What is the difference between a season and a saga ?

[MashMash.1645]

Wild guess: less content because they have less cash to burn. (Ya know, because their other projects tanked, etc). Less money, less people (or replaced with cheaper / lower salary / less experienced people), less, well, everything.

 

They had x,y,z amount of resources. Now I bet they have less. Its a 7 year old game. You don’t have to be Albert Einstein to see what’s going to happen. Unless you luck out and become the next Blizzard - and we all still waiting for that haha (Ironically, Classic came out before anyone managed that).

 

But, it is what it is. GW1 lasted a long while. Maybe GW2 has done its dash. Might be time to move on to GW3 or whatever. Or come up with that next big game I guess.

 

I’m curious to see how they plan to make money. If they just give these away with the xpac, where is the cash gonna come from? Most players already have PoF, so????? Where?

[WhatLiesBeneath.9018]

I think its the other way around.

 

The Saga will contain more content, be released faster and include new types of content and surprises.

They have more people working on this then season 3 or 4, also the live teams are larger then expansion team (140 for live, 70 for expansion. Durinc s3 and pof development)

Not including a new map every episode and rather expanding maps and adding new types of content and rewards just means more replayability, so more content not less.

[ricky markham.8173]

> @"WhatLiesBeneath.9018" said:

> I think its the other way around.

>

> The Saga will contain more content, be released faster and include new types of content and surprises.

> They have more people working on this then season 3 or 4, also the live teams are larger then expansion team (140 for live, 70 for expansion. Durinc s3 and pof development)

> Not including a new map every episode and rather expanding maps and adding new types of content and rewards just means more replayability, so more content not less.

 

dont overthink the changing of the word means it leads to disappointment. id love to see this but i think of it more as a name change because if it is more ill be happier and more likely to praise

[WhatLiesBeneath.9018]

> @"ricky markham.8173" said:

> > @"WhatLiesBeneath.9018" said:

> > I think its the other way around.

> >

> > The Saga will contain more content, be released faster and include new types of content and surprises.

> > They have more people working on this then season 3 or 4, also the live teams are larger then expansion team (140 for live, 70 for expansion. Durinc s3 and pof development)

> > Not including a new map every episode and rather expanding maps and adding new types of content and rewards just means more replayability, so more content not less.

>

> dont overthink the changing of the word means it leads to disappointment. id love to see this but i think of it more as a name change because if it is more ill be happier and more likely to praise

 

Its not only because of the name change, its also because they have 4 teams instead of 3 and that they stated they are more free and not continuing down the shopping list like season 4 was, with what the episodes had to contain.

[finkle.9513]

half arsed version, with all the work putting items in the gem shop? It seems Devs spend more time on gem store item, it seems content is made to fit in with maximum profits from gem store in mind.

[WhatLiesBeneath.9018]

> @"finkle.9513" said:

> half kitten version, with all the work putting items in the gem shop? It seems Devs spend more time on gem store item, it seems content is made to fit in with maximum profits from gem store in mind.

 

This is hilarious. But seriously, just stop with this whining, ArenaNet never force you to buy anything what so ever, except Expansions and LS if you didnt login to recieve it for free.

 

Other games however have both a popup window when you login to say what they have in the store for you to buy, they might even have forces purches to get more loot or something.

 

Gw2 have to stay up in some way or form, to do that, they sell some cosmetic or convenience items, you do not need those items to play the game, and dont come with the bullshit answer they have more armors and weapons in the gemstore because that is a absolute false statement.

[Hugs.1856]

> @"Swizzle.7982" said:

> It’s simply branding.

>

> It happens with movies and games all the time, by the time they get to around the 3rd or 4th entry they start to drop the number. It’s a way of getting new people into the series without alienating them.

>

> Living World Season 5 suggests you should probably have played the last 4 seasons. Calling it a Saga sets it apart, without hinting to new players the amount of catching up they’ll need to do, hence making it a more convincing entry point for new players, simple.

 

This. This is part of the marketing campaign to get new and returning players into the game.

 

Starting with season 5 kinda implies you'd have to play all previous 4 to enjoy it. So a fresh start with saga gets everyone on the same page.

