Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (2024)

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With the release of the final update of Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure, it currently seems as if the developers have kicked a hornet's nest. But they haven't done anything – and that is probably the big problem for loud fans who vent their anger on Twitter, Reddit and in the official forum. In short: the “culmination” of an expansion was a disappointment. And I won't lie – I've been ranting in my own four walls for the last few days, even after my frustrated article before the release of the update. The story is bad, the “grand finale” doesn't even have fancy cutscenes. No elite specs.

So the question arose: Was the expansion a complete fiasco? No. Or was it? I looked at the best parts of SotO together with GW2 fans. What were the highlights of Secrets of the Obscure?

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GW2: Features of Secrets of the Obscure – despite its weaknesses

Fantastic Main Hub: The Wizard's Tower is the perfect progression from Arborstone in End of Dragons. No long routes to crafting stations, banks or trading posts. No annoying NPC statements that repeat themselves over and over again (THIS IS A DEN OF REFUGE!). Here I even hope we can keep this place – why something new? Can't you magically take the thing with you?

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (4)

Source: Arenanet The Wizard's Tower is a great gathering place for players with all the crafting stations and other service points you need in SotO.

Weapons are stripped of their elite specs: Only those who have SotO can use the Illusion Axe as a Chronomancer Mesmer, for example. Or the Untamed Hammer as a Soulwalker Ranger. Or the Scrapper's Hammer as a Mech Driver Engineer! This means that many more builds are possible and cool weapons are not tied to less interesting specs.

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (5)

Source: buffed Thanks to GW2: SotO, you can also swing the hammer of the scrapper spec with the Mech Driver – it's still a celebration!

New weapon types for your classes: On top of that, Guardians now wield pistols, Necromancers wield swords, and Revenants wield a lightsaber scepter – there is still room for improvement, but the door has been opened for significantly more playstyles!Skyscale and Griffin rejoice: With the use of updrafts and ley lines with the flying mounts, GW2 has become even more fun. The Skyscale fireballs allow for siege damage and also provide fun target adventure races.

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (6)

Source: Arenanet Spit fireballs with Skyscale, also use updrafts and ley lines of the Glider Mastery on Griffin and Skyscale – great upgrades for our flying mounts!

Legendary armor for open-world fans: After years, players who wouldn't touch PvP and raids with a tongs are now walking around Tyria in legendary armor. We have Obsidian armor to thank for that! The legendary set is available to open world fans. Is that quite a grind? Sure. Does each of these armor pieces replace an entire armor slot until the servers are shut down at some point? Yep!

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (7)

Source: Arenanet The legendary obsidian armor is now also available at rank 2. The fancy set saves open-world fans from having to visit WvW or dungeons.

The Wizard’s Vault: It's basically the “Daily&Weekly System 2.0”! There were some initial difficulties and not everyone is a fan of having to decide how much PvP, PvE or WvW they want to play. But now it's always a lot of fun to do the weekly and daily tasks.

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (8)

Source: Arenanet The Wizard's Vault offers different rewards every quarter – you can't miss these, but can also buy them later for an additional charge.

Relic System: Perhaps a controversial topic, but overall I would say that the separation of runes and relics is a positive. After all, we can now use some strong rune stat bonuses and then choose the appropriate relic. The selection of relics still seems a bit limited in the endgame (there are simply too few options). But similar to the new weapon types from point 3, I would say that this is a work in progress with a lot of potential.Tolle Launch-Story: Emphasis on the release and maybe just parts of it. But… the entry into the world of wizards. Dwarves made of flesh and blood. A scary demon who ignores our “personal space”. A nice Mursaat and a Jotun lady! The return of Zojja! New and interesting characters like Galrath, Gladium, R'tchikk. I was really hooked here. The focus on Kryptis demons was of course as bad as I had described it last time…

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (9)

Source: buffed A Mursaat, and a nice one at that? The initial story of GW2: Secrets of the Obscure was really gripping because of the many cool elements. Wow, I found more that appealed to me and others in Secrets of the Obscure. Of course, that doesn't mean that Arenanet is fine. The developers want to publish a kind of “retrospective” on Secrets of the Obscure from the developers' perspective soon. I'm very excited to see which criticisms from the fans they address. If any. After all, they're already working on the next expansion, which should be released in three months.

Tags: expansionguildoftenmalignedTerribleWars

Guild Wars 2: How terrible was this often-maligned expansion really? (2024)

FAQs

Is Guild Wars 3 confirmed? ›

Guild Wars 3 has quietly been confirmed. Although Guild Wars 2 was first released way back in 2012, it's still one of the most popular MMOs with active servers and just last year dropped the generally well-received fourth expansion, Secrets of the Obscure, with more to come in 2024 and 2025.

