Would you consider GW2 steampunk?

[Hycinthus.6483]

Would you consider this steampunk genre of the science fiction?

I get that feeling from the technology, the cities, etc.

Or it wouldn't fit?  Maybe it's just high fantasy?

It's quite unique from other MMOs for sure.

[Batel.9206]

Mm...I'd say yes in certain places (like the charr cities, or the Aetherblades' whole aesthetic), no in others. You definitely couldn't call asuran tech steampunk, for one, and even New Kaineng and jade tech doesn't quite fit the definition - maybe that might be closer to solarpunk...ish...?

"Unique" is probably the best way to describe it. It's a bit of steampunk, bit of cyberpunk, bit of clockpunk and high fantasy and science fiction aaand who knows what else in a big, beautiful mash-up of genres and aesthetics.

[Linken.6345]

19 minutes ago, Batel.9206 said:

Mm...I'd say yes in certain places (like the charr cities, or the Aetherblades' whole aesthetic), no in others. You definitely couldn't call asuran tech steampunk, for one, and even New Kaineng and jade tech doesn't quite fit the definition - maybe that might be closer to solarpunk...ish...?

"Unique" is probably the best way to describe it. It's a bit of steampunk, bit of cyberpunk, bit of clockpunk and high fantasy and science fiction aaand who knows what else in a big, beautiful mash-up of genres and aesthetics.

The slums in New kaineg is steam punk tho.

[EdwinLi.1284]

Personally, I just call this style Sci-fi Fantasy.

It holds both elements from Sci-fi series and Fantasy series but due to how mixed it is, we cannot say it is purely one or the other.

[bluecheeseplate.2753]

I would say Technofantasy overall, but Dungeon punk also fits the bill nicely, especially with the more recent story episodes. Science Fantasy requires a more "hard science" logic to its magic, which GW2 evidently doesn't have lol. But ultimately, GW2's genre kind of shifts and evolves depending on the "era" of the narrative, which is really interesting because it's like you can feel Tyria's technological advancement in real time.

I think only LS1 (and generally anything to do with Charr and Dredge) can be considered full Steampunk. Outside of that, it's more like light steampunk aesthetics.

[Danikat.8537]

Steampunk specifically referes to steam powered technology, and usually an Industrial Revolution/Georgian/Victorian aesthetic to go along with it. That can apply to some parts of GW2, but a lot of the technology is not steam based and not even using the same aesthetics. Also the [prefix]-punk genres usually imply some degree of dystopia (even solarpunk, which is often more optimistic, it's often also post-apocalyptic and/or centred on social issues) and while Tyria has more than it's fair share of issues, social as well as supernatural, I wouldn't call it a dystopia.

I use magitech as a generic name for the technology we see. Some of it is purely mechanical, but a lot of the more advanced stuff like asuran golems, charr tanks, airships etc. use magical power sources and are often constructed using magic as well. To some extent it's Schizo Tech, but I think that can (and probably should) happen with any high fantasy setting because there's rarely a required linear progression to technological innovations, and when you add magic to the mix it's even more varied so I actually think it's less realistic for a high fantasy society to exactly mirror any real-life societies development (and note the schizo tech article has an entire section of real-life examples).

Considering everything in Tyria is ultimately magical I think it still falls under fantasy rather than sci-fi, just one of a growing range of fantasy settings that recognises it doesn't have to be stuck in something loosely resembling the middle ages and time is allowed to pass in fictional worlds as well.

[Justforvisit.3709]

Until the release of EoD I'd say it was way more in the Magitech Genre.

Ever since the release of EoD it's pretty much Steampunk.

[The Greyhawk.9107]

4 minutes ago, Justforvisit.3709 said:

Until the release of EoD I'd say it was way more in the Magitech Genre.

Ever since the release of EoD it's pretty much Steampunk.

No offense, but Cantha's jadetech has very little in common with steampunk.

[Konig Des Todes.2086]

10 hours ago, Hycinthus.6483 said:

Would you consider this steampunk genre of the science fiction?

I get that feeling from the technology, the cities, etc.

Or it wouldn't fit?  Maybe it's just high fantasy?

It's quite unique from other MMOs for sure.

Charr are steampunk that evolves into dieselpunk by IBS.
Asura are magitech.
Sylvari are magical biopunk.
Cantha is just cyberpunk with a slight magical flair.

Kryta is renaissance with minor clockwork elements; Amnoon is medieval middle-east; Elona is undead medieval middle-east; Lion's Arch is sea world, formerly Caribbean pirate fantasy; Olmakhan is generic tribal; norn is oversized Norse with native american influences.

[Hycinthus.6483]

2 hours ago, Danikat.8537 said:

Steampunk specifically referes to steam powered technology, and usually an Industrial Revolution/Georgian/Victorian aesthetic to go along with it. That can apply to some parts of GW2, but a lot of the technology is not steam based and not even using the same aesthetics. Also the [prefix]-punk genres usually imply some degree of dystopia (even solarpunk, which is often more optimistic, it's often also post-apocalyptic and/or centred on social issues) and while Tyria has more than it's fair share of issues, social as well as supernatural, I wouldn't call it a dystopia.

