Austin strongly recommends: Guild Wars 2 - Janthir Wilds (Review)

[@SkillUp]

Thanks to Squarespace for sponsoring the video. If you want to set up your own website (and get a discount while doing it), hit this link for more info: www.squarespace.com/skillup

[@quantum9964]

Thanks for making this austin! This was great to edge too.

[@mhutch5082]

Quit the bias. Guilders wars?? Trash

[@BronzIsten_8]

Where is the Wukong review, dawg.

[@jessezhao1912]

The new

[@greatgameplayswalkthroughs660]

If you can use the Dragon, there is almost no exploration, just running to 100% the map.

[@9Speno3]

This review was Austin's reward for having to review Concord.

[@MikleKaneChannel]

for sure

[@danielgrezda3339]

He said it was a good game that's completely lacking players. I would agree with that.

[@clash4cityrocker]

But, he enjoyed it and said it was a good game. 🤔

[@JB2FROSTY]

If you have been watching skillup for years, you know why Austin had to review it. Ralph is complete ass at shooters.

[@reutermo]

He said that he enjoyed his time with that game though

[@nazgulsenpai]

I wish someone loved me as much as Austin loves GW2.

[@hannibohl]

I love you for the sole fact that you commented this

[@Cookiemaster98_98]

Ditto

[@AidenR19]

I love you bro

[@pahbyah]

When you have to eat your Concord vegetables to finally get your Guild Wars 2 dessert

[@brilobox2]

Vegetables are nice. Unlike Concord.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Austin gave me a push to gw2 and im 150 hours deep. I love it. Thanks Austin!

[@alexwatts1356]

This makes me so unbelievably happy because it has some of my favorite music pieces in gaming and I look so forward to see you experience them! Look forward to it man!

[@punani_slayer4209]

This video made me try out the game and i just purchased all of the expansions. $140 gone.....

[@MarcoMeatball]

@@punani_slayer4209 i genuinely think you will enjoy yourself tremendously. It is a phenomenal game.

[@MarcoMeatball]

@@punani_slayer4209 You are going to genuinely enjoy yourself. It's a wonderful game.

[@Dribin]

​@@punani_slayer4209dang you didn't have to go that hard 😁

[@bharadwajvs7795]

i don't even play guild wars but I'm here for our man Austin

[@giampaolomannucci8281]

Same :D

[@OZefiroMusica]

same lol

[@drgonzo123]

Diddo

[@mariusedmond9621]

Saaaame!

[@julioramirez8179]

He had to review concord before this, we must be by his side in this difficult times for him

[@SloMoMonday]

Someone needs to just make Austin an official GW2 ambassador. Am actually going to give it a shot.

[@austinh1242]

Yeah i've never been an mmo guy but now I'm intrigued and think I'll give it a shot

[@Hikariinu124]

Gw2 is incredible. I come back to it regularly, take breaks and it's still very refreshing. If you're a new player I highly recommend you rely on the built in wiki. Which you can access in game at any time by typing /wiki [search target]. Seriously it's the best most well maintained wiki ever

[@niclastname]

Definitely. I started it because of his recommendations about a year ago, and man I'm glad I did. It's definitely way better than any of the many other MMO's I've played over the decades. It's not perfect, obviously, because nothing ever is. However, no other MMO has ever been so enjoyable to me. The combat is great. I love the world and lore. The mounts deserve the constant praise they get, surprisingly. The art style is easily my favorite of any MMO, and it's not anime which is a huge plus lol.

[@nobu3358]

Sadly the studio is ass at marketing. They'd rather have some unknown streamer who only plays gw2 (Yes, basically market the game towards people who already play it) represent them.

[@At0micFruit]

Enjoy! It's my favourite game of all time, been playing since launch and still have loads to do, coming into it new now will be a treat :) community is really helpful as well so don't be afraid to ask anything you want to know in map chat, see you in Tyria!

[@saito853]

Austin gonna do this every GW2 expansion isn't he

[@jabeltre1]

and he has a fantastic platform to review it on.

[@Shnesity]

As he should!

[@KineticCalvaria]

Game reviewer reviews games. Shock.

