Pro tip: if it hasn't happened already (I know what this community is like lol), I would recommend getting yourself some larger bags. GW2 is pretty infamous for loading you up with loot, which makes the smaller bags woefully inadequate for managing your inventory, even with the option to salvage gear and store the materials. You can either craft bigger bags by levelling a crafting discipline that focuses on armour (tailoring is the one for light armour), or by buying them on the trading post - though they can get pretty expensive. But generally once people find out you're new, it's only a matter of time until you get a care package in the mail. It's a tradition to give new players bigger bags, people always want to be the one who can do that for someone else lol. Another thing to bear in mind about GW2 is that it is designed with the assumption that you will have alternative characters. That's why levelling goes quickly, as it's also designed to be repeated. There are actually a lot of achievements in the game which can only be completed by rolling one or more alts, and obviously this repetition helps to cement your knowledge of the game's mechanics. It also helps a lot with PvP, as you start to know what you're up against! Overall, if you're looking for direction, the achievement point panel is a good place to work, although it's also a bit intimidating at first. Generally, most players regard how many achievement points you have as a marker of your experience, at least as a rough guide. As with anything in the game, there is a huge amount of flexibility in terms of how you earn achievements, but generally while levelling, you can ignore all the collections and story based categories. Things such as killing a number of each type of mob, or completing X number of world events are easy ones you normally get through regular gameplay, but the explorer ones might encourage you to find that last hidden area. In GW2 you get rewards for every 500 achievement points, which can eventually lead to weapon appearances and better loot drops, so it's not just a bit of flavour. As for dungeons...its sad. At launch they were popular, but the developers found better ways to deliver hard content, so these days mostly people only run them for speed clears, or with guildmates - at which point they don't advertise their party. If you want a proper dungeon experience, it's worth joining a community and looking for people who want to do a story based run. Those groups do exist, they're just much harder to find these days. I hate to use the old "it gets better at max level", but in this regard, it rings true. Apparently the coding for the dungeons is too difficult for the developers to change, so they can't easily patch them to bring them up to a level with the rest of the game's group content .
Regarding casual dungeon runs - it is actually pretty easy to get a PUG casual story-mode run going, just create an LFG posting yourself with the description "story mode run, will watch cutscenes." I started earlier this year, and this is how I got all of my initial casual story runs of each dungeon. The only exception would probably be Citadel of Flame, since that dungeon is locked behind successful completion of the map meta in Fireheart Rise. Even then, posting a "doing map meta, then chill run of Citadel" LFG would probably get you a decent group.
Love GW2 it's so casual friendly, I can drop in and play for a bit get my fill and not touch it for months without feeling guilty about a sub fee ticking down, but it can also be super hardcore and I can spend months working on getting a dragon mount or collecting achievements or getting a legendary weapon or full ascended set. The combat is incredibly deep with the combos you can do but also super friendly to those with disabilities as it allows for perfectly viable 1 or 2 button rotations on classes.
Dude, I'm a WoW veteran, playes since its release, casually played EQ2/Elder Scrolls online, and hardcore played FF14. I just got into GW2 a month ago, and holy shit, this game is really slept on. Its honestly amazing. Ease of alts to. Combat is 10× more engaging than other MMOs, and its better than ESOs combat, which has similar playstyle to gw2, as in, 5 attacks based on weapon, you have two weps and can swap mid combat, and another 5 slots for utility, cds, and defensive/heals(esos 5 attack bars are more flexible and you dont have to slot any of the weapon abilities) with 2 dodge rolls, however, ESO has active blocking, crouching, charging auto attack swings, however, its clunky and its all about animation cancelling. GW2 combat is more fluid, and just designed 1000xs better. GW2 feels more alive world.wise, I see all levels in even og starter zones/cities. Mounts ares amazing. Jumping puzzles are wayyyy better than FF14s. By far most rewarding for exploration. Holidays are really fun. Crafting is nice, more in depth than WoW or ESO, but ff14 takes the cake for crafting depth. Main story quests are actually really good,(Asura's is a little more comical fair warning). You can dye your armor and mounts and your glider. There are underwater weapons, so you have 10 new abilities while underwater. PvP is off the chain, and has a good amount of content and activity. Build design is very nice, way better than ESO or WoW. (FF14 classes have no variances, they are what they are.) Over all imo, GW2>WoW=FF14>ESO in order of greatest to least. Edit: if you get expansions,(1per expansion), all the classes get 3 elite specializations. Elite specializations give you access to a new weapon type, build traits, new class mechanics for combat, new utility skills, a heal skill and elite skill, it literally feels like a whole new class, with asthetics and access to the toolkits of the core class. You wanna be a shadowy caster, thief with Specter elite specialization. You wanna be a monk type class you can be daredevil for thief, but also the paladin archetype class Guardian, has willbender which is a monk with swords essentially. The elite specs change way more of class than wows specializations do.
@@AllTradesJackReviews I saw you were struggling with the camera/movement, there's a toggle to action mode, or you can just hold down right click and use the mouse to turn the camera instead :)
I actually love that you are the first person that described, why the combat feels floaty. Usually when people drop that comment i am just so lost, as its a feeling. its difficult to use a feeling as a basis. But you put reason behind your feeling and tried to validate it. What i want to say is that most active gw2 players wont feel the movement or combat being floaty, because tank turning, which we jokingly call the standard a and D keybinds for turning, is not used at all. people either rebind a and D to be straving buttons and yes we have a button for this, or they hold down right mouse all the time like maniacs. This is something you just naturally start doing, to constantly hold rightclick and move your camera via moving your mouse when going around. I feel like the floaty combat and movement you felt, was largely to the bad starting keybinds and the poor explanation on there being other options. Not to mention that gw2 even has an action camera mode that you need another hotkey to enable, which turns gw2 from a tab target game into a hack n slash where you aim each auto attack and ability individually with your camera
Yeah, for most vets, turning using keyboards is an instant tell you're a new player. Use your mouse for both movement and camera, with occasional W for forward movement while moving around your camera without changing directions. World of difference. Just work on your skill. Edit: oh god, 13:32.
That "level" 303 is actually a lv 80 with a mastery score of 303. Once you max out your level, you gain more skills over levels in the way of masteries.
probably already been said but at 13:07 you're crazy to use keyboard to turn, the most used control for turning is holding right mouse down and turning camera with that which also points forward for your character, so you mainly just hold W and use A and D for strafing. one of the many things the new player experience in the game doesnt tell you, I personally still think they pushed out the steam release too soon
Loved the review. The advice I would give is to focus on reaching level 80 and finishing the Personal Story. If you pay any sort of attention to it, you WILL cry at the end, once that magnificent score hits. Hell, I make the journey with a new character every year, just to remind myself how it all started. The characters, my partners, have all matured so much. You will also cry when you reach the Chalice of Tears, albeit for another reason entirely.. Once you enter the Heart of Maguuma (Heart of Thorns expansion), the game will shine much brighter. In many ways. From what I saw in the video, you were only experiencing the vanilla part of it, so, 10 year old content at this point. Most of it hasn't been touched upon since the release. Expansions add so much to the game, vanilla will almost seem pale in comparison. One last note. Someone mentioned this already in the comments but it's worth repeating: dungeons in GW2 aren't exactly what you'd expect when coming from WoW or similar games. What you probably want to focus on, if you like dungeons in WoW, are Fractals. Lots of people queuing for those, not overly time consuming, great rewards, light storytelling and a fairly wide variety of locations/mobs/mechanics.
came here to say the same! It took me a loooong time to figure out it was a thing, but now I almost only use action camera. Also changed ground targeting recently, but I don't remember the exact setting name (very useful with weapons like staff or the scourge's sand shades)
Watching you move in GW2 is like watching a newborn fawn learn how to walk. It's like you move, stop moving, turn, stop turning, and move again, like your keyboard can only handle one keypress at a time. No wonder movement feels "floaty"
This is the only video game review channel I watch. You're very clear with why you hold the opinions you do and seem very level headed when providing critique. Thanks for all the recommendations!
Played since launch and my advice for a new player: Start from the beginning, take your time to enjoy the game and don't rush it. Try out several classes. Do your personal story, it's fun I promise. Enjoy the game, make friends, join a guild to participate in some guild activities and level up in your own pace. There is so much to do in GW2 as you level up and the end game content is incredible. And don't forget to craft.
The amount of options and choices GW2 presents you with in all aspects of the game can be super overwhelming, especially for people who are used to other MMOs, which are often very straight foreward with what they want you to do, but it's also a big part of what I like about the game.The build and gear system also makes this very apparent. In other MMOs you pick a class and that choice alone dictates your playstyle and your role in group content, with some but usually not much customization. In GW2 your gear, trait and skill choices can completely change the way a class plays. Right now we're very close to every class having at least one, if not multiple, viable builds for heal, support and dps, as well as hybrids of these, in endgame group content. And every class being able to fulfill every role (with the right gear and build setup) is a goal the devs are actively working towards recently. This is awesome because I don't have to play another class whose flavour and mechanics I might not like to fill another role and I can be as tanky or as glass cannon-y as I want whether I'm on a warrior or an elementalist. But this also means that the game can't just explain to you how exactly to properly play and gear your character because there isn't just one "proper" way for any given class. As a result there's a giant power difference between someone who engages with the build craft (by making their own or by looking for the best builds online) and someone who randomly throws on DoT damage and heal gear while not using any skills that provide either. The core game and leveling allows you to experiment with your core class' capabilities and even let's the "vastly unoptimized" take in all the sights by being so easy. Once you hit 80 the game starts demanding at least a bit of engagement in its systems. Overall I adore the amount of freedom and customization GW2 gives you, even if it comes with it's own set of issues. It might turn a lot of people who are used to a more guided MMO experience away, but for me and a lot of others it's at the core of what makes this game great.
This is what I was looking for. Currently in Endwalker in FFXIV, and I want a game with a class system that let's me customize. I love the story in FF, but know that once I finish it, I will want a game that let's me really dig into a class after the static feelings of the job system.
Try mouse turning. Right click and drag to turn quickly, which you can do while strafing. I also recommend experimenting with other settings that can help improve the flow of combat, like the aoe targeting options (I personally like 'fast with range indicator'). There are a few videos out there explaining the merits of the various choices, checking one of those out might really help improve your play experience. I'm a long time gw2 veteran, and I deeply love the game, one of the most fascinating things about it are the many different ways to enjoy it!
I never played gw2 but I was going to say the same thing... You can't PvP in wow if you don't use your mouse to turn.... Or I guess you can, but you'll get owned.
i'm a 6K hour vet in GW2 and I definitely can see a lot of your points you make here. the core game has not aged amazingly well and has only been made easier and faster to clear as time has gone on. crafting isn't super useful for levelling with a lot of dead and useless recipes. the pvp population is too small to have great matchmaking. however, there's a lot of amazing stuff in the game that this review does not cover. GW2 has a better mount system than any other MMO. it's elite specialization system for classes creates some truly amazing combat options. Fractals, Raids, and Strikes are very enjoyable and repeatable PvE end game. Expansion and Living World maps offer far better exploration and challenge and are still visually stunning. The devs heard many of the critiques years ago and have spent a lot of time not only trying to improve the core game but also to develop new content that misses those original pitfalls. it hasn't always been perfect, but GW2 will go from good to great very quickly once you get beyond the mid levels.
I have to say, while you have some understandable objections/issues with the game, probably 90% of what I heard that you had issues with is basically because your mind is comparing it to what you are used to from other games. I don't hear any of this 90% as any kind of criticism of the game, just someone trying to get used to what they are not used to after a lot of experience with other games that work very differently + definitely a bunch of stuff you have misunderstood/haven't understood yet - understandable given the low playtime and you acknowledged this a few times -- this includes the "floaty" combat). enjoyed the video overall
One thing I would advise new players is to not be afraid to ask questions in the chat. The community is generally helpful. Overall, talking to people can help a lot. For example, most people will slow down in dungeons if you ask them. I agree that the openness of the game can sometimes work against it a bit; you do have to set your own goals. If you want help with that, try looking at the achievements, there's tonnes of them and you can click the eye to track one and then, just go for it.
The only new thing you encountered was the beetle race everything else seemed like it was the base game and so it has been barely touched in 10 years. I kove the exploration of Guild Wars 2 and the Gameplay has great skill expression which is much more modern than the classic Tab Target system. I'll give the advice to keep playing as well. The Journey is just starting.
You should basically rebind A and D to strafe rather than the regular movement scheme. It should remove the issue of characters having the turning rate of a Scania truck. The momentum will still be there though.
@@CallOfEuropeanSpirit No. I think that by default A/D are used for turning and Q/E for strafing, so usually it's recomended to rebind strafing to A/D and then use your mouse to turn. Turning around with the mouse is instant and since you can use A/D to strafe, you can for example, if you play in melee, you can easily circle around enemies.
You can change this „terrible” camera movement in settings where keybinds are :D i rly recommend watch some gw2 settings video on yt by game content creators. Unluckly, a lot of default options are bad. Glad to hear u like the game and wish u fun exploring Tyria!
The reason there is no "dungeon" groups is b/c dungeons have been replaced by "fractals" Basically high lvl dungeons and "strikes" which are like lower difficulty raids( GW2 has raids as well). It looks like when you entered WVW, you were on your home borderland, so thats likely why you owned most of the structures. The best way to get involved in wvw is to find a wvw guild you enjoy running with and join them. I found the leveling in GW2 very fun when I got to lvl 80,but like you I did it in small doses at a time. Once I got into WVW, I pretty much ended up giving up playing the rest of the game. Just running a fractal every once in a while when I feel like it.
