Guild Wars 2 (official review on pp 21)

[CeeKay]

looks like we'll finally be seeing stuff this week, I'm guessing from GamesCom.  of course it could still be some time before we see the final product, but an end to the media blackout will be nice.

[edit]the main site is up, but the current logo reminds me of Dragon Age......

[PR_GMR]

Good f'ng Lord! Thank Jeebus! Thanks for posting this, Ceekay! This is my current most highly awaited MMO and PC game. After all the speculation that Arena Net had dropped the ball and the game's development was faltering, this is like the greatest news ever. Can't wait to see what they have in store. 

[skystride]

The main site is live!  Not much new information though.  It's the same stuff we heard a year ago.  At least we now know it's not vaporware.

[Jag]

Trailer

http://www.guildwars2.com/en/

Very pretty.

[PR_GMR]

The main site is live!  Not much new information though.  It's the same stuff we heard a year ago.  At least we now know it's not vaporware.

Not much new information, but did you see The Trailer?!!

http://www.guildwars2.com

That seriously is a work of art! Just gorgeous, breath-taking, and robust all around. The familiar, re-envisioned locales, the new cities, the amazing in-game footage and engine. I want this game now more than any PC game ever!  

[CeeKay]

damn that video looked hot.  the logo still reminds me of Dragon Age though....

[Huw the Poo]

Guild Wars is one of my all-time favourite games, online or off.  I can't wait for this one!

Edit: Gah!  Did I see robots in that trailer?

Still, the scenery is just spectacular, as I've come to expect from ArenaNet.  They really let their designers go wild with the imaginations, don't they?

[Jag]

Edit: Gah!  Did I see robots in that trailer?

Metal golems. They had them in GW as well.

[Harkonis]

The trailer looks like it was done by the art crew from Disciples.

I still dont' see anything that leads me to believe this will be a true mmo.  They said GW was an mmo also before it came out and technically I guess it is.

I want a game with Guild Wars type system of combat but with open areas instead of every non-city place being an instance.

[PR_GMR]

I want a game with Guild Wars type system of combat but with open areas instead of every non-city place being an instance.

Well, this is exactly what they're doing with GW2. It will have open zones where you'll be able to put groups together on the fly and participate in 'realm quests' and objectives. Guild Wars 2 is a true MMO and the game that you want.

Re: The Golems. They were introduced in 'Eye Of The North' and they're creations of the Asura race. They're pretty awesome.

[Huw the Poo]

Ah.  Eye of the North was the one I didn't buy so I didn't see them.  They still look like robots though... *grumble*

[CeeKay]

an interview about the different races.

[rittchard]

The trailer looks like it was done by the art crew from Disciples.

I still dont' see anything that leads me to believe this will be a true mmo.  They said GW was an mmo also before it came out and technically I guess it is.

I want a game with Guild Wars type system of combat but with open areas instead of every non-city place being an instance.

Not exactly what you are asking for but hopefully it will feel close:

World PvP will allow you to play characters of any level, using the skills that you have in your possession at that particular time. It is intended to be a more relaxed bridging point between PvE and structured PvP. It will be on a larger scale than the original Guild Wars PvP with large battles which could take place over a long period with people coming and going.

Each battle will have a number of different objectives which can be met such as taking guard towers or defending choke points or joining a larger battle to take a castle. Battles will take place in the Mists.

Victory in World PvP will confer benefits to your world. This may include improved drop rates, better energy regeneration or other bonuses.

[CeeKay]

2011?  that's a long way off....

[PR_GMR]

2011?  that's a long way off....

But it's gonna be worth it. As a GW fan, I would rather see them take their time to create a polished sequel (like Blizzard does) than to have a rushed product on the market. We've seen the sad results of games that were rushed to distribution (Age Of Conan, for example) and how the subscriber base massively leaves when they realize the game was release unfinished. I'll patiently wait another year for a magnificent GW2.

[CeeKay]

introducing the 5 playable races.

[KillTrash]

Very cool video. They have me very excited for this. I loved GW.

