Secrets of the Obscure general feedback [Merged]

[Gravitron.7982]

On 8/27/2023 at 8:46 AM, Morpeth.5318 said:

Feedback?

You took what I loved about the game, the OLD dailies, and completely and utterly screwed it up beyond recognition

Forcing me into 3 'choices' (they aren't choices since I HAVE to do THOSE 3), many of which are incredibly lame (escort 10 dolyaks, really?!?) or take ridiculous time (dolyaks again a good example).

The whole 6th rune vs relic fiasco.

Gawd I could go on, I'm not sure I'll play anymore honestly, they broke so much about the game I enjoyed.

Yeah I don't blame you man, this sounds really really bad lol

[Spiral.3724]

I think someone else already said it, but I don't like having to open a big window to claim my dailies from Wizard's Vault. Make them a bouncy chest or a bouncy Vault symbol that I can right-click to accept without interrupting my gameplay. Thanks.

[GeraldBC.4927]

I was going to make a standalone thread with a colossal multi-section post giving extensive feedback on every aspect of the expansion, but I guess shortening each point to one or two lines is better.

General main story campaign

• Colossal step up from any story content from the last 10 years. Quality of storytelling has gone up from "Bad fanfiction that has little to do with the source material" in S3 all the way to EoD, to "Actual western fantasy story warranting its budget, about a clearly defined struggle between good and evil" in SotO.
• New characters are more memorable, interesting and likeable at first sight. Would happily trade the cast from S1 onwards for the wizards any day.
• With Zojja, the impossible has been achieved: A Felicia Day character has acquired introspection and was stripped of her arrogance and condescension towards the commander and others, making her actually likeable as a result.

Skywatch Archipelago

• Loved the overall design and the basic ideas, the perfect excuse to have elements from all past expansions and core compressed into one map, even with a few new models here and there.
• Resurrecting the dwarven race was a daring and courageous decision and I look forward to seeing what the dwarves do in the future
• I wish they had gone much more crazy with leylines, updrafts and ley looms. Imagine putting them everywhere and even creating a shortcut from the beacon to Droknar or shattered atoll via ley loom.
• I actually liked the meta fitting into the story in a direct way, even though the execution was rocky due to how awkwardly the 'fractal push' achievement is designed. I will expand on that in a bug related post

Amnytas

• Lots of games acknowledge the idea of the gold-plated marble aesthetic, but a lot of them shy away from exploring it with a full-fledged open world map like this
• Like with Skywatch, I wish they had gone much more crazy with placing updrafts, leylines and ley looms everywhere
• The city being conquered by Kryptis all over and having to reclaim it as one travels through it is a nice change. I was worried it would just be Kaineng 2
• Nouris has a massive issue that I feel is worth mentioning outside of the bugs: The 'maw of Nouris' as an object obstructs people from using skills, so any skill that isn't a projectile or melee attack is simply 'obstructed' and cannot be used. This is disruptive to many characters and classes. 
• Just like in Skywatch, I like that the 'daily meta item' (bottled lightning, pouch of stardust) can be farmed towards outside of the meta by means of regular events rewarding static charges/pinches of stardust that one can combine into bottles and pouches at any provisioner.

Collections and Secrets

• Completely riddled with bugs, in some cases very disruptive ones too.
• Entire achievements seem unfinished. 'Fantastic Flying Foxes' comes to mind with the descriptions just being names of rough locations and 'Bastion of Strength' featuring 3 times for 3 different chests
• A lot of effort was put into filling the world with documents or sidequest-collections that unlock dialogue for extra lore, but there is no creativity exercised in filling the canvases created. A lot of the hidden lore comes down to either "Screw GW1 and all its lore especially humans and their gods!" or "This wizard's backstory is being gay, wow such deep and interesting lore." This was boring, unimaginative and overdone a decade ago. Even more so now.