[@MrMcGibblets04]

I hope so

[@plplplplplpl7336]

Like Ralph wirh destiny 2

[@cybersosis]

What i love about Guild Wars 2 is the consistency of art style. the oil painting vibes and smooth animations

[@Oryyyt]

The combat animations needs some work imo. It looks jank in today's standard and the bloom effect also looks too much in the base game zones. But the artstyle overall looks amazing and the mount physics and animations are absolutely gorgeous. I could just ride around my raptor and griffon all day.

[@Whats_Up_Dot]

I came back to GW2 during my D2 hiatus, and it's just got me wondering why I even stopped playing in the first place! it's such a well made game, the combat is so fluid and addicting. seriously, this is such a good game and more people need to play this game

[@shybyebye]

Austin hanging around in Guild Wars 2 twitch streams and engaging with the Guild Wars 2 community during the expansions launch showed me this guy is the real deal. Love that a big channel like this covers this beloved game for many.

[@julioramirez8179]

No way austin finished his Guild wars review before shill up finished his TFS review. The true gamer showing the dirty causal how things are done

[@mriguy7989]

I can't believe Skillup still hasn't put out his Final Shape review yet. Might as well forget it at this point, considering Episode Two of the yearly content will be starting soon.

[@vindicatus1057]

@@mriguy7989 And since Bungie is actively trying to smother Destiny with a pillow.

[@johnlocke4715]

TFS, Baldurs Gate 3, Starfield. Hogwarts Legacy plus more. Would’ve hVe liked to see him review all of these games instead of Skull & Bones and Tales of Avereum or whatever that game was called

[@Shnesity]

Gw2 is underrated, still

[@michaelblue4619]

cant believe the game isn't dead. this stuff is 12 years old lol.

[@synapse913]

Casual take TBH. PVE is hilariously bad, and the devs destroyed WvW.

[@TheLethargicWeirdo985]

garden warfare 2 is underrated I agree

[@jgsource552]

Gw2 has one of the worst marketing teams, that's why.. I learned about this game way too fucking late

[@T0asty-]

​@@jgsource552their marketing team has been like that for YEARS, I'm pretty sure it's a meme at this point. Lol

[@RichardBatchelorComposer]

Austin is a fan of Guild Wars 2? He’s been hiding that well…….

[@metroid2k]

As someone who has just started playing GW2 in the last month or so (and gotten my first character to 80) I've fallen in love with the combat and exploration. The game reminds me a bit of the exploration aspects of Wildstar, and has given me a whole new perspective on ways to play and level in an MMO rather than just chain chugging quests. I plan to do Secrets before Janthir, but I'm glad to see this has been so well recieved and am looking forward to it. Excellent review Austin, thank you!

[@bnutz3k]

I played at release for a couple months. Do you gotta start from those same early areas or is there an updated entry point? Been thinkin about checking it out again.

[@cjb110]

@@bnutz3k I *think* it'll be locked to level 80 (though you do get a booster when you buy, but never recommended for your first/only character, enjoy the original game first), and the story starts in Lions Arch, and then takes you to the new zones. It's only a minor issue for alts, if you don't want to do the story you need to tp to friend/group to unlock the waypoint.

[@kevinpetit3869]

@@bnutz3k still the same early areas, the entry point hasn't changed in all these years. The levelling experience has been tweaked quite a bit, though.

[@metroid2k]

@@bnutz3k As others have mentioned, yes the early areas are the same, however the general levelling experience has been massively overhauled and streamlined since release. I personally never played at release, but have it on good authority from a friend who did that levelling is much better now. You have to do classic Tyria from 1-80, but once you hit 80 you can jump into any expansion that you have purchased, since theres no levelling up from that point onward, you can literally go where you want and do what you feel like. Most expansions also come with a boost that you can use to jump a character straight to 80, so if you arent that fussed in the story and just want to jump into an expansion, that is another option. I did try this originally with an engineer, but I felt confused as to what was going on and what I should have been doing (especially as I wasnt used to this kind of "go where you like, kill what you like" MMO) so in the end I levelled a character from 1-80 both to help me learn the game, and get into the story a bit more. Having now done that, I can comfortably hop onto an 80 character now and not feel overwhelmed, and can focus on the various expansions (and the cool perks each offer).

