ArenaNet staff and content writer">Sean Ferguson, ArenaNet staff writer, recently reported on what Arena Net's Guild Wars was like back then, and compared it to the way it is now from a competitive viewpoint, essentially taking veteran Guild Wars players for a stroll down memory lane. In his article, Ferguson reminisced about eleven "tales" that long-time Guild Wars players fondly recalled.

For example, Ferguson cited a few of these memorable experiences:

1. Elementalists, not Mesmers or Ritualists, were the ones who dished out lightning spike damage.
   
2. GvG battles tended to last a minimum of forty-five minutes.
3. PvP skills could only be unlocked through PvE.
4. The War Machine and Last Pride guilds dominated the metagame.
   
5. Fire elementalists were once considered useless.

Yes, those were the days before the only constant descended upon Guild Wars in the form of nerfs, skill balances, counter strategies, new professions, or simply new ways of looking at the game. ArenaNet's MMORPG has certainly come a long way since then, but if it's one thing that hasn't changed, it's the fact that Guild Wars can still deliver solid fun for its loyal players, even without a monthly fee.

 

The Xunlai Tournament House, a feature in ArenaNet and NCSoft's Guild Wars, has reopened for business during the new tournament season. The Xunlai Tournament House basically gives players a chance to win prizes by making predictions about upcoming tournaments, be they 1v1 contests or guild competitions. Players are awarded a certain number of points based on how accurate their predictions were. The more accurate the predictions, the more points the players get. These points may then be exchanged for great in-game prizes.

Godun, the Xunlai Tournament House Commissioner, even narrated the story behind his business. The very tradition of predicting the outcome of the championships rests on the history of Laihuen and Minwien, two fiercely competitive brothers who had competed in all forms of contests since their youth. Laihuen and Minwien had even invited others to join their tournament and test their battle prowess. It wasn't long before the games became famous, drawing crowds from across the land and beyond to bet on the outcomes of the tournaments. The Xunlai Tournament House and the games that are held there have since become a way of honoring Laihuen and Minwien.

Godun went on to explain that while not everyone can fight in the games, everyone has a shot at being a winner. This can be achieved by accurately predicting the champions of the tournaments. Winning via this method, according to Godun, is no less prestigious than winning the actual tournament itself.

If predicting winners sounds like your thing, register for free at the Xunlai Tournament House, make your best predictions and cheer your favorite character or guild on to victory!

      

ArenaNet lead designer for Guild Wars 2">James Phinney, the Game Design Team Lead for ArenaNet's Guild Wars, recently spoke about the many ideas that have been brewing in the ArenaNet Team's minds regarding Guild Wars 2. He talked about the new goodies that the ArenaNet team wanted to delve into for the sequel, as well as the core principles that made the original Guild Wars game so good.

Mr. Phinney acknowledged  that there were certain things they wanted to explore for Guild Wars 2 that they were never really able to implement in the original game. He talked about giving player characters added freedom of movement, adding common, persistent areas to the game (as opposed to instanced areas) and including several new playable races. Furthermore, the ArenaNet team is also considering deeper options for character development, as well improving upon the original's already-beautiful graphics.

While ArenaNet is excited about making everything better, they also want to make sure that they keep the old core principles that made Guild Wars so enjoyable. These include the hassle-free play, the freedom to play the game the way you want, the reward system for skillful play, the story that just draws you in, and the lack of a monthly fee.

Mr. James Phinney was practically bursting with enthusiasm when he described the many possibilities in store for Guild Wars 2. The question now is not if, but when they'll be able to turn those possibilities into realities.

 

U.S. and Canadian Guild Wars players better start checking the Guild Wars website more often. The folks at ArenaNet have announced an official contest that'll allow 125 winners every month from October to December to receive a special Guild Wars miniature figure.

This Mini Mania Contest will allow U.S. and Canadian players to pick up common, uncommon, and rare Guild Wars miniatures by filling out an online form on the game's website. So long as you're eligible to win the prize and you fill out the online form they're offering, you have a chance to win one of those miniatures. The miniatures themselves will be randomly distributed, so depending on how many people sign up for the contest, you have a fair chance of winning any of the prizes they're giving away.

Speaking of miniatures, here's a quick list of the different figures you can win, along with the availability of each of the prizes:

• The Naga Raincaller (maximum 90; 30 per month)
• The Long-Haired Yeti (maximum 90; 30 per month)
• The Oni (maximum 90; 30 per month)
• Shiroken Assassin (maximum 45; 15 per month)
• Zhed Shadowhoof (maximum 45; 15 per month)
• Vizu (maximum 15; 5 per month)

We suggest you check out the contest page and sign up now. There's a good chance that you might pick up a handy new prize for yourself. Good luck!

 

If you happen to be a leet Guild Wars player and at the same time in serious need of greenbacks and new gadgets, then NCsoft's Guild Wars $100,000 Tournament Series just may be the event of the year for you. NCsoft is setting up a Guild versus Guild and Player versus Player tourney for fans of the Guild Wars MMORPG. Their goal? To seek the ultimate Guild Wars champions and place them among the MMORPG's halls of heroes (of course the actual prizes are a welcome bonus). Here's the eligibility standards released by NCSoft:

• All Guild Wars players and guilds who meet the eligibility requirements set forth herein are eligible to compete in this online tournament series. All Guild Wars guilds are eligible to compete in the $100,000 Tournament Series championships except those that include employees or contractors of NCsoft, ArenaNet, or each of their respective subsidiaries or affiliates or their advertising or promotion agencies, or those who are domiciled with any such person, or those who have been disqualified for other reasons (see below). This is a skill-based tournament based on each guild or individual's ability to defeat other guilds or individuals. 
• Individuals and guilds will be disqualified if they are banned from the game for any reason, including without limitation a violation of the Guild Wars User Agreement. If individual players are disqualified, the guild may also be disqualified. 
• ArenaNet reserves the right to reschedule and/or restart games and matches as needed. Such decisions will be announced and executed only by official ArenaNet personnel. 
• ArenaNet reserves the right to suspend or revoke a player's account without prior notice for any reason deemed necessary.

