Guild Wars 2
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Flameseeker Chronicles: Divinity's Reach to Ascalon City
We recently heard that Ghosts of Ascalon, the first Guild Wars 2 novel, is due out this summer. The plot of the book revolves around a group of adventurers traveling from Divinity's Reach to Ascalon City in search of the Claw of the Khan-Ur, a Charr relic that is the key to a truce between the Charr and the humans. Traveling from Divinity's Reach to Ascalon City is quite a hike, even in present-day Tyria (which is presumably much friendlier to travelers than the world of Guild Wars 2.) Since Jeff Grubb -- one of the principal designers of Guild Wars 2 -- is involved in the book, hopefully the tale will give us a look at the land of Tyria 250 years into the future. For now, we'll have to content ourselves with piecing together what we know of the world and taking a look at the path our (hopefully) intrepid heroes will be facing. Examining future lore based on partial knowledge is a tricky thing, because there are so many different opinions and schools of thought. Follow along after the cut for a ride on the speculation train, and feel free to add your thoughts at the end!
First Guild Wars novel announced: Ghosts of Ascalon to release this summer
We know from the lore of Guild Wars 2 that Ascalon will become what is literally a ghost town thanks to King Adelbern, his sword Magdaer, and his last-ditch effort to drive out the Charr in a cataclysm known as Foefire. The effects of the event reach farther than anyone would have thought in the first Guild Wars 2 novel, now officially titled Ghosts of Ascalon. The ghosts of slain Ascalon soldiers are the only inhabitants of the area now, defending their home from invaders and generally making it a pretty unwelcoming place. In Ghosts of Ascalon, Queen Jennah is attempting a treaty with the Charr, who are unwilling to deal until the Charr artifact the Claw of the Khan-Ur is retrieved from -- where else -- Ascalon City. A small band of adventurers sets out for Old Ascalon to retrieve the artifact from a dangerous land and an unwilling ghostly king. (Since Lion's Arch is gone, we assume they couldn't find anyone to run them.) The book is scheduled for release this summer in North America and Europe. For now, check out the FAQ on the Guild Wars 2 site.
Flameseeker Chronicles: Keeping an old game new
"Guild Wars is an old game." As the game approaches its fifth birthday and Guild Wars 2 continues production, that's a phrase you'll hear more and more. While it's true that the game has been around for a while now, age doesn't necessarily equal stale or boring. On the contrary, it means you've got an established game with an experienced development team behind it, and they've had time to work out all those bugs, kinks, and emergency patches that are so common in new games. Even better, you've got a strong player base that knows their way around. The largest factor in what makes a game fun for you is your attitude and outlook, so let's take a look at some ways to keep from falling into the trap of assuming there's nothing left for you to do in Guild Wars.
ArenaNet LFM for Guild Wars 2
Do you have mad programming, writing, or art skills? (We're going to assume you love MMOs since you're here.) If you do and are either in the Bellevue, WA area, or are willing to relocate, then you'll want to check this out. The ArenaNet team have over a dozen positions currently posted on their website, and looking for more people to help them bring Guild Wars 2 to life. Current openings are for a host of positions: animators; QT specialists; web services and game programming; writing; and even a French community manager. So if you've ever wanted to join the ranks of the games industry and have the chops, get your resume and cover letter together and send them over to ArenaNet! Who knows -- perhaps we'll wind up interviewing you for Massively some day!
The Flameseeker Chronicles: Community guide to Guild Wars
Welcome to Tyria! The Flameseeker Chronicles will be a regular feature here at Massively, in which we cover all things Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2, beginning with this handy-dandy community guide. Guild Wars has been around for a while now, and has the advantage of a strong, knowledgeable fan-based community. There are literally hundreds of fan sites and forums, Twitter pages and Facebook pages all devoted to Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2. It's very easy to get overwhelmed, so view this as a guide to where you can find the most comprehensive information for whatever you are looking for, be it gameplay information, news on game development, skill and build help, and much more.
