In the fantasy MMO Guild Wars 2, a major announcement is set to take place today in Texas. The exact details are still unknown, but all signs point to the announcement of an expansion.
There hasn’t been this much activity around ArenaNet’s fantasy MMO Guild Wars 2 in a while. Today, they’ve rented a hall at a convention in Texas, advertised worldwide, launched a special discount event, and even promoted the event in-game at the end of the last episode of the Living World. One would have to be living under a rock (or in an area without internet) to not be aware that something “special” is happening in GW2 today.
Much is known, but not what it is
So what is it really about? No one knows for sure yet. With all the hype, anything less than a full-fledged expansion would be a disappointment. Fans of GW2 are longing for such an expansion, as the initial momentum of the game, the exploration of new zones, and all the fresh ideas have noticeably waned after two years.
The initial concept of bringing fleeting content to the game for a short time has now been abandoned. That didn’t work out. But what plans do they have next?
What we know: The name and the story line
At least we already know the name of what is to be announced tonight at 5:30 PM our time: Heart of Thorns.
We also know what this is all about. The storyline is clear since the last episode of the Living World. One-fifth of the hero population of Tyria has been in an identity crisis since then. Have they acted against their nature and were actually created to serve the upcoming “Big Bad”?
What we don’t know: Everything else
We know the name, and also the storyline: but much more is still unknown. The key questions revolve around everything else.
- Will it be a full-fledged expansion of Guild Wars 2, and if so, what features will be new to the game?
- Will there be new races and classes?
- Will some of the fundamental game concepts be broken?
- Will there be new zones, a new continent, new endgame content?
- What does GW2 have in store to give fans a breath of fresh air?
ArenaNet has chosen a German live stream for the event this evening. The German fan site Guildnews and the YouTuber Honeyball will host.
Action in Texas starts at 5 PM. First information is to be expected at 5:30 PM.
We will accompany the live event with a live ticker.
4:30 PM: Good evening everyone and welcome to the GW2 live ticker! Just half an hour to go until the show starts.
4:40 PM: The streamers are currently discussing with the German Guild Wars 2 community manager. He lets Honeyball and Guildnews speculate about today’s announcement and is obviously having fun with it. There’s already reassurance: Guild Wars 1 will not be discontinued, despite “No Return” and such.
4:45 PM: Everyone is hyped. The wildest addon dreams are flooding the chats. Will elves and goblins come? Some suspect simply a massive continuation of the Living World, with new features. They apparently don’t want to be too disappointed later, should no expansion be announced.
5:00 PM: It should start any moment now, how exciting! By the way, anyone who has never played GW2 should take advantage of this now: The MMO is currently available for €9.99 on the official website.
5:10 PM: Phew, interest is huge. Almost 50,000 people are watching the announcement across all streams.
5:15 PM: A dragon awakens. The show has begun, everyone is cheering in Texas!
5:17 PM: Is only a cute Quaggan coming as a new race into the game? They do already have a backpack! That’s probably not the case, but Honeyball would be happy.
5:20 PM: In the audience, people are holding up commander tags made of cardboard above their heads. Is a battle about to begin? There are enough participants 😉
5:25 PM: Only 5 minutes until the announcement!
5:29 PM: A new soundtrack featuring the “Heart of Thorns” logo is being presented in the background. Things are looking good.
5:30 PM: ArenaNet President and Co-Founder Mike O’Brien enters the field.
Heart of Thorns confirmed as the first expansion to Guild Wars 2.
5:35 PM: Now we know: Heart of Thorns is the first expansion to Guild Wars 2, it is official! A really cool trailer just played. A lot of new content is coming our way! New wings! New zones! Rytlock with a new staff!
5:42 PM: There will be no level increase! The current armor remains valuable.
5:45 PM: Endgame progression will be more extensive and deeper! There will be a new system called “Masteries” which means mastery system. You will be able to further develop your abilities here. Specializations for classes were also mentioned. Apparently, there will be challenging content that is tough. Many fans have demanded that. And there will be more content for guilds and groups. We speculate raids here.
5:50 PM: Colin Johanson, the game director, announces a new zone. It goes into the jungle.
5:52 PM: In the new zone, Heart of Aguuma, there will of course be new stories, civilizations, and monsters, as well as new dynamic events, etc. According to Johanson, it will be better than ever before. Special skills will be needed to defeat enemies in the new zone, which will be obtained with the mastery system. The areas look fantastic and very detailed.
5:54 PM: The mastery system is a PvE progression system in the endgame that is account-bound. For all characters. You will be able to collect points in many ways!
5:55 PM: As hinted at in the trailer, with the new addon, you will be able to glide – this is called dragon flying and is a capability from the mastery system.
With our new mastery system, we will reshape character progression. Discover new training opportunities for your characters beyond level 80 and master abilities like dragon flying in the jungle and shredding the tough bark armor of the Mordrem, or complete new collections that provide precursors for a legendary weapon.
5:57 PM: The lore seems profound. Will we need to decipher languages?
6:00 PM: New legendaries and precursors are coming!
6:02 PM: Back to the class specializations:
Develop your playstyle. With class specializations, you’ll unlock not only a weapon that your class previously couldn’t use but also new traits, skills, and unique mechanics. All this allows you to completely reorient your class.
The ranger will, for example, use a staff and heal through a secondary class, the “Druid”. In the coming weeks, more information will come. All classes will receive new weapons.
6:05 PM: New class announced, “The Revenant“, will it confuse opponents with the powers of the mist?
6:07 PM: New WvW-PvP map Borderlands, where it will be even more important to hold fortresses and complete objectives. Even better: Players can look forward to a brand-new GvG map.
6:13 PM: The Stronghold mode offers guild rankings, and in general, it’s all about features that should strengthen guild cohesion. Guild teams, guild lords… Ay, now the old Guild Wars players are ecstatic.
Gather supplies to recruit soldiers. Battle for control of heroes. Man trebuchets to defend your fortress and storm the enemy fortress gates to defeat the opposing guild lord! Use the new guild team feature to form a group and fight your way to the top of the rankings. “Fortress” offers a completely new player experience for competitive PvP in Guild Wars 2!
6:15 PM: Guild halls, which can be expanded or built! So soon guilds will feel at home.
It’s best to check out the official page for the addon. It summarizes all the important information: https://heartofthorns.guildwars2.com/de
Release date for the Guild Wars 2 expansion “Heart of Thorns”
7:05 PM: A few minutes ago, a FAQ page for the addon was published. The key points from it:
- When will the “Heart of Thorns” expansion be released? There is still no release date! We will keep you updated as soon as we know more.
- There will be a beta or early access.
- The addon will be available both digitally and as a retail version.
- The expansion must be purchased. The price is not yet known.
- A Collector’s Edition is promised, but no information is available.
New: ArenaNet has been working on the addon for 2 years, and already in March, there will be a playable version at a convention.
Meanwhile, new information has leaked that we summarized in the following articles:
