Amazon and Gamestop/EB Games are now giving out pre-purchase codes (include BWE access, 3-day headstart, and Hero's Band) when you simply pre-order the game (confirmed by multiple users on Guru and advertised on their websites). So if anyone was on the fence about getting this game, you can now try out the betas (including this upcoming one) without having to pay for the game in full.

On another note, how do pre-purchasers feel about this? I'm glad that the playerbase for the beta will be expanded, but I'm not too thrilled about pre-orders getting the 3-day headstart as well (I'll be scrambling to secure common one-word names at that time lol, and the fewer people, the better). In the end, I feel like Anet was being dishonest with us (I'm sure a lot of people would have pre-ordered instead had they known they could get the same benefits minus the first BWE).

http://www.amazon.com/Guild-Wars-2-Pc/dp/B001TOQ8X4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338996813&sr=8-1

http://www.gamestop.com/pc/games/guild-wars-2/75863

http://www.ebgames.ca/pc/games/guild-wars-2-with-bonus/253856

I pre-purchased the game because I wanted to play the beta, not because I wanted early access. Early access is kind of dumb here anyway, Guild Wars is all about working together. There's no danger of loot and/or kill stealing, so the more people you have, the better your experience will be.

Also, if you're that desperate to reserve names, you can just create a bunch of GW1 characters with the names you want to reserve. If you have GW, that is.

@S0ndor said:

I pre-purchased the game because I wanted to play the beta, not because I wanted early access. Early access is kind of dumb here anyway, Guild Wars is all about working together. There's no danger of loot and/or kill stealing, so the more people you have, the better your experience will be.

Also, if you're that desperate to reserve names, you can just create a bunch of GW1 characters with the names you want to reserve. If you have GW, that is.

Oh, absolutely. I pre-purchased for the sole reason that I would gain access to the BWEs (the headstart was just gravy, and I agree that it's dumb in terms of gameplay experience). I'm also not disappointed knowing that my money was used to support this game's development. I just wish Anet had been more honest with us. I likely would have pre-purchased in any case just to play in the first BWE, but I also know that a lot of people might have waited and gotten the pre-order if they had known it would be available.