In a moment of boredom, I decided to try this again - because I always wanted to experience the exploration of the great areas and content.
Guess what? I've been unfair and downright wrong about the game.
No, it's not wrong to dislike it - but I claimed that it'd be dead after a few months, and it's anything but dead. Lots of people playing - and now I understand why.
I've completely changed my mind about it. Not sure if it's because I've changed or I'm just approaching it from a different angle.
It has "clicked" for me - and I must have spent a good 30-40 hours playing in the past week. For whatever reason, I now enjoy that it's highly accessible and that it rewards you for everything you do.
I used to consider it way too casual and superficial - but it's really more the case of it just being generous. It's definitely no more superficial than the MMO norm - and if it's more casual, I consider that a refreshing change from the past few MMOs I've played.
But the most impressive thing, to me, has been the amazing combat system and the overall feel of just playing the game at its core. It's so delightfully smooth and responsive and there are really no MMOs that can compare. I never gave it the chance to impress me with these things - but now that I like what it's trying to do, I'm able to appreciate some of the very strong qualities the game has to offer.
The exploration I always liked, but I never realised just how much unique stuff each and every area seems to offer. There's so much to discover and wonder at if you take your time and talk to NPCs. Lots and lots of small hidden details that many will likely never see.
I love their approach to crafting and gathering materials - because you never feel it's a waste of time. I especially like the discovery system and something like Cooking is great fun because of the amount of combinations.
Oh, the game has flaws - and I still don't like the PvP implementation. WvW is not designed for someone like myself who wants to be an individual and who wants to stand out. It's probably great if you play with a large guild and you don't mind zerg vs zerg fights - but I consider those boring as hell.
sPvP is pointless without some kind of meaningful progression - and winning in small instanced areas with no connection to the world is just not for me. Not at length, anyway.
But the PvE is wonderful and the classes all feel and look great. I love the active combat. Legendary weapons are excessively cool to look at - and they do take an appropriate amount of effort to get. They've handled it the right way - because when you do get your hands on a legendary - it will automatically stay up to date with the most powerful gear in the game. Meaning that, unlike games like WoW, your effort will always be worth it.
Anyway, just wanted to say this - because I've been quite harsh towards the game in the past, and I was obviously not in the right mode to enjoy it.