TL;DR Arenanet's revolutionary idea was to remove toxic gameplay from the MMORPG gamespace, utilizing ideas from many games including other MMORPG's, with the expectation of bringing out a game that is more fun, healthier, and more profitable than other games in the genre.
Short Answer, NO
Long Answer? I don't think GW2 is as "revoluntionary" as most would like to think it is. I played GW1 day 1 of release for about 3months and then quit because I "completed the game" pretty much. Rolled about 3 more toons, finished them out completely, got everything I wanted nodded my head and quit. A good story, but low retention rate for GW1.
GW2? I've seen MANY elements of GW2 in many other games, and they brought it together in a way these previous games couldn't. Does that mean GW2 is "Revolutionary"? Absolutely not.
-Similarly, does that make GW2 a "Bad Game"? Aboslutely not, but it doesn't make it the next "WoW Killer".
1) Your conclusion adds "WoW Killer" in for no apparent reason with no context.
2) I think "Revolutionary" as a term does not have to mean it is something completely original... especially considering NOTHING is original, everything is an iteration on something. For example, the iPhone took many things that were good about phones and PDAs, then they streamlined the OS by taking out what they thought was superflous to a touch screen device, polished the overall experience and BAM! The smartphone is now pushing well past the popularity of any other type of phone BECAUSE of the iPhone. I'm no apple fan, but its pretty safe to assume that the iPhone was revolutionary even though it really is a product that iterated on what was already there and distilled/streamlined the user experience.
I think it is possible to consider GW2 as revolutionary in the MMO themepark space, though it will take alot of time to see if that pans out because revolutionary also requires some affirmation from the masses actually choosing to enjoy it and demand its featureset in other games.
I'm not sure about the affirmations from the masses. Success is obviously a good thing, but because something fails does not mean it wasn't revolutionary. Sometimes the failure of revolutionary things just means it's 'ahead of it's time', i.e. people do not see, or understand the issues that are being changed as important. Case in point, how many /facepalms are happening in the MMO developers and publishing houses over the simple idea of an overflow server? How many from players themselves? I've read where the gorilla in the room is reacting and changing their server system to create a similar system in their own game. The use is slightly different, but the underlying technology is similar.
The problem is, if an idea is not broadly accepted, how does one know if something is revolutionary that changes the way we view that particular genre of things? Sure we can on a purely academic level, but that is mostly in hindsight... after something else comes along, takes those great ideas and makes it appeal to a wider audience, then we look farther back with our hipster goggles and say, "that was cool back when "this thing" already did it".
I don't know, but after playing BWE, it sure is hard to go back to other games.
Tera is good, but only because the combat is awesome. The rest of the game is the same old, same old.
EXACTLY...simply put but on the nose.
I really liked the combat in Terra but that was pretty much all I liked.
I much prefered the GW2 community building design and found it to be much more feature rich.
Features i liked:
Coop play in pve and pvp
Dynamic event hubs not mission hubs(always hated doing missions, took GW2 for me to realise how much)
Crafting complexity
Mail access form anywhere
great fast travel
hot swaping servers(not really one I care much about since noone I know is playing the game)
The only CON I found in GW2 was that the world isn't really a world its a bunch of playable lvl bassed segmented regions. But the game is feature rich which offsets this.
I don't think Arenanet is doing anything new or groundbreaking but they are giving us more features in a single game then any other game i ahve ever seen and that to me IS new.
In my opinion Arenanet is the first game company that is giving gamers what they have been asking for, for the past 10 years. I whish them long life and prosperity.
Arenanet really seems to be a company on the side of gamers not against them.
Thanks for the input. First phones were the best analogy, since it had the nuance I was looking for...it's flaw is the same as calling a game a paradigm shift...there are reasons and exceptions for everything in the consumer market...people's opinions shape their behavior and do matter. However, if a large % of people think in one direction, then companies will produce things in that direction. Coming up with a product that has benefits different from the norm, and moving the monolithic force that is consumer sentiment is the goal of every company, those that do this successfully once are rare, and I can only think of a couple of companies that were able to do it more than that.
I am not normally comfortable stating what the goal is for every "anything." The implication that I would know what everyone/thing/etc wants seems a bit farfetched to me. On the other hand I am less uncomfortable with saying that I believe that the goal of every company is not to, "come up with a product different from the norm," but rather to make a profit. Getting consumers to like your brand of tennis shoes, cola, breakfast cereal, whatever, that are not really significantly (if at all) from your competitors does help with this, but there is a reason that many companies spend more money on market research, marketing, advertising, etc than they do on research and development. Many companies do not produce a product at all.
Profits are necessary to run a business. Agreed. However, once a company is profitable, their next goal is maximizing profitability. This is where market share comes into play. Every profitable company wants to hold the largest share of their market. (Well the enlightened few might feel that making 'enough' is enough..but i digress) The 'easiest' way to do this is through differentiation (this can be through R&D, technological advances that allow for cheaper production, putting lipstick on a pig, etc.). Yes, this is the marketing world writ large. However, in rare instances (and I'm of the opinion that Arenanet has discovered and is attempting to capitalize on one), a truly different item within the same market is created and becomes the market leader just by existing.
Onto hyperbole. I'm sorry to disagree here, but any company that starts a project with a goal equivalent to world peace, (ok overstating here...but I'll follow your lead) and looks objectively within its market, creates a list of consumer complaints, and ELEGANTLY tries to fix the problems by designing a game system that removes, or severely limits, these problems..sorry that's a bunch of very bright game designers. Some might say that any design that does that is genius. Seriously, Arenanet could have given us exactly the same state of the MMO gamespace, and still kept out the majority of the problems, with a considerable decrease in the time of development...i.e. Open world GW1. They didn't.
I do not believe that having a goal and trying to implement it is supportable as a definition of genius. Particularly in a situation where we have not seen proof that they succeeded. Your definition of genius would make creating the very "problems" that you credit Anet with trying to fix as being an act of genius. Now, if it turns out that Anet is right, that their plan works, that their theories are accurate, that they do achieve their stated goals, then I might be inclined to accept the label of genius for their efforts. Even then though, I would have some reservations.
Honestly, I agree with you on most of this. It was a genius move of Blizzard to create WoW exactly as they did. It gave the MMO crowd, of it's time, exactly what they were looking for. As Blizzard has refined these systems, it's become apparent that there is dsyfunction in some of them. If Blizzard was wanting to create a better player experience they could have done so, just by listening to the growing complaints within the genre. They didn't because of a problem called entrenchment within large beauracracies.
