Pre-release news/Archives/2011/Apr-Jun

June

Video: The Ascalonian Catacombs Dungeon Cinematic

June 30

Hey everyone, Horia Dociu here. As the Cinematic Department Lead, I’m very excited to share with you one of our team's favorite dungeon cinematics – the Ascalonian Catacombs intro.

These cinematics play at the key moments of the story mode in each of the eight dungeons in Guild Wars 2, setting the mood and delivering valuable info. Stylistically, we're pushing the concept of a visual storybook as a form of communicating to the player – we want the cinematics to feel like moving paintings.

Read more about dungeon cinematics on the ArenaNet blog.

William Fairfield on Designing the Dungeons

June 28

When sitting down to design the flow of a dungeon, my first consideration is creating challenges that the player must use skill and ingenuity to overcome. I'm not just designing these challenges for the players though; I'm designing them for myself as well. I come from a fairly hardcore player background, raiding in Everquest, World of Warcraft, and even City of Heroes. I love a good challenge, and I hope to reach out to the players who do as well.

Read more about what William Fairfield has to say about dungeon design on the ArenaNet blog.

Introducing Dungeons in Guild Wars 2

June 24

Enter the dungeons and explore the mysteries of Tyria - just don't go in alone! Learn more about these challenging group adventure locations in this all new article by Jeff Grubb!

Jonathan Sharp Talks Underwater Combat

June 24

Today ArenaNet are going to go beyond the x- and y- axis and dive into the vast underwater world of Guild Wars 2. Ready to get your feet wet?

Read what Jonathan Sharp has to say about underwater combat on the ArenaNet blog.

Introducing the Guild Wars 2 Asset Kit

June 17

Need an awesome piece of GW2 concept art for your blog, article, website, or project? Check out the Guild Wars 2 Asset Kit, a collection of visual assets ranging from logos to concept art to screenshots—available right here.

The Mostly Harmless Quaggan

June 16

Quaggans are intelligent, benign, amphibious beings who originally made their homes in the depths of the Unending Ocean. They have recently moved into the shallower waters along the Tarnished Coast and the Sea of Sorrows, as well as inland to the freshwater lakes.

Read more about the quaggan on the ArenaNet blog.

May

ArenaNet’s Tradeshow Summer

May 27

What are you doing this summer? ArenaNet is making big plans for this year’s tradeshow season and they want you to join them. Read on for a breakdown of what ArenaNet are up to this year!

Frequently Asked Questions about the Engineer

May 26

Last week ArenaNet rolled out the engineer, the multi-purpose, mechanically minded Guild Wars 2 profession. The engineer's use of hardware like mines and turrets represents a departure from classic fantasy tropes and a whole new style of gameplay, so many of you had questions. Fortunately, ArenaNet have answers! Read on for answers to common engineer questions!

Announcing the GW2 Ambassador Video Contest Winners!

May 26

After reviewing nearly 500 videos, ArenaNet have selected the winners of their first ever Guild Wars 2 video contest. Check out the winning videos right here!

Link Roundup: The Engineer

20 May

David Campbell rounds up reactions from around the world to this week's roll out of the engineer, the latest Guild Wars 2 profession. A versatile profession who uses all manner of mechanical devices on the battlefield, the engineer opens up new horizons of gameplay possibilities to crafty players.

Read on for a sampling of reactions to the multi-purpose engineer.

Introducing the Engineer

May 19

The latest Guild Wars 2 profession has a gadget for every occasion. Watch videos of the engineer in action and learn more about their multi-purpose mechanical abilities right here!

Lion’s Arch: Building the Heart of the City

May 11

Matthew Medina gives a behind-the-scenes look at how they're creating the cities of Guild Wars 2. He explains how ArenaNet are infusing Lion's Arch with all the little touches that they hope will make your downtime between personal story steps and dynamic events as entertaining and immersive as possible.

Read what Matthew says about designing Lion's Arch on the ArenaNet blog.

Video: City of Lion’s Arch

May 11

The most diverse and cosmopolitan city in Tyria, Lion's Arch is a melting pot where all the races gather and trade. Lion’s Arch owes no allegiance to any race or nation, but stands on its own – and it does so by virtue of its active navy, its financial strength, and the intelligence and cunning of its leaders.

See the Lion's Arch video on the ArenaNet blog.

Shadows in the Water – The Krait

May 4

For centuries, tales have been told of the krait's pillared cities rising above the water far out at sea. Spires reach up from the waves with no land visible on any horizon, and their bases coil down into the ocean depths where no air-breather could survive. Lost sailors live there, their ships crushed by storms. Glittering parapets soar, formed from wood, glass, and pirate treasure long thought to be lost at sea.

