Why do you play Guild Wars 2?

[Einsof.1457]

What does Guild Wars 2 have that keeps you around? For me it's (in no particular order):

-All content is always relevant. I don't have to worry about gear becoming outdated, or content becoming outdated if I decide to take a break

-Graphics/animation are stylish, smooth, and pleasing to the eye. 

-Music is atmospheric and epic

-BUILDS. The fact that there are so many ways to customize a single character is amazing. Sigils, runes, trait lines, stats, utility choices, weapon choices. This is brilliant and I love it.

-Small group endgame (Fractals). I love fractals, and still try to do T4s a few times a week. A ton of fun

-Raids that respect my time. I never feel obligated to raid. I raid when I feel like it (Through RA or LFG) and know that there will alawys be people looking to raid even Wing 1. 

-Mounts and masteries. Masteries were a stroke of genius on anrenanet's part. Some are more useful than others, but the completionist inside me loves unlocking these. 

-Long but rewarding quests for the best stuff. I love slowly working on legendary weapons. I also loved the skyscale and aurora quests. The rewards will never become outdated, so the time spent doing these feel very rewarding

-Casual exploring and map completion is relaxing and fun when I need a breather. 

-Crafting is simple and intuitive. Using mats from your bank is really convenient.

-Speaking of bank. GW2's inventory, dye, and skin unlocking system is GOD TIER for the genre. Absolute perfection

-achievement system that keeps me engaged in older content. 

-Incredibly fun and dynamic combat that lets the player decide how they want to play. Evading, blocking, etc. are all reaction based which makes the combat much more engaging and player skill shine through. 

 

I am sure there are more but I will leave it at that. What about you?

 

I don't tend to do spvp or wvw much, so I will not comment on those. 

Edited March 12, 2022 by Einsof.1457

[Xion.5694]

I'm an addict.

[Doctor Hide.6345]

Umm, let me see.

-RP

-Socializing in map chat in the cities

-Wardrobe with dye system is one of the best I have used.

-Can buy most things with Gems to Gold.

Yeah, I don't really care for the combat in this game. I make ascended of course and follow metabattle, but the combat is too spammy and limited for my interest of long periods. Not saying it is bad, but it is not my main draw for playing GW2.

[LSD.4673]

I was PM'd by a dev that they'd eat my baby if i stopped playing.

[Mortime.1359]

Finished FF14 story, not wanting to give any money to Blizzard right now, never liked ESO combat, keeping my distance from korean MMO's. Well that about leave GW2 on the table.

[Laken.9018]

I played Guild Wars 1 and so Guild Wars 2 was always on my radar.
In the original days they addressed a lot of the concerns I had  with the MMO genre and thier vision of a world that actually changes permantly was something resonated with me. Obviously Post Season 1 this stopped happening but I love the world and episodic storytelling approach I stuck around.

[nutri.1385]

To add one more point, I really like the character customisation, it's brilliant! 

And sylvari, they're awesome, like elves archetype but on steroids (so all elves in fantasy are pretty generic nature loving hippies, what can we do to make the Tyrian version fun? Oh, I know, let's make them literal plant people!).

[Gerebos.1065]

Story+Classes.

 

[SLOTH.5231]

It all started back in 2005 when I purchased Guild Wars Prophecies. The story was so immersive and it felt like I was actually accomplishing things as time progressed. I remember trying not to die and running like hell to get my poison arrow skill for my ranger and paying the warrior runners to get us to  the next town to save us a little time. I loved working hard to get that Luxon and Kurzick armor for my warrior because it was awesome looking and took time and gold to get.

I grinded on my 55 monk and got butterflies when I saw a green drop because I knew it was worth it's weight in gold. I remember the first time I actually made it in to the Hall of Heroes with my deer rank because I could monk my kitten off and save us in a ele spike we actually won because of my quick healing and timing.

As to why I still play GW2? I play for hope.

[Caitybee.3614]

I mainly play GW2 because it helped me through some bad times, and still helps keep the weight of the world away for a while. The story is another reason, I was heavily invested in it and completed the EoD story in around 2 days to avoid spoilers, and because I really wanted to know how it ended lol. But another reason is also I've sunk so much money into this game that I can't really give it up yet haha. I do really love Guild Wars 2 overall, and the devs have done a great job keeping it around for so long, and the franchise itself.

