2019 was not a good year for Guild Wars 2. However, the developers are looking positively towards the future and revealing how the MMORPG will continue.
What is planned for 2020? In a forum post, the new Content Design Lead Andrew Gray addresses the players. He reports on a difficult year in 2019, marked by the layoffs at ArenaNet.
But he is looking positively into the new year. Gray reveals the plans and goals for Guild Wars 2 in 2020:
- 2020 is intended to lay the foundation for a new future.
- Next, the announced visions from the past will come from the roadmap.
- Episodes 3 and 4 of the Icebrood Saga should connect again. The focus will be on a meta-event with a “Push & Pull” feel.
- In general, the upcoming content should be more sustainable and offer more replay value.
- After episodes 3 and 4, the model of Living World Season 1 should be followed. This way, the content should be more communal, without being removed directly again, as was the case in 2013 and 2014.
What about instances? Since June 2019, there has been no new raid, and since January 2019, no new fractal. Players are currently desperately waiting for this content.
However, Gray also commented on this in his post:
- He himself is advocating for new fractals to be worked on. Cameron Rich, who created content like the Nightmare Fractal during Living World Season 3, is to create a new fractal, complete with a challenge mode.
- Raids, on the other hand, are more challenging. They reportedly only attract a small player base. The strike missions, which have been introduced with each episode since the prologue of the Icebrood Saga, will serve as a springboard and entry point.
- Nevertheless, the developers are ensuring that there is also content for the hardcore audience.
Doubts about the future of Guild Wars 2
What is GW2’s problem? Although the new plans for the MMORPG sound very positive, many players are still not convinced. They are haunted by a tough year in 2019, in which there was less content and many problems.
Many doubted the future of the game, especially after the first episode of the Icebrood Saga. While that sometimes took on curious forms, there was also a lot of truth to it.
In the past, many promises were made or only fulfilled too late. There is still waiting for content worthy of an expansion, or the alliances update in WvW.
This also leaves players doubting the plans for new episodes, fractals, and raids.
Guild Wars 2 shows openness, and that is good
Alex says: I, on the other hand, am pleased with what has been said, but even more so with how ArenaNet has suddenly started communicating.
Since the release of the MMORPG, we players have never really known how Guild Wars 2 would continue. We were not familiar with roadmaps, and a preview of the latest update usually came just a week before.
Now, however, we get roadmaps for entire quarters, insights into the future, and early looks at balance patches. ArenaNet is more open than ever before, and even if the content is not always perfect, there is at least now the feeling that the players are being taken care of.
This change began for me during the presentation of the Icebrood Saga. While it received a lot of criticism due to the content, it was a first sign to me that ArenaNet has not given up on Guild Wars 2.
Andrew Gray speaks of a new foundation that should be laid in 2020 for the future of Guild Wars 2. This will certainly not ensure that the MMORPG suddenly gains millions of players.
But it could ensure that we have many more years of fun with Guild Wars 2.