Hey mate, some explanations to your questions: 1) Levelling in gw2 is not important, you can get to 80 in 2 weeks if you play a lot, if you don't understand the game whilst levelling up, dw, it's not that important. The real game starts after lvl 80. Levelling is just the tutorial, is ok to feel lost. 2) There is no "lvl 300". What you saw is a player "mastery levels". It's a secondary levelling system you will unlock after level 80 (and if you own at least one expansion). Each mastery level gives you: account wide QoL mechanics and spells. It does not affect the real character level system; max level is 80, it doesn't go further. 3) You want to slowly upgrade your inventory. 4) You mentioned that dungeons are the top mmorpgs content type. In gw2 it's not like that. Dungeons do exist, but they are nothing more than some fun/outdated content to play once or twice when you start the game (or to farm to get some special currencies if you want some specific gear). For the real PvE content experience, you would need to get level 80 first. 5) I saw you are suffering a lot with the movement in gw2. In my opinion one of the best ways to move around in the game is holding the right click or left click. You use the right click to lock your character to whatever direction your screen is looking at, so if you press W you will move to that direction. You use the left click to move the camera around without altering the current movement direction of your character. I really do recommend you start using the right click to get used to it, once you get used to it you will look to gw2 movement system in a totally different way. 6) Finally, my last suggestion is to enjoy the game when you are starting. I wish I could forget evth about gw2 and start this adventure all over again, I miss the joy of discovering new zones, secrets, and jumping puzzles, or playing the story of the game without spoilers and with no ideas of what is happening. I miss reading the abilities over and over coz I have no clue what I'm doing. I already spent tens of thousands of hours in this game for the last 9 years, so all this doesn't happen to me anymore. Guild wars 2 its extremely rewarding in the sense of discovery. Thats the soul of the game. I hope you enjoy the game as much as I did C:
Im sure its probably been said, but for turning your character, use mouse right click. Keybindings for turning with your keyboard are better off unbound all together. Strafe keys on A and D are all you really need with mouse camera turning, and it feels way more fluid and natural.
I’ll be interested to see an update on your progress and your opinion on GW2 after you get to max level and have spent enough time to better understand your skills.
Tip: Dungeons were succeeded by Fractals of the mists unlocked at level 80. Dungeons still give 5 gold rewards for completing any 8 different ones (story or any of the explorable paths) every 8 you do, but Fractals are where the love went and will be more like the dungeons you are used to in other MMOs
Before I get into anything else, let me just saying your editing on that horizontal progression section was so clean. So I first played GW2 at launch and was enamored by it right away. My experience with the game is pretty dated at this point (but I have been casually playing it with the gf for the past few weeks as it turns out) but I had pretty much done most of the content you could do pre Heart of Thorns Expansion, other than crafting a legendary weapon. That whole thing you said about the camera being floaty and combat feeling weird.. yeah that's how I feel too... ABOUT WOW and FFXIV. Gw2's combat and movement is so much more interesting to me and I really couldn't ever get back into your run of the mill tab-target combat after experiencing it. For the camera, my only suggestion is to hold down right click more maybe? I think that lets you turn more easily (and in air?). Maybe it had to do with the class I was playing, I mostly played warrior, but also was invested in my necro and a thief. I never clicked with mesmer even though I tried several times (it just had insane utility at the time for group play) so maybe you would've enjoyed another class more. As far as dungeons go, I agree, they were never as good as those in WoW or FFXIV and I pretty much only did them to unlock some armour sets (hell yes gw2 fashion is great). You mentioned not really knowing what crafting is used for, back in the day anyhow, it was a way of earning gold (if you knew what you were doing) or a way of leveling up your character super quickly. If you had enough gold, I believe you could go from 1-80 just sitting there at crafting stations. Not sure if that's still the case now. PVP and WvW was always just way more fun for me when playing with friends or with a guild. Having a chill, fun, active guild to do this stuff with made the game 100x more memorable. Also in the open world stuff, taking down some of those huge event bosses like the great jungle wurm for the first time was incredible. Just hearing everyone on raidcall or ventrilo or wtv the heck it was before discord took over, was a joy I had never experienced before, and was really similar to how it feels to be at a concert where your favourite band is playing and EVERYBODY starts screaming when the band plays the beginning of that one song we've all been waiting for. It was nuts. At this point I'm just spewing out my thoughts and memories of the game. I stopped playing pretty much when the first expansion came out. It didn't really click with me/I lost interest, and I've always been bummed out about it. Also jump puzzles are the best. Do all of them lol.
Thanks man! I appreciate that. I feel like I would have LOVED to have experienced this game at launch. Like I can’t imagine how fun it would be to explore all of this while it was new and relevant. When people were just figuring things out. Man MMORPG launches are the best. I’m definitely going to keep playing till 80. I think my main feeling with GW2 is that it’s like a comfort mmorpg for me. No pressure, no ridiculous gear checks, no elitist attitudes keeping me from trying things out. At least not yet. It’s super refreshing to have that. And even though the movement is all crazy for me, I still don’t feel bad about trying to figure it out. I definitely want to try other classes too. I’m literally putting all my time into WoW classic right now so playing guild wars was like a much needed breath of fresh air.
@@AllTradesJackReviews exactly that. no pressure. no need to keep up with everybody else. play your own game just have a fun experience. most of the elitists are in the structured PvP modes. There's some salty WvW enemies too sometimes.. about movement, you can turn on action camera mode on to make it a little bit more like action rpgs.
what a great video, you touched on everything i thought about this game! and i really appreciate players in the comments being encouraging and helpful, it makes me want to try this game again. i felt a bit more comfortable the second time around i played it but now i think i understand the game and world better.
For movement esp while in combat you should turn on action camera. Go to settings > Control Options > Scroll down to Camera > Set a key bind for Toggle Action Camera > Ctrl or Alt are good options
Veteran GW2 player here: Dungeons- not many people do them anymore (though I still love them). If you want to try them, check the dailies (in your achievements pane) to see if one is incentivesed on a given day, and you'll find groups. Don't be afraid to ask questions! Most of the player base will be happy to help. PvP: if you join a guild that has an arena in the guild hall you can practice with your guildies. There are also some custom arenas that are set up for practice mode. WvW. There are 4 maps, a borderlands for each participating server and the central map, eternal battle grounds. If the map you're on is too quiet, check the others! Look for commander tags on the map ( inverted triangle dealio), that's usually going to be where the action it at. Crafting: if you can find the materials it's a great source of exp (though more often for alts, since by then you have a nice stack of mats to play with). All of the professions have consumables that you can use for a small exp gain boost, which can be helpful for leveling as well. Most of the benefits though, come at max level. Try and find a noob friendly guild. Any time you feel lost or need help a good guild will have people who will jump in and help you with whatever you need. Most of all... have fun! Try things out. Experiment. Play the game however you feel like. 10 years running, still my favorite mmo.
With the horizontal progression, i really feel like starting GW2 is like moving to a new city. if you move to NYC you won't get a questline that says "become a Broadway star" but the option is there along with anything else. and you aren't expected to do 100% of everything, unless you are like Donald Glover or Hank Green lol also, Mesmer is one of the harder classes to master, but welcome to the mesmer life. May Lyssa aid you
I'm a veteran player with (I think) over 14k hours in the game, and I completely understand where you're coming from regarding content bloat. I still haven't finished all the content and occasionally get a bit overwhelmed with my options. However, this is also part of its beauty. Once I accepted that there's not necessarily an "ending" to the game, I was able to feel less stress about "keeping up." Having multiple guilds has also helped, as other veteran players in the groups routinely return to old content and are more than willing to slow down for and even explain things to new players who join them. I've personally begun compiling short descriptions of things I commonly take part in, so that when new players ask, I am not always scrambling for words. I tend to rant when I get excited, and so I recognize it can be overwhelming. Sometimes I let them know they can stop me and ask questions if confused, or I will intentionally add pauses or stop further explanation until after they've had time to process what I've already said.
one thing about the LFG; there likely is other people wanting to join a group too. If you create a party and advertise it on the LFG, people will join pretty quickly
^this tbh. It also helps to put a proper description in your lfg. like "first time story, no rushing please" to get the right kind of peeps in. If you join a group with something like "p1,p2" as the description, they are often just there for the rewards.
this is BEST MMO i have ever played. And YES! It is very complicated game but the freedom you have with any class. I never felt forced to log in just to do my daily stuff and when i wanted to go hard I always had that option at ANY TIME and rewards were always there. SO... as a LONG LONG term WoW player IDO recommend GW2 to everyone
My biggest problem is I want to do 100% world completion. But I want to try out new builds as I go around. But I don't have the money to get new equipment from completing maps. Then if I want to gold farm I need to skip to certain seasons in the living story which I'd like to go through in order. I still don't have ascended gear and I have no clue how to get the money required to speed level crafting to get good gear. Or even hope to get a legendary at the moment. I don't want to restart a new character to play a different class and lose all my progression. Nothing against the gameplay or story. I just wish i could understand some of the mechanics to make money such that I can try out new builds and not feel like crap for wasting my money on something that doesn't feel good after I achieve the goal.
@@ron12222 I'd still place gw2 just above WotLK in terms of overall fun. There is just so much to do and so many little mechanics that I'm struggling with the initial learning curve. That said look up some one build for all content videos to find something you enjoy while you get your bearings. It's been helping me out a lot.
@@TwelveTables If you're looking to earn some gold, some of the best simple sources are found in core game maps. Go around completing events, harvesting nodes, etc in area with a level of 45-55, this nets you crafting materials in tiers 3 and 4, which are very valuable when sold on the trading post. It's not the top possible earning for gold of course, but it's still pretty good. Combine that with doing dailies and gearing characters in the most common stats used (like berserker's stats) is very cheap and easy. Also always aim to do three of the dailies to get your daily 2g. That 2g on it's own is almost enough to buy an exotic ring/accessory/amulet from the tradepost. 5-6 days of dailies and you have your trinkets. Don't worry over getting a backpack at first, you'll earn some along the way and the amount of stat points on the backpack is quite small so you're not losing much in the meantime :) Tip for berserker armor, search for "Devona's" (heavy armor) "Nika's" (medium armor) or "Zhed's" (light armor) pieces. Theses are all less than 1g each on the tradepost and are exotic level. This is much cheaper than the crafted equivalent (which you might want later for the skins) There's a few other of the common base-game stats which also exist as named armors (named after prominent GW1 characters) which are also similarly cheap :)
I was completely lost when you talked about the "floaty movement" until I realized exactly what settings you were using. I changed my settings for this game 10 years ago, so it's been a while since I've experienced "default movement". A few recommendations to improve your experience: In Keybind Options: Unbind "turn left" and "turn right" (A, D) Rebind them to "strafe left" and "strafe right". In General options (under Camera): Consider adjusting the "Rotation Speed" (May not matter after other changes listed here) If checked, uncheck "Invert Camera Y-Axis". Why in the world this is on by default confounds me to no end! In General options (Under combat/movement): UNBIND Double-tap to Evade. Rebind this in the Keybind section to a key you're comfortable pressing frequently. Explore the other options in this section, I've toggled a number of them but I would say they are very much up to personal preference. Finally, "Action Camera". In you keybinds, under Camera. Set a key to "Toggle Action Camera". This will change the way your camera and even some skills function. In my experience I can achieve comparable results just by changing the strafe keys and holding rightclick down all the time, but you may find this camera/movement mode more comfortable. A lot of the issues that you brought up round the middle of this video can be solved with tweaks in the game options. Whether or not a player should be expected to change game options, or if a game should just "feel good out of the box" is a debate way above my paygrade, but hopefully these changes should improve your experience should you continue playing beyond this review. Considering your question on the tooltip of this video I'd be interested to hear your take on the post Level 80 experience. As someone who played at launch, and recently returned (due to the Steam release Hype) after 7~8 years, trying to make sense of the endgame gearing / resource management systems in this game makes me feel like I have mad cow disease. Overwhelming would be the understatement of the century.
Very good review, both on pros and cons. The game has a lot of content and a super basic tutorial (if we can even call it tutorial), so the feeling of being overwhelmed is very common to many new players. Especially because coming from other MMOs, people expect some linear quest line to follow, while here the game just throws you in the open world and asks you to explore on your own (a good change, but it might be unexpected). There is a match making in sPvP: it's called Glicko2, both for ranked and unranked arenas, it's the same. But as you noticed, the game is skill based (everyone is automatically scaled to lv80 in sPvP, with all the skills and traits unlocked), and knowing your skills definitely is important, rather than clicking on them out of cooldown. I'm not sure you noticed that you can choose your "gear" in the PvP armor tab: there is an arrow pointing at it, but it's quite hidden (so maybe you fought "without gear"). That could explain your poor performance. As for dungeons... I can't defend them: they are very old content, abandoned after launch, and many players had a bad experience on their first dungeon (me included). I would simply suggest to skip them until lv.80 (they are quite pointless anyway, apart from the story and the achievements).
i've been playing since 2018, gotta say what pulled me in was i could play like a single player game but also just join others doing events if i wanted. there's no pressure to cooperate with others, you can join in for loot or just keep on your merry way. and there's no 'kill steal' or 'gathing node camping' everyone gets their own rng loot if they tap the boss or find a node. it just makes the game more relaxed and fun.
Hello @all-trades jack , I liked your video alot, I been playing gw2 for a while now, and I must say I love the combat in this game. When you started talking about the camera being floatie I remember that was wat I felt first time I tried the game, but there's a fix to that, ArenaNet added a fix to make it more action combat oriented. Floaty Camer Fix: - On Control Options go to Camera and set a keybind to "Toggle Action Camera" ( I set it to middle mouse button) Now u have access to the cursor when u want to use it for anything, and changed from a click target to a point-direction target.
I would say that because gw2 combat was made to be more fluid than FFXIV and WoW. Keyboard turning is really bad, it has a more action oriented combat than it does tab targetting like those other games. But action cam might be the thing you are looking for.
I think you are facing what most MMO playesr feels when they leave their comfort zone as a veteran in another MMO. But the catch with GW2 is that it does things very differently (on purpose). So, if you come from FFXIV and go WoW or SWTOR and vice versa, they kind of share very similarities in mechanics which makes it easier for players to move switch to/from those games, GW2 on the other hand does things its own way. My advice for new players is to approach GW2 with open mind, maybe as a mix of hack and slash with third person platform game (in terms of gameplay). Out of curiosity, I've around 7y of GW2, and less than a 1y of SWTOR and I had a really hard time trying to get into the combat system in SWTOR! Sometimes I still try to dodge lol I hope you keep playing and make another review after your reach level 80, and also just know that there is great improvement of quality in every aspect of the game after Season 2 and beyond.
