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Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2's Legacy of the Foefire
This Guild Wars 2 beta was possibly more exciting for me than any of the previous ones. It was bigger in pretty much every sense -- more areas, more races, more PvP, more people. It was still rife with its fair share of technical issues, but those issues did not seem to really define the norm. And most importantly, it was the last one, which left each experience flavored with the subtle taste of anticipation. What did you get up to? I'd hope some of you who aren't quite as comfortable with structured PvP took this last opportunity to get in and give it a go while the scene is (theoretically) as open and easy to join as possible. If you did, you probably ran into the Legacy of the Foefire map. If you didn't, here's a bit about what you missed.
ArenaNet releases Guild Wars 2 Asura intro cinematic [Updated]
The Asura are here, and they're not very modest if we're going by Guild Wars 2's latest racial cinematic. "I personify genius," says the narrator before going on to explain how Asurans "exceed expectations in everything we do." ArenaNet has released a two-minute clip that gives us some background on the diminutive race, and the running time is heavy on the firm's one-of-a-kind concept art. Since this is also an intro cinematic, it lets us in on what awaits players who elect to roll as one of the floppy-eared cutelings in this weekend's beta as well as Guild Wars 2's forthcoming launch. See the Asura for yourself after the break. [Thanks to Michael for the tip!] [Update: Anet has released a new blog post that offers a bit of insight into the creation of the Asura cinematic.]
ArenaNet presents WvW improvements and server list for final Guild Wars 2 beta [Updated]
With the final Guild Wars 2 beta just days away, ArenaNet has been putting out scads of information regarding what players can expect over their weekend in-game. We've already told you about the Asura and Sylvari being playable, new areas being opened up, and the new PvP map. Today ArenaNet added to the heap of updates with some information about world vs. world. The last BWE helped the team find some issues and bugs in the WvW matchmaking system, leading to some rather unbalanced matches. As a result, the server standings from that weekend won't be published, but systems designer Mike Ferguson says that those bugs have been patched up and more factors have been added to the formula to improve its accuracy. In answer to some concerns about launch, Ferguson announced that the 24-hour match length that players are familiar with from the betas will be used until servers are consistently being matched properly. At that time, matches will move to the two-week format that WvW is meant to take. In the same post, Ferguson listed the servers available for the final beta, which is noticeably shorter than the previous list. The world population limit has been "greatly increased," due both to the additional areas that will be open for player exploration and to some adjustment in how the team is handling its tech. Players should note that this is the initial list and the team is prepared to launch new worlds should the need arise. Refer to the original blog post for the full world list. [Update] ArenaNet has posted a few extra details on the official forums, world transfers will be free from the start of the beta until 9:00 p.m. EDT on July 21st. Gem cost for transfers after that time will be 1800 gems to transfer to a high-population world, 1000 gems to transfer to a medium-population world, and 500 gems for a low-population world.
Guild Wars 2 beta will include new PvP map, live gem store, and more
We've already told you that you can play as the Asura and Sylvari in the upcoming Guild Wars 2 beta weekend, but the fun doesn't stop there! Along with a chance to meet the last two races, characters will have access to a brand-new map for characters in the 17 to 20 level range. The new map, the Brisbane Wildlands, borders the areas of the Asura, Sylvari, and humans, with a heaping helping of Skritt thrown in for good measure. There's trouble in paradise, though, according to Game Designer Kim Kirsch. "The Inquest, Nightmare Court, and human bandits now flood the area, preying on skritt and disrupting lab operations. Worse still, each of these groups seem to have their own dark intentions -- plots that could be catastrophic if left unchecked." If you're torn between keeping your existing beta characters or rolling anew as an Asura or Sylvari, ArenaNet has made your choice a great deal easier. All existing beta information (characters, items, and likely server selection) will be deleted. You'll keep your contact list, but that's about it! This wipe will happen both before and after the upcoming beta weekend, so you'll have a clean slate for the last test and then again for the headstart weekend or launch proper. In addition, transactions in the in-game gem store will require actual credit card or PayPal purchases. While items bought in the store this weekend will be wiped, a record will be kept of how many gems were purchased, and those gems will be waiting for you after Guild Wars 2 launches.
Colin Johanson talks about Guild Wars 2 betas and more
In an interview posted this week, Colin Johanson, Lead Content Designer for Guild Wars 2, took the time to talk with Guild Wars 2 Hub about the importance of beta weekend events, ArenaNet's design process, and the company's attitude as launch gets ever closer. Johanson talked about how "incredibly nerve-wracking" taking the first demo to Gamescom two years ago was and how those nerves have transitioned steadily into "excitement as the game edges closer to release with each beta weekend." He also described how the beta events invigorate the team and get everybody champing at the bit to get back into making the game better. "Pride and hubris are dangerous things in this industry, though," he added, saying that the team members work diligently to listen to and incorporate feedback and remember who it is they are making the game for.
