesting.

Getting good is always the goal of playing a game to me, though. Badges are nice but not the most important things.

Pretty much everything said here^^^^

 

Plus, is it weird that the biggest benefit I am getting from having completed a couple sets of legendary armor is the ability to reskin freely? I mean, I had sufficient ascended for my main(s) to cover any build I was likely to play and exotics are good enough, and cheap enough, for alt characters I only play a few times per year. So, I am using free reskin far more than I use free stat swap.

[ArchonWing.9480]

3 hours ago, Ashen.2907 said:

Pretty much everything said here^^^^

 

Plus, is it weird that the biggest benefit I am getting from having completed a couple sets of legendary armor is the ability to reskin freely? I mean, I had sufficient ascended for my main(s) to cover any build I was likely to play and exotics are good enough, and cheap enough, for alt characters I only play a few times per year. So, I am using free reskin far more than I use free stat swap.

Yea the reskin is actually a good reason and additional incentive for sure. But I just have too many charges regardless.

I guess the topic bothers me a little with the implication that some legendaries are worth less because someone could have bought them, regardless if you did or not. The 2 gen 1 legendaries I bought the precursor (lol rng)  and some of the mats but I certainly built the thing, regardless of whatever standards people may try to impose on it.  To me, those standards simply aren't real. Do people really spend $1000 just to buy a legendary? If so, good. They support the game so it keeps going I guess.

Meanwhile here I am trying to craft The Shining Blade and it'll probably use a lot of mithril and elder I didn't get myself, sooo... is this really going to be  a superior accomplishment?

Although to be fair, there actually is one legendary I didn't earn, and that was the compensation for my second Conflux. I could have picked the pvp amulet or one of the two accessories from Living World but chose against that because I didn't feel like I "deserve" them. (I haven't played a single game of sPVP since 2016)  I figured I'll just get Vision/Aurora on my own someday, though there's a bit of regret after seeing their requirements. 👩‍🦰

But I still used it anyways to get a legendary scepter, so as you can see, these standards are applied pretty conveniently for myself. I just won't turn down a free legendary regardless of chest beating.

Edited November 20, 2021 by ArchonWing.9480