I use magitech as a generic name for the technology we see. Some of it is purely mechanical, but a lot of the more advanced stuff like asuran golems, charr tanks, airships etc. use magical power sources and are often constructed using magic as well. To some extent it's Schizo Tech, but I think that can (and probably should) happen with any high fantasy setting because there's rarely a required linear progression to technological innovations, and when you add magic to the mix it's even more varied so I actually think it's less realistic for a high fantasy society to exactly mirror any real-life societies development (and note the schizo tech article has an entire section of real-life examples).

Considering everything in Tyria is ultimately magical I think it still falls under fantasy rather than sci-fi, just one of a growing range of fantasy settings that recognises it doesn't have to be stuck in something loosely resembling the middle ages and time is allowed to pass in fictional worlds as well.

The world of GW2 really reminds me of Riot's show Arcane (quite curious to see how their MMO will be), and I think the same discussion could be brought to that world too. Especially Divinity's Reach, very reminiscent of Piltover. It's kind of a mix of steam/solar/cyberpunk.

 

 

4 hours ago, bluecheeseplate.2753 said:

I would say Technofantasy overall, but Dungeon punk also fits the bill nicely, especially with the more recent story episodes. Science Fantasy requires a more "hard science" logic to its magic, which GW2 evidently doesn't have lol. But ultimately, GW2's genre kind of shifts and evolves depending on the "era" of the narrative, which is really interesting because it's like you can feel Tyria's technological advancement in real time.

I think only LS1 (and generally anything to do with Charr and Dredge) can be considered full Steampunk. Outside of that, it's more like light steampunk aesthetics.

Never heard of Dungeon punk before, but Technofantasy i guess is like Technomancer game by Spider.

41 minutes ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Charr are steampunk that evolves into dieselpunk by IBS.
Asura are magitech.
Sylvari are magical biopunk.
Cantha is just cyberpunk with a slight magical flair.

Kryta is renaissance with minor clockwork elements; Amnoon is medieval middle-east; Elona is undead medieval middle-east; Lion's Arch is sea world, formerly Caribbean pirate fantasy; Olmakhan is generic tribal; norn is oversized Norse with native american influences.

Nice breakdown here. Although clockwork to me sounds very steampunkish still, and so does pirate fantasy. 

Edited May 28, 2023 by Hycinthus.6483

[Konig Des Todes.2086]

13 minutes ago, Hycinthus.6483 said:

Nice breakdown here. Although clockwork to me sounds very steampunkish still, and so does pirate fantasy. 

To clarify:

Watchknights are visually clockwork in that they're gears, springs, and the like. But they are not steam-powered, which is the primary element of steampunk - the use of steam for power and exhaust. This is the extent of Kryta's "clockwork" elements.

Pirate fantasy just means ships and naval ties with pirate designs. Zero steampunk in any sense - you can have steampunk pirates, in fact pirates is a common part of steampunk settings, but pirates need not have steampunk. This is why I specified Caribbean pirate fantasy. OG Lion's Arch was very much 1800s pirates feeling with slight fantasy elements, not steampunk pirates.

[voltaicbore.8012]

4 hours ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

OG Lion's Arch was very much 1800s pirates feeling with slight fantasy elements, not steampunk pirates.

And as already noted, the Aetherblades (sort of) filled the steampunk pirates niche. However, Tyria being Tyria, the Aetherblade airships definitely don't fit neatly into a steampunk aesthetic, given the visible asura magitech influence.

16 hours ago, Hycinthus.6483 said:

It's quite unique from other MMOs for sure.

This is as far as I'd take any real labeling of GW2's "theme." There are clearly elements of many different "-punk" themes, but it's quite clear to me that Anet never wanted to make all of Tyria stick to one predominantly.

I actually like this mixture, despite the feeling of clash sometimes. Other games that really try hard to define themselves as one specific theme or another often end up trying to branch out into other themes over time; often, this feels like something of a betrayal of the original theme, and in-universe explanations for why this new faction of people (who usually speak the same language and have broadly similar values as everyone else lol) are sporting this brand new technology that nobody else in the history of the civilized world seemed to know anything about... feel strained.

At least with Cantha, there was a very longstanding issue of Canthan isolation prior to us landing in Seitung and finding out there's this whole line of jade tech the rest of the world had no idea existed. I also appreciated that Taimi's communicator, while revolutionary on Tyria, turned out to be quite primitive by Canthan standards.

Edited May 28, 2023 by voltaicbore.8012

[Kalavier.1097]

38 minutes ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

OG Lion's Arch was very much 1800s pirates feeling with slight fantasy elements, not steampunk pirates.

Yeah we went from weird pirate cove that was supposed to be trade central for the region, to actual city that looks like it could be trade central.

Both of them were terrible for different reasons, and combined would've made LA great lol.

[Fueki.4753]

I don't there's much (if any) Steampunk in GW2.