[@derpsterPRO]

Personally i would recommend to play everything in order, while this is a new story arc and they are more stand alone, you will get spoiled a lot and confused when they talk about previous stuff that happened into the game

[@carbonfibercarpet4655]

I can only imagine how Skill Up felt having to trim down Austin’s 3+ hour long review to 20 mins

[@Guarrow]

GW2 did what probably no other MMO did before : keep their past content relevant. It's just crazy the amount of people there is in maps you think would be deserted because there's just new stuff to do. You're actually rarely alone. So for me who's 2 expansions late because I've taken back the game just a few weeks ago (the last time I played it kinda seriously was in 2019), I still have so much stuff to do and I haven't felt the need to buy Secrets of the Obscure yet (I think I'll just do expansions in order) So even if you really want to try GW2 for free, without any expansion, I still think this would be worth the time. Unlike other MMOs, you will still have a real nice experience because it's not completely deserted by veterans, and that might make you want for more

[@b1indsided]

ff14 enters the chat

[@gama2064]

@@b1indsidedFf14 maps are kinda empty and uninteresting tho, and even though their method works for dungeons it’s very unfun to get your abilities set back to level 30 or whatever.

[@Hikariinu124]

As someone who plays both. FFXIV wishes it's past content was as relevant as gw2s. It's simply not comparable.

[@meadowdear]

@@b1indsided I'd say for the overwhelming majority of 14s content you're alone, and the maps rarely have a lot of people that you run into

[@JungKooksTwin]

@@b1indsided not at all lol. 14 old zones are DEAD cuz there is no reason to do them after msq thru those areas or doing some fates. even in Dawn trail everyone speed ran fates so its pretty much dead as well. nice try tho buddy.

[@KROOF]

Seeing detailed reviews for this expansion is really great to see. For how quickly GW2 needs to turn over yearly expansions, the quality for this one has been palpably high. 🎉

[@tcg2717]

No other mmos do environments like gw2. Maybe wow does also but I LOVE the painterly dreamy look in gw2 so much.

[@TooLeegitToQuit]

Been playing GW2 for the past 6 months (after a 10-year hiatus), and I've been loving it. Glad to have such an influential channel and reviewer covering it!

[@luca7675]

I think it is really important to point out that this is only the first of 4 quarterly updates for this expansion. They will still release 3 story updates, a raid, a fractal, at least one more new zone, and 2 legendary equipment pieces (weapon & backpack). All that is included with the purchase of the expansion.

[@alisardius1577]

It is nice that at least someome talks about guild wars 2. I dont understand why all big youtubers skip it

[@mriguy7989]

Because it honestly has become more of a niche MMO over the years. Still big enough to be successful, but not big enough to really garner the attention that stuff like WoW or FF14 does. That and Anet is notorious for being absolutely terrible at marketing the game.

[@niclastname]

@@mriguy7989 Yeah, WoW has a huge history and crazy money behind it, and FF14 has the FF brand and anime (and money) behind it. They're basically unbeatable in terms of mainstream appeal to the masses.

[@flobro6768]

Hot take here: even if the game had great marketing, most would just skip it. Because at the end of the day, GW2 doesn’t provide what most people want: a large amount of instanced content and a level cap raise with new armor to chase.

[@KennyFalmouth506]

@@flobro6768 unfortunatelly what you type here is the truth

[@niclastname]

I started it because of Austin's recommendations about a year ago, and man I'm glad I did. It's definitely way better than any of the many other MMO's I've played over the decades. It's not perfect, obviously, because nothing ever is. However, no other MMO has ever been so enjoyable to me. The combat is great. I love the world and lore. The mounts deserve the constant praise they get, surprisingly. The art style is easily my favorite of any MMO, and it's not anime which is a huge plus lol. I haven't got into this expansion yet, but I have it bought and ready when I get there. I'm hyped, because this looks awesome!

[@Moonshainu]

Have fun!

