Do you believe that Guild Wars 2 is going to be the saviour of the fantasy-themed diku-based-but-with-a-few-tweaks FTP AAA open-world-but-also-themepark-kind-of MMO? Will it be be too WoW-like to please the Guild Wars fans? How do a plant based people have sex anyway (OK, maybe I was the only one who wanted to know that)?
Get ready to rock, GW2 fans, because Arenanet announced today that Open Beta will start in March. They also have a cute ‘year of the dragon’ post to match Chinese New Year. Why oh why do MMO devs never announce a year of the haggis to fit with Burns Night ….
Welcome to Spinksville! 
Fwiw Elves were plant-based in the original Gloranthan Runequest game. (And trolls were vegetarian – they ate elves!).
D&D has tons of examples of plant-based people including Treants (Ents), Myconids (Mushroom-people) and Shambling Mounds (compost heaps with attitudes).
The meaning of “Open Beta” seems to be changing. It used to mean “register on the website, download the client, in you go”. Now it seems to mean any large-scale issue of invitations. To my way of thinking if you only have a chance of getting into a beta, even if that chance is 99% the beta is still a Closed Beta.
Whatever, I’ll be signing up as soon as the form appears.
Patiently waiting…..waiting to singup….
I am very, very interested in this game. I only wish I had more time at Eurogamer last year to dig into it.
It’s not an Open Beta, the ArenaNet blog never referred to it as an Open Beta. I have no idea why Eurogamer wrote “The Guild Wars 2 open beta launches in March” when they were directly quoting the ArenaNet blog as saying “in March and April we’ll aggressively ramp up the size of our beta test events so that many of you will have a chance to participate.”
Well, actually I do, it’s because Eurogamer long ago proved that they’re an absolutely disgraceful excuse for “journalism”.
Anyway, it’s good to know that a large closed beta will start in March. and I may hopefully get into it.
“How do a plant based people have sex anyway?”
They lies on the ground next ta each others, raise they’s hands in the air, chant “beebeebeebeebeebeebeebeebeebeebee”, and wait fer the bee.
I hear what in the big cities, ya can hire a professional fer ta pollinate ya, ‘stead of relyin’ on a bee, but that be illegal in me state.
Well I guess it’s time to pull back the curtain and see if this game truly is the “Messiah” that most MMO fans seem to think it will be. The original Guild Wars is what got me into MMO’s in the first place, but I remain skeptical as to whether this game can deliver on all the hopes and dreams people have for it. I think people have their sights set just a little too high on this one and are destined for some level of disappointment. But who knows, ArenaNet may just have a miracle on their hands. I’m willing to be impressed, especially considering how much SW:TOR is disappointing me right now.
Great news, the press preview next month is a really good sign of their progress than possible open/closed beta (depending on your definition, look forward to the preview write-ups.
Sylvari don’t reproduce by having sex, their gender is superficial and their relationships seem more platonic than sexual, they are blind to gender, which is a nice way to address sexuality and gender identity issues. Ree Soesbee was lamenting the fact that the fans got obsessed with the sylvari having the appropriate ‘bits’. They describe some details like they have sap for blood, their digestion is based on pitcher plants, but obsessing over the nitty-gritty is what ‘lore-nerds’ do, like if they photosynthesise and enough energy to move can be obtained in that way, but I doubt Anet has delved that deeply.
I like this mystery and ambiguity, they’re plants but mimic humans, and their ‘dream’ is like a hive-mind. I think sylvari will have one of the more interesting racial stories, the tree they are ‘born’ from is not just a tree, concept art suggests otherwise.
Do you know if there will be a character wipe if you play in open beta? Since I already am certain I will buy GW2, I only want to play in beta if I can keep my character.
My answers to your questions are:
“No,” “Possibly, depending on the GW1 fan and why they liked GW1,” and “like Data, despite their inability to reproduce, they are in fact fully functional and anatomically correct.”
Guild Wars 2 is one of those games I’m looking forward to but am seriously wondering how many of the people getting all excited about it realise it’s mainly pvp focused.
Sorry to correct you, Simon, but there is indeed a heavy PvE component to GW2; it’s really not focused on PvP. The split is much more 50/50 than GW1 originally was (and the PvE in that was built up quite a lot in its lifetime). GW2 is starting off with the PvE fully fleshed out.