Saturday, June 21, 2014

Guild Wars 2 Video Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

Wow its been ages. Lets see if I can remember how to do this. Welcome to another video game review, been missing in action for a while due to real life events and this game. Being as such I figured may as well write up a review for this game since we been playing it for like a month or so. A bit old a release but it is still being supported with new content by its publisher; so even though this is long overdue here we go.



Guild Wars 2 is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by ArenaNet and published by NCsoft. Set in the fantasy world of Tyria, the game follows the re-emergence of Destiny's Edge, a disbanded guild dedicated to fighting the Elder Dragons, a Lovecraftian species that has seized control of Tyria in the time since the original Guild Wars. The game takes place in a persistent world with a story that progresses in instanced environments. As a sequel to Guild Wars, Guild Wars 2 features the same lack of subscription fees that distinguished its predecessor from other commercially developed online games of the time, though a purchase is still required to install the game. As reported by NCsoft and ArenaNet, by September 13 (about 2 weeks after launch), despite temporarily halting first-party sales, the game has sold over 2 million copies.


What’s Good:
Replay value: As most MMORPG's go there is always replay value in the classes and profession variety that is offered, this game is similar as such. Guild Wars 2 take it a step further though and offers  more replay value by featuring a story-line that is responsive to player actions and choices.

Soundtrack: This is well executed and heartfelt as the overall tone and pace of the game is dictated. Also of noteworthy mention is the cut-scenes and epic battles that take you throughout the world of Tyria.

Graphics: Graphically for a 2 year game it still holds up pretty well and will require some portion of tweaking for maximum performance. Guild Wars 2 uses a heavily modified version of the proprietary game engine developed for Guild Wars by ArenaNet. The modifications to the engine include real-time 3D environments, enhanced graphics and animations and the use of the Havok physics system.

Story-line: The story though a bit hard to follow at times is quite entertaining due to the nature of how the story progression quests are presented and the potential for party members to help in the completion of it. The characters are quite influential and memorable as they have continuing impact throughout the game.

Game Mechanics: Very well done character design system as well as combat system. The mere fact that they implemented the multiple weapon system enabling you to switch between weapons while your skill-set is in cool-down is really smart. Also of noteworthiness is the dynamic events system that replaces more or less the traditional questing format of most MMORPG's. This reduces monotony and encourages exploration and unique experiences for the player.

What Should Have Been Added:
This game needs mounts or some faster way to traverse the map and explore all the various aspects of the world of Tyria. Another potential good idea is to have full motion CGI cut-scenes with voice-overs and more back-story to better connect with the characters.

All the races available in Guild Wars 2
Final Thoughts:
All in all a very decent and enjoyable MMORPG experience. It manages to remain relevant in the sea of existing MMORPG titles even after 2 years and still has content updates to sustain and carry forward the community. Granted its no Vindictus but I can honestly say I had far more fun and addiction playing this than I would have imagined. I got lucky and had a friend buy me a copy when it was on sale maybe you can buy a copy for yourself and someone else to spread the love. Feel free to check out some of my game-play when I was streaming Guild Wars 2 below...

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Thanks For Stopping By

Credits