We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. Once a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions. I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

So, organized group content. Raiders sometimes receive a lot of flack because of how raid-centric and loot treadmill-like many MMORPGs have become. Want the shiniest gear? Better get your raid group together, clear three nights a week off your schedule, and get ready to stand in–er, avoid fires. Despite the negativity that some gamers feel towards raiding, however, there’s no denying the fact that a challenging raid or 5-man dungeon run with friends can be an extremely fun way to spend an evening. Challenging group content– when made well and completed with the right group– promotes teamwork, communication, leadership skills, and it makes us want to become better players.

On the other hand, there’s a very fine line between that first challenging, adrenaline-punched raid night and that night, you know, five weeks later, when the group is facerolling the same six bosses, complaining about the same pieces of healer loot, and spamming DPS meters while half-hardheartedly punching keys and watching TV. This second scenario is why raiders receive so much flack, in my opinion. Challenging group content is awesome. Repeating that same content for days on end for no reason other than to collect the shiniest item or X amount of currency is, well, a loot treadmill.

Now, a lot of gamers enjoy the treadmill affect. The more power to them, I say. Where does Guild Wars 2 fit in? Here’s where it gets interesting. We knew right off the bat that the game wouldn’t have raid content. It does, however, have challenging 5-man content that rewards currency that can be farmed in order to make your gear extra shiny. Stats eventually cap out, of course, but the pretty gear treadmill keeps on rolling. It’s a slight departure from the norm. But is it enough? Isn’t running dungeon after dungeon for currency the same thing, effectively, as running the same raid instance weeks on end?

And what about the whole ‘holy trinity’ thing? Sure, we don’t have taunts and spam-able heals, but we definitely have professions with more control abilities than others, more healing abilities than others, and different types of armor. Some Explorable dungeons benefit from certain group compositions more than others, and doesn’t that fact kind of… imply the same concept as the ‘holy trinity’ philosophy? Make a smart group and win. And be sure to roll around a bit, remember those support abilities, and stand in– er, avoid fire.

I guess what I’m saying is– despite ArenaNet’s hopes, some players are finding themselves disappointed in Guild Wars 2′s dungeon system. Personally, I do understand the viewpoint. The first time I did a dungeon, my cloth-wearing friends exclaimed excitedly how much easier AC was with my Guardian there to generally hold the attention of the bad guys. No, I wasn’t “tanking” exactly, but the effect was oftentimes the same. I distracted things. My friends killed stuff, and sometimes had to run around when mobs decided that asura were tastier.

Dungeon running in GW2 feels kind of familiar at times, yet not so much that I feel the need to farm dungeon after dungeon for the prettiest gear. I enjoy the lack of a non-cosmetic, currency-driven gear treadmill, yet at the same time, I often find myself wishing the loot off bosses wasn’t quite as random, and for the most part, useless. I like bosses that have a chance to drop certain special items because it gives us another reason to look forward to killing a boss. Yes, boss fights can be fun, but rewards at the end of a fun fight are twice as good! To be fair, that might be the old school raider in me speaking.

When it really comes down to it, I enjoy the challenges most Explorable modes present, but I don’t see myself wanting to run them day after day. When a dungeon opportunity strikes, I take it excitedly, but GW2′s system lends itself to be one more casual in nature, in my opinion, and honestly, after years of running the more hardcore-natured dungeon and raid treadmill– I’m good with that.

What are your thoughts about Guild Wars 2′s dungeon design and reward system? Like it? Hate it? Sound off in the comments section below!

We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. A couple times a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions. I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

Guild Wars 2 is filled with some very gorgeous maps and locations, and not just locations situated plain in sight, open to the air. Even hidden caves and light-filled crevices can be quite beautiful, which kind of adds to the whole exploration theme the game has going on. Another place of beauty is underwater. The oceans and inlets around Lion’s Arch are some of the most beautiful underwater spots in the game, full of tropical life, plants, and just about everything you’d expect in a real ocean. Props to the environment team! The ice-covered lakes out in the middle of the snowdrift-covered areas are also particularly enchanting, in my opinion.

