Guild Wars is leaving many of us wondering "what beta?" Guild Wars is solid and practically bug free. This third beta weekend event showed several changes; most importantly to the questing and the inventory system. Another noticeable change would be the appearance of the character faces. I thought they looked pretty damn nice during the first beta weekend event, but now they're fantastic. Attention to these details proves not only the competence of Guild War's developers but also just how polished and ready this game will be when it finally is released.

 

When Guild Wars beta weekends begin not a lot of work gets done around here at CounterFrag. Since the characters were reset before this past weekend nothing got done; other than "testing" Guild Wars. I hate to admit it, but there was a 4 a.m. bed time at least one night.

The visual quality of Guild Wars really is top notch. As a role playing game (online no less) the graphics certainly stand up to those of Half Life 2, Doom 3, and most definitely Far Cry. There were times I found myself in disbelief questioning if this whole thing was actually a prerendered movie. Everything from landscapes and scenery to player models are beautifully rendered in real time. It is eerie just how realistic and convincing everything is. The rolling hills, abandoned ruins, clouds, water, paint a picture of a world only before seen by those reading fantasy classics such as Tolkien and Moorcock. I've played many online role playing games before and too many times outdoor environments leave me completely disconnected from the gaming world.

Not only have the Guild Wars developers successfully presented a game with excellent graphics, but they also deliver in terms of gameplay. Guild Wars is for any gamer who wants to cut the crap and get straight to the fun parts. A low learning curve which means it's great for newbies and veterans alike. The monsters are huge beasts right from the beginning. Thats right -- no killing rabbits for five hours before moving onto a somewhat larger version of the same animal. It is clear that these guys put quite a bit of thought and creativity into designing the enemies and monsters we spend our time battling.

Within your journey, you'll acquire a vast array of spells, specific to your primary and secondary classes. Choosing the right spells will either guarantee your safety through a successful quest, or choosing the wrong spells will ensure your demise and the failure of the quest. If failure is imminent, don't worry. How many of you remember being glued to online RPGs that we couldn't walk aware from without risking losing our entire inventories? Guild Wars allows you to restart in town with no penalties. Nothing. You may then restart the quest just as easily as you began and dive into it using different spells and tactics.

Due to the character resetting our goal for this beta weekend was to make it to Lion's Arch. After hours of playing we got there. By Sunday we were killing lightning drakes on the beaches outside Lion's Arch and doing a few team battles in the various arenas. As the final minutes and seconds ticked away everyone gathered at the fountain dancing and demanding a dragon siege on the city; alas, there was none.

 

Even without the dragon siege on Lions Arch, the third beta weekend event has been the best one yet. We are all eagerly anticipating the next beta weekend and even more anxious for the full game to be released. At the same time we are crossing our fingers hoping that Guild Wars isn't too addictive.

Guild Wars Screenshots

To play the next Guild War's beta weekend pre-order the game.

For more info check out our article on the Guild War's World Preview Event.