Asura and Sylvari races playable in final Guild Wars 2 beta
We know Guild Wars 2's release date. We know when the last beta weekend will take place. Now, the last great mystery has been answered. A blog post scheduled to go live later this morning (link coming soon) details the changes that ArenaNet has in store for the beta schedule for July 20th to 22nd. Spoiler alert: The Sylvari and Asura will be playable! Previous beta weekends gave players access to the home cities and two explorable zones apiece for the Humans, Charr, and Norn, as well Lion's Arch and Gendarran Fields. In the upcoming beta, the last two playable races will also be open for exploration. Like the other races, Sylvari and Asura characters will see personal story content up to level 20 and access to their respective capital cities, the Grove and Rata Sum. In addition, a new Guild-Conquest PvP map will be available for playtesting. If you've always wondered what sort of city snarky magitech geniuses would build or have been waiting for ever to play as a humanoid plant, your time is now. [Edit to add: ArenaNet's blog post has been published, and Gamespot now has a video of Asura gameplay.]
Another Guild Wars 2 stress test is coming this Wednesday
Can't get enough Guild Wars 2 news? Well, ArenaNet has just announced that it will be conducting a stress test toward the middle of next week. Specifically, you're invited to try to crash the servers on Wednesday, June 27th, from 1:00 p.m. EDT to 5:00 p.m. EDT. The invitation is restricted to players who have pre-purchased the game, and ArenaNet says that it wants "to gather additional data on how [the servers] operate under load" before the next beta weekend event. If you've played during a previous testing phase, your characters will be waiting for you since the devs aren't wiping data for the stress test. More info is yours for the reading at the official GW2 website.
ArenaNet shares world and gem store details for Guild Wars 2 beta weekend event
Unless some crazy Asura experiments are playing havoc with the timestream, the much-anticipated second Guild Wars 2 beta weekend event is getting closer all the time! In preparation for that, the ArenaNet blog is now sporting a new dose of information about worlds and world transfers in this beta weekend. One of the big changes for this BWE is the inclusion of dedicated French and German servers. A number of the European servers have been marked specifically for French and German, two of the officially supported languages. New players will be able to pick any of the 96 servers (that's 48 US-based servers and 48 European) to be their home world. Players from the previous BWE will have a 30-hour window from 3:00 p.m. EDT on Friday to 9:00 p.m. EDT on Saturday during which they can transfer between worlds without spending any gems. After that time-frame, transfers will cost the normal 1,800 gems. Each account will be credited with 500 free gems automatically. Players will also be able to get an additional 2,000 gems; you won't actually be charged for the transaction, but you'll have to enter valid credit card details in the Gem Store. Check out the exhaustive server list on the the official post.
Massively Exclusive: Eric Flannum talks Guild Wars 2 beta changes
There's no doubt that the folks over at ArenaNet have been busy with preparations for the upcoming Guild Wars 2 beta weekend event. The team has doubled the number of servers available for the beta and instituted a number of changes to the beta content itself, as detailed in a recent blog post. Despite the bustle, Lead Game Designer Eric Flannum took the time to answer a few of our questions regarding changes in the upcoming beta.
Guild Wars 2 beta brings new zones, PvP tournaments, and more
With the second Guild Wars 2 beta weekend event fast approaching, the ArenaNet blog has been updated with some new details about updates to beta client. As we've been told before, players' characters from the previous BWE and stress test will roll over into this event, allowing people who put the effort into leveling their toons to reap the sweet, sweet rewards of higher-level content. That higher-level content comes in the form of the Ascalonian Catacombs dungeon's story mode (for level 30 characters), explorable mode (for level 35 characters), and a new map human-territory map, Gendarran Fields (for level 25-35 characters). Additionally, players can travel to Lion's Arch and give their unwanted weapons and items to the Mystic Forge to see what it spits out in return. Apparently, the forge runs on pure djinn power (253% more green than any fuel we've got, we're guessing): The djinn Zommoros is held within the Mystic Forge and is evidently content to take players' stuff in exchange for mysterious goods of unknown value. On the PvP side of things, WvW maps have received quite an update! Along with the normal face-stopping and zerging associated with WvW, players will now be able to participate in a newly added mini-dungeon, skill challenges, jumping puzzles, and even dynamic events. Players participating in structured PvP will form five-player groups, take part in eight-team tournaments for chests full of goodies, and find that structured PvP matches reward them with Rank as well as Glory. Updates have been made to general gameplay and design, as well. Overflow server technology is now being made functional by the ability to see when party members are on overflow worlds, travel to those party members' worlds, and stick together between zones. Chat has been improved with chat bubbles, map chat, and an update to local chat. Those of you who've been waiting on key-binding functionality will find that it's got a new interface (which includes the binding of modifier keys, thank the five gods). Skills have been split into three tiers, so players now have to unlock a certain number of skills on one tier to be able to unlock any skills on the next level, in order to encourage a sense of progression and to make adding new skills more feasible in the future. Full details of the update can be read on the ArenaNet blog.
Guild Wars 2 to 'officially enter closed beta' this Friday [Updated]
Just in case you haven't gone into full-on meltdown from Guild Wars 2 news overload, ArenaNet has tossed out one more announcement for you via today's Reddit Ask Me Anything session: "We will officially enter Closed Beta Testing this Friday. It will be marked with an increase in our pool of testers. To clarify, this phase of testing is still under NDA and is not open to the public." While it's something -- and definitely more than anything we've seen so far -- the population at large shouldn't expect to see closed beta key applications and giveaways popping up all over the place. NCsoft seems to be continuing its pattern of very limited testing for GW2. Still, it's a step in the right direction for eager fans. [UPDATE: ArenaNet elaborated on the beta information by explaining "We have a studio internal selection process for our Closed Beta that starts on Friday. There will be no public application form."]