Is Guild Wars 2 good without expansion? ›

You don't need any expansion or living world season. The mounts (drake, springing rabbit, skyscale, griffon, stingray...) are in the Path of fire expansion. It is also the best expansion to my mind. Basic Raptor comes with any expansion.

Is Guild Wars 2 worth 2024? ›

Yeah, it's probably worth it. GW2 is one of these games where old content is not always abandoned content, you still see really many players alking around in the older expansions, simply since it's still worth doing them. So the age of the game is not really a disadvantage.

What is the next GW2 expansion 2024? ›

Guild Wars 2 Opens Door to Player Housing in New Expansion 'Janthir Wilds' Launching August 20, 2024.

Will Guild Wars 2 have a 4th expansion? ›

Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure is the fourth expansion pack for Guild Wars 2. Its development was confirmed on March 22, 2022, and officially announced on June 27, 2023. The release date was Tuesday, August 22, 2023 at 09:00 UTC-07:00.

Is the Guild 3 better than 2? ›

The Guild 3 isn't a bad game, but isn't also significantly better than the previous chapter of the series. A terrible interface and some boring mechanics tend to spoil an otherwise interesting gameplay. Released 16 years after The Guild 2, the third entry in the series disappoints.

Should I get GW2 expansions? ›

If you're enjoying the game, buying the expansions will simply give you more game to enjoy. No spoilers, but if you like story/lore, the expansions are amazing content. Playing the base game is fair ansd square. Get to level 80 on a character with a solid core-build, every class has one.

What is the maximum level in Guild Wars 2? ›

When a character accumulates enough experience, they will gain a level and receive level rewards up to the maximum level 80. Depending on a level, rewards unlock new skills and mechanics, providing various game tips and guidance, increase character's attributes, grant hero points, and unlock equipment of higher rarity.

Does it matter what race you are in Guild Wars 2? ›

Each race has unique physical features to adjust during character creation, and are granted exclusive access to cultural armor skins. Race also has an effect on the default camera height, and on the visual scaling of equipped weapon sizes. This is purely cosmetic and has no effect on weapon or character capabilities.

Does GW2 have a future? ›

The following features have been mentioned by ArenaNet staff and have been confirmed to be part of future game updates and releases. Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds — set to be released on August 20, 2024.

How many people play Guild Wars 2 in 2024? ›

Guild Wars 2
MonthAvg. PlayersPeak Players
May 20242,977.84,935
April 20243,210.95,456
March 20243,546.66,183
February 20243,110.35,214
19 more rows

How profitable is Guild Wars 2? ›

In 2022, revenue derived from the MMORPG "Guild Wars 2" amounted to 95 billion South Korean won. This represents an increase from the previous year. Revenue from this game peaked in 2015 at 101 billion won.

Will Guild Wars 2 have a fifth expansion? ›

Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds will be the fifth expansion pack for Guild Wars 2. It was confirmed on August 22, 2023. with reveal on June 4, 2024. The release date will be Tuesday, August 20, 2024 at 09:00 UTC-07:00.

What is the lifespan of humans in gw2? ›

Castigator. 3470
RaceMassLifespan
Human75 kg110 a
Charr200 kg100 a
Norn250 kg200 a
Asura25 kg120 a
1 more row
Apr 11, 2018

What do you do after 80 in gw2? ›

XVI. Level 80, Now What?
  1. Story Order. The last (8th) chapter of the core (non-expansion) Personal Story starts at level 80. ...
  2. Elite Specializations. ...
  3. Gearing Up (Click arrow to Expand ->) ...
  4. Fractals/Dungeons (Click Arrow to expand ->) ...
  5. RAIDS/Strike missions. ...
  6. Achievements/Collections. ...
  7. Leveling alts quickly.

Is the Guild 3 still being worked on? ›

The development will continue with a small team that will work on the editor! The release date is not set so far, please be a bit patient. Regarding the ipv6 support we sadly have to say that the developer of the multiplayer library is still working on that issue.

Is ArenaNet making Guild Wars 3? ›

With two more expansions still in the works set to launch this year and in 2025, respectively, Guild Wars 2 players aren't hurting for new content. That's why the news that ArenaNet is working on a proper third game in the series came as such a shock.

How many players is the guild 3? ›

Single Player Campaign offers hours of game fun! Multiplayer experiences with up to 16 players at once!

Will Guild Wars 2 end after end of dragons? ›

Despite the expansion's name, it has been stated by the developers and the Studio Director that End of Dragons is not the end of the Guild Wars 2 storyline nor the end of the game development.

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