I dont understand the fascination with Cantha

[Kayberz.5346]

Tell me you're China-phobic without telling me you're China-phobic

 

"I just dont like the aesthetic"

-barely makes any comments on the visual aesthetic and instead goes on extensive rants about the politics of "pondering" to the Chinese

*people point out the many non-chinese inspired elements and the long time demand for such a setting amongst the players"

-doubles down on insisting everything is definitely  CHINESE and makes more political comments.

 

Yeaaaah.....suuuure.....just the aesthetic....

Edited February 5, 2022 by Kayberz.5346

[Andy.5981]

Couldnt be bothered reading through pages of replies but it is interesting how the OP assumes Cantha is China. It is something I suspect a lot of Americans and Europeans will believe.

I have a guildmate who is European and of Chinese ancestry. As soon as they took one look at the Empress in the recently released trailer, they told me that the hairstyle and clothing are Korean or at least based on Korean styles.

From what I also remember reading the characters in the Cantha language that they've come up with are also based on Korean Hangul characters.

I suspect that Canthan style has far more in common with Korean culture than Chinese.

 

[Tukaram.8256]

6 minutes ago, Andy.5981 said:

I suspect that Canthan style has far more in common with Korean culture than Chinese.

I live in Asia, have traveled around a bit.  Cantha looks far more Korean than Chinese, with some obvious Japanese influences. 

[Gibson.4036]

2 hours ago, EpicName.4523 said:Is there any reason to respond to to three pages of text? Is it as if I don't have anything better to do? Clearly not, since I did just that, but for the last time. 

Probably best, given that in four pages the strongest agreement your argument seems to be able to muster is, “I see your point, but….”

[ZeftheWicked.3076]

Agreed with OP.

The biggest issue with this cyberpunk'ed city is that this looks like standard city hub from any other asian mmorpg from two decades ago. Huge amounts of flat gray concrete floor with little on it, some chinese accents....

This does not feel Guild Wars 2.
Say what you want about the game, but Guild Wars 2 has always had very strong and unique art direction. At no point would you look at a GW2 map or city and mistook it with anything else. 

...until New Kaineng..

[Linken.6345]

4 minutes ago, ZeftheWicked.3076 said:

Agreed with OP.

The biggest issue with this cyberpunk'ed city is that this looks like standard city hub from any other asian mmorpg from two decades ago. Huge amounts of flat gray concrete floor with little on it, some chinese accents....

This does not feel Guild Wars 2.
Say what you want about the game, but Guild Wars 2 has always had very strong and unique art direction. At no point would you look at a GW2 map or city and mistook it with anything else. 

...until New Kaineng..

Have you seen new lions arch?

I mean it seems you havent when you talk about big concrete architecture

[Tukaram.8256]

8 minutes ago, Linken.6345 said:

Have you seen new lions arch?

I mean it seems you havent when you talk about big concrete architecture

I tend to avoid the new Lion's Arch.  What a shame, it used to be really neat... but it sank. 😎

[ZeftheWicked.3076]

2 minutes ago, Linken.6345 said:

Have you seen new lions arch?

I mean it seems you havent when you talk about big concrete architecture

It seems you missed the point all together.

if you have good ability to visually analyze a design you'll easily see that Lion's arch passes all marks with flying colors. It has unique and cohesive theme, architecture that makes sense and a reason for it (city was destroyed by risen, it was rebuild as harbor-fortress).
It's concrete, but not generic. It has it's own style and feel.

Here however we get classic mmorpg city hub (10 meter wide flat streets with nearly nothing on'em and if something is there it's either steampunk or super neon-y.

There is very little cohesion, uniqueness and pragmatism at first glance.
Compare that to the Grove, Black Citadel or Rata Sum, where nothing feels off, while all is unique, and breath taking.
 

[Kayberz.5346]

37 minutes ago, ZeftheWicked.3076 said:

It seems you missed the point all together.

if you have good ability to visually analyze a design you'll easily see that Lion's arch passes all marks with flying colors. It has unique and cohesive theme, architecture that makes sense and a reason for it (city was destroyed by risen, it was rebuild as harbor-fortress).
It's concrete, but not generic. It has it's own style and feel.

Here however we get classic mmorpg city hub (10 meter wide flat streets with nearly nothing on'em and if something is there it's either steampunk or super neon-y.

There is very little cohesion, uniqueness and pragmatism at first glance.
Compare that to the Grove, Black Citadel or Rata Sum, where nothing feels off, while all is unique, and breath taking.
 

