I love the new zones- give me a reason to be there

[Loopgru.1026]

So to preface/disclaim, I love the new zones. JL is a gorgeous zone with great music and reminds me strongly of Grizzly Hills from WotLK back in the day (still one of my favorites there), and JS has serious Diablo vibes, which I absolutely adore. The encounters are interesting, and at least the first of the antagonists was interesting. There’s a lot to like here.

That makes it worse, then, to say I am done with them after just a few hours. Story quests done, map complete, got my Falling Star, did the meta. Could always grind more mastery XP, but I’ve got the ones that mattered to me.

With the old “full” expacs, you had elite specs and hero points that pulled you back to those zones on alts, some- eg guano, frogs, shroom, chak- that were actually fun challenges to tackle. I’ve been back to HoT / PoF / EoD a dozen times and more over the years. SotO wasn't great in this regard, but at least you could grind for obsidian armor that kept you in the content for quite a while.

That brings us back to JW. There's no reason to stay in these zones, and it seems a shame to spend all of this time on awesome art and music and encounters for it to be rendered pointless so quickly. There's no loot box meta like AB or even Nayos, no character-specific progression, no meta reward like a LS map. Unless interior decorating is your thing, this one really just doesn’t have a hook.

[Zok.4956]

5 minutes ago, Loopgru.1026 said:

That brings us back to JW. There's no reason to stay in these zones, and it seems a shame to spend all of this time on awesome art and music and encounters for it to be rendered pointless so quickly.

For me there is a lot of reason to be in those maps.

Well, there is a lot to explore in those maps, so many fun little details. They feel more alive than the maps in EoD and SotO. If you don't like that stuff (because that is way more than just a few hours)  and if you don't like to farm for homestead ... and if you don't like the side quests ... then I guess, there is not much for you in those maps.

 

[Scar.1793]

They will add more content overtime. If you took days off to rush, of course you'll be disappointed.

I'm just glad it's not crap maps like SotO.

[Ashantara.8731]

The Achievements are really fun to do this time around, and they give you reason enough to revisit the maps, alongside some old Tyrian maps.

Great content so far!

[Maienstern.2154]

There are so many hooks in these maps, I feel pulled in a thousand directions. Nooks and crannies to stick your nose in, events with really emotional stories attached to them (a grieving mother, a neighborly dispute over pets and gardens, a hunter who is trying in vain to save a wild animal, etc) , adventures, side stories, quests with a hundred different ways to complete them, treasure to dig up... These maps are filled to the brim, with lore and exploration. And I feel like I am actually allowed to uncover all the amazing things the art team created, because there is no timer ticking down, to map reset, which will force you to a fixed spawn point every two hours and will kill you if it fails, so there is that constant whispering in the back of your head telling to better pull your weight and not spoil it for the people who are doing it. Dragon's End is particularly egregious in this regard. I never go there because I want to, only because there is sometimes something I need. Janthir feels like a place to come home to and destress. A place to immerse yourself in the world and just be. I think the biggest draw it offers is taking a break in-between all the hustle of most of the other expansion map. So far I have used Caledon Forest for this purpose, but I always feel bad one shooting mobs, when there are new players around who need to level and learn the game. I am really glad there is a level 80 zone now, that fills this role for me. 

But I can see how someone can find these maps lacking, if they are not the type of player, who finds it reason enough to spent time on a map, simple because they love being there. Sadly I don't think there is a solution to draw both these kinds of players to a map.

[Zok.4956]

10 minutes ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

The Achievements are really fun to do this time around, and they give you reason enough to revisit the maps, alongside some old Tyrian maps.

Great content so far!

I completely agree with you.

As a small addition: Very few people seem to know that the achievements section is not just about tracking achievements, but also contains a lot of side quests (the achievements section in GW2 is basically what a quest log is in other games) that often tell nice stories. To make this a little clearer in this expansion, Anet has now called some of these quests "side stories".