There are a lot of companies that have not opted to release an open world version of GW1, that does not make them geniuses.
As to whether or not the referenced section of your post was hypebole: Can you support your claim regarding the vast majority of MMO players ? Such a claim is pretty much the text-book definition of hyperbole. As is describing an unfinished and not fully tested product as a work of genius.
Actually, my point wasn't that others didn't release open world GW1, they wouldn't have had the option. Honestly, if Trion or Blizzard was releasing something this different, I'd be pointing out the same things with the same viewpoint. My point was that GW1 was an existing game that solved many of the problems that are toxic in MMO's. Arenanet could have made what appear to be minor changes to the way the game worked, left the underlying systems of gameplay in place, shortened their production cycle and brought out a game that would have been acceptable. They didn't. They obviously had grander ideas for their MMO, took the time, and created a new game that is wholly different from the original AND the the current gamespace of MMORPG's.
As for those that wanted a detailed list of features that accomplished the removal of toxic gameplay, it wasn't my point to provide that. My point was that the fundamental change to this game isn't any particular system within it, it was Arenanet's use of all the systems to provide support to their goal of providing a fun, player friendly, grief free, time sink free, gamespace. (I'll also argue that because you do not have to feel like you are splitting your allegiances between RL and this game, it is a design that is healthier...both emotionally, as well as physically.
We do not know that GW2 will be grief free. What happens if a group of "griefers" approach an event en masse to cause it to scale up, and then play in such a fashion as to not fully participate in completing the event. Would this not, potentially, cause grief to those who were legitimately trying to pursue the event ? This is something that is already being discussed on these boards. I do not know the answer, and am not sure that one weekend beta event is sufficient to judge the efforts to prevent griefing in an MMO.
I am also not certain that it is possible to accurately state that the game is fun, unless you qualify it by saying, "for some people." I found it to be fun, but I know others that did not.
I feel pretty confident in stating that the game is not time sink free. The act of collecting pets is a time sink. The act of collecting dyes is a time sink. Now, you may like these time sinks, but for others they may be no less grindy than elements in other games.
As to player friendly ? I cannot really say that I understand what you specifically mean by that. Personally I found the emphasis on pets for Rangers to be extremely unfriendly to this (me) player. I know others that prefer playing a dedicated support character, a healer in particular, that don't consider the design of GW2 to be particularly friendly to their preferred playstyle.
I have never felt the need to split allegience between RL and a game prior to GW2, so I am not sure how, exactly, this game is supposed to be healthier for me (mentally or physically). If it is so much more fun than any previous game, isnt there the potential for people to be even more drawn into it, forgoing RL commitments, than is true in other games that, "the vast majority," of MMO players don't enjoy as much ?
My point is not that GW2 isnt a well designed and truly great game. I just don't know that describing an unreleased product that has had one single open beta event as healthy, considered fun by the vast majority of MMO gamers (have even the majority of MMO gamers even tried GW2 at this point ? I mean did the one beta event include even the vast majority of WoW players, let alone the millions of people that play other games ?), grief free, etc. can be described as anything but hyperbole for the simple fact that we do not know yet.
Unfortunately, this last paragraph seems to have upset you somehow. I understand your opinions are different, but my point in this last paragraph was to say that the fundamental changes I am talking about aren't in specific systems in and of themselves. It's in the overarching design goals to provide a very different game experience than other developers and publishers in the genre have and are currently providing. I'm glad you've played the game, I have too. My opinions are different than yours. However, you can't argue that the goals of the company are anything different than what I stated. All you've done is stated how you've percieved the comapnies success in implementation.
Again, I am looking forward to playing GW2. I bought the pre-purchase as soon as it was made available. I am a huge fan of ANet. Their ability to provide me with six thousand plus hours spent in GW1 over the course of going on seven years now, at the best entertainment price for return that I have ever experienced, has earned nothing but praise from me (except possibly for the Ranger pet thing in GW2).
But doing the equivalent of watching the first few minutes of a movie for which the edititng process is not yet complete and declaring it to be the best film ever made, revolutionary, enjoyable to the vast majoirty of movie goers, etc is odd in my opinion.
TL;DR Arenanet's revolutionary idea was to remove toxic gameplay from the MMORPG gamespace, utilizing ideas from many games including other MMORPG's, with the expectation of bringing out a game that is more fun, healthier, and more profitable than other games in the genre.
I'm not sure about the affirmations from the masses. Success is obviously a good thing, but because something fails does not mean it wasn't revolutionary. Sometimes the failure of revolutionary things just means it's 'ahead of it's time', i.e. people do not see, or understand the issues that are being changed as important. Case in point, how many /facepalms are happening in the MMO developers and publishing houses over the simple idea of an overflow server? How many from players themselves? I've read where the gorilla in the room is reacting and changing their server system to create a similar system in their own game. The use is slightly different, but the underlying technology is similar.
The problem is, if an idea is not broadly accepted, how does one know if something is revolutionary that changes the way we view that particular genre of things? Sure we can on a purely academic level, but that is mostly in hindsight... after something else comes along, takes those great ideas and makes it appeal to a wider audience, then we look farther back with our hipster goggles and say, "that was cool back when "this thing" already did it".
That's my point. Success can be an indicator, but history makes the determination.
My take on revolutionary just based on the siege system:
Sieges actually work and are great.
-Age of Conan tried a siege system with it's Boarderlands...failed miserably due to the engine not holding up to it. NPC sieges that they demoed and promised got scrapped well before the game (wonder what the demo really was).
-Warhammer's sieges were so watered down there was 1 Door and siege weapons were platform based in a predetermined spot. Walls were non-destructable and completely static or non-existant at all.
-GW2's sieges include destructable walls, almost no lag when there's some 40+ people on screen, siege weapons to apply anywhere (that is stable, logical ground), and some crazy fun. And, it's 3-sided. 3 different factions to wage war and to attack about. Keeps a much more structured balance.
The WvWvW also has a living world about it.
-3 NPC factions to try to win over to become an army of your World.
-Caravans that travel between points for supplies that can be intercepted, attacked at random (by players and mobs alike)
-Swamps, rivers, and fields filled with creatures having a purpose.
-Eternal Battleground is completely unique with no 2 castles, keeps, or supply camps the same.
