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Flameseeker Chronicles: Why Guild Wars 2 shouldn't replicate Destiny's wedge
When I look back at a year of Guild Wars 2 releases, one thing stands out to me: I really like Kasmeer, Braham, Marjory and Rox, and I'm not alone. ArenaNet's four newest iconic heroes have remained steadfastly popular in the midst of other criticism of GW2's living story. They're not universally popular -- no character is -- but you can usually count on their dialogue and characterization prompting appreciative threads and analysis. At the start of the Tower of Nightmares release, a few of my friends even linked to a forum post that theorized that Kasmeer might die (she didn't), and were deeply concerned until Wintersday came around. "ANet had better not," one of them said heatedly. "If Kas or Jory die, I'll quit." While the iconics of the personal story and dungeon story modes, Destiny's Edge, have their fans, I've never heard anyone threaten to uninstall if one of them shuffles off to the Mists, even after a long history and a novel dedicated to their exploits. I think the main reason is that it's a lot easier to respect characters and want to be around them when you aren't left feeling like the only adult in the room.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2's rogue's gallery remixes
Guild Wars 2's wicked snake people, the Krait, are nasty on their best of days, and ArenaNet is making them even nastier in the new Tower of Nightmares release. The titular tower has been built in secret in Viathan Lake under a force field, and its unveiling will cause massive changes in the area. The trailer shows us green skies filled with black seeds and sinister winds; at the top of the tower is a plant of some kind. I'm not used to describing plants as lurking or looming, but this one is definitely doing both. I'm excited for this release because it looks creepy, and regardless of how effective it ends up being, I almost always appreciate it when MMOs attempt to be scary. I like that the lore of GW2 doesn't always take itself too seriously, but when it goes dark, it can hit some disturbing notes. My misgivings about the patch lie in this being the third enemy mashup we've seen: Dredge and Flame Legion, Inquest and Aetherblades, and now Krait and what have to be some extremely persuasive snake charmers.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2's living whirl
Hi there! I'm Anatoli Ingram, and starting today I'll be your friendly neighborhood Flameseeker Chronicles columnist. Some of you probably know me from my previous life as commenter RingBonefield, but thanks to the kindness and pure heart power of the Massively lead editors, I've evolved into my final form: a guy who not only won't shut up about Guild Wars 2 but gets paid to not shut up about Guild Wars 2. If you're anywhere near as easily distracted as I am by shiny objects placed tantalizingly out of reach, it's probably been difficult to tear yourself away from the Zephyr Sanctum. But GW2 fans have recently gotten huge chunks of information regarding the future of the game -- biweekly content updates, big plans for upcoming content, a possible lack of expansions, holy cats! -- and there's been no shortage of player concern and controversy to go along with them. Join me after the break, where I'll take a breather from dashing around as an ethereal being of light and wind to talk about what all of this potentially means for GW2's living world.
Look behind the living world in Guild Wars 2
Have you been out of the loop in Guild Wars 2? There's been big stuff going on with the game's narrative, sure, but it's easy to lose the thread if you're not playing the game on a regular basis. The latest developer video from ArenaNet is meant to address this, with narrative designers Angel McCoy and Scott McGough talking about the events of the Flame and Frost storyline and how the game's previous stories are leading into future developments. The crux of Flame and Frost is the allegiance between the Dredge and the Flame Legion, with the former lacking in magical artillery and the latter being cut off from traditional Charr machinery. That alliance led to the capture of civilians, which in turn led to a push by two young heroes to free former prisoners... which in turn has led to a population move to an unexpected place. Watch the full video for a glimpse at how the story elements lead into one another and to get hints about what's around the bend.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Thoughts about Guild Wars 2's living story
With Guild Wars 2's first multi-month living story arc drawing to a close, I thought this might be a good time to do a little bit of reflection on how the living story is treating Guild Wars 2 so far. Sure, what we've seen so far isn't necessarily indicative of the way things are always going to be, but it's a good starting point. (In fact, it's our only starting point. Unless, of course, you like rampant and foundless speculation as a starting point. This is, after all, the internet.) To expand the conversation a bit, I think we're including holiday updates as part of the living story. It's seasonal, but it also fits into the grander scheme of providing changing content to keep the world moving and to keep players engaged. That means that what we've seen to date includes all of Flame and Frost, Wintersday, Halloween, and the Lost Shores event. Also, I guess the Super Adventure Box? I mean, it's returning and it had a lore tie-in and stuff. Maybe? I'm not sold.