 

It's also easier to plan releases : story related updates will be part of the saga and feature / festival updates can happen anytime in between

[Doctor.5068]

My assumption is that a Saga will last more than a season. So instead of "season 5" "season 6" "season 7" all having 6 chapters like lw3 and 4 did, the new icebrood saga will last as long as required to tell the story, and not need to change the actual living world title until the saga is complete. This could potentially mean less cut content than we have seen in the past since it (at least in relation to season deadlines) means they can tell the story over a longer period of time and reduce content cuts to fit deadlines. Especially since they will be updating maps as they did in lw2 . If something doesnt make the deadline for chapter 1, perhaps they can fill it in in chapter 2 since its still on the same map.

[Zaklex.6308]

The difference, in my opinion, is that a Saga allows them to not only do full episodes like past Seasons, but also smaller content updates in between...that's pretty much what Mike Z said about the 4 content teams and the work they're doing.

[LolLookAtMyAP.8394]

They're changing their season model to sagas. Sagas are basically contained stories with contained villains--when the villain(s) is/are finished, the saga ends.

 

I don't know how many of you felt it, but for me each season was way too short. Episodes drifted by super quickly and villains/plot development was very quick and ended abruptly. Sagas allow for much greater development and give a lot more room for character growth/plot development.

[Zaraki.5784]

No difference, they just felt the urge to change an already meaningless name, nothing else.

[Thornwolf.9721]

Potentially the season pass entry fee~ They said the prologue was free with PoF

>! NOT THE SAGA.

[Knighthonor.4061]

It's the same thing. They just using a different term going forward into the expansion 3. I am telling you all Anet been working on an Expansion to release after LW5, but they won't mention it due to policy.

[FONGORE.7410]

Worried marketing department decided to renamed season to saga. So they could announce & try to sell season passes in the future like a few other MMOs are trying to do after seeing fortnite success. Which I loathe.

[AlexxxDelta.1806]

> @"Thornwolf.9721" said:

> Potentially the season pass entry fee~ They said the prologue was free with PoF

> >! NOT THE SAGA.

 

The wording put me off too but the blogpost says it's the same model as previous LS. PoF owners login and unlock the episodes.

[Mortifera.6138]

They clearly said it’s because they have more freedom and teams working on it. We’ll have to see how that pans out.

[Zahld.4956]

> @"Ayakaru.6583" said:

> > @"Erasculio.2914" said:

> > > @"EzLIghT.1354" said:

> > > Hi everyone, i'm here to speak about the future season, which isn't a season but a saga, anyone know why they call it differently ?

> >

> > Probably because a saga will have less content than a season.

> >

> > The recent seasons were made of episodes in which every release had:

> >

> > * A new map, with at least one new meta event

> > * A new legendary weapon

> > * Assorted other features

> >

> > Looks like a saga will not have a new map for every release (they may add half of a map on a release and add more to the same map on the next, for example), and nothing has been said of new legendary weapons or a new meta event per release.

> >

> > So looks like a saga will be less than a season.

>

> They said that indeed we'll have fewer maps. That allows them more time to generate content and animations for that map.

> And i rather have one map full of content and events, than 3 maps where you wait around for something to happen

 

Less map jumping. Doesn't sound too bad.

[Ashantara.8731]

> @"Pirindolo.9427" said:

> Season... saga... pie... you can put any name. The thing behind it will still be the same: Episodes every 3 to 5 months.

 

I don't think it will be like previous seasons. But we will know more about it shortly. :)

 

> @"thepenmonster.3621" said:

> A saga is the complete story of fighting Frieza. A season is how long it takes for Goku to power up to Super Saiyan.

 

Is this some pop culture reference to a terrible anime I've never watched? Sounds like it. ;) Dragonball Z or something? :s

 

> @"Hybarf Tics.2048" said:

> That's a good description for it, here's my take on the difference for it.

> First thing first Anet don't talk about expansions anymore because they are being phased out.

> They don't admit to it because players will quit, at least many would.

> Since they are expert at being evasive and playing mind games, here's their strategy I think.

> They said season 4 will be followed by season 5 to avoid telling us no more expansion, which should have been here late in the year or early 2020.

> Beside expansions takes too long which is why we now move from LS to Saga or epic story as @ Stise stated if this new format is successful they will become

> small expansions. Since nothing in this world is free in time Sagas will become Saga DLC with a price tag.