[@Stewcombination]

Austin you have been writing such amazing reviews for this channel and your addition has been one of my personal highlights of this channel. Keep it up 🐐

[@bawalbaba4820]

I think Austin is my long lost twin because I also spend hours talking people into trying Guild Wars 2 and getting hooked onto this absolutely gorgeous game.

[@NoseNuggets]

Austins continued love for this game makes me smile.

[@IzzyStrife]

Finally, some real content on this channel! More Gw2 coverage!

[@baby_ghoul]

Janthir Wilds makes me much more optimistic about the future of their new expansion model. SotO felt a little wonky toward the end, but I'm also not a newbie so there just wasn't as much for me in that expansion either. I already have legendary armor, and I got my skyscale mount years ago. It does make me wonder what more they can add to the game now that we have houses. Crossing my fingers for more raids and fractals in the future expansions. That and WvW is where I have the most fun with my friends.

[@traveling.down.the.road56]

@baby_ghoul, hopefully Anet will slow down on trying to add new features to GW2 and instead, they will add content, like Raids, Strikes, better new stories, WvW and PvP maps, etc. GW2 is a very feature full game now and it just needs bug fixes, polishing of existing systems and more content to play.

[@ZeroEscape2074]

I'm an infrequent GW2 player since launch, always love to go back every once a while to see new stuff, there's so much to do

[@MrDionysos01]

thank you for bringing light to this great MMO

[@user-sq7ry5vx7t]

this should become a guild wars 2 channel

[@MaxMiller94]

I haven't played GW2 in about a decade, and now that BG3 is out of my system and Destiny 2 (my usual time sink game) is dying, I'm looking to get back into it. This review confirms it's the right time to do so.

[@Dino9474]

I used to be addicted to GW2 during launch and Heart of Thorns expansion. However, after I crafted Eternity and most of my guildmates left the game, I just stopped playing. I tried making new guild mate friends but there was no replacing all my friends who were no longer there…

[@Jordanbiggs1473]

nerd

[@brandonrhoades7049]

ill be your friend bro

[@Gr00t]

​@@Jordanbiggs1473 you're on a channel that reviews video games... You're also a nerd lol

[@Jordanbiggs1473]

@@Gr00t nope. i play regular video games. mmos are a whole other level of NERD

[@russianFB7442]

Join a wvw guild I've been playing with the same guys for like 7 years

[@aharris237]

Picked up the game in the last month and a half and it is so much fun. Leveling to 80 felt a little slow but once you are in expansions it really opens up. All of the instance content is fun and engaging.

[@sunblade704]

Just fyi, if you're leveling I strongly recommend following the Adventure Guide. You can get to lvl 80 in 6-8 hours if you're familiar with the game and around 10-15 hours if you're less familiar and have a Raptor

[@felipehonoriobs]

guild wars 2 is SO GOOD, it's the one mmo i came back to time and time again

[@FluxCrush]

We got Austin’s GW2 review before the final shape review

[@WarMomPT]

I didn't even realise one was out, 'one year' is a rapid turnaround for a GW2 expac.

[@Xtianzzyzx]

They're doing yearly smaller expansions now rather than the big meaty expansions with smaller living world episodes in between

[@hihihi1q23]

They really need to release GW2 on console. It works perfectly with a controller already with a FFXIV style set-up (which you can download through Steam input). Feels like the kind of game that would thrive on console with its quality and buy to play model.

[@justingonzalezcolon8652]

Yes, either that or official controller support. It baffles me why this isn't the case yet

[@donventura2116]

I'd guess it's a technical limitation. I think it would be worth the investment, but I also have no idea how truly janky the backend is. We only get glimpes of how messed up it is when we learn it's taken over 10 years to have swimmable areas at different heights, and there a multiple menus that are just loading web page browsers in-game.

[@trashsombra4411]

I think the problem is the spaghetti code

[@takubear88]

I fell out of GW2 a while ago and never caught up with it until Janthir dropped and it made me fall in love with it again.

[@juggernaut6666]

when austin talks about guild wars or skill up talks about destiny. it reminds me of a child coming up to me and showing me their favorite rock. I just pat them on the head while saying "wow buddy that is a nice rock".

