Poll: Guild Wars Vs World of Warcraft

[Abedeus]

Sure, Guild Wars is free...but, that doesn't make it a good game. As a former avid player of both WoW and GW I can say that WoW is worlds ahead of GW in almost every conceivable way. A lot of people like to jizz all over GW because it's free to play once you purchase it, but keep this in mind: if someone hands you a turd for free, it's still a turd.

It's not free. You have to pay $ for it.

Also, PvP. That is all.

I've used bold text to signify where you fail. Also, PvP =/= a better overall game. That is all.

Oh no, a mmo player attacked me. What shall I do.


Yes, PvP + good PvE = better game. One you do not have to pay $15 a month to play.

Here's what you do. Bring facts on the table. Just because GW is a F2P game, does NOT make it the better game. The PvP in GW actually requires skill, unlike WoW (-cough- gear -cough-), but that doesn't change the fact, that GW is "unsupported" content-wise, unlike WoW.

Guild Wars PvE is so damn boring, grind grind 4 ranks! Now, that's an opinion =D

So wait. "Does not make it a better game" and "requires skill" are both bad things?

Also - boring PvE is countered by Hard Mode. And grinding ranks was nerfed - there's little point in doing so.

 

[Danarok]

Completely different games, playstyle and business structure.

If I had to say which one is "better" then I would say I've enjoyed WoW a lot more. It is massively more polished, more visually pleasing, more fun and more consistently updated. But then, you get what you pay for.

 

[Ghadente]

Free! the way its suppose to be!
go guild

 

[Retoru]

Sure, Guild Wars is free...but, that doesn't make it a good game. As a former avid player of both WoW and GW I can say that WoW is worlds ahead of GW in almost every conceivable way. A lot of people like to jizz all over GW because it's free to play once you purchase it, but keep this in mind: if someone hands you a turd for free, it's still a turd.

It's not free. You have to pay $ for it.

Also, PvP. That is all.

I've used bold text to signify where you fail. Also, PvP =/= a better overall game. That is all.

Oh no, a WoW fanboy attacked me. What shall I do.


Yes, PvP + good PvE = better game. One you do not have to pay $15 a month to play.

WoW fanboy? I don't even play WoW. Your equation is flawed though, the "good PvE" you speak of doesn't exist in GW. The PvP is decent, but the PvE is a disjointed mess of ass. Missions spike up from so easy you can sleepwalk through them to impossibly hard, then back to easy, then medium, then hard, etc. The PvE areas are all instanced taking out any spirit of cooperation and community with the population at large on the server. The only place you can interact with other people is in a town, which is next to impossible since most people only hit the towns to spam their goods, unload their bags, or log out.

As I said, I've played GW and found it somewhat enjoyable. But, had it not been free to play each month I'd have never played it again after the first 30 days(usually free in MMO-land). That's really the only thing GW has going for it, it's free to play so the cheap bastards out there have an alternative that is slightly better than the masses of shitty MMOs being led to battle by Runescape and Maple Story.

Now, I also have critical things to say about WoW, that game is no picnic either. However, it is miles ahead of GW in most aspects. The sheer volume of PvE content in WoW eclipses GW several times over, and questing is done out in the world with other players so there is always that ability to interact with the community for help, advice, or just idle chit-chat. WoW tends to get it's problems patched much quicker than GW, perhaps due to the dev team having a steady downpour of money being thrown at them from players. Then we have the graphics and the cut scenes. Sure, you could argue that the graphics are too cartoony, but you can't deny the game has some stunning environmental visuals in some zones. And the pre-rendered cut scenes are also quite good, especially the Wrathgate scene.

Let's not forget about items and loot as well. WoW has an endless parade of loot for players to find and enjoy, where GW only has far fewer loot items. When you hit lv 20 in GW nearly everyone you see is wearing identical armor and carrying the same weapons, the only real differences are the colors since not everyone uses the same dyes.

 

[Archaeology Hat]

Hmm, pay once for a game, and then have to pay for every patch or after it.
Or pay monthly for a game and have a better moderator system, more frequent updates, and direct input from the head designer.

I'd say it's about equal, I just don't like the polygonal feel of "real" graphics. WoW's cartoony graphics are pretty cool to me.

