Growing GW2 going forward

[Sinifair.1026]

We're now past the announcement and the dust have had time to settle.

I think there is definitely content to be hyped about, for sure, but by the end I had a feeling of wanting more.

 

I want to talk about some things I personally hope ANet will do going forward. I think some of the new content they are bringing in has potential to do a lot of good for the game overall, but there are also areas that I think ANet has to do better on, if they want people to be excited about GW2.

 

I hope for people to bring some comments in, talking about what you'd like to see, and where you want ANet to step up their game.

 

For me, it all starts here:

 

## The Icebrood Saga

**The Story:**

In terms of where the narrative is going, I am excited. The trailer was very good. The sneak peek cutscene with Rytlock shows improved production value.

It looks good and there is some tension with Jormag feeling like it has a personality. I hope we get to interact more and feel it as a presence throughout the story as we progress. Not just as a force of nature but as a character as well.

 

Some key points I want from ANet going forward:

- **An compelling villain.** The Commander is a blank piece. He/she's been alright thus far, but the real main character is the villain so make it a good one. The players will fill in their characters, so put more effort into the villain and the themes that they bring. And don't waste good material like Lazarus, ANet!

- **Interesting side characters.** It looks like we get some off camera cutscenes like the sneak peek with Rytlock. I hope to see more like those, where our character isn't necessarily present. A strong cast of interesting side characters who go through their own trials and grow is absolute key.

- **Dialogue options.** Because sometimes a bit more control over small flavors of my character is nice.

- **Side Stories.** For some extra added flavor, I'd love to see more side stories that deal with happenings outside the main storyline. We have a tab in the Achievements Panel called Side Stories, and seeing some more content added there would be great. Some stories may get cut from the main attraction (story wise) that is the LS, so it might be a good way to repurpose some ideas that got cut, or add some detail that don't fit anywhere else.

 

 

**The maps:**

The Far Shiverpeaks and Blood Legion Homelands. I played GW1 and I really enjoyed these areas back then. Going from Longeye's Ledge down into the Charr Homelands for the first time was very exciting, and the transition from the icy mountains to these grasslands was breathtaking back then. I'm hoping for some Woodland Cascades (saw the shot with the centaur. It could happen, people!). I think the areas and the story here opens up for some potentially interesting areas and content.

 

Some things I would like ANet to add to the new areas:

- **World Progression.** I'd like to see more drastic changes to an area. Really take the idea of Dynamic Events and run with it. The failure state in games is often underrated and under-appreciated. Lets say we fail a string of events. Perhaps those areas get covered in a blizzard that makes visibility an issue like the sandstorm does for Dry Top. Use the content and make PvE more dynamic and interesting. Make certain content appear only during one state or the other. Make some next level Dynamic Events for GW2.

- **Good strong Meta Events.** Having smaller Dynamic Events making life interesting for the local areas and inhabitants of a map is all well and good, but a good map meta is also key to making the smaller map content seem important in the overall progression through a map, making the adventures more memorable.

- **Hubs and villages.** While some apparently loathe the idea of a quest hub, I've always been a fan of having that temporary "home" to return to to stock up on supplies before the next adventure in an area. Having a village in GW2 could be a place where side characters hang out. Maybe an area has a small story, and you get to know certain characters in a village, and become familiar with what the new threats are doing to them. It's a way to show more low key and local problems and tie the Dynamic Events and stories together. We've had some interesting village/hubs like this during PoF and LS4, and I would love to get more intimate with the world and its inhabitants going forward.

 

 

## PvE Content

You're right. I didn't talk about Strike Missions in the last section. I'd like to gather up the PvE content that is less Living Story specific and give some thoughts on how those aspects might be used.

 

**Strike Missions:**

I'm excited about this one. I see a lot more potential in this tech than just Bounties 2.0. You people aren't ambitious enough!

We've yet to try this in action, so I will be speculating here, but the tech running these Strike Missions could be used for more than just end game content. Here are some ideas, I've been thinking about:

- **Teaching players.** With the LS5, ANet also want to go back to old maps and add or update content there, if it makes sense to do so. GW2 has an amazing combat system that a lot of players unfortunately don't fully appreciate. Using the Strike Mission tech early on could really serve the new player experience immensely. ANet wants Strike Missions to serve as easier group content that teaches players mechanics, so why not use the tech in early parts of the game. Creating a sort of training grounds or arena in Lion's Arch where people arrive around level 30 could be an opportunity to teach new and more casual players more about the combat.

- **Dungeon-like content.** I am a big fan of dungeons, and I think it a shame that the style of group content that provided has been replaced by Fractals. While I don't mind Fractals, dungeons provide a different style of group content that is more tangible in the world. The SM system sounds more flexible than the old dungeon system in terms of group size. It might be a good opportunity to create more dungeon like content as well.

 

Of course, I am also excited to try the Strike Missions themselves. I'm looking forward to this new style of group content and seeing how it might expand the gaming experience of GW2.

 

**Fractals:**

The Fractals have always intrigued me as content bridging lore from GW1 to GW2, connecting the dots for players who haven't played the first game. It can also be used to explore even more ancient lore of the world that no Guild Wars fan has ever experienced before. I would love to see the roster of Fractals expanded.

 

I am more of a story and lore person than a competitive PvE player, so my first picks would be:

- **GW1 Fractals.** Boss fights from the first game. This is a great way to honor some moments from the first game and its three campaigns, and also show new players some cool moments from the franchise's history. Moments from the Story Missions like: Nolani Academy and the Stormcaller, The Siege of Gandara, The Fight against Varesh Ossa in the Ruins of Morah or (Dwayna forbid) some missions from the Factions campaign to show of some Canthan locations would all be great to see.