You can see that character models don't look all that different compared to the first game, but somehow, their artistic direction is so awesome that things just look so beautiful! It has that feeling of things being bigger than life and I love that.

[Destructor]

Holy shit that is amazing. What a great way to show off GW2's engine and player models (as most of that there looked like ingame footage and not CGI).

[skystride]

Argh this is still 2 years away?!

[CeeKay]

of course, in 2 years time will we still be as wowed by the graphics?

[/devils_advocate]

[skystride]

of course, in 2 years time will we still be as wowed by the graphics?

We won't be wowed by Diablo 3 graphics as well yet we will still love it.

[PR_GMR]

of course, in 2 years time will we still be as wowed by the graphics?

[/devils_advocate]

(PR pulls a lever. Ceekay falls thru a trap-door and falls straight to fiery hell)

If you're gonna be the Devil's advocate, you need to go to hell! 

[vizionblind]

will we be able to jump this time around?

[CeeKay]

a bit about the voice cast.

[skystride]

The star of The Guild in Guild Wars!  coincidence?

[Randomayhem]

It's good news that they have a professional voice cast this time around.  The question now is, will they have dialogue to deliver that doesn't make my brain bleed with its banality?

[CeeKay]

a design manifesto for GW2.

The first thing you should know about Guild Wars 2 is that, this time around, there’s no question that it’s an MMORPG. It’s an enormous, persistent, living, social world, filled with a wide variety of combat and non-combat activities. There’s so much depth here that you’re never going to run out of new things to discover.

[CeeKay]

a little bit on combat mechanics.

[PR_GMR]

a little bit on combat mechanics.

Veddy, veddy cool! Game is coming along quite nicely. Check out the new Elementalist page at the GW2 site. You can see the Ele in action, and it's gonna be a badass class to play. Graphics are top-notch!

[hepcat]

Veddy, veddy cool! Game is coming along quite nicely. Check out the new Elementalist page at the GW2 site. You can see the Ele in action, and it's gonna be a badass class to play. Graphics are top-notch!

game just went from "can't wait!" to "packing bags, will camp in front of developer's office" with that video.

this makes me want to fire up gw1 this weekend.  i swear, that game has more staying power than any of my others.

[PR_GMR]

Veddy, veddy cool! Game is coming along quite nicely. Check out the new Elementalist page at the GW2 site. You can see the Ele in action, and it's gonna be a badass class to play. Graphics are top-notch!

game just went from "can't wait!" to "packing bags, will camp in front of developer's office" with that video.

this makes me want to fire up gw1 this weekend.  i swear, that game has more staying power than any of my others.

Hell, It's *still* on my hard drive.. and I'm reluctant to uninstall it 'cause I've fired it up countless times in the past 4 years. It just keeps resurging and resurging.

[KePoW]

a little bit on combat mechanics.

Veddy, veddy cool! Game is coming along quite nicely. Check out the new Elementalist page at the GW2 site. You can see the Ele in action, and it's gonna be a badass class to play. Graphics are top-notch!

I can't see how the graphics are top notch in those Elementalist videos.  I would call that below average in this year.

It's better than GW1 but that's like literally 5 years old.

[hepcat]

really?  i thought they were great.   

[PR_GMR]

a little bit on combat mechanics.

Veddy, veddy cool! Game is coming along quite nicely. Check out the new Elementalist page at the GW2 site. You can see the Ele in action, and it's gonna be a badass class to play. Graphics are top-notch!

I can't see how the graphics are top notch in those Elementalist videos.  I would call that below average in this year.

It's better than GW1 but that's like literally 5 years old.

You've got to be smoking crack. 'Cause that looks top-notch.

[rittchard]

OMG I think I just wet my pants looking at that footage!

But unfortunately this new wave of GW2 info is just making me long for it even more.  I can't get out of this gaming rut where no matter what I play I feel like I'm really just wishing it was Diablo 3 or Guild Wars 2.  Sigh.

[KePoW]

I can't see how the graphics are top notch in those Elementalist videos.  I would call that below average in this year.

It's better than GW1 but that's like literally 5 years old.