The sounds of Guild Wars 2: a Q&A with ArenaNet's Audio Director
The members of the Guild Wars 2 Guru forums, just like all of us, are making the wait more bearable with loads of speculation and discussion about Guild Wars 2. A recent discussion has been going on regarding sound effects and ambient sounds, with everyone generally agreeing that those details are a wonderful addition to a game environment -- the more the better. Guild Wars is a game that already does this well, with details such as a change in the sound of footsteps depending on the surface one is walking on. Fans have the expectation and hope that things will be even better in Guild Wars 2. As it turns out, ArenaNet's Audio Director James Ackley was keeping an eye on the conversation, and jumped in via Community Manager Regina Buenaobra to give fans a behind-the-scenes look at what the foley team has been up to for GW2. Ackley went through the thread, and addressed each individual wish and suggestion that had come up, and then provided a handful of photos as a bonus. Take a look a the photos in the gallery below, and you can read the full Q & A here. We at Massively join the fans in thanking Ackley for taking the time to give a behind the scenes look at some of the production process!
ArenaNet gives us a sneak peek at the voices of Guild Wars 2
Just when you thought we'd already gotten our excellent holiday treat from ArenaNet in the form of that amazingly gorgeous Guild Wars 2 trailer, they decided to add in a behind-the-scenes video for us to enjoy! This new video titled "Giving Tyria a Voice" offers a look at the people making the characters of Guild Wars 2 come alive. Additionally, we're treated to their thoughts on what their characters are all about -- shedding a bit more light on what we can look forward to in terms of story and atmosphere. When coupled with the art from the recently released races trailer, this is a must-watch video for anyone curious about how the game is progressing.The voice talent tagged for Guild Wars 2 is an amazing lineup of well-known, veteran voice actors. The people we meet in this trailer are Steve Blum, Troy Baker, Kari Wahlgren and geektastic favorite, Felicia Day, one of the stars of The Guild. With a rich pool of talent like this, coupled with award-winning artists and a studio dedicated to creating top-notch content for their fans, Guild Wars 2 is definitely shaping up to be an incredible game. But don't take our word for it -- check out the behind-the-scenes video from ArenaNet we've conveniently included after the break!
Interview with Undead Labs' Jeff Strain
Last month we heard about Jeff Strain's new studio Undead Labs, and his upcoming zombie MMO. In the wake of that exciting announcement, Kill Ten Rats was lucky enough to spend some time with Jeff in an interview. They covered quite a few important questions: fast zombies or slow ones, why it's best to hide in a Costco in the event of a zombie apocalypse, those darn velociraptors, and why so many development companies are in Seattle. Oh, yes, they also talked about gaming. Jeff covered some interesting points on the complexities of console MMO gaming -- the lack of a keyboard seems to be the biggest issue -- as well as how much he loves the term "MMO" (not really). Jeff also gave due respect to World of Warcraft, and even managed to toss in a "shameless plug" for Guild Wars 2. The full interview is well worth your time, and can be found here.
The Daily Grind: Which Guild Wars 2 race will you play?
Hot on the heels of any new information about Guild Wars 2 these days comes the inevitable question: which race will you make first? Since we found out that humans aren't the only playable race, the discussion provides endless fodder for Guild Wars fans. Will you stick with your tried-and-true and play a human? How about going brain-over-brawn and playing an Asura? Have you been running around in your Charr hat since Halloween this year, dreaming of the day you can go all steampunk and create a Charr character? Perhaps you'll create a Norn, just to see if you have a shot with Jora. Or are you the curious type, anxious to create a Sylvari and learn about this mysterious new race? Speculating on your first race in Guild Wars 2 seems to be a favorite way for fans to entertain themselves while waiting for launch, so how about you? What race can you just not wait to jump into when launch day arrives?
Guild Wars 2 trailer introduces us to the game's races
Let's see, there's the human race, the nomadic warrior race, the mystical forest people race, the big ugly race, and the miniature race. Looks like all the MMORPG archetypes are covered! Fine, there's a bit more lore contained within the above trailer for Guild Wars 2, which explains all the motivations and backstories for each of the game's five races. Still, who cares about that stuff? Where's all the loot? For a comprehensive breakdown of the trailer's plot elements, and some speculation on how the story of the sequel will unfold, we suggest checking out our sister site, Massively. This kind of thing is right in their wheelhouse.