[Loopgru.1026]

36 minutes ago, Maienstern.2154 said:

There are so many hooks in these maps, I feel pulled in a thousand directions. Nooks and crannies to stick your nose in, events with really emotional stories attached to them (a grieving mother, a neighborly dispute over pets and gardens, a hunter who is trying in vain to save a wild animal, etc) , adventures, side stories, quests with a hundred different ways to complete them, treasure to dig up... These maps are filled to the brim, with lore and exploration. And I feel like I am actually allowed to uncover all the amazing things the art team created, because there is no timer ticking down, to map reset, which will force you to a fixed spawn point every two hours and will kill you if it fails, so there is that constant whispering in the back of your head telling to better pull your weight and not spoil it for the people who are doing it. Dragon's End is particularly egregious in this regard. I never go there because I want to, only because there is sometimes something I need. Janthir feels like a place to come home to and destress. A place to immerse yourself in the world and just be. I think the biggest draw it offers is taking a break in-between all the hustle of most of the other expansion map. So far I have used Caledon Forest for this purpose, but I always feel bad one shooting mobs, when there are new players around who need to level and learn the game. I am really glad there is a level 80 zone now, that fills this role for me. 

But I can see how someone can find these maps lacking, if they are not the type of player, who finds it reason enough to spent time on a map, simple because they love being there. Sadly I don't think there is a solution to draw both these kinds of players to a map.

See, this is almost exactly why I feel the way I do. Lowlands is such a pretty map with so much cool terrain and a bunch of neat things going on, and I genuinely enjoyed my time there.

But the progression-minded MMO player in me looks at it and wants something to do, something to work on, some way to advance my character in some way. Even if it's just cool appearances to unlock (see also: Falling Star).

Lacking that... If I'm just looking to chill out and vibe I'm just gonna go outside and touch moss. (I don't have a lawn.)

Also, you might check out Echovald Wilds for another nice atmospheric foresty zone to hang out in. Prior to these two zones it was my favorite in the game. 🙂

[Maienstern.2154]

8 minutes ago, Loopgru.1026 said:

If I'm just looking to chill out and vibe I'm just gonna go outside and touch moss. (I don't have a lawn.)

I touch grass every day on my way to the mail box. It feels really nice and relaxing, though I do prefer the moss. But it does lack a certain element of escapism, that Tyria offers. And if I want some progression to grind for I go into my garden and face the brambles. 😉

Echovald has amazing atmosphere, that's true, but it's not a relaxing atmosphere. It always has me on edge waiting for some monster to attack me from the shadows. I really love Auric Basin, it just has a few to many pocket raptors to be fully relaxing. Tarir is one of my all time favorite places in Tyria, but it has that timer problem I find so annoying. Janthir just gives me a feeling of being in control for once, which is rare in high level maps in GW2. 

[Ashantara.8731]

7 hours ago, Zok.4956 said:

As a small addition: Very few people seem to know that the achievements section is not just about tracking achievements, but also contains a lot of side quests (the achievements section in GW2 is basically what a quest log is in other games) that often tell nice stories. To make this a little clearer in this expansion, Anet has now called some of these quests "side stories".

Yes, they finally nailed it. Achievement hunts in Inner Nayos were a painful grind for most part, but JW did not repeat the same mistake. 🙂 

[Zok.4956]

10 hours ago, Loopgru.1026 said:

But the progression-minded MMO player in me looks at it and wants something to do, something to work on, some way to advance my character in some way.

For a progression-minded player, I can think of two typical long-term activities in GW2:
1. Equip your character(s) completely with all legendary gear.
2. Play fractals, strikes and raids. Get better. Complete all CMs. The ultimate progression in GW2 is to become a better player.

But map exploration is not really for progression-oriented players. That just leads to rushing through the content.

P.S.: In the past, I would have also mentioned sPvP as a third option. But the sPvP scene in GW2 is dead and bot-infested.

 

[Loopgru.1026]

12 hours ago, Zok.4956 said:

For a progression-minded player, I can think of two typical long-term activities in GW2:
1. Equip your character(s) completely with all legendary gear.
2. Play fractals, strikes and raids. Get better. Complete all CMs. The ultimate progression in GW2 is to become a better player.

But map exploration is not really for progression-oriented players. That just leads to rushing through the content.

P.S.: In the past, I would have also mentioned sPvP as a third option. But the sPvP scene in GW2 is dead and bot-infested.

 

I'd add WvW to that list, but I'm biased in that regard. And, of course, the forever allure of fashion wars 2.

For a different example, think of Draconis Mons. If you've done the collection for Aurora, you know this zone almost down to this pixel. Between the crazy JP, all of the different world events, fire orchids, and the Druid's Henge, you spend an immense amount of time there.

Think also about Auric Basin. No big meta achievement there, but Octo draws tons of people to it to this day. There are a bunch of different pres that lead up to it that have you all over the map, a big fight, and a loot cave big enough to draw folks in at the end of it all. All of that on top of running through the HPs every time you level a new character.

I'd like to spend that kind of time in these maps.