Guild Wars 2

Guild Wars 2
File:GW2 logo.jpg
Developer(s)	ArenaNet
Publisher(s)	NCSoft
Platform(s)	Windows
Release	TBA
Genre(s)	MMORPG
Mode(s)	Multiplayer

Guild Wars 2 is an MMORPG under development by the Bellevue, Washington-based ArenaNet studio, a subsidiary of NCSoft corporation. Announced in late March 2007, it is the sequel to the original Guild Wars series. ArenaNet has not announced a release date, but have said that public beta-testing will begin in 2008.

Guild Wars 2 will feature a number of new playable races besides humans, including the Charr, Norn, Asura and Sylvari. It will have updated graphics, and will continue the original Guild Wars tradition of no subscription fees. The most noticeable difference from the original series will be the added freedom of player avatars to move in three dimensions, the lack of which feature was often criticized in the original games. Players will be able to jump over obstacles or off ledges, instead of being constrained by invisible barriers.

Players of the current Guild Wars campaigns and the expansion will be allowed to "port" achievements obtained in the original series into the Guild Wars 2 universe via the "Hall of Monuments" found in the Eye of the North expansion. However, Player characters will not be transferable from the original series.

Gameplay

As of 2007, the game is in pre-alpha production; the gameplay elements, therefore, are only known from press-releases, concept art, and exclusive interviews, the majority of which were revealed in the May 2007 issue of PC Gamer. As stated in this issue, player avatars in Guild Wars 2 will be able to move in three dimensions. They will also be able to interact with the environment, such as by breaking objects with weapons or setting objects on fire.

Guild Wars 2 will additionally change a number of gameplay elements of the original series. Early interviews revealed that Guild Wars 2 will have a much higher maximum character level than 20, the maximum level of player characters in the original series; however, the precise details of this limit and its impact on game balance has not been announced. Much of the non-storyline content will take place in a global, persistent game world instead of the instanced design of its predecessor, although instances will still be used for, among other things, the main plotline. The player character's choices will impact the world as a whole, triggering or disabling quests based on their in-game actions and those of their fellow players. In-game events will allow players of different levels to interact continually in the persistent game-world. An NPC companion system will be implemented, but characters will be rewarded if they choose not to use this system. High-level characters will be able to use "Sidekicks" to transfer their powers to lower-level friendly characters so they can accompany high-level characters.

Player versus player (PvP) combat will also change significantly from the original series. The popular guild vs. guild matches from the original series will continue to be available, but Guild Wars 2 will introduce large scale world vs. world matches in the in-game setting called the Mists. Players will be able to join this world-wide PvP battle in a variety of roles, with rewards commensurate with their success. In a stark departure from the original series, there will be no separation between role-playing and PvP characters in Guild Wars 2; instead, competitive skills and equipment will be freely available in the PvP areas.

Setting

The Guild Wars 2 story is set about 250 years after the events in the Eye of the North expansion. The continent of Tyria will be drastically changed from its original form. These changes will be caused by an ancient race of powerful dragons resurfacing after millennia of slumber. The first of the dragons, called Primordus, was already debuted in Eye of the North, whose main antagonist, the Great Destroyer, was one of his generals. After defeating the Great Destroyer, the player views a statue of a Dragon apparently coming to life. This dragon arises and takes over the underground network of Asuran tunnels under the continent of Tyria, driving the Asuras to the surface. Subsequently a number of other dragons resurface; one rises about the sunken holy city of Arah in the ruined human kingdom of Orr, and severs the sea route between the only intact human kingdom Kryta and the Factions continent of Cantha; another arises to the south of the Crystal Desert, cutting off the link to the Nightfall continent of Elona; a third arises in the Far Shiverpeaks of Eye Of The North and uses its icy minions to push the Norn south into the previous land of the Dwarves.

The resurfacing of the dragons causes massive floods that destroy many coastal cities in Kryta, including its capital city, Lion's Arch. The Krytans move north, away from the coast, and establish a new capital in the former holy village of Divinity's Reach; there, they set up a constitutional monarchy that ends the years of feuds between the Shining Blade, a faction loyal to the Krytan royalty in waiting, and the rebel White Mantle. Many refugees flock to Kryta from the rest of Tyria; most importantly, the humans from Ascalon, which now belongs entirely to the Charr. Those Ascalons who did not flee to Kryta move southwards and barricade themselves in a fortress called Ebonhawke. Ascalon City itself becomes a ghost town, populated by the vengeful spirits of its former citizens who slay all who dare enter. A legend says that if one of the two relics of Ascalon's sundered royal line, the flaming swords of Rurik and Adelbern, are returned to Ascalon, then the spirits will finally be at rest. Lion's Arch is eventually rebuilt and becomes the new portal into the Mists with the blessing of the god of combat, Balthazar; it takes the place of the Battle Isles, which also sinks in the floods.

In Cantha, the successor of emperor Kisu defeats the warring Kurzick and Luxon factions and reunites Cantha under one banner. Under his strong leadership, Cantha forces all non-human races off their lands and fortifies its borders, becoming much more isolationist than before. The few Canthans who oppose the new empire are exiled to Kryta. When Arah resurfaces, the Corsair ships that used to take refuge in that archipelago are corrupted by the dragon to form a deadly fleet of black ships that seal off all trade routes between Cantha and the other continents. At the start of the Guild Wars 2 story, there has been no contact with mainland Canthans for a generation.

In Elona, the undead general Palawa Joko, who had briefly formed an alliance with the Order of the Sunspears, an order dedicated to protecting Elona, to defeat the fallen god Abaddon in Nightfall, successfully reconstitutes his undead army and begins a long siege on the Elonian provinces of Vabbi, Kourna, and Istan. Vabbi is all but destroyed, its former splendor ruined by a ravaging famine when the river Elon is diverted by Joko. The Sunspears are eventually broken by Joko's armies, and many of their former leaders are converted to his service, some alive, some undead. The land bridge between Elona and the Crystal Desert is blocked by Joko's minions and the dragon, and the only news that slips through is carried by the mysterious and secretive Order of Whispers, who are now spread over all of Tyria.

Besides the humans, the other sentient races have a comparatively better time. The Norn and the Charr continue to honor their peace formed from a mutual respect. The Asura spread through all cities, maintaining a network of teleportation gates but also remaining strictly neutral. The Charr achieve total victory over Ascalon and settle into the former human capital of Rin. A new race, the Sylvari, appear fully formed from the mysterious tree that the centaur Ventari tended to until his death. The Dwarves, who pursued the Destroyers deep and long at the end of Eye of the North, are now deathless creatures of stone; the few who remain watch the ages go by, interacting little with the other sentient races, if at all.

External links

• Guild Wars official website
• Guild Wars 2 developers discuss the upcoming game