I always found Guild Wars' moderators actively awful. Whereas I've only found WoWs to be overworked and apathetic.

WoW has fairly frequent updates, though the amount has diminished over the years.

It would be a total lie to say theres no input from WoWs designers although who they are changes as Blizzard shuffles itself around.

 

[cainx10a]

Sure, Guild Wars is free...but, that doesn't make it a good game. As a former avid player of both WoW and GW I can say that WoW is worlds ahead of GW in almost every conceivable way. A lot of people like to jizz all over GW because it's free to play once you purchase it, but keep this in mind: if someone hands you a turd for free, it's still a turd.

It's not free. You have to pay $ for it.

Also, PvP. That is all.

I've used bold text to signify where you fail. Also, PvP =/= a better overall game. That is all.

Oh no, a mmo player attacked me. What shall I do.


Yes, PvP + good PvE = better game. One you do not have to pay $15 a month to play.

Here's what you do. Bring facts on the table. Just because GW is a F2P game, does NOT make it the better game. The PvP in GW actually requires skill, unlike WoW (-cough- gear -cough-), but that doesn't change the fact, that GW is "unsupported" content-wise, unlike WoW.

Guild Wars PvE is so damn boring, grind grind 4 ranks! Now, that's an opinion =D

So wait. "Does not make it a better game" and "requires skill" are both bad things?

Also - boring PvE is countered by Hard Mode. And grinding ranks was nerfed - there's little point in doing so.

Here's the deal. I played GW since day 1 (And that's a straight 3-4 years, out of 1 year old PvP'ng in Tombs/HA/HoH before switching to just hang around with guildies), and WoW for only 3 months (wait, make that less than 1 month of gametime total).

I am defending both games, against idiots who can't accept that there may be a better game out of the two and that one of them is NOT an mmo.

Yes, it's a good thing that GW takes "skill" being having a tactical mind to make sound decisions against yet another cookie cutter build in a fight. o.o, "Blood Spike, BLOOD SPIKE, WHAT SHALL WE DO? BALANCED GROUP? EASY, IWAY IT!!!!!!!!!1111".

And I still have tremendous respect for those bright folks who actually bother to create another awesome team build for PvP. But at the end of the day, skill is subjective, in both WoW and GW. Skill is about knowing your character skills/spells or your team skills/spells. Knowing when to use your adrenaline for a spike kill, being fast enough to infused that other monk dying. Going for a kill, and cancelling your return aura in time. Blackout a warrior who is about to spike your healer.

Finally, there is a reason why WoW Arena is right there in CAL and in E-Sport, it does take "skills".

And really, hard mode? Hard Mode was fun for a while, and that's about it.

Guild Wars 2 will certainly be the next game I'll pick up and cherish for a while, until I get burnt out of it.

And i'll say it again, just because it's free, doesn't make it the better game.

 

[Raikazu]

I'm considering getting it, it looks like fun. How many expansions and whatnot are there now that I have to pay for to get myself up to speed?

Guild Wars now has four games. Three of them are 'stand-alone' campaigns, meaning you can buy any of them and play them. However, when you get more than one, you CAN combine them if you reach a certain place in the game, at which point a character you started in one campaign can go over to the other campaign.

There is also an expansion pack where as long as you have a lvl20 character, you can access a new area and get new skills, heroes, gameplay elements. It's also the 'bridge' between Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2.

Stand-Alone Capaigns - Prophecies (also known just as Guild Wars), Factions and Nightfall

Expansion - Eye of the North

 

[John Funk]

GW is good for what it is, but it's not a true MMO. It's closer to Diablo than a real MMO, I think.

I personally prefer WoW; there are some great MMOs out there (LotRO, WAR, EVE to name a few) but none of them really grab me the way WoW does, with its incredible amounts of polish.

I will never understand why so many people are against paying pocket change for constant content updates. It's a mindset that honestly baffles me. You get so much play time out of your average MMO that it's by far the cheapest way to game in the long run, anyway.

Also, if you don't think that skill is a factor in WoW at all, I submit to you Orangemarmalade [http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/03/28/orangemarmalades-1-vs-2-comeback-explained/] and his 1v2 comeback.

 

[cainx10a]

GW is good for what it is, but it's not a true MMO. It's closer to Diablo than a real MMO, I think.