All those make it a much purposeful interaction that will not get stale.
The PvE is also great fun, though still somewhat the same familiar "oh, this is an MMO" feel that others give to. Crafting is much more useful early on than other games have it to being.
TL;DR Arenanet's revolutionary idea was to remove toxic gameplay from the MMORPG gamespace, utilizing ideas from many games including other MMORPG's, with the expectation of bringing out a game that is more fun, healthier, and more profitable than other games in the genre.
OP -
Think you're thinking too much about a game you haven't really played. You're trying to put a whole lot of something on a whole lot of nothing.
Let's wait a month or so after it releases and see how everyone feels about it. Until then, it's all just over-speculated hype.
I've heard countless times (and agree mostly) that GW2 has ruined other games for folks. If Anet can keep up the dynamic events (they have stated new events for all levels will be constantly put in the game) then I then I think the answer to the title of this post is yes.
There's no trinity, there's a fixed pvp gear cap, etc...
Is Guild Wars 2 paradigm shifting?
No, but it will be for alot of people that played only WoW.
Is Guild Wars 2 revolutionary?
No, but it might be for some people.
Is Guild Wars 2 evolutionary?
Yes.
GW2 takes alot of concepts and pushes them leaps and bounds forward.
It's a first step and it will hopefully make the industry realize that what you really need to have a great sucess is to make something that is new, different and polished.
There's no trinity, there's a fixed pvp gear cap, etc...
Is Guild Wars 2 paradigm shifting?
No, but it will be for alot of people that played only WoW.
Is Guild Wars 2 revolutionary?
No, but it might be for some people.
Is Guild Wars 2 evolutionary?
Yes.
GW2 takes alot of concepts and pushes them leaps and bounds forward.
It's a first step and it will hopefully make the industry realize that what you really need to have a great sucess is to make something that is new, different and polished.
Thanks for the input. First phones were the best analogy, since it had the nuance I was looking for...it's flaw is the same as calling a game a paradigm shift...there are reasons and exceptions for everything in the consumer market...people's opinions shape their behavior and do matter. However, if a large % of people think in one direction, then companies will produce things in that direction. Coming up with a product that has benefits different from the norm, and moving the monolithic force that is consumer sentiment is the goal of every company, those that do this successfully once are rare, and I can only think of a couple of companies that were able to do it more than that.
I am not normally comfortable stating what the goal is for every "anything." The implication that I would know what everyone/thing/etc wants seems a bit farfetched to me. On the other hand I am less uncomfortable with saying that I believe that the goal of every company is not to, "come up with a product different from the norm," but rather to make a profit. Getting consumers to like your brand of tennis shoes, cola, breakfast cereal, whatever, that are not really significantly (if at all) from your competitors does help with this, but there is a reason that many companies spend more money on market research, marketing, advertising, etc than they do on research and development. Many companies do not produce a product at all.
Profits are necessary to run a business. Agreed. However, once a company is profitable, their next goal is maximizing profitability. This is where market share comes into play. Every profitable company wants to hold the largest share of their market. (Well the enlightened few might feel that making 'enough' is enough..but i digress) The 'easiest' way to do this is through differentiation (this can be through R&D, technological advances that allow for cheaper production, putting lipstick on a pig, etc.). Yes, this is the marketing world writ large. However, in rare instances (and I'm of the opinion that Arenanet has discovered and is attempting to capitalize on one), a truly different item within the same market is created and becomes the market leader just by existing.
Onto hyperbole. I'm sorry to disagree here, but any company that starts a project with a goal equivalent to world peace, (ok overstating here...but I'll follow your lead) and looks objectively within its market, creates a list of consumer complaints, and ELEGANTLY tries to fix the problems by designing a game system that removes, or severely limits, these problems..sorry that's a bunch of very bright game designers. Some might say that any design that does that is genius. Seriously, Arenanet could have given us exactly the same state of the MMO gamespace, and still kept out the majority of the problems, with a considerable decrease in the time of development...i.e. Open world GW1. They didn't.
I do not believe that having a goal and trying to implement it is supportable as a definition of genius. Particularly in a situation where we have not seen proof that they succeeded. Your definition of genius would make creating the very "problems" that you credit Anet with trying to fix as being an act of genius. Now, if it turns out that Anet is right, that their plan works, that their theories are accurate, that they do achieve their stated goals, then I might be inclined to accept the label of genius for their efforts. Even then though, I would have some reservations.
Honestly, I agree with you on most of this. It was a genius move of Blizzard to create WoW exactly as they did. It gave the MMO crowd, of it's time, exactly what they were looking for. As Blizzard has refined these systems, it's become apparent that there is dsyfunction in some of them. If Blizzard was wanting to create a better player experience they could have done so, just by listening to the growing complaints within the genre. They didn't because of a problem called entrenchment within large beauracracies.
There are a lot of companies that have not opted to release an open world version of GW1, that does not make them geniuses.
As to whether or not the referenced section of your post was hypebole: Can you support your claim regarding the vast majority of MMO players ? Such a claim is pretty much the text-book definition of hyperbole. As is describing an unfinished and not fully tested product as a work of genius.
Actually, my point wasn't that others didn't release open world GW1, they wouldn't have had the option. Honestly, if Trion or Blizzard was releasing something this different, I'd be pointing out the same things with the same viewpoint. My point was that GW1 was an existing game that solved many of the problems that are toxic in MMO's. Arenanet could have made what appear to be minor changes to the way the game worked, left the underlying systems of gameplay in place, shortened their production cycle and brought out a game that would have been acceptable. They didn't. They obviously had grander ideas for their MMO, took the time, and created a new game that is wholly different from the original AND the the current gamespace of MMORPG's.
As for those that wanted a detailed list of features that accomplished the removal of toxic gameplay, it wasn't my point to provide that. My point was that the fundamental change to this game isn't any particular system within it, it was Arenanet's use of all the systems to provide support to their goal of providing a fun, player friendly, grief free, time sink free, gamespace. (I'll also argue that because you do not have to feel like you are splitting your allegiances between RL and this game, it is a design that is healthier...both emotionally, as well as physically.
We do not know that GW2 will be grief free. What happens if a group of "griefers" approach an event en masse to cause it to scale up, and then play in such a fashion as to not fully participate in completing the event. Would this not, potentially, cause grief to those who were legitimately trying to pursue the event ? This is something that is already being discussed on these boards. I do not know the answer, and am not sure that one weekend beta event is sufficient to judge the efforts to prevent griefing in an MMO.