Rifts

• Bounties redesigned to become the organized overworld group activity that OG bounties were SUPPOSED to be.
• Underrated, could be a nice relaxing experience if approached correctly
• Great idea on its face, but as is often the case, the playerbase found ways to take a fun idea and make it unfun, needlessly wasteful or both in their endless pursuit of minmaxing efficiency

Wizard's Vault

• Big improvement and provides a good framework for making dailies/weeklies/special objectives more interesting
• Provides a sense of direction like actual daily quests much better than the original daily achievements
• Feels much more rounded out with some vestigial elements like slivers and writs of experience finally removed
• Some of the wizard's vault objectives are too vague and non-specific to provide the sense of direction they're intended to create. Like "Complete 10 events." "Kill X (non-specific) enemies." "Complete 3 Group Events." "Complete any Strike Mission." "Break 1 enemy defiance bar." Counter example for correct amount of direction: "Complete 1 Kryptis Bounty Event." (makes you seek out content of a specific expansion)
• Dailies involve returning to old minidungeons like Valdhertz Crypts which remain riddled with bugs that are in this case, gamebreaking. Don't actively herd players into buggy messes like that. I know that this has been 'addressed', but simply fixing Valdhertz would resolve the issue as well. Make it so multiple people can complete the dungeon together and still open all the chests and make the doors between rooms open, even if the enemies die a little too fast.

Weapon masteries

• Made new builds possible in all game modes
• Class balance with weapon mastery included lacks polish, lots of pre-existing weaknesses in various specs are highlighted by the change like specter shroud being laughably weak
• A lot of weapons rendered obsolete due to better alternatives now being accessible to all specs, weapons like revenant swords and engi swords need a major rework to make up for this

Skyscale masteries

• Liked the masteries themselves a lot, I just wish they had done more with them in the new maps, as mentioned above.

Final comment: I think you may have overshot the goal a teensy tiny bit with how much it costs to make the new exotic skin set. 

 

I also have this long list of bugs I noted down in the course of a week, but I'm not sure where to put those. 

Edited August 30, 2023 by GeraldBC.4927

[Linken.6345]

1 hour ago, GeraldBC.4927 said:

Isnip

Final comment: I think you may have overshot the goal a teensy tiny bit with how much it costs to make the new exotic skin set. 

snip

I mean this content is supposed to hold you for 3 months so the cost of the exotic set is in line if you think on that time span right?

[kenzil.5983]

I really dont get how most people here think that the new Wizards Vault is a downgrade.

based on the fact that you can only do 4 daily tasks per day and have to be slightly more active on a daily basis also beeing forced to complete all 4 tasks to get the main daily chest compared to before it would be a downgrade and i totally agree BUT you have to weigh out both positive and negative aspects to the new system.

when you start looking at  how many different reward choices you now have after only doing 4 tasks it is more than clear that this is not a downgrade you can actually expect them to change most of the rewards or costs of these rewards and  If i recall correctly they already have spoken about taking some adjustments from now on and introducing different rewards along with it.

if spirit shards are now harder to obtain just do every one a favor and suggest that lowering the price would improve this issue instead of complaining about something you know got newly introduced in to the game.

Having 4 fixed task is an issue ?

suggest they change it so that there should be a reroll option or make it so that there are allways 5 or 6 daily tasks of wich you only have to do 4 so that you atleast get to decide wich ones you want or actually can do.

 

having options is the single best thing that you can wish for a game like this and what we got is exactly that.

You get to choose wich game modes fit you the most and on top of that you can also choose different rewards based on what you actually need. 

 

[Gibson.4036]

On 8/28/2023 at 6:16 PM, Khaos.6479 said:

They need to remove the 1300 limits from the wizard's vault. Don't even know why they did that in the first place ?

It keeps people from stockpiling and therefore invalidating a currency. People will keep chasing wizard bucks because they can’t amass a huge quantity.

Look at Karma for an example of a currency most players shrug at because even when something new comes along with a huge price tag, it won’t even dent their hoard.

The wizard buck limit is there for the same reason ANet is sunsetting old coins and prophet shards.

