I rarely play in any pre release beta unless my focus is entirely on helping to improve the game.

I don't like to ruin my first experience with a game by having an ugly buggy mess to deal with and I do not want to get turned off, or bored with a game prior to release.

I also tend to reserve my judgement for the time that I get to play the game and try very hard not to let someone elses opinion sway me. I appreciate most points of view to a certain degree, but I also realize that the things that I want from a game, and the things that others want from a game can be quite different.

This past week end beta for GW2 was something I avoided. I did not want the small pre release issues to become gigantic issues for me. I gather that overall the test went well but I tend to wonder how many people contributed constructively to the developers. It is one thing to post your opinions on the various forum sites but another entirely offer legitimate feedback to the host.

If this beta was not intended to recieve any feedback, then I would wager that Anet shut the doors and windows on opportunity.

I believe people are too eager to play in beta and entirely misunderstand the purpose behind it. Anet took a huge risk with this one, it may have paid off but it also could have gone horribly wrong.

I am looking forward to playing the game, but I really want to play the finished product, not play something that could turn me off of the game before it is released. If you are not prepared to put that love/hate on the line then do not join in pre release beta.

Down time was way lower than UP time. I mean it was what kind of ratio 1:10.....maybe more

1:25??

Originally posted by jacklo

The main crutch of the problem was that people had to pay to play the beta.

You may expect to find bugs whilst playing but most fundamentaly, especially after having paid, you at least expect to be able to login.

I think that's were most of the rage came from.

That's an outsiders view because I haven't pre-bought the game myself. I was stung by SWTOR and swore never to go down that route again.

Was the prec-purchase really the problem? I mean some people would pay for a DOTA 2, (Diablo 3,) CS GO, The Secret World, Firefall Beta Key. IMO people love to complain. The game really doesn't matter as long they have something to complain.

Originally posted by iamflymolo

I suspect the issue at hand reflects the need for a queueing system which is apparently lacking at the moment, causing the lock-outs. Outside of this, the beta ran smoother than many game launches and since we don't even have a release date yet - that's pretty darn good in my book.

 

Exactly, there are still likely a few months before the game is ready for release. I mean, they haven't even included 2 of the races in BETA events yet.

If people pre-purchased and honestly expected a polished, ready for release game they obviously didn't do any research beforehand. 

This weekend was the first large group BETA put on, and the first with serious gamers for the most part instead of clueless journalists. I guarantee the next one will have improved alot.

Originally posted by Wickedjelly

This is what happens when you offer beta access via prepurchase or preorder. Nothing new here and I have no sympathy for companies being taken to task over it. Matter of fact I'm rather sick of people always laying the blame at the feet of the players and giving these companies a free pass. It's getting really old. You reap what you fucking sow. They want to market beta and use it to increase sales? This is what happens when some pay for the product and can't play or have serious issues. Beta or no.

Let 'em rage. They paid for the product. Like I'm supposed to have sympathy for Anet when they essentially had the majority pay to get access to their beta. Give me a break.

Yeah, and I know for a fact that some of them paid for a pre-order product, not a pre-purchase, which is what they asked for and what they were told they were receiving.  How do I know?  Some bright bulb had the gumption to examine the DVD case and read the words "pre-order" on it.  They were using the wrong keys, sold to them by either an incompetent or shady retailer.

As I understand it, this was also ArenaNet's fault because they received the same email message that everyone did after putting in their key.  No fault to the the consumer though, right?

Let 'em rage.  ArenaNet has been bending over backwards on the beta forums working with them and trying to explain some of the confusion.  I knew what I was getting and had a fucking blast playing.  Oh, and here's the kicker --- so did most people.  The ones who had troubles were a tiny minority.  The servers were still packed, even without them.  Also, very few complaint in the game's chat.  People that were playing were pretty silent if they had something to bitch about.  My experience is that when someone has a beef, it's almost impossible to shut them the hell up (just see these forums where people complain *just* to support someone else's complaints).  Chat was all roses and daisies though on my server.

I feel bad for the few who had legitimate keys and still couldn't log in due to account problems.  They have a right to complain and demand a refund.  Access to all BWE's was guaranteed.  The rest though, bitching about bugs and lag?  Tough.  I tune them out faster than a country music station.  To their credit, ArenaNet continues to treat them diplomatically, cooing to soothe their bruised egos.  Few companies would even bother going that far.

Originally posted by RodimusPrime

 

 Isn't that what they did though? Sell beta. And at full price even.

 

not at all.

they actually sold you the offical game, and if you pre purchased- you will get access to beta weekends as a purk- they didnt haveto to add that at all - many would still be playing this at release date.

this is a win/win for anyone who had signed up months ago for a beta invite and didnt get one.

