replay-value
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Breakfast Topic: Which Mists instance do you most enjoy replaying?
This morning's Breakfast Topic isn't as a simple as "Which new instance is your favorite dungeon?" We're pouring another cup of coffee because we want to hear which instance you most enjoy repeating, even if it's not your most favorite of the expansion -- because even the joy of an instance that utterly captivated you the first time through may dim after repeated assaults. As time goes on, which 5-man or scenario are you most open to (or even look forward to) running again and again? Disclaimer: The author of this post may or may not be known for making farming pacts with guildmates ("I'll reset and re-run this instance with you until raid time every evening until you get your drop if you'll do the same for me once we get yours!") and is therefore disqualified from making rational judgments on reasonable replay value for any instance. But surely there's more to replaying dungeons than grinding out points and shinies and rep, so let's turn our thinking away from loot for a moment. Don't use where your loot drops as a consideration. Which Mists dungeon or scenario are you most pleased to see pop up on your loading screen? What's the attraction? Is it the scenery, the encounter design, the story, or something else that keeps you coming back for more?
Flameseeker Chronicles: The game at the end of Guild Wars 2
Let's hear it for information! Last week ArenaNet developers Eric Flannum and Colin Johanson streamed a "TAD talk" (that apparently stands for The ArenaNet Developers, but I prefer to think it's something along the lines of Truthy And Designerrific or The Answer Dump) about endgame in Guild Wars 2. There was some pretty neat stuff. This, as a necessity, pretty much all relates to PvE. Sure, you could argue that PvP is endgame, as in it's something-to-when-you-are-level-80, but when you consider the way that PvP works in Guild Wars 2, it's actually something you do anytime you like. That might be all the time; that might be none of the time. So PvP and WvW will always be waiting there with open arms for you when you need to spice up your in-game life. They are constant. You don't fight your way up to level 80 and then think, "Gee, I'm competitive in PvP now!" That's part of ArenaNet's design philosophy. The team has a stated goal of not wanting to change the game drastically for endgame. If you're at the point in time that's marked "endgame," you've ostensibly enjoyed the game for the last 80 levels (otherwise, why on earth would you not quit?), so what ArenaNet doesn't want to do is suddenly give you something completely different to fill your days. That leaves some people feeling like there is no endgame because the endgame in Guild Wars 2 is strikingly similar to the rest of the game.
DS Daily: Best bang for your buck
We were thinking about how many awesome games there on the DS. We then passed out from the exertion because, let's face it, there's so many great games available for the handheld. So, we decided to tackle something a bit less strenuous. We started thinking about how many of those awesome games are worth playing more than just once. Do you have any favorites with an incredibly high replay value? Which DS games have you found to be the most filled with great gaming content? Which games reign in replayability?