[@At0micFruit]

Funnily enough you can actually get a pet rock minipet in GW2 lmao

[@MightyTeapot]

BLOOM IS GOD

[@ryltair]

Lowland Shore is so well-designed that I find myself logging into the game and run around the map doing events and digging up treasure for hours. Still haven't finished the story!

[@BasementMinions]

Oh this expansion sounds delightful, thank you Austin :)

[@shizanketsuga8696]

I was a bit worried after SotO really didn't manage to win me over, especially after those content patches finished the story in a rather lackluster way, but JW just hits all the right spots.

[@mAcroFaze]

As someone who only recently got a new PC and wants something to casually jump in and out of that isn't a straight up WOW-paid-subscription, I've been looking forward to this review! :D

[@Reppnek]

I have loved GW2 for many years. Just wish I had more time.

[@donventura2116]

The first map of Janthir Wilds is so ridiculously well-designed in terms of the available open world events and map design for exploration. I play GW2 for exploration and open world pve and this first part update of JW already rivals the bigger expansions in its quality.

[@dreamforger7166]

I dunno why I din't expect a review. But this makes me happy :)

[@Milan-mh4nc]

I recommend new players to play the base game maps without mounts. They were not built with them in mind. You'll have a better experience.

[@dotsparks4915]

This expansion made me feel like i was back in 2012 in a good way

[@muymra]

It will never stop being hilarious to me that Ralph will always have some amount of yearly Guild Wars 2 content on his channel alongside higher profile AA/AAA games

[@hawkshot867]

I'm pleasantly surprised GW2 is still trucking along.

[@ewancuthbertson8019]

One thing I love besides finally going to Janthir after almost 20 years since we first heard about it, is the fact how faithful this expansion is to the entire franchise. They talk about the previous Titan crisis at the end of Prophecies. I can't wait to see where they go with this story.

[@o00o45]

After all these years GW2 has managed to deliver time and time again. Imagine if they got an engine upgrade that caters to their creative needs

[@o00o45]

@@themaniac8596 indeed. I think GW2 is a perfect example of a game held back by game engine. I feel like it has enough content that if Anet decided to look under the hood to fix things for a while, everyone would rejoice cause they have no problem delivering quality content anyway.

[@kesamek8537]

Maybe you mean purely graphics and not the engine. In terms of uptime GW2 destroys just about any other online game I ever heard of. In terms of stability and compatibility again there is little else or nothing that competes. In terms of performance it is excellent for an mmo. Could it use a few small zero performance penalty visual improvement? Yes that's about it tho.

[@o00o45]

​@@kesamek8537 I don't care much for the graphical improvements. I was hoping it'd be performance improvements in world boss content but then again that is a whole lot of people and effects to begin with so it might be asking a lot. But I dp long for the day when I don't have to lower the model limit so I can see everyone in contents like Dragon Stand where it can be easy to lose sight of people during the world events. Plus it'd be cool to see so many people without the massive fps drops yknow?

[@silvertineprime]

Janthir has been amazing and really feels in a lot of ways like a return to those early days of vanilla for me which has been such a treat. Also, I've had bloom turned off in this game for so long that I was ultra jump scared by this footage

[@noobtastic-really]

I'v been having a lot of fun in this expansion. I think the zone design is so good, especially after SOTO. There was a lot of fun just running around doing things and exploring around.

[@SirLionhead1]

Nice to see more of Austin on his channel 😀

[@At0micFruit]

Excellent review by Austin here, JW really does feel like a return to form for GW2 imo - a really helpful community as well for anyone thinking of giving it a shot.

[@phoenyck]

If we convert the sentence "often asked" in the way Austin said, we would get "never tell people unprompted". So good on you, Austin, not bothering people randomly!

[@Xtianzzyzx]

I forgot that you play with action cam on hahaha. Amazing review mate! Keeping GW2 in the lime light!

[@KardashevBand]

Been playing guild wars since Pre-Searing! Excellent coverage, Austin!