- **Ancient Lore.** We already have some rather "out there" Fractals. I would love for ANet to use the Fractals to slip in some more lore from ancient times. We have the ancient races that are still shrouded in mystery. A Fractal about the Jotun in their prime perhaps? Or maybe the first rise of the Elder Dragons?

 

Finally, there is a "hot topic" suggestion:

- **Toggle-able Leaderboards.** Again, I'm not much of a competitive PvE'er myself, but I think supporting the community that is there should be a priority. Some people don't care for speed clearing and are playing only to engage with and experience the content. As such, perhaps a way for people, groups or guilds to toggle it on/off would be an option? Guilds or groups could then compete against one another, and people who'd rather not would be free to just play the Fractals as they always have.

 

**Raids:**

The combat system of GW2 is amazing, deep and allows for mastery. While I can appreciate that raids are not everyone's mighty pot of tea, I think they bring some flavor that serves an aspect of GW2 whether you're a raider or not. A raid boss feels intimidating, because it requires skill and strategy to overcome. You can't just "wing" it. The Elder Dragons should fill me with dread. Unfortunately, they don't. Dhuum, on the other hand?

 

I hope to see the raids expanded upon. Some ideas would be:

- **Difficulty modes.** Many people feel strongly about this in either direction. I've given it some thought and would like to see an "Exotic Mode" that is tuned for exotic gear. A slightly easier version that does not require ascended gear, but isn't as generous with rewards as the normal mode. For some players, getting the ascended equipment is a hassle, and while I know it's possible to beat the raids using exotic gear, this might help some players take the step and try them out. It may help the pug scene as well.

- **Tying raids to current story content.** The first few raid wings and LS3 felt very exciting to me back in the day. Although I hadn't tried raids, it felt as though the "main story" and the LS3 was more high stakes due to the raids adding that extra tension. Maybe that's a personal preference, I'd like to hear what other people think, but for me, I'd like some "side story" in raids.

 

 

**Open World:**

The Open World maps is content that we probably all partake in. The beautiful scenery of GW2 should also get some love. If ANet intend to go back to older maps and update or expand upon them, there are many exciting prospects that we might get around to.

 

Keep in mind that this really depends on how deep and crazy ANet wants to go into changing existing areas around Tyria. We don't know what exactly they are capable of pulling off just yet, but here are some personal hopes for the future of the open world content of GW2:

- **Updated Dynamic Events.** Since 2012, ANet has hopefully been learning a lot about Dynamic Events. I'd love to see some updates to them in the core maps, and of course some totally new ones in the new maps.

- **Champions.** More low key stuff, sure, but having some boss encounters with maybe some new events tying a smaller story together would be nice to see. I'd love for them to expand the Dynamic Events more, or use what they've learned to update some core maps in Tyria.

- **World Bosses.** These are always a spectacle. Updating old ones or adding new ones, Tyria needs more content like Triple Trouble or Tequatl. Expanding upon this content would be great, and if people get more familiar with the mechanics due to Strike Missions, it might not even be too much to ask for more mechanically difficult World Bosses.

- **Updated Map Meta Events.** Some map metas are more exciting than others. Updating the core maps and making the different content more exciting couldn't hurt. I'd love to see more mechanically interesting map metas.

 

I know some of this will be way too much to ask for and only in a more perfect world where ANet had all the money and staff to support all this, would it be possible. But hey, it's at least ideas that could be looked into at some point.

 

## PvP and WvW

I am not much of a PvP'er. I have barely touched WvW. Only recently have I looked into the sPvP scene, and I actually quite like it. The UI and systems are all there, but I can understand that for those who have played it a lot more than I, it needs some love and support from ANet to keep the excitement going.

 

As such, I'm probably not the most qualified speaker to comment on things here. I can only say that I have enjoyed it way more than I thought I would, and I am excited to delve further into it. My only bullet points would be:

- **Play the PvP and WvW content, ANet.** Really get in there. What do you like? What do you dislike? Hopefully, you are gamers yourselves, or have devs who are passionate about that side of the game to bring some hype to it within the company.

- **Engage with your PvP and WvW community!** Again, to ANet. Engage with the community. Most people aren't toxic. Some are, sure, but it's only very few albeit vocal ones. You're online, what'd you expect? Mostly, people are passionate about your game, but feel neglected. They see more potential than what is currently being delivered, and they are looking for ways to make you listen and reasons to keep on playing. Vocal minorities are not to be feared, and they shouldn't discourage you from talking to the majority.

 

You have a great game with a lot of potential here. We want to see it grow further.

 

## Closing words

The final thing I want to touch upon is for ANet to be more transparent.

 

I will be playing WoW Classic with my friends. I want them to join me here as well, but why should they?

We, the community, don't know the plan or vision for GW2.

 

"Is a new expansion on the horizon? Is it just the LS content, then!? Will you even be playing six months from now?"

The answer to all those questions is "I don't know" which does not translate into anything positive for my friends or any people outside the community for that matter.

 

I certainly want to still be playing for a long time. I want to be able to say that "Oh, these saga's bring some very meaty story content to the game and these new maps are stunning. They've really added a lot of great new group content as well, and the core maps have received some love too." but really, I just don't know.

 

I hope ANet will engage with us more, share some plans or hopes that they have for the game going forward. Some of those plans may change and not come to pass, but that's fine. Just knowing that the team is passionate and have a lot of great ideas they want to implement creates excitement.

 

Don't keep us in the dark, ANet.

 

**Let us grow GW2 together.**