The Tao of Arenanet

cali59

I think this should be stickied, but have it follow the Mass Info and th Everything We Know threads.  That way people who have learned about the features of the game can get a sense of the design philosophy behind them.

Serelisk

Originally posted by cali59

I think this should be stickied, but have it follow the Mass Info and th Everything We Know threads.  That way people who have learned about the features of the game can get a sense of the design philosophy behind them.

I second this proposal.

SteeJanz

Originally posted by Serelisk

Originally posted by cali59

I think this should be stickied, but have it follow the Mass Info and th Everything We Know threads.  That way people who have learned about the features of the game can get a sense of the design philosophy behind them.

I second this proposal.

I third this proposal.

Triadninja

So, I read your whole wall. I love Guild Wars that much.

 

and I was reading it, liked your arguments...

Then I saw number 9. I had no idea they were doing this.

 

I need a change of pants.

cali59

Originally posted by Triadninja

So, I read your whole wall. I love Guild Wars that much.

 

and I was reading it, liked your arguments...

Then I saw number 9. I had no idea they were doing this.

 

I need a change of pants.

It's actually better than Meowhead describes it.

We’re giving players the option of choosing external music playlists that the game’s audio engine will use as a replacement for the default in-game music. Players can choose different playlists for background ambience and battle music, for instance. Additionally, when appropriate, such as during cinematics, the game can revert back to in-game music temporarily to give the best possible cinematic experience, then resume the custom playlist when it’s done.

Bunks

Originally posted by Triadninja

So, I read your whole wall. I love Guild Wars that much.

 

and I was reading it, liked your arguments...

Then I saw number 9. I had no idea they were doing this.

 

I need a change of pants.

I know right!

I'm going to spend hours just on this alone. Every time I read someting new about GW2, it feels like christmas morning.

DiSpLiFF

besides point #1 all the rest has been done before and therefore not innovative. Nice try though

Master10K

Originally posted by DiSpLiFF

besides point #1 all the rest has been done before and therefore not innovative. Nice try though

If that is true then give me one MMORPG that is just like Guild Wars 2 and has all the features it is boasting, so I can go and play it, because in my opinion, it hasn't been done before. Looking at one particular feature and saying "Oh, this one thing has been kinda sorta done in that one game, so it's no longer innovative" really doesn't mean anything, in the grand scheme of things. I'm personally excited for all the features mentioned here, because they all pretty much come together for ANet's goal in trying to get people playing together. Most MMOs (especially themepark MMOs) just fail at this.

BJWyler

Originally posted by Dubhlaith

This is the wrong way to look at this. The right was is that this has been done nearly all the time for every game, and indeed, in nearly every business model for hundreds of years, if not thousands.

You buy something (with gold, barter, paper money, whatever) and it is yours. Now that it is yours, you own it, and you get to keep it unless you sell it to someone else. You own it.

***

The people who say the fee is needed, it obviously isn't. I bought Starcraft. It took a lot of money to make, but I own it, and I can play it, and play it online, whenever I like. Box sales pay for development and publishing and distribution costs. It is designed that way. (Note that the people who made Battle.net are the people who started Arena.net.)

This isn't new. It is old; it is just moral and right.

Totally agreed, but still some caveats here. Even with GW, the fact that we bought the game does not guarantee that we will be able to play it in the future, unlike many of the classic games of old. The unfortunate part is that once the servers get turned off, then that money we spent to buy the game (and all the extras) is lost for good. It's one of the reasons why I stayed away from the MMO genre and still stay away from any game that requires some type of connection to "the cloud" in some form or another to play. I kind of like being able to fire up my old IBM PC XT and play a little classic Wizardry or Forgotten Realms now and again. The only way we can expect that out of GW is if Anet does something truly innovative and ports the game to an off-line single-player version.