... whos gonna officially play it on release date-like myself.

not - 'let me try it out in beta and decide later'-type of person.- and there are alot of you out there like that , and perhaps thats how you see it- as a marketing ploy- couse you cant have access to play it for free first.

as for those who prepurchased at a shop at a later date during beta weekend- Its just poor planning.

Originally posted by BillMurphy

Did you read the article? It's about how people need to take Beta into account and STOP raging.  ;)

  Bill Bill Bill...you should know by now that people only read the Headline before flying into their rage over the topic :D

  On a related note, I 'lost' my level 9 Elementalist on Saturday - so had to start over.  Actually had a very good discussion with them  about what might have happened.  I asked for a level 30 Elementalist in compensation!  Anet countered with 'Roll a new one'  Since it's Beta, I accepted their 'offer' :D!

This beta went extremely well for me!

Really, my friend had issues to login the first day, but by Sunday Arenanet solve it already! They actually fix the game for us, as we test it for them. Get real guys.

The game had a great dynamic event system and not so great heart questing system. Personal story is subjective to whether you like to solo. But for me this game is all about finally working with people whether you know them or not.

They have PLENTY of optimization ahead of them. Lag with 20+ people around you, or the capacity of WvW that kept people 30+ minutes in queue to enter the map. But this is Beta and this is on their top priority.

The most annoying thing in this beta weekend for me was asynch of the overflow instances with group members. Had hard time finding my friend between all those overflow instances. And I KNOW that they are ALREADY working on a fix. So again - great game and a willing team that is working hard to fix it.

I wonder if this cry though would make them call out for more frequent weekend testing, like next weekend?! that could be a good reward to both sides ;)

In my opinion this comes down to an infantile mindset.  People pre-purchased the game, knowing it wasn't done, knowing that  beta tests exist to fix bugs like this.  They purchased the game knowing there would be problems, and now they are jumping up and down in there cribs like infants who don't want to take a nap.  There was a poll on here asking how many people were going to ask for refunds on the pre-purchase.  60% or more said no they weren't, the other largest number were people who didn't pre-purchase in the first place.

I played all weekend, except for a couple hours after the server crash saturday.  The worst bug i dealt with was being kicked out of my guild after that server crash.  Beyond that I was extremely happy with my experience, as were all of my friends who also played this weekend.

Honestly most of the negative forum posts I have seen about this game are rediculous.  "This game has too many fanboi's" "The graphics are horrible" "Gem shop makes the game pay to win"

Honestly it seems that the trolls are out in force on this one, they pre-purchased looking for any and every excuse they could find to crucify the developer.  It's pathetic and infantile.

Originally posted by Voiidiin

I think phone texting and twitter has ruined people on reading.

Take for instance that pre-purchasing is just that, you are buying the game prior to the release of it. No where does this equal you are getting the final product until release.

The fact that players cannot understand this simple and basic morsel of knowledge goes to show how little some take to actually comprehend things.

The words BETA TEST represent exactly what those two words mean, yet the comprehension of those two words seem to have been lost on those who felt the need to get angry at the fact that while testing the game they had "issues".

 

So yes, in the end i feel that reading comprehension in todays world is at a low, and since i work in education, and so does my wife, i can honestly state that unless its under 255 character limit, they just won't get it.

 

I will again provide this information since those who have a hard time comprehending things probably won't bother looking up the meaning of it.

Beta Test-

A trial of machinery, software, or other products, in the final stages of its development, carried out by a party unconnected with its development.

(under 255 characters)

What a load of bollox! This is what was put in the newsletter they sent out :

The next Guild Wars 2 Beta Weekend Event is on 27-30 April 2012 and we want you to join us! The only way to guarantee an invitation to this three-day event is by pre-purchasing your copy of Guild Wars 2.
	By pre-purchasing the Digital, Digital Deluxe, or Collector's Edition of Guild Wars 2 you'll play in the Beta Weekend Event, get three days of Headstart Access to the final game, and receive the exclusive Hero's Band in-game item.

BETA COLUMN RAGE!

"Unless you were hiding under a rock this past weekend, you probably heard about the columns that were written on mmorpg.com regarding the Guild Wars 2 beta. The amount of beta related articles increased as the weekend was over. As the columns appeared the fans reached for their pitchforks, and like a swarm of angry Grawl, they rushed into the comment section without reading the actual columns to post comments of rage".

/shameless column theft

Originally posted by Unlight

Yeah, and I know for a fact that some of them paid for a pre-order product, not a pre-purchase, which is what they asked for and what they were told they were receiving.  How do I know?  Some bright bulb had the gumption to examine the DVD case and read the words "pre-order" on it.  They were using the wrong keys, sold to them by either an incompetent or shady retailer.

As I understand it, this was also ArenaNet's fault because they received the same email message that everyone did after putting in their key.  No fault to the the consumer though, right?