[Tiamat.8254]

You're never tied down to just one thing to do. Always many different things to do, places to explore, the open world events, how I don't need to constantly grind for new gear and so much more than I can be bothered to write 😅

Edited March 12, 2022 by Tiamat.8254
Typo

[Kalocin.5982]

Been around since ye ole prophecies and gw2 beta, I've always liked that my progress and characters never need constant log ins or gear grinds to stay relevant. I was able to go play Endwalker, do all the content and then come back to GW2 with everything still intact. No matter when mmo or game I play it's always "there", which is a nice comfort. Using WoW as an example, I stopped playing a long time ago so all of my progress is basically worthless today. Sometimes it's refreshing being able to pick up and play. So when I rage quit from the meta and come back in 3 months it'll all still be here! (Joking, maybe)

 

Outside of that, it's probably the only open world mmo that focuses so heavily on environment, movement, and action in one piece.

[Antycypator.9874]

I have no interest in other MMO games — I heard BDO is grindy; Lost Ark is hack&slash which I don't like, Neverwinter D&D is just endless grind for new gear, WoW is too old and outdated, Star Wars the Old Republic has great story but gameplay is kinda boring for me. I like how Guild Wars 2 isn't about to grind for the best gear, it is not another RNG based korean MMO where your progress depends luck or P2W.

[Blood Red Arachnid.2493]

To keep myself busy.  It's simulated work for me, to give at least some sense of accomplishment.  I play largely to not go insane from agony.

[Maria Murtor.7253]

"Because I'm lazy and I change my mind a lot."

[Gibson.4036]

I played GW2 because of the manifesto. Because at first the devs had a clear vision of an MMO unlike other MMOs. I played because of a lack of gear power treadmill. I played for fluid combat.

I play because of the beautiful world. The hidden things in the nooks and crannies.

I used to play because the only thing locked behind instanced group content was cosmetics, but that’s changed, unfortunately.

I played because the writing was pretty kid friendly, but that’s changing, too.

I play at this point because my family and I still have stuff left to do from the expansion we paid for, but it might be time to go on an extended break again in the near future.

[Einsof.1457]

35 minutes ago, Gibson.4036 said:

I played GW2 because of the manifesto. Because at first the devs had a clear vision of an MMO unlike other MMOs. I played because of a lack of gear power treadmill. I played for fluid combat.

I play because of the beautiful world. The hidden things in the nooks and crannies.

I used to play because the only thing locked behind instanced group content was cosmetics, but that’s changed, unfortunately.

I played because the writing was pretty kid friendly, but that’s changing, too.

I play at this point because my family and I still have stuff left to do from the expansion we paid for, but it might be time to go on an extended break again in the near future.

The swearing and adult sexual themes have disappointed me as well. Especially in EOD. The story/writing isn't on my list even though I slog through it on all my characters. 

Edited March 12, 2022 by Einsof.1457

[ArchonWing.9480]

* You can make permanently BiS items. Too many games when they release a new expansion will have random garbage drops that are better than all the gear you worked for.  An ascended item you made 7 years ago is just as good as you left it back then (albeit maybe with a stat change)

* You can make strange meme builds that can work in the hardest content. This doesn't mean any random splattering of traits and stats will work, but things with proper synergy will do better.

* Your gameplay matters. A lot. Even with the best gear and build possible you may still end up splat if you don't dodge or use your skills properly.

* A ton of skins.

* WvW. A mostly sandbox thing where you can do whatever.

* Shared nodes and progress. I've been playing Lost Ark lately and it's not a bad game, but a lot of the design does not encourage cooperative behavior. Nodes except logging are competitive and even story objects can only be interacted by one player!  I was wondering if they had the foresight to share trees, that it'll only make sense to share other stuff. Nope. Guess that's taken for granted.

 

In Guild Wars 2, the addition of a new player is usually desired.

Edited March 12, 2022 by ArchonWing.9480

[Labjax.2465]

I hate to say it, but a lot of it is just because I'm in a dry spell with other games and GW2 was a game I had previously invested time into, so it was nice not having to start completely fresh.

I could say some things I like about it, but I'm not sure I'd be able to without mentioning drawbacks. Like I enjoy the masteries system and the horizontal progression of it, but I don't like the going out of your way into obscure things to have enough points for it. Or how it's a very pretty game, but sometimes too overstimulating and flashy.