Analyzing the newest Guild Wars 2 trailer
ArenaNet has a very early, very wonderful holiday gift for Guild Wars fans this morning: a brand new Guild Wars 2 trailer. (Take a moment to cheer, then we'll move on.) The trailer is amazingly beautiful, something we've come to expect from ArenaNet and particularly Guild Wars 2. But if you don't let yourself get distracted by the eye candy -- something that is admittedly hard to do -- there is a lot of new information here, including more details on people and places we've already heard of, and some fascinating possibilities to explore. Take a look at the video here, then follow along with us as we explore this new information from ArenaNet. If you're unfamiliar with Guild Wars 2, this will help you get acquainted, but we also have some deep lore speculation for current Guild Wars fans. (The video can also be found at the official Guild Wars 2 site.)
NCSoft hints at Guild Wars 2 beta in 2010 and launch in 2011
The last we heard on the tentative launch window of Guild Wars 2 was a fairly vague "2010 or 2011." Fortunately, if comments made by NCSoft CEO Jaeho Lee during a recent investors' call are on the level, it seems NCSoft has made up its mind about the game's release year. Kind of. Somewhat. A little. While speaking about the game (and another of the company's titles, Blade and Soul), Jaeho stated, "I believe there will be certain public events in the year 2010 ... at least a closed beta test for those titles. Commercialization will be expected, at this point, probably some time in the year 2011." We can stick it out until the year after next before getting our hands on this good-lookin' sequel -- we just hope it's not pushed back any further. See, we'd really like to invest some time in the game before the world ends.
NCsoft hints at Guild Wars 2 beta in 2010, launch in 2011
Fans of Guild Wars have been waiting for well over two years for Guild Wars 2, ever since ArenaNet fired up the hype machine in a big way back in March of 2007. Anet announced Guild Wars 2 and Eye of the North at the same time, and anticipated that the beta for GW2 would arrive in the second half of 2008. Since the announcement, the Guild Wars player base has become intimately familiar with various versions of the phrases "We haven't released that information" and "TBA", punctuated occasionally with new information. While the bits of information given here and there add up to something relatively substantial, fans are still asking the big question: When? Obviously the planned 2008 beta didn't happen, and now fans will have to wait a bit longer. CEO Jaeho Lee referred to GW2 and Blade and Soul in a recent conference call with investors: "I believe there will be certain public events in the year 2010... at least a closed beta test for those titles. Commercialisation will be expected, at this point, probably some time in the year 2011." At least fans have plenty of time and motivation to finish filling their Hall of Monuments. Silence and delays aside, when Guild Wars 2 finally arrives, most fans trust ArenaNet to give them something well worth the wait.
Guild Wars announces art contest winners
At the beginning of October, Guild Wars announced that their annual Halloween art contest was open for entries. After sorting through hundreds of submissions, they announced the winners on Friday. As always, fan creativity shone in the form of costumes, lawn decorations, drawings, carved pumpkins, and even a ceramic siege turtle that fires pumpkins instead of jade. ArenaNet seemed very happy with this year's entries: "We were so impressed by both the Halloween spirit and the quality of artistic talent in our community that it was hard to choose only ten winners and ten honorable mentions." Twenty winners were chosen from the submissions for some great prizes. The top three winners scored a signed copy of The Art of Guild Wars 2, the top ten received a signed Guild Wars art print, and all twenty winners won an exclusive Mad King's Guard minipet. Congratulations to all of the winners!
ArenaNet grants wish to heart transplant patient
Emily is a high school junior diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, who is having a pretty good 2009 in spite of that. She received a heart transplant earlier this year, as well as a little pick-me-up from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Emily became a Guild Wars fan last year while waiting for her heart transplant and during her recovery afterward. She spent a lot of time in Tyria while living in the hospital. Just last week Make-A-Wish arranged for Emily to travel to Seattle and visit the ArenaNet offices, making her the envy of a few million fans. She spent her morning touring the offices, meeting the staff, learning about what they do, and even meeting with the section heads to discuss her likes and dislikes about Guild Wars. After lunch, time to spend a few hours playing Guild Wars 2 with the ArenaNet team. That's right, Emily got an up close and personal look at the game, giving feedback and making suggestions from a fan's point of view. The best part came at the end: "They pulled us aside and asked if she could stay a couple of extra hours. They convened a group of their eight senior designers and Emily, and they asked Emily to help them design an "Event" for the game." So when we finally get our hands on GW2, there will be a little something from Emily in there. Congratulations from Massively, Emily, and we wish you continued health.