I am also not certain that it is possible to accurately state that the game is fun, unless you qualify it by saying, "for some people." I found it to be fun, but I know others that did not.
I feel pretty confident in stating that the game is not time sink free. The act of collecting pets is a time sink. The act of collecting dyes is a time sink. Now, you may like these time sinks, but for others they may be no less grindy than elements in other games.
As to player friendly ? I cannot really say that I understand what you specifically mean by that. Personally I found the emphasis on pets for Rangers to be extremely unfriendly to this (me) player. I know others that prefer playing a dedicated support character, a healer in particular, that don't consider the design of GW2 to be particularly friendly to their preferred playstyle.
I have never felt the need to split allegience between RL and a game prior to GW2, so I am not sure how, exactly, this game is supposed to be healthier for me (mentally or physically). If it is so much more fun than any previous game, isnt there the potential for people to be even more drawn into it, forgoing RL commitments, than is true in other games that, "the vast majority," of MMO players don't enjoy as much ?
My point is not that GW2 isnt a well designed and truly great game. I just don't know that describing an unreleased product that has had one single open beta event as healthy, considered fun by the vast majority of MMO gamers (have even the majority of MMO gamers even tried GW2 at this point ? I mean did the one beta event include even the vast majority of WoW players, let alone the millions of people that play other games ?), grief free, etc. can be described as anything but hyperbole for the simple fact that we do not know yet.
Unfortunately, this last paragraph seems to have upset you somehow. I understand your opinions are different, but my point in this last paragraph was to say that the fundamental changes I am talking about aren't in specific systems in and of themselves. It's in the overarching design goals to provide a very different game experience than other developers and publishers in the genre have and are currently providing. I'm glad you've played the game, I have too. My opinions are different than yours. However, you can't argue that the goals of the company are anything different than what I stated. All you've done is stated how you've percieved the comapnies success in implementation.
Again, I am looking forward to playing GW2. I bought the pre-purchase as soon as it was made available. I am a huge fan of ANet. Their ability to provide me with six thousand plus hours spent in GW1 over the course of going on seven years now, at the best entertainment price for return that I have ever experienced, has earned nothing but praise from me (except possibly for the Ranger pet thing in GW2).
But doing the equivalent of watching the first few minutes of a movie for which the edititng process is not yet complete and declaring it to be the best film ever made, revolutionary, enjoyable to the vast majoirty of movie goers, etc is odd in my opinion.
Whew! Good posts!
To clarify, no aspect of your posts have upset me. I tend to agree with much of what you are saying. That doesnt mean that much of it isnt hyperbole or hype, it just means that, like you, I just happen to have bought into some of the hype. You say that your opinions are different than mine, but I have not expressed much in the way of opinion here. It is not an opinion that stating that the game is fun for the vast majority of MMO gamers is hyperbole. It is not opinion that we have had only limited experience of GW2 upon which to base our perceptions, and so on.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
The last thing this game needs are posts touting it to be revolutionairy, evolutionairy and to be shifting paradigms..! Talking about definitions; the OP is the definition of HYPE! You cant blame the devs for hyping the game when fanbois do it all by them selves.
1. Of course the devs are going to hype their game. It is tyrannical of anyone who thinks they shouldn't (not pointing a finger at you). They make their living and support their families based on the money they make on their chosen profession; just like the blacksmith and the bread-maker. They were not put on this earth to give people a free game. They need to eat too. Besides, maybe they hype their game because they are proud of their work? I do the same every time we push a new release into production. I bet you would also be proud of something you worked on for 5+ years.
2. By complaining that the OP's words are positive, you are, in effect, taking an equally prejudiced opinion, except against the game rather than for it. Just as you are entitled to your opinion, he is entitled to his. Tolerate his opinion as you expect everyone to tolerate yours.
3.What is wrong with someone liking something you don't? See #2.
4. You should be happy every time someone releases a game. The more games released, the more, we the players, win. More games means more choices for you. You don't have to like a game, and if it's crap, then we will not give them our business and the market will take care of itself.
For what its worth there is nothing, "tyrannical," about thinking anything.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
You can argue in favor of the first two. However the shift? Nope. Why? Because you can go back. Some people prefer the old way. Thus by definition it cant be a Paradigm Shift. By definition Paradigm shifts need to be proven by facts and everything GW2 is doing is subjective.
Ive played GW1 while playing WoW, and at times i had alot more fun in GW1 pvp then i had with the 1 shooting of the new FotM class from blizzard.
While i still admit Blizzard created the best and hardest contend i ever played trough in my 14/15 years of playing mmo's/RPG's.
It does say nothing about the fun while playing that contend.
I think the time has come to give players more fun, free time is limited for family's or hard working men who want to chill out after a hard day of work wihout being obligated to run 15 daily quests to farm tokens to unlock shit for the next tier etc etc.
Anet provides fun from the moment you log in.
You can start PvP and have fun, its not like wow where your level makes you feel insignificant and worthless cannon fodder.
It isnt Aion where twinks lure 24/7 hunting people who want to quest and level trough specific contend.
Anet created GW2 with Fun and excitement as a backbone of their game.
Ive seen Dynamic Events in Warhammer already, but they where poorly done.
We can see it in Rift, again its fun for a few times and then you have the feeling you did ithat event a thousand times already.
The Dynamic Events in GW2 seem to have learned a big deal from their rivals, they look smooth, fun, and realy alot more dynamic then both Rift and Warhammer.
Also Anet have put in 1500/1600 Events in the box ? thats alot of contend and we dint even talked about their PvP or WvWvW stuff.
What people need to ask themselves is, what do i want to play for the next months/years ?
Will it be worth my money and free time ?
Iam being honest and say i played WoW for the longest time, 7 years of my life spend in that mmo alone.
No other mmo grabbed my interst for that long period of time.
And after playing GW2 Beta weekend i feel another 7 years might be very realistic indeed.
In comparisation to a few recent mmo's like:
Eve (payed not played) 3 years
Warhammer 8 months
Aion 1 year
SWTOR 2 months
GW2 for me is the next best thing comming, but that doesnt mean i will play it 24/7, Archage/Planetside2/World of Darkness/Dust514 are also on my radar.
The best part about GW2 is no sub, witch means no presure to keep paying each month to keep up with other people.
