So, I need a game to play and guild wars 2 is coming out soon. I've never really played mmos, just lotro for a couple weeks, I liked it but I stopped to play other things then went back and it seemed too complicated/a little boring.

What is it about gw2 that appeals to you? Is it a game that you can come back to after awhile? I'd like to know people's opinions on it. Thanks.

Edit: stupid mobile site and fat fingers.

Since there is no subscription fee, you can totally come back after not playing for a while. Also, because of how the level scaling system works, if you have friends that are way higher level than you, they are scaled down and can play with you without you guys just rolling through everything.

The thing about GW2 that appeals to me is the lack of a need to form groups for most non-dungeon content. I can be "solo-ing" and have other players come along and help, and we each get our own rewards. You can roll with a group of people doing events for hours without ever actually forming a group, and you are all rewarded for it. It really helps enhance the social feel of the game.

Oh, and sPvP is pretty damn good.

It's free and quest do not suck.

Dagger wielding mages are badass as fuck.

Good enough for me.

well, the no subscription fee is a plus, how "solo-able" is the game? Most of my friends are more fps, racing game people.

I would say the best aspect of GW2 is the ability to do whatever the hell you want because it's fun. The sheer variety of content across three modes of play (PvE, WvW, sPvP) coupled with the fact that you're not punished arbitrarily for things like helping another duder out or not grinding endlessly means it'll take a while for you to run out of stuff. And, as has been said, no sub fee means you can drop out and come back when you want to for large updates and such.

@konig_kei said:

well, the no subscription fee is a plus, how "solo-able" is the game? Most of my friends are more fps, racing game people.

Every map can technically be completed solo, but there are specific dynamic events ("Group Events" and "Elite Events", I believe) that were very much designed to be non-soloable. Luckily, since every other player is automatically cooperating with you, situations in which you're flat on your ass in the middle of nowhere are few and far between.

@shinboy630 said:

sPvP is pretty damn good.

When he's right, he's right.

It's a huge fucking world with spectacular art direction and tonstodo, some of the best competitive RPG combat I've ever played, 1200+ player siege warfare, built on fantastic design philosophies, by a creative and passionate team behind it every step of the way.

Oh, and you get to enjoy it with these guys. <3

@konig_kei said:

well, the no subscription fee is a plus, how "solo-able" is the game? Most of my friends are more fps, racing game people.

Ahem... you have plenty of friends who are into games like this. Either way, the community-driven PVE experience is fairly soloable, but you would never want to be alone--it's always a better experience with others and the game makes it farking easy to not be alone.

GW2 is tits.

I don't play MMORPG's either and I've been enjoying Guild Wars 2 PvE even when soloing/playing with strangers. I think the combat is pretty easy to understand. The game gives a lot of variety and sense of freedom.

It's a huge fucking world with spectacular art direction and tonstodo, some of the best competitive RPG combat I've ever played, 1200+ player siege warfare, built on fantastic design philosophies, by a creative and passionate team behind it every step of the way.

Oh, and you get to enjoy it with these guys. <3

@konig_kei said:

well, the no subscription fee is a plus, how "solo-able" is the game? Most of my friends are more fps, racing game people.

Ahem... you have plenty of friends who are into games like this. Either way, the community-driven PVE experience is fairly soloable, but you would never want to be alone--it's always a better experience with others and the game makes it farking easy to not be alone.

there is a pvp map with one of the capture points underwater, and you need to fight off sharks before you can capture it.

also it's incredibly pretty.

Dancing Charr. That is all.

@konig_kei said:

well, the no subscription fee is a plus, how "solo-able" is the game? Most of my friends are more fps, racing game people.

It's very soloable. Unlike GW1, the game isn't instanced, so you'll always have other players around, but there's absolutely no need to ever communicate with anyone, if you prefer sticking to yourself. Dungeons are the only part of the game that focus on forming specific groups to take on, but they're only really important if you want the high-tier rewards. If you join the Giant Bomb guild, I'm sure there will always be a few of us there running some of them though. I know I plan on going for some ghostly weapons as soon as possible.