Players interested on participating the daily 1v1 should locate the Tournament NPC (found in guild halls, the Hero Battles arena, and the Great Temple of Balthazar) to register their accounts. On the other hand, guilds looking out to test their strength must have at least four of the eight members as part of the group for at least 14 days prior to the start of the tournament.

For more info, just follow the read link below. It should take you to Guild Wars tournament briefing page. What are you waiting for? Whet those keyboards and get your game on!

 

NCsoft's Guild Wars: Eye of the North has gone live. The very first true expansion to the Guild Wars series adds a lot of new content to the game which should delight both veterans and newcomers to the game.

The expansion also includes an innovative feature that allows players to export their achievements in Guild Wars 2. The expansion also offers 18 multi-level dungeons, 150 new skills across all 10 Guild Wars professions, 10 new Heroes, 40 new armour sets, and more items, weapons, and titles.

Mike O'Brien, ArenaNet 's co-founder, spoke about the game's release:

We think fans will find a lot to love in Guild Wars: Eye of the North. Not only do we go back to the original Guild Wars lands and stories to wrap up plots and themes fans have clamoured to learn more about, but we’ve also built a bridge to the future through the Hall of Monuments.

This will give loyal players a way to preserve what they’ve accomplished in Guild Wars over the past two years, and reclaim the legacy of their favourite characters in Guild Wars 2.

If you're a fan of the Guild Wars series, than this is something that you can't afford to pass up. Besides, it should tide you over until Guild Wars 2 comes out.

Aside from the upcoming Eye of the North Expansion, the Guild Wars MMORPG's residents definitely have something else to celebrate over. Game publisher NCSoft has just sent out a press wire announcing that Guild Wars has broken four million in sold copies since its release two years ago (2005). NCSoft North America's CEO Robert Garriott is reportedly happy about the news, and had this to say:

ArenaNet’s fantastic work on Guild Wars has helped make NCSoft the leading online gaming publisher in the world. Guild Wars players continue to join in droves and stay loyal to the franchise thanks to a business model that makes for a very accessible product. We are all excited about the future of Guild Wars with the expansion ready to be released and Guild Wars 2 on the horizon.

Keep in touch in case we pick up more good news and updates, even as Eye of the North gets scheduled for its release this August 31. For the moment, make sure to brush up on your game knowledge - there's plenty of surprises that await when the expansion makes landfall.

Behind the awe inspiring music of Guild Wars and other spectacular hits like Company of Heroes, The Elder Scrolls III and IV, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the old Republic, Supreme Commander, and many others is Jeremy Soule.

IGN sat down with the musical genius behind upcoming Guild Wars: Eye of the North to squeeze some juicy info out.

Not everyone can acquire Soule's musical prowess, unless they show some serious dedication. "From my earliest days, I would write musical notes on virtually anything my hands would touch. My school teachers noted that even some of my math assignments contained notation scribbled at the edges," he said.

It's not a well known fact, but many of those working for ArenaNet actually came from Squaresoft (before the merger that created Square Enix). At the time, Soule was the only American composer Squaresoft trusted. His compositions brought Secret of Evermore to life. Soule testified:

When I started in the business in 1994, I was fortunate to have landed in a team at Squaresoft that comprised of some of the best and brightest programmers, artists and game designers in the business. Everyone was so new to games yet so enthusiastic.

Years later, many of these talented wiz kids ended up working at ArenaNet with just as much passion as before, although with a huge increase in experience.

When asked if he would honor his fans with a concert series, Soule confirmed that something is in the works. Sounds like there's a very big chance we'll hear the man manifesting his skills on stage; if any word on Soule spearheading an orchestra surfaces, we'll make sure to keep you posted.

ArenaNet will be celebrating the launch of the Eye of the North expansion for Guild Wars at this year's Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) and they're giving a few fans the chance to win a VIP Early Access ticket for their party. Read on to find out how to join.

The Super Fan 2007 contest is open to all Seattleites as well as those willing to cover their own travel and lodging expenses to get to the event. To enter, just tell ArenaNet why you're an exceptional Guild Wars fan. You can do it any way you want: through poetry, prose, song lyrics or simply through an honest and earnest statement of Guild Wars devotion.

You should also send your real name (first/last), street and mailing address, telephone number, email address, Guild Wars user name and date of birth along with your statement to contests@arena.net. For the full contest details as well as the general conditions of entry, click on the Read link below.

With the release of the first Guild Wars expansion pack drawing ever nearer, ArenaNet has announced a new platinum pack that will include the original Guild Wars game as well as the Eye of the North expansion pack.

This is good news for those who have yet to get into the Guild Wars experience. The Eye of the North expansion pack requires players to own at least one of the three earlier Guild Wars campaigns, so what better way to start than with the first one? It's also a perfect jump off point for getting into the upcoming Guild Wars 2.

We couldn't find any pricing information on the Guild Wars Platinum Edition just yet, so keep checking back here on out MMORPG blog for more updates. We expect it to be out around the time of Eye of the North's release this month, though. You can check out the UK packshot on the right so you know what to look for.