Should Central Tyrian Masteries be Locked Behind an Expansion?

[Haleydawn.3764]

I half agree. Masteries were introduced as part of an expansion, so I don't agree with unlocking all of them for free.

 

I think the Pact Commander Mastery should be in the core game. The rest should be locked behind an expansion. Legendary Crafting specifically locked behind HoT, since some of the collections require events/items you can only get in HoT.

[IndigoSundown.5419]

People playing for no money are already getting a better deal than most free to play MMO's offer. People who bought the core game have access to everything the core game offered, and then some. I don't recall there being auto loot when Guild Wars 2 launched, nor did Fractals exist at that time. I don't accept the argument that these features should be basic for free or core-only accounts.

 

Were I at ANet, I'd be thinking that the bad outweighs the good. In addition to removing a motive for people to pay for an XPac, there's the possibility of negative reactions from paying customers. Every time ANet has given something away that paying customers have paid for, some of those customers get outraged and speak out about it. Normally, I don't support those people, because I can see how the give-away benefits ANet. I do have a problem thinking that giving those benefits away is going to be better for ANet. I see no connection between people getting these benefits and suddenly deciding to spend money they were not already going to spend on GW2.

[PaxTheGreatOne.9472]

Had anyone thought about the communication restrictions to F2P players?

 

Having mentor but not being able to use map chat...well....

[Menadena.7482]

> @"Just a flesh wound.3589" said:

> I’m going to say no on both. For one, f2p is an extended trial version. It’s to allow them to check out the game before buying. In no game that I know of does the trial version get the extra features of the core game, since doing so hurts the transition of f2p to buying an account. It’s the same thing with core only owners. ANet spent time and money making these features and giving them away will hurt their income as fewer numbers will feel the need to buy either expansion.

 

OTOH, core tyria masteries strike me as something that belongs in core. Maybe not ftp specifically, but definitely you should get it if you bought the core game.

[PopeUrban.2578]

Yes.

 

Central Tyria is an expansive free trial, but it is still intended to have limitations that encourage people to buy something to continue.

 

Also, I don't want free accounts to have access to autolooting. That's an open invitiation to maps full of bots.

[Samnang.1879]

Ppl should just buy the expansions, it's only like what... 2 days of lunch.

[Teofa Tsavo.9863]

> @Dashingsteel.3410 said:

> Fractal rewards and guild boons were reworked and repackaged behind a paywall with HoT. Those customers who had shelled out 50 bucks for the core gw2 game had those features stripped from them(Thanks for your business!!!). If you bought the core game and not one of the expansions, central tyrian masteries are being withheld from you as a punishment for not being a return customer.

 

So much this. I paid for GW2 core, and HoT removed items and abilities I already had. I am debating purchase of PoF, but I guarantee that steaming pile that HoT is will never be on my HD.

[Theocraft.6053]

I believe that ANet should give a taste of masteries to the f2p players. This would cost them nothing but would even more encourage new players to buy expansions. At least one track, for autoloot even if sheer autoloot mastery would be blocked. Similarly - give them basic gliding even and basic raptor.

 

**Give them taste, that is how many microtransactions marketing works on mobile games, this would only help us all - we will lose nothing, ANet loose nothing but new players will see - woooow gliding so cool, that raptor so cool, masteries so cool - I want more of it!**

 

 

[Xbon.9086]

Guild Wars 2 is still a buy to play game. Giving more and more to free users doesn't encourage them to buy the game.

[Panda.1967]

Personally, don't care if they require an expansion purchase or not... however, I do believe that if you **bought** the game, you should have access to masteries the instant you hit level 80, no story progression unlock requirement, simply, reach level 80 and masteries are unlocked, starting with Central Tyria.

 

The reason behind this, I reached level 80 quite a while before completing the core game story. In the process of finishing up the story and Living World season 2, leading into HoT, I earned up enough EXP that I very well could have unlocked and completed 3 or 4 ranks of the Pact Commander track. But since I hadn't progressed into the PoF story far enough to unlock the Gliding track, all of that EXP went to waste.

[Ellisande.5218]

ERIN: But my concern is, I feel like the cat is sort of already kind of out of the bag.

ABBY: I think what they're saying is the cat is out of the bag. They want us to put the cat back inside the bag.

ERIN: No, I know that's what they're saying. But I'm saying the cat's already out. - I know. I know it's out.

ERIN: So it's hard to put the cat back in. - It's not impossible. - But that's why they have that saying.

ABBY: It's a nonsense saying.

ERIN: If the cat is outta the bag, you can't put it back in!

ABBY: I put a cat in a bag all the time.

ERIN: But once the cat is out of the bag, aren't you like, "Ooh! The cat is out of the bag!"

LYNCH: We just want to shove that damn cat back in the bag.

-Ghostbusters (2016).

[Theocraft.6053]

> @Xbon.9086 said:

> Guild Wars 2 is still a buy to play game. Giving more and more to free users doesn't encourage them to buy the game.

 

I would love to see an opinion of the marketing expert on this. This could really help the GW2 plus I am curious about who is right here.

