Make It So: GW2 Design Manifesto

Click the pic above, or here to read the original GW2 Design Manifesto post.

I made a rhyme (accidentally on purpose)!

I have been excited to write on this topic since I started the Make it So series.  It is awesome how you can read something almost 2 years old, and have it be as exciting to read today as it was then.  This post will most likely be split into 2 or 3 parts, depending on how much we can get through in today's edition of Make it So.

If you've been following Make it So, you'll notice that we're going to be jumping a few months into 2010.  Up through March 2010, major news consisted of an interview on lore, as well as a short post detailing development of races and professions.

In April of 2010, Mike O'Brien posted the Guild Wars 2 Design Manifesto.  As far as I am concerned, this article is one of the best postings on the ArenaNet blog.  It is blunt, honest, and blatantly calls out current MMO design.  When I first read this, I was overjoyed that someone in the gaming community finally understood what players really wanted from playing their favorite MMO.  Not only does ArenaNet understand what players want in an MMO, they also have come up with fresh new ideas that are going to shape the MMO culture for years to come.

Click past the break and join in as we discuss the Manifesto.




O'Brien opens up the Manifesto with a brief history of inspirations for the original Guild Wars game, and let us all know that they were keen on shaking things up in the MMO realm.  It's the closing statements of the intro that really caught my attention:

So if you love MMORPGs, you should check out Guild Wars 2.  But if you hate traditional MMORPGs, then you should really check out Guild Wars 2.  Because, like Guild Wars before it, GW2 doesn't fall into the traps of traditional MMORPGs.  It doesn't suck your life away and force you onto a grinding treadmill; it doesn't make you spend hours preparing to have fun rather than just having fun; and of course, it doesn't have a monthly fee.

For your viewing pleasure.

I love how reading that kinda leaves you with a feeling of being slapped around a bit.  This showed me that ArenaNet is a company willing to take risks, and willing to lay it all out on the table.  Now, my gaming history over the last 7 years includes heavy doses of WoW with a few other MMO's mixed in.  I must say that over my many many hours of playtime, there have been weeks, even months where I needed a break from the ''everyday life'' of MMO's.  Grinding dailies to pay for repairs, maximizing profits on the AH, running the same heroic 6 times in a row to grind out the last bit of reputation, and the list goes on (and on).

"it doesn't make you spend hours preparing to have fun rather than just having fun"

WHAT A NOVEL CONCEPT.

So instead of standing in town waiting for the LFG tool to form a group full of 'fun' people to play with, I can actually be out in the world adventuring and playing with other people?  Sign me up please.

And because I don't want to overload your brain with awesome, I'll end today's edition of Make it So.

Our goal with Make it So is to educate those new to Guild Wars 2, with a basic timeline of major news announcements.