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Re-discovering Guild Wars
korvass
Member Posts: 616
This is a bit of a ramble about finding Guild Wars again. Nobody will probably care much about my background in gaming, but if it helps, I've been in the MMO scene since more or less the beginning.
When the initial news about Guild Wars 2 hit the net, I admit to being pretty hooked immediately. I like the world, and I'm a big fan of the art style behind the game, and ordered a copy of the GW 2 art book when it became available. I'm also pysched about the questing system.
So, I decided to go back and play Guild Wars again, with the aim of experiencing the Hall of Monuments content. I had originally played GW when it first came out, but I (mistakenly) felt it was too much like a Korean grinder. Nothing against that style of game, but I was always more of a sandboxer. So I gave up on it pretty quick.
Being so psyched about GW2, I picked up a copy of the GW complete collection, and I gotta say, I'm totally hooked on it again!
Although the graphics are a little dated now, compared to other games out there (I was running AoC on max settings), like WoW, Guild Wars has a consistent art style, and it still stands the test of time. The game itself is robust, almost 100% lag-free, and so far I haven't had a single bug, glitch, or crash. Runs like a dream, you could say.
I have always been a fan of choice in an MMO, and the dual-class and skill choice systems appeal to me greatly. Also, due to a busy social/work like, and the love of a good woman, I don't have a lot of free time to play nowadays. So the fact that GW is free to play, and that I can log in, pick up a henchman group and just quest a little has really increased my desire to explore this world completely; uncover every rock and zone, unlock every last detail I can find.
Whilst no game is perfect, and the quests and stories can be a little too 'generic fantasy' at times, there are some missions and cut-scenes that have really drawn me in.
I hadn't realised that ArenaNet had added soooo much content over the years. I started a Warrior/Monk in Cantha - a sort of travelling swordswoman. So far that's working out to be true to what I envisioned. As my character puts one foot in front of the other, I'm finding new places, accidentily wandering into entirely new lands, stumbling upon wars, invasions, crumbling societies, and growing darkness. My character is finding Heroes to form her own roaming band of - admittedly AI controlled - adventurers, and as a player I'm feeling simply swept up in the whole affair.
Combat is more or less the same as most MMOs in the genre, but that's not a bad thing, and having my own group of what are essentially pets, suits my current play-style.
To put it as succinctly as possible, there's just a ton of crap to do in Guild Wars, and I doubt I will have discovered and completed it all by the time GW2 is released. And best of all, no monthly fee, which means I can take a few weeks break due to real life, and come back whenever I fancy.
I think that more or less covers my re-discovery experience with Guild Wars. I know some cynical old gits here on the forums hate it when you post something positive about a game. Whatever, that's cool. But, if whilst reading this, you see a little of yourself in the post, or something I've described fits what you're looking for, I can wholeheartedly recommend picking up GW. Get yourself the complete version with all the expansions. It's not that expensive anymore. I think mine was about €30 on Amazon. A bargain for the sheer amount of fun I've been having.
Cheers!
Comments
Enjoyed the read
I agree very much... I'm not redicovering it, but as a real newbie it's hooked me and made me into a arenanet fan. I don't consider it a MMORPG, but that works in it's plus not it's negative imo- co-op or not, online or whatever, GW is the best RPG I have played in literally years (for me). I honestly think that if more folks wernt expecting it to be a MMORPG or it just wasnt classed as one (so that fans of other games didnt need to hate it as a competiing MMO or whatever) it would be seen as the equal of the other great RPG titles we know and love.
I am staggered at the sheer volume of quality content for £15 you get with the collection edition as well, so much to do and learn ><
Yeah, I wish people would quite trying to label things in general. A bunch of abbreviations don't really give a game meaning.
For me, GW is real simple:
1. Damn cheap to play. No monthly fee.
2. Demands only as much investment as I can be arsed to commit.
3. Looks good, runs perfectly.
4. Entertaining gameplay.
5. I can play whenever and however I want.
6. And an obscene amount of lore and content for the price! I almost feel bad.
/signed
Also, rediscovering the game after not playing it in almost five years! I had started an entirely new account (of which the character in my signature is from) but I was recently after a week of back to forth emails able to retrieve my old account and added another account as well (my friend bought me the Complete Collection off of Amazon.co.uk for X-mas because he did not know that I already had all of the campaigns and the expansion tied to my new account). That means that I now have 2 accounts with all campaigns and EotN and 1 that is just Prophecies (which has two characters that are 60 months old which means birthday presents-don't worry all white items no M.O.X. here!) I am currently going for the LDoA title in pre-Searing but use the two other accounts for the increased GotHs! I only need a couple of hours a day to set-up my death level and farm the 75 items I need for my 15 GotHs, alternative I may spend a little time over the wall farming Charr for purples, bags and salvage kits! I cannot wait to hit 20 in Ascalon so then I can experience the world! My oldest account only has a level 9 at Sardelac Sanitarium so I still have tons to explore!
Hehe, I am happy for you. I am just curious how you got the impression that it was an asian grinder when you tried it the first time. GW has next to no grind
But yeah, the game is amazing and my friends and I really enjoyed playing this game for a very long time. There is a huge amount of content, bug free and most importantly - no sub fee, you can play whenever you want and you can easily solo. Soloing in this game can be very challenging in some areas and it's definitely more action oriented compared to the passive style traditional MMOs have adopted when soloing. Also if they didn't cancel GW1 there would be at least maybe another 8-10 chapters which would mean huge amounts of content. But yeah I guess GW2 is worth it.
I started playing it again casually just when I feel like it but I have played this game for maybe 2k+ hours since release and I pretty much know everything about it. I have friends who spent like 5-6k in this game and are 50/50 in the HoM
Mission in life: Vanquish all MMORPG.com trolls - especially TESO, WOW and GW2 trolls.
Great post, comvinced me to dig up my old copy from the loft and reinstall.
Will see if I can find my old account and begin again. I don't have any expansions so will see where things take me
I'm really happy I came accross this thread. I've been in the "Searching for an MMO" limbo so quite some time, and completely forgot I had GW. I'm kicking myself for not giving this game a fair chance when it was first released, but like many others I was in WOW mode at that time. I'm absolutely stunned by how much I'm enjoying this game. No need to go into a diatribe about why it's a good game, the forums are littered with examples. Thank you OP for this thread though, I'm so happy I've found a MMO that's sucked me in again.
Agreed, recently giving it another go myself (played for a month or 2 in the past). Ive spent a lot of time hopping around different MMOs trying to find something to keep my interest, which led me back to playing WAR again recetly (for the 3rd time since launch). And while WAR is great for open PvP, its getting boring and repetetive to me, and requiriing too much grinding just to get that next set of slightly better gear.
I decided to take a break from WAR ove rthe weekend and start playing GW again, and I dont know why i ever stopped playing it. The PVE content in GW is more entertaining than the PvP in WAR most times. I havent had a chance to really get into PvP yet, but looking forward to it.
I am super hyped over GW2, so I too decided to reinstall Guild Wars along with Eye of the North. I have a question though... is buying factions and nightfall a good idea while I wait for GW2? Can anyone tell me the benefits to these expansion packs, it would be greatly appreciated!!! Great post OP
Well if you enjoy the game then the main benefits would be new classes to try out and new content to explore. If youre refering to benefits as far as things that might carry over to GW2, nothing that im aware of except for the titles.
I just meant the benefits of having the expansions while playing GW1. Thx for the response
If you get factions and nightfall you'll get a lot more opportunities to gain points for your Hall of Monuments, if you care for that sort of thing.
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