Commenting on 10 meter walkways in a giant city while most npcs disabled

As apposed to the GIANT 100+ meter flat concrete expanses that make up like 40% of lions arch with a water park aesthetic and pointless impractical architecture that has no cohesion with the harbor fortess theme

Cuz having a bank be a vault that is 80% an octopus shaped aquarium in the middle of a flat expanse is pragmatic right? Surely would be secure in an attack, very fitting for the theme of a fortress city that has a history of being attacked 

 

Very obvious anti asian inspired architecture bias is very obvious 

Edited February 5, 2022 by Kayberz.5346

[draxynnic.3719]

10 minutes ago, ZeftheWicked.3076 said:

It seems you missed the point all together.

if you have good ability to visually analyze a design you'll easily see that Lion's arch passes all marks with flying colors. It has unique and cohesive theme, architecture that makes sense and a reason for it (city was destroyed by risen, it was rebuild as harbor-fortress).
It's concrete, but not generic. It has it's own style and feel.

Here however we get classic mmorpg city hub (10 meter wide flat streets with nearly nothing on'em and if something is there it's either steampunk or super neon-y.

There is very little cohesion, uniqueness and pragmatism at first glance.
Compare that to the Grove, Black Citadel or Rata Sum, where nothing feels off, while all is unique, and breath taking.
 

Tell me you missed season 1 without telling me you missed season 1. 😛

(To be fair, though, that's mostly ArenaNet's fault.)

[Wintermute.5408]

3 hours ago, EpicName.4523 said:

Oh. Sir, you have very sophisticated language. Allow me to point out that Rata Sam and Black Citadel are not human settlements, they have their own atmosphere without trying to resemble certain country that I have already been found out to be mentioning too much. I must say, however, that by your way of expressing yourself you seem to be too far up your "kitten" too.

My dear sir, my sincere apologies. I completely forgot to ask a random person on the internet how should I express myself. I also can't help but feel troubled by your animosity towards kittens. In the context of the charr culture, I suspect a touch of racism here. This will not do in our highly refined society.

Point is. We had literal AI rebellions and nuclear reactor meltdowns since forever. We are shooting dragons with lasers, and piloting mechs. Cry me a kitten river, together with OP, on the topic of "muh medieval fantasy".

[Flapjackson.1596]

I really liked the region in GW1. It was fantastical and diverse in its settings. The Jade Wind was a wonderful world building element and it was my favorite game setting.
Now I don’t really care as much about Cantha. The devs are pushing the brand name of Cantha hard, but the region has lost a lot of its charm. They’ve used the passage of time to homogenize the region and make it meh. The interesting cultural differences and story threads of the region are all gone. Tossing the ministry of purity and “integrating” the Kurzicks and Luxons removed a lot of the story potential I saw in Cantha.

It feels reminiscent of the greater issue many GW1 players have with GW2, that the game isn’t so much a continuation of its predecessor as it is a game inserted into the same setting but fully committed to tossing any past worldbuilding that doesn’t fit with their dragon storyline.
For Cantha, that means tossing Winds of Change and focusing on glowing green junk everywhere. It’s not the Cantha I liked anymore, I’m just hopeful the content is at least interesting.

[EpicName.4523]

2 hours ago, Kayberz.5346 said:

Tell me you're China-phobic without telling me you're China-phobic

 

"I just dont like the aesthetic"

-barely makes any comments on the visual aesthetic and instead goes on extensive rants about the politics of "pondering" to the Chinese

*people point out the many non-chinese inspired elements and the long time demand for such a setting amongst the players"

-doubles down on insisting everything is definitely  CHINESE and makes more political comments.

 

Yeaaaah.....suuuure.....just the aesthetic....

What you like is subjective. You either like it or you don't. How to discuss visuals when everyone likes different things? I don't like that color or that weapon handle or that pointy part over there. Change it. Happy now? But even if I was whatever-phobic that is none of your business, honestly. 

 

59 minutes ago, Gibson.4036 said:

Probably best, given that in four pages the strongest agreement your argument seems to be able to muster is, “I see your point, but….”

Ah, so I have a point. And I see the points of others. It's called a discussion. Do you have a point? No? Then leave, as you yourself suggested. 

 

12 minutes ago, Wintermute.5408 said:

My dear sir, my sincere apologies. I completely forgot to ask a random person on the internet how should I express myself. I also can't help but feel troubled by your animosity towards kittens. In the context of the charr culture, I suspect a touch of racism here. This will not do in our highly refined society.

Point is. We had literal AI rebellions and nuclear reactor meltdowns since forever. We are shooting dragons with lasers, and piloting mechs. Cry me a kitten river, together with OP, on the topic of "muh medieval fantasy".

TBH, I don't care how you express your "kitten", just do it somewhere far away. 

Btw, do you know what OP is? Because if I am the author of this thread and I can cry "together with the OP", then you clearly don't understand what OP means. https://www.howtogeek.com/698508/what-does-op-mean-online-and-how-do-you-use-it/

 

Have a nice day and come back after you learn what words you use mean. 