I played got a couple of weeks and I'm loving it but there's so much shit to do it's a bit too much. It could use some catch up mechanisms for masteries and stuff.
Great video, very helpful. Glad to know that I'm not the only one that struggled with the movement and combat (got a ton of time in WoW and ESO), just started this game yesterday. A lot of good suggestions in the comments as well. Loving the game and appreciate the time you all put in to help. Thx!!!
Nice Video and funny to see someone who feels the same like I did :) I remember when I installed the game, because a Friend of mine told me to try. I played WOW since Classic and it was a bit strange for me to play GW2, if you never played another MMO. My start was with a human Thief and it was at the end of the LS1 with the battle for Lion's arch. I didn't understood the professions, even equipment or Builds... I just played. But then at lvl +-40, I stopped. Years later when GW2 HoT came out, I played again and started with Mesmer. Played with other friends (for short) and stopped again at the Mainstory... I was sad, that it never touched me... But then - never know it, that my girlfriends brother plays GW2! He showed me so many things and how to play and I bought Pre-PoF. I finished HoT and rushed LS3 befor PoF came out. Now, since then, I have Legendaries, Lot of Chars, more knowledge and I'm proud to be a part of the GW2-World and Community
Minor point about crafting: it's actually one of the fastest ways to level assuming you have the resources. On the other hand, I have found that most of it consists of yep, I did that. Someone is crafting regularly though, since a ton of crafted armor, weapons, etc., are available on the trading post.
I know a lot of people recommend stuff regarding content but as a veteran I still think is ok to side-track a bit if you enjoy exploration since exploring map not only contributes towards map completion but also towards world map completion and having 100% world completion on vanilla maps is mandatory if you want to craft Legendary weapons so exploring is not only something super optional you do for fun, it does play a role if you want to eventually go for Legendary crafting. Regarding the "keyboard turning" mmm I would say it's more a personal preference for sure, everyone plays the way they want but I would still recommend you check the options menu and try the different options since a lot of them change your playstyle a lot and some others are activated by default and don't contribute in any positive way to your gameplay. One example of this is "melee assist", what this option does when activated is that it effectively turns on "collision" when fighting enemies which basically makes it imposible for you to walk through an enemies' model to avoid an attack or to comfortably re-position yourself. There are other options that lean more towards into "personal choice" but there are some like "melee assist" that should be turned off by everyone since it brings absolutely no benefit to combat at all. Again I highly recommend checking the options menu and test each thing and see what options work for you because a lot of them can be a day/night difference in terms of the "feel" of combat.
The personal story is 10 years old and a bit out of date or maybe more so a bit out of the expectation mmo players have today. But don't get scared by that. The story will pick up with season 1 and 2 and at the first expansion Heart of Thorns it all changes for the better and for each expac and season it gets amazing. Season 4 is my favorite and blew my mind to a point where i felt this can never be better. But then came End of Dragons and season 4 still my favorite but EoD just brought it a little bit further. Also same goes for core maps and the leveling. I have level over 60 characters and whilst i enjoy doing so, the fun is in the meta events in expacs and seasons ahead for open world PvE. It really is a huge difference and you can move from meta to meta for hours if this is what you like doing or you need mastery levels, or some collection or just gold or what ever you chaise. The whole open world in GW2 is a game mode in it self really. And the dungeons. Yeah again old content left by the devs in favor of fractals which is this games dungeons. The old one are still in game because extra parts of story can be obtained there. Make your own group and write in the message ALL welcome, no speedrun, we will watch cutscenes and your group should fill up really fast. Most people wait for others to make a group. And new people mostly don't add info in the text option. And then all are worried they join a group they should not join =D As for gear, after ascended gear you start working for legendary gear and also the masteries which is our progression system and why you saw someone being lvl 303. Their mastery level was what you saw. And if you don't like turn then swap out the keys to strafe on a and D or what ever buttons you use. They changed that to be the standard option instead of turn. You can also swap to about face camera and try and play around with the action camera option and see if any of those things makes it better for you. If you want to learn more about WvW then gw2mists.com/ should give you directions. There are a lot of guides and builds there to look at to get a basic understanding.
This a very high quality, relevant and pleasant review. I'm playing from time to time since release and this is really the most relax MMO ever. You just jump in, have fun, jump out. The world design and art direction are absolutely gorgeous. It's not for everyone, but no one can deny that it's a very well crafted game. I don't understand how you move tho, are you playing with a controller maybe? You have to use the camera to change direction quickly with your character. We're still seeing your mouse cursor when you turn, meaning that you're not using the camera (mouse 2). It's kind of hard to explain, but the number 1 focus has to be the camera, the character just follow. Try playing in first person (max zoomed in) for a bit, you will have no choice but to understand :)
I started this game last April with some friends, and was so confused for a while. Particularly when it came down to skills and builds. I was pointed in the direction of the MetaBattle site and that made a big difference. Not only does it recommend specs, but also gear for that build, and explanations about different ways it can be used based on what kind of content you want to enjoy. Personally I love the various instanced PvE content, like fractals and strike missions
I tried Guild Wars 2 multiple times on PC over the years. I never disliked it, but it just didn't click. I would play for the night, enjoy myself, but then never return until the next year when I tried again. That all recently changed and I can report I am absolutely hooked. Why? This might be surprising but... Steam Deck! The game isn't listed as compatible but it actually works beautifully with a good community layout (I use Sam CW's Guild Wars 2 Steam Deck ABXY Layout) and it feels great having an MMO to play handheld! It sucked me in hard and now I've spent every night this month playing Guild Wars 2 while tucked under my blankets. It didn't hurt either that I binged videos similar to this one here explaining the horizontal vs. vertical progression and various mechanics in tandem with trying it on Steam Deck. It all finally clicked for me! So yeah, I highly recommended anyone with a Steam Deck give it a try. And for those on PC, still give it another try! You never know when something will finally click. Sometimes you just have to be in the right mood at the right time to "get" a game. I finally "get" Guild Wars 2. And it is super fun :)
There are daily tasks you can do, which nets you 2 gold and some crafting materials. Sometimes it leads me into world vs world. I hop between the colored factions looking for a commander tag (colored player marker on the map). Alot of the time you can join the group by right clicking the tag, then click join. If not, just run to them and follow along. If there is a commander tag, there is a chance of a swarm of players there. I call it a zerg. It's pretty amusing being part of a zerg swallowing up the map; only to be confronted with another zerg. The bigger zerg generally gobbles up the smaller one. It is glorious.
Nice vid! As a veteran player (been playing since 2013), the biggest tip i can give you is: Take baby steps, set small close goals and master them! Gw2 is skill > gear game; You can do raids in full green gear as long as you mastered the fights. Gw2 has a high skill sealing, so focus 1 element at a time and dont rush into content without learning about it (both for PVE and PVP content). For a new player I say go like this: Choose an ez to play class, pref. something that can also support you team (Guardian, Necro, Engineer, Warrior are my suggestions); Complete the story and expansions (they guide you towards Elite specializations, unlocking masteries etc. you dont need a brain just do it, its ez and relaxing); Dungeons are not like in other games, they are very old content and pointless, you can solo the story mod btw, and i recommend you do it so you can increase your personal skill lvl without forcing other people to wait for you; When you reach 80 join a GUILD, vets are there and want to help you; Start doing fractals and strikes; After you are full gear, with a nice lvl of understanding your class and skills, join a raid training in your guild (dont rush, take your time to understand); After that declare yourself too good for the average plebs and start joining the Challenge Mode groups and become a God killing machine.
Been playing GW2 on and off since the final beta and if I could give any advice it would be this: think of GW2 as an investment. Be ok with making small progress on larger goals, taking breaks, coming back later. Determine your own goals, plan how to progress them, then achieve them. That, and do large scale open world content. Meta events and the like. Always good, mindless fun. Do the masteries for HoT, get your mounts in PoF, do the central Tyria masteries for permanent speed buffs, etc. No sub fee, you own GW2 forever, so if you get burned out due to lack of immediate direction, advance your goals a bit and come back later. Eventually, once you’re decked out in shiny things, and you understand the game better, you’ll be able to appreciate it on a deeper level. The things it does well that other MMOs either don’t attempt, or do to a lesser degree of success. Mounts, Meta events, WvW. I went hard on WvW for a year plus and had so many incredible experiences fighting in huge battles. Surviving certain death, holding out with a handful of players until your zerg crests the hill like Gandalf at dawn, diving into enemy zergs from the battlements of a castle. There’s a lot of fun to have.
nice video, wanna also point out they added a new camera mode that makes it feel more like an arpg, as well as there being an addon called Immersive Combat Mode that basically adds to that camera mode to give, in my opinion, a much more fluid camera and character movement feel to the combat because I had a very similar impression to yours when I first started playing. just wanted anyone else who felt the same way to see theres more options to really personalize the experience playing this amazing game. edit: also to clarify, these things make it feel like an action rpg's combat/movement feel. not more similar to WoW or FF.
Definitely hit with choice paralysis. In the noobie zone and looking at the msq like, "Am I really ready to start this cutscene?" I usually just quit, wait a few days, go back in to gw2, see the portal that starts the cutscene, and promptly nope right out.
This was a good review, and I didn't watch it to see if I should play it, but I was curious what your experience was. I like you didn't start playing gw2 until sometime after the launch of Path of Fire (2nd expansion) a few years back now and at the time I also felt massively overwhelmed by the sheer amount of contact I was hit with. But like you said this is the sort of thing I have experienced with any long established MMO I have gotten into years after launch. It took talking with vets of the games, watching some video guides, poking around, and having a good chunk of time to dive into the achievement system for things to click. The Achievement panel is stacked with SO MUCH information it too can be overwhelming to navigate at first as well, but that is the real game journal is to be found. It's the index to nearly all the content in this game. Flow of combat is another thing entirely and you said it yourself in not so many words.. combat is easy to do but much more difficult to master in this game. The depth and sheer speed of the combat system in this game makes it a ton of fun thou. Sadly the UI defaults in this game are not great for the current year of the game which has ramped up in speed and many settings need to be changed to improve the combat experience. Once done thou that is a good start, the rest is personal practice. I'm glad you had fun testing GW2! Great video.
I've been playing GW2 since launch, with some long breaks, and I'd say this is a fair analysis for beginners. The game has systems on systems and there are some I've still not touched. I struggle to go to other MMOs because the massive skill bars and interface are off putting where I find GW2's combat more streamlined. Especially once you get used to it. And I like the dynamism of the combat. Most skills are instants so you can use them while moving. And dodging is critical, pro-tip bind dodge to a side mouse button if possible. Also, you can trait so that dodging does something cool. When you get to level 80 you get Elite Specialisations which make the combat more dynamic. As a mesmer I recommend Chronomancer because the Wells are very cool. And you need to learn to use your illusion shatters. Make dodge create an illusion. Use 2 skills to create 2 more, then when those skills have cooled down shatter your clones to create conditions and use the skills and dodge to get another 3 illusions up. Another note about the downscaling. While you do get leveled down you still have advantages from better gear and traits. So a level 80 playing at level 5 is more powerful than a level 5. You do need to be careful, but you do go through that stuff more easily.
That's actually what happened to a friend of mine (he quit). GW2 can induce a massive Decision Fatigue, unlike most vertical progressions where you are guided well. I think they should implement vertical progression in the early stages of the game since its end game is already horizontal.
My biggest tip is to ask players about things. Since there's no competing over loot or resources, and players in the open world are all potential allies, the game has fostered a much more helpful community than most. A question in map chat will often get you an answer in less than a minute.
I wonder if your qualms with the combat fluidity are down to your settings? I always found myself able to make almost instantaneous 90 degree turns using the mouse. so I'm not sure if I am just used to the control scheme or there is a difference in either camera or movement settings. Although in your defense it is really different from WoW and I've had friends that tried GW2 also say they found the movement super difficult
Probably the best, most balanced review of GW2 I've seen to date since I started playing (n00b, only playing since 10/2021, but with multiple lvl 80's). While I'm new to GW2, I'm not a n00b to MMO's. I started playing EQ1 in 1998, then COH in early 2004 (for 6 months until WoW in P4 beta). We played WoW from P4 beta until 2021 (17 years, with a myriad of other short-lived MMO's in between / here-and-there) when a close friend/guild mate suggested I give GW2 another look, and I'm glad I did. That friend and I (plus my wife) are still playing and exploring the plethora of ways GW2 empowers a player to experience the world and level each new character/class. GW2 may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I'm sure it will scratch several itches we "MMO Veterans" have today. Give it a try. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
In all fairness even if nobody has posted for a dungeon in LFG if you where to post within a couple of min you'll have a full group. Also Anet has gone out of it's way and has acknowledged that they have pretty much abandoned dungeons in favor of Fractals of the mists aka Fractals. While Dungeons have not kept up with power creep from Class elite specializations of expansions Fractals have increasing difficulty as you progress. Dungeons main purpose now is for game lore as well as dungeon currency to still unlock unique weapon and armor skins as well as Rune Sets for your builds such as Nightmare and Monk runes. You can also use the dungeon completion to help with your leveling as beating either the story mode or any of the explorable paths will net you 1 level up each.
As someone who has been playing since Beta, I often forget how overwhelming everything can be for new players. I appreciate your review, and yeah just stick with it. There are build guides out there, pretty much vets making guides to help new players for basically everything. lol I'm working on getting my skyscale mount atm and yep there's a video guide for that as well. lol I think you're going to love the End of Dragons expansion. :)
Welcome to Tyria :) I see you dipped your toes into many things, and surely it is confusing. I found this video best at explaining what's the dealio with GW2, why it has such a solid fanbase (12 mins) ua-cam.com/video/ptbHil0E10E/v-deo.html (Highlighting some of the end-game-side too)
for your movement turning difficulties options free camera put it on toggle it locks your mouse for AOEs you can turn on snap to target allow reset. Also for those early game dungeons "story mode" is nerfed from early days, but the path runs are still a fun challenge. Also, tap Control to turn immediate 180 degrees. Also, you may enjoy completing achievements some give great rewards. For end game you need all crafting "if" you want the best gear and weapons you will have to craft them or find a way to buy from NPC as they are usually account bound on acquire. Legendary weapons can be traded but they are 2k+ gold. However, the game can be enjoyed in full exotic gear which is all tradeable. I have felt your pain on the combat movement free camera mode was the answer for me.
