Today, on April 27, the latest episode of the Icebrood Saga was released in Guild Wars 2. This is also the grand finale of the season and transitions into the upcoming expansion “End of Dragons”. We at MeinMMO spoke with the developers about the time between the season finale and the upcoming expansion as part of Find Your Next Game.
What is happening right now in Guild Wars 2? The MMORPG hosted the so-called Icebrood Saga from September 2019 to April 2021. During this time, a content update was released every 2 months, bringing new story content, achievements, and sometimes new areas. Each patch was referred to as an episode.
The finale of the Icebrood Saga has now taken place. In this, 2 giant dragons fight against each other, and as a player, you are right in the middle of the epic battle. We have already participated in the battle and have also published a preview report on it: New Patch brings epic battles, but also big disappointments.
But now the question arises of what happens next for Guild Wars 2. It was only established that the new expansion End of Dragons is supposed to be released in 2021.
However, ArenaNet, the developers of the game, have now revealed that there will be a major event in July regarding End of Dragons and also shared which content will be released by then. The puppet is a real highlight that last appeared in the game in 2014.
Presentation and Beta Events for End of Dragons
When will we learn more about the new expansion? On July 27, there will be a livestream from ArenaNet where new details about the upcoming expansion End of Dragons will be shared. The following topics are expected to be covered:
- New details about the setting
- An outlook on the story
- Information about upcoming beta events for End of Dragons
Additionally, it was announced that the third generation of legendary weapons will be released with the expansion.
In an interview, Joe Kimmes, the lead designer for the Icebrood Saga, revealed that the dragon assistance missions were intended exclusively for the current season of the Living World. Attack missions, however, are expected to continue in the future. Whether these will come directly with the new expansion is not yet known.
Together with the new information about the announcement stream, three new concept arts for the expansion were also shared, which we have embedded here for you:
When will the new expansion be released? The exact date of End of Dragons has still not been revealed. However, it is certain that the release will take place no earlier than August 2021, as there will be a major announcement in July.
A short-term release in August or September seems possible, as there were only 7 weeks between the announcement of Path of Fire (August 1, 2017) and its release (September 22, 2017).
Guild Wars 2 will receive at least 4 major updates before the expansion
What will happen in the coming weeks? Already in March, the developers revealed that some new content is planned for the summer. A total of four major updates have been announced, which are expected to keep players engaged in the coming weeks and months:
On May 11, a balance update will be released that is set to adjust all classes and elite specializations in the game. This update could already make important changes to ensure that the current classes align with the upcoming elite specializations in End of Dragons.
On May 25, all previous episodes of the Living World will become free. Therefore, anyone who missed out on old content from seasons 2, 3, or 4 can catch up without the use of gemstones or real money currency. Each episode will be available for free for one week and can be permanently unlocked during this time.
Along with this, a new achievement will allow players to unlock a precursor for a future legendary weapon of the third generation. These legendary weapons are set to be introduced with the expansion End of Dragons. Additionally, a special amulet will be awarded for the completion of all 4 seasons of the Living World.
For July 13, two interesting new features have been announced:
- Firstly, the legendary armory will be introduced, allowing the unlocking of legendary weapons and armor for every character of level 80 on an account.
- Secondly, the puppet will return, a very popular boss fight from 2014. This is a true highlight for veterans of the game.
The Twisted Puppet as a highlight of the summer
What is the puppet? This opponent is a boss fight that was in the game in January 2014 and was removed after 4 weeks.
In this, you fight against a massive figure of Scarlet, a deranged Sylvari from the Living World Season 1. Here, players must first defend 5 access points to special platforms and then later be teleported to one of those platforms. On these, the 5 “lanes” take turns fighting the puppet until it finally lies in the dust. Meanwhile, the other lanes must continue to defend their accesses.
The fight was a huge highlight for all players in 2014, but was removed after 4 weeks and has not been available in the game since then. This will change on July 13, 2021.
The puppet will receive slight adjustments for its return to adapt to the current version of the game. The specifics of these changes will be explained in the future.
How long will the fight last? This boss fight is a “limited-time event.” So the puppet will not remain in the game forever. How long the event will run has not yet been revealed.
More events for newcomers and veterans in summer
What else will happen before End of Dragons? Before the end of summer, several smaller events and festivals are planned:
- May 14: A week of bonuses in World vs World – 100% more world experience, 25% more reward track, and 50% more magical sense
- May 25: New PvP league season and a week of bonuses
- June 18: WvW event without the downed state
- June 22: The return of the annual event “Dragon Mayhem”
- July 5: sPvP tournament week and the Tournament of Legends
- July 23: A week of bonuses in World vs World – 100% more world experience, 25% more reward track, and 50% more magical sense
This provides both interesting events for newcomers and an exciting event for veterans surrounding the instanced fractals, a type of dungeon for 5 players. Most recently, the Sunqua Valley was released as a new fractal in September.
What happens after End of Dragons? In an interview, Joe Kimmes, the lead designer of the Icebrood Saga, told us that Guild Wars 2 is not meant to conclude with End of Dragons. Even though the name contains the word “end”, it is intended to continue afterward. He states:
We will continue to work on Guild Wars 2 even after the expansion. The end of one storyline is usually the beginning of a new one.
Joe Kimmes in an interview
Learned from the mistakes of Heart of Thorns – at least a little
The developers of Guild Wars 2 have laid out a solid plan to make the content drought between the last episode of the Icebrood Saga and the new expansion bearable. Especially with the puppet, they have a small treat up their sleeves that cheers many veterans and myself.
In addition, there are some sensible updates regarding content such as legendary equipment and balance. Both are ongoing issues that concern the community. Balance, on one hand, nearly automatically brings fresh air into dungeons and PvP, as suddenly other builds might become playable. The desire for account-wide legendary equipment has existed for years and will finally be fulfilled in 2021. This might motivate some players to reclaim old legendaries.
I am particularly glad that there is a plan for the content drought. Because in 2015, when the first expansion Heart of Thorns was released, there were almost 7 months with no new content. In 2017, on the other hand, the developers went to the other extreme. There were only a little more than 2 months between the last episode and the expansion.
I am still somewhat skeptical about the topic of “instanced content.” The last new raid was released in 2019 and the last fractal in September 2020. Fans may have to wait at least until the new expansion, possibly even longer.
On July 27, there will finally be the big announcement for End of Dragons. I am also curious about what new information about the expansion will be shared and will cover the event here on MeinMMO.
Alexander Leitsch
MMORPG expert at MeinMMO
Anyone interested in upcoming MMORPGs outside of Guild Wars 2 should check out our list of upcoming games in 2021. There you will find several titles that sound really interesting:
