For generations, war and chaos raged across the land of Tyria. Five great races competed and warred against each other, struggling to tip the balance of power in their favor.
Then the dragons woke.
The all-powerful beasts stirred from their millennial sleep under earth and sea. With their magical breath the dragons spread destruction and created legions of twisted slaves. A deathless dragon named Zhaitan raised the sunken nation of Orr, triggering earthquakes and tidal waves that destroyed entire cities across the Sea of Sorrows. Zhaitan's undead armies surged from the sea, hungry for the destruction of the five races of Tyria: the charr, a ferocious race of feline warriors; the asura, magical inventors of small size and great intellect; the norn, towering shapeshifters from the frigid northern lands; the sylvari, a mysterious young race of visionary plant folk; and the humans, an embattled but resilient people.
Now heroes from the five races must set aside ancient rivalries and stand together against their common enemies in the sequel to the hit MMO Guild Wars. Magic, technology, and cold steel will determine the ultimate fate of the world.
I live right next door to Salem, Massachusetts, the city famous for losing its collective mind in the late 1600s and hanging 19 women for witchcraft. For good measure they also pressed a man to death for being a warlock. Let's hear it for gender equality! Those horrific crimes somehow made Salem a quaint tourist town and the capital of all things Halloween. Go figure. I prefer avoiding the drunken costumed horde and will instead be spending my holiday in Tyria. The massive Halloween-themed Guild Wars 2 content update, Shadow of the Mad King, launches today. Read More »
One of Guild Wars 2's greatest advantages over any other MMO is that it's easier to quit playing. Which isn't how it's supposed to work. Unlike normal games, MMOs are based on keeping you involved at all costs. There must always be something just beyond your grasp, some reward at your fingertips, some reason to keep playing a little longer. Many games work like this, of course, but MMOs in particular have a financial incentive to work like this. MMOs are based entirely on the premise that you should never, ever stop playing. It's like episodic TV, except that there's no next week. There is only and always now. Guild Wars 2 bucks this trend. It's easier to quit playing because, ironically, it's easier to start playing again. Read More »
I've always liked when MMO events mirrored our own real-life holidays, mainly because I can never quite be bothered decorating my apartment with the same enthusiasm of, say, the gnomes of Ironforge filling their massive halls with wreaths and streamers. Well, Guild Wars 2's first major content update has been teased, and it's looking to be very Halloweeny. Read More »
If I may draw conclusions from strictly personal anecdotes -- this is the internet, after all -- most people who play MMOs don't read quest text. They don't read the books lying around in Bethesda's games. They don't read the quest entries in Borderlands 2. The most text that I'll read is the subtitles for dialog that voice actors are reading to me anyway. I'd probably go so far as to read the flavor text on a legendary item in Diablo 3, but I can't say for sure until I find one. But Guild Wars 2 is hip to my aversion to reading. Read More »
Look, Guild Wars 2's world PvP can get really out of hand. It's chaotic, has a whole bunch of folks running around, and can be a bit hard to follow. Fortunately, the devs at ArenaNet know what's up and have launched a new five-man tournament system. While there will be paid tournaments shortly, they've rolled out free ones as of today to check out. Read More »
T for Teen Blood, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol, ViolenceRelease Region: United Kingdom
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: NCsoft
Release Region: Australia
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: NCsoft
Release Region: United States
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: NCsoft
T for Teen Blood, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol, ViolenceRelease Region: United Kingdom
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: NCsoft
Also available on: Macintosh
Outstanding!