Guild Wars 2's The Secret of Southsun adds mini-game, WvW traps [Updated]
May has just gotten started and already ArenaNet has another content update scheduled for Guild Wars 2. Called The Secret of Southsun, this May 14th update comes right on the heels of the final installment of Flame and Frost and extends the episodic content that began with that first series. This time, the adventures focus on troubles brewing on the tropical island of Southsun Cove where players must quell the rising violence and discover the secret that hides there. The Secret of Southsun also brings an end to culling in the rest of the world (it was previously only disabled in World vs. World) and introduces two an improvement to WvW -- traps and an improved award system. Traps will remove supply from enemies. and players will gain reward for a wider range of activities in the Mists, such as destroying siege weapons, escort missions, and repairing walls. Players can also try their hand at a new crab toss mini-game. On top of the update announcement, ArenaNet has recently posted additional lore expanding the story of Rox, the Charr. Read on to see where her latest adventures lead. [Update: It seems ArenaNet let some of this info out before it intended to, as detailed in this forum post. So the WvW award changes won't be in just yet. ArenaNet has also informed us that it will be holding off on the culling as well and has now altered its official announcement to reflect these changes.] [Source: ArenaNet press release]
A guide to Guild Wars 2's Molten Weapon Facility dungeon
Massively's Richie "bogotter" Procopio is concerned for you. He's concerned that you might not have tried out Guild Wars 2's Molten Weapon Facility dungeon, the latest installment of the game's "Living Story" arc Flame and Frost: Retribution. He's equally concerned that you might have missed the memo about just how temporary this dungeon really is: It's over on May 12th, meaning you don't have long to check it out before it's gone. Forever. But it's all good because Richie has put together a brand-new video guide to the dungeon, so you can either watch it and get a jump on playing through the zone yourself this weekend or just live vicariously through him, which would certainly involve less death. Enjoy his walkthrough after the break! (Dead goat sold separately.)
ArenaNet's guide to GW2 Flame & Frost: Retribution
If you're excited about Guild Wars 2's Flame & Frost: Retribution, ArenaNet is one step ahead of you with a new guide they've provided on the game's site. This spoiler-free mini-guide covers today's Living Story release (with a spoiler-rific version toward the end) and provides a schedule of events for the Flame & Frost epilogue, starting May 12. Be sure to also read through today's patch notes for more details on Flame & Frost: Retribution.
Flameseeker Chronicles: It's time for some retribution in Guild Wars 2
Another patch day is upon us. Among other things, Guild Wars 2's Flame and Frost: Retribution is bringing in a new living story dungeon and some much-needed structured PvP improvements. Over the weekend, members of the press were invited to preview some of the incoming content. I'd like to talk about it with you, so be warned that there are spoilers for the living story dungeon ahead. Something that I found particularly interesting about all of this is that the Molten Weapons Facilities dungeon is going to be available for less than two weeks. The dungeon is due to exit on May 12th. I had expected it to be time-limited, of course, but I think I was expecting a little more time than that. Anyway, let's dive right into it.
Flameseeker Chronicles: April's Guild Wars 2 patch brings custom arenas, spectator mode, and a living story dungeon
It is time to start talking about Guild Wars 2's April update for reals. I've got some serious knowledge to drop on you regarding the Flame and Frost: Retribution update, so let's get right to it. Retribution will be the final installment of the Flame and Frost living story arc. To tie everything off, we're getting a new story dungeon that'll take us deep underground into the Molten Weapon Facilities. Structured PvP is getting some love in the form of custom PvP arenas and spectator mode. Guilds are getting more missions and new rewards. The gem store will be getting new stuff. Let's dive in and look at some specifics, shall we?
Guild Wars 2 wraps up Flame and Frost living story this month
The current "living story" event that's been progressing in Guild Wars 2 over the past few months is set to unveil its final chapter at the end of April. Flame and Frost: Retribution will debut on April 30th, and ArenaNet has a short preview as to what we should expect. In the living story finale, players will strike back against the Molten Alliance -- a team-up of the Flame Legion and Dredge -- by charging into the enemy's weapons facilities. Players will fight alongside event co-stars Rox and Braham to battle "a final hybrid menace." Could it be the unholy pairing of Twilight fandom and hipster subculture? Only time will tell! Catch up on the previous installment of Flame and Frost in a recent column of Flameseeker Chronicles.
Flameseeker Chronicles: NPCs and culling and beedogs, oh my
It's good to have memorable characters. It's important, in a game, to have the sort of characters that players can look back on a month or a year or a lifetime later and think, "Yeah, I remember that NPC." In that sense, I guess ArenaNet has succeeded admirably in the case of Rox the Charr Ranger. I'll remember her until my dying day. ... Mostly because she absolutely petrifies me. Have you seen this lady's eyes? They were clearly made for soul-eating. They're half the size of her face (maybe this is why the baby devourer thinks she's its mommy?), far more cartoony than pretty much anything else in the game, and more saccharine than the fluffy pink quaggan backpacks with bows and hearts. I don't know whether it makes it better or worse that she's got a fairly normal Charr lady voice. Rox was introduced to us, of course, in the Flame and Frost: The Razing patch that came out at the end of March. Let's see what's been going down in the world of Guild Wars 2 since then.