Despite the beauty of GW2′s underwater areas, many players aren’t as enthusiastic about the actual combat underwater. Most of the underwater weapons make logical sense (it’d be pretty difficult to spin to win with a greatsword underwater, I’d imagine… though Garen might still be able to pull it off!), but some of the mechanics themselves are a little clunky to work with, especially given the 3D environment.

Some of the underwater weapons also seem fairly underpowered compared to others, which surprised me initially. It’s also interesting that ArenaNet chose to put in an underwater PvP environment (Raid on the Capricorn), which just seems to make any clunky mechanics and/or weapon balance differences stand out even more so.

I originally found underwater combat a little frustrating, but now that I’ve been playing the game a while, I’m actually enjoying it more. I’m a simple person, and I’ll be the first to admit that the immersive nature and exploration-encouraging qualities of underwater combat are my primary reasons for enjoying the plunge. Those are some mighty fine kelp beds and corals. Okay– sold! Now, how do I go about buying some oceanfront property?

And how about you guys? Are you a fan of underwater combat in its present state, or does it need some heavy adjusting before it might be considered fun?

We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. A couple times a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions. I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

Early on during headstart, I noticed quite a few players questioning their order choice (you know, that whole Vigil, Durmand Priory, or Order of Whispers choice). The decision comes fairly early in the personal story quest line, and interestingly enough, affects a large portion of the nature of the story quests that follow the decision.

Durmand Priory characters, for example, are given some quests that require the player to make use of gadgets while continuing the storyline. Vigil characters, naturally, are given quests that follow the whole “shoot first– ask questions later” philosophy. Order of Whispers characters follow a more sneaky route, but still get the job done. The three orders also gain access to different armor sets.

Personally, I was really happy when I found out that the story quests can vary due to our chosen order. I haven’t RP’ed in Guild Wars 2 yet, but I always kind of attach personalities to my characters regardless, and I instantly looked forward to creating alts to play the part of all three orders. My main, a gruff-yet-protective charr Guardian, went, of course, with the Vigil.

There was really no other alternative for her, and I’m quite happy with the story quests I’ve received as a result. The Vigil heavy armor set isn’t bad, either. As for my alts, I’m thinking my Engineer and Thief will have to be Order of Whispers, and my little Necromancer may do well under Durmand Priory. I still haven’t quite figured out how my adorable asura Necromancer with a bow in her hair manages to summon demons, but hey– it’s still magic, man! Just cool magic! Something like that, anyway.

How do you stand on your order choice? How did you decide, and are you still happy with that decision? Do you love or hate the armor sets? Sound off in the comments section below!

We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. A couple times a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions. I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

So, this past week I’ve been doing quite a bit of crafting on my main. I’m rounding my way to level 40 now as a weaponsmith/jeweler, and still finding myself needing iron and silver (along with, of course, fine materials (fangs, vials of blood, etc.)). I’ve managed to keep my crafting fairly current with my level, but it does take some extra ore farming occasionally. I don’t mind this. In fact, I find it somewhat refreshing that crafting takes a bit of work sometimes. Having goals is a good excuse– er, reason– to explore if you ask me, and it keeps me wandering eagerly.

I enjoy also the item discovery system immensely. The first time I tried discovering a cooking recipe during beta, I instantly fell in love. At first glance the system appears complicated, but it also makes sense. Cooking uses real ingredient combinations, and axes don’t just need ore– they need wood, too, for the handles. The collection tab and the fact that we can now craft from it and our bank adds to my enjoyment of crafting overall. The game’s salvaging system is also solid, in my opinion, since it gives players a few options when it comes to obtaining needed materials.

That said, I’ve heard quite a few complaints about Guild Wars 2′s crafting system lately, especially on the official forums. Some crafting disciplines naturally need more fine materials than others, which I imagine could be frustrating (this may be true for cloth/leather disciplines as well). There’s also the fact that down-leveling and playing crafting catch up isn’t everyone’s idea of fun. Also, it’s a little difficult to play the Trading Post smartly at the moment, thanks to the market’s general saturation of certain goods, which is something that will ideally shift in time.