> And they don't admit any of it because the fan base would shrink which is also why in preparation of this we had this 45 minute new player hunt. :s

 

That actually makes a lot of sense, so you're probably right. I would miss expansions and being able to finish a story at my own pace, but probably could get used to sagas if they are a lot more fluid, updated frequently, and don't stutter along over the course of 1.5 years with huge differences in quality and cut (or unfinished) content and a strong feeling of repetition.

 

Edit: On a second thought, I'd still like to have another expansion at some point...

[Liston.9708]

IMHO saga is living world rebranded by marketing since there is 0 talk of expansions

[Lucentfir.7430]

Assuming it isn't just only a name rebrand, I really want to expect content dropping more frequently rather than every 3 months and better paced story. With the ability for Anet to just drop in expansion like features and features in general when they hit completion.

 

edit: I'm saying this because at the announcement they said they have 4 living story teams now, when back then it was 2 Living Story teams and a expansion team.

[TwoGhosts.6790]

Potato

Potato

[DonArkanio.6419]

> @"WhatLiesBeneath.9018" said:

> > @"finkle.9513" said:

> > half kitten version, with all the work putting items in the gem shop? It seems Devs spend more time on gem store item, it seems content is made to fit in with maximum profits from gem store in mind.

>

> This is hilarious. But seriously, just stop with this whining, ArenaNet never force you to buy anything what so ever, except Expansions and LS if you didnt login to recieve it for free.

>

> Other games however have both a popup window when you login to say what they have in the store for you to buy, they might even have forces purches to get more loot or something.

>

> Gw2 have to stay up in some way or form, to do that, they sell some cosmetic or convenience items, you do not need those items to play the game, and dont come with the kitten answer they have more armors and weapons in the gemstore because that is a absolute false statement.

 

You are comparing GW2 to some Mobile MMOs that are pretty much a cashgrabs.

 

I am actually concerned about ANet giving this content away for free if you have PoF. It means they are going to continue with the router of GemStore cosmetics having Legendary-quality items thus making in-game obtainable items less valuable. Not having pop-up windows is not a excuse here. That's completely beside the point.

 

I'd rather pay for the good content than get mediocre for free.

 

If we are getting this all for free it means it doesn't really hold much of a value.

If someone came to you and have you an iPhone for free, you wouldn't trust it's legit.

[Rasimir.6239]

Calling seasons by numbers is getting akward with more seasons added. People are more likely to confuse them. What was season 2 about again? Was that the one with the white mantle? The Kralkatorik one? No, it was the one where the zephyrite fleet crashed ... with three, four, or even five seasons many people can still remember which is which, but the more seasons they add, the more difficult it's going to get. Giving seasons names just makes it a lot easier for people to remember what it's about.

 

As an inverse expample, imagine WoW had just numbered their expansions rather than giving them names. Do you think people would seriously remember which expansion had which number?

[Luthan.5236]

Either a different name for the same thing. Or it consists of more parts (more than 1 season) - not necessarily 3 though as some suspected. Or it refers to being different in another way. (Maybe having strike missions as a new game play part makes them different.)

 

We'll only know then it is over. Then we can complain and won't be even sure what ArenaNet exactly meant. That would need their official definition.

[Hybarf Tics.2048]

> @"Lucentfir.7430" said:

> Assuming it isn't just only a name rebrand, I really want to expect content dropping more frequently rather than every 3 months and better paced story. With the ability for Anet to just drop in expansion like features and features in general when they hit completion.

>

> edit: I'm saying this because at the announcement they said they have 4 living story teams now, when back then it was 2 Living Story teams and a expansion team.

 

Even if it went your way, do you remember them saying that sometimes there won't even be a new map section, that's why this whole campaign was aimed at new noobs.

With the new direction they're going in as in no more expansions and sometimes not even a backyard size map, they knew darn well they were going to loose players.

With all this going on I think Nc Soft is pushing Anet into finishing the story ASAP so they can flush GW2 and give Anet a different project.

For those who don't believe me get ready to be milked. As for me the store will remain closed until I hear the word expansion and it will open only when I have a new expansion in hand. I will also play sagas only on new map not old ones.

I forgot expansion are still being considered and as such it also means it's not even off the ground yet.

After the saga if we get an expansion assuming it starts this week we're looking at late 2022, early 2023 enjoy the wait and merry go round. B)