I personally prefer WoW; there are some great MMOs out there (LotRO, WAR, EVE to name a few) but none of them really grab me the way WoW does, with its incredible amounts of polish.

I will never understand why so many people are against paying pocket change for constant content updates. It's a mindset that honestly baffles me. You get so much play time out of your average MMO that it's by far the cheapest way to game in the long run, anyway.

You have to take into consideration, that not everyone has the same amount of time to actually enjoy an MMO. Sometimes, they feel $15 a month, does not justify the 1 or 2 hours of playtime they might get, in an entire week.

 

[Archaeology Hat]

Bear in mind also that Guild wars is deeply painful to get into these days, where the starting zones being deserted isn't too bad on WoW where you can solo to the max level if you want to in Guild Wars, which requires a group to get anywhere it is a right pain.
About a year ago I re-installed Guild Wars and decided to start a new character... that was a big mistake.

 

[cainx10a]

Bear in mind also that Guild wars is deeply painful to get into these days, where the starting zones being deserted isn't too bad on WoW where you can solo to the max level if you want to in Guild Wars, which requires a group to get anywhere it is a right pain.
About a year ago I re-installed Guild Wars and decided to start a new character... that was a big mistake.

Prophecies can be beaten just by using your henchmen. Not to mention if the player has nightfall, the customizable heroes come in pretty handy.

While Guild Wars encourages grouping, it is not necessary for PvE, except for end-game challenges like The Tombs of Primeval Kings (Prophecies), Factions (Urgruz and the other turtle-lover one), NF (The endgame outpost which I can't remember the name in the vortex .

And Hard-Mode, which usually requires to have human players, as the henchies or even heroes, can die in a matter of seconds, not to mention, that there are some solo-build, other not as fun as say, soloing in WoW.

 

[Rhayn]

I'm considering getting it, it looks like fun. How many expansions and whatnot are there now that I have to pay for to get myself up to speed?

Guild Wars now has four games. Three of them are 'stand-alone' campaigns, meaning you can buy any of them and play them. However, when you get more than one, you CAN combine them if you reach a certain place in the game, at which point a character you started in one campaign can go over to the other campaign.

There is also an expansion pack where as long as you have a lvl20 character, you can access a new area and get new skills, heroes, gameplay elements. It's also the 'bridge' between Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2.

Stand-Alone Capaigns - Prophecies (also known just as Guild Wars), Factions and Nightfall

Expansion - Eye of the North

Thank you, that certainly cleared things up. So, let's say that I'm intrested in paying as little as possible, but having the most fun aswell as playing on-par with everyone else, what should I be buying?

Or should I just let my wallet cry and get them all?

 

[crono738]

Kinda had to go with "Both Equal" as they both do some things well.

Guild Wars pretty much killed the level grinds with its low cap and forced you to think about what skills work well together due to the 8-skill-slot restriction...and it's free. Unfortunately, its replayablity has become significantly less as NCsoft decided to stop adding content so they could focus on GW2.

World of Warcraft, on the other hand, has a much more noticeable level/gear grind. Yes, there's the $15/month subscription fee, but you generally have more content to play around in for that price. Blizzard's also constantly adding new content so it may have greater replayability for some people.

Overall, Guild Wars is fun for awhile but gets old rather quickly and WoW's grinding nature can turn off alot of players.

 

[Archaeology Hat]

Bear in mind also that Guild wars is deeply painful to get into these days, where the starting zones being deserted isn't too bad on WoW where you can solo to the max level if you want to in Guild Wars, which requires a group to get anywhere it is a right pain.
About a year ago I re-installed Guild Wars and decided to start a new character... that was a big mistake.

Prophecies can be beaten just by using your henchmen. Not to mention if the player has nightfall, the customizable heroes come in pretty handy.

While Guild Wars encourages grouping, it is not necessary for PvE, except for end-game challenges like The Tombs of Primeval Kings (Prophecies), Factions (Urgruz and the other turtle-lover one), NF (The endgame outpost which I can't remember the name in the vortex .

And Hard-Mode, which usually requires to have human players, as the henchies or even heroes, can die in a matter of seconds, not to mention, that there are some solo-build, other not as fun as say, soloing in WoW.