[Kayberz.5346]

3 minutes ago, EpicName.4523 said:

What you like is subjective. You either like it or you don't. How to discuss visuals when everyone likes different things? I don't like that color or that weapon handle or that pointy part over there. Change it. Happy now? But even if I was whatever-phobic that is none of your business, honestly. 

 

Ah, so I have a point. And I see the points of others. It's called a discussion. Do you have a point? No? Then leave, as you yourself suggested. 

 

TBH, I don't care how you express your "kitten", just do it somewhere far away. 

Btw, do you know what OP is? Because if I am the author of this thread and I can cry "together with the OP", then you clearly don't understand what OP means. https://www.howtogeek.com/698508/what-does-op-mean-online-and-how-do-you-use-it/

 

Have a nice day and come back after you learn what words you use mean. 

You're the one that made a public post on the forums

 

You made it our business when you insisted on posting on the forums about your disdain for any reference to asian culture being in the game 

 

What is your goal making this post? Seeking validation for not likeing asian themes? Do you expect anet to scrap the entire expansion and retcon the existence of what is arguably the most powerful nation in guild wars lore just because you and a handful of people dont like to be reminded that other cultures exist and are appreciated by many people outside their place of orgin?

[EpicName.4523]

35 minutes ago, Kayberz.5346 said:

You're the one that made a public post on the forums

 

You made it our business when you insisted on posting on the forums about your disdain for any reference to asian culture being in the game 

 

What is your goal making this post? Seeking validation for not likeing asian themes? Do you expect anet to scrap the entire expansion and retcon the existence of what is arguably the most powerful nation in guild wars lore just because you and a handful of people dont like to be reminded that other cultures exist and are appreciated by many people outside their place of orgin?

I made a post concerning the game. You made a post concerning how phobic I am. Several, in fact. What is your goal by accusing me? What makes you feel you have some moral high ground? Are you an NPC? What any of this has to do with the game? 

[Kayberz.5346]

5 minutes ago, EpicName.4523 said:

I made a post concerning the game. You made a post concerning how phobic I am. Several, in fact. What is your goal by accusing me? What makes you feel you have some moral high ground? Are you an NPC? What any of this has to do with the game? 

You didn't make a post concerning the "game"

You made a post that essentially says "i dont like chinese culture , this expansion reminds me of china, therefore expansion bad"

Edited February 5, 2022 by Kayberz.5346

[Gibson.4036]

55 minutes ago, EpicName.4523 said:

 

 

Ah, so I have a point. And I see the points of others. It's called a discussion. Do you have a point? No? Then leave, as you yourself suggested. 

Well, someone else said you did, before disagreeing.

My point throughout has been that your argument is silly. There is clearly a market for East Asian inspired fantasy in the west. Western fantasists have been creating cultures inspired by East Asia for decades, without reaching a market outside the west.

Cantha is clearly drawn from several cultures and not just some sort of targeted marketing toward China. 
 

You would have done well to say, “I’m not a fan of East Asian inspired fantasy” and left it at that, but you had to go on to make up absurd claims about “pandering”.

I thought you were done responding?
 

 

Edited February 5, 2022 by Gibson.4036

[EpicName.4523]

23 minutes ago, Kayberz.5346 said:

You didn't make a post concerning the "game"

You made a post that essentially says "i dont like chinese culture , this expansion reminds me of china, therefore expansion bad"

Quote where I said expansion is bad because China. All I said is that I don't like the aesthetics and how more of those could be added to appease certain markets. 

 

I will help you, you can't quote me because I never said that. 

27 minutes ago, Gibson.4036 said:

Well, someone else said you did, before disagreeing.

My point throughout has been that your argument is silly. There is clearly a market for East Asian inspired fantasy in the west. Western fantasists have been creating cultures inspired by East Asia for decades, without reaching a market outside the west.

Cantha is clearly drawn from several cultures and not just some sort of targeted marketing toward China. 
 

You would have done well to say, “I’m not a fan of East Asian inspired fantasy” and left it at that, but you had to go on to make up absurd claims about “pandering”.

I thought you were done responding?
 

 

First, I do believe asian inspired themes do not work well with the western themes, that is true. Btw, if I just come and say I am not a fan what would be the point? Who cares? 

Hi,  I don't like asian themed fantasy, k, thx, bye. 

 

Indeed, I don't like the setting. I have not yet played the expansion, so I cannot say if it would be good or bad. What I can do is express a concern that the setting COULD POSSIBLY be too much,  that IT COULD be marketed towards certain demographics to the detriment of the current population. I am not in the dev's heads, I cannot read their thoughts, ok? 

 

Ok, now I am done responding. For real. I simply got annoyed when someone calls me out for not continuing my thread when there was really no reason to go further. Bye! 