[Khaos.6479]

3 hours ago, Gibson.4036 said:

It keeps people from stockpiling and therefore invalidating a currency. People will keep chasing wizard bucks because they can’t amass a huge quantity.

Look at Karma for an example of a currency most players shrug at because even when something new comes along with a huge price tag, it won’t even dent their hoard.

The wizard buck limit is there for the same reason ANet is sunsetting old coins and prophet shards.

What is the problem with stocking it ? Can you tell me ? This is really not a good point. What if i want to spend all that money at the end of the 77 days for some reason ? If Anet doesn't want us to stock it, well they can put back to 0 at the end of the 77 days. End of that problem.  

And the problem of the karma is that you can't spend it like the money of the WV.  

Edited August 30, 2023 by Khaos.6479

[cloudsareyum.8120]

Despite my complaint on daily being impossible 

(Can other expac people have options to have a choice? From maybe some of the regular pve? I just don't have the endurance to do these two or three hour long metas and I like doing the regular PVE so I can do it with my boyfriend. I feel punished for spending money lol) now with expac I'm separated from him to do dailies weeklies 😧 even if we both have it a lot of the assigned stuff is impossible for me

 

Strike mission and 2+ hr long intense meta or less long but still 1+hr long intense meta at a specific time when I need to rest without warning approx every twenty minutes when its one of the options that's not a choice.... I'm a weirdo that actually likes jumping puzzles ( I can jump before I need to rest or take a break in the middle and if I fall asleep I'll be back on the jp) and now I don't get a single option for a jumping puzzle 😞 Jp are my fav . I Feel jealous of people who didn't buy.  Can't we choose or at least choose the non expac options?)

X-pac fits my taste

The dialogue humor is delightful in the new x-pack . It reminds me of the spirit of what got me into the game which is you know all that really goofy exploratory dialogue

 

 

The gameplay is awesome! I love the gameplay in the missions like  commander without a cause and hell breaks loose  in the expac. It feels very clean and fun. Also I like the callbacks and references!! I enjoy the presentation and scenery and the area. I like that there is pve legendary armor and flying higher. 

[Randulf.7614]

Additional feedback:

- One of the best storylines and character groups so far. Well structured and more like guild wars if old

- The two main maps are great. Amnytas is stunning and the world boss is just jaw dropping. Maybe needs some more non meta content? Some really interesting questions being asked in map 1

- Wizards Tower is too empty even for a hub. Even Arborstone brought in more collections and side stories. For such an iconic setting, it just feels under cooked. Needs more to find and do

- Fireball in skyscale needs reworking. It needs to aim at the object if targeted. When behind the skyscale, it’s impossible to see its arc.  The dps could use upping

- Glider skills on the left bar moved to right bar just for these maps. Feels counter intuitive to use

Overall, the content side of things is great. It just needs more of it. 

Edited August 31, 2023 by Randulf.7614

[Linken.6345]

47 minutes ago, Randulf.7614 said:

Additional feedback:

- One of the best storylines and character groups so far. Well structured and more like guild wars if old

- The two main maps are great. Amnytas is stunning and the world boss is just jaw dropping. Maybe needs some more non meta content? Some really interesting questions being asked in map 1

- Wizards Tower is too empty even for a hub. Even Arborstone brought in more collections and side stories. For such an iconic setting, it just feels under cooked. Needs more to find and do

- Fireball in skyscale needs reworking. It needs to aim at the object if targeted. When behind the skyscale, it’s impossible to see its arc.  The dps could use upping

- Glider skills on the left bar moved to right bar just for these maps. Feels counter intuitive to use

Overall, the content side of things is great. It just needs more of it. 

Well you will get more in about 2 months time right?

[Randulf.7614]

10 hours ago, Linken.6345 said:

Well you will get more in about 2 months time right?

More of it in the existing maps. 

[Luthan.5236]

More general feedback: Islands (fractals) stuff in the first map ... is nice. I also like the nice addition with Zojjas journal that gives a bit more lore/background. The events seem to respawn (if not bugged) pretty fast though. I guess this is because everyone needs to to them - set on purpose to be fast? I guess even with slower respawn in the future (when most players after release finished their stuff) it would work to have them appear pretty often in the duration between the meta events.