But the Henchmen are damn stupid... and the instanced areas of Guild Wars are so much lonlier than anywhere in WoW where at least theres a zone-wide chat and theres normally someone around...

 

[cainx10a]

I'm considering getting it, it looks like fun. How many expansions and whatnot are there now that I have to pay for to get myself up to speed?

Guild Wars now has four games. Three of them are 'stand-alone' campaigns, meaning you can buy any of them and play them. However, when you get more than one, you CAN combine them if you reach a certain place in the game, at which point a character you started in one campaign can go over to the other campaign.

There is also an expansion pack where as long as you have a lvl20 character, you can access a new area and get new skills, heroes, gameplay elements. It's also the 'bridge' between Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2.

Stand-Alone Capaigns - Prophecies (also known just as Guild Wars), Factions and Nightfall

Expansion - Eye of the North

Thank you, that certainly cleared things up. So, let's say that I'm intrested in paying as little as possible, but having the most fun aswell as playing on-par with everyone else, what should I be buying?

Or should I just let my wallet cry and get them all?

Get the best one, Nightfall or Prophecies, although I would say go for NF because of the heroes henchmen (You can customize their skill bar, they level with you, and even can equip gear you loot from enemies). Remember that EotN is an expansion pack, and requires that you have at least one of the stand-alone campaigns.

I would say, don't make the same mistake as a friend who I convinced to buy all 4 games, he didn't last for a week before returning to WoW.

 

[pha kin su pah]

I still prefer Guild wars over WoW, the PvE, is well less, but its not constant grinding (unless you have OCD and are going for "im a very important person title" or after "FoW"esque weapons/armour), its great, however with the introduction of "nightfall" and heroes, its teamwork required aspect went out the window, and people became less tolerable of one another, it still exists, in some peak hours, however it has fallen apart and decline, when people started dropping off, it was good, while it lasted.

Its PvP aspect however, is vastly superior in generally every form, it went from casual faction warfare, RA, TA, heroes, and then we had Hall's and GvG seasonals at top ranking, ANET even supported world championships twice, then after a duration came Monthly tournements, which had substantial prizes on the line, even ingame recognition, of such statis, with trims, ranks, and titles, the only time i noticed WoW had a world championship, pretty well all the teams were banned for account swapping.

my preferance still lays with Guild Wars, even in its detriorated mess.

 

[TetsuoKaneda]

My take on the GW versus WoW debate is this: I played Guild Wars up until last year. I liked it a lot. It was fun, light on grinding, and the community was not only helpful, they were really cool people who managed to get along with me and I with them. Plus, it was really quick for me to learn and level, which helped.

But all my friends played WoW. So I joined up with a WoW account only to find an entire community of (in the words of one philosopher) hooting d*ckholes who laughed at me for rolling Alliance, laughed at me for being low-level, laughed at me for the kind of character I was running, and were the rudest people I've ever met, bar none. Plus, all the grind got boring after about a week. So I left. I could pay a regular person fifteen bucks a month to verbally abuse me and get more out of it than WoW.

I think it has a lot to do with Guild Wars being in the minority and free (and therefore less likely to attract the sort of people who hide under rocks), and therefore the community's a little more open and a little more welcoming.

 

[Eamon]

But the Henchmen are damn stupid... and the instanced areas of Guild Wars are so much lonlier than anywhere in WoW where at least theres a zone-wide chat and theres normally someone around...[/quote]

How is that a problem? I may what to play a mmo but that doesn't mean I want to socialize and it solves WoW'S main problem the anoying kids who turn up everywhere.

 

[NeutralDrow]

But all my friends played WoW. So I joined up with a WoW account only to find an entire community of (in the words of one philosopher) hooting d*ckholes who laughed at me for rolling Alliance, laughed at me for being low-level, laughed at me for the kind of character I was running, and were the rudest people I've ever met, bar none. Plus, all the grind got boring after about a week. So I left. I could pay a regular person fifteen bucks a month to verbally abuse me and get more out of it than WoW.

See, that's the problem with having friends.

Or the need to listen to the community, for that matter, but that's not as funny. Frankly, I never set foot off my mid-sized RP server just so I don't have to run into those freaks (and I usually roll Alliance just to spit in their faces).