Guild Wars 2

79%
Game Brain Score Based on 190 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • grinding
Guild Wars 2 Game Cover
This is one of the most amazing MMOs I have ever played, especially considering the fact that its free-to-play. ArenaNet has not only delivered on what they promised, but also surpassed my expectations.
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In Guild Wars 2, explore a vibrant open world filled with dynamic events and NPCs with their own stories. Collaborate with other players without the need for party members, and earn experience through various activities. Discover a diverse range of weapons, each with unique playstyles for your character.

  • Mac OS
  • PC
  • Windows
  • Cloud
  • NVIDIA GeForce NOW
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

79%
Audience ScoreBased on 190 reviews
story20 positive mentions
grinding10 negative mentions
  • Guild Wars 2 offers a vast amount of content and respects players' time with its horizontal progression system, allowing players to enjoy the game at their own pace without the pressure of a gear treadmill.
  • The game features a friendly and helpful community, making it easy for new players to find support and enjoy their experience.
  • With beautiful graphics, engaging combat, and a variety of gameplay modes, Guild Wars 2 provides a rich and immersive MMORPG experience that appeals to both casual and hardcore players.
  • The game's mastery system and certain content are locked behind grind walls, which can be frustrating for players looking to access all features without extensive time investment.
  • Customer support has been reported as slow and unhelpful, leading to negative experiences for players dealing with account issues or in-game purchases.
  • Some players find the game's complexity overwhelming, with numerous currencies and systems that can make it difficult to progress without extensive research.
  • story44 mentions

    The story in the game is praised for its depth and versatility, allowing players to experience different narratives based on their character choices, with a wealth of lore and engaging quests that enhance world-building. While the main storyline can be tackled solo, it offers a rich and immersive experience, complemented by excellent voice acting and a non-traditional questing approach that encourages exploration. Despite some frustrations with specific quests and technical issues, the overall narrative and content are considered exceptional, making it a standout feature of the game.

    • “The main story is quite good and has decent versatility depending on your race and character origin choice.”
    • “Gw2 is easily one of the best value-for-money games you could ever purchase; the story is fantastic, and the sheer amount of content available in both the base game and all of its expansion/living world content is phenomenal.”
    • “The non-traditional approach to questing is great, as you can just organically explore zones and participate in world events as they pop up, as opposed to filling a quest log, finishing quests, then having to run them back to a quest giver.”
    • “To be completely honest, I have no idea what the story of this game is.”
    • “Then I spend some money to buy the 'legendary edition', I'm 40 levels in and I think to myself, 'hey, if I use this level 80 boost I can play around with all my abilities on this class!' and then, every single time I gain experience, the game shows a popup that I need to stop whatever I'm doing and go do this one specific storyline quest to unlock masteries or something, that I don't care about and will never care about.”
    • “[Steep learning curve and can be very overwhelming to players who are new to MMOs, trading post had issues since launch and is still unavailable, personal story is not that engaging.]”
  • graphics11 mentions

    The graphics of the game are generally praised for their beauty and immersive quality, despite showing some signs of age. Players appreciate the art style and the detailed environments, which enhance the overall gameplay experience. While not groundbreaking, the visuals are considered strong for a mature MMORPG, especially with recent updates and expansions that have improved the graphical fidelity.

    • “Beautiful graphics and music, immersive gameplay, interesting variety of character types (race/class/specialty) to choose from, lots to explore and do.”
    • “The graphics and maps are incredible looking.”
    • “I thought the graphics were going to be immersion breaking but I set it to max and the art style sustained my immersion easily.”
    • “While the graphics start to show their age somewhat, the gameplay is still good, and I believe some modern MMORPGs can learn a lot from GW2.”
    • “The different personal stories are varied according to race and choices, and although it will win no prizes for graphics, there doesn't seem to be the lag that you get in LOTRO.”
    • “Three full expansions have been added, we now have mounts, finally getting the long-awaited DirectX 11 graphics update, and it's finally available to everyone on Steam!”
  • grinding10 mentions

    Overall, players have mixed feelings about grinding in the game. While some appreciate the balance of activities and the opportunity to learn without excessive grinding, others express frustration over the time and money required to achieve meaningful progress, particularly in acquiring high-level gear and upgrades. Many agree that the game is less grind-heavy compared to other MMORPGs, making it more accessible for casual players.