I think GW2 is a damn good game, made by some of the most talented dev's ( they worked on WoW also) and they can pull this one off.
All these hate post versus a game that try's to find the soul of what a mmo's realy is about just need to stop.
It might take half a decade for a game like that to come out again, so try it or leave it.
Will it be evolutionary ? no not with the technology we currently have. maybe once we master virtual reality we can reinvent the wheel.
Will it be Revolutionary ? no see comment above this one.
Shifting design ? yes, no more carrot on a stick gear grind design alla WoW.
TLDR:
GW2 is not a second comming.
GW2 uses all recources they can use in current soft and hardware to create dynamic contend instead of a boring take quests and ramp all shit up and turn it in rinse and repeat for 1000 levels for 10 alts.
GW2 combines all nice flavors and spices we have all taste before and cooks it into a delicous stove.
I've heard countless times (and agree mostly) that GW2 has ruined other games for folks. If Anet can keep up the dynamic events (they have stated new events for all levels will be constantly put in the game) then I then I think the answer to the title of this post is yes.
I heard the same thing about SWTOR prior to launch. Just saying.
GW2 will be truly a great game and a breath of fresh air around the mmorpg industry, but damn if I hate so strong words like GW2 fans keep spouting. I'll agree with something like "paradigm shift" the day when I learn that GW2 is the only mmorpg anyone ever plays anymore, untill that happens, no, the game is not paradigm shifting game, It's just a damn good game.
Tbh, it's not even possible to have paradigm shifting game since people have different tastes. Maybe it's possible when talking about some certain features, but not overall when talking about a game.
I've heard countless times (and agree mostly) that GW2 has ruined other games for folks. If Anet can keep up the dynamic events (they have stated new events for all levels will be constantly put in the game) then I then I think the answer to the title of this post is yes.
I heard the same thing about SWTOR prior to launch. Just saying.
Maybe... but I've been here since SWTOR beta and I never saw that myself. Even if someone had said SWTOR ruined other games for them, it wasn't nearly on the same level. We even had someone call it the "GW2 effect". Just saying. Deddpool is right though, I think this massive phenomenon lends credence to GW2 being a massive success, and why shouldn't it be? ANet is a good company and they deserve the accolades.
To clarify, no aspect of your posts have upset me. I tend to agree with much of what you are saying. That doesnt mean that much of it isnt hyperbole or hype, it just means that, like you, I just happen to have bought into some of the hype. You say that your opinions are different than mine, but I have not expressed much in the way of opinion here.
It is not an opinion that stating that the game is fun for the vast majority of MMO gamers is hyperbole.
Misdirecting context out of a quote is not good form. ;-) My real point wasn't saying that the game was played by the whole of the genre and a decision has been made, I'm not that hyped up. I pointed out the goal of Arenanet is to provide a game that is based on this idea. Very different statement.
Now how do I arrive to the idea of a 'vast majority of people in the genre' would prefer the lack of toxic play? Based on as large a population as the genre boasts, player skill should be able to be placed on a normal distribution curve. I have discussed this idea in the forums when applied to development cycles and the need for elite player satisfaction to maintain subscriptions.
If you look at where you place the idea of elite, even just above 1 standard deviation away from the mean, that means that 84% of the population is non-elite in any game. Push the idea of elite further away from the mean and the % is larger. Now, when looking at this, it's the reason why the MMO genre has a problem. The elite have the ear of the developers. They speak the language of the devs. The devs understand them, need them to be happy because people look to them as opinion shapers, etc. So what makes elite players happy? Look at the games that have large subscriptions and popularity. Treadmill play at the top of the game, tiered gear, open world/PvE PvP, to start. What do these people wish to have in the game that's not already there? From watching posts, I would say harsher rules in the game. Loot from PvE PK'ing, PvP sense of community, I've seen some great posts on permadeath, harsher Death Penalties, and the list goes on and on.
See the problem? The most active players, with the ears of the developers, and generally, also very active in the RL realm of opinion shaping due to their gameplay ability is a very small minority, wielding a lot of power over the direction of MMORPG's. This is ruining the fun for a lot of those that aren't in the minority, as a matter of fact, these people become the targets of the elite 'fun and games'. How bad is this situation? Try using the term 'casual player' in these forums as anything but an epithet against the true way of MMORPG gameplay and you'll see the term 'carebear' whipped out faster than a 12 year olds e-peen.
That's just my 2 cents on why the 'vast majority of mmorpg players' want a different play experience. This is the goal that Arenanet set for themself, to provide a different option for those players who want a fun and casual play experience.
Im not a fainboi nor a hater. Im simply a casual gamer that has played mmorpg for a long time (over a decade eeep). The game hasnt launched yet, and words like evolutionairy, revolutionairy and paradigm shifts are very strong words. I react negatively to the hype that the orginal post is touting. If you didnt know a thing about the game before it launched it wouldnt have anything to live up to - you would enjoy it for what it is. So now, if the game ISNT a paradigm shift ("a whole new way of seeing the world"), then you will be let down.
What Im saying is that the game DOESNT NEED to be the second coming for it to be a good game. Of course Im hoping for it to be evolutionairy and even a revolution to our genre. But Id rather not hop on the hype wagon untill its released.
To clarify, no aspect of your posts have upset me. I tend to agree with much of what you are saying. That doesnt mean that much of it isnt hyperbole or hype, it just means that, like you, I just happen to have bought into some of the hype. You say that your opinions are different than mine, but I have not expressed much in the way of opinion here.
It is not an opinion that stating that the game is fun for the vast majority of MMO gamers is hyperbole.
Misdirecting context out of a quote is not good form. ;-)
Agreed. Exactly why I refrained from doing so.
My real point wasn't saying that the game was played by the whole of the genre and a decision has been made, I'm not that hyped up. I pointed out the goal of Arenanet is to provide a game that is based on this idea. Very different statement.
You did not describe it as a goal, but rather a realization of a goal. Very different things.
Now how do I arrive to the idea of a 'vast majority of people in the genre' would prefer the lack of toxic play?
I did not ask that since it is not the statement you made in your OP. You said fun and challenging for the vast majority of MMO players. There is a huge difference between the two statements.