It's also designed in a way that means you're never rewarded just because of the amount of time you spend playing each day. It's not like WoW, where if you stop playing for a week, you'll fall so far behind everyone else, you'll never be able to catch up. Leveling is relatively easy, stats on each tier of armour are normalised and returning to earlier areas lowers your level, so that you aren't overpowered. It removes a lot of the grinding and "ego" that other MMO's are plagued by.

As for Digital Deluxe vs Regular, I'd just go for the regular game. The DD comes with a few unique items that aren't particularly special and you can upgrade to that version of the game anytime after launch, if you're really jealous of someone with that mini charr.

@konig_kei said:

That's pretty convincing! Your enthusiasm has swayed me. Now, digital deluxe edition worth it or should I just get the regular?

Just get the regular...last time I checked the stuff you get in the fancy versions are just one time use items

@ze_ro said:

@konig_kei said:

That's pretty convincing! Your enthusiasm has swayed me. Now, digital deluxe edition worth it or should I just get the regular?

Just get the regular...last time I checked the stuff you get in the fancy versions are just one time use items

The mini-pet and elite skill are both permanent, but yeah, only crazy people like me care about that stuff.

@konig_kei said:

That's pretty convincing! Your enthusiasm has swayed me. Now, digital deluxe edition worth it or should I just get the regular?

I, with all my enthusiasm, still recommend going with the regular edition. It's just a collection of silly digital items that don't amount to much in-game. If you want to invest more in the game, they have a spectacular 128 page art book and a 4 disk complete soundtrack--both of which are much better value propositions IMO.

Don't buy it, its a horrid game you'll never enjoy.

It's a fantasy MMO. You should already know by now exactly why you don't need to play it.

@CaLe said:

It's a fantasy MMO. You should already know by now exactly why you don't need to play it.

Thank you for this insightful and detailed addition to this discussion!

@project343 said:

@konig_kei said:

That's pretty convincing! Your enthusiasm has swayed me. Now, digital deluxe edition worth it or should I just get the regular?

I, with all my enthusiasm, still recommend going with the regular edition. It's just a collection of silly digital items that don't amount to much in-game. If you want to invest more in the game, they have a spectacular 128 page art book and a 4 disk complete soundtrack--both of which are much better value propositions IMO.

Also, if at some point you decide you REALLY want the digital deluxe content, you can upgrade your account through the in-game store and get all the goodies. That said, I agree with project343. You'd probably be happier just taking the difference and buying some gems and getting some cool looking armor / bank slots / gold / etc anyhow.

Oh, and I have the artbook project343 mentioned, and it's awesome! ArenaNet has what I'd say is the best concept art team in the industry (even better than Blizzard's fantastic team), and the book puts that on full display.

Well, I purchased the regular edition over at gmg, but I missed the cut off date for the early access. Oh well comes out real soon.

@konig_kei said:

Well, I purchased the regular edition over at gmg, but I missed the cut off date for the early access. Oh well comes out real soon.

One of us, one of us... *begins chanting*

Is there anywhere I can still preorder and get head start without paying the full price up front?

I paid full price in April and played it for less than an hour, that's it.

@xSeanZx: I assume you're American, but the English Amazon has the pre-purchase at £10 cheaper than direct from ArenaNet (that's £40 instead of £50). Thus I would recommend you check US Amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Guild-Wars-Pre-Purchase-Standard-Edition/dp/B007T4SB9W

I was super lucky and got in when play.com were listing the Pre-Purchase at the price the Pre-Order version (without headstart) is meant to be, so I only paid £30 or £35 (I forget) and got in all the BWE and head start. :D

@xSeanZx said:

Is there anywhere I can still preorder and get head start without paying the full price up front?

Pre-orders get a one-day head-start instead of the three days that come with pre-purchase. So either yes or no, depending on what you're looking for.