I just finished it yesterday in End of Dragon's map. I was devastated! Heart broke! Shot at and missed, shit at and hit! Now I'm playing my little lvl 50 warrior. I simply can't give up GW2. It is a beautiful game guys. Do try it.
There is a way to lock your camera so it moves with you it is called Toggle Action Camera. That is how I play with every character from range to melee. I have set it to "Z" to turn it on and off. I hope this helps your combat.
This is a great review for new players, and I think it hits on some of GW2's weaknesses. You definitely need to try the action camera. It's hidden in keybinds under camera settings. I think it will help with how you feel about the floatiness.
Tip: you can convert gold to gems (premium currency) at any ratio, not just multiples of 400. It is cheaper per gem the more you get, but that sliding scale ramps then tapers pretty quick
When I begin playing this game what I did first is that i've explored whole core game map. Enjoyed that a lot. Learned how this game works and was blown away how it's way more appealing that Wow which I've played a lot. Mounts are awesome, combat is great and horizontal progression is so cool that in the end that I'm not feeling being rushed to do anything in this game. I play on my own pace. There are many pros to talk about and for those that want to try this game I really encourage to give it a go :) Edit: I hope to see your next video once you play it more 😏
Very well said analysis. The system bloat and the analysis paralysis that comes with it is a natural consequence of coming into a game 10 years in - players were not going to be satisfied with just "more of the same" for new content. New systems had to be added and now there are many, yes. That being said, the fact that nearly everything progresses your character and *counts* for something (the horizontal progression) means that whatever you decide to focus on will help or come in handy whatever your goal is. I've played it since launch and have enjoyed it immensely.
The only problem I currently have with the game is how they try to slap alacrity and quickness on everyone then remove banners and spirits effect which make warriors and ranger unique, class identity is lost imo and every class feels like a copy of another class
What I really enjoy in GW2 is being friendly for casual playing, I am not forced to do anything and it fits my lifestyle. Like, sometimes I am tired after returning from job etc or just do not have stomach for activities that are mandatory to do day by day. My fav MMO is FFXIV and it shares some qualities of GW2, even if it's different type of game. And FFXIV is for sure more engaging title, both in terms of story and activities, but this casual feeling of freedom and enjoyable adventure GW2 offers is great and I am happy I returned to this game after a long, long break - last time I played GW2 it was in 2015.
There are many different things around. Just like dungeons. In other games they are just "loot caves", that were used by players for dressing only. But in GW2 its used mostly for story purpose. Its not a way to get better gear for current level, but a way to get closer with lore of world, current events and Destiny's Edge story itself. You still get dungeons tokens for exploration path runs, which could be used to buy level 80 exotic gear(with unique skins too!) and upgrade components. You also gain some gold for several runs over different dungeons. Not much, but still. So, novadays players runs them for skins and upgrade components only and most of them just ignore original mechanics, skip battles and great part of dungeons or even exploit pathes to bug them and kill more bosses than intended. And its looks like you took part of such speedrunner party. For best results look for slow story with full path parties. Camera and bindings are important too. In wow, for example, there are another way to play the game with pathfinding mode(like in ultima/runescape) which could be set in preferences since TBC at least. The great part of GW2 players use action camera mode (and used icm addon before it was fully relized ingame) and play like action third person game with free mouse look and nontargeting. As you can see, 98% of combat abilities dont need selected target at all and most of them works better without target. From precise aiming for pierce and thrust attacks to sniping sticking out parts of enemies(otherwise with selected target it would try to hit center of enemy). Same works for you and your mount movement too. GW2 is not a game, where you can just stay on same spot all the time. You must move around and enemies dont turn around in seconds like in other games. You can easly strafe out nonhoming projectiles with right movement. And i didnt even mention that you can hide beside rocks, trees and comrades... Leveling speed... It was lil slower before steam release. You still level up to 80 in week or two without living ingame, but with steam release there are seperate achievment category was added, which gives you tonns of exp just for several kills, using abilities or ingame services like bank or bag sorting. But its still not a problem, coz after leveling to max level you gain ability to train masteries in different regions. And it require much more experience but on account wide scope.
That "level 302" guy: The number displayed his mastery rank, which is the horizontal progression system you will work on once you hit max level (80). The max level hasn't increased since launch, as well as the highest tier of gear (well, early on another tier - "ascended" - was added, but at equal stats as the actual highest tier "legendary"). The mastery system allows you two unlock several, usually non combat related skills, like gliding or upgrading your mounts to jump further / higher and such things. Concerning your confusion: Use map chat and ask questions. Especially in low level zones. There are many veterans in this game happy to share their knowledge of and passion for the game. Stuff in the combat system you should try to learn are: Combo fields and finisher, effective use of dodging, boons & conditions, which stats they are linked to (in order to select the correct gear) and how to deal with them (cleanse, steal, convert), break bars and their interaction with CC.
I’m a long time FFXIV player, so I definitely understood the floatyness of characters, but like Mauro mentioned, there’s a camera mode that might help named the action camera or so that locks the cursor to a reticule in the screen and movement is more of a third person shooter (for lack of a bettor descriptor). I already tended to use my mouse to move a bunch in XIV, so it didn’t affect me too too much although this action camera seems like it’d be super useful lol
Action Camera vast majority of players use this form of camera. It should be the standard for all players. Admit it is odd at times but Action Camera makes it much more tight/smooth and less floaty
More questions than answers is exactly what i want in a game. The hand helding nowadays is beyond needed. You also need to play a bit more for your proper analysis of the game, youre basically only playing the 10 year old part in this video. Good vid!
Just some clarification on your dungeon experience. Dungeons aren't really popular content in this game because they have other forms of pve that are similar but either more rewarding or generally more fun than the dungeons were. In the form of strikes and raids come endgame. They are still played for dungeon specific rewards but that's something you will figure out later if you need those items for a build/playstyle. Also the guy that was level 303 was actually due to the mastery system. Which is something you unlock at 80 that gives you account wide bonuses and another thing to progress towards once you get max level. Mounts are tied into this mastery system to unlock new and different abilities on your mounts.
I'd say the time spent going from lvl 1 to lvl 80 learning the mechanics and how the world works is barely scratching the surface of the game, this game has 10 years worth of content and it shows, there's a lot of stuff to do....seriously this game is absolutely gigantic when it comes to all sorts of activities you can do, personally I love meta events (map wide thematic events that require a large number of players, usually coordinated that give a bunch of loot) , if you ever have the chance to try out the expansions i'd advise for you to do some Heart of Thorns story and meta events, especially night time verdant brink with a 50 people squad and a commander or Auric Basin Octovine world boss
Definitely sounds like you need to change some of your camera and keybind settings. Make A and D strafe and not keyboard turn. I've pretty much only played my Mesmer (now a Mirage) the past 9ish years. I have taken very long breaks (years at times), but I keep coming back. I didn't play anything but Halloween for like 3-4 years. lol I can definitely understand feeling overwhelmed with the amount of content. I still feel that way. Because I knew the expansion was coming, I rushed through Living World Story 2, 3, 4 and Icebrood Saga, last year! lol Got all the mounts and was ready to go when End of Dragons hit. Then I really haven't enjoyed EoD (outside of fishing), so have just been working through achievements in the LWS and started working on getting the legendary trinkets Aurora and Vision. You can really just do whatever you want. Is there a weapon or armor skin you like? Is there a title you want? Are you interested in collecting minis? Obtaining achievement points? You really can pick something and run with it. I personally haven't done Fractals, dungeons or PvP in this game. There are some achieves and collections, I won't be able to complete because of that, but I'm not worried about it. And the true end game of Guild Wars 2 is Fashion Wars. haha Also it is best to have a 2nd monitor with this game, so you can look things up on the wiki. Using the wiki is basically required with this game. Don't be afraid to use it all the time if you are confused about something or ask in map chat.
The best way to get into WvW is to find an active WvW guild on your server. Also, if you're on a dead map, you can use team (/t) chat to see if there are any commanders running for your server and follow them around
The good thing about GW2 is that if you are new just ask within the map you are in most people will help, give info, tips and help with content whether pve, pvp, wvw, dungeons, events, raids, metas, bosses, world bosses etc. Virtually everyone will so doesnt really take that long to pick up.
The Floaty movement part of your review is a critisism that Anet took seriously. Recently they changed the default settings where A and D used to be turn left/right now are straife left/right. Maybe trying that might make you feel more planted. Rotating with mouse is always faster. Crafting is not really needed unless you go for Legendary Weapons. Most things that are crafted can also be bought on the Trading Post. Leveling it can wait, or do it whenever you want. The XP for leveling crafting, does go to character leveling as well, some use it to level faster. The New Player experience has always been a point of critisism, that is why you often see veteran players in starter areas taking the time to help new people out. They are making changes to it though. Character adventure guide, a better explanation on skills. As far as I know, a work in progress still. As for the story, after Core Story, things really ramped up. The way they tell the story, the way you engage with NPCs, it all has been improved. I love this game, it is my main MMO, and honestly, your review is very honest and objective. My main tip for any new player is: Ask people... ask the vets... the community is great in general and people often take the time to explain things to you, if you get stuck. Great review.
Movement feels odd because you have different speeds depending on what direction you move in. Going forward is the fastest, strafing is a medium speed, and backpedaling is the slowest speed. This feels alien and strange for people who come from other games as they're habitually used to strafing having the same movement speed as going forward has, so, it feels "wrong" to them.
Pro Tip: At 80, the content bloat is daunting. 100% just pick a direction and go. Be that living world content, WvW, Fractals, map completion, meta events (Silver wastes, expansion maps like Veridian Brink), or Conquest PvP. Literally the moment you hit Level 80 there is so much content available it is overwhelming for most all new players. Just pick something, anything, and go.
This is what I'm struggling with now. I started playing two weeks ago, got to max level cleared all raids but the to do list is massive, and good luck trying to make a legendary lol.
As a day 1 "veteran" of GW2, i am still a noob at the PvP game mode. I lose almost every 1v1s since i mostly just play PvE open world and WvW. WvW is a bit different than PvP. Sure there are plenty of 1v1 moments (which don't end favourably for me). But most of the time, i just fight in a zerg vs zerg and try to contribute by spamming AoEs as an elementalist and I genuinely feel I am contributing to the fight. In summary, I think it's ok to not play certain game modes if you are not interested in it. Rewards wise, i still managed to obtain quite a number of legendary weapons and armours even though I only play casually, although it's important to be patient and understand that it will take a few months to craft one piece of legendary equipment.
The main issue with new players (just about every video I have seen on youtube of anyone starting the game) is that they are not willing to read the things presented to them. It's not that the game does not tell you things - it is that every popup, every explanation, every reward window telling you about what you just achieved and what is to come is instantly clicked away. Also mostly the same with item and skill descriptions.
Agreed! I think it’s also a bit of overload. Where tooltips are pretty long, filled with terms you aren’t fully familiar with yet, so when you try and read it, it takes a certain amount of brain power to sit with it and understand it. So when you unlock things every level, and each level takes like 15 mins to get through, you are constantly given something new to understand and I feel like some folks would try to defer the information overload by clicking away from the tooltip. To their own detriment of course because then they never learn!
As a new player returning after ten years, I've pretty much skipped every tooltip. I prefer to learn things by trial and error. Also, if I have to navigate five menus to get to the ONE thing you want me to see... Perhaps you designed the game in a convoluted way? For example, the way cosmetics work is totally unnecessarily complex. Why are there separate menus for dyes and transmutation and outfits? I enjoy some of the features in the game but I don't enjoy the way they're often presented.
the dynamic event in core game is great, it's happen naturally all over the map, and wait till u touch the expansion, the scale is even more better. each expansion map has the meta event which is the main event on the map that need massive player to success it, this meta event start in certain time and begin with pre event that explain the story of it's map, and lead to the main even that need all players on the map to work together to finish it. if ur' not okay with spoiler stop reading my comment, but if u don't mind with spoilers u can check each meta video in yt, there are the list main famous meta event on first expansion: -Night boss at verdant brink -Octovine at Auric Basin -Chak Garent at Tangled Depths -Dragon Stand *u should at least try the dragon stand meta at least once
For the camera, you should try turning toggle camera on from keybind setting. It'll make your camera to follow your mouse movement instead, like first person game
Pro tip: if it hasn't happened already (I know what this community is like lol), I would recommend getting yourself some larger bags. GW2 is pretty infamous for loading you up with loot, which makes the smaller bags woefully inadequate for managing your inventory, even with the option to salvage gear and store the materials.
You can either craft bigger bags by levelling a crafting discipline that focuses on armour (tailoring is the one for light armour), or by buying them on the trading post - though they can get pretty expensive. But generally once people find out you're new, it's only a matter of time until you get a care package in the mail. It's a tradition to give new players bigger bags, people always want to be the one who can do that for someone else lol.
Another thing to bear in mind about GW2 is that it is designed with the assumption that you will have alternative characters. That's why levelling goes quickly, as it's also designed to be repeated. There are actually a lot of achievements in the game which can only be completed by rolling one or more alts, and obviously this repetition helps to cement your knowledge of the game's mechanics. It also helps a lot with PvP, as you start to know what you're up against!
Overall, if you're looking for direction, the achievement point panel is a good place to work, although it's also a bit intimidating at first. Generally, most players regard how many achievement points you have as a marker of your experience, at least as a rough guide. As with anything in the game, there is a huge amount of flexibility in terms of how you earn achievements, but generally while levelling, you can ignore all the collections and story based categories. Things such as killing a number of each type of mob, or completing X number of world events are easy ones you normally get through regular gameplay, but the explorer ones might encourage you to find that last hidden area. In GW2 you get rewards for every 500 achievement points, which can eventually lead to weapon appearances and better loot drops, so it's not just a bit of flavour.