Misdirecting context out of a quote is not good form. ;-)
It is a very safe statement that the vast majority of brownie consumers would prefer a lack of concentrated sulfuric acid in their brownies. It is not safe to say that the vast majority would enjoy a specific recipe for brownies (without corroborating data of course, hmm this may be a very bad analogy...everyone loves a brownie after all !). Now, it is entirely possible that you will be proven correct over the course of the next year or so. It is entirely possible that GW2 will come to be a dominating force in the market. Even so, I find it unlikely that it will attract the vast majority of mmo players, and without their participation it is impossible to say for a fact that it would be fun (and perhaps challenging) for them.
Based on as large a population as the genre boasts, player skill should be able to be placed on a normal distribution curve. I have discussed this idea in the forums when applied to development cycles and the need for elite player satisfaction to maintain subscriptions.
If you look at where you place the idea of elite, even just above 1 standard deviation away from the mean, that means that 84% of the population is non-elite in any game. Push the idea of elite further away from the mean and the % is larger. Now, when looking at this, it's the reason why the MMO genre has a problem. The elite have the ear of the developers. They speak the language of the devs. The devs understand them, need them to be happy because people look to them as opinion shapers, etc. So what makes elite players happy? Look at the games that have large subscriptions and popularity. Treadmill play at the top of the game, tiered gear, open world/PvE PvP, to start. What do these people wish to have in the game that's not already there? From watching posts, I would say harsher rules in the game. Loot from PvE PK'ing, PvP sense of community, I've seen some great posts on permadeath, harsher Death Penalties, and the list goes on and on.
I am hesitant to accept the idea that a small minority of players are determining the direction of MMO gaming. Elements desired by the so called elite players are being removed or minimized in play. These elite players would not need to be asking for these elements in these and official forums if the developers were already catering to them at the expense of the casual player. A common complaint expressed here, as well as in other forums, is that the elite/hardcore elements of traditional MMOs is actually being diluted for casual play.
Consider WoW, the vast majority of its content is not aimed at elite PvP or PvE play. Streamlining character builds reduces the impact of elite min/maxing on character effectiveness. MMOs in general are becoming easier to play specifically (from what I have seen) to be more accessible to casual players.
Look beyond WoW and you find games like SWTOR which certainly does not cater to the hardcore/elite/PvP crowds. Neverwinter, Champions Online, Star Trek, DDO, LotrO, all of them focus their development on more casual play. And of course the list goes on. Games where the emphasis is placed on pleasing a small minority of their playerbase are a thing of the past, if they ever existed at all. Development studios/MMO publishers are in this to make money.
See the problem? The most active players, with the ears of the developers, and generally, also very active in the RL realm of opinion shaping due to their gameplay ability is a very small minority, wielding a lot of power over the direction of MMORPG's. This is ruining the fun for a lot of those that aren't in the minority, as a matter of fact, these people become the targets of the elite 'fun and games'. How bad is this situation? Try using the term 'casual player' in these forums as anything but an epithet against the true way of MMORPG gameplay and you'll see the term 'carebear' whipped out faster than a 12 year olds e-peen.
Carebear is a term used specifically to describe PvEers by PvPers. Even Elite or high end PvEers are Carebears according to the PvP community. So the classic treadmill play, gear grind, etc that might be considered part of the problem (I know that I detest them, but that doen't mean that they are bad) are "Carebear," activities too. Carebear is not a term describing a casual player, it is a term describing a PvE player of any sort.
That said, even if we assume that the vast majority want a different experience, there is nothing being provided to indicate that either the vast majority of players do, or will, enjoy GW2, or that ANet expect them to. Not even WoW can boast that the vast majority of MMO gamers play their game.
That's just my 2 cents on why the 'vast majority of mmorpg players' want a different play experience. This is the goal that Arenanet set for themself, to provide a different option for those players who want a fun and casual play experience.
"Their realization, definition, and removal of what is toxic in current MMORPG's, while still creating a fun and challenging environment to play in for the vast MAJORITY of MMO players is Arenanet's revolutionary change."
You list the fun for the vast majority as in addition to ("while still") or a separate item from the removal of what is toxic. In addition you have not presented anything to support any assumption that, "the vast majority," consider elements that they are currently paying to play to be toxic.
There is a huge difference between, "the vast majority will find GW2 to be fun and challenging," and, "the vast majority want a different play experience." Even so the latter is a questionable statement because there is no data being presented to support it.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
OP did your keyboard glow with heroic music playing in the background when you wrote this?
lol thanks for that, I laughed. Almost exactly what I was thinking. Game isn't even out yet and it's the next coming of christ
I'd think it would be a bit hypocritical of someone to laugh at a trollish remark in the GW2 forums immediately after criticizing GW2 fans for trolling Tera forums. Yeah. Well I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's just hypothetical after all... just an interesting thought I chose to share.
GW2 will be truly a great game and a breath of fresh air around the mmorpg industry, but damn if I hate so strong words like GW2 fans keep spouting. I'll agree with something like "paradigm shift" the day when I learn that GW2 is the only mmorpg anyone ever plays anymore, untill that happens, no, the game is not paradigm shifting game, It's just a damn good game.
Tbh, it's not even possible to have paradigm shifting game since people have different tastes. Maybe it's possible when talking about some certain features, but not overall when talking about a game.
I'd only point out that a paradigm shift doesn't sweep everyone up into it's embrace. There are still many people stuck one or two paradigm shifts, or more, behind the times. I see this every where I look in real life. Technology and society are changing so rapidly that the population can be split into a multitude of strata representing just how "with the times" someone actually is.
Guild Wars 2 is a paradigm shifting title. The new paradigm will effect players and their expectations for games, maybe even beyond the MMORPG genre and will be having an impact on MMORPG and RPG design for years to come.
OP did your keyboard glow with heroic music playing in the background when you wrote this?
lol thanks for that, I laughed. Almost exactly what I was thinking. Game isn't even out yet and it's the next coming of christ
I'd think it would be a bit hypocritical of someone to laugh at a trollish remark in the GW2 forums immediately after criticizing GW2 fans for trolling Tera forums. Yeah. Well I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's just hypothetical after all... just an interesting thought I chose to share.
I'm thanking someone for a laugh and that suddenly means I'm trolling GW2?
I could have gone into how horribly wrong some of the ideas I've read here, but unlike GW2 fans trolling TERA forums, I don't care. All I've said is wait for the game to release, seems pretty damn reasonable to me.
Don't be so touchy when someone isn't even saying anything bad about your beloved GW2, calm down guy.