Read more about the krait on the ArenaNet blog.

April

Become a Guild Wars 2 Ambassador – Enter ArenaNet's Video Contest!

April 28

Help spread the word about Guild Wars 2 by entering ArenaNet's "Become a Guild Wars 2 Ambassador" Video Contest. The two fans who create the most compelling 1 minute promotional videos (entries must be in English) will win a trip to Seattle to visit ArenaNet's new studio. Check out the contest web page and get started now!

An Introduction to the Environment Art of Guild Wars 2

April 27

Peter Fries talks about being an environmental artist at ArenaNet. Maybe you’ve wondered, “What is an environment artist? Are they different from map designers or other game artists? Is an environment artist the same thing as a level artist?” The simple answers are, “Awesome, yes, and sometimes.”

Read more on the ArenaNet blog

The Legions of the Charr

April 22

In the year 1090 of the Mouvelian calendar, King Adelbern, last human ruler of Ascalon, released the Foefire. The human residents of that land succumbed to the terrible magic, only to rise again as ghosts. By 1112, the High Legions of the charr reclaimed the entirety of Ascalon. Only four years later, Kalla Scorchrazor of the Blood Legion came before Forge Ironstrike, the imperator of the Iron Legion, and challenged him to help her free their people from the shamans’ control. Together, Kalla and Forge led a rebellion against the Flame Legion, overthrowing their tyrannical rule. The three legions, Blood, Ash, and Iron, then reassembled a nation from the ruins of the past.

Read more of the charr legions on the ArenaNet blog.

New Video and Lore on Charr Web Page

April 21

As part of Charr Week, ArenaNet have updated the charr web page with new wallpapers, expanded lore, and a brand new video that features the unforgiving domain of the charr. Learn more about this ferocious unconquered race on the updated Guild Wars 2 charr page!

The Artistic Origin of the Charr

April 20

As Charr Week rumbles on like an unstoppable war machine, let’s take a look at the origin of the charr from a visual point of view. I talked to the three ArenaNet artists most responsible for the look and feel of the charr, Katy Hargrove, Kristen Perry, and Kekai Kotaki, to get their take on this iconic Guild Wars 2 race.

Read more on the ArenaNet blog.

Scott McGough on Writing the Charr

April 19

ArenaNet design writing team member, Scott McGough brings the latest dispatches from the farthest reaches of the charr empire. To prepare us for the bad guys from Guild Wars becoming a fully playable race in Guild Wars 2.

Read about and hear more of the charr at the ArenaNet blog.

Creating the Charr Starter Area

April 18

Devon Carver explores the charr starter area Village of Smokestead in the context of ArenaNet's iterative development methodology.

Read the article on the ArenaNet blog

Prepare Yourself for Charr Week

April 18

Blood and fire! Prepare yourself for the coming of the charr legions – Charr Week has begun!

All week we’ll be taking a look at the ferocious, feline charr, one of the five playable races in Guild Wars 2, here on the blog and on the Guild Wars 2 website. We’ve got brand new lore, art, audio clips, fiction, interviews, and more charr stuff than you can shake an axe at – including a brand new charr video on Thursday, April 21st!

Read more about the upcoming charr week on the ArenaNet blog

Ghosts of Ascalon Nominated for Scribe Award

April 13

We’re excited to announce that our very first Guild Wars novel, Ghosts of Ascalon, has been nominated for a Scribe Award this year! Writers Matt Forbeck and Jeff Grubb have been recognized for their excellent work by the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers, who present the annual Scribe Awards.

Read more on the ArenaNet blog

Those Sneaky, Sneaky Skritt

April 5

The oldest asuran writings tell of the deep lands far below the surface of Tyria. Their lore describes beasts that no human or charr has ever known and gives histories of places now thought destroyed forever by the rise of Primordus, the Elder Dragon. These scrolls also speak of monsters fell and dangerous...and other creatures, perhaps not as dangerous, but horribly, wickedly tricksy – the skritt.

Read more about the skritt on the ArenaNet blog

Goin’ Commando with Horia Dociu

April 4

As the dust settles from our explosive April Fools’ Day prank, Cinematics Lead Horia Dociu, the mastermind behind the totally-not-real commando profession, reveals the inspiration and planning for this elaborate ruse.

Read about the prank on the ArenaNet blog

Here Comes the Commando

April 1

The commando is the latest Guild Wars 2 profession – an elite soldier who dominates the battlefield with high-tech firepower and armored vehicles. Learn more about this versatile new profession and check out our action-packed skill videos at our new commando web page! Eager fans can play a preview of the commando in the original Guild Wars right now!