[@ReapsVsTheWorld1]

I'm only watching this because it is Austin. I have never once, nor do I want, to play Guild Wars. Great job, Austin!

[@dannyflorida]

As a former very passionate WoW player for 15 years and someone who's gone deep into FFXIV, too, I'm blown away with Guild Wars 2. I just discovered this game less than two years ago, and I'm solidly hooked. It's definitely my favorite MMORPG now and one of the best games period I've ever played. I absolutely love it!

[@johnnykeener3727]

I still have fond memories of the original Guild Wars.

[@xenon899]

A great review showing off the strengths of GW2. Personally been really enjoying this expac!

[@wtfcanifindanamejeez]

I'm glad Austin is reviewing these. It's better for him to do it and we get a fair review than someone who ONLY played the expansion for video content. Thanks Austin.

[@ratus]

I believe some of my armour in GW2 is from 12 years ago and I love it! Hate when there is a stat reset in some MMO's

[@cjb110]

This is one of the great features of GW2, that armour you made at launch (exotic), is perfect for all of the 12 years of content. There was a new armour class (ascended) a few months after launch but its a minor stat boost (~8%). Legendary gear is the highest tier, but it's pure Quality of Life, and has the same stats as Ascended.

[@Ace-yl9pb]

That intro was so hilarious for some reason 😂

[@Saint_Cuthbert]

Guild Wars 2 content! Love it! This is such a great game. Thank you Austin.

[@duncanrobertson6472]

This is a very, very well done review. It's really impressive to see, especially this early into the expansion.

[@vekien]

I am so hyped to get started on this expansion.

[@mattd5857]

Glad to hear your thoughts on the new expansion! I'm loving it myself, you really nailed it with how much they got the joy of exploration right with this one, the new maps (lowland shore especially) are an absolute joy to crawl around on. The warclaw's new tricks are both tons of fun but also really smartly worked into the events and normal gameplay loop. The homestead system has genuinely one of the best decoration systems I've personally encountered in gaming. And the new spears are overall a better crop of new profession features than the Soto weapons and the EoD specs imo. All in all I haven't enjoyed every aspect of a GW2 expansion this much since Path of Fire. Hopefully the rest of the expansion updates keep up this level of quality.

[@Kranitoko]

I don't play Guild Wars 2. But imma watch anyway.

[@davidludwig7501]

I wish I had more time for games like this. Looks dope.

[@dferrith]

It's heartwarming to this this game is actually still alive :)

[@ProtoMarcus]

And it is better than ever! _(Well, except the PvP scene, sadly)_

[@flobro6768]

Every MMO PvP scene is at a very low point to be fair. Iff games with subscription models can’t sustain it, GW2 won’t be able to keep it up as well.

[@TheLardtoast]

We’re never getting Skill Up The Final Shape review are we…

[@quadrilaturalSamurai]

It was implied but not explicitly stated (unless I missed it), but the player housing isn't on a lottery system or whatever -- *every* player gets it. Every player gets their own instance.

[@niclastname]

It's explicit. Every player gets a personal instance with a big area of land and a house. You can decorate anywhere in the instance. You can even build structures like another house out of parts if you want.

[@justschwab]

Wow, I remember playing this over 10 years ago. Kudos to you for reviewing it, and kudos to the devs for maintaining it.

[@ajstone6226]

Austin has done it again. Fantastic video.

[@NomadJedi]

I didn’t know guild wars 2 was still kicking around. This is good news!

[@Laranity]

Great watch as always :>

[@ok_listen]

The amount of passion GW2 devs put is astonishing. Their design is always fresh while at the same time making old content relevant, the exploration is super fun and the activities are amazing, and there's ALWAYS something to do despite the game adopting horizontal progression. At the time of this comment im close to 2100 hours played and man, i still have so much stuff to complete (and to start for the first time, even!) I wholeheartedly suggest it to anyone who's tired of the usual MMORPG formula and doesnt want to chase carrots on a stick anymore ;)

[@RisuAlto]

Hearing Austin love this game so much has made me wonder if I should try it... this was fun to listen to.