OP did your keyboard glow with heroic music playing in the background when you wrote this?
lol thanks for that, I laughed. Almost exactly what I was thinking. Game isn't even out yet and it's the next coming of christ
I'd think it would be a bit hypocritical of someone to laugh at a trollish remark in the GW2 forums immediately after criticizing GW2 fans for trolling Tera forums. Yeah. Well I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's just hypothetical after all... just an interesting thought I chose to share.
Oh come on, it was a joke. People can't even make jokes anymore without being accused of trolling?
Comments
The problem is, if an idea is not broadly accepted, how does one know if something is revolutionary that changes the way we view that particular genre of things? Sure we can on a purely academic level, but that is mostly in hindsight... after something else comes along, takes those great ideas and makes it appeal to a wider audience, then we look farther back with our hipster goggles and say, "that was cool back when "this thing" already did it".
EXACTLY...simply put but on the nose.
I really liked the combat in Terra but that was pretty much all I liked.
I much prefered the GW2 community building design and found it to be much more feature rich.
Features i liked:
Coop play in pve and pvp
Dynamic event hubs not mission hubs(always hated doing missions, took GW2 for me to realise how much)
Crafting complexity
Mail access form anywhere
great fast travel
hot swaping servers(not really one I care much about since noone I know is playing the game)
The only CON I found in GW2 was that the world isn't really a world its a bunch of playable lvl bassed segmented regions. But the game is feature rich which offsets this.
I don't think Arenanet is doing anything new or groundbreaking but they are giving us more features in a single game then any other game i ahve ever seen and that to me IS new.
In my opinion Arenanet is the first game company that is giving gamers what they have been asking for, for the past 10 years. I whish them long life and prosperity.
Arenanet really seems to be a company on the side of gamers not against them.
Whew! Good posts!
That's my point. Success can be an indicator, but history makes the determination.
My take on revolutionary just based on the siege system:
Sieges actually work and are great.
-Age of Conan tried a siege system with it's Boarderlands...failed miserably due to the engine not holding up to it. NPC sieges that they demoed and promised got scrapped well before the game (wonder what the demo really was).
-Warhammer's sieges were so watered down there was 1 Door and siege weapons were platform based in a predetermined spot. Walls were non-destructable and completely static or non-existant at all.
-GW2's sieges include destructable walls, almost no lag when there's some 40+ people on screen, siege weapons to apply anywhere (that is stable, logical ground), and some crazy fun. And, it's 3-sided. 3 different factions to wage war and to attack about. Keeps a much more structured balance.
The WvWvW also has a living world about it.
-3 NPC factions to try to win over to become an army of your World.
-Caravans that travel between points for supplies that can be intercepted, attacked at random (by players and mobs alike)
-Swamps, rivers, and fields filled with creatures having a purpose.
-Eternal Battleground is completely unique with no 2 castles, keeps, or supply camps the same.
All those make it a much purposeful interaction that will not get stale.
The PvE is also great fun, though still somewhat the same familiar "oh, this is an MMO" feel that others give to. Crafting is much more useful early on than other games have it to being.
OP -
Think you're thinking too much about a game you haven't really played. You're trying to put a whole lot of something on a whole lot of nothing.
Let's wait a month or so after it releases and see how everyone feels about it. Until then, it's all just over-speculated hype.
I've heard countless times (and agree mostly) that GW2 has ruined other games for folks. If Anet can keep up the dynamic events (they have stated new events for all levels will be constantly put in the game) then I then I think the answer to the title of this post is yes.
There's no trinity, there's a fixed pvp gear cap, etc...
Is Guild Wars 2 paradigm shifting?
No, but it will be for alot of people that played only WoW.
Is Guild Wars 2 revolutionary?
No, but it might be for some people.
Is Guild Wars 2 evolutionary?
Yes.
GW2 takes alot of concepts and pushes them leaps and bounds forward.
It's a first step and it will hopefully make the industry realize that what you really need to have a great sucess is to make something that is new, different and polished.
Agreed.
To clarify, no aspect of your posts have upset me. I tend to agree with much of what you are saying. That doesnt mean that much of it isnt hyperbole or hype, it just means that, like you, I just happen to have bought into some of the hype. You say that your opinions are different than mine, but I have not expressed much in the way of opinion here. It is not an opinion that stating that the game is fun for the vast majority of MMO gamers is hyperbole. It is not opinion that we have had only limited experience of GW2 upon which to base our perceptions, and so on.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
For what its worth there is nothing, "tyrannical," about thinking anything.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
You can argue in favor of the first two. However the shift? Nope. Why? Because you can go back. Some people prefer the old way. Thus by definition it cant be a Paradigm Shift. By definition Paradigm shifts need to be proven by facts and everything GW2 is doing is subjective.
For me GW2 is inovative enough to buy the game.
Ive played GW1 while playing WoW, and at times i had alot more fun in GW1 pvp then i had with the 1 shooting of the new FotM class from blizzard.
While i still admit Blizzard created the best and hardest contend i ever played trough in my 14/15 years of playing mmo's/RPG's.
It does say nothing about the fun while playing that contend.
I think the time has come to give players more fun, free time is limited for family's or hard working men who want to chill out after a hard day of work wihout being obligated to run 15 daily quests to farm tokens to unlock shit for the next tier etc etc.
Anet provides fun from the moment you log in.
You can start PvP and have fun, its not like wow where your level makes you feel insignificant and worthless cannon fodder.
It isnt Aion where twinks lure 24/7 hunting people who want to quest and level trough specific contend.
Anet created GW2 with Fun and excitement as a backbone of their game.
Ive seen Dynamic Events in Warhammer already, but they where poorly done.
We can see it in Rift, again its fun for a few times and then you have the feeling you did ithat event a thousand times already.
The Dynamic Events in GW2 seem to have learned a big deal from their rivals, they look smooth, fun, and realy alot more dynamic then both Rift and Warhammer.
Also Anet have put in 1500/1600 Events in the box ? thats alot of contend and we dint even talked about their PvP or WvWvW stuff.
What people need to ask themselves is, what do i want to play for the next months/years ?
Will it be worth my money and free time ?
Iam being honest and say i played WoW for the longest time, 7 years of my life spend in that mmo alone.
No other mmo grabbed my interst for that long period of time.
And after playing GW2 Beta weekend i feel another 7 years might be very realistic indeed.
In comparisation to a few recent mmo's like:
Eve (payed not played) 3 years
Warhammer 8 months
Aion 1 year
SWTOR 2 months
GW2 for me is the next best thing comming, but that doesnt mean i will play it 24/7, Archage/Planetside2/World of Darkness/Dust514 are also on my radar.
