Guild Wars 2 goes Free to Play

Hope you didn’t buy Guild Wars 2 in the past few days, because if you did you’re about to feel really stupid.

While revealed ‘exclusively’ by IGN a few days ago, that statute of limitation has been lifted and now we can proudly declare: Guild Wars 2 is going from Buy-to-Play to Free-to-Play; you can now download the game and play without even paying the $50 entrance fee! And it happened… yesterday!

So, if you’ve been looking for an excuse to try my favorite MMORPG, now’s your chance.

Now, while this isn’t as limited as World of Warcraft’s “free” accounts (which, let’s face it, are pretty dang lame), a free Guild Wars 2 account still has incentives to purchase the full version (which, for the record, you get automatically when you buy the Heart of Thorns expansion). In the free version, your chat and mailing options are limited, you have less bags, less character slots, and you can’t leave certain zones until you reach certain levels, cutting into the games whole “free world” feel. Additionally, you have less options in the in-game Gem Store, and extremely limited guild options.

But still, you can play the game and hit level 80, go to dungeons, play PvP, participate in World Vs World Vs World, and even play through the main story (which, in my mind, is the main draw—the narrative focus in GW2 is a huge draw). It’s a full, if slightly abridged, MMORPG experience.

Of course, even with the limitations, this might piss off some older fans who paid a full 50 or 60 dollars to play the game earlier. Granted, they get some compensation—namely, they get a Royal Guard outfit to signify they bought the game before it went free—but that prize might not be enough for disgruntled fans who might just prefer their 50 dollars back. Unfortunately, the chance to refund the game has come and gone, so at this point I guess we just have to cut our losses and possibly label it as a bad investment.