Let 'em rage.  ArenaNet has been bending over backwards on the beta forums working with them and trying to explain some of the confusion.  I knew what I was getting and had a fucking blast playing.  Oh, and here's the kicker --- so did most people.  The ones who had troubles were a tiny minority.  The servers were still packed, even without them.  Also, very few complaint in the game's chat.  People that were playing were pretty silent if they had something to bitch about.  My experience is that when someone has a beef, it's almost impossible to shut them the hell up (just see these forums where people complain *just* to support someone else's complaints).  Chat was all roses and daisies though on my server.

I feel bad for the few who had legitimate keys and still couldn't log in due to account problems.  They have a right to complain and demand a refund.  Access to all BWE's was guaranteed.  The rest though, bitching about bugs and lag?  Tough.  I tune them out faster than a country music station.  To their credit, ArenaNet continues to treat them diplomatically, cooing to soothe their bruised egos.  Few companies would even bother going that far.

 

 Did I say customers should never be taken to task or are innocent in all affairs? Don't believe I did. How do you know how was legit or not? You have no idea how many or few it was.

...and where did I say Anet wasn't doing a good job answering issues or concerns? I didn't comment one way or the other far as that goes. My point was that when you offer beta as a marketing tool this is what happens. Well...that and people acting like this should be the least bit surprising or unexpected is simply silly. They come across as clueless as the supposed people they want to burn at the stake for "raging". The moment you start pushing for people to buy your product is the moment some are going to get bent out of shape if they have major issues with it.

Anyways, I agree if people are complaing over minor issues or bugs then they need to simply get over it. But those that couldn't even log in or hardly at all? While the "it's beta" tag technically still works I can understand their frustration. Besides, you know damn well some of these same "it's beta" peeps would be just as irritated if they were having the same problem.

whats the say- when the table is quiet at dinner the food is good?.... the main chat was mostly quiet and everyone was playin or helping one out in main events! questions where politely answered and

never saw a rage in main chat or pvp troll chat.

was a great refreshing experience!

I had a problem with my wife's computer (which meets all the specs) not being able to run the game properly.  Other than that, I had no problems.  Even if I had, it would have sucked, but there is one important thing I would have remembered:  It was a TEST!  Honestly, to get all butt hurt because things didn't go your way in a test is just ridiculous and really smacks of the entitled mentality that's rampant nowadays.  Those of you who think you got ripped off because you couldn't log in, or the game wouldn't play, or whatever have only yourselves to blame.  You gave a company money so you could get into a testing phase and then got upset because you obviously didn't realize what a test entails.  Tests of this nature involve FAILURE all the time.  That's why they do these tests.  So things will fail before it's released so they can fix it before release.  Get off your entitled high horses and make sure you understand what you are doing next time.

Oh, and to clarify a point I saw even in the article.  Not everyone had to pre-purchase to get into beta.  If you signed up for beta and didn't pre-purchase you still had a chance to get picked to be in it and Anet gave out a whole bunch of free beta keys before this weekend.  So, while the majority did pre-purchase to get into beta, it wasn't required.

One last thing:  As consumers it is YOUR job to understand what it is you are spending your money on.  If you buy something without understanding what that purchase entails (the good and the bad), then it is YOUR problem, not the company's.  In this case, Anet was very up front that you would get guaranteed access to the Beta tests and then the final game when it was released.  If you spent your money and then got upset when things didn't work in the Beta test, it's YOUR fault for not understanding what you were getting into when you made the purchase. 

Edit:  Added final paragraph.

Originally posted by keinohr

Originally posted by jacklo

The main crutch of the problem was that people had to pay to play the beta.

You may expect to find bugs whilst playing but most fundamentaly, especially after having paid, you at least expect to be able to login.

I think that's were most of the rage came from.

That's an outsiders view because I haven't pre-bought the game myself. I was stung by SWTOR and swore never to go down that route again.

Was the prec-purchase really the problem? I mean some people would pay for a DOTA 2, (Diablo 3,) CS GO, The Secret World, Firefall Beta Key. IMO people love to complain. It doesn't matter which game they always find something.

Just my take on the situation.

There are always those who will complain.

Personally, I feel there was some justification with regards to the login issues.

Basically people payed for access and some didn't get it. It's nothing to do with expecting bugs or not. These people were promised access for payment and couldn't login.

You have to expect some flak over that.

I logged in and out at least a dozen times and never once had an issue, Im sorry it seems some of you did. Also, the game ran super great for me considering as the Devs have said the game is CPU heavy and CPU being one of my weaker components( 3ghz core 2 duo) but theyve said they are working to shift some of the load to the GPU where my system is a bit more beefy.

Over all I was very impressed but did see room for improvment. Thats what Beta is for though. So Im not overly worried.

hillarious how gamers still think of betas as pre release demos and not betas

you think after all these years, but nope!