As for dungeons...its sad. At launch they were popular, but the developers found better ways to deliver hard content, so these days mostly people only run them for speed clears, or with guildmates - at which point they don't advertise their party. If you want a proper dungeon experience, it's worth joining a community and looking for people who want to do a story based run. Those groups do exist, they're just much harder to find these days.
I hate to use the old "it gets better at max level", but in this regard, it rings true. Apparently the coding for the dungeons is too difficult for the developers to change, so they can't easily patch them to bring them up to a level with the rest of the game's group content .
Regarding casual dungeon runs - it is actually pretty easy to get a PUG casual story-mode run going, just create an LFG posting yourself with the description "story mode run, will watch cutscenes." I started earlier this year, and this is how I got all of my initial casual story runs of each dungeon. The only exception would probably be Citadel of Flame, since that dungeon is locked behind successful completion of the map meta in Fireheart Rise. Even then, posting a "doing map meta, then chill run of Citadel" LFG would probably get you a decent group.
Just play the base game, it's free to lvl 80. If you like it go further.
Love GW2 it's so casual friendly, I can drop in and play for a bit get my fill and not touch it for months without feeling guilty about a sub fee ticking down, but it can also be super hardcore and I can spend months working on getting a dragon mount or collecting achievements or getting a legendary weapon or full ascended set. The combat is incredibly deep with the combos you can do but also super friendly to those with disabilities as it allows for perfectly viable 1 or 2 button rotations on classes.
You make Guild Wars 2 sound genuinely appealing in this video, I might try it out myself sometime.
You definitely should!!
Dude, I'm a WoW veteran, playes since its release, casually played EQ2/Elder Scrolls online, and hardcore played FF14. I just got into GW2 a month ago, and holy shit, this game is really slept on. Its honestly amazing. Ease of alts to. Combat is 10× more engaging than other MMOs, and its better than ESOs combat, which has similar playstyle to gw2, as in, 5 attacks based on weapon, you have two weps and can swap mid combat, and another 5 slots for utility, cds, and defensive/heals(esos 5 attack bars are more flexible and you dont have to slot any of the weapon abilities) with 2 dodge rolls, however, ESO has active blocking, crouching, charging auto attack swings, however, its clunky and its all about animation cancelling. GW2 combat is more fluid, and just designed 1000xs better. GW2 feels more alive world.wise, I see all levels in even og starter zones/cities. Mounts ares amazing. Jumping puzzles are wayyyy better than FF14s. By far most rewarding for exploration. Holidays are really fun. Crafting is nice, more in depth than WoW or ESO, but ff14 takes the cake for crafting depth. Main story quests are actually really good,(Asura's is a little more comical fair warning). You can dye your armor and mounts and your glider. There are underwater weapons, so you have 10 new abilities while underwater. PvP is off the chain, and has a good amount of content and activity. Build design is very nice, way better than ESO or WoW. (FF14 classes have no variances, they are what they are.) Over all imo, GW2>WoW=FF14>ESO in order of greatest to least.
Edit: if you get expansions,(1per expansion), all the classes get 3 elite specializations. Elite specializations give you access to a new weapon type, build traits, new class mechanics for combat, new utility skills, a heal skill and elite skill, it literally feels like a whole new class, with asthetics and access to the toolkits of the core class. You wanna be a shadowy caster, thief with Specter elite specialization. You wanna be a monk type class you can be daredevil for thief, but also the paladin archetype class Guardian, has willbender which is a monk with swords essentially. The elite specs change way more of class than wows specializations do.
Mate the game is really worth a try. I play it now since 5 weeks day by day and all I can say "Its nice".
@@AllTradesJackReviews I saw you were struggling with the camera/movement, there's a toggle to action mode, or you can just hold down right click and use the mouse to turn the camera instead :)
I just gave it a go after 7 years inactive
It's still quite a good game, and the community is pretty amazing and helpful
I actually love that you are the first person that described, why the combat feels floaty. Usually when people drop that comment i am just so lost, as its a feeling. its difficult to use a feeling as a basis. But you put reason behind your feeling and tried to validate it.
What i want to say is that most active gw2 players wont feel the movement or combat being floaty, because tank turning, which we jokingly call the standard a and D keybinds for turning, is not used at all. people either rebind a and D to be straving buttons and yes we have a button for this, or they hold down right mouse all the time like maniacs. This is something you just naturally start doing, to constantly hold rightclick and move your camera via moving your mouse when going around. I feel like the floaty combat and movement you felt, was largely to the bad starting keybinds and the poor explanation on there being other options.
Not to mention that gw2 even has an action camera mode that you need another hotkey to enable, which turns gw2 from a tab target game into a hack n slash where you aim each auto attack and ability individually with your camera
"people either rebind a and D to be straving buttons"
This is so common, it's now the default.
@@caerphoto Oh it's default now? thats great
Yeah, for most vets, turning using keyboards is an instant tell you're a new player. Use your mouse for both movement and camera, with occasional W for forward movement while moving around your camera without changing directions. World of difference. Just work on your skill. Edit: oh god, 13:32.
That "level" 303 is actually a lv 80 with a mastery score of 303. Once you max out your level, you gain more skills over levels in the way of masteries.
probably already been said but at 13:07 you're crazy to use keyboard to turn, the most used control for turning is holding right mouse down and turning camera with that which also points forward for your character, so you mainly just hold W and use A and D for strafing. one of the many things the new player experience in the game doesnt tell you, I personally still think they pushed out the steam release too soon
Loved the review. The advice I would give is to focus on reaching level 80 and finishing the Personal Story. If you pay any sort of attention to it, you WILL cry at the end, once that magnificent score hits. Hell, I make the journey with a new character every year, just to remind myself how it all started. The characters, my partners, have all matured so much.
You will also cry when you reach the Chalice of Tears, albeit for another reason entirely..
Once you enter the Heart of Maguuma (Heart of Thorns expansion), the game will shine much brighter. In many ways. From what I saw in the video, you were only experiencing the vanilla part of it, so, 10 year old content at this point. Most of it hasn't been touched upon since the release. Expansions add so much to the game, vanilla will almost seem pale in comparison.
One last note. Someone mentioned this already in the comments but it's worth repeating: dungeons in GW2 aren't exactly what you'd expect when coming from WoW or similar games. What you probably want to focus on, if you like dungeons in WoW, are Fractals. Lots of people queuing for those, not overly time consuming, great rewards, light storytelling and a fairly wide variety of locations/mobs/mechanics.
I do love a good story! I've been slowly going through FF14 for that reason so im exctied for another one!
Tip: you can turn on the action camera mode through the control assignation configuration. It makes combat feels more fluid
came here to say the same! It took me a loooong time to figure out it was a thing, but now I almost only use action camera. Also changed ground targeting recently, but I don't remember the exact setting name (very useful with weapons like staff or the scourge's sand shades)
action cam also lets you play on a controller :D i use keysticks
Combat mode its called. Definetely recommendable
@@kapenike whT is keysticks?
@@vrfitnessandgaming3234 lets you map a gamepad to keyboard inputs
Watching you move in GW2 is like watching a newborn fawn learn how to walk. It's like you move, stop moving, turn, stop turning, and move again, like your keyboard can only handle one keypress at a time. No wonder movement feels "floaty"
This is the only video game review channel I watch. You're very clear with why you hold the opinions you do and seem very level headed when providing critique. Thanks for all the recommendations!
Thank you I really appreciate that!! I hope you keep enjoying the videos!
Played since launch and my advice for a new player: Start from the beginning, take your time to enjoy the game and don't rush it. Try out several classes. Do your personal story, it's fun I promise. Enjoy the game, make friends, join a guild to participate in some guild activities and level up in your own pace. There is so much to do in GW2 as you level up and the end game content is incredible. And don't forget to craft.
The amount of options and choices GW2 presents you with in all aspects of the game can be super overwhelming, especially for people who are used to other MMOs, which are often very straight foreward with what they want you to do, but it's also a big part of what I like about the game.The build and gear system also makes this very apparent. In other MMOs you pick a class and that choice alone dictates your playstyle and your role in group content, with some but usually not much customization. In GW2 your gear, trait and skill choices can completely change the way a class plays. Right now we're very close to every class having at least one, if not multiple, viable builds for heal, support and dps, as well as hybrids of these, in endgame group content. And every class being able to fulfill every role (with the right gear and build setup) is a goal the devs are actively working towards recently.
This is awesome because I don't have to play another class whose flavour and mechanics I might not like to fill another role and I can be as tanky or as glass cannon-y as I want whether I'm on a warrior or an elementalist. But this also means that the game can't just explain to you how exactly to properly play and gear your character because there isn't just one "proper" way for any given class. As a result there's a giant power difference between someone who engages with the build craft (by making their own or by looking for the best builds online) and someone who randomly throws on DoT damage and heal gear while not using any skills that provide either. The core game and leveling allows you to experiment with your core class' capabilities and even let's the "vastly unoptimized" take in all the sights by being so easy. Once you hit 80 the game starts demanding at least a bit of engagement in its systems.
Overall I adore the amount of freedom and customization GW2 gives you, even if it comes with it's own set of issues. It might turn a lot of people who are used to a more guided MMO experience away, but for me and a lot of others it's at the core of what makes this game great.
This is what I was looking for. Currently in Endwalker in FFXIV, and I want a game with a class system that let's me customize. I love the story in FF, but know that once I finish it, I will want a game that let's me really dig into a class after the static feelings of the job system.
Try mouse turning. Right click and drag to turn quickly, which you can do while strafing. I also recommend experimenting with other settings that can help improve the flow of combat, like the aoe targeting options (I personally like 'fast with range indicator'). There are a few videos out there explaining the merits of the various choices, checking one of those out might really help improve your play experience. I'm a long time gw2 veteran, and I deeply love the game, one of the most fascinating things about it are the many different ways to enjoy it!
I never played gw2 but I was going to say the same thing... You can't PvP in wow if you don't use your mouse to turn.... Or I guess you can, but you'll get owned.
That part of the video really confused me because I've always thought keyboard turning was frowned upon in MMOs... or indeed any pc game.
i'm a 6K hour vet in GW2 and I definitely can see a lot of your points you make here. the core game has not aged amazingly well and has only been made easier and faster to clear as time has gone on. crafting isn't super useful for levelling with a lot of dead and useless recipes. the pvp population is too small to have great matchmaking.
however, there's a lot of amazing stuff in the game that this review does not cover. GW2 has a better mount system than any other MMO. it's elite specialization system for classes creates some truly amazing combat options. Fractals, Raids, and Strikes are very enjoyable and repeatable PvE end game. Expansion and Living World maps offer far better exploration and challenge and are still visually stunning. The devs heard many of the critiques years ago and have spent a lot of time not only trying to improve the core game but also to develop new content that misses those original pitfalls. it hasn't always been perfect, but GW2 will go from good to great very quickly once you get beyond the mid levels.
I have to say, while you have some understandable objections/issues with the game, probably 90% of what I heard that you had issues with is basically because your mind is comparing it to what you are used to from other games. I don't hear any of this 90% as any kind of criticism of the game, just someone trying to get used to what they are not used to after a lot of experience with other games that work very differently + definitely a bunch of stuff you have misunderstood/haven't understood yet - understandable given the low playtime and you acknowledged this a few times -- this includes the "floaty" combat).
enjoyed the video overall
One thing I would advise new players is to not be afraid to ask questions in the chat. The community is generally helpful. Overall, talking to people can help a lot. For example, most people will slow down in dungeons if you ask them. I agree that the openness of the game can sometimes work against it a bit; you do have to set your own goals. If you want help with that, try looking at the achievements, there's tonnes of them and you can click the eye to track one and then, just go for it.
I second this, dont feel afraid to ask in open chat. People are very friendly inside the game (except pvp, never go there simba)
The only new thing you encountered was the beetle race everything else seemed like it was the base game and so it has been barely touched in 10 years. I kove the exploration of Guild Wars 2 and the Gameplay has great skill expression which is much more modern than the classic Tab Target system. I'll give the advice to keep playing as well. The Journey is just starting.
1 tip that changed my life in GW2 is to go to your keybinds find action cam and bind it , your welcome.
You should basically rebind A and D to strafe rather than the regular movement scheme. It should remove the issue of characters having the turning rate of a Scania truck. The momentum will still be there though.
It's not like that by default?
@@CallOfEuropeanSpirit No. I think that by default A/D are used for turning and Q/E for strafing, so usually it's recomended to rebind strafing to A/D and then use your mouse to turn. Turning around with the mouse is instant and since you can use A/D to strafe, you can for example, if you play in melee, you can easily circle around enemies.
Couldn't figure out what the deuce your complaint was about when it came to the camera and turning till I realized YOU turn with the KEYBOARD.. >_< 😳
You can change this „terrible” camera movement in settings where keybinds are :D i rly recommend watch some gw2 settings video on yt by game content creators. Unluckly, a lot of default options are bad.
Glad to hear u like the game and wish u fun exploring Tyria!
The reason there is no "dungeon" groups is b/c dungeons have been replaced by "fractals" Basically high lvl dungeons and "strikes" which are like lower difficulty raids( GW2 has raids as well). It looks like when you entered WVW, you were on your home borderland, so thats likely why you owned most of the structures. The best way to get involved in wvw is to find a wvw guild you enjoy running with and join them. I found the leveling in GW2 very fun when I got to lvl 80,but like you I did it in small doses at a time. Once I got into WVW, I pretty much ended up giving up playing the rest of the game. Just running a fractal every once in a while when I feel like it.
Hey mate, some explanations to your questions:
1) Levelling in gw2 is not important, you can get to 80 in 2 weeks if you play a lot, if you don't understand the game whilst levelling up, dw, it's not that important. The real game starts after lvl 80. Levelling is just the tutorial, is ok to feel lost.
2) There is no "lvl 300". What you saw is a player "mastery levels". It's a secondary levelling system you will unlock after level 80 (and if you own at least one expansion). Each mastery level gives you: account wide QoL mechanics and spells. It does not affect the real character level system; max level is 80, it doesn't go further.
3) You want to slowly upgrade your inventory.
