OK OK, total clickbait title. I am so very, very far from completing all the content available for Guild Wars 2 and even if/when I do that, can one ever really beat an MMO?
So here’s what really happened. In a convulsion of actual humanity, someone at my company decided to close our offices at 1 PM on Friday in celebration of the 3-day weekend. And against all odds I was actually free by 1:30 or so (usually there’s 1 tryhard somewhere in the company that insists on continuing to work and who needs support). That meant I had a few hours to myself with no chores to do and no obligations to partner or doggo, which doesn’t happen too often. And I had one mission left in the “My Story” part of Guild Wars 2 which, I THINK, was the ‘end’ of the tale when the game launched.
It’s fortunate I had those hours too, because it was a LONG mission; it took about 90 minutes start to finish. I’m not sure what would have happened if I’d been forced to stop part-way through but I’m hoping it would have ‘checkpointed’ my progress so I wouldn’t have had to start all over again when I came back. So was it worth doing?
In terms of story and characters, yeah it was. I’ve grown fond of this band of leaders of the world’s different factions. The story itself was fine but for me it was the characters that I really enjoyed. Even the ancillary characters who’re hanging around in the background can be amusing to watch and listen to.
Him: I’m good at what they do. I may not fit their recruiting profile, but I get results.
Him: What’s your excuse? A vivacious lass like you joined the uptight and straight-laced vigil?
Her: Ha! That makes two of us that “don’t fit the profile.” Let’s have a drink and see what else we have in common.
In terms of rewards, well I got a level 80 Exotic helm, something I’d been about to buy off the trading post, so yeah definitely worth it for the rewards.
In terms of gameplay it was kind of a mixed bag. The straight-up battles were fun but there was a bit too much ‘gimmick’ fighting in it for my tastes. I don’t want to get into spoilers but it was one of those cases where you, the player, has to do several things at once while your ‘allies’ stand around and watch you. I get why they do this: so you can be the Big Damned Hero, but logically it bugs me. Like we’re saving the world, maybe get off your lazy butts and help!? 🙂
But I was really glad to finish, 12 years after buying the game. In terms of hours spent on this character, it was around 55 but of course I was doing a lot of stuff besides story missions.
So what’s next? Living World Season 1, which I almost immediately dove into. Haven’t got far yet but the bump in challenge is pretty welcome. From the very start the fights have been more interesting and there’s this little side story where one of your companions is being followed around by a baby creature and it is just so darned adorable. I hope nothing happens to it!
What I’m wrestling with now is whether to push on with my current character or try a different profession for a while. There’s a LOT of content yet to do and while I like my Warrior well enough maybe there’s a profession I’d like even more. Still pondering this…
Congrats on finishing the core story! That last mission takes forever. I had the same thoughts about it the first time I did it. Apparently, you used to need a group for that last mission which is why it feels like you need to do a whole bunch of things at once.
I am also feeling that pull to try another class but I’m afraid of I do I’ll lose the momentum I’ve built up on my current character.
Ah that would make sense then. I was thinking “Why do we have 6 cannons if no one else is manning any of them and also why won’t my allies keep these Risen off me when I’m trying to fire!” If it was originally a group event it would’ve all worked well. Thanks!
Yeah, it was a group event, as were some of the earlier stages. I mean, nothing stopped you from doing them on your own but they were too tough for most people to solo so most people grouped. I helped Mrs Bhagpuss do at least four stages – I can remember which ones. That last one was a full group and it was total chaos. I hated it and most of the later parts of the story. I’d been playing for maybe eight years and many thousands of hours before I finished it on one of my own characters and that’s still the only time I’ve finished it.
At the risk of making your next choice even harder, I feel I should point out that up to that big mission on the island, the name of which I forget, every race gets a completely different story and even within each race the stories differ based on the choices you make in that personality test in character creation. If you’re planning on playing through Heart of Thorns you might want to make a Sylvari and do the personal story – it adds quite a lot of context. I also recommend whichever human choice gets to go to Clown School. And the Asura have some good bits in the opening stages. The Charr one is good background for some of the stuff that comes later too.
Probably best to do them all!
The first word that comes to mind is… EEEP! 🙂
Congratulations! I still remember that mission, but I did it years after game was out as well. Whenever I did it they’d made it soloable as well, but still bits of it were a bit of a challenge from memory.