Fourth annual MMO calendar now on sale
It's that time of year again - the MMO Calendar for 2010 is on sale. MMO Calendar is a yearly project created as a non-profit fundraiser for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. The calendar features original art from 12 different current and upcoming MMOs, and 100% of the purchase price of every calendar is donated to St. Jude. This year's calendar includes artwork from: Age of Conan Dungeons & Dragons Online Eve Online EverQuest II Free Realms Guild Wars 2 Lord of the Rings Online Runes of Magic RuneScape The Secret World Warhammer Online World of Warcraft It promises to be a gorgeous calendar, but just in case the art alone isn't enough to convince you, purchasing the calendar will get you entered in a drawing for one of ten prizes including closed beta access, subscriptions, and boxed game sets. Calendars will be shipped by December 5th and the prize drawing is December 7th, so visit MMO Calendar to order yours!
Win yourself a Guild Wars 2 art book from Massively
During PAX this summer, ArenaNet announced a new art book, showcasing the amazing talent that they've somehow been able to harness all in one studio. This book was given away at the convention and is now sold at their Penny Arcade or NCsoft online store, but will not be available anywhere else. That's why we're extra happy to announce that we're giving one away to a lucky winner this week.As part of our commitment to never accept gifts from publishers, we're giving away this art book (valued at $30) in a random drawing. To enter, simply reply to this post between now and Friday, October 16th at 8am EDT. At that time, a winner will be chosen and contacted. Limit one entry per person. Winners must 18+ and live in the US or Canada (excluding Quebec). Check out our complete contest rules page for more information on eligibility.Before we pry our hands from this coveted hardcover book, we took some photos of a few pages to let you know what you're trying for. Follow along in the gallery below for only a sample of what to expect.[Update: Comments are now closed, winner to be contacted shortly]%Gallery-75334%
The top five Guild Wars features we take for granted
Guild Wars was my introduction into MMO gaming. My husband heard of it on a podcast and decided to check it out. I got curious, asked him if I could try it, and never looked back. My outgoing, chatty personality combined with my love of computer games made MMO gaming an irresistible new world to explore. With all the recent (long-awaited) news of Guild Wars 2, this seemed like a great time to take a look back at some of the features of Guild Wars that are rarely found in other games of its type.
Guild Wars 2 blending RTS with PvP
Kill Ten Rats recently picked up some interesting information regarding PvP in Guild Wars 2. Essentially, world PvP will be mimicking the RTS model. Resources such as stone mines can be conquered by players and will deliver stone to catapults by caravan. These deliveries can be intercepted by enemy players unless manned watchtowers are defending your roads and scouts are keeping track of enemy forces. Or, as ArenaNet put it, players can simply look for lost PvPers and smack them around a bit.Complex is the operative word here, as making this system work with large numbers of players will be almost as difficult as making it work with very few. Plus, developers will be dealing with all the regular idiosyncrasies associated with grouping in an MMO such as PUGs, communication and unruly parents demanding for chores or homework to be completed. Even all that considered, we hope they can pull it off so we can reap the fun.If you're looking for more information on Guild Wars 2, check out our recent interview with ArenaNet.
Guild Wars 2 art book to not be included in the collector's edition
If you've been keeping your eye on that very gorgeous artbook that's currently residing in the Guild Wars 2 store/Penny Arcade store but have been holding off on your purchase, you might want to reconsider. ArenaNet has recently confirmed, via Twitter, that the art book in the Penny Arcade store will not be coming with the Guild Wars 2 collector's edition box.So if you were really looking forward to this artbook, looks like you're going to have to put down the 30 dollars and pick it up separately. On the bright side, it's a hardbound 128 page book of what looks to be some really beautiful art.As to what will be included in the collector's edition, well, your guess is as good as ours right now. ArenaNet is being tight lipped on those features, and it looks like we're just going to have to wait.