Guild Wars 2's living story to 'grow in scope and grandeur'
Guild Wars 2 Living World Designer Leif Chappelle continues ArenaNet's efforts to educate and sell the concept of gradually unfolding stories to the playerbase. Chapelle says that several storytelling tools are being employed, including open world activities, dungeons, crafting, and instanced episodes. "What we're creating is an actual chronology of the world," Chappelle says. "The events of Flame and Frost will create repercussions throughout the world, bringing new tales and conflicts to light. Through the course of 2013, the concept of these Living World releases will grow in scope and grandeur as we move ahead and build up the groundwork to make this a key component of the developing and ever-changing world of Guild Wars 2." While the event is going on, players will have the option to go back in time and see earlier stages of the story, but this will be denied once the arc is complete. Chapelle says that the team has worked hard to make the UI more clear in regards to steering players to the right areas for the story. ArenaNet is currently selling Guild Wars 2 for 30% off until April 1st.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2's March update
It's patch day! Today marks the arrival of the long-awaited World vs. World patch for Guild Wars 2. There are, of course, many other things being bundled into this month's big update, but WvW might be stealing the show a bit. Of course, WvW updates probably mean hideously long waiting times as folks hop in to check out the new shinies, so how about you go ahead and queue up for whichever Battleground you prefer, and we'll talk about the details of this patch while you wait.
Guild Wars 2 adding Flame and Frost: The Razing update next week
On March 26th, the third installment of the four-part Flame and Frost series in Guild Wars 2 erupts on servers. In this update, the land of Tyria will come under attack by an army composed of the dredge and the charr Flame Legion, whose sole purpose is to completely raze the land and destroy everyone in the way. This threat will burst through the fiery portals in the Shiverpeaks, and denizens of the land need help to defend themselves to avoid annihilation. Plenty of new features accompany this update, giving players multiple ways to help neutralize this threat, from two new NPCs whose stories and missions send players into the fray to dredge-constructed spy outposts that must be found and destroyed. World-vs.-world gets a facelift with a new progression system that includes new abilities and the elimination of culling. About a week after The Razing goes lives, players will be able to peruse the new GW2 leaderboards, where WvW rankings, PvP player rankings, and total achievement points will all be listed.
Flameseeker Chronicles: The eye of the storm in Guild Wars 2
You might remember that Guild Wars 2 got a fairly sizable update not too long ago. You might also remember that we didn't really touch on that update last week. I tend to think that such content needs some time to simmer before we can really dig into it here. The time has come, my friends! The storm has been well and truly gathered, so I believe it's time to take a look at some of what came into the game at the end of February.
Flameseeker Chronicles: The Gathering Storm preview
I know that nothing (nothing in the whole world, in the history of ever) sucks like waiting for the patch on patch day. There's the promise of wonderful things in the future, but they're just so tantalizingly out of reach. So what better way to pass the time waiting for Guild Wars 2's February patch than by talking about it? I got a bit of a sneak preview at the incoming content over the weekend, so let's take a look at the nitty-gritty of what awaits us in the The Gathering Storm.
Flameseeker Chronicles: The storm clouds are gathering in Guild Wars 2
I really wanted to talk with you about jumping puzzles this week, but jumping puzzles last forever and there's been some super cool stuff coming out about Guild Wars 2's February patch. We can talk jumping puzzles some other time, and I dearly hope we will, but for now there's an oncoming storm and new PvP stuff and guild missions and it's all just so very exciting. Let's get to it, shall we?
GW2's Flame & Frost: The Gathering Storm coming February 26
The second installment in Guild Wars 2's Flame and Frost content extravaganza has been dated. That date is February 26th, and you can expect to see a new PvP map called Spirit Watch as well as new guild missions and merits. There's also a new type of competitive PvP in the wings, and it involves two teams of "equal average rating" duking it out in quick matches with ratings and bragging rights on the line. More details are yours on the official GW2 website. [Thanks to Pete for the tip!]
Flameseeker Chronicles: Flame and Frost
Well, my goodness! We've got a week of the Flame and Frost prelude patch behind us, and what a week it's been! The patch notes for this sucker were impressive; for a relatively minor patch, the Flame and Frost prelude brought in a lot of tweaks and updates. I'm kind of glad for that, as quality of life additions were top on my list for hopes for Guild Wars 2 in 2013. I'm very pleased with ArenaNet for shoring up the content that's already out rather than leaving it be in the rush to get out new content. So! Let's take a look at what ArenaNet brought us in the past week.
