Guild Wars 3 is 'Significantly More' of an MMO Than the First Game, but That Doesn't Mean It's Like GW2

Guild Wars 2 is one of the biggest MMOs around today, but it's a sequel to a game that's just barely an MMO. The original Guild Wars is more of a mission-based ARPG with shared town hubs that feels like an MMO due to its huge roster of character classes and /dance emotes. When a game like Guild Wars 3 gets announced, an obvious question follows: will it be an MMO or not?

According to a blog post from ArenaNet studio head Colin Johanson that went up earlier this week, the answer is yes, but with an asterisk. In the post, he lays out the studio's taxonomy for the first two games. The first Guild Wars game, Johanson reckons, was a "cooperative online RPG," but when everyone started calling it an MMO, ArenaNet followed suit. The second is a true-blue MMO that was always intended to toy with the genre's conventions.

As for the third? It "lands near the middle of the MMO spectrum … While it fits the definition of an MMORPG significantly more than Guild Wars Reforged does, it doesn't try to replicate the large-scale gameplay pillars that so uniquely define Guild Wars 2." "This ensures that all three of our games can coexist as different experiences on different timelines, telling different stories about the world of Tyria," the post explains.

Johanson concedes that this declaration is "broad and vague," and it's true that we only have the roughest idea of what Guild Wars 3 might look like at this point. That said, social media is ablaze with prospective players trying to guess at exactly what sort of game GW3 will be—speculation has ranged from a New World-like to a GW1 successor to a singleplayer game—which I suppose is what happens when the only two games in your series hardly play like one another. If nothing else, we know it's an MMORPG of a sort, or at least an MMO-like, which somehow feels like a relief.

The Evolution of the Guild Wars Series

The original Guild Wars was released in 2005 and quickly gained a following for its fast-paced, skill-based combat and lack of subscription fees. While it allowed for multiplayer cooperation, it didn't feature the open-world exploration, persistent world, or complex player-driven economies that define MMOs today. Instead, it offered a more structured experience with instanced content and a focus on solo or small-group play.

Guild Wars 2, launched in 2012, took a different approach. It embraced the MMO genre fully, introducing dynamic events, a living world, and a focus on player interaction that made it stand out in the crowded market. The game was designed to be more accessible, with a focus on community and shared experiences, which helped it attract a large and dedicated player base.

What to Expect from Guild Wars 3

While Guild Wars 3 is still in early development, ArenaNet has made it clear that the game will not be a direct clone of Guild Wars 2. Instead, it will occupy a middle ground between the first two titles. This approach allows for Guild Wars 3 to maintain its own identity while still being a part of the larger Guild Wars universe.

Some of the key differences between Guild Wars 3 and Guild Wars 2 may include:

  • A more structured, mission-based approach to gameplay
  • A focus on storytelling and character development
  • A different approach to world-building and player interaction
  • A potentially smaller scale of gameplay compared to Guild Wars 2

These changes are not meant to diminish the MMO experience but rather to provide a different kind of MMORPG that can appeal to a broader audience. By taking this approach, ArenaNet hopes to create a game that can coexist with the first two Guild Wars titles, each offering a unique experience within the same universe.

The Future of the Guild Wars Franchise

With the announcement of Guild Wars 3, fans of the series are left wondering what the future holds for the Guild Wars franchise. While ArenaNet has not provided many details, the studio has made it clear that Guild Wars 3 will be a different kind of MMO than its predecessors.

This approach may be a response to the evolving landscape of the MMO genre, which has seen a shift in player preferences and expectations. As Colin Johanson noted, the studio wants to ensure that all three Guild Wars games can coexist as different experiences on different timelines, telling different stories about the world of Tyria.

Whether Guild Wars 3 will be a success or not remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: ArenaNet is committed to exploring new directions for the Guild Wars series while staying true to its core principles.