You've got to be smoking crack. 'Cause that looks top-notch.

What are yall comparing it to?  Maybe it's just me, but it certainly doesn't look as good as games like Crysis... and that is over 2 years old now.

Just some other recent games I've played that I think look better than that GW2 footage:  Just Cause 2, God of War 3, Assassin's Creed 2, Uncharted 2, etc

Yeah I know a couple of those are console games, but keep in mind that consoles actually have worse graphics than top-notch PC games.

[rittchard]

What are yall comparing it to?  Maybe it's just me, but it certainly doesn't look as good as games like Crysis... and that is over 2 years old now.

I think some of us are rabid GW fans and looking beyond just the graphical detail, but at the art style, animation and fluidity of the skills/spells that are being cast - so really comparing it mostly to original GW, keeping in mind that GW itself had a fairly distinct artistic style of its own and was locked to a more or less 2.5D-ish perspective.  Just imagining myself running around and casting those spells (Phoenix and Static Field in particular) in those environments is almost overwhelmingly exciting lol.  

[rittchard]

In other GW2 discussion, any guesses on the other professions?  From the professions page it looks like either 6 or 7 different ones.  Some kind of barbarian/fighter with the axe but nothing else really looks discernable at the moment.

[Fez]

I can't see how the graphics are top notch in those Elementalist videos.  I would call that below average in this year.

It's better than GW1 but that's like literally 5 years old.

You've got to be smoking crack. 'Cause that looks top-notch.

What are yall comparing it to?  Maybe it's just me, but it certainly doesn't look as good as games like Crysis... and that is over 2 years old now.

Just some other recent games I've played that I think look better than that GW2 footage:  Just Cause 2, God of War 3, Assassin's Creed 2, Uncharted 2, etc

Yeah I know a couple of those are console games, but keep in mind that consoles actually have worse graphics than top-notch PC games.

I'm not sure what everyone else is comparing it to, but I'm comparing it to other MMORPGs.  Looks very good to me -- especially the animation, which is often more important than the graphics at the end of the day.

[skystride]

Yeah I was just going to say that, it's a MMO.  Comparing it to God of War 3, a single player action game, doesn't make much sense.  It's supposed to have siege battles with I don't know how many players attacking/defending a keep.  I'd rather have that play out smoothly than become a slide show.  Anyway, RPGs haven't really been in the forefront of pushing graphics to the next level.  I loved watching those spells come to life in the Elementalist videos.

Someone apparently working on GW2 posted details about the skill slots over at QT3:

1-5 these are determined by what you're holding in your hands. A two handed weapon will give you five skills. A one handed weapon will give you three but whatever you're holding in your off hand gives the remaining two. You can mix and match between main and offhand items to get different combinations. The skills you get are determined by weapon type and profession.

6 - Healing skill. You can choose between several different healing skills. These always have some sort of self heal component to them but can vary wildly other than that. The pool you can choose from is determined by your profession and race.

7-9 - Utility skills. These can cover a wide range of different effects from being purely offensive to support. You get dozens of skills to choose from here, once again determined by your profession and race.

10 - Elite skill. This is a big badass infrequently used skill that has a dramatic impact on a fight. Again you can choose between several of these from a pool determined by your race and profession.

So think of it this way. You've got 5 slots that you can slot freely with the caveat that you have to bring one heal and one elite skill. Then you have a package of five skills that is determined by the weapon set you bring. Most professions can equip two weapon sets and switch freely between them in combat even stringing together combinations of attacks between them. That means you have access to 15 skills at any given time and you make a minimum of 7 choices (max of 9) to determine what those skills are. Yes, we restrict some of your choices to particular categories but there is still choice there. If you use the CCG paradigm to explain our skill system we went from a system with almost no deck building restrictions to one that has (what seem to us) some pretty necessary and sane deck building restrictions. The new system is much friendlier to new players and to those who either aren't interested in the deck building aspect or are simply not good at it. It will also allow us to more easily balance the game and maintain that balance. It still allows advanced players to come up with literally hundreds of combinations to trash their opponents with.