I do generally like the events system and the fact that you can drop in anywhere and there's a decent chance someone else around will join in. And I like that progress is more or less static: meaning, you don't really lose progress for being away. You might get behind on content, but you aren't reset on a gear treadmill or whatever. I do think this can cause people (including myself at times) to take for granted how much smoother and more enjoyable the game becomes the more you check off those permanent accomplishment boxes that bind to account. Like when I returned to the game recently and played through Heart of Thorns on a new character, it wasn't just build that made it easier, it was already having most of the masteries there. The first time I did it, I had to unlock them all progressively and some were hard to get at. You more had to do things in the right order.

[VPK.1796]

Despite not being perfect, it's the best MMORPG out there.

Edited March 13, 2022 by VPK.1796
MMO to MMORPG

[Demirincar.4103]

The combat in GW2 is what sets it above all other MMORPGs for me. No other MMORPG lets you dodge, jump and move while using skills (well, the next closest would be Bless Unleashed which was more fun than the average generic MMORPG like WoW and FFXIV but still not as fluid as GW2).

Sunken cost fallacy is what keeps me coming back. I've probably sunk in thousands of USD to buy gems to gold for crafting legendary weapons and ascended armor (they were really expensive at launch), which is more than what I have invested in every other game I play put together. I wouldn't have spent so much money if I didn't at least enjoy the game.

I originally quit one year after launch and only returned to GW2 at the end of 2020, and was pleasantly surprised by all the positive changes and updates. I'm not happy that they decided to go full in on the achievement and collection aspect of the game (which was what drove me to quit in the first place), but thankfully there is so much content to do nowadays that I don't have to bang my head against the wall trying to max achievement points.

As a red blooded male, sexy armor is one of the most important aspects of gaming to me. While GW2 did have a couple of revealing light armor skins at launch, most of the armor skins were pretty bland and covered up. When I returned to the game, I was really happy that they added some new sexy armor especially the Starborn outfit which is IMO the best addition to the game (completely worth the 100USD worth of gems to gold for the Black Lion exclusives chest). Well, gliding and mounts are also excellent additions to the game but I can see myself playing GW2 regularly/semi-regularly for the next decade at least thanks to the Starborn outfit. Despite Anet's numerous mishaps and controversial decisions, I have to give credit where credit is due; thank you for creating the masterpiece that is the Starborn outfit.

Oh, and the ease of playing with others in events and world bosses without the need to join parties is really cool especially for people with social anxiety like me.

[Athan.7956]

- Original and interesting professions (mesmer, rev, etc)

- Elaborate profession mechanics + elite specs

- Branching storylines and coherent storytelling

- Coherent and sensible lore

- Voice acting (I really like my char's voice)

- PVE and pve emphasis

[EKAN.4051]

Im def not here for the Story, its nothing wrong with it, its just....so childish, time comsuming, booring and I really REALLY hate the voice of Sylvari male.

 

Pve open world, I dont raid, fracts etc anymore, just chill around, grinding and do achivemnts. I really like the "fashion part" collect new looks and infusions.

[Danikat.8537]

Mainly the two things which originally got me interested in GW1.

1) I've always liked the idea of an MMO because having other people in the world makes it more varied and unpredictable but until I discovered GW1 I thought I couldn't play them because I can't commit the time required by most of them to keep up and be part of the community and for similar reasons didn't want to pay a subscription - I don't know how much time I'll have in any given month and I don't want to pay for time I never get to use.

2) I really like the world, the stories and the lore. Originally it was the charr which got my attention - they weren't obviously this game's variant on a common fantasy creature (I know some people have compared them to gnolls and a few other things, but they were different enough that I asked my brother, who was playing GW1, what they were instead of just thinking "oh he's fighting gnolls"). That extended to much of the rest of the game too and into GW2. It means I'm always interested to find out more about Tyria because I don't know what we're going to get.

There's a lot of smaller things too, like the detail put into the maps and all the things hidden in them. Exploring is one of my favourite things to do in any game (I'll do it in all of them, even if it's not required) so having lots of things to find and especially hidden things like the fox spirit puzzles in EoD and jumping puzzles and mini dungeons makes the game much more fun.

I also like the minimal level and gear progression and that masteries are designed so that only the lower tiers are required to progress. To me progression systems are effectively a way of gating content. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it can be helpful to have a game say "you're not ready for this yet, go over here instead" but I find it much more interesting to have the freedom to do what I want, not what the developers have decided I should do next, so I like that in GW2 it's effectively an extended tutorial and once you get to level 80 and get a full set of exotic equipment you're pretty much done with it. Of course there's still progression beyond there, but it's something I can do as and when I feel like it, not when I'm told I have to in order to get into a new area.

[fatihso.7258]

I have like 15k hours exclude deleted chars and I still don't know why.