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Guild Wars: What keeps fans coming back
Spring is in the air in Guild Wars! I can hear the pitter-patter of speed-enhanced feet coming from the Dragon Arena, the roar of the crowds watching Rollerbeetle races, and the endless grunts of unlucky players on the Nine Rings. It's a celebration -- the celebration of the seventh anniversary of Guild Wars, to be precise. In and around the annual birthday cupcake hoarding that's going on for the duration of festivities, this year has a few other exciting tricks up its proverbial sleeve. For one thing, a new and limited-edition pet has been made available; the Hound of Balthazar can be unlocked for free by having a brief chat with Ceira, Sworn to Fire, in Embark Beach. For another, the bonuses from all weekend events are active for the anniversary, so players will have to go pretty far out of their way to not reap sweet, sweet rewards for any time spent in-game between now and May 8th. Seven's a pretty nice number, don't you think? This is something of a special event, as ArenaNet's promise to get Guild Wars 2 shipped before year's end means that this'll be the last birthday that Guild Wars gets to have before the sequel comes along and grabs everyone's attention -- if, indeed, that's not already happening, what with the beta weekend that's going on right this moment. Even with Guild Wars 2 soaking up some limelight, though, Guild Wars is doing its creators proud and aging with grace and dignity. Let's take a look at some of the building blocks of the game's longevity.