[@Rachen1992]

Got a Guild Wars 2 - Janthir Wilds trailer ad right before this video

[@clarencezer]

Awesome review, thank you Austin!

[@heronwhisky]

Stop playing shortly after heart of thorns but damn do I miss guild wars

[@kkii729]

This mood in here is everything!

[@bastien-]

This is making me want to check the expansion out. The maps look really open and beautifully designed. PoF was my favorite expansion, with some of my favorite locations, for just these reasons. They haven't been able to capture that in any of the expansions that followed, but this looks like it might be a return to form.

[@SirShadeyy]

We get a Guild Wars 2 review before a Final Shape one

[@SdotMAULER]

I was looking to return to GW2 and I just found my reason. Thank you. It's been a few years and I'm looking forward to hopping back in

[@stayve.]

I bought GW2 13 years ago and loved it then. Not even sure what my login info is anymore but I’m happy to see the game still evolving

[@FluffyMrB]

Good review, something I missed is if it even worth it for new players? Like, a new casual player probably will only experience this when all the older players have quit or are at the endgame leading to empty maps.

[@notLura]

Don't worry, gw2 consider all players to be in the same mega server, so maps are always full, even old ones

[@CloudManPT]

There's a lot of content that max level players go to that takes place on older maps which makes most places feel alive. This game also incentives alts so I wouldn't worry about feeling left out or questing in dead maps when playing GW2! There are people everywhere. It's fun!

[@cjb110]

GW2 doesn't really have empty maps, the core original maps still have players doing quests, gathering and events (like world bosses). I'd say the lowest pop maps will be the Living World ones as they aren't advertised as heavily and can be missed by new players thinking the xpacs are the only content they need to buy, but even then they have profitiable meta events in quite a few of them, so you'll often find trains running through them. Or players just chasing acheivements etc.

[@JimSamable]

So happy Guild Wars 2 is still going, I only wish they'd brought it to console

[@shield-sc]

Is Austin as good or perhaps sometimes better than Ralph. Wow what a fabulous review...I love both of you so much. this may be the most comprehensive and well articulated review on this channel, ever! Bravo boys! You are both superb!

[@subwaytovenus3237]

Started playing base GW2 after this review, sank anout 8 or 9 hours into it already. Never played an mmo before but damn this shit is fun, keen to eventually get to the dlcs, maybe in a year or so haha

[@Ishi112]

The mount ability use in combat actually looks amazing

[@gunnare6537]

i would really love to try gw2, it looks fun, alas console peasant

[@Milan-mh4nc]

It is, and you don't need an expensive pc for it.

[@kesamek8537]

It runs on a potato PC anything from the last 10 years with decent integrated gpu or modest graphics card, some RAM, some Windows, cheap SATA ssd, good to go @1080p.

[@Avenrise]

Secrets of the Obscure had me worrying about whether ANET could deliver on yearly expansions and make them feel chunky enough that they didn't feel shallow. The first patch for SotO was great and I was impressed but the following patches seriously made me worry once more. It's early days and yes this is only patch one of four so we COULD be in for a bumpy ride but... Janthir Wilds, for me so far, is the best expansion they've created for the game in 12 years. By 'best' I don't mean favourite, that honour still remains with End of Dragons. I mean the most well created, well designed, well written piece of content ANET have put out. Apart from a few bugs at launch and apart from the 2nd map being a little threadbare and me worrying about it long term this is a beautifully crafted expansion and one that, over a decade later, has me in awe at what the talented people at ANET are capable of. This is what MMOs should aspire to be... a criminally underrated game in every respect.

[@adamlgiroux]

I don't play MMOs and will most likely never play GW2, but I love watching people I respect talk about games they love. Videogames are so cool.

[@Zilong09]

GW2 is something unusual in the MMO space. As someone who has played this genre during the Golden era of MMOs and watched the genre collapse in on itself, it's so interesting to see how strong GW2 stands. Strong is a generous word because there is never going to be what we experience back in 2006-2012 for MMOs but NCsoft and Arena is still doing something right. I remember doing Fractals the last time I played GW2 and boy is it ever satisfying to hit those DPS marks and beat Master tier.