4) You mentioned that dungeons are the top mmorpgs content type. In gw2 it's not like that. Dungeons do exist, but they are nothing more than some fun/outdated content to play once or twice when you start the game (or to farm to get some special currencies if you want some specific gear). For the real PvE content experience, you would need to get level 80 first.
5) I saw you are suffering a lot with the movement in gw2. In my opinion one of the best ways to move around in the game is holding the right click or left click. You use the right click to lock your character to whatever direction your screen is looking at, so if you press W you will move to that direction. You use the left click to move the camera around without altering the current movement direction of your character. I really do recommend you start using the right click to get used to it, once you get used to it you will look to gw2 movement system in a totally different way.
6) Finally, my last suggestion is to enjoy the game when you are starting.
I wish I could forget evth about gw2 and start this adventure all over again,
I miss the joy of discovering new zones, secrets, and jumping puzzles, or playing the story of the game without spoilers and with no ideas of what is happening. I miss reading the abilities over and over coz I have no clue what I'm doing.
I already spent tens of thousands of hours in this game for the last 9 years, so all this doesn't happen to me anymore.
Guild wars 2 its extremely rewarding in the sense of discovery. Thats the soul of the game.
I hope you enjoy the game as much as I did C:
Im sure its probably been said, but for turning your character, use mouse right click. Keybindings for turning with your keyboard are better off unbound all together. Strafe keys on A and D are all you really need with mouse camera turning, and it feels way more fluid and natural.
I quit 5 years ago but I think I will jump back on. I had all Gen 1 legendaries and permanent bank access contract
I’ll be interested to see an update on your progress and your opinion on GW2 after you get to max level and have spent enough time to better understand your skills.
agreed, I think if you experience "modern" late game, such as strikes or even raids are a lot more engaging than dungeons.
Tip: Dungeons were succeeded by Fractals of the mists unlocked at level 80.
Dungeons still give 5 gold rewards for completing any 8 different ones (story or any of the explorable paths) every 8 you do, but Fractals are where the love went and will be more like the dungeons you are used to in other MMOs
bro no one in gw2 uses the keyboard to turn no one. that's the first thing every Gw2 player tells new players to change in keybind settings
Before I get into anything else, let me just saying your editing on that horizontal progression section was so clean.
So I first played GW2 at launch and was enamored by it right away. My experience with the game is pretty dated at this point (but I have been casually playing it with the gf for the past few weeks as it turns out) but I had pretty much done most of the content you could do pre Heart of Thorns Expansion, other than crafting a legendary weapon.
That whole thing you said about the camera being floaty and combat feeling weird.. yeah that's how I feel too... ABOUT WOW and FFXIV. Gw2's combat and movement is so much more interesting to me and I really couldn't ever get back into your run of the mill tab-target combat after experiencing it. For the camera, my only suggestion is to hold down right click more maybe? I think that lets you turn more easily (and in air?). Maybe it had to do with the class I was playing, I mostly played warrior, but also was invested in my necro and a thief. I never clicked with mesmer even though I tried several times (it just had insane utility at the time for group play) so maybe you would've enjoyed another class more.
As far as dungeons go, I agree, they were never as good as those in WoW or FFXIV and I pretty much only did them to unlock some armour sets (hell yes gw2 fashion is great). You mentioned not really knowing what crafting is used for, back in the day anyhow, it was a way of earning gold (if you knew what you were doing) or a way of leveling up your character super quickly. If you had enough gold, I believe you could go from 1-80 just sitting there at crafting stations. Not sure if that's still the case now.
PVP and WvW was always just way more fun for me when playing with friends or with a guild. Having a chill, fun, active guild to do this stuff with made the game 100x more memorable. Also in the open world stuff, taking down some of those huge event bosses like the great jungle wurm for the first time was incredible. Just hearing everyone on raidcall or ventrilo or wtv the heck it was before discord took over, was a joy I had never experienced before, and was really similar to how it feels to be at a concert where your favourite band is playing and EVERYBODY starts screaming when the band plays the beginning of that one song we've all been waiting for. It was nuts.
At this point I'm just spewing out my thoughts and memories of the game. I stopped playing pretty much when the first expansion came out. It didn't really click with me/I lost interest, and I've always been bummed out about it.
Also jump puzzles are the best. Do all of them lol.
Thanks man! I appreciate that.
I feel like I would have LOVED to have experienced this game at launch. Like I can’t imagine how fun it would be to explore all of this while it was new and relevant. When people were just figuring things out. Man MMORPG launches are the best.
I’m definitely going to keep playing till 80. I think my main feeling with GW2 is that it’s like a comfort mmorpg for me. No pressure, no ridiculous gear checks, no elitist attitudes keeping me from trying things out. At least not yet. It’s super refreshing to have that. And even though the movement is all crazy for me, I still don’t feel bad about trying to figure it out. I definitely want to try other classes too. I’m literally putting all my time into WoW classic right now so playing guild wars was like a much needed breath of fresh air.
@@AllTradesJackReviews exactly that. no pressure. no need to keep up with everybody else. play your own game just have a fun experience. most of the elitists are in the structured PvP modes. There's some salty WvW enemies too sometimes.. about movement, you can turn on action camera mode on to make it a little bit more like action rpgs.
what a great video, you touched on everything i thought about this game! and i really appreciate players in the comments being encouraging and helpful, it makes me want to try this game again.
i felt a bit more comfortable the second time around i played it but now i think i understand the game and world better.
I really enjoyed your review ... thank you.. it was the push I needed to try this game again... you have a new subscriber!
For movement esp while in combat you should turn on action camera. Go to settings > Control Options > Scroll down to Camera > Set a key bind for Toggle Action Camera > Ctrl or Alt are good options
Veteran GW2 player here: Dungeons- not many people do them anymore (though I still love them). If you want to try them, check the dailies (in your achievements pane) to see if one is incentivesed on a given day, and you'll find groups. Don't be afraid to ask questions! Most of the player base will be happy to help.
PvP: if you join a guild that has an arena in the guild hall you can practice with your guildies. There are also some custom arenas that are set up for practice mode.
WvW. There are 4 maps, a borderlands for each participating server and the central map, eternal battle grounds. If the map you're on is too quiet, check the others! Look for commander tags on the map ( inverted triangle dealio), that's usually going to be where the action it at.
Crafting: if you can find the materials it's a great source of exp (though more often for alts, since by then you have a nice stack of mats to play with). All of the professions have consumables that you can use for a small exp gain boost, which can be helpful for leveling as well. Most of the benefits though, come at max level.
Try and find a noob friendly guild. Any time you feel lost or need help a good guild will have people who will jump in and help you with whatever you need.
Most of all... have fun! Try things out. Experiment. Play the game however you feel like. 10 years running, still my favorite mmo.
Literally downloading it right now. Great video and POV of it after some considerable hours or time playing. 👍🏽
With the horizontal progression, i really feel like starting GW2 is like moving to a new city.
if you move to NYC you won't get a questline that says "become a Broadway star" but the option is there along with anything else. and you aren't expected to do 100% of everything, unless you are like Donald Glover or Hank Green lol
also, Mesmer is one of the harder classes to master, but welcome to the mesmer life. May Lyssa aid you
I'm a veteran player with (I think) over 14k hours in the game, and I completely understand where you're coming from regarding content bloat. I still haven't finished all the content and occasionally get a bit overwhelmed with my options. However, this is also part of its beauty. Once I accepted that there's not necessarily an "ending" to the game, I was able to feel less stress about "keeping up." Having multiple guilds has also helped, as other veteran players in the groups routinely return to old content and are more than willing to slow down for and even explain things to new players who join them.
I've personally begun compiling short descriptions of things I commonly take part in, so that when new players ask, I am not always scrambling for words. I tend to rant when I get excited, and so I recognize it can be overwhelming. Sometimes I let them know they can stop me and ask questions if confused, or I will intentionally add pauses or stop further explanation until after they've had time to process what I've already said.
one thing about the LFG; there likely is other people wanting to join a group too. If you create a party and advertise it on the LFG, people will join pretty quickly
^this tbh. It also helps to put a proper description in your lfg. like "first time story, no rushing please" to get the right kind of peeps in. If you join a group with something like "p1,p2" as the description, they are often just there for the rewards.
this is BEST MMO i have ever played. And YES! It is very complicated game but the freedom you have with any class. I never felt forced to log in just to do my daily stuff and when i wanted to go hard I always had that option at ANY TIME and rewards were always there. SO... as a LONG LONG term WoW player IDO recommend GW2 to everyone
My biggest problem is I want to do 100% world completion. But I want to try out new builds as I go around. But I don't have the money to get new equipment from completing maps. Then if I want to gold farm I need to skip to certain seasons in the living story which I'd like to go through in order. I still don't have ascended gear and I have no clue how to get the money required to speed level crafting to get good gear. Or even hope to get a legendary at the moment. I don't want to restart a new character to play a different class and lose all my progression. Nothing against the gameplay or story. I just wish i could understand some of the mechanics to make money such that I can try out new builds and not feel like crap for wasting my money on something that doesn't feel good after I achieve the goal.
is it better than WoW?
@@ron12222 I'd still place gw2 just above WotLK in terms of overall fun. There is just so much to do and so many little mechanics that I'm struggling with the initial learning curve. That said look up some one build for all content videos to find something you enjoy while you get your bearings. It's been helping me out a lot.
@@TwelveTables If you're looking to earn some gold, some of the best simple sources are found in core game maps. Go around completing events, harvesting nodes, etc in area with a level of 45-55, this nets you crafting materials in tiers 3 and 4, which are very valuable when sold on the trading post. It's not the top possible earning for gold of course, but it's still pretty good. Combine that with doing dailies and gearing characters in the most common stats used (like berserker's stats) is very cheap and easy. Also always aim to do three of the dailies to get your daily 2g. That 2g on it's own is almost enough to buy an exotic ring/accessory/amulet from the tradepost. 5-6 days of dailies and you have your trinkets. Don't worry over getting a backpack at first, you'll earn some along the way and the amount of stat points on the backpack is quite small so you're not losing much in the meantime :)
Tip for berserker armor, search for "Devona's" (heavy armor) "Nika's" (medium armor) or "Zhed's" (light armor) pieces. Theses are all less than 1g each on the tradepost and are exotic level. This is much cheaper than the crafted equivalent (which you might want later for the skins) There's a few other of the common base-game stats which also exist as named armors (named after prominent GW1 characters) which are also similarly cheap :)
@@TwelveTables hey. If you are EU player i dont mind to show you around in game and provide some basic mentoring
I was completely lost when you talked about the "floaty movement" until I realized exactly what settings you were using. I changed my settings for this game 10 years ago, so it's been a while since I've experienced "default movement". A few recommendations to improve your experience:
In Keybind Options:
Unbind "turn left" and "turn right" (A, D)
Rebind them to "strafe left" and "strafe right".
In General options (under Camera):
Consider adjusting the "Rotation Speed" (May not matter after other changes listed here)
If checked, uncheck "Invert Camera Y-Axis". Why in the world this is on by default confounds me to no end!
In General options (Under combat/movement):
UNBIND Double-tap to Evade. Rebind this in the Keybind section to a key you're comfortable pressing frequently.
Explore the other options in this section, I've toggled a number of them but I would say they are very much up to personal preference.
Finally, "Action Camera". In you keybinds, under Camera. Set a key to "Toggle Action Camera". This will change the way your camera and even some skills function. In my experience I can achieve comparable results just by changing the strafe keys and holding rightclick down all the time, but you may find this camera/movement mode more comfortable.
A lot of the issues that you brought up round the middle of this video can be solved with tweaks in the game options. Whether or not a player should be expected to change game options, or if a game should just "feel good out of the box" is a debate way above my paygrade, but hopefully these changes should improve your experience should you continue playing beyond this review.
Considering your question on the tooltip of this video I'd be interested to hear your take on the post Level 80 experience. As someone who played at launch, and recently returned (due to the Steam release Hype) after 7~8 years, trying to make sense of the endgame gearing / resource management systems in this game makes me feel like I have mad cow disease. Overwhelming would be the understatement of the century.
Very good review, both on pros and cons. The game has a lot of content and a super basic tutorial (if we can even call it tutorial), so the feeling of being overwhelmed is very common to many new players. Especially because coming from other MMOs, people expect some linear quest line to follow, while here the game just throws you in the open world and asks you to explore on your own (a good change, but it might be unexpected).
There is a match making in sPvP: it's called Glicko2, both for ranked and unranked arenas, it's the same. But as you noticed, the game is skill based (everyone is automatically scaled to lv80 in sPvP, with all the skills and traits unlocked), and knowing your skills definitely is important, rather than clicking on them out of cooldown. I'm not sure you noticed that you can choose your "gear" in the PvP armor tab: there is an arrow pointing at it, but it's quite hidden (so maybe you fought "without gear"). That could explain your poor performance.
As for dungeons... I can't defend them: they are very old content, abandoned after launch, and many players had a bad experience on their first dungeon (me included). I would simply suggest to skip them until lv.80 (they are quite pointless anyway, apart from the story and the achievements).
i've been playing since 2018, gotta say what pulled me in was i could play like a single player game but also just join others doing events if i wanted. there's no pressure to cooperate with others, you can join in for loot or just keep on your merry way. and there's no 'kill steal' or 'gathing node camping' everyone gets their own rng loot if they tap the boss or find a node. it just makes the game more relaxed and fun.
Hello @all-trades jack , I liked your video alot, I been playing gw2 for a while now, and I must say I love the combat in this game.
When you started talking about the camera being floatie I remember that was wat I felt first time I tried the game, but there's a fix to that, ArenaNet added a fix to make it more action combat oriented.
Floaty Camer Fix:
- On Control Options go to Camera and set a keybind to "Toggle Action Camera" ( I set it to middle mouse button)
Now u have access to the cursor when u want to use it for anything, and changed from a click target to a point-direction target.
I would say that because gw2 combat was made to be more fluid than FFXIV and WoW. Keyboard turning is really bad, it has a more action oriented combat than it does tab targetting like those other games. But action cam might be the thing you are looking for.