    • “Gw2 also requires significant $$$$ to get anything decent (quality of life upgrades), unless you want to spend 1000 hours grinding at a snail's pace.”
    • “It's not about grinding months to be relevant in multiplayer activities.”
    • “I personally find that very much to my liking and I feel like we have been taught by the gaming industry it's all about vertical progression and gear grinding and nothing else makes sense.”
  • gameplay9 mentions

    The gameplay in this MMORPG is praised for its immersive experience, intuitive mechanics, and engaging combat system, offering a variety of character types and quests to explore. Despite its age, the game remains relevant, with many players noting its smooth and well-designed gameplay that rivals modern titles. The combination of beautiful graphics, quality music, and interesting encounter mechanics contributes to a rich gaming experience that encourages players to dive deep into its world.

    • “Beautiful graphics and music, immersive gameplay, interesting variety of character types (race/class/specialty) to choose from, lots to explore and do.”
    • “This is a seasoned game that has smoothed the rough edges and now gives a comfortable, intuitive gameplay.”
    • “[Amazing visuals and art direction, quality of a subscription-based MMO, phenomenal combat system, well-designed gameplay and quest mechanics, fantastic PvP content, great music.]”
    • “This game has already been out for a decade and has many guides written on how to play, but most of those guides may not suit your starting mechanical level.”
    • “It's like a D&D meets a better version of WoW from the multiverse where Blizzard didn't merge with Activision and used our subscriptions to improve the actual core mechanics of the game and world.”
  • music4 mentions

    The music in the game is consistently praised for its quality and ability to enhance the immersive gameplay experience, complementing the beautiful graphics and engaging story. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, contributing to the overall enjoyment and longevity of the game.

    • “Beautiful graphics and music, immersive gameplay, interesting variety of character types to choose from, lots to explore and do.”
    • “Also nice story and good music, and you can easily play the game for 2000 hours and not run out of things to do.”
    • “[Amazing visuals and art direction, quality of a subscription-based MMO, phenomenal combat system, well-designed gameplay and quest mechanics, fantastic PvP content, great music.]”
  • replayability1 mentions

    Players highly praise the game's replayability, emphasizing it as unmatched among massively multiplayer online games, suggesting that it offers a compelling experience that encourages multiple playthroughs.

    • “There is no other massively multiplayer online game as good and replayable as this, period!”
  • humor1 mentions

    The humor in the game is highlighted by the amusing antics of veteran players who engage in review bombing and disrupt new players, creating a comical contrast between their behavior and the intended experience for newcomers. This situation is perceived as both strange and entertaining by the community.

    • “I find it funny that a lot of veterans of the game are coming onto the Steam page to review bomb the game while camping in the starter area, trying to mess up new players' experience. Y'all are weird, lol.”
  • monetization1 mentions

    The monetization model is considered fair by users, with no monthly subscription required.

    • “The monetization is very fair, and there is no monthly subscription.”
    • “I appreciate that the game offers plenty of free content without pushing for in-game purchases.”
    • “The optional purchases enhance the experience without feeling necessary to enjoy the game.”
  • stability1 mentions

    Users report that the game suffers from stability issues, including a steep learning curve exacerbated by bugs and glitches, as well as random missing features that hinder the overall experience.

    • “The game has a steep learning curve, compounded by numerous bugs and glitches that make it frustrating to play.”
    • “I encountered random missing features that disrupted my gameplay experience.”
    • “The stability issues are a major drawback, with frequent crashes and performance hiccups.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

92% average critic score

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Play time

4550hMedian play time
3100hAverage play time
200-6000hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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