Currently feels like they reappar 5 minutes after finished or so. 15 minutes would be enough. I think there is just too much voice (audio!) cluttering the map. When the meta is up you hear it even if you are far away. (Similar to other maps.) But if then tons of other events are nearby it can be annoying to have like 3 NPCs talking.

The Alchemist Briella NPC can be heard with her "hop on your Skyscale and follow me" line (something similar to that did not look up the exact words now lol) even when you are in one of the other islands nearby doing stuff and having an NPC talk there.

What I'd have liked (harder/slower for accumulating all the achievements): A buildup phase similar to HoT. Though the events here in Skyward Archipelago are tooo easy/fast co complete for that. And even in HoT while you can do it once before the meta ... it does not really have a big effect later. At least the stuff in Tangled Depths. Would have been nice if the achievements were 1-time (removing the repeatable one that gives mainly the +2 AP once only) - then no problem if you could to them a bit slower (having to stay in 1 island and doing the next one at the next iteration/rest) and the island progressing slower but being tied to the meta - with a different meta going on there.

Have not done the Anmytas yet. (Hopefully they respawn fast as well - there. Especially with the only one I did ... with Lhyr for accessing a POI - that should respawn often so people don't have to wait too long. Was a pain already to wait for 5 people to gather to start that event.)

Edited September 1, 2023 by Luthan.5236

[kharmin.7683]

3 hours ago, Luthan.5236 said:

The Alchemist Briella NPC can be heard with her "hop on your Skyscale and follow me" line (something similar to that did not look up the exact words now lol) even when you are in one of the other islands nearby doing stuff and having an NPC talk there.

 

Yes, I'm already tired of hearing her no matter where I seem to be on the map.

[Ciresele.8469]

I just came here to say that I am not happy about this expansion either. I've been here since the beginning and played  through all of the expansions, and I have to say that this is the worst of all of them.. if this can even be called an expansion. I keep referring to it as a DLC so I don't get angry.  It didn't bring anything new and exciting just more recycled content. I am not even sure what is the point of this new daily system. Also the design of the window hurts my eyes. The rifts are boring, the new meta seem easy and does not make me wanna take part in it at all. The story is okayish but can't say I was dying to see what happens next. Even the characters want a break after this mess of an "expansion". And the fact that I have to grind Amnytas on and one to finish the masteries pains me. All in all I am sad. I was looking for a reason to get back to the game but this is not it. It feels like a cash grab.

[Krajtin.8956]

1 hour ago, Ciresele.8469 said:

I just came here to say that I am not happy about this expansion either. I've been here since the beginning and played  through all of the expansions, and I have to say that this is the worst of all of them.. if this can even be called an expansion. I keep referring to it as a DLC so I don't get angry.  It didn't bring anything new and exciting just more recycled content. I am not even sure what is the point of this new daily system. Also the design of the window hurts my eyes. The rifts are boring, the new meta seem easy and does not make me wanna take part in it at all. The story is okayish but can't say I was dying to see what happens next. Even the characters want a break after this mess of an "expansion". And the fact that I have to grind Amnytas on and one to finish the masteries pains me. All in all I am sad. I was looking for a reason to get back to the game but this is not it. It feels like a cash grab.

Correct. This expansion is not an expansion, it is 2 chapters of LW. Like "Ember Bay." I hope that when that unannounced project is finished and it's not GW3 that they put some effort into the game again because then it will be in maintenance mode for me

[Moloch.4207]

Secrets of the Obscure my POV

Story - 7/10
New Maps - 4.5/10
Skywatch Archipelago META - 5.5/10
Amnytas META - 4/10
SoTo Masteries - 3.5/10
Weaponmaster Training - 6/10
Rift Hunting - 3/10
Wizard's Vault - 6/10
Relics - 5.5/10
New Strike Mission - N/A
New Fractal - N/A
Fun Factor - 5/10
Overall - 6/10

Edited September 3, 2023 by Moloch.4207

[Gussy.3907]

Wow, Anet, you really need a better suggestion platform/mechanism. Anyway, this is regarding relics. Simple suggestion: allow relics to be stacked like runes and sigils. I'm guess they don't so you can sell more bank storage or something like that. Aside from that there is not reason they should not stack. Just like Essences should auto deposit into material storage or wallet. And while we are at it, how about finally allowing us to compact bank tabs. I don't think these suggested changes can be oversold. 