As a result, I’ve kind of formed the opinion that crafting in Guild Wars 2 is something that isn’t going to satisfy all types of players, but those who enjoy it seem to thoroughly enjoy it. Why, yes, I’m gleefully gathering onions and carrots for when I plan on leveling my charr’s inner chef. On second thought, I may have an MMO addition to collecting onions. I RPed in LotRO as a goofy, onion-farming Guardian. Dang, my secret’s out…

How about you? What’s your take on the crafting system? Is it fun and worthwhile, or is it lacking in one regard or another?

We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. A couple times a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions. I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

Last week I talked a bit about leveling areas. This week my brain’s still stuck in leveling mode, mostly due to my super slow (yet super fun!) leveling style. So, what’s your leveling style? Have you been 80 for a week or so, or are you taking your sweet time to smell the roses– er, cow pies and herds of grazing dolyaks?

My highest level character, my guardian, is only in her mid 30s. I’m slow– I admit it. I’m also thoroughly enjoying taking years attempting to complete jumping puzzles (I’m ridiculously terrible at them), complete map objectives, and futzing with crafting. I’ve done more than one starting area on her, which is actually quite enjoyable. I’m usually not a big fan of doing content I’m out-leveled for, but in Guild Wars 2 that problem isn’t an issue! I’ve also, of course– like the goof I am– created a handful of alts who I randomly have fun on. My favorite alts so far are my warrior and necromancer.

How about you? Has the “alt itch” struck you yet? Sound off in the comments section below!

I know. You’re thinking this title’s crazy. It probably is, but hey– you can’t totally fault me. I was inspired by a piece of in-game architecture! An old pillar in Metrica Province reads “Given asura ‘Place of Ultra-Mega-Importance’ status in 1325 A.E.” When I first found the pillar a couple hours into my Metric Province leveling adventure during Headstart, I instantly fell in love with the area, and everything to do with the asura race– even though, you know, I’m really a tiger-striped lumbering charr. No matter. Awesomeness is awesomeness, right?

With that attitude in mind, I come to you with a brand new Guild Wars 2 Junkies feature. You can call it the Question Box. You can call it whatever you want, really, but what I’m calling it is a “Place of Ultra-Mega Awesomeness.” We all have things we love about Guild Wars 2, places that make us cheer out and say “yes, this is my ultra-mega place!” We all have classes, abilities, and features we’re passionate about, either negatively or positively. This is a place to share all that. A couple times a week I’ll be raising a Guild Wars 2 question to the community– hopefully an interesting one– and we’ll share our opinions.

I’ll start off with my opinion just to get the ball rolling, but these questions will not have any right or wrong answers, so feel free to argue with me to your heart’s content!

This week’s question darts back to my original topic– places of awesomeness. What’s your favorite racial starting zone, so far, in Guild Wars 2? Don’t worry if you haven’t explored them all yet. Out of the ones you have seen, which do you love most, and why?

You may have guessed Metrica Province is my favorite. It isn’t, ironically, but I do adore some of the asura architectural designs. The golems are also adorable. I’d probably rank Metrica as my third favorite starting zone. My second favorite zone is Caledon Forest, the sylvari starting area. It’s simply stunning. Peaceful, expansive, and full of plenty of lush greenery to explore– er, get lost in (getting lost in MMOs is a personal hobby of mine). My absolute favorite? Plains of Ashford, the charr starting area.

Plains of Ashford was the first zone I explored during BWE1. I knew I wanted to play a charr, but wasn’t sure I wanted to main as one. All it took was a brief sweep of the Black Citadel, and me pawing my way on all fours through the first couple waypoints to realize that I’d found my home. The sharp contrast between the quiet, autumn-colored scenery of Plains of Ashford and the raw, steel-infused reminders of wars past fought painted quite a beautiful image in my mind. One that closely resembles the charr themselves– harsh, brutal, yet fiercely loyal and proud of the place they call home.

Your turn! What’s your starting area of choice, and why? Sound off in the comments section!