Guild Wars 2 is the most successful MMORPG since World of Warcraft. There's no denying its sales and staying power, even if you're not a fan. So one has to figure that the suits at NCsoft and ArenaNet are aware of the money to be made from an expansion. So today, we're playing wishful thinker and listing out five things we'd love to see whenever Tyria gets its inevitable boxed expansion outside of the biweekly content. Be sure to add your hopes and thoughts in the comments below!
The Monk, Ritualist, Assassin, Paragon or Dervish
There are four professions "missing" from Guild Wars 2 that were originally in GW1, but we don't need all of them added to make an expansion worth playing. But we'd be lying if we didn't want to see the Dervish or Paragon make their way back to Tyria. The Guardian is the "successor" or the Monk and Paragon, but there's something to be said for a spear-wielding badass and a martial arts master. Plus, the Monk could be one of the game's first true "support" specializations, though we know ANet sort of frowns on that design in GW2. Some of these professions may now be redundant, but we'd love to see some of their territory revisited in an expansion. Either way, a new profession is a must, and if we're following the GW1 model, new professions would mean...
New Zones and Story Campaigns
The Nightfall Expansion, along with the others from GW1, had several unique zones added to the game. And no expansion would be complete without revisiting some of these missing areas from the original. We want to revisit Kourna, Istan, and the Realm of Torment. We want to return to Cantha and see the Jade Sea once more. But there are plenty of areas in the GW2 map that are left unopened even a year after the game launched. It makes sense that some of these will become available whenever an expansion drops.
Mounts
Yep, I said it. I want mounts in Guild Wars 2. I know there's no real reason for them, given the supreme ease of travel in the new Tyria, but a year after starting my GW2 adventure, I realize now just how much I like running faster and showing off special mounts in my MMOs. I'd love to see them somehow worked into the lore of an expansion, giving the players a few options when they add it to their account. Then, if ArenaNet is smart, they'll add shiny special ones to the cash shop and lockboxes and they can all retire rather early from the profits (I'm only kind of kidding). Mounts would be a purely superficial addition, but who knows? Maybe ArenaNet can give them purpose, make them customizable, combat-ready, or something along those lines to make them more than just speed boosters.
Where Be My Guild Hall, Darn It?
Of course, right? If they don't get added in a free update, ArenaNet should make sure to bring us Guild Halls and personal housing in an expansion. There's nothing that creates a tie to the world for us more than property in a virtual world. Let's just hope they do it right, and don't make them exclusively instanced. Putting them in a shared space where players can walk, talk, and maybe even interact with mini-games would be ideal. Take some lesser used spaces of Lion's Arch and add housing to them!
The Tengu or Kodan
Nothing else needs to be said. If none of our wish list makes the cut, this one at least needs to happen. ArenaNet, give us these bird-men and/or Bear-people to play and make it happen soon.
Bill Murphy / Bill Murphy is the Managing Editor of MMORPG.com, RTSGuru.com, and lover of all things gaming. He wants to play a Bird-Man, darn it. He's been playing and writing about MMOs and geekery since 2002, and you can harass him and his views on Twitter @thebillmurphy.