I think you are facing what most MMO playesr feels when they leave their comfort zone as a veteran in another MMO. But the catch with GW2 is that it does things very differently (on purpose). So, if you come from FFXIV and go WoW or SWTOR and vice versa, they kind of share very similarities in mechanics which makes it easier for players to move switch to/from those games, GW2 on the other hand does things its own way. My advice for new players is to approach GW2 with open mind, maybe as a mix of hack and slash with third person platform game (in terms of gameplay). Out of curiosity, I've around 7y of GW2, and less than a 1y of SWTOR and I had a really hard time trying to get into the combat system in SWTOR! Sometimes I still try to dodge lol
I hope you keep playing and make another review after your reach level 80, and also just know that there is great improvement of quality in every aspect of the game after Season 2 and beyond.
I played got a couple of weeks and I'm loving it but there's so much shit to do it's a bit too much. It could use some catch up mechanisms for masteries and stuff.
Great video, very helpful. Glad to know that I'm not the only one that struggled with the movement and combat (got a ton of time in WoW and ESO), just started this game yesterday. A lot of good suggestions in the comments as well. Loving the game and appreciate the time you all put in to help.
Thx!!!
Nice Video and funny to see someone who feels the same like I did :)
I remember when I installed the game, because a Friend of mine told me to try.
I played WOW since Classic and it was a bit strange for me to play GW2, if you never played another MMO. My start was with a human Thief and it was at the end of the LS1 with the battle for Lion's arch. I didn't understood the professions, even equipment or Builds... I just played. But then at lvl +-40, I stopped.
Years later when GW2 HoT came out, I played again and started with Mesmer. Played with other friends (for short) and stopped again at the Mainstory... I was sad, that it never touched me...
But then - never know it, that my girlfriends brother plays GW2! He showed me so many things and how to play and I bought Pre-PoF. I finished HoT and rushed LS3 befor PoF came out. Now, since then, I have Legendaries, Lot of Chars, more knowledge and I'm proud to be a part of the GW2-World and Community
Thats so crazy super similar to my experience with the game too! I also have to look up MightyTeapot I saw him on a Josh Strife Hayes video.
This was a really awesome video. You got a new sub :)
Minor point about crafting: it's actually one of the fastest ways to level assuming you have the resources. On the other hand, I have found that most of it consists of yep, I did that. Someone is crafting regularly though, since a ton of crafted armor, weapons, etc., are available on the trading post.
I know a lot of people recommend stuff regarding content but as a veteran I still think is ok to side-track a bit if you enjoy exploration since exploring map not only contributes towards map completion but also towards world map completion and having 100% world completion on vanilla maps is mandatory if you want to craft Legendary weapons so exploring is not only something super optional you do for fun, it does play a role if you want to eventually go for Legendary crafting.
Regarding the "keyboard turning" mmm I would say it's more a personal preference for sure, everyone plays the way they want but I would still recommend you check the options menu and try the different options since a lot of them change your playstyle a lot and some others are activated by default and don't contribute in any positive way to your gameplay. One example of this is "melee assist", what this option does when activated is that it effectively turns on "collision" when fighting enemies which basically makes it imposible for you to walk through an enemies' model to avoid an attack or to comfortably re-position yourself. There are other options that lean more towards into "personal choice" but there are some like "melee assist" that should be turned off by everyone since it brings absolutely no benefit to combat at all.
Again I highly recommend checking the options menu and test each thing and see what options work for you because a lot of them can be a day/night difference in terms of the "feel" of combat.
The personal story is 10 years old and a bit out of date or maybe more so a bit out of the expectation mmo players have today. But don't get scared by that. The story will pick up with season 1 and 2 and at the first expansion Heart of Thorns it all changes for the better and for each expac and season it gets amazing. Season 4 is my favorite and blew my mind to a point where i felt this can never be better. But then came End of Dragons and season 4 still my favorite but EoD just brought it a little bit further.
Also same goes for core maps and the leveling. I have level over 60 characters and whilst i enjoy doing so, the fun is in the meta events in expacs and seasons ahead for open world PvE. It really is a huge difference and you can move from meta to meta for hours if this is what you like doing or you need mastery levels, or some collection or just gold or what ever you chaise. The whole open world in GW2 is a game mode in it self really.
And the dungeons. Yeah again old content left by the devs in favor of fractals which is this games dungeons. The old one are still in game because extra parts of story can be obtained there. Make your own group and write in the message ALL welcome, no speedrun, we will watch cutscenes and your group should fill up really fast. Most people wait for others to make a group. And new people mostly don't add info in the text option. And then all are worried they join a group they should not join =D
As for gear, after ascended gear you start working for legendary gear and also the masteries which is our progression system and why you saw someone being lvl 303. Their mastery level was what you saw.
And if you don't like turn then swap out the keys to strafe on a and D or what ever buttons you use. They changed that to be the standard option instead of turn. You can also swap to about face camera and try and play around with the action camera option and see if any of those things makes it better for you.
If you want to learn more about WvW then gw2mists.com/ should give you directions. There are a lot of guides and builds there to look at to get a basic understanding.
This a very high quality, relevant and pleasant review. I'm playing from time to time since release and this is really the most relax MMO ever. You just jump in, have fun, jump out. The world design and art direction are absolutely gorgeous. It's not for everyone, but no one can deny that it's a very well crafted game.
I don't understand how you move tho, are you playing with a controller maybe? You have to use the camera to change direction quickly with your character. We're still seeing your mouse cursor when you turn, meaning that you're not using the camera (mouse 2). It's kind of hard to explain, but the number 1 focus has to be the camera, the character just follow. Try playing in first person (max zoomed in) for a bit, you will have no choice but to understand :)
Lol actually that advice is golden. move the camera not the character.
I started this game last April with some friends, and was so confused for a while. Particularly when it came down to skills and builds. I was pointed in the direction of the MetaBattle site and that made a big difference. Not only does it recommend specs, but also gear for that build, and explanations about different ways it can be used based on what kind of content you want to enjoy. Personally I love the various instanced PvE content, like fractals and strike missions
Fantastic video great work please keep it up!
Really nice vid
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!
I tried Guild Wars 2 multiple times on PC over the years. I never disliked it, but it just didn't click. I would play for the night, enjoy myself, but then never return until the next year when I tried again. That all recently changed and I can report I am absolutely hooked. Why? This might be surprising but... Steam Deck! The game isn't listed as compatible but it actually works beautifully with a good community layout (I use Sam CW's Guild Wars 2 Steam Deck ABXY Layout) and it feels great having an MMO to play handheld! It sucked me in hard and now I've spent every night this month playing Guild Wars 2 while tucked under my blankets. It didn't hurt either that I binged videos similar to this one here explaining the horizontal vs. vertical progression and various mechanics in tandem with trying it on Steam Deck. It all finally clicked for me!
So yeah, I highly recommended anyone with a Steam Deck give it a try. And for those on PC, still give it another try! You never know when something will finally click. Sometimes you just have to be in the right mood at the right time to "get" a game. I finally "get" Guild Wars 2. And it is super fun :)
There are daily tasks you can do, which nets you 2 gold and some crafting materials. Sometimes it leads me into world vs world. I hop between the colored factions looking for a commander tag (colored player marker on the map). Alot of the time you can join the group by right clicking the tag, then click join. If not, just run to them and follow along. If there is a commander tag, there is a chance of a swarm of players there. I call it a zerg. It's pretty amusing being part of a zerg swallowing up the map; only to be confronted with another zerg. The bigger zerg generally gobbles up the smaller one. It is glorious.
Nice vid! As a veteran player (been playing since 2013), the biggest tip i can give you is: Take baby steps, set small close goals and master them!
Gw2 is skill > gear game; You can do raids in full green gear as long as you mastered the fights. Gw2 has a high skill sealing, so focus 1 element at a time and dont rush into content without learning about it (both for PVE and PVP content).
For a new player I say go like this: Choose an ez to play class, pref. something that can also support you team (Guardian, Necro, Engineer, Warrior are my suggestions); Complete the story and expansions (they guide you towards Elite specializations, unlocking masteries etc. you dont need a brain just do it, its ez and relaxing); Dungeons are not like in other games, they are very old content and pointless, you can solo the story mod btw, and i recommend you do it so you can increase your personal skill lvl without forcing other people to wait for you; When you reach 80 join a GUILD, vets are there and want to help you; Start doing fractals and strikes; After you are full gear, with a nice lvl of understanding your class and skills, join a raid training in your guild (dont rush, take your time to understand); After that declare yourself too good for the average plebs and start joining the Challenge Mode groups and become a God killing machine.
Been playing GW2 on and off since the final beta and if I could give any advice it would be this: think of GW2 as an investment. Be ok with making small progress on larger goals, taking breaks, coming back later. Determine your own goals, plan how to progress them, then achieve them. That, and do large scale open world content. Meta events and the like. Always good, mindless fun. Do the masteries for HoT, get your mounts in PoF, do the central Tyria masteries for permanent speed buffs, etc. No sub fee, you own GW2 forever, so if you get burned out due to lack of immediate direction, advance your goals a bit and come back later. Eventually, once you’re decked out in shiny things, and you understand the game better, you’ll be able to appreciate it on a deeper level. The things it does well that other MMOs either don’t attempt, or do to a lesser degree of success. Mounts, Meta events, WvW. I went hard on WvW for a year plus and had so many incredible experiences fighting in huge battles. Surviving certain death, holding out with a handful of players until your zerg crests the hill like Gandalf at dawn, diving into enemy zergs from the battlements of a castle. There’s a lot of fun to have.
nice video, wanna also point out they added a new camera mode that makes it feel more like an arpg, as well as there being an addon called Immersive Combat Mode that basically adds to that camera mode to give, in my opinion, a much more fluid camera and character movement feel to the combat because I had a very similar impression to yours when I first started playing. just wanted anyone else who felt the same way to see theres more options to really personalize the experience playing this amazing game.
edit: also to clarify, these things make it feel like an action rpg's combat/movement feel. not more similar to WoW or FF.
Definitely hit with choice paralysis. In the noobie zone and looking at the msq like, "Am I really ready to start this cutscene?" I usually just quit, wait a few days, go back in to gw2, see the portal that starts the cutscene, and promptly nope right out.
This was a good review, and I didn't watch it to see if I should play it, but I was curious what your experience was. I like you didn't start playing gw2 until sometime after the launch of Path of Fire (2nd expansion) a few years back now and at the time I also felt massively overwhelmed by the sheer amount of contact I was hit with. But like you said this is the sort of thing I have experienced with any long established MMO I have gotten into years after launch. It took talking with vets of the games, watching some video guides, poking around, and having a good chunk of time to dive into the achievement system for things to click. The Achievement panel is stacked with SO MUCH information it too can be overwhelming to navigate at first as well, but that is the real game journal is to be found. It's the index to nearly all the content in this game. Flow of combat is another thing entirely and you said it yourself in not so many words.. combat is easy to do but much more difficult to master in this game. The depth and sheer speed of the combat system in this game makes it a ton of fun thou. Sadly the UI defaults in this game are not great for the current year of the game which has ramped up in speed and many settings need to be changed to improve the combat experience. Once done thou that is a good start, the rest is personal practice. I'm glad you had fun testing GW2! Great video.
I outright hate this review, and wish I never seen it. 20:44
Motto of GW2: Really cool idea and i wish i knew more about how to get involved with this.
I've been playing GW2 since launch, with some long breaks, and I'd say this is a fair analysis for beginners. The game has systems on systems and there are some I've still not touched.
I struggle to go to other MMOs because the massive skill bars and interface are off putting where I find GW2's combat more streamlined. Especially once you get used to it. And I like the dynamism of the combat. Most skills are instants so you can use them while moving. And dodging is critical, pro-tip bind dodge to a side mouse button if possible. Also, you can trait so that dodging does something cool.
When you get to level 80 you get Elite Specialisations which make the combat more dynamic. As a mesmer I recommend Chronomancer because the Wells are very cool. And you need to learn to use your illusion shatters. Make dodge create an illusion. Use 2 skills to create 2 more, then when those skills have cooled down shatter your clones to create conditions and use the skills and dodge to get another 3 illusions up.
Another note about the downscaling. While you do get leveled down you still have advantages from better gear and traits. So a level 80 playing at level 5 is more powerful than a level 5. You do need to be careful, but you do go through that stuff more easily.
That's actually what happened to a friend of mine (he quit). GW2 can induce a massive Decision Fatigue, unlike most vertical progressions where you are guided well. I think they should implement vertical progression in the early stages of the game since its end game is already horizontal.
My biggest tip is to ask players about things. Since there's no competing over loot or resources, and players in the open world are all potential allies, the game has fostered a much more helpful community than most. A question in map chat will often get you an answer in less than a minute.
I wonder if your qualms with the combat fluidity are down to your settings? I always found myself able to make almost instantaneous 90 degree turns using the mouse. so I'm not sure if I am just used to the control scheme or there is a difference in either camera or movement settings. Although in your defense it is really different from WoW and I've had friends that tried GW2 also say they found the movement super difficult
Probably the best, most balanced review of GW2 I've seen to date since I started playing (n00b, only playing since 10/2021, but with multiple lvl 80's). While I'm new to GW2, I'm not a n00b to MMO's. I started playing EQ1 in 1998, then COH in early 2004 (for 6 months until WoW in P4 beta). We played WoW from P4 beta until 2021 (17 years, with a myriad of other short-lived MMO's in between / here-and-there) when a close friend/guild mate suggested I give GW2 another look, and I'm glad I did.
That friend and I (plus my wife) are still playing and exploring the plethora of ways GW2 empowers a player to experience the world and level each new character/class. GW2 may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I'm sure it will scratch several itches we "MMO Veterans" have today.
Give it a try. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Great review mate!
In all fairness even if nobody has posted for a dungeon in LFG if you where to post within a couple of min you'll have a full group. Also Anet has gone out of it's way and has acknowledged that they have pretty much abandoned dungeons in favor of Fractals of the mists aka Fractals. While Dungeons have not kept up with power creep from Class elite specializations of expansions Fractals have increasing difficulty as you progress. Dungeons main purpose now is for game lore as well as dungeon currency to still unlock unique weapon and armor skins as well as Rune Sets for your builds such as Nightmare and Monk runes. You can also use the dungeon completion to help with your leveling as beating either the story mode or any of the explorable paths will net you 1 level up each.
