When I first started playing MMORPGs, I was blown away. Blown away by the fact that I could be part of something epic and magical and huge. I played Everquest, Star Wars Galaxies, World of Warcraft, The Secret World, and just about every MMO that came out. But I always wanted something more from each one. I guess you could say I was a bit of a snob. In my mind, if you’re going to make a game for people to play together, shouldn’t the whole idea be that anyone can hop in and play together at any time? This is where Guild Wars 2 really (and finally) sets itself apart from other games out there.
NCSoft has masterfully incorporated a play-at-your-own-pace game style that has casual and hardcore gamers hooked. The dragging pace of quest-to-quest action has been, for the most part, completely removed. Instead, players engage in Heart and Event Quest, which are group-oriented and action-packed events that many players participate in while simultaneously performing tasks. My first Event Quest had me defeating a horde of venomous fireflies and delivering their glow sacs to a nearby NPC (gross, I know). However, after we had filled up her basket, we then began the process of relighting the town with the essences of the fireflies, only to find that the perpetrator behind the malicious fireflies was none other than, you guessed it, a Giant Frog Beast. The fun part is that these events are no longer reserved for groups banding together in their own party systems. Anyone can hop in and out at any point in time during the events. Of course, if you’d rather, there is a Story Quest Line that players can follow to stay on a more traditional MMO path. The game also down-scales you to each zone, so you never run out of places to quest. This is especially handy if you have a cousin like mine, who has more time to play the game and is several levels ahead of you. So, this other person can always join you in your zone by being downgraded to your level, which is a great casual mechanic that encourages players to play together no matter what.
Combat in this game is also unique. Skills consist of six main abilities and six special abilities. These skills are mostly affected by your weapon loadout — each weapon has its own set of abilities, along with its own strengths and weaknesses. While this is a cool idea, the only reservation I have is aesthetic — I like the abilities the war horn offers, for example, but felt it looked lame (I did mention being a snob earlier). Imagine you’re a giant Norn running into a sprawling battlefield to simply, well, blow your horn at some Charr with a great sword. However, every class has a plethora of weapons to choose from, so for the most part, you can get around this minor detail. I also appreciate how each class has its own healing factor. This doesn’t mean healers are eliminated as a role, but it does provide each player with a bit of sustain, which can be clutch in PvP.
Oh, and did I mention RvR? Realm versu Realm is a gigantic PvP mode unlike any I have ever seen, and it’s truly and wonderfully awesome. Think of a king-of-the-hill scenario, but with giant castles and siege weapons. Now, imagine that the castles are even bigger. Bigger than that. There you go. Realm versus Realm is everything Age of Conan should have been, but with better graphics, and you know, giant monsters.
See those colored dots? That’s about the size of the smaller castles. By “smaller,” I mean they only fit a few hundred players.
It wouldn’t be a good idea for me to get into how much time I’ve spent so far on classes and race in this game, but I’ll give you a little idea. I played this game for two solid weeks without getting a single champion past level 10. That’s because I so thoroughly enjoy every single class I’ve played, that I had to keep switching back and forth and making new ones. Classes consist of melee, ranged, and spell casting, but all have a few hybrid abilities of each. The classes are Elementalist, Warrior, Guardian, Ranger, Engineer, Necromancer, Mesmer, and Thief. I can honestly say that even with my years of MMO experience, every single one of these classes has a unique and interesting play style. Before getting this game, I couldn’t decide what I wanted to play for weeks. I literally mean weeks. On top of that, the races are awesome too. Charr are basically giant, horned werecats. Norns are Nordic, fable giants. Sylvari are living-plant elves (yes, plant elves). Azura are tiny gnome/Avatar-Na’vi creatures. And, uh, there are also humans. Believe you me, each of these races are incredibly unique and fun to play, even the lowly humans. My only regret is the lack of character animations for the Charr. For some reason, the Charr seem like they got the least amount of love from the developers.
All in all, I’ve had a great time playing Guild Wars 2. There’s plenty to do and the world is extremely large and eerily realistic. Guards grumble about shifts as you run by and townsfolk gossip in their boring one-horse-town way. Oh! Did I mention this game is free to play after the initial purchase? I probably should have, considering we’re moving into a world where games with hefty price tags and monthly subscriptions will be phased out soon. If you’re up for a game with hours and hours of fun and you’re tired of the same MMO experience you’ve had 30-something times, check out Guild Wars 2. It won’t dissapoint.
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