Speaking of innovation, I too have a bit of a dislike of the use of that term in the OP. It is a nice post, but I still have no plans on buying the game - it's the stuff that isn't included (as well as some of the stuff that is), that has turned me off. Anyway, as mentioned, not all of these things Anet is doing is really innovative - perhaps as a whole-encompassing project, but I think a better term would be to say what is "interesting" about the individual components as they relate to the game.

BJ

Shabla

What I'm really curious and excited about GW2 is the community. Anyone played Realm of the Mad God ? Google it.

It's really interesting the way people tend to regroup when you don't lose anything by cooperating; but actually gain from it. You start as a lone player, then find someone else and tell yourself "Hey why not play with him, there's only benefits !", then someone else join, and another one. Ten minutes later you're leading or following a 20 people rape train raging through the world. RotMG really was the first time I experienced something like that in a game, and I think it could happen in GW2.

Another point I just learned about, the marketplace ("Auction House") is global to all servers. That means a REAL economy, not something one or two players can crash without any trouble.

I can't wait. All hail GW2 !

iller

Originally posted by Naqaj

One major nitpick: Replace each instance of "Innovation" with "Improvement" or "Iteration". You know there will be a post claiming "game x did it! It's not innovation"

"Game X" might have done it first but in nearly all cases, GameX was designed by the same people who are making GW2.    The Lead Designer of GW2 is literally the godfather of all modern hero-centered action-strategy games.

Dameonk

Meowhead,

I'm not sure how you did it, but somehow you got inside my brain and pulled out my exact feelings about GW2 and then put them in a brilliant post.

Kudos.

Master10K

Looks like this thread was picked up by KillTenRats blogger Ravious... sort've - LINK

Studebaker

 

Saw the link on Kill Ten Rats. This was the best essays on GW2 I have seen so far. You did a great job, and your points were right on. I live for this game, but my major concern is the open guilds. I would like to see your thoughts on this. Otherwise we will l just have to wait to see final product and hopefully the wait is almost over. Thanks again! 

kzaske

It was a long read, but it was well worth it.  Thank you very much.

Ice-Queen

Very good read OP. Myself I only have one complaint with GW2, it was going into a class story only to come out and get put into the overflow to await getting back onto my server. That was my only problem with the game, sure hope it gets fixed, because it made me not want to bother doing class quest at all.

RebelScum99

Originally posted by Shabla

What I'm really curious and excited about GW2 is the community. Anyone played Realm of the Mad God ? Google it.

It's really interesting the way people tend to regroup when you don't lose anything by cooperating; but actually gain from it. You start as a lone player, then find someone else and tell yourself "Hey why not play with him, there's only benefits !", then someone else join, and another one. Ten minutes later you're leading or following a 20 people rape train raging through the world. RotMG really was the first time I experienced something like that in a game, and I think it could happen in GW2.

 

Grouping is always preferable to soloing in any true MMO.  But being auto-grouped is never as good as being required to group in order to complete objectives.  Games that auto-group you like Rift and GW2 will never have that feeling of community that a game in which grouping is needed, but voluntary.  

The_Korrigan

Originally posted by RebelScum99

Grouping is always preferable to soloing in any true MMO.  But being auto-grouped is never as good as being required to group in order to complete objectives.  Games that auto-group you like Rift and GW2 will never have that feeling of community that a game in which grouping is needed, but voluntary.  

Oh yeah, forced grouping brings is so wonderful communities... just look at the WoW end game mentality for a good example... =P

Two of the best MMO communities I had the pleasure to experience were UO and AC1. And those games didn't have forced grouping, grouping was done for fun. It always amazes me when people think you need to be forced into bashing mobs with people in order to meet them in a MMORPG.

And you still have to make organized groups for dungeons in GW2 anyway, but it's just not "mandatory" to grind those as it is in most other games.

The superior game is the game that brings people naturally together, and not the one that forces them to be together. That's what UO and AC1 did, that's what GW2 does.

Amana

Please don't necro old threads. If you want to discuss an older thread, feel free to link to it in a fresh thread.

This minimizes confusion as some posts might be old and things get outdated.