Topic: Guild Wars 2: If you thought Xenoblade was big, check THIS out

[Mannypon]

To help with the wait for the release of the WiiU, I decided to take the plunge on an MMO given that they are built to last, my budget is small, and I need to make my gaming dollars stretch.  Now, I've always been a big rpg fan, mostly JRPG and with the occasional big western releases such as ST:KotoR on xbox to Skyrim most recently.  I've never had an interest in MMO's as they primarily relied strictly to keyboard use (which I hate), a majority of them are pay to play (which I HATE evenmore) and for some reason I always imagined the experience to be filled with online Aholes that are out just to ruin your experience.

What drove me to try Guild Wars 2 though are 3 things:

1.  It looks amazing.  When I first saw the trailers, I was floored. The world is just full of beautiful vistas and the fantasy setting and style is just unmatched.  Based on my play time, I'd say the game looks like a mix of Fables graphics, Dragon Age 2's flashy combat, and Xenoblade's grander and scope (multiplied by 10 mind you).  I can't even begin to describe to you how large this game is.  I'm sure this is the norm with MMOs but given that I've never played one, the size of everything caught me completely off guard.  The map is enormous and there is always so much to do and so much going on.  Not since Xenoblade has a game filled my desire for adventure and exploration. 

2.  The game has no subscriptions.  That's all that needs to be said about that basically.

3.  The game mapped flawlessly to my 360 controller, so much so that its almost as if the game was made with consoles in mind.  Now, you still need your keyboard for streamlined menu navigation but all the fighting and interactions within the world can all be done with the gamepad alone. 
 
I was wondering if anyone here is actually playing the game or an MMO fan who can put in their input on what they think about this game.  My perspective is that of an MMO virgin so everything that I'm loving could be subpar to an experienced MMO gamer with an extensive pallet of experience.  Also, if anyone is as hesitant of MMO gaming as I was, I say jump in and send me a message.  We can go exploring together and we can help each other out navigating this new world. 

If anyone has an questions about the gameplay, feel free to ask and I'll answer them to the best of my knowledge. 
 
Update:  I found the trailer that sold me on this game.  Hope you enjoy, you really get a good look at the graphics in the game and the amazing locations. 

[Louieturkey]

Sounds like you are having a blast.  I'd say at this point, it doesn't matter what "veteran" MMO players say since you are enjoying the game.  Who cares how other games were made or how it compares with WoW or whatever.  If I had the money (and the time), I'd jump in with you right now.  The original Guild Wars always had me wanting to play it. I just never had a PC to run it very well.  So I never got into it.  I still don't have one that'll run it well (laptop), but it'll at least run it somewhat.  If I get a chance, I'll look you up at that point and see where you are at with the game.  Have fun!

[Mannypon]

Thanks a lot man.  I'm not sure how powerfull your laptop is but check these sites out, it'll let you know if you can run the game.
http://www.yougamers.com/
http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyri/
As for the game itself, yes I am having a blast.  One of the good things about it is something they call "Sidekicking" I believe.  It scales characters to a particular level associated with the area they are in to ensure you still get some challenge out of the battles, ensuring your not just one shotting everything in site.  Say, for example, you join in a couple of months and want me to go on a couple of quests with you.  Your starting out at level 1 yet I could me in the 50s.  When I join you on your quests, my level will be scaled to the max level of the area you are in.  My equipement stays the same though so I still hold that advantage along with all the skills I have learned but it makes it entertaning for me to go questing with you as it'll still be a challenge for me.  Also, it'll prevent me 1 shotting everything to death and stealing any potential experience you can earn.  Even better, the loot dropped by these enemies we kill will, in my case, still be relevent to my actual level so there is still insentive for me to want to fight these low level enemies.  This, I believe, goes a long way with encouraging a supportive nature among the online gamers.  The maxed out characters mingle together with the fresh recruits.  It feels good to have a high end character come into your battle and save your ass the same way it feels for me to jump in and help out the new players when they are struggling. 
Anyways, hopefully more on this site join in on the fun.  Would be nice to form a NWR guild lol.