Charr technology looks a bit similar, but that's because both Charr technology and the design of Steampunk are both based on the machinery of the industrial revolution.

Asura technology's aesthetic leans a bit into Cyberpunk, but it's still mostly based around magic and crystals.

The jade junk in EoD looks full Cyberpunk (at least to me).

At the end of the day, Arenanet simply refused to adhere to a single "tech genre" and put in all the ones they fancied.

Edited May 28, 2023 by Fueki.4753

[Kalavier.1097]

Pretty much every race has their own style/approach of tech. So there isn't a universal constant.

[Randulf.7614]

Guildpunk maybe, since were denied Jokopunk

[Omega.6801]

I'd say no.
There are steampunk elements, sure. But there are elements of other genres as well and just as numerous.

[Ashantara.8731]

17 hours ago, Hycinthus.6483 said:

Would you consider this steampunk genre of the science fiction?

I get that feeling from the technology, the cities, etc.

Or it wouldn't fit?  Maybe it's just high fantasy?

It's quite unique from other MMOs for sure.

GW2 is no longer unique. It has lost its unique and beautiful art direction and has instead spread out into every direction, trying to cover everything for everyone. Gross.

[Fueki.4753]

22 minutes ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

It has lost its unique and beautiful art direction and has instead spread out into every direction, trying to cover everything for everyone. Gross.

That's factually wrong.

They haven't even tried to cover the direction that's been asked for the most: swim wear armour.

And no, the Savage Scale pieces don't count as swim wear or bikini.

Edited May 28, 2023 by Fueki.4753

[voltaicbore.8012]

5 hours ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

GW2 is no longer unique. It has lost its unique and beautiful art direction and has instead spread out into every direction, trying to cover everything for everyone. Gross.

I'm not quite in the same place you are, but Anet sure seems to want to push me that way. I share your disdain for how the jade stuff was implemented, but stuff like the cat jade bot and the cat outfit was a bit too far for my tastes. They just feel out of place, a lot like the mess you see in the usual p2w trash out there (nominal high fantasy games selling cartoony police car mounts, etc). I'm hoping that sort of stuff stays limited, but each additional instance of it chips away at my appreciation for the overall look of the game.

Thankfully I play the vast majority of this game solo, and spend almost no time in cities and hubs, so I can somewhat control the cosmetics on my screen.

[Hycinthus.6483]

8 hours ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

GW2 is no longer unique. It has lost its unique and beautiful art direction and has instead spread out into every direction, trying to cover everything for everyone. Gross.

Actually I don't mind the random cosmetics look out there. I mean, eventually every game will get a bunny outfit. FF14 also went in this direction. Cars, motorcycles, etc.

To me, most important is the world design and story.

[Kalavier.1097]

2 hours ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

Examples:

• Max sized, fat, pale skinned male norn wearing the Savage Scale armor
• Max sized, fat, dark skinned male norn wearing the Maid outfit (racist much?)
• Humans with cat ears and cat tails
• People all covered in neon green jade-tech armor
• Now: people wearing the Special Ops armor, making me feel like I was in a sci-fi ego shooter and not in GW2
• People using the oversized jade-bot minis, mostly the ugly fat rainbow kitty and the cartoon ghost with its annoying sounds ("Weeee!")
• People pulling out their Comfy Cat chairs and spamming my screen with their "Hello, Kitty!" vibes

Why?? 😢

Okay, I can hit each point separately but I'll hit all with the collective description. MESMERS. Tyria is a world with active illusion magic specialists who can craft spells to make you look like anything you like.

You see that human with the cat ears/tail? "Man your mesmer did a good job."

You see the weird jade bot rainbow kitty? Mesmer. 

 

First one. Norn generate lots of heat biologically, which is part of why they can survive walking around naked in the shiverpeaks. Massive Norn in savage scale? Not that weird.

Second one. I'ma just stop you and go "Why is this racist?" Why is your immediate and first leap being that it is racist vs maybe the player likes maid outfits, for either gender?

[Forum Moderator.3419]

Hi Everyone,

Just a reminder to keep it civil. I've removed some posts.

Regards.

[particlepinata.9865]

In my opinion: Since EOD i would call this generic 2020's anime cyberpunk, Scify. Thats why i stopped playing for some time. Dont like the change (or even lack) of Artistic vision and style compared to the past. It does not feel Guildwars to me anymore (or fantasy).. Is there even a Artistic director anymore? And a talanted team in the artistic/creative department? Or is everything outsourced now. Add to that the lack of effort, theres almost no unique assets anymore only recycled, from maps to creatures, terrible texture coloring choices and so on. 

[Zok.4956]

On 5/28/2023 at 4:22 AM, Hycinthus.6483 said:

Would you consider this steampunk genre of the science fiction?
I get that feeling from the technology, the cities, etc.
Or it wouldn't fit?  Maybe it's just high fantasy?

GW2 takes place mostly in a high fantasy world, but it's not a high fantasy game because it includes a mix of a lot of different genres including sci-fi, steampunk and others right from the beginning.