blackcat7k

Pretty close, but without the photos side by side I think we would be hard pressed to link the faces to the actors.

I hope the character customization in Guild Wars 2 takes into account skin tone consistency on ALL aspects of the character model.

I noticed in Star Wars the Old Republic and TERA that certan darker skin tones would not show up and default to a pale skin tone during cut scenes.

It's similar to another error that I've seen in MMOs when certain armors have sections that show skin, and end up defaulting to a pale skin color on that piece of armor while the rest of the character model is considerably darker.

Here's hoping that GW2 doesn't fall into that. Seeing your character turn into "Two Tone McGoo" during a an epic cut-scene can spoil the immersion.

Looks great! Those are some pretty impressive buildings. I hope they have equally impressive points of entry instead of just a few choke points.

I'm still going to wait on the cash shop info before getting excited. It doesn't make sense to play a competitive online shooter that people can buy their way through because they're too impatient to play through the game.

Even though I like some of what I see, I really don't know why they're making classes instead of their old system. It was much more dynamic to have players choose their powers and let that define them instead of be pigeon holed into a set of abilities.

Looks great, sounds like it will make for some unique characters.

Though I really didn't hear Bruusgaard go into how they would make the 525 abilities competitive and not devolve into a core set of powers that you MUST have because the rest are pretty much trash (Champions Online I'm looking at you.)

Are the powers just going to be animation and FX re-skins of each other, and how will they handle balancing of them? Will there be a core set that all other abilities are judge by or will they use some other metric? Then again withn 525 abilities I guess it won't matter if some are lackluster.

I do like how the crafting system seems to be as free and open as the abilities though. It seems like will be much easier to make the character the way you want instead of hoping for an item to match your build.

Here's the thing: The GW1 cash shop and the cash shop they're proposing in GW2 are completely different beasts. No one was expecting a F2P cash shop in GW2, if GW1 made enough money for them to make a sequel using a cash shop that many people applauded. Why the sudden shift?

ArenaNet didn't put all that stuff that was leaked about the GW2 beta cash shop in the game for fun and giggles. They seriously entertain doing those ideas or they enjoy wasting their development teams' time putting in things they'll never use. The former is more likely true.

The items listed in the beta leak are more than simple experience leveling. You should probably see what has happened to many MMOs that have implemented convenience items in conjunction with a cash to gold system before you bypass what I'm saying as: "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!"

The cash to gold system is the crux of the matter, and frankly no MMO that has used that chestnut has done so without adversely affecting the non paying customer. Sooner or later that cash begins to impact the non cash users advancement and ability to progress in the world.

In closing you said:

"This is the end of an era for paying loads of money only for the privilege of paying a game vs paying additional ONLY if you want to get from point A to B faster, at least as far as GW2, is concerned since there's nothing you can buy that isn't easily attainable in game with minimal grind."

I will agree with you that no monthly is a strong reason to leave many P2P alone, especially for a family. However, you make the assumption that GW2 is going to have minimal grind and that everything will be done in the player's best interest. The developer/press can say anything they want, that doesn't make it true until you get your hands on it and confirm it.

No MMO that has ever been made remains static. MMOs with a cash shop AND a cash to gold system would seem to promote more ways of getting you to part with your money instead of less. Will it end up being more than you would spend on a P2P MMO? We'll see.

@blackcat7k


Ack! I meant to say: Dr. Badvibes.

That was completely unforgivable. Confusing my G.I. Joe with C.O.P.S.

@(Unverified)

Doctor Mindbender I believe.

With the way things have been going with MMOs for the last few weeks, it seems like all companies are hell bent on shoving cash shops down our throats.

I really can't believe Guild Wars 2 held back that cash shop announcement until now. That just totally surprises me. They would have to know if they kept in touch with MMO gamers like they said they do that a cash shop is probably something you should tell everyone about BEFORE you generate hype.

The people that would be apposed to a cash shop/cash to gold system would drop the game completely and then they could focus on those that actually want to buy into that idea.

It seems like WoW and RIFT are my two choices for an MMO that has some strong features built in that isn't buying into the F2P cash shop idea.

Actually that's not true, RIFT is the only one that seems to be holding the line at not allowing cash to affect their core gameplay (I would LOVE for someone to tell me of another MMO because I'm frankly hard pressed to find another example). I forgot about things like WoW's Recruit a Friend, that Guardian Cub Thing, and the mobile AH service...

Wow, how did things get to be like this and why the hell have we gamers bought into this? What ever happened to:

Here's the game.

Pay you fee to join the game.

Use your skill, wits, and friendships to advance and succeed.

Enjoy!

It truly is the end of an era....

@Deliverator

Bad news never gets better with time. Better to drop the bomb at the beginning then you can put out the fires as you get closer to the release date.

@(Unverified)

I haven't seen a lot of betas that have gone 180 on what they've done, and those that did usually don't so with the benefit of the player. Maybe someone can show me one that did?

Nearly all of those items being sold from that beta leak(actually I think it is all) are things I take issue with because they allow you to skip game play. That is NOT benign.

Selling Inventory space, selling crafting/experience/karma boosts, mystic keys, loot bags. That screams "Pay to Win". ArenaNet would have to get rid of over 90% of the things being sold in that beta store to live up to what O'Brien said:

"But it’s never OK for players to buy a game and not be able to enjoy what they paid for without additional purchases, and it’s never OK for players who spend money to have an unfair advantage over players who spend time."