ArenaNet's Monopoly

[DreamyAbaddon.3265]

I think ArenaNet has a monopoly on fun when it comes to the MMO genre. I have never had so much fun in an MMO game like I have in GW1 and GW2. You could say GW1 wasn't an MMO but you cannot deny the fact that it was competing with the mmo genre all while being fun! GW2 is technically their first true open world MMO and it still blows pretty much anything I've ever played out of the water when it comes to what I find fun in an MMO world.

I gotta thank ArenaNet's CEO Mike O'Brien for giving birth to my favorite franchise and for making the franchise extremely fun to play solo or with groups of friends. GW2 is the only true mmo that didn't make me feel like I was grinding exp, just to get to the fun part of the game. It was the only game that I felt like I can have fun right away doing what I enjoy without having to get to max level first. I love how your hard work for getting the best gear will never be obsolete when new expansions get released. I love the Story of the world being told through Dynamic Events, your story being told in instances and open world, the Jumping puzzles, pvp, and all the things you can do! I love the variety of things you can do and exploration being key for progression! I love making new builds and improving in combat by practicing in the PvP Lobby with brain-dead NPCs like Chieftan and Svanir and the Ghosts!

I have had so much fun playing this game, that I decided to spend extra money on gems to buy a bunch of cosmetic items from the cash shop that I guinly liked! I bought all the mount skins, I bought all the glider skins I loved, and other armor skins and wardrobe skins and I must say, I never in my life would ever buy ANYTHING from Cash Shop in other games the way I have in GW2! I don't know how much I spend on GW2, but I feel like every penny was worth spending because it was from a game I love. GW2 is my home and I always end up coming back to it whenever I need a break from other games (Single player games) etc.

What you gotta understand is I came from MMOs where grinding to get to the fun part was the thing. And the fun part was usually the end game. And the end game was fun only for a while before it becomes repetitive and boring and another grind. I came from games where leveling was boring and repetitive. I came from games where end game felt boring and repetitive. Earning new skills or getting gold felt boring and repetitive. I basically did not enjoy many of the tasks I've done in other games because I felt forced to do them. Meanwhile ArenaNet showed me you CAN make an MMO fun and you don't have to make one that is repeititive or boring. You can make one that lets you play whatever you enjoy and make a veriaty of things to do for different kinds of people!

I repeated many Jumping Puzzles not because I had to, it was because I had fun doing them and I wanted to master them! It was rewarding when I am able to get better and better at it the more I practice and when I can portal people who have trouble, it made me feel awesome!

I love this game's combat system so much that I decided to make a guide with youtube videos to help new players learn how to improve in combat and make builds here:

https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/806/gw2-combat-system-build-101-guide

I repeated the story over and over again not because I was required to, but because I enjoyed re-experiencing it! The story presentation and lore is way better than any MMO I played. Well, FFXI was better with cutscenes but GW2 has voice acting that I actually LIKE! And I enjoy the characters enough and I cannot wait for Season 4 to end to see what expansion it leads us to next!

Because I enjoyed the Story of GW2 so much that I decided to make GW2 Season 1 Movie so I could re-experience the story again which you can check out here:

I can list so many things but the point is, ArenaNet has a monopoly on what I find is fun in an MMO because so far ArenaNet is the only company that has made an MMO that I actually enjoy playing and replaying so much that I was convinced to buy extra stuff on the cash shop, something I never usually do in other games. I really hope we see more MMO games like GW2 in the future because it would be nice to have more options. We have a lot of WoW clones, but what I would really like to see is more GW2 clones.

Thank you Mike O'Brien for creating ArenaNet and for giving birth to Tyria!
Victory or Death! ?

[Timbersword.9014]

Verdict is still up in the air myself. I enjoyed Aion's and Tera's combat (for different reasons,) but the games weren't much beyond that (and forced PvP in Aion's case drove me out.) GW2 has... some problems still that keep me from really loving it.

• I still feel like animations and movement is glassy smooth and eerily weightless.
• Hitting things still feels like slapping air. I can't even pin down why, something just feels off.
• Health bars are vaguely graphical and imprecise with their weird fade effect.
• Some abilities just don't feel like they do anything.
• Some weapon/class combos are underwhelming (hammer warrior for example just feels mundane, and I love big honking hammers!)
• Special effects wash out everything.
• Gear looks samey and uninspired for a lot of the earlier game play experience.
• Most gear is... aesthetically bad (but I fault the American design culture on this as I've never been impressed with any American MMO's overall armor design.)
• After so many alts I'm just going through the motions of filling hearts and participating in the more spammable and less annoying/lengthy world events. And beyond leveling and grinding, I haven't seen much to the game. Mind, I've returned after years hiatus and I haven't checked on home instances in years. I just remember them being... useless gimmicks for story time.

My primary concern with a new character is to simply finally hit level 80 (the "tutorial" phase lasts entirely too long and feels like a gimmick in GW2 because "other RPGs have leveling") where I can actually start playing the REAL game. You know, when your character gets down leveled to match the zone they're in anyway, what's the point of levels again? Hearts could have just as well rewarded hero points and accomplish virtually the same concept without an arbitrary, option restrictive number attached to my character. I'm hoping GW3 will nix leveling altogether.

I really could go on in greater detail, but then I'd be hijacking the thread entirely.

So, yeah, GW2 is fun (first time through...,) but a lot of the game play pre-80 is still, "gotta slog through this..." and other systems could stand to be improved (new face and hairstyles are nice but I'd really like to see more face and some actual body sliders.) I haven't spent much time at 80 because I can't pick a race for my main. By the 6, I wish there were body sliders, or I'd have stuck with my first character, a Sylvari warrior. Unfortunately they just don't look great in most heavy armor with their body shape.

[Grampybone.3716]

It's my favourite as well, just because GW2 is unique for me I decided to drop all the other MMO's. tbh I don't have time to play them all anyway. I'd rather spend quality time in GW2, I never had a negative experience with players here. Other MMO's though.... oh boy.It's Pay & Play and instead of spending money on subscription, I buy stuff from the Market few times a month (Outfits are my favourites) to keep supporting the game.

I think the ability to revive others also creates a bond, a bond between strangers. While I'm riding my raptor and see someone downed I get off my mount and revive the player (and help kill the mob if needed), jump on my mount and continue my travel. Others would do it as well (for me) so why wouldn't I? It's a very healthy community.

I'm not in a guild (I made one myself but it's for extra inventory space :) ), I barely join a group and still I feel part of the community.

I hope for many more Living Season chapters and expansions! The bigger the world of GW2, the better!

[Moco.6479]

I don't have much to say, just great post, I enjoyed it.

[Redfeather.6401]

I think GW2 is close to perfect.

But I feel...The open world pve is too compartmentalized and formulaic, which can work against creating a sense that it's a real world.The combat is too floaty and lacks that visceral feel, which can make it feel like

But it's so close to perfect.

[Vayne.8563]

While I really enjoy this game, this game (nor does any other) have a monopoly on fun. That's because different people find different things fun. Even games that people barely play anymore, some people find fun. It's okay to like a game. That doesn't mean others don't like other games for other reasons.