[blambidy.3216]

As much as you would think I agree but fractals is part of the hot expansion. Which is why free players should not be able to play and get masteries. Masteries are involved with hot expansion in tyria. Loot etc. Is all part of hot expansion. To give free players full right to masteries is slap in the face to people who bought the game. Then that means arenanet also has to give free players some POF free things. And then just give free things to players who actually bought the game. As much as I would like to agree, I'm not. This is a game. Games are meant to put money into. And it should stay that way. Or there would be stuff I wouldn't like in the gem store. If you bought the game you wouldn't be wrong. 50 for both expansions is great price. FFXIV for all expansion is way more. And eso is way more. Wow is 70 just to start the game with expansion. Eso want all expacs you spend a hundy. Just get the game. Get one expax then get the other later on. I bet you already spend 30 on games. It's just like getting 2 brand new games except it's way more content then average games.

[Lusts.3890]

> @blambidy.3216 said:

> As much as you would think I agree but fractals is part of the hot expansion. Which is why free players should not be able to play and get masteries. Masteries are involved with hot expansion in tyria. Loot etc. Is all part of hot expansion. To give free players full right to masteries is slap in the face to people who bought the game. Then that means arenanet also has to give free players some POF free things. And then just give free things to players who actually bought the game. As much as I would like to agree, I'm not. This is a game. Games are meant to put money into. And it should stay that way. Or there would be stuff I wouldn't like in the gem store. If you bought the game you wouldn't be wrong. 50 for both expansions is great price. FFXIV for all expansion is way more. And eso is way more. Wow is 70 just to start the game with expansion. Eso want all expacs you spend a hundy. Just get the game. Get one expax then get the other later on. I bet you already spend 30 on games. It's just like getting 2 brand new games except it's way more content then average games.

 

I feel as if I have to correct you. Fractals is not part of Heart of Thorns. Fractals were part of the core game about two years prior to Heart of Thorns announcement. While the idea of the Central Tyrian Masteries being available to free to play is a difficult thing to introduce, I do agree with some people here. People who have purchased the core game but don't own the expansions should get access to at least the Central Tyrian Masteries.

 

I am not asking them to give everyone Heart of Thorns of Path of Fire masteries. Those masteries aren't required for the core game experience. Fractal Masteries are.

[Menadena.7482]

> @PopeUrban.2578 said:

> Yes.

>

> Central Tyria is an expansive free trial, but it is still intended to have limitations that encourage people to buy something to continue.

>

> Also, I don't want free accounts to have access to autolooting. That's an open invitiation to maps full of bots.

 

So what do you do about people who bought the game but have not bought an expansion?

 

[IndigoSundown.5419]

> @Menadena.7482 said:

> > @PopeUrban.2578 said:

> > Yes.

> >

> > Central Tyria is an expansive free trial, but it is still intended to have limitations that encourage people to buy something to continue.

> >

> > Also, I don't want free accounts to have access to autolooting. That's an open invitiation to maps full of bots.

>

> So what do you do about people who bought the game but have not bought an expansion?

>

 

Why does anything have to be done? They bought a game and still have access to everything that came with it, and then some.

[PopeUrban.2578]

> @Menadena.7482 said:

> > @PopeUrban.2578 said:

> > Yes.

> >

> > Central Tyria is an expansive free trial, but it is still intended to have limitations that encourage people to buy something to continue.

> >

> > Also, I don't want free accounts to have access to autolooting. That's an open invitiation to maps full of bots.

>

> So what do you do about people who bought the game but have not bought an expansion?

>

 

I'll say the same thing I did when people complained about it at HoT release.

 

The game you bought that was converted to free to play did not have mastries and actually had LESS infusion slots for AR in fractals. In fact, the game you and I bought at release has recieved a crapton of free content and updates for its purchase price. I was able to, for the price of the box, enjoy two entire seasons of LS and several events that can no longer be experienced, benefit from economies that no longer exist because they've been nerfed, and otherwise derived fair value for the price of the game. The only people with a legitimate complaint are those that bought the retail game very close to the release of HoT. I agree that Arenanet was not forthcoming enough with its plans to transition to free to play and that they were still selling the core game far too soon to the release of HoT. I do not agree that because you paid 60 dollars for the game three years ago you are entitled to some version of every update for the rest of eternity. Just like i don't agree that if I buy a television for $400 bucks and three years later it sells for $100 that I deserve compensation.

 

The only thing that was lost was guild buffs, as those were moved to the new (much better balanced and cheaper) buff system. Allowing players to benefit from the guild buff vendor in guild halls and allowing people who only own core to access the buff vendor in the guild initiative HQ (As these people can not access expeditions for guild halls if nobody owns an expansion) is the only thing I think should be moved from HoT to Core for this reason. It was the only thing that was actually taken away.

[Yamazuki.6073]

> @Lusts.3890 said:

>I am all for paid expansions. I am just do not support putting auto-loot behind a paywall. The only other game that has done this was Black Desert Online with their pet system and the majority of their community does not like their cash shop model.

 

 

This is a dishonest statement. Auto-loot features in free to play settings are almost always paid for either through pets or an account upgrade. I can not think of any non-subscription game that requires you to pick up loot yourself that has an optional free auto loot system. Auto-looting is a convenience feature, there is nothing wrong with selling convenience features.