[Klowdy.3126]

6 hours ago, EpicName.4523 said:

Oh. Sir, you have very sophisticated language. Allow me to point out that Rata Sam and Black Citadel are not human settlements, they have their own atmosphere without trying to resemble certain country that I have already been found out to be mentioning too much. I must say, however, that by your way of expressing yourself you seem to be too far up your "kitten" too.

 

Well then, imagine entire continent of something similar but based on a different culture. And yes, I do understand sarcasm.

 

It is quite rare to find individual capable of actually presenting argument on both sides of something without throwing random garbage. I salute you.

 

Like everyone else I have an opinion. It's true I am not particularly fond of the setting it's true. The major point is, however, the reason why Cantha is chosen and will the game become oversaturated with certain themes for monetary reasons.   

 

And you are welcome out of this thread kind sir. I don't see you adding anything of value to it.

 

Ok, I see your point.  And katanas are cool, so I actually give the devs extra points for that, but 2 or 3 deities and a katana don't change where the majority of the influence is drawn. Yes, the country which-shall-not-be-named

 

I also like the fact that you specifically came to gloat. I made a point, I put forward my views, I am done. Is there any reason to respond to to three pages of text? Is it as if I don't have anything better to do? Clearly not, since I did just that, but for the last time. 

 

Discuss at your leisure or don't. I made my point. kek

You seem to be under the impression that the only reason to make a cantha expansion is to drain the asian market dry, when in fact, just about everyone I know in the game that played GW1, and my here that I do not, all have wanted to go back to cantha for a long time now. You're focusing on the asian aspect of everything far too much. ANet know this theme foes just as well in western markets, because it has done quite well in western markets. They want your milky white money, too. Its just a place already established in lore that they want to make nostalgia bucks off of, and would like to give a HD makeover. The story is already there, so they don't have to do any world building.

[Klowdy.3126]

Double post.

Edited February 6, 2022 by Klowdy.3126

[Kayberz.5346]

52 minutes ago, EpicName.4523 said:

Quote where I said expansion is bad because China. All I said is that I don't like the aesthetics and how more of those could be added to appease certain markets. 

 

I will help you, you can't quote me because I never said that. 

First, I do believe asian inspired themes do not work well with the western themes, that is true. Btw, if I just come and say I am not a fan what would be the point? Who cares? 

Hi,  I don't like asian themed fantasy, k, thx, bye. 

 

Indeed, I don't like the setting. I have not yet played the expansion, so I cannot say if it would be good or bad. What I can do is express a concern that the setting COULD POSSIBLY be too much,  that IT COULD be marketed towards certain demographics to the detriment of the current population. I am not in the dev's heads, I cannot read their thoughts, ok? 

 

Ok, now I am done responding. For real. I simply got annoyed when someone calls me out for not continuing my thread when there was really no reason to go further. Bye! 

So basically you made this thread to take a political stance against "pondering" to asian asthetics......because......reasons?

 

How dare anet do something that has appeal to people who like asian culture and aesthetics

 

If asian people like it, its detrimental to the game /s

 

 

[ChronoPinoyX.7923]

7 hours ago, EpicName.4523 said:

 

You made next to no point about the actual game and people caught you on that. I ain't here to gloat, I simply pointed the facts.

[ChronoPinoyX.7923]

Woops, double post kek

Edited February 5, 2022 by ChronoPinoyX.7923

[voltaicbore.8012]

 

2 hours ago, ChronoPinoyX.7923 said:

You made next to no point about the actual game and people caught you on that. I ain't here to gloat, I simply pointed the facts.

This is pretty much it.

OP's initial objection was an accusation that EoD was pandering specifically to China. This was proven to be pretty much objectively incorrect, given the very, very prominent and visible Korean design influences of EoD, influences that are extremely obvious to anyone who actually has more than passing familiarity with that region of our world. So OP falls back on insisting that it's all really just subjective, and broadening their objection to now include a more pan-Asian design (as opposed to specifically Chinese).

OP's initial objection was also shown to completely ignore the much more likely explanation for GW2's return to Cantha, which is that many players have made very clear over the years that they'd like to see GW2... return to Cantha. Notably, OP has little to say about this.

So in sum, OP thought pandering to a Chinese audience was likely, and most of us in here pointed out objective reasons to consider that untrue. OP apparently doesn't care (which is their right, nothing wrong with that at all). This has all been a huge waste of time lol.

Edited February 5, 2022 by voltaicbore.8012

[Crocuta.1785]

I understand your questioning and be sure that for many gw1 fans the questioning is also present.
factions was darker less slick, it also had two of the most amazing classes in the game.
for the moment of what we are shown nothing apart from the names of places make me think of factions.
I don't wait for eod as I waited for factions.

Edited February 5, 2022 by Crocuta.1785