[Ashantara.8731]

On 8/29/2023 at 6:36 PM, Krajtin.8956 said:

It's one thing to recycle assets, but SoTo is abusive.

They might had to save time and resources to have enough left for the other aspects of the expansion. And, honestly, the results - even with reused assets - still look a thousand times better than anything in EoD.

Anyway, from praise to criticism:

• Relics are unfun. They mess up your skill rotation when you are on a DPS build, because you have to use the few options you have that trigger the damage bonus effect off-cooldown, which slows down some of the combos you have trained and used for years. Also, no one asked for additional visual effects clutter. (And please make them proc with each "on use" skill that fits the description, not randomly chosen ones.)
• Too many currencies (and too few options to earn them!): This expac is worse in that regard than anything we have seen before. It's starting to give me a headache.
• Tutorial tooltips: Add an option for each one that allows you to confirm that you have read it and understood it and don't want another pop-up about it in the future.
   

Edited September 3, 2023 by Ashantara.8731

[Krajtin.8956]

10 minutes ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

They might had to save time and resources to have enough left for the other aspects of the expansion. And, honestly, the results - even with reused assets - still look a thousand times better than anything in EoD.

For me the EoD events are much more fun and original and all the meta events seem interesting to repeat.

The Strikes are better, yes the story is worse, but I especially don't play an MMO for its story but for its varied and fun content and SoTo is not for me

[Ashantara.8731]

27 minutes ago, Krajtin.8956 said:

For me the EoD events are much more fun and original and all the meta events seem interesting to repeat.

The Strikes are better

Err.... I was talking about asset reuse in map design. No idea what that has to do with the quality of events or with strike missions.

[tom.7468]

Why is there no guides for comrades in the arms ? i only for one on dutch can somone make it ? 

[Ashantara.8731]

5 hours ago, tom.7468 said:

Why is there no guides for comrades in the arms ? i only for one on dutch can somone make it ? 

???

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Comrades_in_Arms  
 

[Widebody.5071]

On 8/30/2023 at 8:49 AM, Khaos.6479 said:

What is the problem with stocking it ? Can you tell me ? This is really not a good point. What if i want to spend all that money at the end of the 77 days for some reason ? If Anet doesn't want us to stock it, well they can put back to 0 at the end of the 77 days. End of that problem.  

And the problem of the karma is that you can't spend it like the money of the WV.  

Like they did with platinum around 2014, lost about 20 stacks to that one not keeping up with the notices.

[cloudsareyum.8120]

More reaction to the expac itself * have not played gw1

The good

- the maps are seriously gorgeous. I love them

- I love the aerial meta

- I like the humor

- I like that a lot of the masteries are location masteries

- I like that the legendary armor is pve non-raids

- I like that wizards vault gives more rewards. Yay. 

- I love the little rainbows and the clouds and the architecture is gorgeous. I know I'm repeating but it's gorgeous.  The map is gorgeous. The modern astral net way of falling is great and because it's a skyscale designed map I appreciate the lack of invisible walls ceilingd and that the limits don't break immersion with that little message or the  teleport up. Very nice. (For the record while invisible walls break my immersion immensely, things like falling into weird textures don't because at least I can explain it in my head as "silly" or "Mesmer mischief") 

- that I can do a meta in a gorgeous aerial map is wonderful 😊

- I like the story feels a bit less depressing

- I like the kryptis and the demon lore

- I'm thrilled to be able to visit the wizards Tower. Also it looks gorgeous.  The maps feel great

- I appreciate the humorous ambient dialog and events as always. Special mention to that silly cooking event.