The best part about GW2 is no sub, witch means no presure to keep paying each month to keep up with other people.
I think GW2 is a damn good game, made by some of the most talented dev's ( they worked on WoW also) and they can pull this one off.
All these hate post versus a game that try's to find the soul of what a mmo's realy is about just need to stop.
It might take half a decade for a game like that to come out again, so try it or leave it.
Will it be evolutionary ? no not with the technology we currently have. maybe once we master virtual reality we can reinvent the wheel.
Will it be Revolutionary ? no see comment above this one.
Shifting design ? yes, no more carrot on a stick gear grind design alla WoW.
TLDR:
GW2 is not a second comming.
GW2 uses all recources they can use in current soft and hardware to create dynamic contend instead of a boring take quests and ramp all shit up and turn it in rinse and repeat for 1000 levels for 10 alts.
GW2 combines all nice flavors and spices we have all taste before and cooks it into a delicous stove.
I heard the same thing about SWTOR prior to launch. Just saying.
GW2 will be truly a great game and a breath of fresh air around the mmorpg industry, but damn if I hate so strong words like GW2 fans keep spouting. I'll agree with something like "paradigm shift" the day when I learn that GW2 is the only mmorpg anyone ever plays anymore, untill that happens, no, the game is not paradigm shifting game, It's just a damn good game.
Tbh, it's not even possible to have paradigm shifting game since people have different tastes. Maybe it's possible when talking about some certain features, but not overall when talking about a game.
Maybe... but I've been here since SWTOR beta and I never saw that myself. Even if someone had said SWTOR ruined other games for them, it wasn't nearly on the same level. We even had someone call it the "GW2 effect". Just saying. Deddpool is right though, I think this massive phenomenon lends credence to GW2 being a massive success, and why shouldn't it be? ANet is a good company and they deserve the accolades.
Now how do I arrive to the idea of a 'vast majority of people in the genre' would prefer the lack of toxic play? Based on as large a population as the genre boasts, player skill should be able to be placed on a normal distribution curve. I have discussed this idea in the forums when applied to development cycles and the need for elite player satisfaction to maintain subscriptions.
If you look at where you place the idea of elite, even just above 1 standard deviation away from the mean, that means that 84% of the population is non-elite in any game. Push the idea of elite further away from the mean and the % is larger. Now, when looking at this, it's the reason why the MMO genre has a problem. The elite have the ear of the developers. They speak the language of the devs. The devs understand them, need them to be happy because people look to them as opinion shapers, etc. So what makes elite players happy? Look at the games that have large subscriptions and popularity. Treadmill play at the top of the game, tiered gear, open world/PvE PvP, to start. What do these people wish to have in the game that's not already there? From watching posts, I would say harsher rules in the game. Loot from PvE PK'ing, PvP sense of community, I've seen some great posts on permadeath, harsher Death Penalties, and the list goes on and on.
See the problem? The most active players, with the ears of the developers, and generally, also very active in the RL realm of opinion shaping due to their gameplay ability is a very small minority, wielding a lot of power over the direction of MMORPG's. This is ruining the fun for a lot of those that aren't in the minority, as a matter of fact, these people become the targets of the elite 'fun and games'. How bad is this situation? Try using the term 'casual player' in these forums as anything but an epithet against the true way of MMORPG gameplay and you'll see the term 'carebear' whipped out faster than a 12 year olds e-peen.
That's just my 2 cents on why the 'vast majority of mmorpg players' want a different play experience. This is the goal that Arenanet set for themself, to provide a different option for those players who want a fun and casual play experience.
Im not a fainboi nor a hater. Im simply a casual gamer that has played mmorpg for a long time (over a decade eeep). The game hasnt launched yet, and words like evolutionairy, revolutionairy and paradigm shifts are very strong words. I react negatively to the hype that the orginal post is touting. If you didnt know a thing about the game before it launched it wouldnt have anything to live up to - you would enjoy it for what it is. So now, if the game ISNT a paradigm shift ("a whole new way of seeing the world"), then you will be let down.
What Im saying is that the game DOESNT NEED to be the second coming for it to be a good game. Of course Im hoping for it to be evolutionairy and even a revolution to our genre. But Id rather not hop on the hype wagon untill its released.
OP did your keyboard glow with heroic music playing in the background when you wrote this?
"Their realization, definition, and removal of what is toxic in current MMORPG's, while still creating a fun and challenging environment to play in for the vast MAJORITY of MMO players is Arenanet's revolutionary change."
You list the fun for the vast majority as in addition to ("while still") or a separate item from the removal of what is toxic. In addition you have not presented anything to support any assumption that, "the vast majority," consider elements that they are currently paying to play to be toxic.
There is a huge difference between, "the vast majority will find GW2 to be fun and challenging," and, "the vast majority want a different play experience." Even so the latter is a questionable statement because there is no data being presented to support it.
When all has been said and done, more will have been said than done.
lol thanks for that, I laughed. Almost exactly what I was thinking. Game isn't even out yet and it's the next coming of christ
I'd think it would be a bit hypocritical of someone to laugh at a trollish remark in the GW2 forums immediately after criticizing GW2 fans for trolling Tera forums. Yeah. Well I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's just hypothetical after all... just an interesting thought I chose to share.
I'd only point out that a paradigm shift doesn't sweep everyone up into it's embrace. There are still many people stuck one or two paradigm shifts, or more, behind the times. I see this every where I look in real life. Technology and society are changing so rapidly that the population can be split into a multitude of strata representing just how "with the times" someone actually is.
Guild Wars 2 is a paradigm shifting title. The new paradigm will effect players and their expectations for games, maybe even beyond the MMORPG genre and will be having an impact on MMORPG and RPG design for years to come.
Want to know more about GW2 and why there is so much buzz? Start here: Guild Wars 2 Mass Info for the Uninitiated
I'm thanking someone for a laugh and that suddenly means I'm trolling GW2?
I could have gone into how horribly wrong some of the ideas I've read here, but unlike GW2 fans trolling TERA forums, I don't care. All I've said is wait for the game to release, seems pretty damn reasonable to me.
Don't be so touchy when someone isn't even saying anything bad about your beloved GW2, calm down guy.
Oh come on, it was a joke. People can't even make jokes anymore without being accused of trolling?