As someone who has been playing since Beta, I often forget how overwhelming everything can be for new players. I appreciate your review, and yeah just stick with it. There are build guides out there, pretty much vets making guides to help new players for basically everything. lol I'm working on getting my skyscale mount atm and yep there's a video guide for that as well. lol I think you're going to love the End of Dragons expansion. :)
Welcome to Tyria :)
I see you dipped your toes into many things, and surely it is confusing.
I found this video best at explaining what's the dealio with GW2, why it has such a solid fanbase (12 mins) ua-cam.com/video/ptbHil0E10E/v-deo.html
(Highlighting some of the end-game-side too)
for your movement turning difficulties options free camera put it on toggle it locks your mouse for AOEs you can turn on snap to target allow reset. Also for those early game dungeons "story mode" is nerfed from early days, but the path runs are still a fun challenge. Also, tap Control to turn immediate 180 degrees. Also, you may enjoy completing achievements some give great rewards. For end game you need all crafting "if" you want the best gear and weapons you will have to craft them or find a way to buy from NPC as they are usually account bound on acquire. Legendary weapons can be traded but they are 2k+ gold. However, the game can be enjoyed in full exotic gear which is all tradeable. I have felt your pain on the combat movement free camera mode was the answer for me.
I just finished it yesterday in End of Dragon's map. I was devastated! Heart broke! Shot at and missed, shit at and hit! Now I'm playing my little lvl 50 warrior. I simply can't give up GW2. It is a beautiful game guys. Do try it.
There is a way to lock your camera so it moves with you it is called Toggle Action Camera. That is how I play with every character from range to melee. I have set it to "Z" to turn it on and off. I hope this helps your combat.
Downloading it right now, you sold me on it enough to at least give it a shot through base game :)
This is a great review for new players, and I think it hits on some of GW2's weaknesses. You definitely need to try the action camera. It's hidden in keybinds under camera settings. I think it will help with how you feel about the floatiness.
Tip: you can convert gold to gems (premium currency) at any ratio, not just multiples of 400.
It is cheaper per gem the more you get, but that sliding scale ramps then tapers pretty quick
The Turnspeed thing is weird you should rebind the staffing to a and d that makes it much better for me.
When I begin playing this game what I did first is that i've explored whole core game map. Enjoyed that a lot. Learned how this game works and was blown away how it's way more appealing that Wow which I've played a lot. Mounts are awesome, combat is great and horizontal progression is so cool that in the end that I'm not feeling being rushed to do anything in this game. I play on my own pace. There are many pros to talk about and for those that want to try this game I really encourage to give it a go :)
Edit: I hope to see your next video once you play it more 😏
Very well said analysis. The system bloat and the analysis paralysis that comes with it is a natural consequence of coming into a game 10 years in - players were not going to be satisfied with just "more of the same" for new content. New systems had to be added and now there are many, yes. That being said, the fact that nearly everything progresses your character and *counts* for something (the horizontal progression) means that whatever you decide to focus on will help or come in handy whatever your goal is. I've played it since launch and have enjoyed it immensely.
The only problem I currently have with the game is how they try to slap alacrity and quickness on everyone then remove banners and spirits effect which make warriors and ranger unique, class identity is lost imo and every class feels like a copy of another class
Interesting... WoW had this same problem recently as well...
What I really enjoy in GW2 is being friendly for casual playing, I am not forced to do anything and it fits my lifestyle. Like, sometimes I am tired after returning from job etc or just do not have stomach for activities that are mandatory to do day by day.
My fav MMO is FFXIV and it shares some qualities of GW2, even if it's different type of game. And FFXIV is for sure more engaging title, both in terms of story and activities, but this casual feeling of freedom and enjoyable adventure GW2 offers is great and I am happy I returned to this game after a long, long break - last time I played GW2 it was in 2015.
There are many different things around. Just like dungeons. In other games they are just "loot caves", that were used by players for dressing only. But in GW2 its used mostly for story purpose. Its not a way to get better gear for current level, but a way to get closer with lore of world, current events and Destiny's Edge story itself. You still get dungeons tokens for exploration path runs, which could be used to buy level 80 exotic gear(with unique skins too!) and upgrade components. You also gain some gold for several runs over different dungeons. Not much, but still. So, novadays players runs them for skins and upgrade components only and most of them just ignore original mechanics, skip battles and great part of dungeons or even exploit pathes to bug them and kill more bosses than intended. And its looks like you took part of such speedrunner party. For best results look for slow story with full path parties.
Camera and bindings are important too. In wow, for example, there are another way to play the game with pathfinding mode(like in ultima/runescape) which could be set in preferences since TBC at least.
The great part of GW2 players use action camera mode (and used icm addon before it was fully relized ingame) and play like action third person game with free mouse look and nontargeting. As you can see, 98% of combat abilities dont need selected target at all and most of them works better without target. From precise aiming for pierce and thrust attacks to sniping sticking out parts of enemies(otherwise with selected target it would try to hit center of enemy). Same works for you and your mount movement too. GW2 is not a game, where you can just stay on same spot all the time. You must move around and enemies dont turn around in seconds like in other games. You can easly strafe out nonhoming projectiles with right movement. And i didnt even mention that you can hide beside rocks, trees and comrades...
Leveling speed... It was lil slower before steam release. You still level up to 80 in week or two without living ingame, but with steam release there are seperate achievment category was added, which gives you tonns of exp just for several kills, using abilities or ingame services like bank or bag sorting. But its still not a problem, coz after leveling to max level you gain ability to train masteries in different regions. And it require much more experience but on account wide scope.
That "level 302" guy: The number displayed his mastery rank, which is the horizontal progression system you will work on once you hit max level (80). The max level hasn't increased since launch, as well as the highest tier of gear (well, early on another tier - "ascended" - was added, but at equal stats as the actual highest tier "legendary"). The mastery system allows you two unlock several, usually non combat related skills, like gliding or upgrading your mounts to jump further / higher and such things.
Concerning your confusion: Use map chat and ask questions. Especially in low level zones. There are many veterans in this game happy to share their knowledge of and passion for the game. Stuff in the combat system you should try to learn are: Combo fields and finisher, effective use of dodging, boons & conditions, which stats they are linked to (in order to select the correct gear) and how to deal with them (cleanse, steal, convert), break bars and their interaction with CC.
Ohhh that’s a mastery rank got it. I was definitely confused when I first saw it lol
I’m a long time FFXIV player, so I definitely understood the floatyness of characters, but like Mauro mentioned, there’s a camera mode that might help named the action camera or so that locks the cursor to a reticule in the screen and movement is more of a third person shooter (for lack of a bettor descriptor). I already tended to use my mouse to move a bunch in XIV, so it didn’t affect me too too much although this action camera seems like it’d be super useful lol
Action Camera vast majority of players use this form of camera.
It should be the standard for all players.
Admit it is odd at times but Action Camera makes it much more tight/smooth and less floaty
More questions than answers is exactly what i want in a game. The hand helding nowadays is beyond needed. You also need to play a bit more for your proper analysis of the game, youre basically only playing the 10 year old part in this video. Good vid!
Just some clarification on your dungeon experience. Dungeons aren't really popular content in this game because they have other forms of pve that are similar but either more rewarding or generally more fun than the dungeons were. In the form of strikes and raids come endgame. They are still played for dungeon specific rewards but that's something you will figure out later if you need those items for a build/playstyle. Also the guy that was level 303 was actually due to the mastery system. Which is something you unlock at 80 that gives you account wide bonuses and another thing to progress towards once you get max level. Mounts are tied into this mastery system to unlock new and different abilities on your mounts.
I'd say the time spent going from lvl 1 to lvl 80 learning the mechanics and how the world works is barely scratching the surface of the game, this game has 10 years worth of content and it shows, there's a lot of stuff to do....seriously this game is absolutely gigantic when it comes to all sorts of activities you can do, personally I love meta events (map wide thematic events that require a large number of players, usually coordinated that give a bunch of loot) , if you ever have the chance to try out the expansions i'd advise for you to do some Heart of Thorns story and meta events, especially night time verdant brink with a 50 people squad and a commander or Auric Basin Octovine world boss
Definitely sounds like you need to change some of your camera and keybind settings. Make A and D strafe and not keyboard turn. I've pretty much only played my Mesmer (now a Mirage) the past 9ish years. I have taken very long breaks (years at times), but I keep coming back. I didn't play anything but Halloween for like 3-4 years. lol I can definitely understand feeling overwhelmed with the amount of content. I still feel that way. Because I knew the expansion was coming, I rushed through Living World Story 2, 3, 4 and Icebrood Saga, last year! lol Got all the mounts and was ready to go when End of Dragons hit. Then I really haven't enjoyed EoD (outside of fishing), so have just been working through achievements in the LWS and started working on getting the legendary trinkets Aurora and Vision. You can really just do whatever you want. Is there a weapon or armor skin you like? Is there a title you want? Are you interested in collecting minis? Obtaining achievement points? You really can pick something and run with it. I personally haven't done Fractals, dungeons or PvP in this game. There are some achieves and collections, I won't be able to complete because of that, but I'm not worried about it. And the true end game of Guild Wars 2 is Fashion Wars. haha Also it is best to have a 2nd monitor with this game, so you can look things up on the wiki. Using the wiki is basically required with this game. Don't be afraid to use it all the time if you are confused about something or ask in map chat.
The best way to get into WvW is to find an active WvW guild on your server. Also, if you're on a dead map, you can use team (/t) chat to see if there are any commanders running for your server and follow them around
The good thing about GW2 is that if you are new just ask within the map you are in most people will help, give info, tips and help with content whether pve, pvp, wvw, dungeons, events, raids, metas, bosses, world bosses etc. Virtually everyone will so doesnt really take that long to pick up.
The Floaty movement part of your review is a critisism that Anet took seriously. Recently they changed the default settings where A and D used to be turn left/right now are straife left/right.
Maybe trying that might make you feel more planted. Rotating with mouse is always faster.
Crafting is not really needed unless you go for Legendary Weapons. Most things that are crafted can also be bought on the Trading Post. Leveling it can wait, or do it whenever you want. The XP for leveling crafting, does go to character leveling as well, some use it to level faster.
The New Player experience has always been a point of critisism, that is why you often see veteran players in starter areas taking the time to help new people out. They are making changes to it though. Character adventure guide, a better explanation on skills. As far as I know, a work in progress still.
As for the story, after Core Story, things really ramped up. The way they tell the story, the way you engage with NPCs, it all has been improved.
I love this game, it is my main MMO, and honestly, your review is very honest and objective.
My main tip for any new player is: Ask people... ask the vets... the community is great in general and people often take the time to explain things to you, if you get stuck.
Great review.
Movement feels odd because you have different speeds depending on what direction you move in. Going forward is the fastest, strafing is a medium speed, and backpedaling is the slowest speed. This feels alien and strange for people who come from other games as they're habitually used to strafing having the same movement speed as going forward has, so, it feels "wrong" to them.
Omg that makes so much sense.
@@AllTradesJackReviews Ikr? Psychological phenomenology is so fascinating.
Pro Tip: At 80, the content bloat is daunting. 100% just pick a direction and go.
Be that living world content, WvW, Fractals, map completion, meta events (Silver wastes, expansion maps like Veridian Brink), or Conquest PvP.
Literally the moment you hit Level 80 there is so much content available it is overwhelming for most all new players. Just pick something, anything, and go.
This is what I'm struggling with now. I started playing two weeks ago, got to max level cleared all raids but the to do list is massive, and good luck trying to make a legendary lol.
As a day 1 "veteran" of GW2, i am still a noob at the PvP game mode. I lose almost every 1v1s since i mostly just play PvE open world and WvW. WvW is a bit different than PvP. Sure there are plenty of 1v1 moments (which don't end favourably for me). But most of the time, i just fight in a zerg vs zerg and try to contribute by spamming AoEs as an elementalist and I genuinely feel I am contributing to the fight. In summary, I think it's ok to not play certain game modes if you are not interested in it. Rewards wise, i still managed to obtain quite a number of legendary weapons and armours even though I only play casually, although it's important to be patient and understand that it will take a few months to craft one piece of legendary equipment.
The main issue with new players (just about every video I have seen on youtube of anyone starting the game) is that they are not willing to read the things presented to them. It's not that the game does not tell you things - it is that every popup, every explanation, every reward window telling you about what you just achieved and what is to come is instantly clicked away. Also mostly the same with item and skill descriptions.
Agreed! I think it’s also a bit of overload. Where tooltips are pretty long, filled with terms you aren’t fully familiar with yet, so when you try and read it, it takes a certain amount of brain power to sit with it and understand it. So when you unlock things every level, and each level takes like 15 mins to get through, you are constantly given something new to understand and I feel like some folks would try to defer the information overload by clicking away from the tooltip. To their own detriment of course because then they never learn!
As a new player returning after ten years, I've pretty much skipped every tooltip. I prefer to learn things by trial and error. Also, if I have to navigate five menus to get to the ONE thing you want me to see... Perhaps you designed the game in a convoluted way? For example, the way cosmetics work is totally unnecessarily complex. Why are there separate menus for dyes and transmutation and outfits? I enjoy some of the features in the game but I don't enjoy the way they're often presented.
the dynamic event in core game is great, it's happen naturally all over the map, and wait till u touch the expansion, the scale is even more better. each expansion map has the meta event which is the main event on the map that need massive player to success it, this meta event start in certain time and begin with pre event that explain the story of it's map, and lead to the main even that need all players on the map to work together to finish it.
if ur' not okay with spoiler stop reading my comment, but if u don't mind with spoilers u can check each meta video in yt, there are the list main famous meta event on first expansion:
-Night boss at verdant brink
-Octovine at Auric Basin
-Chak Garent at Tangled Depths
-Dragon Stand
*u should at least try the dragon stand meta at least once
For the camera, you should try turning toggle camera on from keybind setting. It'll make your camera to follow your mouse movement instead, like first person game