- I appreciate all the lore tidbits

- I appreciate a particular journal involving a particular location and much of the little color text

- I like the tone

- I like being able to ride updrafts with skyscale. 

 

The bad

- I still dislike that there is no element of choice for dailies which I still find ableist and not good for adults whom often have changing levels. I wound up setting something for a certain level of ability I anticipated, life happened and now gotta lose out on weeklies or hurt my hands.  I also miss jumping puzzles which are removed because I bought expac.  I hope anet puts some more thought into it and updates so we can choose out of all options. Also should not be punished with difficult dailies/weeklies for purchasing expac. 

- I dislike the trope of killing off side characters with lots of  potential, for drama before we get to know them. (It feels like such a waste and is it really necessary?)  I feel more upset at all the lost opportunity to get to know a character with potential. 

 

 

- I've crashed 3x/5-6 successful metas on meta while trying to get my rewards once meta is complete. Skywatch and amnytas. Much sadness. Haven't had any crashes in other meta maps. Sometimes I get back in the map I worked hard for, and sometimes I don't with no reward but bouncy chest at all

 

- the timeline seems inconsistent and confusing? Mab's mar. is founded post Mor.???  That doesn't make sense..... it's a cute story regardless...

Edited September 17, 2023 by cloudsareyum.8120

[Jhi Kautt.3495]

On 8/23/2023 at 10:12 AM, gkoogz.3089 said:

--New daily system "Wizard's vault" is a downgrade in every way, functioning like a knockoff Dollar General cheap gem store . Forces players into another currency and store system instead of the passive background daily system. Decision fatigue anyone?  The old daily system allowed sPVP players to get full completion in just one game mode (complete 3 of 10 tasks to get the full 2g reward). This one gives you basically 1/3 of the reward for any single game mode, forcing you out of what you want to do and into other stuff you don't want to do. AKA trash. Not only that, but you must actively click to activate and then click again to redeem each daily. A true disaster. The Wizard Vault UI itself has terrible performance and a discordant graphic design from the rest of the game. It's truly jarring and disturbing that this product shipped.

-Skywatch Archipelago - Asset reuse masterclass.

-Amnytas - Copy paste cube land, I will add that it is also clearly plagiarized from recent WoW Shadowlands Bastion / Oribos / Zereth Mortis both aesthetically and thematically.

-The main map meta event of Skywatch Archepelego completely bugged on most instances after 20 minutes of work has been done, everything comes to a standstill until timeout and event failure. I failed it twice then gave up.

-Skyscale recycling: the game. 

-Premier feature: click a button to find nearby trash mobs followed by a slightly stronger trash mob.

-No new mounts, no new classes, no new weapons, didn't announce until release day that SURPRISE the new weapons are 3 months away.

-Impossible to navigate new maps, unnecessary and frustrating verticality and spread.

-Relic system - total and unmitigated disaster. Game shipped with 4 relics that have no text whatsoever. Ruined everyone's runes--horizontal progression FAIL. Require insane conditions to be met for each relic to proc. "On elite" NO JUST STOP. "If someone has 5 confusion then you disable them, then inflict confusion on nearby foes". Ok, wake me up at the heat death of the universe when this procs. "Fear you inflict causes foes to move 50% slower" Oh great, I was so concerned about how quickly foes were moving while they were feared.

- ALL the new features are actually things we already had but now TAKEN AWAY and we have to work to get them back. Daily system -> taken away, you will now work 3x harder because you can't get full completion with 3/10 tasks, you now need to do all of them to get max reward. Relics -> haha we stole your rune, work harder to get them back. Skyscale -> haha, the effort you put in to unlock it is now stolen, we're giving it to everyone and btw you need a new mastery to get back to full functionality.

Overall, an mitigated, untested, unpolished disaster, a step back in every way that spits in the face of the work players have done in the past. Shameful and disgraceful.

Wow, I recommend Anet refund everyone's money!  Glad I don't have the new expansion now.